CARD TRICKS
Calling the Cards. To begin with, allow the pack of cards to be thoroughly shuffled. When the pack is returned to you, adroitly notice the value (suit and denomination) of the bottom card, which we will suppose happens to be the four of spades.
Now, with apparent carelessness, throw the cards face downward on a table and scatter them about with your fingers. However, you must not lose sight of the bottom card, and wherever your fingers may push it your eyes should follow also, in order that you may know exactly where it lies. The spectators, meanwhile, are unaware of this knowledge on your part.
Say to those present: “I will now present to you a mystery which is apparently very simple, yet to my mind is a profound problem. It is one of those mental wonders that cannot be readily understood, and the deeper we study into them, the farther we seem to be from the truth. You will therefore observe closely and see what you see.”
You continue: “I have, as you probably noticed, allowed Mr. —— to shuffle the cards thoroughly and they have been scattered over this table at random. I shall allow five cards to be selected and I shall endeavor to name each one before it is taken up. In order that nobody’s attention may be distracted, I shall hold the cards taken up until the entire five have been selected. To prevent any mistake, let some person write the names of the cards upon a paper as they are called and see if I am correct.”
You will then remark: “I will now call for cards, one by one and shall ask Mr. Brown (any person desired) to make the first selection. Mr. Brown, you will please find for me the four of spades, without turning the card over.”
Naturally Mr. Brown smiles and says that such a thing is impossible. You ask him, however, to simply rest his fingers upon the back of any card his fancy may dictate. Having touched a card, you carefully draw it away from the table, making sure that its face cannot be seen. Hold it in your hands, close to your body, in an easy, unsuspicious manner, just as if you were confident the four of spades had been selected. Let us suppose, however, that the card is the seven of hearts. You remark: “I will next ask Mr. Jones to touch a card in the same manner as did Mr. Brown, but I predict beforehand that it will be the seven of hearts.” The card is tapped, and you pick it up, as before. Let us suppose this second one is the ace of diamonds. If so, you ask Mr. Smith to touch a card, which you expect to be the ace of diamonds. This, you notice, happens to be the queen of hearts. You then ask Mr. Robinson to touch a card, which you intend shall be queen of hearts, and after he does so you secretly ascertain that it is the eight of clubs.