It is necessary to mingle some merry pranks among your grave miracles, as in this case of money, to take a shilling in each hand, and holding your arms abroad, lay a wager that you will put them both into one hand without bringing them any nearer together; the wager being laid, hold your arms abroad alike a rod, and turning about with your body, lay the shilling out of one of your hands upon the table, and turning to the other hand; and so you shall win your wager: a knack more merry than marvelous.
To transform any small thing into any other form by folding paper.
Take a sheet of paper, and fold or double the same, so as one side be a little longer than the other, then put a counter between the two sides of the leaves of the paper, up to the middle of the top of the fold, hold the same so as it be not perceived, and lay a groat on the outside thereof, right against the counter, and fold it down to the end of the longer side, and when you have unfolded it again, the groat will be where the counter was; so that some will suppose that you have transformed the money into a counter; and with this many tricks may be done.
Another experiment of the like nature.
Take two papers three inches square a-piece, divided into two folds, into three equal parts, at either side, so as each folded paper remains one inch square; then glue the back side of the two together, as they are folded, and not as they are opened, and so shall both papers seem to be but one, and which side soever you open, it shall appear to be the same, if you have handsomely the bottom, as you may well do with your middle finger, so as if you have a groat in one hand, and a counter in the other, you having shewed but one, may, by turning the paper, seem to change it; this may be the best performed by putting it under a candlestick or a hat, and with words seem to do the feat. This is no inferior trick.
Of cards, with good caution how to avoid cozenage therein, especially rules to convey and handle the cards, and the manner and order how to accomplish all difficulties and strange things wrought with cards.
I having now bestowed some waste money among you, I will set you to cards, by which kind of witchcraft a great number of people have juggled away, not only their money, but also their lands, their health, their time, and their honesty. I dare not as I could, shew the lude juggling that cheats practice, least it minister some offence to the well disposed; to the simple, hurt and losses, and to the wicked, occasion of evil doing; but I could wish all gamesters to beware, not only of cards, but also of what dice they play withal; but especially with whom, and where they exercise gaming, and to let dice pass as a thing whereby a man must be inevitably cozened: one that is skilful in making bum cards, may undo hundreds of wealthy men that are given to gaming; for if he hath a confederate present, either of the players or standers-by, the mischief cannot be avoided; if you play among strangers, beware of him that seems simple or drunken, for under their habit the most specious cozeners are presented, and while you think by their simplicity and imperfections to beguile them, and thereby perchance are pursuaded by their confederates, which you take to be your friends, you will be then most of all deceived; beware also of the betters and lookers-on, and particularly, of them that bet on your side, whilst they look on your game without suspicion, they discover it by signs to your adversaries, with whom they bet, and yet are their confederates.
But in shewing feats and juggling with cards, the principal point consisteth in the shuffling them nimbly, and always keeping one card either at the bottom or in some known place of the stock, four or five cards from it; hereby you shall seem to work wonders, for it will be easy for you to see one card, which, though you be perceived to do, it will not be suspected, if you shuffle them well afterwards: and this note I must give you, that in reserving the bottom card, you must always whilst you shuffle, keep him a little before or behind all the cards lying underneath him, bestowing him, I say, either a little beyond his fellows before, right over the fore finger or else behind the rest, so as the little finger of the left hand may meet with it, which is the easier, the readier, and better way: in the beginning of your shuffleing, shuffle as thick as you can, and in the end throw upon the stock the nether card, with so many more at the least as you would have preserved for any purpose, a little before or a little behind the rest, provided always that your fore-finger (if the pack lay behind) creep up to meet with the bottom card, and when you feel it, you may then hold it until you have shuffled over the cards again, still leaving your kept card below: being perfect herein, you may do almost what you list with cards by this means, what pack soever you use, though it consisteth of eight, twelve, or twenty cards, you may keep them still together unserved next to the card, and yet shuffle them often to satisfy the curious beholders. As for example, and for brevity sake, to shew divers feats under one.
How to deliver out four aces, and to convert them into four knaves.
Make a pack of these eight cards, to wit, four knaves and four aces, and although the eight cards must be immediately together, yet must each knave and ace be evenly set together, and the same eight cards must lie also in the lowest place of the bunch, then shuffle them so always at the second shuffling, or, at leastwise, at the end of your shuffling the said pack, one ace may lay undermost, or so as you may know where he goeth and lieth always: I say, let your aforesaid pack, with three or four cards more, lie unseparable together; immediately upon, and with that ace; then using some speck, or other device, and putting your hands with the cards to the edge of the table, to hide the action, let out privately a piece of the second card, which is one of the knaves, holding forth the stock in both your hands, and shewing to the standers-by the nether card, which is the ace, or kept card, covering also the head or piece of the knave, which is the next card, and with your fore-finger draw out the same knave, laying it down on the table; then shuffle them again, keep your pack whole, and so have your two aces lying together in the bottom; and to reform that disordered card, and also to grace and countenance that action, take of the uppermost card of the bunch, and thrust it into the midst of the cards, and then take away the nethermost card, which is one of your said aces, and bestow him likewise; then may you, being as before, shewing another ace, and instead thereof lay down another knave and so forth, until, instead of your aces, you have laid down four knaves, the beholders all this while thinking that there lies four aces on the table, are greatly amused, and will marvel at the transformation: you must be well advised in shuffling of the bunch lest you overshoot yourself.