“Candle, light!”
At once the candle leaped into a glow. There were surprised exclamations at this, and Joe repeated the trick several times.
“It is very easy when you know how,” he said, “and to prove there is no trick about it I will pass the candle down to you for examination.” Joe tossed a candle among the audience. Several examined it. There was no doubt that it was just an ordinary candle.
“How did he do it?” every one asked.
The secret lay in a trick candle. The first one Joe lighted for the young man was an ordinary taper. Once blown out it could not be lighted except with a match.
But when Joe had his helper assist the young man down off the stage, the young magician took advantage of the fun and confusion over this to substitute on his table a trick candle for the ordinary one.
This trick candle consisted of a metal tube, painted white, and made to look exactly like a candle, with a metal point at the top to represent a wick. Inside the hollow metal tube was a small wax taper, a miniature candle, and it was held up near the top by an inside, spiral spring. The spring was strong enough to carry up the taper as fast as it burned, but could be pulled down by a black silk thread, coming out at the bottom of the candle stick, and extending across the stage through the draperies, where it was held by Professor Rosello, who helped Joe in this illusion.
Joe quickly substituted the trick candle for the real one and lighted it, pretending that the wind had blown that one out as he walked to the table.
With the trick candle aglow, Joe only had to take his position where he pleased, and order the candle to go out. At once Professor Rosello, behind the scenes, pulled the black thread, invisible to the audience. The taper, still lighted, was pulled down inside the hollow metal candle stick, and, of course, it seemed just as if it went out. It was still burning, however, some small air holes on the back of the tube, where they could not be seen, providing the oxygen.
When Joe, pointing the other end of his wand at the candle, ordered it to light, Professor Rosello released the string, and the concealed spring raised the still lighted taper into view, so that the candle appeared to light itself in a mysterious manner.