THE OBEDIENT BOTTLE.
Fashion a shape like a small bottle, out of pith, paper pulp, or some other light substance. Cut a bullet in two, and fasten the base of the bottle to the flat portion of one of the halves. A straight piece of large wire, the length of the bottle, should be provided, and a hole made down through the center of the bottle, into which it will slide readily, and remain with the end out of sight. This hole may be made with greater ease before attaching the bullet. This object can be made to yield apparent obedience to the commands of its maker. If he orders it to remain upright, he will place it on the table without inserting the wire, when nothing but constant pressure will induce it to lie prostrate. Then, taking it into his hands, and skillfully introducing the wire while the attention of the observers is directed elsewhere, he next orders it to lie flat; and, as the weight of the wire overbalances it, it will tumble over as often as it is set up.
The bullet should be covered with thin paper as smoothly as possible, and the whole affair painted, to better conceal the modus operandi.
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