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New Coins and Die

New Coins and DieThis is an improvement on a trick that is as old as our grandfathers, and explained in the first books of magic. No doubt our readers are well acquainted with the hollow stacks of coins in which a small die or cork ball is concealed. The trick from time immemorial has been worked with either the English penny or American two-cent piece. Now the use of a two-cent piece is not advisable, for it is not an easy matter to borrow them from an assembly, and for a conjurer to take them from his pocket himself is bad taste and also suspicious. It is best to get a stack of ten half-dollars, and the only real coin is the top one ; the rest are the manufactured coins, for sale at a reasonable price by the magical dealers. Now over this set of coins make a shell to represent a like number of coins, the top being a real coin turned down thin and the rest of the fake a tube of German silver or brass silver plated and grooved and milled. The first stack of coins are each ono single, but connected with a rivet through all of them ; this allows them to be moved a trifle on each other, which helps to dispel any suspicion that might arise as to their genuineness. To prepare the trick place the shell stack over the first or hollow stack. For abbreviation's sake we will call it stack 1; the other, stack 2, is the outside shell ; both now look as one. Inside of interior of No. 1 place a die or ball ; we will suppose we have a cork ball. Now place over the open ends a real silver coin, and have this in a place of concealment easily got at. You now have a stack of ten imitation coins and one real one. Ask for a number of half-dollars, starting by using one of your own, and after you have borrowed ten you place them on the table and then stack them up one at a time, counting them. Suppose now the fake coins are concealed in the left tail coat pocket. Pick up the pile of coins from the table in left hand, and remark that you will try to send the coins through the table, pretending to take them in the right hand, but really retaining them in the left; strike the table with the right hand, and advance the left hand with concealed coins under the table; as you do so allow the coins to escape from your hand quickly but singly, into the left hand pocket, and grasp the concealed fake set. The pocket should ,be double so the real coins can be dropped and not interfere with the conjurer obtaining the other set in portion of pocket, or this set can be in pants pocket. The falling of the coins in the pocket sounds to the spectators like the coins falling into the conjurer's hands after passing through the table. Bringing up the fake set he places them on the table with real coin and open side of fake down. Again counting the coins as they sit on the table, he remarks he has eleven instead of ten, which is all he requires ; he pushes away the bottom or real coin and places it in his pocket and takes out a little cork ball, placing it on the table. Taking up a piece of paper, he makes it into a little cap or cone to fit over the coins, but remarks that it fits too tight ; he removes it and says he will use it to cover the cork ball, which he does ; he then makes another cover for the coins and this seems to be all right. The coins and cork being covered for a few moments, the covers are removed and the objects are found to have changed places. This is accounted for by the fact that the cover first made and placed over the coins," and then removed, carried away with it the outside shell. In removing both covers afterwards, the hollow stack No. 1 is carried away with the cover, thus exposing the ball, and the other shell, No. 2, is left behind covering the ball. While this change is being observed, the hollow stack, No. 1, is allowed to drop into the hand from the paper cone, which is tossed carelessly on the table, and the fake dropped into the tail pocket, right hand side. Again covering shell No. 2 with the paper, he picks up the cork ball and vanishes it by sleight. He now picks up the paper cone and carries away the shell with it, tossing paper on table, leaving, however, the shell in his hand, which he gets rid of, and passing the other hand beneath the table produces the coin apparently from under the same, really taking them from the tail pocket, where they have been all along, innocent of what has taken place. Sometimes instead of shell No. 2 being of metal, it is made of silver paper, and when carried away with the paper cone, both are crushed up and carelessly thrown away, but not where anyone can easily pick it up before the conjurer and thus expose" him.