1. THE LEMON AND BILL TRICK
Effect. An unprepared lemon is handed out for examination; several bills are borrowed, wrapped in a handkerchief, and held by a spectator. The bills vanish and they are found inside the lemon.
Accessories. A lemon, a knife, a tumbler, and a handkerchief.
Preparation. In one corner of the handkerchief sew a wad of paper the same size and shape that the bills will assume when they are folded and rolled into a small packet. Place the handkerchief in your pocket in such a way that you can seize it by the prepared corner.
Method. Begin by handing out the lemon for examination, and while this is being done ask for the loan of a dollar bill. When one is handed to you ask for a five-dollar bill; if successful ask for a ten-dollar bill; and so on as long as the spectators respond. In any case, get three bills at least, even if they are all ones. While you are focusing all attention on the bills, casually take the lemon back and drop it in your right coat pocket—while you are still amongst the spectators.
Suppose you have obtained three bills. Stack them one on the other evenly; fold them in half lengthwise, then in half the opposite way, and hand the packet to a spectator to sign his name on the outside bill. While this is being done, stand with your left side to the spectators and place your hands in your coat pockets. With the right thumb nail cut the rind of the lemon at the stalk end; push the forefinger in, making a hole large enough to take the bills. Place the lemon with the hole upwards in the front corner of the pocket.
The signature having been written, take the bills, fold them in half once more, then roll them up tightly and bend the little roll in half. Hold this at the tips of your right thumb and forefinger in full view. Take out your handkerchief, seizing it by the wadded corner with the three free fingers of the right hand; take the opposite corner in the left hand, stretch it out, and show both sides. Bring the right hand, still holding the bills and the wadded corner, against the middle of the handkerchief and drape the rest of the fabric over that hand.
With the left hand take hold of the wadded corner from above, finger palm the bills, bring the right hand from underneath, and twist the handkerchief tightly.
Hand the twisted handkerchief to a spectator, and have him tie a knot to come just below the wad. While this is being done, your hands go to your pockets again; with the right hand push the bills well into the hole in the lemon, bring it out casually and without remark, and put it in the tumbler in such a way that the hole does not show.
Return to the person holding the handkerchief, tell him to feel the bills to make sure they are still there, ask him if he will know his signature when he sees it again, and so on, merely to distract attention from the lemon. Have the knot in the handkerchief untied; then seize one corner, jerk the handkerchief away, spread it out (getting the prepared corner into one hand), show both sides, and replace it in your pocket.
Take the lemon, holding it with the hole to the rear; cut it round the middle and break it in half, showing the bills embedded in the sound half. Take them out with the very tips of the thumb and forefinger and drop the halves of the lemon into the tumbler. Open out the bills, carefully keeping them in full view the whole time. Have the spectator’s signature identified, wipe the juice off the bills with your handkerchief, and hand them back to the owners.
There is no particular difficulty about the trick, but it must be worked smoothly and full advantage taken of the misdirection indicated in the explanation.
There are many variations of the trick. For example, by using one bill only you can switch it for one of your own, a duplicate of which you have placed in the lemon in the orthodox way. After the switch, have a spectator record the number, and in the meantime finger palm a piece of paper (on which you have written, “You are a fine custodian”), folded in the same manner as you will fold the bill.
Give the lemon out to be examined and let a spectator hold it in full view. Borrow a handkerchief and throw it over your right hand. Take the folded bill in the left hand and put it in the right hand, apparently; really drop it into the right sleeve, the right hand pushing up the palmed paper, the handkerchief covering the operations. Take hold of the slip with the left hand from above, through the fabric, and give both to a spectator to hold. Let it be seen that your hands are empty.
Order the bill to pass into the lemon; the spectator, however, maintains that he still has it, so you have him take the paper out and read the message aloud. Give a knife to the man holding the lemon; ask him to cut it carefully round the middle and break it apart. Let him remove the duplicate bill (which is then seen sticking out of one half), open it out, and call the numbers aloud.
They correspond with the record, which to the layman is proof positive that the bill actually passed into the lemon. In the meantime you have had ample opportunity to allow the other bill to drop from your sleeve and to pocket it. Always have a crisp new bill to hand to the owner of the original bill in place of the lemon-soaked one.
The use of bills with the same numbers lends itself to many methods of reproduction. For example, you could pass the bill into a lemon first, have it identified; then pass it into a borrowed cigarette (as explained below), again have the number identified; then finally vanish it from your hands by sleight of hand, or a pull, and have the owner of the bill take it from his own pocket. In the course of the first two tricks you can easily find an opportunity to drop the triplicate bill into his coat pocket. Care must be taken not to carry the method to extremes.
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