Objetivos Específicos

Frank Kennard’s Method.

A showy trick that always amuses and puzzles the spectators. It is more suitable for a man than a lady.

Time Occupied.-Twelve to fifteen minutes.

Effect.- A borrowed handkerchief is given to a lady to hold, and changes in her hand to a long strip which is then given to a gentleman to squeeze, and on being returned is found to be torn into small pieces. These are dropped into a paper bag made before the audience from a sheet of foolscap, and given to someone to hold. A sheet of brown paper is now unrolled, a parasol taken out, and the paper shown empty. The parasol is rolled up again, the end being left all the time in view. The gentleman who holds the bag in his hand is now asked to take the wrapped-up parasol upon his lap. At his word of command the pieces leave the bag, which on being opened is found to contain the cover of the parasol in their place. The parasol is then taken out of the brown paper, and is found to consist of bare frame work only, with one of the small pieces of handkerchief dangling from the end of each rib. The cover is put on to the frame, and the parasol replaced in the brown paper.

When unrolled a moment later it is quite restored, with the borrowed handkerchief inside it.

Requisites and Preparation.-Two parasols exactly alike. Those with plain cane sticks and no handles are quite good enough. The covers should be made with the divisions alternately red and white, or any other very flaring combination of thin surah or China silk. The cover is removed from one, leaving the ribs bare, and to the end of each rib is stitched a small piece of cambric about three inches square.

A full-sized sheet (known to stationers as “double elephant”) of brown paper of good stout quality, prepared by having another piece about ten inches wide pasted by its edges right across at the back at one end, makes a tube into which the bare frame is pushed so that the handle end is about half an inch from the right-hand side of paper when held open to audience. In order to know which is the opening to tube when paper is rolled, paste a strip of white paper along the inside edge of tube. The perfect parasol is now rolled in the paper, care being taken to place the handle towards the same end as that of the concealed

one. In rolling before the audience take care not to turn the paper with edges towards spectators until rolled up.

Two pieces of foolscap pasted together by three of their edges, the top being left open.

A strip of fine calico three inches wide and two yards long.

Eight pieces of linen about three inches square.

The loose parasol cover, folded as small as possible, is placed just inside waistcoat at left of centre. It is as well to have a small pocket made for it, which keeps it in exact position.

The two parasols rolled in the brown paper are placed handle ends downward leaning against the wall or a piece of furniture behind the performer. The prepared foolscap sheet lies on a table to his left. The eight pieces of linen rolled up into a small bundle are placed in right pocket. The long strip rolled up is palmed in right hand, holding wand to cover it.

Presentation of Trick.-Address your audience: “For this experiment I must borrow a few pocket-handkerchiefs.” Walk amongst them for this purpose, with patter founded upon “He who goes a-borrowing goes a-sorrowing. It is my experience that the lender generally does the greater part of the sorrowing, but I hope it will not be so in this case.”

Having obtained three or four handkerchiefs, note one of medium size and place it on the others, so that it will probably be chosen. Offer them for selection to a lady at some little distance from the lender, and take the

handkerchief she chooses with your left hand, saying,

“This lady has decided, so I will place the others on one side,” and put them in a prominent place. “May I do as I wish with this handkerchief?”

Put wand under left arm and spread the chosen handkerchief over the strip which you have had all the while in your right hand, and say, “I will roll this one up, making it smaller and smaller, until ”-here turn it over so that the concealed strip is on top- “you see it gradually diminishes in size. In fact”-put strip into left hand, taking wand in right to cover the palmed handkerchief-" I can almost conceal it in my hand,"

pointing with wand to the strip in left hand.

Walk to a lady on your right, and hand her the strip, saying, “I will ask a lady to hold this.” As you do so vest the handkerchief (Fig. 1).

“Thank you, madam. Kindly close your fingers over it and hold it a little higher” (Fig. 2). As you say this make an upward motion of the wand with left hand (Fig. 2); this covers the right hand going to pocket to secure the packet of pieces.

“Thank you. Can you quite manage to conceal it?

No? Ah! you see, madam, your hand is so small, but I

am afraid you are pinching it very tightly, and it really will not bear the slightest pressure.

Permit me.” Saying this you take it from the lady and let the strip unroll. “Oh dear, madam, what have you done? I feared the pressure might do mischief, but I had no idea of the extent of the damage.” Stretch out strip with wand as you speak, then lay it across the wand and fold in half, and then in half again. Place

wand under left arm, holding strip in left hand.

Continue folding strip and when small enough pretend to place it in left hand, really retaining it in right, and place the packet of pieces in the left.

Walk to right, and hand to gentleman the packet with left hand, the right hand meanwhile pocketing the strip.

Now, sir, I want you to close both hands-so-and roll them round and round-so"-suiting the action to the word. When he has done this, add, “I am quite sure this lady’s handkerchief will be restored.”

Take back from gentleman the packet and pull out one piece (Fig. 3). “Why, here is a small piece of it ”-hang it on a chair-back -another, and another. Why, if we go on like this we shall have a handkerchief for every day of the week."

Hang all the pieces upon the chair. “This is a nice handkerchief indeed, sir. Perhaps, madam, you will accept your handkerchief back in pieces; I will wrap it up for you.” Take sheet of prepared foolscap from table, carelessly turn it round, showing both sides of it, remarking, “I have here a sheet of foolscap which you can see is free from deception” (Fig. 4).

Showing sheet of foolscap gives opportunity to get parasol cover from waistcoat. The foolscap is rolled into a bag with the parasol cover inside it (Fig. 5).

Then secretly open the double compartment of the paper (Fig. 6) and show the bag apparently empty, and continue, “That will do nicely.

“Now I will place what was once a handkerchief into it. One two three four five -six - seven - eight pieces,” placing each piece one by one off the chair-back into the bag;

then asking a gentleman to hold it, say, “Misfortunes some times rain upon me, still I have something here which will protect me.”

Pick up the brown paper roll and allow it to unroll itself; catch the parasol handle in right hand just as in Fig.

7, and say, “Fancy walking down Regent Street with this over your shoulder!”

Open the parasol and hold it as in Fig. 8, showing both hands empty, but do not verbally draw attention to the hands being empty.

Take the parasol in left hand, pointing cover to audience, and close it. The right hand meanwhile takes the borrowed handkerchief from the waistcoat (Fig. 9) and drops it unseen into the parasol as it closes, saying, “I must not damage this very valuable parasol, so I will put it away again.”The left hand rolling up the silk of parasol prevents the handkerchief from falling out (Fig. 10).

Place it along the end of the brown paper, taking care that the stick is towards the same end as that of the other parasol already in the paper, and make one turn round of the paper (Fig. 11).

This done, turn the other side of the brown paper to the front (Fig. 12), as though for greater convenience in rolling it, and pulling out the stick of the second parasol (with the bare ribs) an inch or two, say, “I keep a little piece of it out-so (Fig. 12).

“Now, sir, may I trouble you just to bring the paper bag here? Thank you. Will you take a seat? I want you to hold the bag with the pieces in your right hand, and to lay my parasol across your knees (Fig. 13).

Now my trick is to restore the pieces of the handkerchief which a moment ago you saw me place into the paper bag, and pass them right through the brown paper. If you desire to see them go you must keep one eye on the paper bag, one eye on the lady who so kindly lent the handkerchief, and the other on me. Now, sir-one, two, three-go! Thank you."

Unroll the paper bag and take out the parasol cover (the pieces are in the double compartment of the paper), saying, “You see the pieces have gone. Why, whatever is this? Good gracious, it is the top of my parasol !”(Fig.

14).

Put the foolscap paper on the table, and pull the second parasol from paper, open it and put it into left hand of assistant (Fig. 15), exclaiming, “Well, that’s a nice handkerchief; and my beautiful parasol! What shall I do?”

Put the cover over top of parasol frame and say, “Now I have put the cover on the frame, sir; if you will hold it I will return the other handkerchiefs, and leave you to finish the trick.” Return the handkerchiefs, except of course the one which is in the parasol.

Address the lady whose handkerchief is not returned, “Ah, madam, I must apologize to you, but this gentleman ”-pointing to assistant-"will put everything right. No! you cannot? Well, perhaps you will assist me and we will see what can be done."

Shut up the frame with cover on. “We will for a moment imagine we are Messrs.

Maskelyne and Cooke. I’ll be Mr. Cooke, who will you be-Mr. Cooke too? No, that won’t do; too many cooks spoil the broth. I won’t trouble you to undo it,” and whilst saying this push the parasol into the roll, making sure to put it into the compartment which has the white paper lining. “This is a very cunning umbrella-one of Fox’s. Now, sir, we shall have one more attempt, and if this fails I am afraid I shall have to ask you to settle matters with this lady. You would rather leave that to me. Very well, but first I will see what I can do.

Hey, presto! Thank you.” Whilst speaking unroll the brown paper and take out parasol,

“Here’s my umbrella all right, anyhow. Now for the lady’s handkerchief. Ah, here it is just under one of the ribs and quite restored. Thank you, madam, for your handkerchief, which has been in strange company, and which even when I return it is alone (a loan).”