A Trick Blotter
An ordinary blotter may be transformed easily so that it will remove ink completely when applied instead of leaving sufficient to recognize the script, by steeping it in a solution of oxalic acid. Permit it to dry after several applications of the acid. It will be the source of much amusement, and is useful as well.
Magic Candles Explained
By CLIFFORD WAYNE
Clever and baffling though it may be, the magic-candle trick may be performed easily and with professional skill by a person who has made a few simple preparations. The illustration shows the candles arranged on a table made of a music stand.
Candles, cigars, or pencils may be used, but for the purpose of this description the former will be used. The candles are of different colors but of the same size and weight. The manipulation is as follows:
Exhibit a tube of brass, cardboard, or other suitable material, just large enough to contain a candle. Then retire from the room, leaving the tube on the table while one of the spectators selects one of the candles and places it into the tube, covering the end of the latter securely with a small cap. The other candles are hidden before the performer is permitted to return. The trick is to announce the color of the candle contained in the box by merely passing the hand over it several times. The box and candle are passed out for inspection and will bear it if properly prepared.
The secret of the trick is this: The first candle, for example, the white one, is unprepared. The second, a blue one, has concealed in it, ¹⁄₂ in. from the top, a small piece of magnetized steel. The third candle, a red one, has a similar bar concealed at the middle; the fourth, a magnetized bar ¹⁄₂ in. from the bottom, and the fifth candle has the bar at a point halfway between the middle and the bottom. The candles are made of wood and the magnets may readily be imbedded in them. They are made of two pieces glued together like a pencil.
Mysterious Passes over the Concealed Candle are Made and Its Color Announced
The performer hides a small compass in his palm. It is held in place by a wire clip, gripped between the second and third fingers near the knuckles. A wave of the hand over the tube containing a candle will affect the compass if any candle other than the white one is used. Its needle will vibrate when approaching the concealed magnet, and by determining quickly the position of the magnet, the color may be announced.
Those who offer guesses usually insist that some electrical device is used.