“Yes. And for that reason it’s safer to lay the slate on a table or on the stage in plain sight, but where no one can inspect it. Then the magician can ask some one to come up and lift the handkerchief, so it can’t be said he wrote the number down himself. That’s all there is to it.”
“Say, it does sound easy now,” commented Charlie. “But how did you ever figure it out, Joe?”
“Yes, you surely did the trick smoothly!” was Tom’s compliment.
“Oh, I’ve studied it a little,” admitted Joe, modestly. “It needs a little practice in ‘palming,’ that is in holding two or more things in your hand without letting the audience suspect you have them; or in changing one thing for another by sleight-of-hand, as I changed the papers. You see it’s very easy—like this.”
He picked up a small stone, held it on the back of his left hand, passed his right quickly over it and closed both fists.
“In which hand is the stone now?” he asked.
“There,” said Tom, indicating the right fist.
“No, there,” said Charlie, quickly, touching the left.
“Neither one, it’s there on Henry’s knee,” announced Joe with a laugh, and so it was, the same stone, for it was peculiarly marked.
“How did you do it?” cried Henry, in frank amazement.