Explanation.—The birds are really attached by wires of communication.
Their perches, on which they alternately alight, join at one end so as to form an angle of forty-five degrees. The birds are in no wise attached to either of them, but at the outer extremity of fine tubes—the other end being on a joint at the place of junction of the two perches—which tubes contain the fine wires which open the bill and wings. The outer point carries the bird, in each case, along the line of an arc of forty-five degrees. It passes so quickly through the air that a forewarned spectator would hardly perceive it; but as the exchange of position is made when attention is diverted by Mr. Panky, no clue is given.
This movement is a great improvement on the ordinary twin singing-birds of the conjurors, which simply stand on a cross-handled perch, or fixed tube, through which the wires pass.
THE AUTOMATON ARTIST AND WRITER.
(Robert Houdin’s Improvement.)
Mr. Panky introduces to the audience his young friend, a puppet, arrayed as the secretary to royalty, in an exquisite court dress of the time of Louis XV., and removes him from a sideboard to his table set in front of the audience, that they may see no deception is possible.
The mannikin has a little table before him, on which his hands rest, but can be lifted up.
Mr. Panky furnishes him with paper and a pencil, and begs the audience to suggest a subject for the exercise of his artistic skill.
The ladies’ voice is for a rose or a bird. The secretary moves his eyes, bows, and at once sets to tracing before him an excellent picture of the objects voted for.