1. IMPROMPTU MIND READING
A spectator writes a name, a telephone number, or a short question on a slip of paper. This is then torn to fragments and burned. The performer spells out the name, gets the telephone number figure by figure, or gives an appropriate answer to the question.
Take a small slip of paper, not more than three and onehalf by three inches, fold it in half and again in half the other way. Open it out and in the middle draw an oval with a pencil (Fig). 1). Invite someone to think of the name of a close friend, a telephone number with which he is familiar, or a short question. Under pretense of helping him to concentrate his thoughts, give him the paper and have him write the name, the number, or the question inside the oval, fold the paper, and return it.
Hold the folded part of the slip between the tips of the left thumb and first and second fingers so that they cover the part which has the oval and the writing inside (Fig. 2). Tear the paper in half downwards, as shown by the dotted line. Place the piece held in the right hand in front of that in the left hand; turn the pieces upward, keeping the folded part under the left thumb; and tear them in half, downwards again. Place the right-hand pieces in front, nearest to the spectators as before; with the left thumb pull the small folded piece, on the outside of the others, back and clip it between the first and second fingers. Tear the other pieces again and again, drop them onto an ash tray, and either light a match and set fire to them yourself or ask a spectator to do so.
The result of these maneuvers is that the small folded part of the paper remains safely hidden in the left hand and you have merely to open it secretly, read the writing, and reveal it in the approved manner. If you are doing the trick seated at a table, it is easy to drop the left hand, open the slip with the thumb, and read the writing—covering the downward glance by putting your right hand to your forehead in pretended concentration. Or you may have a small note pad in your left outside coat pocket and, in the act of bringing it out with the left hand, open the slip against its face. Hold the pad upright, hiding the slip; read the writing; scribble something on the first page; then, as if dissatisfied, tear it off, crumple it with the slip inside, and drop it into your pocket. Then proceed to get the name or number, little by little, or write an intelligent answer to the question if such was written. Act as if you were getting the letters or figures through strained mental concentration, and in the ease of a message or question never repeat it word for word. Make a mistake in a letter or figure occasionally—call an n for an m, a 1 for a 7, and so on— then correct yourself; in fact, use every artifice possible to induce the belief that you are getting the information through the channels of the mind only.
An excellent presentation is to have a person think of a playing card and write its name on the slip. You have a pack of cards in its case in your left coat pocket. After having torn the slip of paper and burned the pieces, bring out the card case, opening out the slip in the process; read the name of the card as you take the pack from its case; then put the case and the slip back in your pocket. Fan the deck and, after the usual pretended hesitation in getting the color, suit, and value, finally pull the card out, keeping its back to the spectator. Ask him to name the card he thought of, and slowly turn it to prove that you have read his mind.
After the pieces of the slip have been burned, never refer to the fact that any writing has been done; treat this as a mere incident, to enable the spectator to fix his thought more intently. Concentrate on the spectator. If he appears to be trying to help you, compliment him on his concentrative power; if he attempts to treat the matter lightly, upbraid him for inattention; and so on. The mechanical part of this trick is so easy that it makes an excellent experiment in the proper presentation of a mental effect.
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