Mlle. Volatile accordingly lies upon a board supported by two trestles or chairs of the same height. Next the wizard walks round her, carefully disposing of her drapery and tucking it neatly about her feet. He makes a few mesmeric passes, examines her pulse carefully, and removes the trestles. The lady is seen suspended in the air as in [Fig. 10]. After a short time the magician reverses his passes, and smilingly helps Mademoiselle to the ground.
All this is very mysterious until [Fig. 11] “gives the show away.”
Fig. 11.—Key to floating lady illusion.
A, B represents the back of the scenery through which a hole, E, is bored. This hole is concealed by a little drapery on the face of the curtain. Behind the scenes is a simple contrivance, the principle of which can be seen from the cut. It consists of a strong upright F, which branches into two arms, each of which terminates in a journal, H, H. Through these journals runs an iron bar, D, which, terminating at one end in the handle, G, has the other end protruding through the hole in the scenery.
In the board, C, upon which the lady lies, is a socket to receive the end of the handle.
Now, whilst the lady is putting herself in position on the board, the magician can walk right round her, for the bar has not yet been protruded through the scenery. But, at a signal from him, an assistant behind the curtain seizes the handle, G, thrusts the bar through the hole as far as it will go, and holds the handle firmly.
Whilst adjusting the lady’s robe the magician fits his end of the bar into the socket in the board, and, still arranging the folds of her drapery, carefully conceals any sign of what he has done. Having ascertained that everything is safe, he removes the trestles, and the board, with its living burden, is maintained in the air by the iron bar.
After replacing the supports the bolt is withdrawn by the assistant behind the scenes, and no one suspects the existence of the very material support which has kept the lady in the air.