by Graham Adams
THE problem is to arrange a pack of cards which on the first deal of four hands delivers thirteen trumps to the fourth or dealer’s hand.
Each of the other hands is shown to be of mixed suits.
The cards are collected, shuffled, and again dealt, this deal gives one complete suit in each hand.
The dealer’s hand has thirteen cards arranged in order, Ace to King, the other hands are not so arranged.
The first hand is used as a “spelling bee” when the cards come to order, Ace to King. Hands Numbers 2 and 3 are used for a dealing routine experiment, coming to order, Ace to King.
Finally, the cards are shuffled together when they become arranged in the “Si Stebbins” system.
1 Jack of Hearts 27 Ace of Diamonds 2 Five of Clubs 28 Ace of Spades 3 King of Diamonds 29 Nine of Diamonds 4 Queen of Spades 30 Four of Hearts 5 Three of Diamonds 31 Eight of Clubs 6 Jack of Clubs 32 Three of Spades 7 Ten of Spades 33 Six of Clubs
8 Three of Spades 34 Seven of Diamonds 9 Three of Clubs 35 Seven of Hearts 10 Queen of Diamonds 36 Five of Spades
11 Three of Hearts 37 Nine of Hearts 12 Eight of Spades 38 Queen of Clubs 13 King of Hearts 39 Two of Diamonds 14 Seven of Clubs 40 Seven of Spades 15 Five of Diamonds 41 Jack of Diamonds 16 Six of Spades 42 Two of Hearts 17 Four of Diamonds 43 Ace of Clubs 18 Six of Hearts 44 Nine of Spades 19 Nine of Clubs 45 King of Clubs 20 Four of Spades 46 Six of Diamonds
21 Two of Clubs 47 Ace of Hearts 22 Ten of Diamonds 48 Jack of Spades 23 Eight of Hearts 49 Five of Hearts 24 Two of Spades 50 Four of Clubs 25 Ten of Hearts 51 Eight of Diamonds
THE DEALS
With the Pack arranged in order, make a false shuffle and false cut.
The performer may then make a number of preliminary experiments, such as, telling the number of cards by weight, cutting a desired number from the pack, and finding any card called for from the pockets.
The performer then deals four hands of thirteen cards as in whist or bridge, the fourth hand gives thirteen Spades, the other hands are shown to consist of indifferent cards. The Spade hand is again shown, with the remark that the cards are all of one suit, but the cards are not in any set order, they are counted from the hand to the table, but in counting deal from the top and bottom alternately, the cards then come out Ace to King.
This may be shown to the audience now or after the next deal.
Hand Number 1 is shown first, laid face upwards on the table, Number 2 is laid face up- wards on this, then Number 3 on Number 2, and lastly, the Spade hand on Number 3. The cards are false shuffled and false cut, then dealt. In this deal every fourth card is dealt from the bottom of the pack.
When performing this deal explain to the audience you are teaching them “how it is done.” Show the fourth hand to consist of Spades from Ace to King. Then, for the benefit of those who have learnt the lesson, pick up the first hand and show it to be all Hearts, Number 2 all Clubs, and Number 3 all Diamonds.
The Spade hand is Ace to King, none of the others are so arranged. Take the Heart heap, show it, then use it as a spelling bee. ACE spelling Ace. (I presume the readers of this article know the idea, for those who wish to know of this and the other sleights, I give a list of books at the end.)
The Heart heap is spelled from the Ace, which is laid on the table face upwards, the two on the Ace right through to the King.
Then pick up the Spade heap, saying: “Now two heaps are in order. Here are the Spades.” Quickly run through these, reversing the order from King at the face, to the Ace at the face. Show the Heart heap, but do not reverse it. Cut the three of Hearts to the front, and pick up the Spade heap, cutting the seven to the front.
Place the Spades face upwards on the Hearts and with the twenty-six cards make the “Milk Build Shuffle,” milking or taking one from the top and bottom together thirteen times.
As you do this, say: “We have no further use for these, they have arranged themselves, so we’ll lay them aside and look at the other heaps.” Hand Number 2 consists of Clubs. Hand Number 3 consists of Diamonds.
Show hand Number 2, then pick up hand Number 3, place it on hand Number 2, run through it, shewing all the Diamonds, turn the cards face down, and deal one heap of thir- teen cards counting aloud. Saying: “We will deal the black cards on the left of table.” In dealing, deal top and bottom cards alternately.
Show the face of the remaining cards, saying: “We’ll deal the red cards on the right of the table.”
Count aloud again, this time, however, deal from the bottom of the cards then the top al- ternately.
Pick up the right-hand heap, saying: “And here we have the King of Diamonds. ”Turning it face up on the table, then turn up the next card, which is the King of Clubs. “That’s funny, it should be a Queen.” Lay the card on the right of the other, turning up the next, a red card, lay it on the King of Diamonds, turn up the next, a black one, laying it on the King of Clubs. Run through the cards in this way, sorting them out again into two heaps, one of red cards, and the other of black.
Place the red cards face up on the black, turn them all face down, saying: “We’ll try again.” This time deal thirteen cards in each heap. For the first heap, deal as follows:
Top, bottom, bottom, top, bottom, bottom, top, top, top, bottom, bottom, bottom, top. For the second heap deal:
Bottom, top, top, bottom, top, top, bottom, bottom, bottom, top, top, top, top. Say: “Thirteen cards in each heap.”
“On my left the black.” Pick up this heap showing the bottom card of the heap. “This heap we will mark with a black card.” Replace the heap face down on the table, picking up the top card of the heap and placing it face upwards immediately behind the heap.
Do exactly the same with the red cards.
Say: “Whatever I do with one heap of cards, the same thing happens to the other. If I change a card or cards from one heap to the other, then a card will transpose itself without you seeing it go. Watch!”
Cross the hand placing the red card face up behind the black heap and vice versa.
Then With the right and left hands simultaneously take a card from each heap, showing the cards, placing them face up on the two indicating cards.
Do this again, placing the cards as before. Do it once more. Say: “We’ll change about again and see what happens.”
Change the face-up heaps over and slowly take the next three cards, then change over again, taking the next two cards.
Change as before, taking a single card. Change as before, taking two cards. Change as be- fore, showing the last card.
The Clubs are now together, likewise the Diamonds. Show this, saying: “But they aren’t in order.”
Take the Clubs and deal them face down as follows:
Bottom, top, top, bottom, top, top, bottom, bottom, bottom, top, top, top, top. Diamonds as follows:
Top, bottom, bottom, top, bottom, bottom, top top, top, bottom, bottom, bottom, top. Say: “I wonder what has happened now they are reversed.”
With both hands working together, take the cards one at a time from each heap, saying aloud: “Ace, two, three, etc., to the King.”
Take the Club heap with the King to the face, place it face upwards on the Hearts and Spades which were shuffled together previously.
Again make the “Milk Build Shuffle.” This time “Milk, Build,” alternately.
That is, with the cards in the right hand for the overhand shuffle, take two cards in the left hand together, one from the top and bottom. That action is the “Milk.” Then take one from the top, this being the “Build.” Do this “Milk, Build” thirteen times.
Reverse the Diamond heap, Ace to the front, King at the back. Cut the ten to the front. Place the Diamonds face up on the other cards, and shuffle again.
This time shuffle, “milk, build, build, milk, build, build.”
Do this thirteen times and the pack is then set up in the Si Stebbins order.
Should you desire it to be set up for the Ernest Hammond order, arrange as follows: Hearts. Ace to front. King at the back.
Cut the seven to the front.
Spades. King to the front. Ace at the back. Cut the three to the front. Clubs. Ace to the front. King at the back. Cut the ten to the front. “Milk, build,” thirteen times.
Diamonds. King to the front. Ace at the back. “Milk, build, build,” thirteen times.
Here is a list of books dealing with shuffles, bottom deals, prepared, or pre-arranged packs:
Erdnase: Expert at the Card Table. Merlin: And a Pack of Cards. Nikola: Nikola Card System. Proskauer: How’d ja do that? Farelli: Farelli’s Card Magic.