“I shall now, by means of the ‘od’ force, compel the coin to move towards me.” This he does accordingly, by relaxing the pressure of the thumb upon the thread and merely bringing the pull of the weight into operation. When the coin has all but reached the nearer end of the tramway, he says, “We will now see if we can make it travel a little longer distance.” So saying he draws the thread out again and lays the coin on the farther end of the tram, and again makes it travel slowly back. A good effect may be here produced by making it stop halfway, and (after remarking in a casual way that the power is hardly strong enough) picking up the ball, again rubbing it upon the sleeve and moving it, a few inches distance, in the direction in which the coin is to travel, when it resumes its journey accordingly.
Once more picking up the coin, he replaces it at the farther end of the tramway, but in so doing passes the thread outside and around the screw at that end. He then remarks, as if bethinking himself: “By the way, a lady suggested the other night that the coin was attracted towards me by my personal magnetism. I know I am an attractive man: I have been told so frequently but that is not the explanation in this case, as I will prove to you by making the coin travel away from me.” So saying, he draws the coin towards him, easing off the pressure on the thread to enable him to do so, and leaves it at the inner end. The ball is now moved away from himself, and the pressure of the brake being relaxed, the coin is now drawn in the same direction.
“‘Quod erat demonstrandum,’ as our old friend Shakespeare (or was it Euclid) used to say.” (To the lender of the coin.) “You must take care of this coin, Sir; it is now charged with a minute quantity of the ‘od’ force, and so long as you keep it you can never be ‘stony-broke.’ I will show you just one more effect with it before I return it to you.”
While speaking, he has carelessly picked up the coin, and replaced it on the inner side of the screw so that this shall be no longer encircled by the thread. Picking up the match box from the table, he pushes out the “tray” portion with the forefinger; then throwing aside the outer case, he picks up the tray, and inverts it over the coin.
“I will now show you that the ‘od’ force still operates even though it is cut off from any direct connection with the subject of the experiment: but in this case a little more power is required.” So saying he rubs the glass ball again on his coat-sleeve, and, moving the ball accordingly, causes the coin to travel towards him, the match-box naturally moving with it. In again picking up the coin, to return it to the owner, he detaches it from the disc, which flies back to its original resting-place.
THE MYSTERY OF THE THREE SEALS
This is a trick involving some little trouble in the way of preparation, and perhaps a little more than average address on the part of the performer, but on the other hand it costs little; for all the needful appliances may be homemade, and in the hands of an expert the trick will amply repay the time and trouble expended upon it. Baldly stated, its effect consists in the magical introduction of a marked coin into the innermost of a nest of three envelopes, each securely sealed.
