Carl Hertz - A Modern Mystery Merchant

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A MODERN MYSTERY MERCHANT
Carl Hertz.
Frontispiece.
A Modern Mystery
Merchant :: The mais,
Tricks and Travels of CARL HERTZ,
the Famous American Illusionist
WITH FRONTISPIECE AND 24 OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS
LONDON : HUTCHINSON & CO

PATERNOSTER ROW
1924
-
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
My boyhood — Fascination which conjuring has for me — am I

discharged from a dry goods firm for performing conjuring
tricks in business hours — I appear at an amateur performance
and am a dismal failure — My sad experiences with touring
companies — Notwithstanding the opposition of my parents,
I decide to make conjuring my profession — I travel from
San Francisco to Kansas City in search of an engagement
— And arrive with twenty-five cents in my pocket, to find
the theatre closed for three weeks — A friend in need — My
interview with the manager of the Theatre Comique— I
obtain an engagement on the re-opening of the theatre —
Kindness of my new friend, Hano, to me — My first per
formance — Its success leads to my securing a number of
other engagements — Hano throws up his post as manager of
a dry goods store and joins the profession — My meeting with
him in New York twenty -five years later - -
15
CHAPTER II
A serious illness —A strange coincidence — Unpleasant experiences
at Philadelphia — My apparatus is destroyed in a fire —
Kindness of a brother professional, who helps me out of my
predicament — Another accident — Singular adventure at
Montgomery City, Missouri, where I am arrested and im
prisoned in mistake for another man— Ludicrous mishap
while performing at Louisville - - - 29
CHAPTER III
I accept an engagement with a travelling circus —Serious accident
to the circus trains on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad
— Although only very slightly injured, I decide to try to
obtain compensation from the railroad company — My
modus operandi — My interview with the company's manager
at Nashville — I am sent to be examined by a doctor, who
discovers that my injuries are faked — At his request I give
a private performance, under an assumed name, at the
Medical College — I receive S 1,500 compensation from the rail
road company — I go to New York and take an engagement
at a variety theatre on the Bowery — Reply of the German
proprietor to my request for my salary — I give a performance
at William H. Vanderbilt's house on Fifth Avenue — A
comedy of errors - - - - -
'38
vi Contents
CHAPTER IV ,AOI
I sail for Liverpool on my first visit to England — My appearance

at the Folly Theatre, Manchester— My great success — My
disappearing cage and canary trick — I perform the trick at
the offices of the R.S.P.C.A., in Jermyn Street, and success
fully refute the charge of cruelty which has been brought
against me in connection with it—My appearance at the
Crystal Palace— Amusing incident with Mr. Clement Scott,
the dramatic critic, at the Alhambra — Engagements at
private houses — The house in Grosvenor Square— Conjuring
entertainments and baccarat parties —Singular sequel —
I give an entertainment at an evening party at Mr. Alfred
de Rothschild's house in Seymour Place — A distinguished
company — The Prince of Wales and the rabbit — Visit to Mr.
Rothschild in the City— His cigars - - - -
48
CHAPTER V
An adventure at Ascot — Mr. Jennings, of the Oxford Music
Hall — I give an impromptu entertainment to fill a gap in the
programme — Indignation of Mr. Jennings at my refusal to
accept payment for my performance — The Vanishing Lady
Illusion — Difficulty of finding a lady to assist in this trick — I
engage Mile. D' Alton, who subsequently becomes my wife —
Ludicrous misadventure of an illusionist while performing
this trick at Plymouth — My provincial tours — Singular
requests made to me by persons who imagine me to possess
supernatural powers — I leave England on a tour through
Germany and Austro-Hungary — Amusing incident at the
Reichsallen Theatre, Berlin — The missing pocket-book — I
give a performance before King Ludgwig II. of Bavaria, who
is the only person present — " Where are you, George ?
" -
58
CHAPTER VI
I sail for New York in ss. City of Chicago —The young Englishman
and the cardsharpers — I intervene, and the shearers are shorn
—Sequel to this adventure— My American tour — The pigeon
and the diamond ring — The hat and the cake — Singular
misadventure while performing at San Francisco —My
reputation is saved by the presence of mind of my assistant —
A lucky chance enables me to perform a trick which is regarded
as really marvellous — " He is coming I
" — The German
... He is here I
. . . He has gone I proprietor and the red
fire — I am the innocent cause of a young man being thrown
over by his sweetheart, but succeed in reuniting the lovers —
An audience of one — I perform card tricks for an hour at
St. Louis to allow time for the rest of the company to arrive
I
— quell a racecourse riot — A facetious gentleman —
Practical joke which I perpetrate at an hotel at Buffalo
necessitates my abrupt departure from that town — Curious
experience at Leadville, Colorado - - - -
69
Contents vii
CHAPTER VII ,ao1
Madame O'Della Diss De Bar, the celebrated medium, is prose

cuted for fraud — I am called as an expert witness at the
trial, and perform all the medium's manifestations in open
court — Madame Diss De Bar sentenced to two years' im
prisonment — The Swami case in England — I communicate
with Scotland Yard and Swami is identified with Madame
Diss De Bar —Story of August and Adolphe — I sail for
England — My interest in mesmerism — My first attempt to
mesmerize a person — An alarming experience — I acquire
—
proficiency My experiments in mesmerism during the
voyage to England — Donovan's Derby — The gentleman with
the revolver — I make the acquaintance of an apparently
wealthy young man, who persuades me to allow him to accom
pany me to the different halls at which I am performing —
Presents of jewellery which he makes to a lady singer and
myself — I receive a visit from two detectives, who inform me
that the jewellery is stolen property - - 87
CHAPTER VIII
I leave England on a tour of the Continent — The Phoenix
Illusion — I accept an engagement to perform it at a music
hall at Berlin on the understanding that the stage there
is about to be rebuilt —On my arrival, I find that the stage
has not been altered and is quite unsuitable — A noisy audience
— I decline to continue to perform the illusion — Refusal of
the management to pay me my full salary — But they are
eventually compelled to do so— Unscrupulous treatment
of foreign artists by German music-hall managers — Instances
of this — I am engaged to introduce the Phoenix Illusion into
a revue at the Eden Theatre, Paris — Refusal of Madame
Granier, who plays the part of Jeanne d'Arc, to allow herself
-------
"
to be " burned — Ingenious manner in which this difficulty
is surmounted A " vanishing lady
— " who did not re
appear — A wealthy young woman with stage ambitions — I
am engaged to instruct her in the performance of the
" Phoenix Illusion " — Her failure — My tour in Spain — I
perform before Queen Christine and King Alfonso —Visit to
a bull-fight 101
CHAPTER IX
I sail for Australia — Trick which I play with a passenger's watch
during the voyage — I open at the Opera House, in Melbourne
— A novel method of advertisement — After visiting the
principal towns of Australia, I tour New Zealand — Amusing
experience in the market at Auckland — I escape from an
unpleasant predicament— I sail for San Francisco en route
for England — The two priests — I detect one of them cheating
at poker— With the consent of the other players, I manipulate
viii Contents
the cards, and he loses heavily — His money is subsequently

returned to him with a sharp lecture— On reaching San
Francisco, I learn that he is a card-sharper in disguise —
England again —Sad experiences of my friend G. W. Hunter
and myself at the Liverpool Autumn Meeting of 1892 —
Vanishing gentlemen — Herbert Campbell's watch - - 116
CHAPTER X
little game of Nap — " Carl Hertz, the King of Cards —

"
Laughable incident on the way to Newmarket — I produce
my Vanity Fair Illusion at the Empire — The Irish parlour
"
maid — " What's the good of me clothes I — Provincial
tour — I produce " Yum Yum, or the Pagoda Mystery
" at
the Palace Theatre, and " Noah's Ark " at the Alhambra
— Tour in the North of England — Strange adventures of a
" at the
pig— Mishap with a " cannon-ball Empire - -
130
CHAPTER XI
I leave England for New York to fulfil an engagement at Oscar

Hammerstein's new theatre on Broadway — Hammerstein's
I
wagers — His extraordinary versatility — return to England
and prepare to start on a tour of South Africa — The cine
matograph — Difficulty in procuring a machine to take with
me — I sail for South Africa in the Norman and give the first
cinematograph performance ever given at sea— Troublous
times in South Africa — My adventures with Boer officials
at Vereeniging — Arrival in Johannesburg — An expensive
bath — Scene in the theatre on the night of the release of the
Reformers who had been sentenced to death — Success of
the cinematograph — In order to show fresh pictures I make
use of kinetoscope films— Racing at Auckland Park— A bet
of ^10 to a cigarette won by the punter — Barney Barnato —
Anecdotes of him — A " Johnny
" - -
plays poker 138
CHAPTER XII
Continuation of my South African tour — I sail for Australia —

Huge success of the cinematograph at Melbourne — I am
summoned for permitting overcrowding in the theatre —
Visit to New Zealand — I buy a derelict steamer by way of
advertisement — The cockatoo of Charles Towers — I return
to Australia and set out from Perth with a caravan of
twenty camels, on a tour through West Australia — Fatigues
and discomforts of travel through this waterless country —
Improvised theatres in mining-camps — Seats paid for with
gold dust and nuggets — Liberality of the miners — My ad
venture with the Bushmen —Arrival at Coolgardie— A
"
"sacred illusion show — I sail for Ceylon - - -
151
Contents ix
CHAPTER XIII PA0£
Refusal of the manager of the Novelty Theatre, Bombay, to give

me another date, notwithstanding the fact that the plague
is raging there — I decide to open on the date I have booked,
...
and sail for Bombay — Notwithstanding the epidemic, we play
to packed houses — Method by which the theatre is darkened
to allow of the cinematograph being shown at a matinee —
Extraordinary cheapness of native labour — Continuation of
my Indian tour — The Fakirs and their tricks — The Mango
Trick — The Rope Trick — Version of the latter trick performed
by me — My opinion of Indian conjurers IOo
CHAPTER XIV
Burma — Singapore — Manila — Return to Singapore — Java — I
fall ill of malaria at Batavia — " The Actors' Graveyard —
"
I receive an invitation to journey to Borneo to perform
before a wealthy Dyak rajah in the northern provinces —After
some hesitation, I accept and sail for Borneo — Journey into
"
the interior — The Rajah's " palace — Visit to the town — A
Dyak house — Human skulls, trophies of head-hunting — Ap
pearance of the Dyaks — Their dress — Their ornaments —
Terrible mutilation of the ear — The Rajah and his daughter
— First performance— The Dyaks' manner of applause —
Second performance — I am requested by the Rajah to defer
my departure — The princess smiles — I receive a message from
the Rajah offering me his daughter's hand in marriage — I
decline the proposition, on the ground that my religion does
not permit me to have more than one wife —The Rajah
proposes that I shall change my religion — Serious situation in
which I am placed — I feign acquiescence and resolve to effect
my escape by the exercise of my art — My plan — Its success
— A night in a property -basket - - - - 168
CHAPTER XV
Singapore again— Saigon — Terrific heat — Flying-bats in the
theatre — Hong-Kong — Shanghai — Performances in the
Chinese city — Burning crackers to drive the devil away —
Great success of my entertainment with the Celestials —
Canton — My manager employs a hose against the Chinese
who are endeavouring to get a free sight of the performance
— We are besieged in the theatre — Sad fate of a favourite
dog — We sail for Japan — A typhoon — On our arrival at
Nagasaki we are placed in quarantine — An unpleasant fort
night — We are liberated and proceed to Kobe— Embarrassing
experience while taking a bath at Kioto — Remark of Arthur
-----
Roberts on hearing of this — A Japanese dinner-party — Sad
effect of drinking saki— The cherry dance at Kioto — Danjuro,
the Henry Irving of Japan — His wonderful acting — Japanese
and Chinese theatres — Fires in Japan — Fiji — Honolulu —
We sail for San Francisco en route for England — Invaluable
assistance rendered me by my wife during my tour in the
Antipodes and the East 185
Contents
CHAPTER XVI FAO,
.......
I buy a film of the Corbett-Fitzsimmons fight — It proves to be
a fake — I determine to get my money back — A risky experi
ment, which, however, is attended with success — Return
to England — I take a house at Brixton Hill— My Curio
Room — I meet with a serious accident while rehearsing at the
Metropolitan Music Hall and am unable to perform for three
months — I present " Iris, the Mystic Cameleon
" at
the
Empire io^
CHAPTER XVII
I leave England on a tour of Germany, Italy and France —
Command performance before the Kaiser at Potsdam —
Present which I receive from the " All-Highest " — The
accommodating railway official at Dusseldorf — An un
pleasant surprise — A packed house at Lucca — I learn after
"
the performance that it is three parts " paper —An un
claimed set of —
artificial teeth Performance in a half-
finished theatre at Turin — Singular adventure of one of my
assistants during my engagement at the Folies-Bergefes in
Paris — Return to London — " The Demon, or Magic Kettle "
at the Canterbury — Difficulties which I experience in pro
curing the liquid air required for this— Fortunate chance
through which I am able to surmount them - - - 208
CHAPTER XVIII
Engagement at Copenhagen — My exposure of a well-known
medium — On my return to London I receive news of the
serious illness of my father and sail, with my wife, for New
York, en route for San Francisco — At a wayside station on
the Union Pacific we learn of the San Francisco earthquake
— We are obliged to remain the night at Oakland, which is
crowded with refugees from the stricken city — We obtain
permission to go to San Francisco— Appalling scenes of
destruction — I find, to my intense relief, that my relatives
are safe — We are obliged to remain in San Francisco for two
months— The scene in Golden Gate Park— A strange meeting
— Death of my father — We leave for New York — Engage
ments there and at Chicago — Singular story of a cardsharper
— We return to England — My second tour in South Africa —
Nervous breakdown, which obliges me to spend some weeks at
Las Palmas and Madeira - - - - -218
CHAPTER XIX
I visit Vienna and Berlin and then proceed to Moscow — Russian
music-halls — A generous prince— Religious character of the
Russians in those days — Objections to an illusion of mine
"
called " The Sign of the Cross — I am obliged to change the
cross into a tree — St. Petersburg — Command performance
before the Czar and Czarina — Present of a cigarette-case —
Contents xi
Racing in Russia — Tip which I receive from an American

trainer — A nice little win — Riot on the racecourse — Return
to England — Another Continental tour — Fire at the Eldorado
Theatre at Nice — My first visit to Monte Carlo — I am
ordered to leave the Rooms — Interview with the director,
--.-..
who explains to me the reason for this— Further experiences at
Monte Carlo — Engagement at the Alhambra in Paris —
Harry Fragson — Incident at the Bal Tabarin — Fragson's
unfortunate infatuation — His tragic death — An auto
graphed cigarette-case — The great Lafayette and his dog
" Beauty " —Terrible fate of Lafayette — His funeral —
Chnng Ling Soo 227
CHAPTER XX
The Continent again — Racing at Vienna — A lucky mistake—
" The horse with the pretty colours " — — The outbreak
1914
of war finds my wife and myself at Ostend —Difficulty of
getting back to England — Refusal of a South Wales manager
to allow me to fulfil an engagement at his theatre, on the
ground that I am a German — I bring an action against him
and win it — Performance which I give in hospitals during
the war — Tour in France and Belgium in 1919 — Visit to Ire
land — I decline to continue a performance in Dublin owing to
the conduct of the audience— The Lord Mayor's motor-car - 244
CHAPTER XXI
Prosecution of the Vaudeville Club for permitting poker to be
played there — I visit the secretaries of the principal London
clubs and raise a fund to fight the case— It is decided that poker
is not an unlawful game — Amusing incident during the trial
of the case— Jokes played by the members of the Vaudeville
Club upon one another— The Performing Animals Bill —
I am summoned as a witness before the Select Committee
appointed by the House of Commons — Repetition of the
charge of cruelty in connection with my cage and canary
trick — I smuggle cage and bird into the committee room
and am allowed to perform the trick — Amusing account of
this incident in the Daily Express— Remarks on the training
of animals— Mr. Bostock's bear and the policeman — Mr.
Ginnett and the lioness — The Wild Australia Show— Bonita,
the rifle-shot, and her two suitors —A race for a wife - -
252
CHAPTER XXII
Devices of cardsharpers and other swindlers — The Three Card
Trick — The Top and Bottom Dice Game — The Strap Game
— The Padlock Game —The Dummy Bags — Finding the
Ace — The Swindle Trick — The so-called mystery of Mind-
Reading — Claims of its exponents to the possession of occult
powers exposed — An exhibition of mind-reading by myself
—How the tests were performed — P , the Chicago
mind-reader — His exposure by Dr. Gatchell - 269
xii Contents
CHAPTER XXIII ,A0I
Experiments apparently simple, but actually very difficult —

The cork and the bottle — The finger-tips — The silk cigar-
band — The silk hat and the pack of cards — The reel of cotton,
the pins and the penny — The clenched fists — Some amusing
card-tricks — Cartomancy, or divination by playing-cards -
283
CHAPTER XXIV
Difficulty which I experience in observing the practices of the
Jewish religion while travelling in remote parts of the world
...
— I keep the Day of Atonement twice over in Queensland,
owing to having mistaken the date on the first occasion — A
Jewish service and a dancing class held simultaneously in
the same hall in Honolulu — I commemorate the anniversary
of my father's death with the help of Chinese Jews —Curious
experiences with my assistants — A singular epistle —My
—
reply Episode of a lost diamond stud 296
CHAPTER XXV
....
A few stories— The electric chair — Too much of a good thing —
The Scotsman's cigars — A belated performance — " Pinch
the baby I — " Blackleg
" "
elephants — The frown of Mr.
Snelbecker — A singular orchestra — A dressing-room incident
— " Ain't they on speaking terms ? " — " The Bucket of
"
Blood —Conjurers' blunders 307
Carl Hertz .....
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Frontispiece
-------
FACI KG PAGE
Carl Hertz, age 9- - - - - -24

Chinese Mandarin's Wife - - - - 24
Emilie D'Alton (Mrs. Carl Hertz) - - -
------
62
A Stand of Printing of Carl Hertz, Mrs. Hertz, Illusions,

etc. 98
-------
First Cinema (for pictures only) in the World, San
Francisco, belonging to Mr. Hertz's brother-in-law,
...
M. Furst 124
...
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz on Camels in Western Australia 154
The Indian Rope Trick, as Reported to be Performed in
India 164
Carl Hertz's Bills in a Street in Java 174
Theatre at Saigon, Cochin China T86
Street in Hong Kong, China - - - - 188
-----
Passenger Ship RohiUa Quarantined outside Nagasaki
Harbour, Japan - - - - -
------
190
Scene on Revolving Stage in a Japanese Theatre -
194
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz in Rickshaws beneath the Great
Idol of Buddha
....
i<fi
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz outside Theatre Stage Door,
Genoa, Italy 210
-----
San Francisco after the Earthquake and Fire - - 220
Courtyard of Palace Hotel, San Francisco, before the

Earthquake and Fire 222
Programme of Theatre, Restaurant Yard, Moscow - 228

Eldorado Casino, Nice 232
zlii
xiv
...
.....
List of Illustrations
......
FACING PAGE
Chinese Dancers in Gala Costume 258

Birdcage Trick at the House of Commons - - 258
A Race for a Wife 266
-----
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz outside Theatre, Cheltenham,
England 286
Carl Hertz with his Pet Pomeranian, Dolly - - 304

Emilie D'Alton (Mrs. Carl Hertz) as Ogira in the Indian
Rope Trick Scene 304
A Modern Mystery Merchant
CHAPTER I
My boyhood — Fascination which conjuring has forme — I am discharged
from a dry goods firm for performing conjuring tricks in business
hours — I appear at an amateur performance and am a dismal
failure — My sad experiences with touring companies — Notwith
standing the opposition of my parents, I decide to make conjuring
my profession — I travel from San Francisco to Kansas City in
search qf an engagement — And arrive with twenty-five cents in
my pocket, to find the theatre closed for three weeks — A friend in
need — My interview with the manager of the Theatre Comique
— I obtain an engagement on the reopening of the theatre — Kind
ness of my new friend, Hano, to me — My first performance — Its
success leads to my securing a number of other engagements —
Hano throws up his post as manager of a dry goods store and
joins the profession —My meeting with him in New York twenty-
five years later.
I amAmerican born, having first seen the light in San Fran

cisco, California,to which city my parents had immigrated in
1849, the year of the Gold Fever. My father was a Russian ;
my mother a Pole ; and, though they have several daughters, I
was their only son.
I at the Cosmopolitan Grammar School, a
was educated
not inappropriate name, by the way, for the school of a man
who was destined to become a citizen of the world if there ever
was one.
Among my schoolfellows were two who were to become
famous, though in very different ways. One was a tall, slim
lad called James Corbett, who, on completing his studies,
obtained a clerkship in the Bank of California and rose to the
post of cashier, but soon quitted commerce for the Prize Ring
and became one of the most celebrated pugilists of his time.
Even in these early days Jem Corbett was a wonderfully
is
16 A Modern Mystery Merchant
clever boxer, and I remember several fights between him and

bigger boys, who had tried to bully him. In every case the
bully got a sound thrashing.
The other, who was in the same class as myself, was Claus
Sprekels, afterwards the great Sugar King. He was a fair,
rather stout boy, and was always getting into mischief. After
I left school I never came across Claus Sprekels again until a
couple of years ago, when I met him, a grey-haired, elderly
man, in the Rooms at Monte Carlo. I was playing roulette,
and, happening to glance across the table, saw him sitting
almost opposite me.
I was very quick at mathematics and also at languages —
I learned both French and German there — and if my mind
had really been set upon my studies, I might have been a star
pupil and annexed a good few of the prizes which were going.
But, as it happened, there was something which interested me
a great deal more than irregular verbs and problems of Euclid.
In those days, all the cleverest conjurers used to visit
'Frisco, and at either the Metropolitan Theatre or Piatt's Hall
I saw Robert Heller, Cazeneuve, Professor Hermann and
others, give performances. Very soon I thought of little else
than conjuring, and many was the hiding I got at school for
fooling around with tricks when I ought to have been doing
my lessons.
When I was sixteen, I left school, and my father, who was
in the dry goods trade, took me into his business. After I
had been with him a year or two, however, he disposed of it,
and I took a situation as clerk with another dry goods firm.
I did not keep it long, as I was discharged for doing conjuring
tricks in business hours, and, though I had little difficulty in
finding other situations, I had even less difficulty in losing
them, and always for the same reason. Eventually, I decided
to practise the art, for whichI felt convinced that I possessed
a quite exceptional gift, thoroughly, and go into the pro
fession, and, with this idea, saved up all the money I could
and with it bought, invented or had made for me various
tricks and illusions.
A Modern Mystery Merchant 17
My first appearance on any stage was as an amateur at

Piatt's Hall, Montgomery Street, San Francisco. I was a
member of a club called the Eclipse Minstrel Club, whose
custom it was to give entertainments about once a month
during the winter, at which all the members were supposed to
assist. These entertainments generally took the form of a
minstrel show, for which they all blacked up, but, as this sort
of thing was not much in my line, it was arranged that I should
give a conjuring performance.
I regret to say that I was a dismal failure. I was horribly
nervous, with the result that all my tricks went wrong, and
the audience started to hoot and guy me. The last trick I
— —
performed or rather attempted to perform nearly ended in
tragedy.
I was supposed to borrow a handkerchief, set fire to it,
put the ashes in a revolver and fire at a lighted candle on
the stage, and subsequently produce the handkerchief from
the candle. But when I pulled the trigger of the revolver,
the confounded thing refused to go off. Again and again I
pressed the trigger with the same result, and each time the
audience would shout,
" " at the
Bang ! bang ! top of their
voices. At length, goaded to desperation, I flung the revolver
into the auditorium, and, remembering that I had another in
my hip-pocket, pulled it out and fired at the candle, without
stopping to think that this revolver was loaded with ball-
cartridge. The bullet grazed the ear of a man who was stand
ing in the wings, and it was a miracle that he was not killed.
I left the stage in disgust, amidst a storm of hooting, vowing
that this should be my first and last appearance in public.
I kept to my resolution for some months, until one day I
received an from the manager of a travelling company
offer
to join him on a tour of the towns of Southern California.
My parents, who were strongly opposed to my adopting
conjuring as a career, objected, but eventually I persuaded
them to let me go.
We opened at Santa Cruz, but business was so bad that
we only played there one uight, and moved on to Watsonville.
B
Here it was even worse, and we opened to a house that

was almost empty. The next morning, on inquiring for the
manager, I found that he had skipped and left his unfortunate
company in the lurch. None of us had any money, and, in
order to pay my hotel bill and my fare back to 'Frisco, I was
obliged to pawn my watch and sleeve-links, a present from my
mother and father on my thirteenth birthday. It was lucky
for me that I had this jewellery, otherwise I should have had
to tramp home — a distance of over a hundred miles — as the
other artists were compelled to do. Of course, I could not
conceal from my parents that the tour had been a complete
failure, but I did not dare to tell them the actual facts, knowing
how much they disliked the idea of my going on the stage.
After this experience I came to the conclusion that the
profession was hardly the money-making concern it was
represented to be, and accordingly I secured another post in a
dry goods store. I did not stay there long, however, as one
day I got an offer from a well-known theatrical manager to
join his company, which was about to tour the mining towns
of California. I was a bit chary at first about accepting his
offer, but, on inquiry, I found he was a man with quite a good
reputation, and so decided to close with it.
We were to open at Petaluma, and I was greatly surprised
on arriving at the Ferry Depot, at which we were to take
the boat to that town, to find that there were only three other
artists there — two men and a lady. I asked the manager
where the other people were, and was told that they were
coming on later. On reaching Petaluma, we went at once to
the theatre for rehearsal, and, to my utter astonishment, the
manager handed me a part. I looked at it and saw that it
"
was the part of Dick Deadeye in H.M.S. Pinafore."
" What's this "
?said I.
"
That's your part, of course, and you've got to look sharp
and learn it."
" But,"
I protested, " I can't sing a note and I never
played a part in my life ! Besides, I am engaged to do a
"
conjuring performance, not to act or sing !
The manager then explained that the other artists were

also going to play parts, and that each of us was to do his
speciality in the deck scene in the second act.
I flatly refused to play the part of Dick Deadeye or any
other part, upon which the manager flew into a rage and told
me that Ihad either got to play it or get back home as best
I could. As I had no money, there was nothing for me to do
but to climb down, though I did it with a very bad grace.
When the rehearsal began, I found, to my horror, that
we four people were expected to play the whole opera by
doubling our parts ; but I was so bad in the character of
Dick Deadeye that the manager decided that one part was
" "
enough for me. Pinafore was all the rage at this time
and drawing packed houses everywhere, and we were billed,
"
not as a vaudeville show, but as Gilbert and Sullivan's
' '
Pinafore Company."
On the opening night the theatre was packed to the doors,
and, since Petaluma was a university town, the audience was
largely composed of students. I shall never forget that
evening as long as I live.
So soon as the curtain went up, and the audience realised
" "
that four people were going to try to play Pinafore the
fat was in the fire. The students kicked up terrible
a row, and
started to throw things on the stage, and, after a vain attempt
to obtain a hearing, the curtain was rung down, amidst a
pandemonium of hissing, booing, yells and catcalls and a
shower of missiles of every description. After the performance
we dared not leave our dressing-rooms to return to our hotel,
as a mob of some two or three hundred students were waiting
at the stage-door, armed with sticks, stones, rotten eggs and
anything they could lay their hands on, to get back on us for
having swindled them in the way we had. We were obliged
to stay at the theatre until five o'clock the next morning, by
which time the young gentlemen had got tired of waiting for
us and dispersed.
We were billed to play for three nights, but I need hardly
say that one was enough for us, and we caught the early steamer
back to 'Frisco, when I told the manager that I wanted nothing

more to do with him or his company, and returned sorrowfully
home.
But worse was in store, for my father, having heard of the
fiasco at Petaluma, declared that he was not going to allow me
to fool away my time any more, and, invading my room, seized
upon the whole of my apparatus, smashed it up and threw it
on to the fire.
As all my money had gone on the collection of this un
fortunate apparatus, there was nothing to be done but to
return to the dry goods, until I could save enough to replace
what my father had destroyed. This took me some time, but,
so soon as I had again fitted myself out, I told my parents that
I had made up my mind to make conjuring my profession, and
it was not the least use their trying to dissuade me. I then
gave performances at various clubs, concerts and private
houses, which, as I had now gained confidence in myself and
no longer suffered from nervousness, were very successful, and
by this means contrived to get sufficient money to pay my
fare from 'Frisco to Kansas City, a distance of over 3,000 miles.
For, as may be supposed, I had had quite enough of touring
companies for the present. I had picked out Kansas City
because a friend of mine at 'Frisco, who had lately gone on
the stage, had secured his first engagement in that town, and
being very young and inexperienced — I was not yet nineteen
— I thought that it must be an easy place in which to get one.
Meantime, my parents, seeing that I was absolutely deter
mined to go into the profession, had decided to make a virtue
of necessity, and not only gave their consent, but even offered
me money to help me to make a start. But, being of a very
independent turn of mind, and having my fair share of the
optimism of youth, I refused to accept a cent, saying that I
had enough to take me to Kansas City, where I felt sure that
I should have not the least difficulty in getting an engagement.
In the end, however, I was obliged to promise my father that
I would write or wire at once if I were in need of money.
The train by which I travelled from 'Frisco to Kansas
City was what is known as an emigrant train. It was really

what is called a goods train in England, with a couple of
carriages attached to the last coach for emigrant passengers.
The journey occupied eleven days, and was one of the most
unpleasant that could be imagined, since I was unable to get
a proper meal and had to live on tinned food and the contents
of a hamper which my mother had made up for me ; while
there was no accommodation on the train for washing, which,
as it was the height of summer, was a real hardship.
At last, hungry, dirty and weary, I arrived at Kansas
City, with the sum of twenty-five cents in my pocket, which
was not even enough to pay for my luggage to be taken to an
hotel. However, I boldly enquired at the station the name
of the best hotel in the town, and entered it with all the assur
ance in the world, having decided that it would never do for
me to advertise my impecunious condition by going to an
inferior one, and that the only thing to be done was to make
some kind of a bluff and trust to luck to enable me to pay my
bill when it should fall due.
I registered at the bureau, and handing my luggage-tickets
to the clerk, asked him to send for my trunks and put the
charge on my bill. I then had a much-needed bath, after
which I
repaired to the coffee-room, where dinner was being
served, and did justice to the first square meal that had come
my way since I left 'Frisco.
The hotel was an imposing one, extending along an entire
block ; but the ground floor was occupied by a very large
gentlemen's clothing and outfitters' store, called the Boston
One Price Clothing Store. It was the biggest in Kansas City,
there being eight or ten windows on either side of the entrance
to the hotel. As I was standing at the door after dinner, a
tall, dark young man in his shirt-sleeves came out of the store
and began to give pantomimic instructions to another young
man, who was engaged in dressing one of the windows. Pre
sently, he turned to me and, after one or two remarks about
the weather, said : —
" I You look like one."
You're a stranger here, reckon ?
" Yes, I
I've only just arrived from 'Frisco," answered.
" "
Are you travelling for pleasure or on business ?
" On business I'm on the stage."
;
At that he seemed interested and asked me what was my

particular line. I told him that I was a conjurer, and he said
that he was an amateur performer himself and sang comic
songs and gave recitations and imitations.
"
Just wait a minute while I get my hat and coat," said
"
he, and we'll go over the way and have a drink. I'd like to
have a talk with you."
I answered that I but he laughed and
was a teetotaler,
said that, in that case, I
could have a lemonade or something
equally innocuous. So we went to a big saloon just opposite
the hotel, where my new friend told me that his name was
Ben Hano and that he was manager of the drapery store, of
which his brother-in-law was the proprietor. He then in
quired my name and what I was going to do in Kansas City,
and I told him that I intended to see the manager of the Theatre
Comique in the morning and try and fix an engagement with
him.
" Well," "
said he, you may be able to fix an engagement
all right, but it won't start for three or four weeks. The
' '
Comique is closed for repairs."
You can bet I looked down my nose when I heard that.
It was a veritable bolt from the blue. Here I was located in
the most expensive hotel in Kansas City, where the charge
for my room alone was two dollars a day, to say nothing of
the cost of meals, with only a quarter in my pocket, and no
prospect that I could see of earning a cent for the next month.
Itold my companion of the predicament in which I was
placed, but, to my surprise, he seemed to take the matter very
lightly.
" You're in a bit of a mess, young man, I'll allow," said
"
he, laughing, but I
happen to have taken a liking to you,
and I'll see you through. The first thing you've got to do is
to get out of that hotel right away, because it's a pretty
expensive place, and you don't want to owe them any more
than you can help. So just go back and pack your things and
have them sent down to the store. I've got some rooms at
the back which my brother-in-law furnished for me, and
there's a spare bedroom there, to which you are welcome
until you can get something fixed."
I thanked Mr. Hano heartily for his kind offer and then
asked what I was to do about my hotel bill, since I could not
even pay the little that I owed. But he replied that he knew
the manager and would go and make things all right with him.
I
So went back to the hotel, and my trunks having meantime
arrived from the station, I removed with them to a comfortable
little room at the back of the Boston One Price Clothing Store.
Next morning I set out to call on the manager of the
Theatre Comique and see if I could not obtain an engagement
from him. The great man —for he seemed a great man to
me then — received kindly enough, but told me that the
me
theatre would not be open for another month. I said that if
he were willing to offer me an engagement, I would wait until
it upon which he asked me to give him some idea
re-opened,
of my performance. I did so, and he then wanted to know
where I had been engaged before, and if I could show him the
programmes of some of the other theatres at which I had
performed. This, of course, I could not do, never having yet
had any professional engagements except with the two touring
companies, about which I thought it wiser to say nothing.
But I handed him several good Press notices of performances
I had given at concerts and charity entertainments in 'Frisco.
He looked at them and inquired what salary I wanted. Here
I was in a bit of a dilemma. It occurred to me that if I asked
too little, he would think I was no good, and, if I asked too
much, he would refuse to engage me, which would be nothing
short of a disaster. However, after some hesitation, I told
him that I
wanted sixty dollars a week, a salary which was
considered quite a large one in those days.
He laughed.
" "
My dear boy," said he, I
couldn't dream of paying a
salary like that for a performance I've never seen and have
only your word for. But if you like to accept a week's

engagement at thirty dollars, when we re-open, I'll give you
a contract."
Not wishing to appear too anxious, I replied that I couldn't
possibly accept as little as that, but I was ready to take fifty.
" Well,
I don't mind springing another five dollars," he
said.
"
And I don't mind knocking off another five," I answered.
Eventually, he agreed to give me an engagement for one
week at forty dollars, and I
left the theatre very well pleased
with my morning's work. I
was, however, a good deal worried
as to how I was to live for the next month. I did not at all
like the idea of imposing on the good nature of my new friend
Hano, and, on the other hand, I did not want to wire home
for money. For, as I have said, I was very independent, and
to appeal to my parents would seem like a confession of failure.
However, when I spoke to Hano on the matter, he soon put
my mind at rest.
" See here !
"
said he.
"
Don't you go worrying your
head about anything. You just stop here, and I'll arrange
for you to have all your meals with me until your engagement
starts."
I said I couldn't
allow him to do that unless he would agree
to my defraying the expense to which I should be putting him
so soon as I received my salary ; and to this, though very
reluctantly, the good-natured fellow consented.
As the days went by, I began to find the time hanging
pretty heavily on my hands, and so I asked Mr. Fletcher, the
proprietor of the store, to whom Hano had introduced me, if
he would let me assist in the store as salesman or in any
capacity in which I could be of use to him, as I should like to
make some return for the kindness which had been shown me.
He consented readily enough, and for some days I acted as
salesman. Then, one morning, I asked to be allowed to dress
one of the windows for him, as window-dressing had been a
speciality of mine when I was in the dry goods line. He gave
me permission, and was so pleased with the result that he
Mandarin's Wife. little
9.
Carl Hertz, age Chinese (Note feet.)
p. 24.
begged me to give up the idea of going on the stage and accept

the post of window-dresser to the firm, offering me a very good
salary indeed. Needless to say, I declined, but told him that
I should be only too pleased to continue to dress his windows
for him so long as I remained in Kansas City.
At last the night arrived for the Theatre Comique to re
open, and for my first appearance on the stage as a professional.
There were between forty and fifty clerks at the store, and
they all came down to the theatre in a body and gave me a
rousing reception, which d;d me a lot of good, and served to
banish the nervousness from which I should otherwise have
probably suffered.
My performance consisted of a series of card-tricks, followed
by a trick with a borrowed ring and a pigeon, in which the
pigeon disappeared and was eventually found with the borrowed
ring round its neck in the inside coat-pocket of a member of
the audience, and concluding with my afterwards celebrated
vanishing cage and canary trick, in which cage and bird in
stantly disappeared while held in my hand in full view of
the audience, without covering them in any way whatever.
Of this trick I shall have something more to say later on.
I am giving away one of my professional secrets when I
explain that in the ring and pigeon trick it was necessary to
place someone in the audience with the pigeon already in his
pocket. As I knew no one whom I could trust except my friend
Hano, I asked him if he would assist me, and he very kindly
consented.
My turn was a huge success, and when it was over, the
manager came round to my dressing-room and offered to
extend my engagement for a further two weeks. I declined,
however, to perform on the same terms, and said that I wanted
sixty dollars a week— the same salary, it will be remembered,
which I had at first demanded — for the other two weeks. To
this, after some demur, he consented and had no reason to
regret having done so, since my performance was an immense
draw, and the house was packed every night.
I did not, as you may suppose, fail to follow up the hit I
had made, and accordingly lost no time in writing to the

managers of a score or more theatres in different parts of the
" "
States offering them my services and enclosing a programme
and bill from the Theatre Comique. The result exceeded all
my anticipations, and before my three weeks' engagement in
Kansas City came to an end I had secured engagements in
Chicago, St. Louis, St. Joseph, Detroit, Toledo, Cincinatti,
Louisvilleand a number of other towns. Altogether, these
engagements extended over nearly a year.
During the time that I was in Kansas City, my friend
Hano and I were, of course, constantly in each other's com
pany, and eventually he became stage-struck himself and
wanted to go into the profession. But I strongly advised him
not to do so, pointing out that, as he had an excellent post as
manager of his brother-in-law's store, it would be a foolish
thing to give it up for so uncertain a calling as the stage.
For some two or three months after we parted we cor
responded pretty regularly, and then Hano's letters suddenly
ceased, and, though I wrote to him several times, I could get
no answer. Finally, I began to fear that something serious
had happened to him, and wrote to his brother-in-law to in
quire. In reply, I received an angry letter from Mr. Fletcher,
in which he told me that some weeks before Hano had suddenly
left his employment without giving any notice whatever and
had joined a circus. They had not heard a word from him
since. He accused me of having put the idea of entering the
profession into his head, and declared that he never wanted to
see or hear from me again.
For more than twenty-five years I
heard not a word of
Hano, and concluded that he must be dead. Then one night,
shortly after I had returned from a visit to England in order
to fulfil an engagement at Hammerstein's New Theatre on
Broadway, New York, my wife and I accepted an invitation
from Mr. Jules Hurtig, of Hurtig and Seeman, the owners of
several theatres inNew York and different parts of the "States,"
to sup with him at a new restaurant which was opening that
night in Harlem. While we were at supper, Mr. Hurtig
excused himself for a moment and went over to speak to a

gentleman and two ladies who were sitting at a table not far
from ours. I looked at them and remarked to my wife : —
"
That man's face seems very familiar. I can't place him
for the moment, but I'm certain that I know him."
Then suddenly I recognised him. He was none other than
my old friend Ben Hano, who had befriended me when I was
stranded in Kansas City. When I had last seen him, his hair
was black and he was clean-shaven, whereas now he was quite
bald, with long grey whiskers. But I felt certain it was he.
However, to leave nothing to chance, I told Mr. Hurtig when
he returned to our table thatthought I knew the gentleman
I
to whom he had just been talking, and inquired whether his
name was not Hano.
" Yes," he answered, "
that's his name, and one of the
ladies with him is his wife and the other her sister."
He added that Hano was a very wealthy man, and wanted
to know where I had met him.
I begged our host to ask Hano and his party to come
over to our table to have a glass of wine, but not to mention
my name, and to introduce me as Mr. Williams, of London, and
he would then see some fun. They joined us, and my wife
and I were introduced as Mr. and Mrs. Williams. Hano did
not recognise me, and presently I said that I had met someone
who, I believed, had once been a friend of his, and asked him
if he knew Carl Hertz.
" Good heavens, "
he exclaimed.
"
And I'd give a
yes !
lot to meet him again. If it hadn't been for him I might
have remained a poor man all my life."
" "
How was that, Mr. Hano ? said I.
" Well, Carl Hertz was
responsible for my getting stage-
struck, and I gave up a good position as managerof a dry
goods store and went and joined a circus. I had a rough time
with that circus, I can tell you, and more than once was
pretty well starving, but it was while I was with it that I hit
upon the invention out of which I made my money."
He then told us that he had to play the part of a nigger
and used to make up for his performance by using a paste

composed of corks out of old bottles, burned to a cinder and
mixed with lard. This paste was wrapped up in paper, and
naturally the paste stuck to the paper. One day he wanted
to write a letter, and laid the sheet of paper on top of the
paper which had been used to wrap up the black paste. There
was an old newspaper underneath it, and when he lifted up the
paper he found the impression of what he had written on the
first sheet of the newspaper. This gave him the idea of his
invention, which was called " Hano's Manifold Letter Press,"
and consisted of carbon paper interleaved between sheets of
white paper. He said that he had made a fortune out of this
invention and naturally wanted to meet Carl Hertz again, as
he was indirectly responsible for his success.
"
After a while, I said to him : Look at me, Mr. Hano.
Don't you know me ?
"
But he smiled and shook his head.
/
" Well, am Carl Hertz."
Then at last he recognised me, and was so astonished and
delighted that the tears came into his eyes.
We saw a good deal of Hano during our stay in New York,
and later his wife was our guest for several months in London.
I regret to say that a couple of years ago my old friend died,
but Mrs. Hano is still alive, and we often hear from her.
~"\
CHAPTER II
A serious illness — A strange coincidence — Unpleasant experiences at
Philadelphia — My apparatus is destroyed in a fire — Kindness of
a brother professional, who helps me out of my predicament —
Another accident — Singular adventure at Montgomery City,
Missouri, where I am arrested and imprisoned in mistake for
another man — Ludicrous mishap while performing at Louisville.
For some time after leaving Kansas City everything went

splendidly for me ; in town after town to which I went I
performed to crowded and enthusiastic houses, and I was able
to make as many engagements as I cared to book, on terms a
good deal higher than those which I had at first received.
But my luck was too good to last. At EvansviUe, Indiana,
I was taken ill with malaria. I managed, however, to struggle
through my week's engagement and went on to my next,
which was at Cleveland, Ohio. I arrived there feeling like
nothing on earth, notwithstanding which I made up my mind
to appear that night. When I went on I could hardly stand,
but managed to get through part of my performance, when the
stage seemed to rise up and hit me, and down I went in front
of the audience in a dead faint. The curtain had to be
lowered, and I was carried to my hotel, which was run by the
proprietors of the theatre at which I was engaged, and was
close to it. A doctor was sent for and pronounced me to be
suffering from typhoid fever.
When the manager of the hotel heard this, he declared that
he would not allow me to remain there, and gave orders for me
to be taken to a hospital. The doctor protested that it would
be highly dangerous for me to be moved, as my temperature
was 1040 ; but the other insisted, and it was only through the
intervention of his wife, who was a very kind-hearted woman,

that I was eventually permitted to remain.
I was delirious for nearly a fortnight, during which time I
was, of course, unable to write to my parents to let them know
that I had been taken ill. By a strange coincidence, the
train which followed the one on which I had travelled from
Evansville to Cleveland had met with a terrible accident, in
which some two hundred people were killed and about as
many injured. My parents, who knew that I had intended to
travel to Cleveland on the day of the accident, and had, of
course, received no answer to the letters which they had
written me to inquire if I were safe, naturally concluded that
I was amongst the casualties, and if not dead, at any rate very
severely injured, and were in great distress.
One day, about three or four weeks later, when I was on
the road to recovery and permitted to receive visitors, two
detectives came into my room and inquired if I were Mr. Carl
Hertz, of San Francisco, as they had instructions from the
Chief of Police in that town to try to trace the gentleman in
question, whose parents feared that he had lost his life in the
recent railroad disaster. They said they had been hunting
for me in every direction, and were very pleased that they had
eventually found me and were able to relieve my parents'
anxiety.
My illness, which obliged me to remain in Cleveland for

two months, was, of course, a very expensive affair, and
swallowed up every dollar that I had saved. In fact, I had
to leave my gold watch and chain to make up my hotel bill
before starting for Philadelphia, where I was billed to appear
at the Walnut Street Theatre.
I arrived in Philadelphia at four o'clock on a bitter winter's
morning, three hours or more behind time, the train having
been delayed owing to the necessity of clearing the track of
snow. There was not a cab to be had, and although it was
snowing hard and there was a foot or more of snow already on
the ground, and I was still very weak from my recent illness,
-.
I decided to walk to my hotel, rather than spend the rest of

the night at the station. And so Istarted off, with a heavy
bag in either hand, and struggled on for some distance, when
what little strength I had gave out, and I sank down exhausted.
Happily for me, a baker's van, on its way to deliver the
morning bread, chanced to come along at that moment, and
the driver, seeing me lying in the snow, got down, helped me
up, put me and my bags into his van and drove me to my
hotel. I, of course, went at once to bed, and the proprietor,
who had once practised as a doctor, came to see me, and gave
me some physic.
I was very much afraid that I should be unable to appear
that night, and had to stay in bed until just before I was due
at the theatre. But I managed to go through my performance,
though no sooner had I reached my dressing-room than I
crumpled up, and it was some little time before I was able to
return to the hotel. I felt pretty queer for some days after
wards, but contrived to pull through my week's engagement,
though it required a bit of an effort, I can assure you.
After I left Philadelphia things went very well with me,
until I came to fulfil an engagement at St. Joseph, where one
night, just before the performance began, fire broke out, and
the theatre was burned to the ground. Fortunately, however,
I was able to save a good deal of my apparatus.
Not long afterwards, during an engagement at the
" Varieties,"
Troy, New York, I had a similar experience ;
but this time I was not so fortunate.
It was Christmas Eve and a very cold night. I had just
returned to my hotel from the theatre and, having had supper,
was sitting by the fire in the smoking-room, when suddenly
I heard the fire-bell. I went to the window and saw a big blaze
in the sky, and in a minute or two someone came in with the
" " was on fire. I
news that the Varieties got my hat and coat
and ran to the theatre as fast as I could, only to find that the
flames had got such a hold on the building that there was no
hope of saving it.
As a matter of fact, the place was absolutely gutted, and
I lost, not only ,the whole of my apparatus, but most of my

savings as well, which were in paper money, locked up in the
same trunk. So there I was with no apparatus and next to
no money, and had it not been for the kindness of a brother
professional, Professor Hermann, one of the cleverest conjurers
of the day, who fitted me up with enough apparatus to give
a satisfactory entertainment, there would have been nothing
for it but to take an enforced holiday.
Ill-luck continued to follow me. With the fit-up with which
Professor Hermann had provided me, I went on to Boston,
where I had an engagement at the Howard Athenaeum. On
the Monday morning, during rehearsal, the trunk containing
it was being hoisted up into my dressing-room, which was
near the flies, by a rope attached to the handle, when the
handle came off and the trunk fell and was smashed to pieces.
However, I contrived to fix some of the apparatus temporarily
and, with the assistance of a pack of cards, to give an enter
tainment which, though less attractive than it would have
been had not the accident occurred, was nevertheless quite
enthusiastically received.
During these early days on the stage I had a very singular

and particularly unpleasant experience.
One evening, when I was performing at Chicago, I received
a visit from a certain Mr. M , a very prosperous-looking
and very pleasant-spoken individual, who inquired if I could

give a whole evening's entertainment. Although I had never
attempted such a thing before — the performances I was then
giving did not occupy more than twenty minutes — I told him
that I had no doubt I should be able to manage
it,
and he
then offered me an engagement at place called Mexico,
a
Missouri, on very tempting terms. It appeared that there

was to be fair in that town the following week in which Mr.
a
M who was a confectioner by trade, was interested, and

,
that he had engaged the theatre there for the week and was
in search of an attraction.
As this Mr. M was quite unknown to me, stipulated
I
that Iwas to receive my money each night before the curtain

rose, and that he was also to pay my hotel bill and all incidental
expenses. To this he agreed.
I arrived in the town on the Monday morning, and, as my
first performance was not to take place until the Wednesday,
I had plenty of time to prepare a programme which I thought
would be long enough to make up an evening's entertainment.
On the Wednesday night I went down to the theatre, and just
before eight o'clock, when the curtain was to rise, I looked
through a little hole in it and saw, to my mortification, that
there were scarcely a dozen people in the auditorium. However,
I consoled myself by the reflection that, as my agreement
stipulated that I was to be paid before the performance began,
I was on the right side.
Mr. M duly handed me my money, telling me not to
bother about the smallness of the audience, as, if my enter
tainment pleased them, we should have crowded houses for
the rest of the week. The performance proved a great success
with the few who were there, but alas for Mr. M 's hopes I
On the following night the audience consisted of exactly eight
persons !
waiting to receive my money in advance, as I had the

I was
previous evening, when Mr. M arrived and told me that he
would let me have it in the morning.. I answered that that
was not good enough for me ; that, by the terms of my agree
ment, I was to receive it before the curtain rose ; otherwise,
I should not appear. So he had to go out and hustle round
to scrape the money together, which he eventually contrived
to do, and the curtain rose about three-quarters of an hour
late on a very impatient and unruly audience of eight !
The next day Mr. M came to me and said :
" Mr.
Hertz, I guess it's no use going on here any longer, as evidently
the people won't patronise the theatre. I
know I've made a
contract with you for four days. I've already paid you for
two, and I'm under contract to pay you for the other two ;
but I've lost so much money that I don't wish to proceed any
further with it. So, in order to recompense you, I'll make
C
you a proposition. I've booked the theatre at Montgomery

City, Missouri, for three days next week, during the fair there.
I'll let you have all the bills, which you will find in some
packages addressed to me in the parcels-office at the station.
Go there, tell the clerk that you are Mr. M , get the packages
and have the bills put out and distributed. Then you can
give the performance, and the whole of the receipts will be
yours. This will amply repay you for the loss I have caused
you."
I accepted his proposal, took the train to Montgomery City,
and, on my arrival, went to the parcels-office, where I said that
I was Mr. M and was handed some bulky packages
,
directed to that gentleman, which I signed for in his name,

"
A. K. M ." I ought, of course, to have known that to
use another person's name, even at his own request, is always
a pretty unwise thing to do and may lead to all sorts of com
plications ; but in those days I was very young and green.
I had the bills distributed, and then went to the directors
of the fair and asked if they would allow me to give a free
performance on the first day, in front of the grand stand,
during the judging of the horses, as I thought this would be
an excellent advertisement. They consented, and I had four
tables put up in front of the stand and gave a fifteen minutes'
performance, during which I had some boys going round with
handbills announcing my appearance at the theatre that night
and the two following nights. My performance was a great
success, and, as there were some five or six thousand people at
the fair, I
felt sure of having a packed house in the evening,
and was just tickled to death at the thought that all the takings
were going into my own pocket.
After I had finished, I was walking through the grounds of
the fair when I was stopped by two policemen, who said :
" We "
arrest you !
" Arrest me ? " I cried in " What for "
astonishment. ?
" We want "
you ; your name is M I
We were soon surrounded by a great crowd of people, most

of whom recognised me as the conjurer who had just been
performing in front of the grand stand, and naturally con

cluded that I must have done something pretty bad to be
publicly arrested in that way. I told the policemen that
they had made a mistake, that my name was not M , but
Carl Hertz, and taking letters and papers from my pocket,

"
showed them that they were all addressed Carl Hertz," and
explained that M was my former manager, who had
engaged me for Mexico and Montgomery City, but had made
over the theatre at the latter place to me, to give performances
on my own.
However, they refused to believe me, and, notwithstanding
my protestations, I was marched through the streets to the
police-station and locked up. I demanded to know what was
the charge against me, and was told that it was for buying
jewellery on credit at St. Louis under a false name. Again I
tried to explain that they had got hold of the wrong man, and
threatened them with an action for false imprisonment. But
they only laughed at that, and presently I was handcuffed,
marched through the streets again and taken to the railway-
station, where I was confronted with the clerk at the parcels-
office, who at once identified me as the person who had come
for the packages directed to M and had signed for them
in that name.
I was then conducted back to prison, where I
again pro
tested my innocence and told the superintendent that, if I were
not permitted to fulfil my engagement at the theatre that
evening, I should hold him accountable for the loss which I
should suffer. At length, it seemed to dawn upon that per
sonage that, perhaps after all, I might not be the man he
wanted ; and he said that he would allow me to give my per
formance on condition that two of his men were in attendance,
for whose services Iwas to pay at the rate of two dollars an
hour.
And so down to the theatre I went, with a stalwart police
man on either side. But the public, who had seen me arrested
that afternoon and marched about the town in custody, had
not unnaturally come to the conclusion that I must be an
impostor, and the performance was a complete frost, the

audience numbering scarcely twenty people. After it was
over, I was taken back to the police-station, where I spent a
very uncomfortable night. But, about noon the next day, the
superintendent appeared and told me that I was at liberty, as
he had just received a wire to say that the real M had been
laid by the heels and was now in gaol at Mexico.
To have been arrested and imprisoned for another man's
misdeeds, and to have performed before an empty house,
instead of the crowded one I had so fondly anticipated, was
bad enough in all conscience. But worse was in store, for, on
my release, I learned that this precious scoundrel of an M
had lied to me, and that the rent of the theatre for the three
nights had not been paid, nor the cost of the printing. I had
to pay for both, and left that town a sadder and a wiser man.
I in these early days which I can

had another experience
never recall without a laugh, thoughI am afraid I did not quite
appreciate the humour of it at the time.
During an engagement at the Buckingham Theatre, at
Louisville, I was performing a well-known trick, which con
sisted of passing a marked coin into the centre of an uncut
orange — at least, that is what most people thought I was doing.
I used a silver dollar and emphasised the trick by passing the
coin into the pocket of some boy whom I had enticed on to the
stage. I must confess that the boy had to be a confederate,
and that the marked dollar had its fellow in one previously
prepared by me.
One night, as I was entering the theatre, I looked round for
a likely youth to aid me in my double dealing, and having
picked one out, promised to pass him in free if he would do
what I was going to ask him. Then I showed him a dollar
and said :—
"lama conjurer, and I want you to put this dollar in your
right-hand trousers pocket. I will get you a seat in the
front row, and when I ask for someone to come on the stage
to assist me, you must come. I shall then produce a dollar
■\
and make it vanish, and ask you to reproduce the same dollar
from your pocket."
The boy readily promised to follow my instructions, and,
having arranged for him to have a seat in the front row, I left
him.
When I was ready for the dollar trick, I saw my young
confederate sitting open-mouthed in the front row. I had
persuaded another member of the audience to pretend to lend
me a dollar marked exactly as was the one I had given the
" borrowed " dollar I
boy ; and this passed into the orange,
and when I cut the fruit open, out dropped the coin.
Then I turned to the audience and said : —
"
And now, ladies and gentlemen, I will perform a still more
difficult feat. I have passed this dollar into the orange. Now
I will ask a member of the audience to step on to the stage
and, without going anywhere near him, I
will pass the same
dollar, marked as you have seen, into his right-hand trousers
pocket."
True to his bargain, the boy stepped on to the stage. I
took my stand opposite him and said :—
" Now, sir, "
have you ever seen me before this evening ?
"No, sir," was the answer.
It of course, the truth, but not quite in the sense
was,
which those present imagined.
" I have here a dollar," I went on, " and am
going to pass
it into vour right-hand trousers pocket. One two— three
—
-go !
"
And with that I made the proper magician's pass and
smiled complacently upon my audience.
" Now," "
said I to my youthful confederate, put your hand
in your right trousers pocket and give me that dollar."
The boy looked a bit sheepish, but down went his fist into
his pocket. And then, to my utter dismay, he drew out a
handful of small change and said : —
"
I've only ninety cents of it left, sir. I was thirsty and
" ,
went out to get a drink of lemonade ! . .
CHAPTER III
I accept an engagement with a travelling circus —Serious accident to
the circus trains on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad —
Although only very slightly injured, I decide to try to obtain
compensation from the railroad company — My modus operandi —
My interview with the company's manager at Nashville — I am
sent to be examined by a doctor, who discovers that my
injuries are faked. I
At his request give a private performance
under an assumed name, at the Medical College — I receive $1,500
compensation from the railroad company — I go to New York and
take an engagement at a variety theatre on the Bowery — Reply of
the German proprietor to my request for my salary — I give a per
formance at William H. Vanderbilt's house on Fifth Avenue — A
comedy of errors.
My next experience was travelling with a circus, as I accepted

an engagement with the great Fore-Paugh show, one of the
biggest travelling circuses in the States. We travelled in three
special trains, and generally played in a different town every
night. Immediately a performance was over the enormous
tents in which it had been given were taken down, conveyed
to the railway station and loaded on to the train. The work
of erecting and taking down these huge tents necessitated the
employment of a whole regiment of men.
It was nearly always two or three o'clock in the morning
before all our paraphernalia was aboard the train, portions of
which were arranged as sleeping compartments for the artists
and staff, and we generally arrived in the next town between
eight and nine. The great tents were then erected again and
made ready for the afternoon performance, as we gave two
performances in every place we visited, and about eleven
o'clock a parade through the town took place in order to ad
vertise the show. It was a very hard life, in fact the hardest
I have ever had during my whole career ; and one season of it

was quite enough for me.
My most eventful experience with the circus was a railroad
accident, which happened near Birmingham, Alabama, on the
Louisville and Nashville Railroad. It was about three o'clock
in the morning. I was in the second of the three trains ; one
had preceded us, and the other was following us. We had
stopped to take in water, when train No. 3 ran into us.
I
was asleep in an upper berth and was awakened by the
shouts of those who had caught sight of the headlights of the
approaching train. I jumped down and rushed towards the
door, with the intention of going on to the platform of the car
to see what was the matter. But before I
could reach the
door, a negro attendant pushed me back, and got out on to the
platform himself, closing the door after him. I seized the
handle of the door, and, at the same moment, the other train
struck us, and I was sent flying back into the corridor, with the
glass door of the carriage, which had been wrenched from its
hinges, on top of me.
lost consciousness, and when I recovered my senses, found
I
myself lying in a farmhouse, to which all the injured passengers
had been carried. My face and night-clothes were covered
with blood, and at first I thought I must be badly injured.
But when the local doctor had examined me, he found that I
had got off very lightly, and was unhurt save for cuts on my
forehead, nose and chin. The last was rather a deep one, and
I still bear the mark of it. It was indeed a fortunate thing for
me that the negro attendant had prevented me going out on to
the platform of the car, as he was killed, while I escaped.
The doctor washed the cuts and put plaster on them, and
then said that I should soon be all right and might go on to
Birmingham, at which town the circus was to perform, which
was only some few miles away. But, as I was naturally suffer
ing from the shock and feeling pretty bad, I decided, when I
arrived there, to go to an hotel and rest for a day or two before
rejoining the show.
The next morning it occurred to me that I might be able
to get some compensation out of the railroad company, if I

went the right way to work, and I decided to go to the head
quarters of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, at Nash
ville, and interview the manager. During the day the manager
of the circus came to see me to know why I hadn't rejoined
the show, when I told him that I was staying away because I
was going to bring an action against the railroad company to
recover damages for the injuries I had received, unless they
settled with me to my satisfaction.
"
He burst out laughing : You've got some cheek, I guess,"
"
said he. Why, you're not hurt at all, except for these two or
three little cuts on your face, while some of the others have got
broken arms and collar-bones and worse ! You won't get a
nickel out of those railroad people."
" Well, "
we shall see," I answered. Anyway, I mean to
have a good try."
When he had gone, I went to a chemist's and invested half-
a-dollar or so in the purchase of sticking-plaster. With this
I returned to the hotel, got some hot water, washed off the
plaster which the doctor had put on the cuts, and having cut
the sticking-plaster into strips, put them all over my face,
until nothing was visible but my eyes, nose and mouth. I
then wired to the manager of the Louisville and Nashville
Railroad, telling him that I was one of the persons injured in
the accident and that I proposed to come to Nashville and
call upon him, in order to see whether I could come to some
settlement with his company before bringing an action against
them for compensation. In reply, I received a wire requesting
me to come at once, at the company's expense.
I started for Nashville that afternoon, and was met at the
station by a carriage and pair and driven to the offices of the
Louisville and Nashville Railroad. On my arrival, I was
shown into the manager's private room, which I entered,
limping painfully and looking, of course, a most pathetic sight.
The manager stared at me in astonishment.
" " "
You have been knocked
Jee-rusalem ! he exclaimed.
about !
"
"
" Yes, sir," I " I should say I have."

grimly,
answered
I then told him that I was a conjurer, and that, as I could
not possibly appear before an audience until my face had
healed, to say nothing of the shock which my system had
received, it must be a long time before I was again able to earn
my living. Ihoped that the company would be prepared to
offer me adequate compensation ; otherwise, it was my
intention to bring an action against them.
Of course, this was sheer bluff on my part, for at that
time I had no money to spare in legal proceedings, and my
injuries were so slight that no lawyer, however speculative,
would have cared to take up the case, on the chance of getting
his costs out of the railroad company.
" Well," said the
manager, touching a bell on his desk,
" I'll
get one of my clerks to take you along to a doctor, and
let him examine you ; and when I receive his report, I may be
able to make you some kind of offer. Meantime, you can go
to any hotel in the town you like and stay there at the com
pany's expense."
When I heard this, I nearly fell through the floor, since I
knew the doctor would soon find out that there was practically
nothing the matter with me and the game would be up. I
tried to get the manager to make me some offer there and
then, but he shook his head and said he could do nothing until
he had the doctor's report. So, very reluctantly, I drove
with the clerk to the doctor's house, where we were
told that he was out and would not be back until five o'clock
that afternoon, having been called away to visit some patient
at a distance.
We accordingly drove to the Marshall Hotel, which the
clerk had recommended as being one of the best in Nashville.
Here, after telling the manager that the company would be
responsible for my bill and that it was to be sent in to them,
he left me, saying that he would not be able to come with me
to the doctor's at five o'clock, as he had an appointment else
where, but would give instructions to the coachman to call for
me at that time.
At five o'clock the carriage came round and took me to the

doctor's house. I was shown into the surgery and found
myself in the presence of a pleasant-looking, elderly man, to
whom I introduced myself, telling him that I was one of the
"
people injured in the accident to the circus specials," and
that I had been sent by the railroad company to be examined,
with a view to my receiving compensation.
" " " Your face
H'm I said he. appears to have been in
the wars, anyway. I'D just have a look at it."
He got a bowl of hot water and washed off all the plaster ;
then looked at me, burst out laughing, and asked : —
" "
Who in the world put all those plasters on your face ?
I told him the village doctor who had attended me after
the accident.
" " " He's
By Jingo, he must be a born fool ! he exclaimed.
put plaster over parts of your face where you're not hurt at
all ! You've only got slight cuts on your forehead and nose
and a gash a bit deeper on your chin, and why on earth he's
plastered you all over like this goodness only knows ! Those
cuts will be healed in a few days, and you'll be all right again."
My hopes of getting anything out of the railroad company
seemed to be fading away, and I decided that my only chance
was to try to persuade the doctor that I was hurt somewhere
else. So I said that I was very much afraid that I had received
some internal injury, as I had a terrible pain in my right side.
I certainly had some kind of pain there, and in several other
places, for that matter — in fact, I was feeling stiff and sore all
over — but it was no more than one would expect after the
I
way had been thrown into the corridor of our train when the
other one dashed into it.
" Well," said the doctor, "
you'd better strip and let me
examine you."
I
took off my clothes and lay down on the sofa, and he
sounded me all over, and every time he touched the right side
of my body I squirmed.
" I can find
nothing wrong," said he when he had finished,
"
not even a bruise. The pain you say you feel is probably
A
due to the shock you've received more than anything else,

and will soon pass off."
With that he looked at me and laughed, and, after washing
the cuts on my face and putting three small strips of plaster
on them, told me to dress.
I felt very disconsolate, as I was pretty sure, from the
doctor's manner, that I might say good-bye to all hopes of
touching the railroad company. However, after I had dressed,
the doctor, who was a very pleasant fellow, asked me to have
a drink, which I accepted, and he then inquired what was my
particular line in the circus. I told him that I was a conjurer,
at which he seemed very interested.
" I "
bit in that way sometimes myself," said he, and
do a
people are good enough to say that I'm pretty fair for an
amateur."
Then he got out a pack of cards and asked me if I would
mind showing him one or two tricks. I showed him several,
none of which he had ever seen before, and he was simply
flabbergasted. We sat talking for over an hour, and, when I
got up to go, he asked me if I would do him a great favour.
He was giving a lecture at the Medical College the next evening.
Would I go there with him and, after the lecture was over,
show the students some of the tricks I had shown him ?
I answered that I should be only too pleased to do so, but,
in the circumstances, I was afraid I must decline, as I had told
the railroad company that it would be weeks before I should
be able to appear before an audience and were they
again,
to hear I had given a performance two nights later, it would
spoil any chance I might have of receiving compensation.
" Oh, "
you needn't worry about that," said he. It's a
.private affair, and you can come under an assumed name ;
so they'll never know anything about it. If you will do this
for me, the report I shall send in won't do you any harm."
The next evening the doctor sent his carriage to take me
to the Medical College, where, at the conclusion of his lecture,
I was introduced to the students under an assumed name and
gave a performance which was a great success.
Some days later, I received a letter from the manager of

the railroad company asking me to call and see him.
"Well, Mr. Hertz," said he, "we have had the doctor's
report, and though he says that your injuries are not at all
serious, he seems to consider that it is a case which calls for
some slight compensation. On what terms will you be pre
"
pared to settle ?
I told him I wanted $4,000, though, of course, I knew that
I had no chance of getting anything like it. He refused to
listen to that, and offered me $500, which I said I could not
dream of accepting. At last, after a long argument, during
which he had doubled his offer, and I had halved my demand,
he said that he would speak to two of his directors, who hap
pened to be in an adjoining room. He went out and in a few
minutes returned and said : —
"
I have had a talk with my directors, Mr. Hertz, and this
is our final offer ; and if you decline to accept it, you will
have to bring your action, and we shall fight the case. We will
give you fifteen hundred dollars cash and a first-class ticket,
'
including sleepers,' from Nashville to any part of the United
States to which you wish to go. Meantime, you are at liberty
to remain at your hotel here at our expense, until you feel you
are well enough to travel ; the carriage will be in attendance
to take you for a drive whenever you wish to go out and any
extras on your bill will be paid."
I answered that I would accept their terms, as, although I
did not consider that the compensation they were offering me
was adequate, I had no wish to put the company and myself
to the trouble and expense of an action. Needless to say, I
should have accepted the $500 which the manager first offered
me, if he had refused to budge from it.
I
remained at Nashville for nearly a month, during which
I often visited my friend the doctor, and gave him several
lessons in conjuring and card tricks, and then left for New
York. On the way my train stopped for some twenty minutes
at a station, where I met the members of the circus with which
I had been performing. The circus season was over, and the
artists were dispersing to their homes. When I told them of

the compensation I had got out of the railroad company, they
were astonished at my good fortune, as, though several of them
had been badly injured, they had been advised that it was
useless to try to recover damages, and none of them had, in
consequence, attempted to do so.
The first engagement I got after my arrival in New York

was at a variety theatre on the Bowery which was
being run by a German. The place was always considered a
white elephant, and almost everybody who took it came to
grief. At that time I was doing a trick with a hat, in which I
was supposed to catch money in the air. I held a gentleman's
silk hat in one hand, and, reaching out in the air with the
other, caught a silver half-dollar, which I threw into the hat.
I kept on doing this until I had the hat almost half-filled with
these silver half-dollars, which, by the way, were not really
half-dollars, but simply copper coins silvered over. Business
was very bad, and on some nights there were scarcely a dozen
people in the theatre. On the Saturday night, after having
finished my performance, I went up to the proprietor's office
to get my week's salary.
" Well,"
said he,
"
and what do you want ?
"
"I've come for my salary," I answered.
" "
Who was you ?
" I am Mr. Carl Hertz."
" Oh,
youwas the man who catches money in the air, ain't it!"
'*
Yes, sir."
" Well, I
you will have to catch your salary, because
haven't got it."
And I never got a cent for my week's work, since it was no
use to waste money in suing him. There was no doubt that
the place had about broken him, as it had done so many
others, and you can't get blood out of a stone.
While I was in New York I was engaged to give a
performance at William H. Vanderbilt's house on Fifth
Avenue during an evening-party.
I which was reported to

was shown through the house,
have cost $300,000 to build, and in all my life I have never
seen one that could compare with it. The hall, with its pillars
of coloured marble, was like that of a palace ; the walls and
ceilings most exquisitely, and the art gallery,
were decorated
which contained paintings by all the most celebrated artists
in the world, was said to consist of the finest collection of
pictures in existence. At supper the service — plates, knives,
forks and spoons — was all of solid gold, and I was told
afterwards that there were about a dozen detectives in private
clothes located in different parts of the house.
My performance, which lasted nearly an hour, pleased the
company so much that I was requested to give another after
supper, which I did, and it was 3 a.m. before I left, with an
assurance that my services would be required on some future
occasion.
My entertainment had a singular sequel. On the day of
the party I had had two trunks containing my apparatus sent
to Vanderbilt's house, before leaving, I told the butler
and,
that I would be sending for them the following morning, and
asked him to give them to the express driver when he called ;
and this he promised to do. Now, it happened that Vanderbilt
and his wife were leaving town the next day for Saratoga, and
he had given instructions to his butler to send their trunks to
the railroad depot.
The next evening, when I returned to the boarding-house
at which I was staying, I was astonished to find the hall-way
stacked up with trunks.
I said to the proprietress :
" Who in the world do all those trunks "
belong to ?
" " and
Why, they're yours," she answered ; just let me
tell you, Mr. Hertz, they've all got to be taken out of this place
the very first thing to-morrow morning, as they're blocking
up the whole passage-way and we can't move for them."
Itold the indignant lady that the offending trunks cer
tainly did not belong to me, upon which she said that they
had arrived in three loads from Vanderbilt's house, where the
-
express driver had received instructions that they were to be

delivered to my address.
I saw at once that a ridiculous mistake had been made, and
that my two trunks had gone to the railroad depot, while
Vanderbilt's pyramid of luggage had been sent to me. I took
a car to the depot, where I found Vanderbilt's butler and his
staff looking all over the place for their master's property, and
well-nigh distracted at its supposed loss. They were, of
course, immensely relieved when I told them that all the
trunks were at my boarding-house.
I found my trunks at the depot and took them home, and
the next day Vanderbilt's tninks were taken away and sent
to Saratoga, whither he and his wife had had to proceed
without any luggage.
CHAPTER IV
I sail for Liverpool on my first visit to England — My appearance at
the Folly Theatre, Manchester — My great success — My disappearing
cage and canary trick — I perform the trick at the offices of the
R.S.P.C.A., in Jermyn Street, and successfully refute the charge
of cruelty which has been brought against me in connection with
it— My appearance at the Crystal Palace — Amusing incident
with Mr. Clement Scott, the dramatic critic, at the Alhambra —
Engagements at private houses — The house in Grosvenor Square
—Conjuring entertainments and baccarat parties — Singular sequel
— I give an entertainment at an evening party at Mr. Alfred de
Rothschild's house in Seymour Place — A distinguished company
— The Prince of Wales and the rabbit — Visit to Mr. Rothschild in
the City — His cigars.
In July, 1884, I
paid my first visit to England, where I in
tended to remain only a few months, but actually stayed over
three years. I sailed for Liverpool in the ss. America, on
board of which were many distinguished passengers, amongst
whom were one of the Goulds and Paul Arthur, the dramatic
author. During the voyage I gave several performances for
the benefit of the Sailors' Orphanage, which were very suc
cessful.
My first appearance in England was at the Folly Theatre,
in Manchester, on August 4th. I was engaged for one week,
but my opening night was such a success that the management
at once asked me to extend my engagement for a further
fortnight, to which I agreed.
The Manchester Guardian of the 6th contained the following
notice of my entertainment, which was as kind a one as I
could possibly have desired and gave me great encouragement :
" Mr. Carl Hertz, a young Californian necromancer, made
x
his first appearance here on Monday, when his clever tricks

elicited most enthusiastic applause. The new professor of
wonder-working is exceedingly clever, and his many tricks
received the heartiest appreciation of all who witnessed them.
His feats of necromancy are executed so deftly that he may
fairly claim to be considered at the top of the tree in his pro
fession. His manipulation of a pack of cards must be seen
to be believed, and one of his specialities, the marvellous dis
appearance of a cage, and bird, is about as clever a trick as has
ever been performed on a stage."
My disappearing cage and canary trick, of which Ihave

already spoken, made, indeed, a great sensation wherever I
performed it, and was afterwards the cause of a long controversy
in the London papers. Letters and articles appeared con
demning the trick, on the ground that it was cruel to the bird,
and that it could not be performed without killing or injuring
it. In fact, so much fuss was made, that at the places where I
was engaged to appear the managers gave me notice that I
must discontinue the trick, as otherwise I might injure the
reputation of their halls, and even lead the County Council to
refuse to renew their licenses.
I could not very well cease to perform it, as that would
amount to a tacit admission that the charge of cruelty was
true. But, at the same time, I saw that something would
have to be done in order to prove how groundless such an
accusation was. I accordingly went to the offices of the
Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, in Jermyn
Street, and offered to perform the trick in their board-room, in
the presence of as many persons as they cared to invite, and
with a bird which had been secretly marked by them pre
viously. They accepted my offer ; a day was arranged and
representatives of the Press invited to attend.
I performed the trick with a bird which had been pre
viously marked by a member of the Society. He placed the
bird in the cage himself, and, at a word of command from me,
bird-cage and bird immediately disappeared, in full view of
D
those present. A few moments afterwards, I

reproduced the
same bird, which, on being examined, was found not to be
injured in any way whatever.
One of the members of the committee remarked that
perhaps it was a mere chance that the bird had escaped injury
on this occasion, and asked me whether I had any objection
to performing the trick again with the same bird. I answered
that I would do so most willingly, and for the second time
reproduced the canary quite unhurt. He then admitted that
I had proved my case, and the Society sent me a certificate,
which I have still in my possession, stating that they were
quite satisfied that it was the same bird which was placed in
the cage at the beginning of the performance and exhibited
by me afterwards uninjured.
Only recently the matter was brought up again, during
the sittings of the Select Committee appointed by the House
of Commons to hear evidence on the Performing Animals Bill.
I was summoned as a witness, and performed the trick before
the Committee and again shewed that the bird was not injured
in any way. This, I imagine, is the first time that a conjuring
entertainment ever took place within the precincts of the
Houses of Parliament. I shall have something to say about
this performance in a later chapter.
There is absolutely no cruelty whatever in this trick, and
I have birds in my possession now which I have used for two
or three years, and they are just as strong and healthy as they
were when I first performed the experiment with them. Many
explanations have been given as to how this trick is performed,
but, up to the present, none of them has proved correct, and
it still remains my own secret, though I have been performing it
for over forty years.
From Manchester I came to London, and made my first

appearance at the Crystal Palace, where I performed before an
audience of 30,000 people. They gave me a most gratifying
reception, and before my engagement concluded I had secured
engagements at the Alhambra, the Empire, the old Royal
Music Hall, in Holborn, the Canterbury and most of the

principal variety theatres in London.
An incident which occurred on the first occasion on which
I performed at the Alhambra was thus described by one of the
London correspondents of the New York Press : —
"
An amusing incident happened on the first night of the
new ballet at the Alhambra, though it had nothing to do with
the ballet itself. It
occurred during the performance of a
conjurer of the name of Carl Hertz, who undertook to show the
audience that he could produce live animals from amongst
them. As ill-luck would have it, he hit upon (without know
ing who he was) no less a personage than Mr. Clement Scott,
the distinguished dramatic critic of the Daily Telegraph, who
was sitting peacefully in the stalls, little suspecting the liberties
which were about to be taken with him. Mr. Hertz exhibited
the live rabbit to the audience and then said : I am now
'
going to make this rabbit vanish and afterwards produce it

from that gentleman's person,' at the same time indicating Mr.
Scott, who seemed, however, to be quite unaware that he
was the destined victim. The rabbit duly disappeared from
Mr. Hertz's hands, and he then stepped from the stage into the
stalls, and seizing poor Mr. Scott roughly by the collar, after
frantic resistance on that gentleman's part, succeeded in
extracting the live rabbit from the back of his Inverness cape.
The audience shrieked with laughter, and Mr. Scott was
allowed to sink back into his stall, looking as though his usually
placid temper had for once been severely ruffled. Everyone
who witnessed this little comedy expected to find some cutting
remarks in the next morning's Daily Telegraph upon the un
controllable liberties permitted to artists at variety theatres.
These, however, did not appear ; so possibly Mr. Scott is
reserving his very natural indignation for some future occasion
when Mr. Hertz's name appears on the programme."
As time went on, I began to obtain a great many engage

ments at private houses in London, for which I received very
handsome remuneration. In connection with these private

entertainments I once had a singular experience.
One evening, when I was appearing at the Royal Music
Hall, in Holborn, a message was brought to my dressing-room
that a lady and gentleman in a private box would like to
speak to me. After I had finished my performance, I went up
to their box, where I found a handsome, middle-aged woman
and a tall, slim, rather distinguished-looking man, apparently
a few years older than she was. The lady, whom I will call
Mrs. Thornton, told me that she and her husband had greatly
enjoyed my entertainment and asked if I ever gave private
performances, and, on my answering in the affirmative, en
quired what my terms would be to come to her house the
following Sunday evening, where they were giving a dinner-party.
I told her my terms, to which she agreed, and giving me her
address — the house was in no less fashionable a locality than
Grosvenor Square — asked me to come there to dinner, saying
that I should be introduced, not as a professional artist who
was engaged to appear there, but as one of the guests, so that
no one would know that I was being paid for my entertain
ment. She added that, at dinner, the subject of conjuring
could be casually introduced, and that I could then start doing
a few tricks at the table and gradually work up to a regular
performance.
On the following Sunday evening I duly presented myself
at the house in Grosvenor Square, which, I believe, belonged
to a certain peer, who had let it furnished to Mr. and Mrs.
Thornton for six months. There seemed to be a number of
well-known Society people amongst the guests, two or three
of whom I knew to be very wealthy and of sporting proclivities.
Towards the close of dinner our hostess, as had been agreed,
adroitly introduced the subject of conjuring, and thus led up
to my giving an entertainment, which was a great success.
After my performance was over, a move was made to the
drawing-room, where presently they started playing baccarat
and chemin-de-fer. The stakes were very high, in fact I have
never seen such high play in a private house.
I did not play myself, and after looking on for a little

while, during which hundreds of pounds must have changed
hands, took my departure. As I was leaving, my hostess came
up to me, handed me my fee, and asked if I would come again
the following Sunday on the same terms, which I promised
to do.
The second Sunday was a repetition of the first, except that
there were a good many fresh faces amongst the guests, and
the play seemed to me to be even higher than on the occasion
of my previous visit. At the baccarat table I saw the bank
clean up something like £1,200 in three coups.
I was asked to come once more the following week ; in
fact, I came for ten or twelve consecutive Sundays, by which
time I had begun to feel quite at home at the house, and more
like a friend than a paid performer. In the circumstances, it
seemed to me that I ought not to go on accepting the big fee
which I was continually receiving ; and so one night, after the
hostess had handed it me and asked me to come as usual the
following Sunday, I told her that I would only come on con
dition that I was not to be paid for doing so, as I had become
so friendly with her and her husband and daughter that I was
really ashamed to take the money. She pressed me to continue
to accept the fee, but I would not give way, and finally it was
agreed that I should come in future as a real guest.
One morning, three or four weeks later, I was having
breakfast in my rooms, when my landlady came to tell me
that there were two ladies in a cab outside who wished to see
me on a matter of importance. I asked her to show them up,
but she returned to say that they would not come in and
wanted me to go out and speak to them. I went downstairs
and found that my visitors were my hostess of Grosvenor
Square and her daughter, a very pretty girl of about twenty-
two.
" "
Mr. Hertz," said the elder lady, I am in terrible trouble,
and am on my way to see my solicitors in the City. Will you
get your hat and coat and drive with us as far, and I will tell
"
you about it as we go along ?
Iwent in, got my hat and coat, and we drove away. Mrs.
Thornton said that she could not very well explain to me what
the trouble was, but it would be a most serious matter for her
unless she could put her hands on a thousand pounds at once.
Would Ioblige her by lending it to her ?
I answered that I was very sorry, but I was not in a position
to do so at the moment, as nearly all my money was invested
in American railroads and so forth, and the securities were
with my New York bankers. If, however, she could wait for
a little while, it was possible that I might be able to help her.
" But I can't wait ! " she exclaimed. " I must have the
money to-day ! It is a matter of life and death ! If you
haven't got it yourself, you must surely know someone amongst
all your friends who will oblige you."
" I "
am sorry," I said, but I have no friends in this country
who think so much of me as to oblige me with a thousand
pounds at a moment's notice."
The lady reflected for a minute or two. Then she said :—
"
Well, Mr. Hertz, if that is really the case, will you let me
have that diamond ring and pin that you are wearing ? I
could raise part at any rate of the money I need on them, as
they appear to be very fine stones."
This strange request aroused my suspicions, and I replied
that the articles in question were accessory to my business,
and, as I had always been in the habit of wearing them, I could
not very well appear on the stage without them.
Shortly afterwards the cab stopped, and I got out and
took leave of the ladies, who were both looking very dejected,
with tears in their eyes. I wondered much what had caused
these people who had always appeared so wealthy to be so
desperately pressed for money. But the explanation came
the next day, when I read in the paper that their house in
Grosvenor Square had been raided by the police, and Mrs.
Thornton and her pretended husband and daughter — for
neither was in any way related to her— had been all three
arrested. It transpired that the place had been nothing more
than a crook gambling-den, and I subsequently ascertained
,>
that my conjuring performance had been used as an attraction

to draw the unsuspecting sheep into the clutches of the shearers.
Mrs. Thornton had no doubt been warned that the game was
up, and had been endeavouring to lay her hands on all the
money she could before seeking safety in flight. Hence her
visit to me.
I was naturally very angry when I learned how I had been
made the tool of these crooks, who, I am glad to say, were
each sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment.
I was severaltimes engaged to give an entertainment at
the Sunday evening parties given by Mr. Alfred de Rothschild
at his house in Seymour Place, at which some of the most cele
brated people in England used to assemble. On the first
occasion on which I
performed there the company was a most
distinguished one, and included H.R.H. the Prince of Wales
(afterwards King Edward VII.) and his two sons, the Duke
of Clarence and Prince George (now King George V.), Mr.
Gladstone, the Duke and Duchess of Westminster, Count
Herbert von Bismarck, the Duke of Portland, Lord Rothschild,
Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild, the Countess of Dudley and
the Countess of Leicester.
I performed, amongst other tricks, that with the cage and
canary, for which Prince George held the cage, and afterwards,
at the genial host's request, I made a rabbit disappear and
produced it from the back of the Prince of Wales's coat.
H.R.H. enjoyed the joke, like the sportsman that he was, and
laughed heartily, and at the conclusion of my entertainment
came up and complimented me upon it.
Mr. Alfred de Rothschild then asked me to have some
supper, and said that his guests were so pleased with the tricks
I had shown them, that they would be glad if I would give
another little performance afterwards. I
told him that I had
not come prepared to do any more, but if he thought they
would be satisfied to see some card tricks, I
would most
willingly oblige them. I performed a number of card tricks,
which seemed to interest the company very much, and Mr.
Rothschild again expressed himself very pleased with my
entertainment and asked me to call at their place in the City

next morning for my cheque.
"
On arriving in St. Swithin's Lane, I was shown into Mr.
Alfred's
" room, I had conversation
private where quite a long
with him. Presently, he brought out his cigar-case and asked
me to have a cigar. Now, up to that time I had never smoked
in my life, but, somehow or other, I felt ashamed to say that
I did not, and so, with many misgivings, accepted the cigar and
lit it.
"
How do you like that cigar
"
?inquired Mr. Rothschild,
after I had taken one or two puffs at it.
" It is the finest I
cigar I've ever smoked in my life,"
replied, which, of course, was perfectly true. It might have
" " for all I knew.
been a twopenny smoke
He handed me an envelope containing my fee for the
previous night's performance, and I rose to go, for I did not
like to throw the cigar away in the presence of the giver, but
felt that, if I went on smoking it, I should most certainly
be ill.
" Wait a minute," said he. "
Sit down again. I've some
thing else for you."
I and manfully took another pull at my cigar,
obliged,
which did not make me feel any better. Mr. Rothschild rang
a bell on his desk, which was answered by his butler, to whom
he gave some order in a low tone. The butler went out and
returned with a parcel, which his master handed to me, saying : —
"
Since you like that cigar so much, I am going to ask you
to accept a box of them as some acknowledgment of the extra
performance you gave with the cards last night."
I thanked him for his generous gift and took my departure,
and as soon as I reached the street, that cigar and I parted
company. If I had gone on smoking it for another couple of
minutes the consequences would have been disastrous.
On my way home, I called on my agent, Mr. Richard
Warner, at his office in Wellington Street, Strand, and told
him that I had just been to Rothschild's office and had received
his cheque for the performance I had given at his house.
" What's that "

you've got under your arm said he.
?
I told him that it was a box of cigars which Mr. Rothschild

had made me a present of, upon which he wanted to know what
I was going to do with them, as he knew I did not smoke myself
at that time.
" Oh,
I don't know," I answered. " Give them away to
people, I suppose."
" Well, I'll ' '
for them, if you like," said
give you a quid
he, and though I didn't think a quid very much for a box
' '
of cigars which a Rothschild was in the habit of smoking, I

accepted it and handed over the box.
it,
When he opened there, on top of the cigars, was cheque
a
for £25, with sheet of notepaper on which was written
a
:
"
With compliments from Alfred de Rothschild for the extra
performance given last night."
was naturally very pleased to receive this additional fee
I I
;
but was sorry afterwards that let the cigars go for next to
I
nothing, as learned that they were brand made specially

a
I
for Alfred de Rothschild, and were worth about 5s. each, and
that my friend Mr. Warner had made himself very popular at
"
the Eccentric Club by handing the boys one of Rothschild's
five bob cigars."
'
'
CHAPTER V
An adventure at Ascot — Mr. Jennings, of the Oxford Music Hall — I

give an impromptu entertainment to fill a gap in the programme
— Indignation of Mr. Jennings at my refusal to accept payment
for my performance — The Vanishing Lady Illusion — Difficulty of
finding a lady to assist me in this trick — I engage Mile. D'Alton,
who subsequently becomes my wife — Ludicrous misadventure of
an illusionist while performing this trick at Plymouth — My pro
vincial tours —Singular requests made to me by persons who
imagine me to possess supernatural powers — I leave England on
a tour through Germany and Austro-Hungary — Amusing incident
at the Reichsallen Theatre, Berlin — The missing pocket-book —
I give a performance before King Ludwig II. of Bavaria, who is the
"
only person present — " Where are you, George ?
During my second summer in England — that of 1885

— I was
told that I ought to go to Ascot on Cup Day, my friends saying
that the sight on that day could not be equalled on any race
course in the world. They gave me instructions as to how I
was to dress for the occasion, and I repaired to Waterloo
arrayed like Solomon in all his glory : brand-new silk hat,
frock coat, white waistcoat, light kid gloves, shepherd's plaid
trousers,patent-leather boots and white spats, and a gardenia
in my buttonhole. I did look a swell, I can assure you.
When I arrived at Ascot, I did not know where the course
was or which was the proper entrance, and, as I wanted to go
in the best part, I thought I could not do better than follow
four gentlemen as immaculately attired as myself, who were
walking just in front of me. I kept close to their heels ; so
close, indeed, that it might well have been supposed that I
was in their company, and eventually found myself on the race
course, in a small enclosure, which did not seem half so crowded
as the others. I thought it very strange that I was not asked
for a ticket or to pay any money, and wondered if people were

allowed in free of charge.
Presently, the numbers went up for the first race, and
though I took no interest in racing at that time and knew
nothing about any of the horses, I thought I would have a
sovereign on something just for the sport of the thing. So I
picked a horse, and going up to one of the bookmakers who were
leaning over the rails, inquired the price.
" Ten to one
to you, my lord," was the answer.
*'
All right," I said. " I'll take ten pounds to one."
" Ten " exclaimed "
pounds to one ! the metallician. Surely
' ' "
you're joking ! You mean ten monkeys or ten hundreds ?
" No,
I only want a sovereign on."
" ' "
Come now I Let me lay you ten ponies,' at any rate ?
persisted the bookmaker.

But I was not to be tempted into a bigger bet.
"
Very well, then, have your little joke, my lord," said he.
"
Ten pounds to one." And, taking out a sovereign, I was
about to hand it him, when he said : —
" That's all
right. You can pay me after the race."
I thought it
strange how the bookmakers in England seemed
to trust people whom they had never seen before, and that they
must make a lot of bad debts in this way.
My horse got beat, and I went up and paid the bookmaker
the sovereign I owed him.
" "
Thank you, my lord," said he, laughing. I see you will
have your little joke."
I was moving away, when I saw one of the other book
makers beckoning to me, and went back to the rails.
"I "
say," said he, in a low tone, you're Carl Hertz, aren't
you ? I saw you at the Alhambra last night."
" Yes, I am Carl Hertz."
"
Then what the devil are you doing in there ? How did
"
you get in ?
" What's that " I answered
got to do with you ? angrily.
" Well, know where are No Well,
d'you you ? ?
you're in the Prince of Wales's private enclosure, and if

you don't look sharp and get out, the police will turn you
out."
I was flabbergasted at the mistake I
had made, and, as
may be supposed, lost no time in following the bookmaker's
advice.
During my first visit to England I secured engagements at

every variety theatre of any importance in London, with one
exception. This was the Oxford Music Hall, then under the
control of Mr. Jennings. Mr. Jennings had the reputation
of being a somewhat eccentric old gentleman, and whether it
was that he did not care for my performance, or had conceived
a dislike to me personally, he never would engage me, although
my agent, Mr. Warner, approached him several times on the
matter. Nevertheless, though I never had an engagement at
the Oxford, I
did give a performance there on one occasion.
It came about in the following manner :—
One Saturday I looked in at the Oxford during a matinde,
and took a seat in the stalls. Now it happened that, on this
particular afternoon, for various reasons, no less than five of
the principal turns were unable to appear, which left, of course,
an enormous gap in the programme.
Mr. Warner, who was also in the Oxford that afternoon,
came to me and said : —
"
Mr. Jennings is in a terrible fix ; five of his turns can't
appear, and it's impossible at this time of day to find any
substitutes. Will you oblige him by going on and giving a
"
performance in order to fill up the programme ?
I answered that this was impossible for two reasons. In
the first place, I
could not well appear in my street-clothes
and without the apparatus necessary for a performance ; and,
in the second, I should not like Mr. Jennings or the audience
to judge of my entertainment or my abilities from an im
promptu performance of this kind. But Mr. Warner begged me
to come to the rescue, saying that, if I only did some card-
tricks, that would be quite enough to entertain the audience,
and that Mr. Jennings would be so grateful to me for helping
'>
him out of his predicament that he would be sure to give me

an engagement later on.
Finally, I allowed myself to be persuaded, and, going out,
bought two packs of cards at a shop close by. With these
two packs I went on the stage, and for a whole hour enter
tained the audience ; and, considering that my performance
was quite an impromptu one and that I had nothing but card-
tricks with which to amuse them, it was a great success.
Mr. Jennings was just tickled to death, thanked me most
profusely and invited me to join him in a bottle of wine. Then
he said : —
" Come
up to my office in about five minutes, Mr. Hertz,
and I will settle with you for your services."
I went up to his office, and he inquired what he owed me
for my performance.
"
That's all right, Mr. Jennings," I answered.
" It was
not my regular performance, so I can't ask you anything for it.
I did it as a favour, to help you out of your difficulty, and, as
it cost me nothing beyond the two packs of cards which I bought,
I must refuse to accept any payment. Perhaps we can make
it up in some other way later on."
To my astonishment, the old gentleman flew into a regular
passion.
" What ! " he exclaimed.
"
You refuse to take money for
your performance ? Whom, pray, do you think you are ?
You're too damned independent to be in this business, let me
tell you ; you ought to be in a bank ! Get out of my office at
"
once and don't you ever dare come to my place again I
And it was not until some ten years later that he was at
length persuaded to give me an engagement.
I was the first to present the trick known as the Vanishing

Lady in the London music-halls. It was first produced at
the Cambridge Music Hall in 1886, and afterwards I performed
it at five different halls each night, receiving a salary of £20 at
each hall, making £100 a week. At that time this was con
sidered a record.
The trick consisted of a newspaper being spread out in the

centre of the stage, and on the centre of the newspaper was
placed an ordinary-looking chair. In this chair a lady would
take her seat, and she would then be covered with a thin silk
shawl. The shawl was whisked away, and the chair was seen
to be empty, the lady making her appearance the next moment
in the stalls.
This illusion caused an immense sensation and was the
talk of London and the provinces, and had I been able to
fortune out of it. But, un
it,
protect should have made
a
I
fortunately, was imitated by other conjurers, good, bad, and

it
indifferent, with the consequence that was soon played out.
it
When first decided to produce the illusion, was con
I
I
fronted by serious difficulty, which was that knew no lady
a
I
who could assist me in the trick that to say, no one whom
is
;
knew well enough to trust, for, of course, had to be kept
it
a
I
profound secret. At this time was giving my performances

I
single-handed, without any assistants. made inquiries of

I
various agents, with the object of finding some lady who
combined personal attractions with the necessary discretion.
But at first they could suggest no one whom considered
I
likely to answer my requirements. Those who were attractive
appeared to me to know too much, while those who were
warranted discreet lacked attractions. Finally, however, was
I
introduced to a charming and innocent-looking maiden from
the country, who knew nothing about the stage, and who
I
decided would be the very person for the trick. engaged

I
her forthwith and took her to my agent to sign contract.

a
It
had been agreed between us that she should swear not
to divulge any of the secrets of my business, and drew my
I
agent aside, told him of this, and inquired whether he had

a
Bible on which she could take the oath.

" No," "
said he, but I've got something which looks very
much like one." And he handed me an old date-book.
" Let
her swear on this she won't know the difference."
;
The oath was duly administered, and the contract signed,

and thus Emelie 'Alton became the original Vanishing Lady/
D
Emilie D' Alton (Mrs. Carl Hertz).
V- 63.
and, a little later, in order to make my secrets more secure,

she became Mrs. Carl Hertz.
While we were performing this trick at the Royal Music
Hall, now the Holborn Empire, the following amusing verses
appeared in one of the London papers :
THE DISAPPEARING LADY

Where do you go to, my pretty maid ?
I really can't tell you, sir, she said,
Sir, she said, sir, she said.
And pray does it Hertz you much, my pretty maid ?
It Hertz not at all, kind sir, she said,
It Hertz not at all, kind sir, she said.
Oh ! would that my wife were but you, sweet maid !
But why, should you wish it, good sir, she said,
But why should you wish it, good sir, she said.
She'd then disappear, do you twig, dear maid ?
Yes, and come back again as I do, sir, she said.
Yes, she'd come back again, so good-night, sweet maid.
It is,
of course, now well known that this trick was performed
by the help of a trap in the stage, but at that time it was
understood that no traps were used. At a performance given
at Plymouth, an illusionist whom I will call Smith, a man
weighing about sixteen stone, rather short and very stout,
came upon the stage and said : —
" Ladies and I will now present
to you the
gentlemen,
celebrated Vanishing Lady trick, which is being performed in
London and causing a great sensation. Before I begin, I
would like to have it distinctly understood that this illusion is
performed without the aid of any glasses, mirrors or traps on
the stage."
And with that he began to walk about the stage, stamping
his foot to show that there was no trap anywhere. But, as ill-
luck would have it, in so doing, he stepped upon the trap,
which gave way, and down he went, and, being so stout, stuck
half-way, unable to get up or down. There he remained,
struggling and shouting for help, whilst the audience roared
with laughter, until someone came and pulled him out. The
curtain had to be lowered, and there was no Vanishing Lady
that night.
Although most of my time was passed in London, I made

several provincial tours and performed at nearly all the
principal towns in England, Wales and Scotland. I also paid
a visit to Ireland and fulfilled engagements at Dublin and
Belfast.
It is singular that, though I
have never laid claim to any
thing in the shape of supernatural powers, and have always
regarded those who do as quacks and charlatans, whose
pretensions I have done not a little to expose, people have from
time to time persisted in attributing such powers to me, and
have requested me to perform the most impossible things on
their behalf. Two instances of this happened during my
visits to the provinces.
One morning, while fulfilling an engagement at Southamp
ton, I was in my dressing-room at the theatre arranging my
apparatus for the evening performance, when one of my assist
ants came to tell me that a gentleman wished to see me. He
would not give his name, but looked like an officer in one of
the Services. I told him to show the gentleman in, and in
walked a tall, soldierly man of about thirty.
" Mr. Hertz," said he, " I have had the
pleasure of seeing
some of the wonderful things that you can do, and have heard
that you are able to perform things still more marvellous,
and I have come to ask a very great favour of you. I am in
love with a certain young lady — madly in love with her—but
she refuses to have anything to do with me. I want to know if
you will use your influence on my behalf, and in some way cast
a mystic spell over her, or by suggestion or mesmerism make
her care for me. I am willing to pay you any sum in reason
if you will do this."
I thought for a moment that the man must be mad, but,
as he seemed very rational, I inquired if this young lady were
in Southampton.
x
He answered that she was in London, upon which I said that,

in that case, I was afraid I could not assist him. If he brought
her to me, it was just possible that I might be able to do
something for him ; otherwise, it was out of the question.
" But, "
surely, Mr. Hertz," said you are able, if you
he,
wish, to mesmerise people from a distance ? "
I assured him that such a thing was quite impossible, and
he left me, looking very disappointed.
A somewhat similar incident occurred at Kilmarnock, in
Scotland, not long afterwards.
One evening, just as I had finished dinner, I received a
visit from an elderly lady, who told me that she was in sore
trouble and had been told that I might be able to help her.
She seemed a very nice old lady, and I at once replied that if
I could assist her in any way I should be only too pleased to do
so, and inquired what her trouble was. She then told me
that she had a son who had left Scotland six years before for
the Klondyke. She had had a letter from him on his arrival
at Yukon, but since then she had not heard a word from him,
though she had written any number of letters to the address he
had given her, and did not know whether he was alive or dead.
She had been told that I could throw myself into a trance, and,
while in that condition, see people thousands of miles away. So
probably I would be able to see her son, if he were still alive,
and tell her where he was.
I told the poor lady that neither I nor anyone else I had
ever heard of possessed such powers, and that therefore I
could not assist her, upon which she burst into tears. I felt very
sorry for her, and advised her to write to the Chief of Police
at Yukon, giving her son's name and his last address and a
description of him, and then perhaps they would be able to
trace him. This she promised to do, and went away, still
crying bitterly.
In 'the autumn of 1886 I left England on a tour through

Germany and Austro-Hungary.
I went first to Berlin, where I appeared at the Reichsallen
£
Theatre and made a great hit, the house being crowded night
after night. A most amusing incident occurred here.
I was performing the Vanishing I-ady trick, in which my wife,
known on the stage as Mile. D'Alton, as usual assisted me.
Before I made her disappear, I used to ask her if she were
"
alive, when she would answer, Yes." Then, after covering
her with the silk shawl, I used to ask her if she had already gone,
when her answer would be
" No."
The next moment I would
pull the shawl away, and it would be seen that she had vanished .
Now, my wife could not at this time speak a word of Ger
man. So I told her that when I asked her in that language if
she were alive, she must say
I asked her
J
" a," which meant Yes, and when
if she had already gone, she must answer,
" Nein,"
which meant No. Imagine my dismay when, on my asking
"
her if she were alive, she shouted Nein," and, on my asking
"
if she had already gone, she shouted Ja." Needless to say,
the audience roared with laughter.
At an evening party in Berlin, at which I was engaged to
give an entertainment, I played, at the hostess's suggestion, a
practical joke upon one of her guests, a very wealthy, but mean,
old gentleman, who had refused to contribute to a deserving
charity in which the lady was interested. The old gentleman
had about him a pocket-book containing a large sum in notes,
and this I contrived to get possession of. When he dis
covered his loss, he loudly proclaimed that he had been robbed
and demanded that everyone should be searched. The other
guests objected to this, but a policeman was sent for, and, on
the orders of the old gentleman, they were all searched, though
without the missing pocket-book being found. Then the
hostess suggested that the policeman himself should be searched
and, despite that indignant official's protest, this was done, and
the pocket-book found on him.
When the joke was explained to the company, everyone
laughed heartily, with the exception of the two victims of it.
However, the policeman was consoled for the liberty which
had been taken with him by a generous tip, and the old gentle
man, on being told that it had been perpetrated to punish
him for having declined to contribute to his hostess's pet

charity, decided to take it in good part, and, opening his
restored pocket-book, handed her the sum which he had
previously refused to give.
On leaving Berlin, I went to Dresden and Breslau ; then to
Vienna and Budapest, and afterwards to Munich, Stuttgart
and Frankfort.
While at Munich I
had the singular experience of giving my
entertainment before an audience of one, who was no less a
personage than King Ludwig II., known to history as the mad
King of Bavaria.
As is well known, towards the end of his life the King's love
of solitude was such that he would not permit anyone but
himself to witness the plays which were performed before him
in his own small but beautifully-decorated theatre. On this
occasion he sat alone in the stalls, and seemed much interested
and amused by my entertainment, laughing and applauding
repeatedly. At its conclusion, he signed me to approach,
complimented me upon it and talked to me very graciously
for some minutes. He was a singularly handsome man, with
fine eyes and great charm of manner, and, had I not heard so
much about his eccentricities, I should have considered him
as sane a person as I ever met in my life. Indeed, he struck
me as being more than ordinarily intelligent.
Some months after I
left Munich the unfortunate king was
declared insane, and a regent appointed, and three days later
he drowned himself and his physician, Dr. von Gudden, who
had courageously endeavoured to save him, in the Sternberg
Lake.
'While performing at a small town in Bavaria, I was on the
stage one evening, and in the middle of doing one of my tricks,
when I was startled by a tap on my shoulder. I turned round, to
find a postman standing behind me. I put the telegram in
my pocket and went on with my performance. I thought it
strange that the audience took no notice of this incident,
but I learned afterwards that it was customary in Bavaria for
telegrams to be delivered immediately to the actual person
to whom they were addressed, no matter where he might be

or what he might be doing. When I had finished my per
formance I opened the telegram, which was a cable from San
Francisco, and was deeply grieved to learn that my mother had
just died there.
At Budapest, when doing a box-trick,my assistant, after
having been tied up and put in the box, used to get through a
secret opening in it, go down through a trap on the stage, and
then go out through the stage-door and run as hard as he could
through the street to the gallery-door and up into the gallery,
so as to be ready to answer when I opened the box to find it
empty and shouted out to ask where he had got to.
The trick went all right the first night and was greatly
applauded, but on the next when I called out : "Where are you,
"
George ? there was no answer, and I repeated the question
again and again with the same result.
The explanation, which was not forthcoming until the
following morning, was that George was in gaol. Seeing him
run so madly through the street, a policeman had stopped him
and demanded the reason of his haste. As poor George could
not speak a word of the language, he, of course, was unable to
account for it, and the policeman, concluding that he had
committed some breach of the law and was trying to escape,
marched him off to the station and locked him up.
CHAPTER VI
I sail for New York in s.s. City of Chicago — The young Englishman and
the cardsharpers — I intervene, and the shearers are shorn—
Sequel to this adventure — My American tour —The pigeon and the
diamond ring — The hat and the cake — Singular misadventure
while performing at San Francisco — My reputation is saved by
the presence of mind of my assistant — A lucky chance enables me
to perform a trick which is regarded as really marvellous — " He
is coming I . . . He is here I . . . He has gone ! " — The German
I
proprietor and the red fire— am the innocent cause of a young
man being thrown over by his sweetheart, but succeed in re
uniting the lovers — An audience of one — I perform card tricks for
an hour at St. Louis to allow time for the rest of the company to
arrive — I quell a racecourse riot — A facetious gentleman —
Practical joke which I perpetrate at an hotel at Buffalo necessitates
my abrupt departure from that town —Curious experience at
Leadville, Colorado.
In September, 1887, after an absence of over three years, I

returned to America to fulfil a series of engagements there,
and sailed from Liverpool to New York in the s.s. City of
Chicago.
Amongst my fellow-passengers was a certain Englishman, a
good-looking young fellow, scarcely more than a boy, and we
had not been out more than two or three days before I noticed
that he spent a good part of his time playing poker in the
smoking-room. One afternoon I strolled up to the table at
which he was playing and stood for a while watching the game,
and what I saw left me in no doubt that the youngster, who, I
ascertained, had recently inherited a considerable fortune,
was in the toils of one of those gangs of cardsharpers which
infest the Atlantic liners.
I knew, of course, that, sooner or later, all the money that
he was prepared to lose would find its way into these rogues'
pockets, and that evening, taking advantage of a favourable

opportunity, I warned him to be on his guard. The young
gentleman, however, seemed to resent my solicitude for his
welfare.
" "
I assure you that you are quite
My dear sir," said he,
mistaken about the persons you speak of. They have told me
something about themselves, and they are all gentlemen and
' "
men of good position in the States.'
" "
They've only been gammoning you," I rejoined ; they're
cardsharpers and nothing else."
He shrugged his shoulders in a supercilious sort of way,
upon which I asked him if he knew who I was. No, he had not
that pleasure, and he certainly looked as though he had no very
overwhelming desire for a closer acquaintance with me. I
gave him my card, telling him, at the same time, that when
unfair play was going on at a card-table I never failed to
detect it instantly, so that I was not likely to be mistaken
about the persons with whom he had been playing. But he
still hesitated to believe that these irreproachably-dressed and
well-mannered individuals could be other than what they
represented themselves to be. Finally, however, he weakened
so far as to promise that he would keep his eyes open, and that,
if he saw anything in the least suspicious, he would play no
more.
I did nothim again until a couple of days later, when
see
he came up, drew me aside, and said : —
"
Mr. Hertz, I believe you were right about those fellows.
Anyway, they've cleared me out of over a thousand pounds I
I was a fool to go on playing with them, after you had been
so kind as to go out of your way to warn me, and I deserve all
I've got."
I felt really sorry for the youngster, who took his losses
like a sportsman, and I determined to help him.
" Well," "
said I, your money's gone, and it's no use crying
over it ; but, if you care to put up some more, I may be able to
get back what you've lost. Wait here till I come back."
I went to the captain, explained to him what had happened,
and got his permission to hoist the sharpers with their own
petard, if I could. Then I returned to my young friend and
asked him if he were playing again that day. He answered
that he had promised to do so after dinner, upon which I said : —
"
Look here I After dinner go into the smoking-room and
play for a while, taking care to lose as little as you can, though
they'll probably let you win at first. Then get up, tell these
rogues that you're very sorry, but you're afraid you won't be
able to play any more, as you've got a bad headache or some
thing, and suggest to them that I shall take your place. I
shall be sitting near you, pretending to read a newspaper."
The youngster followed my instructions, and the sharpers,
who did not know who I was, and no doubt believed that
another golden fly was about to walk into their parlour, readily
agreed to my taking his place.
We sat down to play, and for some time nothing very
exciting took place. Sometimes I won and sometimes I lost,
and contrived to give them the impression that I was a very
ordinary player indeed. The cards we were using were the
ship's cards, so that whatever was to be done must, of course,
be done by pure sleight of hand and manipulation. It was my
deal, and I manipulatedthe pack in such a way, that, after the
draw, one of my opponents had the four jacks, another the
four queens, and the third the four kings, while I held the four
aces. Then we began betting, and, as the stakes rose, quite a
crowd began to gather round the table, including the captain,
whom I had
asked to be present, and all the ship's officers who
were not on duty. The sharpers had, of course, their code
of signals, by which each of them knew the hands which his
confederates held, and it seemed to them absolutely impossible
that I could win, for the odds against my holding the only hand
which could beat them was simply incalculable. Very soon
the money on the table amounted to over a thousand pounds,
and my opponents had no more cash about them, though I had
plenty ; the young Englishman had seen to that. But still they
went on raising me, taking off their rings, pulling out their
watches and scarf-pins, and throwing them down. By this
time people were standing three and four deep round the table,
and the excitement had risen to fever heat.
At last, my opponents having come to the end of their
resources, we agreed to show hands.
"I
guess it's my money," said the man with the four jacks,
throwing down his cards and stretching out his hand towards
"
the pot."
" Hold on I " exclaimed the one with the four queens,
" I
rather think it's mine."
" No, it's not," cried the third man,
showing four kings.
" It's mine ! " And he
began to scoop the money in.
Then it was my turn.
"
Not good enough, gentlemen," said I, smiling,
" for I've
" And I laid them on the table.
got four aces !
" "
No sooner did I attempt to annex the pot than one of
the confederates, realising that they had been tricked, drew
a revolver on me. But he was promptly seized and disarmed
by the officers, as were the others, and before the astonished
crowd I told the story of the rooking of the young Englishman,
and appealed to them if I had not been perfectly justified in
serving these rascals with a little of their own sauce. The
verdict being in my favour, I begged the captain to take charge
of the money I had won and to do with it as he thought fit.
He at once repaid the Englishman the money which had been
niched from him, expressing, at the same time, the hope that
his recent experience would be a lesson to the lad of the folly of
playing cards for high stakes with strangers, and the balance
was given to the funds of the Sailors' Orphanage.
As for the three cardsharpers, they were put under arrest,
and, on our arrival in New York, the captain gave them into
custody. They were tried and sentenced, I believe, to two
years' imprisonment. And the amusing part of it all is that
they never found out who I was, and probably believed me to
be a sort of super-sharper turned honest.
A sequel to this adventure, which happened some years ago,

may not be without interest.
i
I was fulfilling an engagement at the Coliseum in Glasgow,

and one of the local papers happened to recall my game with
the cardsharpers, of which numerous accounts had appeared
in the English and American Press at the time. The next day
I was stoppedin the street by two well, if somewhat flashily-
dressed men, one of whom inquired if I were Mr. Hertz. I
answered in the affirmative, upon which he said: —
" Iread a story in the papers yesterday about your playing
poker with three fellows going over to America, and manipu
'
lating the cards so that each of you held fours,' and you had
the aces. Is it true, or just an advertisement stunt ?
"
" It is
quite true," I answered.
" I "
believe it," remarked the other man ;
don't it
couldn't be done."
" Oh " It's
yes, it can," said I. very easy for me to give a
man any hand I like at poker."
" If that's the case," exclaimed the
one who had first
spoken," all I can say is that you ought to be ashamed of your
self for taking away people's living. Those men had to earn
a living the same as you have, and you wouldn't like anyone to
come to the Coliseum and spoil your performance."
I did not attempt to argue with these gentlemen, who
were no doubt of the same profession as those for whom they
seemed to entertain so much sympathy, but turned and walked
away.
I was naturally delighted to see my relatives and friends again

after so long an absence, but I was unable to spend much time
with them, as I had engagements extending over several months
'
which would take me all over the States,' from Maine to
California.
I had some curious experiences during this tour.
At that time I was performing a trick in which I borrowed
a lady's ring and caused it to disappear. Then I produced a
bottle and poured wine from it, after which the bottle was
broken open and found to contain a pigeon with the lady's ring
tied to its neck. One evening a lady in the audience lent me a
very valuable diamond ring. She seemed to be very fussy and

asked me to be most careful with it, and, of course, I promised
her I would. Everything went well until the bottle was broken
open, when the pigeon, with the ring tied to its neck, flew from
the stage into the auditorium, and, to my dismay, made its
escape through a ventilator which, as it was a very hot summer's
night, had been left open. It was some little time before we
could catch it, but eventually we did so, and restored the ring
to its owner, who had given it up for lost and was in a state
bordering on hysteria.
Speaking of mishaps, reminds me of an incident which
occurred during my early days on the stage. I used to perform
a trick in which I borrowed a gentleman's silk hat, and then
appeared to break eggs into it and put in flour, water, currants
and so forth. Finally, I would wave my hand and produce from
the hat a beautiful cake, which I cut and passed round amongst
the audience. Needless to say, I did not actually put the eggs
and other things in the hat. The eggs, etc., were dropped
into a tin receptacle, which I used to slip into the hat, and in
one portion of the receptacle the cake was hidden. They were
then secretly removed from the hat, leaving the cake behind.
On the occasion in question, I performed the trick as usual,
dropping in the eggs and other ingredients, but upon removing
the tin receptacle, I found, to my horror, that there was no
cake in the hat. I was in a nice predicament, as may be
supposed, and had to make some excuse and get out of it the
best way I could. I learned afterwards that someone had
stolen the cake and eaten it !
During this tour, I had another mishap while performing the
same trick, though on this occasion it was not a cake, but an
omelette which I had undertaken to produce from the hat. It
occurred on my opening night at mynative town, San Francisco,
where I met with a most enthusiastic reception, and came very
near to spoiling my entertainment, if not my reputation as
well.
Those who have seen this trick know that, with ordinary
care on the performer's part, the borrowed hat runs no risk ;
but even the most experienced conjurer is inclined to be a trifle

careless at times. The first part of the trick, which consisted
of breaking and beating up the eggs, mixing the other ingredients
with them and throwing the whole into the hat, I got through
safely enough. After this I had to feign the frying of the
omelette. I placed the candle on the ground and holding the hat
sufficiently high above it — as I imagined — to escape the flame,
I began turning it gently round, while making some of the
stereotyped jokes suitable to the trick. The audience laughed
so heartily and so loudly that I could scarcely hear myself
speak, but at first I did not suspect the cause of their hilarity.
Unfortunately, I detected it only too soon. A strong smell of
burning caused me to turn my eyes on the candle. It had gone
out ! I then looked at the hat. The crown was all burned and
singed ; in fact, it was quite ruined ! I had kept on turning
the hat round unsuspectingly, until at length I had put it on
top of the candle and covered it with grease !
Quite dazed by this catastrophe, I stopped, not knowing
how I was to escape from the predicament in which my careless
ness had landed me. Happily for me, my alarm, though only
too genuine, was regarded by the audience as well-played farce.
It was supposed that I was cleverly simulating consternation in
order to heighten the effect, and this confidence in my skill was
an additional torture. For no magic power could repair a
ruined hat. My only chance was to gain time, and so I continued
the trick with a tolerably easy air and produced to the public a
beautifully-cooked omelette, which I had enough courage left
to season with a few jokes. However, that quarter-of-an-hour
of which Rabelais speaks had arrived. I must restore the hat
and confess myself a clumsy impostor.
I had resigned myself to this, determined to carry it
through with all the dignity I could muster, when I heard my
assistant calling me from the wings. His voice restored my
courage, for I felt sure he had prepared some way of escape.
Iwent up to him and found him standing with a silk hat in his
hand.
" Look I " said he,
taking the borrowed hat from me and
j6 A Modern Mystery Merchant
"
giving me the other in exchange, this is your own hat. But no
matter, put on a bold face, rub it as though you were removing
the stains, and, on handing it to the owner, ask him quietly to
read this note which is fastened inside the crown."
With, it must be confessed, no little trepidation, I approached
the owner of the borrowed hat. He looked at it, saw at once
that it was not his property, and was about to betray me when
I pointed to the note fastened in the crown, and, in a low voice,
begged him to read it. It was as follows : —
" An act of carelessness has caused me to commit a fault

which I will repair. To-morrow I willdo myself the honour of
asking your hatter's address. In the meanwhile, be kind
enough to act as my accomplice."
The owner of the hat was a sportsman. He read the note,

burst out laughing, and readily promised to do what I asked of
him. He kept his word, and my professional reputation was
saved.
Just as a piece of sheer bad luck may seriously damage a
conjurer's reputation, so some lucky chance may enable him
greatly to enhance it. I will relate an instance of this :—
While fulfilling engagements in New York, I used frequently
on a Sunday evening to visit a family with whom I was very
friendly, and after dinner generally performed some little tricks
for their amusement. On one occasion they had a large dinner
party, and, though I at first refused to perform, as I had
been there so often that I
had pretty well exhausted my reper
toire, and could not think of anything which I had not already
shown them, I at last gave way and said that, if they had a
pack of cards, I would show them some card tricks. They
rang for the maid and asked her to bring a pack of cards, but,
after some time, the girl returned, saying that she had looked
all over the house and could not find a pack anywhere.
The hostess then remembered that there was a loose pack of
cards on top of the small shelf of the sideboard in the room in
which we were dining, and the maid mounted a chair in order
%
to get them. Even then, however, she could only just manage
to reach the cards.
The pack was handed to me, and I started to do some
tricks. While manipulating the cards, I discovered that one
was missing, and, on looking through the pack, I found that
this card was the two of clubs. It at once occurred to me that
the two of clubs must have been left on the shelf when the
pack was taken down, and that here was a chance to perform a
trick which would seem absolutely impossible and astound
everyone. I should have been in a pretty fix if the card had
not been there, but I took the big chance, and luckily it came
off.
" Now, ladies " I am
and gentlemen," said I, going to show
you the most wonderful trick which you have ever seen."
I then asked one of the ladies to select a card from the pack,
and
" forced " her to take the three of clubs. After she had
drawn the card, I told her to hand it to me without looking at
it, which she did. I placed my fingers over the middle of the
card in such a way that the middle pip was hidden, and, holding
the card up at some distance from the company, I said : —
" You see, ladies and
gentlemen, that the two of clubs has
been selected from the pack." And, as the card looked exactly
like the two of clubs, the centre pip being covered by my fingers,
everyone thought that it was really the card I had named.
I then handed the pack to one of the gentlemen present,
and also the card face downwards, asking him to replace it and
shuffle the pack well.
" Now,"
said I,
" hold the I will
pack in your hand.
not touch it myself, but, at a word of command from me, I
will make that two of clubs disappear from the pack." And, of
course, when he looked through the pack afterwards the two
of clubs was missing.
They all thought that this was very wonderful and applauded
me greatly ; but I told them that the most wonderful part
of the trick was now to come.
"You will admit, ladies and gentlemen," I continued,
" that I I am now
have never moved from the table where
standing. Nevertheless, if someone will get a chair and look

on the top shelf of that sideboard, they will find the missing
card there." And, luckily for me, the two of clubs was really
found on the shelf.
My friends never finished talking of this wonderful trick
for months afterwards, and, on a subsequent occasion when I
visited the house, they tried hard to persuade me to perform it
again. Needless to say, I excused myself.
Some time after my visit to San Francisco, a most audacious

fraud was perpetrated at the expense of the theatre-going public
of that city.,
One morning people awoke to find the town covered with
"
huge bills on which were these words : "He is coming !
Everyone was inquiring and wondering who this mysterious
person could be. A week later fresh bills were posted up
"
containing the announcement : "He is here ! Another week
passed, and then a third lot of bills appeared with the words :
"He is and will appear on Monday next at eight o'clock for
here
one week atDashaway Hall."
Early on Monday evening, long queues began to assemble
outside Dashaway Hall — a well-known concert-hall — and
when the doors were opened, the place was soon packed to its
utmost capacity, while hundreds were turned away. For the
secret of the identity of this mysterious person had been most
carefully kept, and no one even seemed to know under whose
auspices he was appearing. In consequence, the curiosity to
see him and what he did was intense. The orchestra played the
overture, and the audience waited with increasing impatience
for the curtain to rise until a quarter-past eight, when they began
to express their resentment at the delay by clapping, stamping
their feet and so forth.
These demonstrations, however, were without result, and
at the end of another quarter-of-an-hour two or three persons
made their way behind the scenes, only to find the stage and
dressing-rooms deserted ; not a soul was to be found anywhere !
So soon as the news spread, the people made a rush to the
-\
box-office to try to get their money back. But the money-

takers had long since vanished with the spoil. Thereupon a
regular riot began, the infuriated audience proceeding to smash
chairs, chandeliers, scenery and everything they could lay
their hands on. When at last the police succeeded in clearing
the hall the departing crowd found themselves confronted
with a huge poster on which appeared the words : "He has
"
gone!
I had a week's engagement at Cincinatti, at a theatre run
by a German who had just taken over the place. This German
had the reputation of being a very close-fisted individual indeed,
who would not purchase any properties for the artists if he could
possibly help it. The week I was there the chief attraction
was a tight-rope performer named Eddy, known professionally
as El Nino. Eddy used to wear a belt round his waist to which
fireworks were attached, and at the conclusion of his per
formance he would light these fireworks, which would shoot
out from his body in every direction. At the same time he
would produce American and British flags, and red fire would be
lit in the wings, thus making a very spectacular finish to his
turn.
At rehearsal on the day of his first performance, Eddy went
to the stage-manager and told him that he had to have this
red fire, and that it must be lighted at the same time as he lit his
belt of fireworks. The stage-manager inquired if he had
brought the red fire with him, to which Eddy answered that
he had not, as all the theatres at which he had ever appeared
had supplied him with this. The stage-manager then told him
that the proprietor would not allow him to purchase any pro
perties for the artists, so that, if Eddy considered red fire really
necessaryfor his performance, he was afraid he would have to
buy it himself. This the latter indignantly declined to do,
and declared that, unless the red fire were forthcoming, he
would not appear that night.
As Eddy was a star turn, and it would be a serious matter
to disappoint the audience, the stage-manager went to the
German proprietor* told him what the artist had said, and
advised him to give way and supply the red fire. After a good
deal of persuasion, he agreed to do this, and asked the stage-
manager to tell Eddy that it would be all right and that he
would attend to the matter himself.
Eddy therefore duly made his appearance and did a really
wonderful performance. Towards the end, just as he was about
to light his firework belt, he called out to the stage-manager,
who was standing in the wings : —
"
Quick ! Get the red fire ready and light it as soon as
you light my belt."
see me
The stage-manager rushed off to look for the proprietor,
whom he found serving beer behind the bar in his shirt-sleeves,
having apparently forgotten all about the red fire which he had
promised to see to.
" Come " "
Mr. Eddy is just finish
quick ! he exclaimed.
ing his turn and is waiting for the red fire. He must have it
at once !
"
The German left the bar, ran breathlessly on to the stage,
and, putting his head out of the wings, shouted out to Eddy :
"
Hey, mister ! What kind of red fire do you want ? Blue
or green ?
"
While performing card tricks at Springfield, Illinois, I
required an assistant from the audience, and coaxed a young
man sitting in the front row of the stalls to come on to the
stage to help me, much against the will of a young lady who
was with him. When he came, I started producing cards from
all over his body. The audience roared with laughter as they
poured in hundreds from him ; but the girl quite failed to see
the fun of it and shouted to him to come down at once and not
allow me to make an exhibition of him, and I had no little
difficulty in persuading him to remain until I had finished
the trick. The girl kept on shouting at him all the time,
which, of course, made the audience laugh all the more.
When the young man returned to his seat, she refused to
speak to him, but, taking hold of him by the ear, marched him
up the centre gangway of the stalls and out of the theatre
amidst shrieks of laughter.
The next day I received a letter from the young man telling
me that I had blasted his hopes of happiness. He had been
engaged, he said, to be married to the young lady, but, on
account of my getting him on the stage and making an exhibition
of him, she now declined to have anything more to do with him,
and he was quite broken-hearted. I told him to send me the
lady's address, I
and wrote to her asking her to call and see me.
This she did, and, after talking to her for a while, I managed to
convince her that the whole thing had been merely a joke, and
she graciously consented to overlook it and to receive her dis
consolate swain back into favour.
I had a singular experience at a little town in Pennsylvania,
the name of which I forget. I was at this time fulfilling an
engagement with a company which was playing one night
stands, that is to say, performing in a different town every night.
We were to arrive at this town about two o'clock in the after
noon .which would give us plenty of time to prepare everything
for the show, which started at eight o'clock. Unfortunately,
there was an accident on the line, and some goods trains, which
were in front of us, and our train could not pass until the
wreckage had been cleared away. This delayed us so much
that we did not reach our destination until about ten minutes
to eight, and had to rush at once to the theatre, though none
of us had had anything to eat since breakfast and we were all
desperately hungry.
While the last bars of the overture were being played,
someone happening to look through the peep-hole of the
curtain, saw, to his astonishment, that there was only one
solitary man in the auditorium ! We sent for the manager of
the theatre and told him that it was impossible to give a
performance for this one man, whose money was accordingly
returned to him, with many apologies, while we dressed, packed
up our things and made a bee-line for our hotel and supper.
We could not imagine what could have been the cause of this
extraordinary fiasco, but, on inquiry, our manager ascertained
that not a bill of ours had been put up in the town, and, in
fact, no one knew that there was going to be a performance
F
that night. The solitary individual who was present came in,
it appeared, because he happened to be passing and saw
the place lit up and heard the orchestra playing inside. We
learned later on that our advance-manager, who should have
billed the town a week ahead, had been on the drink and for
gotten all about it.
The occasion of which Ihave just spoken was not the only
one on which we were seriously delayed by a railway accident.
The same thing occurred when we were on our way to fulfil an
engagement at St. Louis. We were then about ten miles from
that town, and when our manager saw that it was impossible
for us to arrive in time to begin at eight o'clock, the hour we
were advertised to start, he asked me if I could suggest any
thing to help him out. I told him that, if he could hire a horse
and trap, I would go on ahead, start the performance and keep
it going until the rest of the company arrived. A horse and
trap were accordingly hired, and I set off for St. Louis, where I
arrived about 7.30. I had none of my apparatus with me, but I
got a couple of packs of cards, and when the curtain rose, went
on the stage in my street-clothes, explained to the audience
what had happened and asked if they would allow me to enter
tain them with card tricks until the other artists arrived. To
this they consented, and for nearly an hour I contrived to
keep them amused, just as I did the audience that afternoon
at the Oxford, in London. By that time the rest of the com
pany, who had made up in the train, had put in an appearance,
and the performance proceeded in the usual way.
While at St. Louis I attended a local race-meeting, which
ended in a riot. One or two of the early races had given the
crowd only too much reason to believe that the results had been
"
amicably arranged beforehand — cronk," or crooked racing,
was pretty frequent in those days — and they manifested their
resentment by refusing to allow the meeting to continue, and,
proceeding to the grand stand, began to demolish it. I
offered my services to the committee, who, after some hesitation,
accepted them, and from the top of the grand stand I harangued
the crowd and offered to show them some card tricks. The
--.
rioters paused in their work of destruction to watch me, and

by the time I had finished my impromptu performance,
good-humour was restored, and they dispersed without doing
any further damage.
At Dayton, Ohio, I was performing my cage and canary
trick and called for someone to come on the stage to hold the
cage and bird, which I would then cause to vanish out of his
hands. A young man came and the cage duly disappeared.
I thanked him and said that that was all I wanted of him. But
he continued to stand before me, with a broad grin on his face.
I said again —
:
" That is all I require of you, sir ; you can go back to
your seat."
" I can't move," said he.
" Can't move ! Why ? "
"
Because I am paralysed.'
' "
It took me some time to persuade this facetious young
gentleman to leave the stage and allow me to proceed with my
performance.
At an hotel in which I was

staying at Buffalo I perpetrated
a practical joke which I very nearly had cause to regret. In a
room on the third floor of the hotel, some weeks before, a man
had committed suicide, and I was told that strange noises had
been heard in the room ever since, and that it was common talk
amongst the chambermaids and visitors that it was haunted.
The room had not been occupied since, and everybody was
afraid to go into it. When I heard this, I thought it would be a
good advertisement if I could play some trick or practical
joke in connection with it.
"
The bells in this hotel are what are called pull-bells,"
which run along the ceiling of the corridors in strands and
down into the office in the hall. A number was under each
bell in the office, so that they could tell in which room the bell
had been rung. Getting a ladder, I tied a cord to the wire
connected with the bell of the haunted room, and another cord
to all the other wires together, both cords leading into my
room, so that, by pulling one cord, I could ring the bell in the
haunted room, and, by pulling the other, I could ring all the
bells on that floor at the same time. I had at that time two
doves which I used in my performance, and these doves used
to coo and make a weird sound at night when covered up in
their cage. The door of the haunted room was kept locked, but
I contrived to get hold of a key which opened it and put
the cage containing my two doves there. Then, with some
luminous paint which I had bought, I painted some grotesque
figures on the walls, after which I went out, locking the door
after me.
About midnight, when there were a number of commercial
travellers sitting in the lounge of the hotel and the manager
was in his office, I went upstairs and started to pull the cord
which I had connected with the bell of the haunted room.
When the manager saw what bell it was which was ringing
he jumped up, I was afterwards told, in great excitement,
exclaiming :
"
Why, that is the bell of the haunted room. There is no
"
one there ! Who on earth can be ringing it ?
The bell kept on ringing, until at last the manager, supported
by two or three of the commercial travellers, went upstairs to
investigate the mystery. They unlocked the door of the
haunted room, and, at that moment, my two doves began to
coo, and hearing this weird sound and seeing the luminous figures
on the walls they all beat a precipitate retreat. No sooner
had they got downstairs than the bell of the haunted room began
to ring furiously again, and the next moment every bell on
that floor rang at the same time. Three or four other people
attempted to enter the room, but the cooing of the doves and
the sight of the figures on the wall frightened them away. Some
of the visitors in the hotel were greatly alarmed and threatened
to leave, as they were sure there must be ghosts about, and the
manager had great difficulty in pacifying them. When the
excitement had subsided, and everyone had gone to bed,
I removed my doves from the room and untied the cords which
I had attached to the bell-wires.
I had, of course, intended to let the mystery remain one

until I had left Buffalo. But next day it got whispered about
that it was some practical joke played by me, and I heard that
the manager and some of the people who had been so frightened
the night before were furious and were vowing to give me a
thrashing which I should remember all my life.
In these circumstances, I decided to leave the town as
quickly as possible, and, fortunately, succeeded in slipping
away unperceived.
While performing at Leadville, Colorado, which is over
14,000 feet above the level of the sea, I was rather astonished,
not to say frightened, at some of the incidents which occurred
there. I was unaware of the fact that Leadville, being so
high up in the mountains, would have the effect on me that it
had. For instance, when I arrived at the hotel, after going up
about a dozen stairs to my room, I found I was so exhausted that
I could hardly breathe, and when I went on the stage, it was
as much as Icould do to finish my performance. We had two
acrobats in our show who did a trapeze act, and after doing
two or three of their tricks, they fell from the trapeze exhausted,
though fortunately they were not badly hurt. A little later
in the evening, a lady dancer also fell exhausted on the stage
in the middle of her dance.
It was then explained to me that all this was owing to the
high altitude of the town, the air being so strong that it affected
the heart and lungs of all newcomers.
When I reached my room at the hotel that evening, I hap
pened to touch the brass-railing of the bed, upon which some
electric sparks flew out of my fingers. I could not understand
what was the matter and quite thought something had happened
to me. I called my wife's attention to it. She tried, and the
same thing happened to her ; and, soon afterwards, happening
to touch the steam-radiator, she received another shock. I
then told her that I had heard of this before but never believed
it, and asked her to watch what I was going to do. Turning
on the gas tap, I shuffled my feet along the carpet and put my
ringers over the burner. A spark flew out of my fingers, and
the gas immediately lit. My wife was astonished when she

saw this, but I told her to try it. She did so, and also lit the
gas. I was told afterwards that it was impossible to boil an
egg or a potato in this place, for no matter how long the egg
or the potato was in boiling water it would not cook. The
reason is that at high altitudes the pressure becomes less as
the altitude increases, and on the top of a mountain boiling-
point is much lower than at sea level.
CHAPTER VII
Madame O'Della Diss De Bar, the celebrated medium, is prosecuted for
fraud — I am called as an expert witness at the trial, and perform
all the medium' s manifestations in open court — Madame Diss De
Bar sentenced to two years' imprisonment — The Swami case in
England — I communicate with Scotland Yard and Swami is
identified with Madame Diss De Bar— Story of August and Adolphe
— I sail for England — My interest in mesmerism — My first attempt
to mesmerise a person —An alarming experience — I acquire pro
ficiency — My experiments in mesmerism during the voyage to
England — Donovan's Derby — The gentleman with the revolver
— I make the acquaintance of an apparently wealthy young
man, who persuades me to allow him to accompany me to
the different halls at which I am performing — Presents of jewellery
which he makes to a lady singer and myself — I receive a visit
from two detectives, who inform me that the jewellery is stolen
property.
In the spring of 1888 New York was much interested in a sen

sational case at the Tombs Police Court, where a celebrated
medium called Madame O'Della Diss De Bar was being tried
for obtaining money and valuable property by fraud from
Luther R. Marsh, a well-known and very wealthy lawyer.
The medium professed to produce spirit- paintings and
communications from the departed, which she afterwards sold
for fabulous sums to her dupes. Most of the communications
asked for money, which Mr. Marsh generally gave, and finally
Madame Diss De Bar induced him to deed over to her a valu
able piece of property on Fifth Avenue, which, she told him,
was to be converted into a temple for the spirits. The lawyer's
friend here stepped in and had the lady arrested for fraud,
though Mr. Marsh himself could not be persuaded that there
was anything wrong.
A number of witnesses were called on both sides. I was sub

poenaed by the prosecution to give evidence as an expert, and
performed all the medium's manifestations in open court, using
both Madame Diss De Bar herself and Mr. Marsh as my subjects.
One of the tests was spirit-writing on a sheet of blank
paper. A sheet of blank paper was shown to the judge and
jury. It was then folded and held against my forehead by
the subject, and kept there for a minute or so, when it was
" "
opened and found to have a communication written upon
it. I afterwards showed the judge and jury that this was
done by sleight-of-hand, the sheet of paper which had been
handed to them having been exchanged for another upon
which the
" communication " had
already been written.
One of Madame Diss De Bar's greatest tests was what was
called the Writing Pad Test, which consisted of a pad of
about a hundred sheets of white writing-paper, pasted together
at one end, so that the sheets could be torn off one at a time.
Each sheet was shown to be perfectly blank, and the pad was
then wrapped up in a newspaper, held by the medium at one
end and the subject at the other. Immediately a sound was
heard as though a pen was going rapidly over the paper, and,
on the pad being taken out of the newspaper, almost every
sheet was found to contain writing.
This test was the defence's great stronghold, and they defied
me to do it, but, expecting this, I
had come prepared.
I
asked Mr. Marsh himself to come into the witness-box,
which he did. I showed him the pad, he examined it, and I
was about to place it in the newspaper when Madame Diss De
Bar shouted out :—
" Mark it, "
so that it can't be changed I
This I
allowed Mr. Marsh to do, he tearing off the corners
of some of the sheets of paper.
The pad was then placed in the newspaper, wrapped up and
held at one end with both hands by Mr. Marsh and at the
other by myself. Immediately the sound of writing was heard ,
and when the pad was taken out of the newspaper, it was
found to contain writing on nearly every sheet.
-■-
I need hardly say that the blank pad had been exchanged
for one that had been prepared beforehand. The sound of
writing was produced by the nail of one of my fingers, which
I had purposely split with a pen-knife for the experiment.
After I had explained how it was done to the judge and
jury, Mr. Marsh remarked that it was no trick, but that I was a
medium myself, although I did not know it. Well, perhaps I
am !
I need hardly say that Madame Diss De Bar lost her case.
She was found guilty of fraud and sentenced to two years'
imprisonment, and the credulous Mr. Marsh got back his
property.
There was an interesting sequel to this affair. This was the
sensational Swami case, which came before the English courts
some years later, during my second visit to England. On
reading the evidence given in the police-court proceedings, and
from the description of this woman, I at once came to the
conclusion that Swami could be no one else but Madame Diss
De Bar, who had, in the meantime, served her sentence and come
to England. I
lost no time in communicating with Scotland
Yard, who sent Detective-Inspector Cane to see me. I
showed him photographs of Madame Diss De Bar and told him
her history, and he agreed with me that there was no doubt
that she and Swami were one and the same person. When
the trial at the Old Bailey came on, this was brought up in
evidence against her, and she was convicted and received seven
years.
While on the subject of spiritualism, here is an amusing
story :
There were two old farmers, brothers, living on the East Side
of New York City, whose names were August and Adolphe.
They were good Lutherans, but, out of curiosity, they attended
one or two spiritualistic stances. Shortly afterwards Adolphe
died. August bore his loneliness as long as he could, but
finally, in desperation, he sought out the medium whom he had
previously visited, and it was arranged that a stance should be
held, and that the medium should call up the spirit of Adolphe,
On the night of the seance the shade duly appeared.

" Is that "
you, Adolphe ? asked August.
"
It is," came the reply in a husky whisper.
" Well, how are "
you getting on on the other side ?
"
Very well, August."
" Do "
you get your Schnappes regularly, Adolphe ?
" I drink no
Schnappes here."
" Well, "
maybe it is lager beer ?
" No, no beer either."
lager
" "
Adolphe," exclaimed August, tell me the truth. Do you
"
or do you not play pinochle ? (a card game).
" I do not,
August," was the reply.
August jumped up.
" "
Impostor, faker, thief ! he shouted, pointing an accusing
"I
finger at the medium. asked you for der spirit of my
brudder Adolphe, and you say it is 'im, but it is not. You bring
"
me instead the ghost of some damn Swede !
Shortly after the Diss De Bar trial I sailed from New York
on my second visit to England, little thinking that before
I saw my native land again nearly seven years would have
passed, and I should have travelled over the greater part of
the world.
During this trip I
had some very interesting experiences in
regard to mesmerism, a subject which has always interested me
profoundly and which I have studied a great deal.
It was only during my previous visit to England that I
accidentally discovered that I possessed the power to mesmerise,
and I am never likely to forget the first person on whom I prac
tised. I was spending the evening at the house of some people
I knew at Brighton, and, after giving some of my sleight-of-
hand performances, I was asked by one of the guests if I could
mesmerise people. I answered that I thought I should be able
to do so provided I could get a good subject, upon which one
of the young ladies present volunteered to allow me to
experiment upon her. I accordingly asked her to sit down
in a chair in front of me, and she was evidently an excellent
subject for, after a very few passes, I succeeded in sending her

off into an hypnotic sleep.
Naturally very pleased with my success, I then informed
the company that while she was in this condition no one could
wake her but myself, and that no matter how loudly anyone
else might shout in her ear it would have no effect, since mine
was the only voice she could hear. And I added that even if I
spoke in a whisper at some distance from her, she would
be able to hear me.
After performing several tests to prove that she was really
mesmerised, and challenging anyone in the room to wake her
up, I essayed to show the company how easy it was for me to
do so.
Standing at some little distance from my subject and
speaking in a low voice, I commanded her to wake. She did
not move. I came nearer and spoke louder. Still she re
mained motionless. I went up to her, bent down and spoke to
her, and, finally, getting very uneasy, shook her by the shoulder
and shouted in her ear. But there was no sign of the girl
waking, and I became really frightened, while her parents were
in a terrible state of alarm. For nearly an hour I worked,
doing everything I could think of to rouse her from her
hypnotic sleep, until the perspiration ran in rivulets down my
face. But it was all to no purpose, and at last it was decided
to send for a doctor.
The doctor arrived and endeavoured to wake her, but
without success, and, on its being explained to him how the
girl had got into this condition, he said that the only person
who could wake her was the one who had sent her to sleep.
I told him that I had tried for nearly an hour, and that I was
scared to death lest something might happen to her, for which
I should be held responsible. He then explained to me that
the reason I had failed to wake her was that I had got frightened
and had lost confidence in my powers, adding that I must never
under-estimate my will-power, but always be convinced that I
could wake anyone whom I had put to sleep whenever I chose.
And so, after a brief rest, I tried again, and in about ten
minutes the girl opened her eyes and sat up, apparently none
the worse for what had happened.
I was, of course, immensely relieved, as was everyone
present, and I thanked the doctor warmly for the advice he had
given me.
For a long time after this I
did not attempt to mesmerise
anyone, as I had had a bad fright and regarded the experiment
as too dangerous. But I studied the subject whenever I could,
and having gained confidence in my own powers, I eventually
became quite proficient. I have mesmerised dozens of people
in my time, and nothing in any way resembling my first
experience has ever occurred.
But to come to my experiences during the voyage to

England.
We had on board one of Mr. George Edwardes's companies,
"
which was returning after a very successful tour of the States,"
and amongst the company were Miss Violet Lloyd, George
Grossmith, and Miss Connie Ediss, then at the height of her
popularity. One evening, when we were all sitting on deck,
Miss Ediss remarked that she was suffering badly from in
somnia and had hardly slept at all for three nights. The subject
of mesmerism cropped up, and I asked her if she had ever been
mesmerised.
" No," said she,
"
I never have; I don't believe in that
kind of thing."
I then told her that I possessed the power to mesmerise and
that, if she would allow me, I would see if she were a good
subject, in which case I could make her go to sleep and get the
rest she so much needed. After some persuasion, she consented,
and we went into the saloon, where I discovered that she was
a splendid subject and that I could make her do whatever I
wished.
Accordingly, while she was still under the influence, I told
her that she must go to her cabin and get into bed, and that the
moment her head touched the pillow she would fall asleep
and would not wake until nine o'clock the next morning.
■v
When I saw her the following morning, I

inquired what sort of
a night she had had, and she answered that she had gone to
sleep immediately she got into bed, and had slept until nine
o'clock.
When Miss Ediss told her friends of what had taken place,
they laughed at her and refused to believe it. However, that
evening I went with her into the saloon, and, in the presence of
ten or a dozen members of the company, I mesmerised her and
made her do all kinds of things — in fact anything I wished.
A friend of Miss Connie Ediss was in the smoking-room at this
time playing cards, and someone went and told him what she
was doing. He seemed rather annoyed, and later in the
evening came to me and said :—
" What have I hear you
you been doing with Miss Ediss.
have been mesmerising her ?
"
" Yes," I "
replied, and she is a splendid subject."
" Oh,
that's all nonsense !
" he " She was
rejoined. only
making believe and acting the part."
" You're "
I can tell in a minute
quite mistaken," said I.
whether a person is really mesmerised or whether he is only
pretending to be ; and, further, if you do not believe me, you
can ask Miss Ediss, and she will tell you that last night I
commanded her to go to sleep and not wake up until nine o'clock
this morning, and that she did so, and got the first good night's
rest she has had since we left New York."
" Well," said he, " I
will bet you half-a-dozen bottles of cham
pagne that you could not mesmerise me."
I told him that I would not undertake to mesmerise anyone
for a wager, as the subject whom I was trying to mesmerise
would naturally fight against me and do all in his power to
resist my influence. And I explained that, in order to mes
merise a person, he must be in sympathy with you and willing to
submit, otherwise it would be a most difficult task. However,
if he liked, I would try, to do it, but not for a wager.
" No,"
he exclaimed contemptuously,
" because you know
well enough you couldn't."
"Well," I answered, "it is no use arguing the question,
and, if you will not let me try, there is nothing more to be

said."
That night at the dinner-table, which, by the way, was the
doctor's table, one of the ladies complained that she was
suffering from toothache. I told her that if she would allow
me to mesmerise her I would take it away immediately,
and she gladly accepted my offer. After a few passes from
me she went to sleep, upon which I willed her toothache to
disappear, and when I awoke her again, the pain had quite
gone.
The doctor thought this was very wonderful, and asked me
if I would mesmerise her again, as he wanted to try an experi
ment. The lady was quite willing, and in a few seconds she
was off again. This time the doctor came up to her and
examined her eyes, and found that the eyeballs were strongly
turned inwards, so that the whites only were visible. It is a
well-known fact that when a person is under the influence of
mesmerism the eyeballs always turn inwards. I told the
doctor that she had no feeling whatever in her body, and that
I could pick up a large fold of skin in her wrist and pass a
pin right through it and she would not feel it, and that there
would be no blood ; neither would she feel any pain subse
quently. I
then borrowed a gentleman's scarf-pin, which
I put into the lady's wrist. She was perfectly insensible
to any pain and did not move, and I drew out the pin.
The doctor then pushed the upper and lower lids of one of
her eyes back, causing the eye to protrude in such a way that it
looked as if it were hanging out, and she still remained motion
less. Just this, Miss Connie Ediss's friend,
as he had done
to whom I have previously referred, happened to come in, and
when he saw the lady lying there with one of her eyes apparently
hanging out and me standing over her, he promptly made a
bee-line for the door.
Ithought that now was the time to get back on him for
having dared me to mesmerise him, so I persuaded two or three
of the men present to go and bring him back. They had to
bring him by force, for he struggled hard and looked so scared
that I to let him off. But he had spoken

was half-inclined
so contemptuously of my powers that I felt he needed a lesson.
So I said :—
" You offered this evening to bet me half-a-dozen bottles
of champagne that I could not mesmerise you. Well, I will
take your bet, and I am going to do it now."
" No, " he exclaimed. " I was I don't
no ! only joking.
want to be mesmerised."
" You've I, laughing. And we forced
just got to be," said
him into a chair and in a few minutes he was off, for he was one
of the most apt subjects with whom I have ever come in
contact.
So soon as he was asleep, I borrowed the scarf-pin again
and ran it into his right thigh. Now, I knew that if I removed
the pin while he was under the influence he would feel nothing,
just as the lady whom I had previously mesmerised had felt
nothing, but that if I woke him first he would feel the pain.
So, as I wanted to teach him a lesson, I woke him with the pin
still in his thigh. At first he felt nothing, but in a few minutes
he cried out and clapped his hand to his thigh, upon which I
said :—
" If
you willapologise for the way you spoke to me, admit
yourself beaten and promise to pay for the champagne, I will
remove the cause of your pain."
This he readily did, upon which I
drew out the pin ; and,
though he was a bit annoyed with me at first, he was too good
a fellow not to forgive me for the trick I had played on him,
knowing that he had brought it on himself.
An experiment I
performed once on my wife I have never
been able to understand myself. It was as follows : —
I put my wife into an hypnotic sleep, and while she was in
this state I picked up eight or ten plain white cards, each of
which I showed her in turn, telling her that they were photo
graphs of different people she knew. She looked at the cards
and seemed to have not the slightest doubt that they were
really photographs of the persons whom I said they were.
On one card, which I told her was a photograph of her father,
I had put a little dot in pencil, so that I might be able to

recognise it again, as all the cards were blank on both sides.
After having shown her all the supposed photographs, I mixed
the cards together and asked her to give me her father's photo
graph, and she picked out the marked card without the slightest
hesitation.
The Derby of 1889, won by the Duke of Portland's great colt

Donovan, was the first which I ever saw, for, though I had
intended to go to the Derby more than once during my previous
visit to England, something had always occurred to prevent
my doing so.
Although the great event was that year, on all form, a
" " race,
one horse the attendance was simply enormous, in
fact it was computed to be the largest on record, and I had never
"
seen so astonishing a sight as that of those black acres of
humanity."
As I
never betted more than a pound or two, in those days,
on the rare occasions when I went to a race-meeting, I naturally
did not care about laying the odds on Donovan which the
bookmakers were asking for, and so decided to entrust my
modest stake to a colt called Miguel, belonging to Mr. Douglas
Baird and trained by John Porter, about which I got, I think,
20 to 1.
Having made my bet I went up into one of the stands, and
was just getting out my race-glasses to watch the horses who
were beginning to line up for the start, when a voice beside me
said abruptly : —
" Well, what have "
you backed ?
I turned and saw that the question came from a tall, well-
dressed, but rather dissipated-looking, man, with restless,
dark eyes and a heavy moustache, at which he was pulling with
long, nervous fingers.
"
Miguel," I answered.
"
Then you've been chucking your mon ey away. He hasn't
a chance ; nothing has a chance against the favourite."
" I don't know so much about that," I said, nettled
by the
" Racing
way the stranger spoke. is a very uncertain game.
■-
Donovan was considered for the Guineas; — he

a sure thing
was an even hotter favourite then than he is to-day — and yet
Enthusiast managed to beat him."
" It was an " as was
infernal fluke," he exclaimed angrily,
proved when Donovan beat the other all ends up in the New
market Stakes the other day."
" "
I've no doubt it was," I but isn't it quite possible
said,
that there might be another such fluke to-day ?
"
"
Nonsense ! I tell you Donovan can't lose, unless he
falls down or Tom Loates falls off. Look here ! " he went on,
" Do
lowering his voice. you know what I've done ? I con
sider that horse such a cast-iron certainty that I've mortgaged
my house, sold or pawned everything of value that my wife and
I have got, and put it all on him. He carries every shilling
I've got in the world."
" And " I asked.
what will you do if he doesn't win ?
" This," said he, and drew a revolver from his "I
pocket.
shall blow out brains where I'm now !
"
my just standing
I judged, from his manner and the look in his eyes, that he
was quite capable of carrying out his threat, in the event of the
favourite getting beaten. So I said :—
" Excuse me I'll be back in a minute," and
; quitted.
In I
had picked out, was always
the race, Miguel, the horse
amongst the first lot, and about a quarter of a mile from home
I
I thought for a moment that was going to land the nice little
bet I
had about him, as he was then leading and apparently
going well. But directly afterwards Donovan ranged up along
side and, drawing away at every stride, won quite easily at the
finish.
And so the gentleman with the revolver saved his brains, or
what did duty for them.
One night at the Oxford I happened to go into the lounge

after my performance, when a gentlemanly young man in
evening clothes came up and, after complimenting me on my
entertainment, asked me to join him in a bottle of champagne*
We had quite a long conversation, which ended in his inviting
G
me to supper. I was at that time performing at four different

halls a night, and during supper he asked me, as a great favour,
if I would take him with me one evening, as he wanted to see
what such an experience was like. I consented and told him
to come to my rooms the following evening, and he should come
with me.
On arriving at the first hall at which I was appearing, I got
him a seat in the stalls and then went on to give my performance.
At its conclusion I took him to the other halls : the Oxford,
the Paragon, and the Bedford, in Camden Town. When I had
finished my last turn, he expressed himself delighted with his
experience and again asked me to have supper with him.
The next day he called at my rooms, bringing with him a
pair of diamond sleeve-links, which he begged me to accept as a
souvenir of our pleasant evening together, and asked if he
might come with me some other evening. He accompanied
me again two or three nights later and on several other occasions,
and each time he came he used to bring me some present in
the way of jewellery : a diamond scarf-pin, a gold cigarette-
case with my initials in diamonds, a gold match-box and sc forth,
which he would insist on my accepting, and, though we nearly
always had supper together, he never would allow me to pay
for anything. I naturally thought that he must be a young man
of considerable means to be able to spend money in this way.
One evening he asked me if I would let him come on the
stage and stand in the wings, as he had never been on a stage
before and he wanted to get some idea of what it was like.
I told him that I did not allow anyone on the stage during my
performance, but, if he liked, I would put him in the wings until
I got ready to go on, and then he would have to leave.
To this he agreed, and, accordingly, when we got to the
Paragon, I put him in the first entrance in the wings and, leaving
him there, went to my dressing-room to prepare for my enter
tainment.
When I returned, I found him engaged in an animated con
versation with a very pretty girl who was beginning to make a
reputation as a singer. I told him that he must now leave
>L
I
c/l
g
=3
be
c
the stage as he had promised, which he did, though with

obvious reluctance. As we were driving to the next hall at
which I had to appear, he remarked what a charming girl was
the one he had been talking to, and asked me if I knew her.
I said I did, but only very slightly, through seeing her at the
Paragon, and that I was afraid I could not give him any
information about her, at which he seemed disappointed.
For some little time after this he came with me practically
every night, always going on the stage at the Paragon and
seeking out the same lady. He no longer brought me any
presents, but I noticed that nearly every evening this young
singer was wearing some article of jewellery which I had never
seen before :large single-stone diamond earrings, a diamond
ring, a diamond bracelet, and so on.
At length, one night when he had arranged to accompany
me he did not turn up, and for two or three weeks I neither saw
nor heard anything of him. Then one morning I was told that
two gentlemen were asking to see me on a very important
matter.
They were shown in, and, to my astonishment, informed me
that they were detectives from Scotland Yard. One of them
took out a note-book and said :—
" believe
I you have received the following articles as
"
presents from a certain Mr. X ?
He then read out a description of the different presents

which my young friend had made me and inquired if the
list were correct.
I admitted that it was, upon which he said :—
"
These articles were all stolen by this man from a well-
known West-End jeweller, where he was employed. We must
request you to give them up at once, if you do not want to get
into trouble."
As I naturally did not wish to be mixed up in so unpleasant
an affair, I immediately handed the articles over to the detec
tives, who, before leaving, inquired if I could tell them where
the young singer upon whom Mr. X had lavished so many
costly presents was to be found, as her engagement at the
1oo A Modern Mystery Merchant
Paragon had now terminated. But this I was unable to

do.
Not long afterwards, I read in the papers that Mr. X
had been sentenced to two years' imprisonment. He had, it
appeared, stolen a good many other articles from his employers
besides those which he had presented to the young singer
and myself.
Some months later I met this young lady again, when she
told me that she had received a visit from the detectives, and
asked me whether they had also called on me, and if I had
returned all the presents I had received. I told her that I had.
of course, given them all up, upon which she said that I was a
fool for doing this, as she had only returned two or three of the
articles which had been given to her, saying that she had
lost or sold the rest.
CHAPTER VIII
I leave England on a tour of the Continent — The " Phoenix Illusion
"
I
— accept an engagement to perform it at a music hall in
Berlin on the understanding that the stage there is about to be
rebuilt — On my arrival I find that the stage has not been altered,
and is quite unsuitable — A noisy audience — I decline to continue
to perform the illusion — Refusal of the management to pay me
my full salary — But they are eventually compelled to do so —
Unscrupulous treatment of foreign artists by German music-hall
managers — Instances of this — I am engaged to introduce the
" Phoenix Illusion " into a revue at the Eden Theatre, Paris — Re
fusal of Madam Granier, who plays the part of Jeanne d'Arc, to
allow herself to be " burned — Ingenious manner in which this
"
—
difficulty is surmounted A
" Vanishing Lady " who did not re
appear — A wealthy young woman with stage ambitions — I am
engaged to instruct her in the performance of the "Phoenix
"
Illusion — Her failure — My tour in Spain — I perform before Queen
Christina and King Alfonso —Visit to a bull-fight.
In the autumn of 1889 I went again to the Continent, opening

at Ronacher's Theatre, in Vienna, where I had a two months'
engagement. I
was at this time doing an illusion called
" The Phoenix," in which I was supposed to set fire to a lady
and burn her in full view of the audience and then restore her
to life again. One evening two men who ran a music-hall
in Berlin happened to be in front, and were so taken with this
illusion that they sent for me and asked if I would sign a con
tract to appear at their theatre for a month, at the conclusion
of my engagements in Austro-Hungary and Southern Germany.
Now, having appeared at their music-hall before, I knew that
" "
The Phoenix would not be suitable for such a place, because
the hall was a long, oblong room, without any circles or gal
leries. The audience sat all on one floor, and the stage was
in the centre of the hall. Consequently, only those sitting
1o2 A Modern Mystery Merchant
immediately in front of the stage would be able to see the entire

performance. The people at the sides could not see anything,
unless the performer came right in front, to the footlights.
I therefore told the two managers that it was useless for me to
accept a contract at their hall for this illusion, as less than half
the audience would be able to see it, because it was necessary
for me to work pretty far back on the stage, otherwise should I
expose the illusion. But they answered that they were having
the stage rebuilt, and placed at the end of the hall instead of in
the middle. Thus, everyone in the audience would have a good
view. In these circumstances, I accepted their offer and in
due course proceeded to Berlin.
When I came to the theatre for rehearsal, on the day I was to
open, I found, to my
astonishment, that the stage had not
been altered at all, but was in the same place as it had always
been. I saw at once that it would be impossible forme to per
" Phoenix Illusion " on that stage, and in great wrath
form my
repaired to the managers' office, and asked what they meant
by getting me to sign that contract on an assurance that they
were going to have the stage altered, whereas it was still in the
" "
same position. I said that I would have to omit The Phoenix
from my performances and only do the first part, which I could
do well enough in front, so that all would have a good view of
it.
They made all kinds of excuses, declaring that they had
been unable to carry out their intention to have the stage
altered because the police authorities had refused to allow
them to put it where they wanted ; and they told me not to
omit the illusion, but to do it as far in front as I possibly could
without exposing it. I answered that that would be no good,
as only those sitting in the middle of the
hall would be able
to see it. But they said :—
" We don't trouble about the people in the side seats.
The highest-price seats are in the centre, and so long as the
people there can see, it doesn't
matter much about the rest
of the house."
I
went back to the stage, and with the help of my
A
assistants I got the illusion built up, and experimented with it

to find how far I could possibly get it in front without exposing
the secret. After working several hours, we contrived to get
it a little further in front, but I knew it would be useless ; the
people in the side seats would never be able to see it properly.
I went again to the office and told the managers what I had done,
and they said that I had got it quite far enough in front, and
that it would be all right at night. But I felt pretty sure that
it would be very far from being so.
The first part of my entertainment that evening met with
tremendous success. But when I came to the illusion, all
the audience on both sides of the theatre began to shout : —
"
Come in front, come in front ! We can't see !
"
Itook no notice and went on with my performance, but they
continued to shout, and finally started hissing and whistling, and
I finished amidst a perfect uproar, those in the centre, who
were able to see the illusion, applauding loudly, and those in
the side seats, who could not see anything, booing and shouting.
As soon as I came off the stage I went to the office in a
furious temper and told the management that I should refuse
to go on any more under these conditions, and I accused them
of having induced me to sign a contract under false pretences.
I was very excited and very angry, and finally one of the
managers said that I had better go home and see them the next
morning and talk the matter over quietly, when perhaps we
might be able to find some way out of the difficulty.
Next morning I returned to the theatre and asked them
what they proposed should be done, as I could think of nothing.
They said : —
" Never mind. You
go back to the stage and experiment
again, and probably you will find some means of doing the
trick a few feet further in front, so that most of the audience, at
any rate, will be able to see it."
After four or five hours' work with my assistants, I managed
to get the illusion a couple of feet further in front than I had
had it the night before. But I still saw that the greater part of
the audience would be unable to see it. The managers, however,
assured me that the two feet further forward would make all the
difference in the world.
That evening the first part of my entertainment again went
splendidly. But when I came to the illusion, the scene of
the previous night was repeated — it was, if anything, worse —
and Ileft the stage amidst a great uproar. I went at once to
the office and told the managers that I would not perform the
illusion again, and though they tried to persuade me to con
tinue it, I would not budge. At last they said :—
" Well,
cut it out, then, and only do the first part of your
performance to-morrow night and for the rest of your engage
ment."
"
Accordingly, the next night "The Phoenix was omitted,
and my entertainment went through without any mishap,
amidst great applause. And so I continued until the 16th of
the month, which was pay-day, the artists usually being paid
on the 16th and the last day of each month. When I went into
the office to receive my salary, I was astonished to find only
half the amount I ought to have received in my pay-envelope.
I, of course, called the attention of the managers to the fact
that they had not paid me my right money.
"Oh," replied one of them coolly, " you only did half
your performance, and therefore you only get half your
salary."
I said that that was not my fault, but the fault of their
stage, and that I
insisted on receiving my salary in full. But
this they refused to pay me, saying that by rights they ought
not to pay me anything at all and cancel my contract, because
I was engaged to present "The Phoenix " Illusion, and had only
performed it on two occasions. However, as I had appeared
at their hall before and they liked me, they had decided to give
me half the money and allow me to finish my engagement.
I told them what I thought of them very frankly, and wound
up by declaring that unless they paid me my salary in full at
once I
would not appear that night, and would put the matter
into the hands of a lawyer and bring an action against them for
its recovery.
'
This threat, however, did not seem to alarm them, and one
of them laughed and said : —
" Go and see a
lawyer by all means and show him your
contract. He will only tell you that you've got no case, as the
'
contract states that you were specially engaged for The
'
Phoenix Illusion."
I went back to my hotel and got the contract, with the
intention of taking it to a lawyer. But, on reading it through,
I found to my astonishment that by some oversight they
"
had omitted to put in anything at all about The Phoenix."
The contract merely stated that I was engaged as a conjurer
and illusionist to give my entertainment.
I was naturally delighted, and, going back to the music
hall, saw the two managers again and told them that I had
consulted a lawyer, who advised me to take proceedings
against them forthwith, if they refused to pay me what was
due to me under the contract. They only laughed.
" Go ahead with " You stand
your action," said they.
no chance of winning it, as you have not done what you were
engaged to do."
"
There you are quite wrong," I answered.
" I was not
' '
engaged to do The Phoenix Illusion at all ; I was engaged
merely as a conjurer and illusionist."
" '
Nonsense ! You were engaged specially to do The
Phoenix.'
"
"
Go and look at your contract," I said,
" and see what
I was engaged to do."
They got the contract out of the safe, and when they saw
" "
that it contained no mention of The Phoenix the expression
on their faces was worth going a long way to see. They were
furious with one another, each declaring that it was the other's
fault that nothing about the illusion had been inserted. Finally,
recognising that they had no chance if I brought an action
against them, they paid me in full, and I appeared that night
and for the rest of my engagement without any further trouble.
These two men did not hesitate to play the most unscrupulous
tricks on artists whom they did not like or who did not meet
with what they considered a success commensurate with the

salary which they were receiving.
On one occasion they engaged a French chanteuse at a very
" "
large salary, but as she did not prove the draw they had
expected, they tried all manner of tricks to make her break her
contract. One night they put her on as the first turn, which
" star "
was supposed to be an insult for a artist. But,
though the poor lady was greatly upset, she said nothing, for
she saw what their game was and she was determined not to
throw up her engagement. The next night they put her on
last, which was just as bad, but she made no complaint.
Finally, they put her on after the entire programme was over,
and she had to come before the curtain and sing to the waiters,
who were instructed to hiss and hoot her. Still, however, she
would not give way. And so the management had to think of
some other way of getting rid of her.
It was the custom at the music-hall in question to put the
programme up on the side of the stage each evening some time
before the performance began, as it was sometimes changed
two or three times a week ; and the artists used to come and
look at the programme to see what time they would be on. A
few nights later the singer came to the theatre, and, on looking
at the programme, saw that hers was the last turn, which meant
somewhere about midnight. So, naturally, she thought she
would go home and return at eleven o'clock, which would give
her plenty of time to dress for her performance. But the mana
gers were on the watch, and so soon as they saw her leave the
theatre they took the programme down, made out another, and
put her on first.
At eleven o'clock the singer, all unconscious of the shabby
trick which had been played on her, returned, and was making
her way to her dressing-room, when she was stopped by the
stage-manager.
" "
Why were you not here in time for your turn, Fraulein ?
he exclaimed with well-simulated indignation.

" "
Not here in time for my turn ! cried the astonished
lady.
"
I am in plenty of time ! Why, I'm not on till last ! "
>
" " You

Nothing of the kind," rejoined the stage-manager.
were on first, and, as yon were not here, we had to carry on the
programme without you, and were put to the greatest incon
venience, and therefore you have broken your contract."
" "
But I saw the programme, and I was on last ! protested
the singer.
She hurried in great
off, indignation, to interview the
managers, but naturally she got no satisfaction from these
worthies. They insisted that she had broken her contract,
and the poor woman was not allowed to appear any more.
On another occasion two comedians came from America to
fulfil an engagement at this hall. According to one of the
clauses in the contract, the management had the right to
demand that they should do their performance before they
opened, at the rehearsal ; and, much to their annoyance, for
they could not very well do their act unless there was an
audience to play to, one of the managers insisted on their
dressing and making-up and going through it before him.
Now, this he did because these artists had been engaged at
a very large salary, and he wanted to find some pretext to
compel them to take less. Accordingly, after they had finished
their performance, he told them that he could not allow them
to appear in the costumes which they were wearing, as they
were not suitable for his theatre. The artists declared that
they had appeared in similar costumes at any number of
theatres in America, and that no one had ever taken exception
to them. But the manager replied that what might pass
muster in America would not be suitable for Germany. The
Germans were a modest people. No, they must obtain fresh
costumes by the evening.
The artists protested that it would be quite impossible for
them to get new costumes made in time for the evening per
formance ; it might, indeed, be several days before they would
be able to procure them.
" In "
that case," said the manager, you cannot go on
to-night, and you will, of course, break your contract."
The Americans got very angry and declared that it would
be perfectly monstrous to cancel their contract because they

could not obtain fresh costumes at a few hours' notice ; and
at last the cunning Teuton said : —
" Well,
I do not wish to be hard on you, so I'll tell you what
I'll do. If you are willing to accept half the salary you were
engaged for, I will, until you are able to procure more suitable
costumes, allow you to appear in those which you have, and
take the risk of them displeasing my patrons."
The two artists indignantly refused this impudent offer
and left at once for England, having come all the way from
America at great expense to have this shabby trick played
on them !
The managers of this music-hall were, however, certainly no

more unscrupulous in their dealings with foreign artists than
many other music-hall managers in Germany, as the following
anecdotes will show : —
About this time a man was appearing at the Royal Aquarium,
in London, with a troupe of performing ponies, and proving a
great draw. The manager of a Hamburg music-hall, who
happened to be in London, saw his performance, and was
anxious to engage him for his theatre. But the man wanted
such an enormous salary that it was some time before he could
make up his mind to agree to the terms he demanded. Even
tually, however, he did so, and gave him a contract engaging
him to appear at Hamburg for fifteen days, beginning on the
first of a certain month.
The trainer of the ponies duly arrived in Hamburg, and the
first performance was quite a success, but not the success which
the manager considered it should have been, having regard to
the huge salary which he was to receive. And so next morn
ing he sent for him, pointed out that his performance had
not made anything like the hit that had been anticipated, and
said that unless he were prepared, in consideration of this,
to accept two-thirds of the salary agreed upon, the pro
prietors of the theatre would be heavy losers by having engaged
him.
-
The trainer answered that he was very sorry if his per

formance had not proved the success that the manager had
expected, but, as the expense of transporting his ponies and
their attendants from London to Hamburg and back again was
very great, he could not possibly consent to accept less than
the salary provided for in the contract.
Finding that he could not induce the trainer to take a less
sum than he was entitled to, the manager resolved to find
some means of forcing him to break the contract.
The next evening the trainer came down to the theatre to
ascertain what number he had on the programme, and found to
his amazement that his name was not there at all. He immediately
went to the stage-manager and asked for an explanation.
" Oh,
it's quite all right," answered that gentleman.
" Yousee, things are usually a bit quiet with us during the week.
You will no doubt be put in the bill again on Saturday and
Sunday, when we expect to get big houses."
The trainer naturally thought that it was a very strange
" star " and
thing to engage a turn only put him in the bill
twice a week. However, so long as he got his salary, whether
he appeared or not, it was no business of his, and he certainly
had no objection to taking a holiday. He came down to the
theatre every evening, but it was not until the Saturday that
his name again figured on the programme. He gave his per
formance that night and also on the Sunday, and then until the
following Saturday and Sunday he was once more out of the
bill.
On the Sunday night his fifteen days' engagement terminated,
although he had, in fact, only given five performances, and
accordingly the next morning he went to the manager's
office to receive his salary. The manager urbanely inquired
what he wanted.
" " " The fifteen
Why, I want my salary ! said he. days
for which you engaged me were up last night."
" Oh, no, " You
they were not," rejoined the manager.
were certainly engaged for fifteen days, but, if you will look at
the contract, you will see that nothing is said there about them
no A Modern Mystery Merchant
being consecutive days. And so, as you have only so far per
formed on five days, you have got to give ten more perform
ances, and I can keep you here another two months if I
like."
As it was quite true that the contract did not stipulate that
the performances were to take place on consecutive days, and
the law was therefore on the side of the unscrupulous manager,
the poor trainer had no alternative but to take his ponies back
to England, without having received a penny.
At a certain music-hall in Berlin an Englishman with a
troupe of ten performing dogs had been engaged at a very high
salary. As his dogs, like the ponies at Hamburg, did not make
the hit which the manager expected, that worthy resolved
to find some excuse to make him take less than his salary,
and accordingly had recourse to the following disgraceful
expedient : —
Pieces of poisoned meat were put under the stage, where
the dogs used to assemble while waiting to go on the stage for
their performance, and two of the dogs ate some of this meat,
with the result that they both died next day. The trainer,
who had found other pieces of poisoned meat in the same
place, was, of course, furious, and went to the manager to
complain, but the latter, of course, denied all knowledge of the
person who had put it there. Fortunately for the trainer,
the two dogs he had lost were not important ones — they did not
perform any tricks which the others did not do— and, though
he had to appear for the rest of his engagement with eight
dogs instead of ten, he gave exactly the same performance,
trick for trick, as the ten dogs had given.
Nevertheless, when
he went for his salary on pay-day, the manager refused to pay
him more than half, on the ground that he had not performed
with his full troupe of dogs, as he had engaged to do in the
contract.
While I was appearing at the music-hall in Berlin, two

of the directors of the Eden Theatre, in Paris, happened to
witness my performance of " The Phoenix." They had an
A Modern Mystery Merchant 1n
excellent view of it, as they happened to be seated immediately

facing the stage. They asked me to come and see them at
their hotel, when they said that they were producing a revue at
the Eden, in which a scene from Jeanne a" Arc, then being
"
played at the Theatre Sarah Bernhardt, with the divine
Sarah
" in the title part, was to be presented. A celebrated
actress, Madame Jeanne Granier, was to impersonate Sarah
Bernhardt. It had occurred to them that if I could produce
my illusion, which was far more realistic than the burning at
the stake in Jeanne d'Arc, in this scene, it would be a big
attraction and draw all Paris. And they inquired whether I
could teach Madame Granier to perform this illusion, and also
if there were any danger. I answered that I should no doubt
be able to teach Madame Granier to perform it, and assured
them that there was no danger whatever, and I was shortly
afterwards engaged to appear in Paris.
When I attended the first rehearsal at the Eden Theatre
and told Madame Granier what she had to do, she absolutely
refused to do it, unless she could witness the illusion first and
see the effect. So I said I would perform the illusion first with
my wife, and she could see exactly what the effect was. I
accordingly had my apparatus fixed up on the stage ;
the curtain rose, and my wife appeared at the stake. I set
fire to the faggots, upon which the flames rose on all sides
around her, and the effect was so realistic that the firemen,
who were stationed in the wings both at performances and re
hearsals, rushed forward with buckets of water and wet blankets,
and spoiled the whole performance.
After an interval, I repeated the performance, having told
the firemen that there was no danger and that they must not
interfere again. However, at the finish of the second rehearsal
of the illusion, Madame Granier obstinately refused to have
anything to do with it, declaring that she would sooner throw
up her engagement than run the risk of being burned to death.
I explained to her how the illusion was done, and tried to con
vince her in every possible way that there was no danger what
ever connected with it, but she was adamant. I therefore had
a consultation with the directors, as the result of which it was

decided to get over the difficulty in the following way : —
My wife was to be dressed exactly as Madame Granier was
dressed and to wear a wig of the same colour as Madame Gra-
nier's hair, so that it would be practically impossible to tell one
'ady from the other. I was to try to seize Madame Granier to
drag her to the stake, but she would elude me and rush off the
stage. I would rush after her and bring back, not Madame
Granier, but her double —my wife — and having tied her to the
stake, set fire to the faggots.The performance was an im
mense success, and next day Madame Granier received flatter
ing notices in all the papers, complimenting her on her courage
in standing in the flames.
While appearing at the Folies-Bergeres a little later, my
" Vanishing Lady " trick made a big hit, and a certain viscount
offered me a generous fee to teach him the illusion, which
he afterwards performed with his beautiful young wife at a
party at his own house, where I was engaged to give an enter
tainment. The lady duly disappeared amidst a storm of
applause, which sounded scarcely complimentary.
"
And now, ladies and gentlemen," said M. le Vicomte,
" I
smiling complacently, shall have the honour to bring the
vanished lady back."
But that was where he failed, for the lady had really
vanished, leaving a note behind her, in which she informed her
husband that, finding his society no longer supportable, she
had taken this opportunity to leave his house and return to her
friends. Certainly, Madame la Vicomtesse was not without a
sense of humour.
"
To return for a moment to The Phoenix."
Some years later, while performing at the Empire Theatre,
in London, a gentleman called to see me and told me that a lady
friend of his, who had any amount of money and was very
anxious to go on the stage, wanted to know if I could arrange
some kind of illusion for her. He said that she was a most
beautiful woman, with a perfect figure, but could neither sing,
dance nor act. Therefore, the only thing that would be
^
suitable for her to do was to appear in some illusion, in which

she would have merely to show herself. She would not
mind how much she paid, if I could provide her with what
she wanted. I told my visitor that I should no doubt be able
to do this, and the next day we signed an agreement under
which I
was to fix up a suitable illusion for the lady, and
receive in return a large fee, half to be paid in advance and
the remainder when the illusion was ready and I had taught her
how to perform it.
I thought of all the different illusions that I had ever done,
and finally decided that
" The Phoenix," which I had not
per
formed for several years, and did not expect to use again, at
any rate in Europe, would be the very thing for the lady, as it
was very simple and also very effective. So, a few days later,
I called on her at the Hotel Cecil, where she had one of the best
suites of rooms in the hotel, explained the illusion to her, and
" " and that
suggested that it should be called Cleopatra she
should impersonate that celebrated enchantress of men. She
"
was delighted with the idea, and I accordingly got The
"
Phoenix out of my storehouse, redecorated and repainted it
and, when it was ready, asked her to come and see it. I then
performed the illusion with my wife, and the lady was so
charmed with it that she immediately paid me the remainder
of the money and asked me to start rehearsing her the next
day.
Now this lady was as beautiful a woman as one could well
wish to see, with almost faultlessly regular features, and a tall
and admirably-proportioned figure ; in fact, so far as appearance
went, well worthy to represent one of the great beauties of
history. But, on the other hand, I do not think have ever I
met a more clumsy and stupid creature. It took me nearly
three weeks to teach her what a woman of ordinary intelligence
would have learned in three days. However, I persevered, and
in the end she could perform the illusion fairly well.
I had the apparatus for the illusion packed up and sent to
the hotel, and advised her to appear with it on the Continent
first and later on endeavour to secure a London engagement.
H
I had little hope of her making a success of it, as she was too
nervous and clumsy, but, of course, I did not tell her that, being
unwilling to discourage her ; and she accordingly decided to
go to Paris.
The next day I received a telegram asking me to call on
her. Iwent, when she asked me who was to perform the illu
sion with her. I told her that she would no doubt be able
to get some little-known artist in Paris for a few pounds a week,
as she was performing the principal part of the illusion, and the
man she engaged would merely have to introduce it.
" But," "
she said, I want you to come with me. I don't
like the idea of performing with a stranger."
I told her that it would be absurd for her to pay me a large
salary for a few moments' work which any number of artists
in Paris could do just as well as myself, besides which I had
contracts to fulfil and should have to pay heavily if I broke them.
"
Money is no object to me whatever, Mr. Hertz," she
"
rejoined. I will willingly pay the sums which you may have
to forfeit by breaking your contracts, however heavy they
may be, and give you any salary you care to ask, if you will
come with me."
I assured her that it was impossible, upon which she burst
into tears, declaring that she would not go to Paris unless I
accompanied her ; she would not appear on the stage with a
stranger. After much difficulty, I succeeded in persuading her
to engage someone else, and she left for Paris without me.
Some two months afterwards, I heard that this singular
pupil of mine had given a trial performance at the Folies-
Bergeres, but it was so bad that the management had refused
to engage her. A little later, I received a letter from the lady
telling me that she was going to be married and had, in con
sequence, given up all idea of going on the stage. It was
certainly the most sensible thing that she could have done. Why
a rich woman as she was should ever have wanted to enter a
profession for which she had no sort of qualification except good
looks is difficult to understand. But I presume her object
was merely the gratification of an inordinate vanity.
'•■■
From Paris I went to Spain, where I performed at San

Sebastian, Barcelona, Seville and Madrid. At the Teatro de
Price at Madrid my entertainment was witnessed by Queen
Christina and King Alfonso. The little king was so delighted
with it, that the queen-mother brought him a second time a
few days later.
While in Madrid my wife and I went to see a bull-fight, and
she was so shocked at the slaughter of the horses that she
fainted and had to be carried out of the building. I thought
it the most disgusting spectacle I had ever seen, and I left the
place,vowing that I would never witness such an exhibition
again. But, strange to say, there is a sort of fascination
about bull-fighting, which, notwithstanding the disgust with
which the first one you attend always arouses, makes you
anxious to see another, and I am ashamed to say I did not keep
my resolution.
My tour ended at Lisbon, whence I returned to England.
n6 A Modern Mystery Merchant
CHAPTER IX
I sail for Australia — Trick which I play with a passenger's watch
during the voyage — I open at the Opera House in Melbourne — A
novel method of advertisement— After visiting the principal
towns of Australia, I tour New Zealand — Amusing experience in
the market at Auckland — I escape from an unpleasant predica
ment— I sail for San Francisco en route for England — The two
priests — I detect one of them cheating at poker — With the consent
of the other players, I manipulate the cards, and he loses heavily
— His money is subsequently returned to him with a sharp lecture
— On reaching San Francisco, I learn that he is a cardsharper in
disguise — England again — Sad experiences of my friend G. W.
Hunter and myself at the Liverpool Autumn Meeting of 1892 —
Vanishing gentlemen — Herbert Campbell's watch.
In January, 1892, 1 sailed for Australia, taking with me my own

company. The tour was to be under the management of
Messrs. Williamson and Musgrove.
I had a very enjoyable time on the way out to the Anti
podes, during which I gave several performances for the
amusement of my fellow-passengers. A certain gentleman
amongst the passengers, not content with witnessing these
public entertainments, was continually worrying me to show
him tricks privately, until he became a perfect nuisance and I
determined to read him a lesson.
Accordingly, while we were in harbour at Port Said, I asked
him to lend me his watch, which was a very valuable one, and,
while examining it, pretended to drop it overboard. The owner,
who thought that through my carelessness his property had
really gone to the bottom of the sea, was exceedingly angry,
and, though I
assured him that it should be restored to him
undamaged, refused to believe me. I
found a fishing-rod and
line, baited the hook and threw it over the side. Presently,
I got a bite and hauled my capture — a good-sized fish— on

board. I then cut it open and disclosed the lost watch in all
its pristine beauty. The gentleman looked decidedly foolish
as I gave it him back and told him that, if he bothered me
to show him any more tricks, the next article he lent me might
disappear for good.
My tour opened at the Opera House, in Melbourne. The
Opera House was a very old building, in fact one of the oldest
in Melbourne, but it has since been rebuilt and is now a very
beautiful theatre. While I was playing here my manager
conceived a novel and singular method of advertising me.
One day the following advertisement appeared in all the
Melbourne papers : —
" Wanted, 1,000 cats of all descriptions. Apply at Stage

Door, Opera House, with cats, at 9 a.m. to-morrow. One
shilling or a free seat for the evening performance will be given
for each cat."
Next morning cats came by the hundred : in sacks, baskets,

boxes and all manner of things, black cats, tabby cats, ginger
cats, every cat imaginable. Most of them were brought by
boys, who had probably stolen them or picked them up in the
street. The cats were put in a large room, until there were
about 2,000 of them. My manager had prepared white bands
"
on which was printed : See Carl Hertz at the Opera House
to-night," and one of these bands was fastened round the neck
of every cat. In the afternoon the door was opened and the
cats driven out into the street, when they flew in all directions
" "
with their white collars. It was a very big advert for me,
and the house was packed for the rest of the week.
Iperformed for six weeks in Melbourne with great success,
and afterwards visited Adelaide, Sydney and all the principal
towns in Australia. I then toured New Zealand, playing at
Wellington, Dunedin, Auckland and other towns.
At Auckland I had a veryamusing experience. One morning
I visited the Market, and going up to one of the stalls, behind
n8 A Modern Mystery Merchant
which sat a stout, rosy-cheeked old woman, inquired the price

of eggs. She told me two shillings a dozen.
" Well,"
said I.
'*
I'll have two dozen, but I must be
sure that they're really fresh. I'll just break one open and
see.
I
picked up an egg, broke it open, and to the old woman's
astonishment produced from the yolk a golden sovereign. I
wiped the sovereign, put it in my pocket and tried a second and
a third, with the same result. I then offered to buy all the
eggs she had, but the old lady evidently didn't see why I should
have all the sovereigns, and refused to sell any of them.
I paid her for the three eggs and moved off to another stall,
from behind which I watched to see what she would do. And,
sure enough, no sooner had I departed than she went gold-
seeking herself and broke open every egg in the basket, looking
more and more disgusted as the fruitless search for sovereigns
proceeded. When she had finished, I went back and said to
her : —
" Look I'll
here ! give you a sovereign a dozen for those
eggs."
" "
Damn your impudence ! cried the indignant old
" If I'll
lady. you don't go away, and pretty quick, too, put
the police on to you !
"
When I
could speak for laughing, I explained to her that
I was a conjurer and had been having a little practice, and
having paid her the value of her basket of eggs — the fun I had
had was well worth the money — took my departure, leaving
her no loser except in self-esteem.
While performing card tricks at Dunedin, I asked for the

assistance of a gentleman in the audience. A prosperous-
looking, middle-aged man came upon the stage, and I produced
cards from his inside coat-pocket and from all over his body.
At the conclusion of the performance I was in my dressing-
room, getting ready to go home, when the door-keeper came
and told me that a gentleman wished to speak to me at once on
a very important matter. I asked him to show the gentleman
in, and he proved to be the same who had come upon the stage
to help me.
" "
What can I do for you, sir ? I asked.
" Well,"
said he,
" when I came on
looking very confused,
to the stage to help you, I had a pocket-book in one of my
inside coat-pockets with twenty pounds in notes in it, and when
I returned to my seat in the stalls I found that it was no
longer there. If you took it for a joke, perhaps you will be
kind enough to give it me back ? If not, I'm afraid I shall
be obliged to go to the police about it."
" I "
My dear sir," exclaimed, you are entirely mistaken
in supposing that I have taken your pocket-book ; I don't play
practical jokes of that kind."
" Well,
where is it, then ?
"
said he.
" All I know is that I
had it in my pocket before I came on to the stage, and that when
I got back to my seat it had gone."
I suggested that he might have dropped it in the stalls, but
he declared that he had looked in the chair in which he had been
sitting and all over the floor and there was no sign of it. So I
asked him to wait a few moments, and, having got a lantern.went
with him into the stalls and hunted about, but without finding
any trace of his pocket-book.
I could see that the man had quite made up his mind that
I had got the wretched thing, and though such a conclusion
was no doubt a tribute to my professional skill, it was scarcely
flattering to my honesty ; and, if he were to go to the police
and make a charge against me, the affair might become a
very unpleasant one. So I said to him : —
" It is a
very serious thing to make an accusation of this
kind against anyone. Now tell me, when did you have your
"
pocket-book last in your hands ?
"
When I paid for my ticket at the box-office," said he.
" Did
you change a note out of your pocket-book to pay
"
for your ticket ?
" No,
I changed a sovereign out of my purse ; but the purse
was in the same pocket as my pocket-book, and I had to take
out the pocket-book to get it."
I took him to the box-office and asked the cashier if she

had seen anything of a pocket-book which had been lost. But
she had not seen one, and we looked all over the floor of the
lobby without success.
" Now," said I, " when did
you last have your pocket-book
in your hands, before you bought your ticket ?
"
" Look " exclaimed
" It's not the
here I he angrily.
least use your asking me these questions. As I've already told
you, I'm positive I had that pocket-book in my pocket when
I came on to the stage to help you."
" But,"
I rejoined, " that is impossible, and I am trying to
help you to find it. So please try to remember when you last
had it before entering the theatre."
Eventually, he told me that he had taken it out of his
pocket when he went to buy some cigarettes at a tobacconist's
not far from the theatre. I persuaded him to go with me to
this shop, the proprietor of which I knew, as I was in the habit
of buying my cigars there, and said : —
" This
gentleman has lost his pocket-book and has come
to enquire whether by chance he left it here, as he bought some
cigarettes from you just before going to the theatre."
"
Perhaps the gentleman will describe it," said the tobac
conist, and my companion having done so, the other produced
the missing pocket-book, saying that he had found it lying
on his counter about eight o'clock that evening.
The owner overwhelmed me with apologies, and showing me
a letter-case very similar in size and shape to the pocket-book,
explained that it must have been the former which he took out
of his pocket when he was getting his purse to pay for his
ticket, though he had felt certain that it was the pocket-book.
After a highly successful and very pleasant tour, we left for

England by way of America. Amongst the passengers on our
steamer was the Earl of X , who was shortly afterwards
appointed Governor of one of the Dominions. He and I became

very friendly, and, with three or four other men, we made up a
little party to play poker of an afternoon in the smoking-room.
We had on board two Roman Catholic priests — at least, that is

what they called themselves and what everyone supposed them
to be at the time —whom I will call Father Black and Father
White. They seemed very nice, gentlemanly men, and made
themselves very pleasant to everyone, particularly to the
ladies.
One afternoon, while we were playing poker as usual, Father
Black came in and, taking a seat near the card-table, remained
for some time watching the game. When we had finished,
he remarked that poker was a game of which he was very fond,
though he seldom had the chance to play it, and asked us if
we had any objection to him joining us the next day. Of
course, we did not like to refuse him, though at the same time
we thought it rather out of place for a priest to play poker.
Accordingly, the next afternoon when we repaired to the
smoking-room for our usual game, there was Father Black
waiting to join us. We began to play and, after a while, I
detected the reverend gentleman correcting Fortune. I did
not like to say anything in the circumstances, but I watched
him closely during the remainder of the game and caught
him at it two or three times.
When we rose from the table, I called Lord X and the
other players aside, told them what I had seen the priest do,
and said that we must not allow him to play with us any more.
But they all declared that I must be mistaken, as such a thing
was unbelievable.
" "
Very well," said I, let him play with us again to-morrow,
only, if I catch him cheating again, I will make you some sign,
so that you can see for yourselves."
So the next day Father Black played with us again, and
the same thing happened. I gave the rest of the party the
signal we had agreed upon, and they saw that what I had told
them was quite true. We stopped the game shortly afterwards
and held a counsel of war to decide what was to be done.
We all agreed that the fact that the offender was a priest made
the matter a very awkward one. We did not like to tell him
that we had caught him cheating, but, if we did not do so, we
could not very well refuse to allow him to play with us. The
only solution seemed to be to give up our game, but this we
were reluctant to do as it helped to pass away the afternoon.
The others asked me if I could suggest some other way out of
the difficulty, and, after thinking for a minute or two, I said : —
"
Well, there is one thing we can do, and that is to treat him
as he has been treating us. Let him play to-morrow, and I
will deal him four aces, and to one of you other gentlemen a
straight flush. He is pretty sure to bet heavily on his four
aces, and will lose so much that he probably won't care to
play any more."
To this proposal of mine Lord X at first objected, but,
after talking it over with the others, he agreed to it, on condition
that we should hand all the money that the priest might lose
over to the captain to take charge of, and that at the end of
the voyage it should be given back to him.
The next afternoon Father Black joined us, as he had on
the two previous days. After we had been playing for some
time and there was a big pot, I dealt the priest, as arranged,
four aces and to one of the other players a straight flush. These
two started betting against one another, the rest of us dropping
out of the game. Father Black naturally thought he had an
unbeatable hand, and when all the money he had about him
was gone he sent for the other priest, Father White, and
borrowed all the money that he could lend him, considerably
over £100. But as his opponent covered that also, he had to
call him.
" I've
got four aces," exclaimed the priest triumphantly,
"
What have you got ?
"
showing his hand.
"A
straight flush," answered the other, quietly laying down
his cards. And he proceeded to scoop the pool.
The priest went very white, and muttering something which
sounded uncommonly like an oath, rose from the table, declar
ing that he would never play poker again. That was, of
course, just what we wanted, and we had our game to ourselves
for the rest of the voyage.
Three days before the ship reached San Francisco, we met in
the captain's cabin, and a message was sent to Father Black that
the captain would be glad if he could spare him a few minutes.
The priest arrived and looked very surprised to find us all sitting
there. A gentleman whom we had chosen to act as spokesman
then said :—
" I
My friends andhave asked Captain to send for
you, Father Black, in order that in his presence we might
give you back the money which you lost at cards the other day.
We detected you cheating and, I need hardly say, were greatly
astonished that one of your calling should stoop so low as that.
We therefore determined to teach you a lesson, and you will
no doubt be surprised to hear that the hand upon which you
lost your money and the hand which beat yours were dealt
purposely. So you see that others can cheat as well as you,
only in a more dexterous manner. We had at first decided
to ask Captain to hand this money over to the Sailors'
Orphanage, but, on the advice of Lord X , we have now
agreed to give it back to you. We hope, however, that this

will be a lesson to you, and that should you play cards again
you will play fairly."
The priest, with tears in his eyes, overwhelmed us with
thanks, asked our pardon most humbly for the sorry part he
had played, and swore that nothing should ever induce him to
touch a card again. He would certainly not have got his
money back, but would have been clapped in irons and handed
over to the police so soon as we reached 'Frisco, together with
his friend Father White, had we only known what I subsequently
learned about this precious pair.
Two or three days after we landed, I happened to meet the
Chief of Police, who was an old friend of mine, and mentioned
the matter to him. He asked me to describe the two priests,
and then told me that he had not the least doubt that they were
" bunco-steerers,"
two well-known or cardsharpers, who had
been masquerading in clerical garb. It was, it appeared, not
the first time they had done so.
All I can say
is,
that the scoundrels ought to have been

on the stage, as they were certainly both most admirable actors.
They must have studied the part they played with extraordinary
care to have carried it through as they did. There were
several Roman Catholic passengers on the steamer, yet none
of them seemed to have any suspicion that they were not what
they pretended to be.
This episode reminds me of a very amusing incident which
took place at the Vaudeville Club, one evening some years ago,
when I was playing poker there. We were seven players and,
as often happens at this game, two of them, whom I will call
A. and B. , kept continually beating one another. If A. had what
he thought a strong hand, B. had always something just a
little better, and vice versa. At last they became positively
antagonistic towards one another, and it was really comical
to listen to their comments.
There were several people looking on at the game, and
presently one of them, who was standing just behind me,
whispered in my ear and asked me to deal each of them a royal
flush to see what would happen. All the other players were
put wise to what was going to happen, and when it came to
my deal, I dealt A. a royal flush in hearts and B. a royal flush in
diamonds. For the benefit of the uninitiated, may hereI
remark that these hands are of exactly the same value and
the highest that can be held at poker.
The betting started, all the players coming in. When it
" "
reached A. he raised the pot ; B. re-raised, and the other
players all came in again. Then A. re-raised once more, and

B. did the same. Meantime the rest of us had dropped out
of the game and quietly withdrawn our money from the
table, the holders of the royal flushes being so excited that
they did not notice what had been done. Consequently, the
pot consisted only of what they had put in themselves.
The two continued to raise one another, until presently
A. said to his opponent : —
" Look here ! Don't raise me again, because I've got you
beat."
" " "
Have you ! inquired the other sarcastically. Are you
"
quite sure ?
First Cinema (for pictures only) in the World, San Francisco.
It belonged to Mr. Hertz's brother-in-law, M. Furst.
p. 124.
" Yes, "

you can't possibly win !
"
Very well, then I'll raise you again."
And so they went on, until at last the other players inter
vened, saying that they could not possibly countenance such
gambling in a game amongst friends and that they must show
their hands. To this they agreed, and A. triumphantly pro
claimed that he held a royal flush and laid his cards on the
table. His face was a study when B. announced that he held
a similar hand, and we could hardly contain our merriment.
The pot was accordingly divided, each getting the money he
had staked, but nothing more, for, as I have mentioned, they
had been too excited to notice when we withdrew ours.
They were both so pleased at having been the heroes of
such an astonishing coincidence that they stood champagne all
round, and when told that it was all a joke, and that the hands
had been dealt to them purposely, they refused to believe it and
declared that we were trying to
" kid " them.
After spending a fortnight with my relatives at San Fran

cisco, we proceeded to New York, and thence sailed for England.
On my arrival I treated myself to a short holiday, which I
thought I deserved, and then proceeded to Manchester to fulfil
an engagement at the Palace Theatre.
While I was performing there the Liverpool Autumn Meet
ing took place, and on the day the Autumn Cup was run an
old friend of mine, G. W. Hunter, a well-known comedian,
persuaded me to go to the races with him.
Hunter was a
" " Cannon, at that time,
friend of Morny
of course, one of our crack jockeys, and he told me that he
would no doubt be able to get some good information from
him.
When we arrived at Aintree, Hunter went into the paddock,
" "
where he saw Morny Cannon and came back looking very
elated.
" We're in " ' '
for a good day, my boy," said he. Morny
tells me that he fancies all his mounts above a bit, and thinks
he's got a real good chance of winning the Cup on Ermak.
He's not riding anything in the first race, but says the favourite
ought to about win."
We accordingly backed the favourite, but he cut up badly
and finished down the course.
This was not exactly a promising start, but we hoped for
better fortune in the next race, in which
" Morny Cannon was
"
riding. His mount was made favourite and ran well, but found
one too good for him at the finish, and our faces began to
lengthen.
" "
Never mind," said my friend, we'll get it back over
" Morny's " next mount.
So again we backed " Morny," but once more the famous
jockey had to put up with second place, though it was a very
near thing.
Then came the Liverpool Cup, in which Hunter announced
his intention of backing Ermak, whom his jockey friend was
riding, and urged me to do the same. But by this time I had
got a bit fed up with his tips and thought I would pick out a
horse myself, as I couldn't do much worse backing my own
" information."
fancy than I had done betting on After a
little hesitation, I decided to back the favourite, Baron Hirsch's
Windgall, and accepted a bet of £25 to £5 from a very prosperous-
looking and affable gentleman, who was accompanied by an
equally prosperous-looking clerk.
It struck me as just a little odd that this gentleman should
be willing to lay me
" fives "
against Windgall, when most of
the other metallicians would lay no more than 7 to 2. But I
didn't know much about racing at that time, and he seemed
so eminently respectable an individual that I never dreamed
of doubting his stability.
The Liverpool Cup of that year was one of the most exciting
races I ever saw, and in a desperate finish Windgall, beautifully
ridden by George Barrett, just squeezed home by a short head
from Ermak, with that good mare Lady Rosebery half a
length behind the latter.
I was naturally very pleased at having backed the winner
and inclined to crow a bit over my friend Hunter. But my
*\
"
satisfaction was very short-lived, for when the All right "was
signalled and I went to draw my £30, there was no sign of the
prosperous-looking bookmaker and his clerk who had laid me
so generous a price against Windgall. They had, in fact,
" " trick,
performed what I may call the vanishing gentleman
and on the spot where they had been standing was an angry
and excited crowd, all of whom had been victimised like
myself.
Sadly I went to look for Hunter, whom I found in the
paddock.
"
Hullo
" said " "
! Got your money all right ?
he.
" No,"
I replied, I've been welshed ! "
"
It was now his turn to crow over me, and he didn't forget
to do it.
"
My dear chap," he observed, with the smile begotten of
"
superior knowledge, what else can you expect when you will
go and bet with people who are laying over the odds ? You
should have put your money on with the chap I've been betting
with, and then you'd have got paid all right. You can always
trust me to tell a straight man from a wrong 'un. But cheer
up ! I have just seen Morny Cannon again, and he tells me
' '
that he thinks Ballyhooley, the horse he's riding in the next

race, can hardly lose, barring accidents. So we shall probably
be able to get back what we've dropped to-day and a bit over
besides."
I wasn't particularly keen on backing another of " Morny "
Cannon's mounts, as that jockey had now ridden three seconds
in succession and seemed to be out of luck. However, I allowed
Hunter to talk me over, and we went up to the bookmaker with
whom my friend had been betting all the afternoon and who was,
if possible, an even more prosperous-looking individual than the
one who had just gone off with my money, and each took £50
to £20 about Ballyhooley. He was second favourite, odds
being laid on a horse called Earthquake, but this time Hunter's
" "
faith in Morny was justified, Ballyhooley winning easily by
a couple of lengths.
" There "
you are, my boy ! exclaimed my companion,
"
I told you I'd get you
clapping me joyously on the shoulder.
out of your troubles and put you on the right side before the
end of the day. It was too bad your getting done out of your
money over Windgall, or I'd have made you have more on this
' '
good thing,and you would have been quite a big winner.
However, it's something to have got the best of the bookies,
even if we haven't won very much. Let's go and have a bottle
to celebrate our luck."
We repaired in high feather to the bar, where he stood me
a
" bottle,
"
and I returned the compliment, after which we
went to draw our money from Hunter's bookmaker. But, to
our astonishment, the pitch where that gentleman and his
clerk had stood throughout the afternoon was unoccupied.
They had gone, and their overcoats, mackintoshes, satchels,
betting-books and everything belonging to them had gone too.
We waited about for some minutes, together with several other
punters who had also backed the winner, in the faint hope of
their reappearing, until it gradually dawned upon us that
"
beyond every possible shadow of doubt whatever," as the
"
Grand Inquisitor in The Gondoliers
"
would have put it, that
bookmaker and his clerk
"
had done a guy,"
highly-respectable
"
and I had been "welshed for the second time that afternoon.
Perhaps it was somewhat unkind of me to rub it in, but I was
feeling so sore that I could not resist the temptation. So,
turning to Hunter, I remarked : —
" And said that I could always trust you to tell a
you
"
straight man from a wrong 'un !
He did not reply his heart was too full for words, and in
;
silence we made our way to the station. There was still

another race to be run, but we had no heart for further specula
tion. It seemed to be too one-sided a game altogether !
Magnus, by the way, was a great friend of the late Herbert
Campbell, and he used to tell a good story of an adventure
which that popular comedian once had at Ascot.
Magnus was in the habit of coming up from Liverpool every
" do " Ascot, and one
year to Cup Day he called on Herbert
Campbell and persuaded him to accompany him. Just as
they were starting Magnus noticed that Campbell was wearing

a valuable gold watch and chain.
"
I say, Herbert," said he, " you're surely not going to
wear that watch and chain to Ascot ? There are always a lot
of pick-pockets there, and you'll get it pinched to a certainty."
Campbell accordingly left the gold watch and chain at home,
but, as he said he did not care to be without a watch, he
stopped at a shop on his way to Waterloo and bought a cheap
silver watch and a brass chain for a few shillings. While
watching the big race he felt a tug at his waistcoat, and,
looking down, saw that both watch and chain had disappeared.
" What a lucky thing it was that I took your advice and
"
left my gold watch and chain at home ! he exclaimed, turning
" Look ! That watch and chain I
to Magnus. bought have
"
gone I
About an hour afterwards a sharp-featured individual came

up to Herbert Campbell.
" " but
Beg pardon," said he, you're Mr. 'Erbert Campbell,
ain't you ?
"
" Yes."
" Well, "
I
there ain't no offence ?
'opes said the man
"
coolly, handing back the watch and chain as he spoke. You
see," he added, with an explanatory grin,
"
they weren't worth
"
taking I
CHAPTER X
" "" "
A little game of Nap — Carl Hertz, the King of Cards — Laughable
"
incident on the way to I
Newmarket — produce my "Vanity Fair
"
Illusion at the Empire — The Irish parlour-maid — What's the
" " Yum Yum,
good of me clothes I — Provincial tour — I produce
or the Pagoda Mystery
" at the Palace Theatre, and " Noah's
Ark " at the Alhambra — Tour in the North of England — Strange
adventures of a pig — Mishap with a
" cannon-ball " at the Empire.
At the conclusion of my engagement at the Palace Theatre,

Manchester, I returned to London, and on the journey had an
amusing adventure.
In the compartment in which I was travelling were three
well-dressed and gentlemanly men, one of whom presently
produced a pack of cards and asked me if I would care to join
him and his friends in a game of "Nap." I answered that I very
seldom played cards, but he pressed me to join them, saying
that it would pass the time away and make the journey seem
shorter, and eventually I consented. After we had been
playing for some time, during which I had lost a couple of
pounds, I noticed that one of these gentlemen was assisting
Fortune. I did not say anything, but I kept my eyes open and
carefully watched the movements of the three of them. Very
soon I saw that they were all at the same game. They dealt me
" "
hands that I was bound to go Nap on each time, but every
time I called it I lost, as one or other of my opponents always
had a card to beat it. I let them do this for a time, and then,
" "
when they expected me to go Nap," only called four," which,
of course, I got. Then, whenever it came to my deal, I retaliated
" "
by giving one of them a Nap hand and myself a hand which
was just good enough to prevent him getting it. In this way,
by the time we reached Euston, I had not only got back what I
had lost, but was a winner of some £5.
When we got out at the station, I turned to them and said :—
" Well,
gentlemen, I am very pleased to have met you, as our
little game has made the journey seem so much shorter, and I
hope to have the pleasure of having another game with you
at some future time. Allow me to present you with my card."
And, with that, I handed them one of my advertisement
cards, the size of a playing-card, on which was a portrait of
myself in the act of doing a card trick, and underneath the
inscription : —
Carl Hertz, the King of Cards.
They gave one look at the card, and then turned and
hurried out of the station as quickly as they could.
It was a case of the biter getting bit !
This incident reminds me of a very laughable one which
occurred some years later.
I was going to one of the autumn meetings at Newmarket,
and arriving at Liverpool Street very late, had only just time
to get my ticket, run on to the platform and jump into the first
compartment I could reach before the train started. It proved
to be a third-class carriage, and was occupied by four of the
"
East End Boys." One of them, who sat in the far corner
of the carriage, seemed to know me, for he nodded and smiled.
" "
Presently, the other three Boys suggested a game of "solo,"
playing four half-crowns, i.e., half-a-crown for a "proposal,"
five shillings for a "solo," seven-and-sixpence for a "misere," and
ten shillings for an
" abundance," and asked me if I would join
them. I agreed and, the cards having been cut, one of them
was about to deal when the man in the far corner said to
them : —
"
D'you happen to know who that gentleman you're going
"
to play with is ?
" No," answered one of them.
" "
Why, that's Carl Hertz ?
" What 1 " all three shouted in chorus. "
Then we'll play
four sixpences."
Soon after my return from Manchester I left for Scotland to

fulfil engagements at Edinburgh and Glasgow. The New Year
found me again in London, where I opened at the Empire, at
which I had a three months' engagement, and produced my
" Vanity Fair " Illusion, which was a
very great success.
A long mirror, about eleven feet high and five feet in width,
resembling a lady's dressing-mirror or cheval-glass, was
wheeled in and placed in the middle of the stage. On either
side of the glass, abouta quarter of the way up, a bracket was
fixed, and across this another iron bar was placed. In the
centre and resting upon the iron rod or bar was a plate of glass
an inch thick which served as a shelf. My wife, Mile. D'Alton,
mounted upon the shelf, using a step-ladder to reach it. (The
mirror reached to within about two feet of the stage.)
While standing on this shelf she turned to the mirror and
began inspecting her reflection. I then turned her with her
face to the audience, and she again turned back. A screen
was now placed around her, but the screen was so narrow that
a considerable portion of the mirror showed on either side and
above it. All was quiet for a moment, and then the screen
was taken down, and Mile. D'Alton had disappeared. The
mystification was completed by the removal of the portable
mirror, it being thus made evident that the performer was not
hidden behind it. The next moment Mile. D'Alton appeared
from the first entrance of the stage.
At the conclusion of my engagement at the Empire I appeared
at most of the other principal halls in London. I also gave a
good many entertainments at private houses, at one of which a
most amusing incident occurred.
I
While was performing a thought-reading experiment one
of the maids had come in with refreshment. She was, I
afterwards learned, a raw, Irish girl whose usual place was
the kitchen, but who, in the absence of one of the parlourmaids,
had been called on to take her place. This daughter of Erin
-■■.
A Modern Mystery Merchant jt 133
appeared very much interested in my performance, and when
the hostess gave a sign that nothing more was required she
still lingered by the door to see the completion of the trick which
I had just begun.
"
Ladies and gentlemen," said I,
"I have here some white
visiting cards and envelopes. I will pass them round amongst
the company, who can write anything they like on the cards,
place them in the envelopes and seal them up, after which one
of you can collect them. I will submit to be blindfolded, and,
as an additional precaution, to have a heavy shawl and travelling
rug thrown over my head, so that it will be absolutely impossible
for me to see anything. Nevertheless, I shall be able to tell
you what is written on the cards inside the sealed envelopes."
With that I proceeded to hand the cards and envelopes
round, observing as I did so that the maid by the door was
looking on with parted lips and eyes bright with excitement.
Then I was blindfolded and a shawl and rug thrown over my
head.
" Now," said I," will some
lady or gentleman kindly hand me
"
one of the envelopes ? A lady did so, with trembling fingers.
I then asked her to place the envelope against my forehead
outside the shawl and rug. This was done, the thickness of
the shawl and rug being, of course, between my forehead and
the paper. There was a moment's silence, and then I said :—
" There are three
figures written upon the card inside this
' "
envelope, and the figures are seven, six and one.'
It was correct. I had apparently seen right through the
thick shawl and rug, and for the moment everyone was dumb
founded with amazement. Then upon the silence broke the
cry of the Irish maid by the door.
" "
What's the good of me clothes ! she yelled at the top
of her voice, and fled.
I remained in London during the whole of 1893, but in the

following year I made an extended tour of the provinces,
performing at Birmingham, Bristol, Newport, Cardiff, Swan
sea, Blackpool, York, Liverpool, Glasgow and other towns,
134 '— A Modern Mystery Merchant
In the late autumn Ireturned to London and produced a new

" Yum Yum, or "
at the
illusion entitled : the Pagoda Mystery
" "
Palace Theatre, which, like my Vanity Fair Illusion of the
previous year, proved a great success. It was as follows : —
Miss Yum Yum (Mile. D' Alton), dressed in Japanese cos
tume, ascended by means of a ladder into a pagoda, which was
suspended about eight feet from the stage. I then proceeded,
in full view of the audience, to array myself as a Chinaman,
pigtail and all complete, after which I mounted into a similar
pagoda on the other side of the stage. Two footmen atten
dants stepped on to the stage and ascending the ladders closed
the doors of these aerial summer-houses. A pistol was fired, and
in the twinkling of an eye Miss Yum Yum passed from one
pagoda to the other, the one which she had a moment before
occupied being shown quite empty. Finally, one of the foot
men attendants returned for the purpose of closing the door of
the empty pagoda and, removing his wig, revealed to the
astonished audience that he was none other than myself.
Encouraged by the success which had attended these two
illusions, at the beginning of 1895 I produced, at the Alhambra,
" Noah's Ark, " which was as follows —
a third, called :
Standing upon two trestles in the centre of the stage was a

miniature ark, supposed to be a faithful representation of the
original article. The front, sides and back, which were
hinged, were let down to show that the ark was empty. They
were then closed up again, and the roof of the ark put on.
Next, instead of the ark being put into the water, as it
originally was, water was put into the ark, bucket after bucket
being poured in. Presently, through the windows of the ark
appeared doves, pigeons, rabbits, guinea-pigs, ducks, fowls,
dogs, cats, and lastly a pig, of which animal more anon.
Finally, the sides, front and back fell down, and there was
discovered, sleeping peacefully on the floor of the ark, a beauti
fully-dressed lady (Mile. D'Alton), all signs of the water
having disappeared.
At the beginning of the spring I went on tour in the North of
" "
England, taking with me my Noah's Ark Illusion and all the
paraphernalia connected with it, including the pig. I reached

Liverpool a few days before Easter, and going down to the
Star Music Hall, at which I was engaged to appear, inquired
if my luggage had arrived and also if the pig had come with it.
"
Just then the proprietor of the Star," Mr. Fineberg, senior,
a highly-respected member of the Jewish fraternity, happened
to come up.
" " "
What's that ? he exclaimed. A pig ! And this
Passover Week ! Mr. Hertz, I am surprised at you ! And I
really don't know whether I ought not to get an injunction to
stop you performing with it, for you know very well I won't
"
have any pork in my house this week ?
Although he made a joke of the matter, I fancy the good
man was not a little annoyed at the presence of the pig at such
a time, and would have been very glad if I could have dispensed
with it in my performance, as he was a very strict Jew.
I had some fearful and wonderful adventures with this pig
before I returned to town. When I was about to leave York
"
the authorities placed an embargo onpiggie," as, owing to
the prevalence of swine fever, an Order in Council prohibited
the moving of pigs from one place to another. Then came the
tug of war. I explained that my pig was different from other
pigs ; in fact, it was a domestic animal and of singularly gentle
manly habits. The Mayor, the County Council and the Board
of Agriculture were in turn appealed to, and finally, after
obtaining about six veterinary surgeons' certificates, and —
"
according to one of the newspapers — a sworn declaration
from the pig itself," it was allowed to depart. At Leeds,
however, it was again stopped and detained a night at the
public expense, while the authorities satisfied themselves that
everything was in order, and that it was in the same condition
of health as when it left York. At last, after many vicissitudes,
it managed to save its bacon, and I arrived in London with
enough certificates and permits to fill a portmanteau.
I had a singular experience during an engagement at the

Empire Theatre, Leicester Square, in 1895.
At that time I used to perform a trick in which I borrowed a

gentlem r's silk hat, and, after producing various articles
from this hat, to hand it to my assistant and tell him to return
it to its owner.
In going down the platform of the orchestra, my assistant
used to fall, as though by accident, thereby apparently crushing
the hat. I
would then pretend to be very angry with him and
say that he would have to buy the gentleman a new hat. Then
I would tell him to bring me a large cannon, which looked like
metal, but was really made of wood and painted black.
Still pretending to be very angry, I would tear the hat into
pieces and push the pieces down the mouth of the cannon, after
which I would tell my assistant to bring me a cannon-ball. He
would come struggling on to the stage with something which
looked like a large, iron cannon-ball, about eight inches in
circumference, although it was really an indiarubber ball
painted black. This I would also put down the mouth of the
cannon and, pointing the cannon towards the gallery, I wquld
fire it. The ball would be sent by the force of the powder into
the gallery, and, at the same moment, the silk hat would appear
on the ceiling of the theatre, and, at a word of command from
me, would drop down from the ceiling into my hands, when I
would return it to the gentleman from whom I had borrowed it,
quite uninjured.
On one occasion I had performed the trick as usual, and the
ball had gone into the gallery. But one of the boys in the
gallery, having got possession of the ball, threw it down into
the dress-circle, where, unfortunately, it struck a lady in the
face who was sitting there. A couple of days later the manage
ment of the Empire received a letter from a gentleman stating
that his wife was seated in the dress-circle on that particular
evening, and that the ball had struck her with its full force,
coming direct from the cannon into her eye.
Of course this was impossible, as, in the first place, the ball
when fired from the cannon had gone, not into the dress-circle,
but into the gallery, and, in the second, as the ball was eight
inches in circumference, it was too large to hit anyone in the
■\
eye, as the cheek-bone and nose would prevent it doing so.

However.the management sent for me and showed me the letter.
I said that the ball being made of rubber could aot hurt
anyone. But, a few days later, they received another letter,
this time from the lady's solicitors, saying that, unless they
were prepared to compensate their client, whose eye had been
dangerously injured, proceedings would be taken against them.
This letter they also showed me, and, at their suggestion,
I sent an eye specialist to visit the lady, who reported that her
eye was not injured in any way and gave me a written state
ment to that effect. I took this to the management and
advised them to pay nothing as the woman was not hurt.
However, she went on with her action, and as those were the
days of the crusade against the Empire promenade, and the
directors did not want to go to law, they settled the matter
out of Court by paying her £50.
CHAPTER XI
I leaveEngland lor New York to fulfil an engagement at Oscar Hammer-
new theatre on Broadway — Hammerstein's wagers — His
stein's
extraordinary versatility — I return to England and prepare to
start on a tour of South Africa — The cinematograph — Difficulty
I
in procuring a machine to take with me — sail for South Africa in
the Norman and give the first cinematograph performance ever
given at sea— Troublous times in South Africa — My adventures
with Boer officials at Vereeniging — Arrival in Johannesburg — An
expensive bath — Scene in the theatre on the night of the release of
the Reformers who had been sentenced to death — Success of the
cinematograph — In order to show fresh pictures, I make use of
Kinetoscope films— Racing at Auckland Park — A bet of ^10 to a
cigarette won by the punter — Barney Barnato — Anecdotes of him
— A " Johnny " plays poker.
Early in January, 1896, 1 left England for New York, having

been specially engaged by Oscar Hammerstein to open his new
theatre on Broadway, called the New York Theatre. Hammer
stein's theatre was a wonderful building, in fact there were
two theatres separated by a concert hall, the other theatre
being called the Olympic. When I arrived in New York the
place was not nearly finished ; indeed, not yet
the roof was
on. But Hammerstein had made a bet of $10,000 that he
would open it on a certain day and, rather than lose his wager,
he did so on the date advertised, though the paint on some of
the orchestra seats was not even dry, in consequence of which the
dresses of most of the ladies present were ruined, and he had,
of course, to pay for new dresses for them. This cost him
a considerable sum of money, but he did not mind, saying
that the advertisement was worth it.
For the opening of the Olympic Theatre he had also wagered
a large sum that he would be locked in a room for twenty-four
hours, and in that time would write and compose a new opera,
including the full score connected with it. This he did, and
the opera called
" "
was produced on February
Marguerite
10th, 1896.
Hammerstein was a wonderful man and a most ingenious
one ; he could do pretty well anything. During the rehearsals,
at one moment he would be in the orchestra leading the band ;
the next on the stage assisting the stage-carpenter, and directly
afterwards he would be found in the wardrobe-room helping
to make the ladies' costumes. When you next saw him he
would be painting scenery ; in fact, he was a Jack-of -all-trades.
At the beginning of March I returned to England and, a few
days after my arrival, left Southampton on my first visit to
South Africa, on which I took with me the first cinematograph
that was ever exhibited there. I can also claim to have
given the first cinematograph performance ever given at sea,
which I gave on the s.s. Norman, during my voyage to the
Cape.
The cinematograph had lately been shown, for the first time
in London, at the Polytechnic, by Trewey, formerly a well-
known juggler and a relative of the Lumieres, who were one of
the first makers of cinematograph machines. It was subse
quently transferred to the Empire Theatre, where it was shown
at matinees only. Shortly afterwards an English machine,
made by a man named Paul, was exhibited at the Alhambra.
At this time these were the only two types of machine on the
market.
It
occurred to me that it would be good speculation if I
could get one of these machines to take to South Africa with me
and introduce into my entertainment. I accordingly went to
see Trewey, whom I knew very well, to try either to purchase
or hire a machine, but he would not let me have one. So I
went to see Paul, in the hope that he would prove more accom-
dating.
Paul agreed to sell me a machine for £50, but said that he
could not deliver it for two or three months. I told him that
I was leaving for South Africa on the following Saturday — it
was then Wednesday — and that I would like to take the machine
with me. But he said that he only had two machines, and
that these were on the stage at the Alhambra, where he was
fulfilling a six months' engagement at £100 a week. I asked
him whether he would not let me have one of these machines,
to which he replied that that was impossible, as he had to
have a spare machine in readiness, in case the other got out of
order. I offered him £80, but he would not listen to me, and
I went away much disappointed.
The next night I called to see him again, took him out to my
club to supper and did all I could to induce him to sell me one
of his machines. But it was no use ; he would not do so.
However, on the Friday night, the night before I was to sail
for South Africa, I determined to make a last attempt, and
accordingly took him out to supper again and offered him £100
for one of his machines. He repeated, however, that he could
not risk parting with one ; he must have a machine in reserve
in case of accidents.
" Well," "
said I, you had better take me over to the Alham
bra and explain to me the working of the machine and all about
it, so thatI shall understand how to use it when one is sent
out to me."
So we went back to the Alhambra, where he took me on to
the stage and showed me the whole working of the machine —
how to fix the films in and everything concerning it. We were
there for over an hour, during which I kept on pressing him to
let me have one of the machines. Finally, I said : —
"
Look here ! I am going to take one of these machines with
me now."
With that, I took out £100 in notes, put them into his hand,
got a screw-driver, and almost before he knew it, I had one of
the machines unscrewed from the floor of the stage and on to a
four-wheeler.
The next day I sailed for South Africa on the Norman with
the first cinematograph which had ever left England. I knew
very little about it, as I had not paid much attention to Paul's
instructions the night before, having been too busy thinking
•■
how I
could get possession of one of the machines. However,
so soon as we were at sea, I got the machine out and began
to study it, and when I thought I knew all about it I went to
the captain and obtained his permission to give an exhibition
in the saloon.
A notice was accordingly put up in the gangway that on
the following evening an exhibition of the cinematograph, the
latest London sensation, would be given, which created much
pleasurable anticipation amongst the passengers. Late that
night, when nearly everyone had gone to bed, one of the ship's
electricians and myself fitted up the cinematograph and the
screen in the saloon. But, as neither of us knew much about
focussing, we could not get a picture on the screen, though we
were working until nearly five o'clock in the morning. So
there was nothing to be done but to put up another notice to
the effect that the announced exhibition had been unavoidably
postponed.
We were up the next night, and the night after that, trying
to master the machine, and at last, just when we were beginning
to despair, we succeeded in getting a picture on the screen
after nearly setting fire to one of the films. After that every
thing went smoothly enough, and two or three evenings later I
was able to give the first cinematograph exhibition ever wit
nessed at sea.
I arrived in South Africa at a very troubled time. It was
the time of the Jameson Raid. I left Cape Town for Johannes
burg not long after the Raid and did not reach the Golden City
without an adventure.
At Vereeniging, town, all our luggage was
the frontier
examined and searched for arms and ammunition.
I had with me forty large trunks and packing-cases, and
saw at once that if I were forced to open them I should have
no end of trouble and delay the train for hours. So I explained
to the chief inspector that the boxes contained only theatrical
properties and begged him not to put us all to the inconvenience
and delay which an examination of them must entail. At first
I could not induce the obstinate Boer to budge an inch ; he had
instructions, he said, to examine all luggage, and he was going

to carry them out. But at last he consented to open one
case, and, if he found nothing contraband in it, to allow the
rest to go through.
As ill luck would have it, the very case he selected for
examination contained a trick cannon, which was made of wood,
but was painted black to look like metal. You should have
seen the Boer when he set eyes on this tiling. He was furious,
and I was forthwith marched off and taken before half-a-dozen
commissioners, whom I had the utmost difficulty in persuading
that I was not smuggling some infernal device of modern
science into the country.
When at last I was allowed to go back to the station, I
found my fellow-passengers frowning at the way in which I had
delayed the train, but they were destined to be kept a little
longer. For, I regret to say, some demon of mischief prompted
me to play a practical joke on the official who had caused me so
much trouble. So, having offered him a cigar which he
accepted, I handed him my match-box, which was a trick one,
and was so contrived that a small cartridge exploded when
ever you opened it.
When the thing went off the Boer was so astonished that
he fairly jumped. Then, in a great wrath, he seized me by the
arm and hauled me before the commissioners for the second
time. Another long explanation followed, but eventually,
after admonishing me very severely, they let me go, and our
train departed.
On reaching Johannesburg, my wife and I went to the
Victoria Hotel, where rooms had been engaged for us. The
two days' journey from Cape Town to Johannesburg had been
a most unpleasant one, and I had got covered with a peculiar
kind of red dust which had penetrated my clothes and in places
stained my skin a reddish colour. Naturally, therefore, I
badly wanted a bath, and so soon as we got to our room I
undressed, put on my pyjamas and dressing-gown, rang for
the chambermaid and asked her where the bath-room was.
The girl looked at me in astonishment.
" "
Good gracious, there's no bathroom here ! she exclaimed.
"
They're so short of water in Johannesburg, that the hotel can
" And she went out
hardly get enough for cooking ! laughing.
When she had gone, I said to my wife : —
" This is all There must be a bath-room in the
nonsense !
hotel, and I'm going to hunt around and find it."

Iwent out into the corridor, opened a door, and, to my joy,
found what looked like a bath-tub half-filled with clean water.
So I rushed back to our rooms and said to my wife, who was
engaged in unpacking: —
"
Quick ! Give me a sponge, some soap and a bath-towel.
I'm in luck, for I've found a bath half full of water, and I'm
going to have a bath before anyone else finds it."
I hurried off to the bath-room, locked the door, took off my
pyjamas, and was on the point of stepping into the water, when
there came a thunderous knock at the door and a man's voice
shouted : —
" "
Open the door at once !
I did so, and the manager of the hotel came in.
" I say," he exclaimed, "you haven't been in that water,
"
have you ?
No," I answered ; " but I was just going to get in ?

" "
" Thank heaven ! " he exclaimed
fervently.
" What do "
I asked.
you mean ?
" " "
Mean ! he exclaimed. Why, man, it's all the water
"
we've got in the hotel for cooking !
And so, to my disgust, I had to go back to my room without
a bath ; but I was determined to have one somehow, and, hav
ing managed to get a tub, I ordered two dozen bottles of soda-
water, of which there was fortunately plenty in the hotel,
though they charged pretty heavily for it. The soda-water
I emptied into the tub, and, though it was the most expensive
bath I ever had, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Ihad another rather unusual experience at this hotel. On
our arrival I had arranged with the manager to board and
lodge my wife and myself for eight guineas a week each, but a
day or two afterwards he came to me and said : —
144 A. Modern Mystery Merchant
"
Mr. Hertz, I'm very sorry, but I shall have to raise the
price of your board."
" " " You
Why ? said I. agreed to take us for eight guineas
a week each."
" "
Quite so, but since then the price of meat has gone up !
Those were stirring days in Johannesburg. Martial law

was in force and it affected our business a good deal, and some
times the Empire Theatre, where we were performing, was only
half-filled. One night some shots were fired just outside, and
everyone in the theatre jumped up and rushed out, leaving
me standing there alone.
I shall never forget the scene in the theatre on the night of
the release of the Reformers who had been sentenced to death.
When they came in, the whole audience rose to their feet,
and there was a scene of tremendous enthusiasm. Needless
to say, there were no more conjuring feats that night. The
released prisoners got on to the stage and made speeches, and
then invited everyone in the theatre to have drinks at their
expense. Waiters were kept busy running into the auditorium
with drinks from the adjoining bars, and now and again some
reckless enthusiast would knock tray and glasses out of the
hands of a waiter and send them spinning into the air, where
upon he would merely inquire the damage and pay at once.
When things had quieted down, we did big business and
played to crowded houses, the cinematograph proving a tremen
dous draw. I
Unfortunately, however, only had five fifty-feet
films, which did not allow of much change of programme, with
the result that after a while the audience began to fall off.
Meantime, I had been cabling to London to try to get fresh
pictures, but without success, and I had almost abandoned
hope of being able to show anything new when one day, while
passing through an arcade in Johannesburg, I caught sight of
the following notice in the window of a rubber-shop : —
KINETOSCOPE: ADMISSION SIXPENCE.

I went in and found that this was the machine in which
you looked down into an upright case and saw moving pictures
which were on films. An idea suddenly occurred to me, and I
asked the proprietor if he had any old films which he would be
willing to sell me. After some conversation, he sold me twenty
films for £10, and I went away rejoicing, thinking I had enough
fresh pictures to last me for a month. But, to my intense dis
appointment, I found when I got to the theatre that the films
from the Kinetoscope would not fit my machine, as the spracket-
holes were all differently arranged. However, I thought of
a way out of the difficulty, and accordingly set to work to
cement all the spracket-holes with fresh strips of film and make
fresh spracket-holes which would fit my machine. It
is only
those who understand films who can have any idea what a
terribly tedious job this was. But at last it was completed,
and I was able the next night to announce an entire change of
programme. The movements of the persons and animals on
the screen were so slow as to be really comical, for the films were
worked on the Kinetoscope by electricity, whereas the first
cinematograph machines were worked by hand. But the
audience, who knew no better, thought the pictures great, and
we did wonderful business.
While at Johannesburg I made the acquaintance of a
gentleman who was the official starter at the Auckland Park
Racecourse, and one day he invited me to accompany him to a
meeting there.
In the third race I saw one of the most singular incidents I
ever witnessed on a racecourse. It was a five-furlong affair,
and the horses had lined up ready to start, when suddenly
one of the jockeys broke the line, cantered his mount right up
to the stands and shouted to a bookmaker : —
" "
What price mine ?
"
Five to one," was the answer.
"
All right — twenty-five to five," cried the jockey, and,
turning his horse, rode back to the starting-post. I smiled,
thinking that this was merely a ruse to get people to back an
animal that was not
"
spinning," and thus make a market for
something that was. But, to my surprise, the horse won.
K
Another amusing incident happened in a later race.

Among the competitors for this event were two horses from
the same stable, named, if I remember rightly, Esmeralda and
Bon Marche\ Esmeralda was backed for pounds, shillings and
pence and was soon an odds-on chance, while the other was
knocked out to any price you liked to ask. I heard a
bookmaker offer
"fifties," then 66 to 1, and finally 100 to 1
against him, but without attracting a single shilling.
" Well," "
he exclaimed, laughing, I'll see if I can't get
someone to back this thing. Here's ten pounds to a cigarette
Bon Marche" !
"
"
I'll take that ! " cried a young man who was standing
next me, and going up to the bookmaker, he pulled out his
cigarette-case and handed him a cigarette.
And, marvellous to relate, Bon March£, that most hopeless
of outsiders, got up almost in the last stride, and beat his
stable companion, the odds-on favourite, a head !
The lucky punter walked up to the bookmaker who had laid
him the bet, presented his ticket, and was duly paid his winnings.
But still he lingered.
" Hullo ! What do "
you want ? inquired the layer.
"
I want my cigarette back," answered the youth coolly.
While at Johannesburg I very friendly with the
became
late Barney Barnato, the South African plutocrat of whom
so many stories are told. Barney was indeed a singular charac
ter. Although he was supposed to be a multi-millionaire, he
never had any money in his pocket. He was always borrowing a
shilling or a two-shilling piece, and, if he asked you to have a
drink, in nine cases out of ten he would borrow the money from
you to pay for it.
I remember the occasion of my benefit at the Empire
Theatre. There were eight private boxes in the theatre, and
it was customary for the artists whose benefit it was to sell
the boxes for whatever they could get for them, and the stalls
were usually sold at a guinea each.When you sold a box you
would simply say to the person whom you thought would buy
" Here's a box for
it : my benefit. You can send me a
■-.
cheque on some time," and the cheque usually varied from

ten to twenty-five guineas.
A couple of days before my benefit took place I had sold
all my boxes but one (amongst those who had bought them
being Mr. Solly Joel, who had sent me a cheque for twenty-
five guineas), and, meeting Barney Barnatoin the street, I said
to him : —
"
Barney, my benefit is on Friday night. I have sold all
my boxes except one, and that one I have saved specially for
you. I could have sold it half-a-dozen times over, but I knew
you would be sure to want one." And I was about to hand
him the ticket for the box when he said :—
" "— " "
Has Solly meaning Solly Joel — bought one ?
" Yes," I answered.
" Well then," said he, " I'll it won't cost
go in his box, and
me anything."
I had, however, no trouble in disposing of the box, and I had
a bumper house.
On another occasion, Barney Barnato asked my wife and
myself to supper after the theatre. I was standing at the bar
of the Empire Theatre at the time he gave me the invitation,
and I told him I would ask my wife, as I did not know what
arrangements she might have made for that evening. I came
back and told him that we could not come, as my wife had
already promised to go to supper with Marie Belfry, who was
also playing in Johannesburg at this time, and a friend of hers.
" That's all "
right," said Barney, you ask them to come
along with you to my supper-party, and if you see any other
friends of yours ask them as well."
I went on the stage again and asked several people, and that
evening after the performance a party of ten of us, including
Barney Barnato, went to a well-known restaurant and were
given a table large enough to accommodate us all. As soon
as we sat down, the waiters came for orders, and we of course
expected Barney to ask us what we would like to have. But he
never said a word. After a long and very embarrassing
silence, I said —
:
" Ladies and What are you
gentlemen, give your orders.
"
all going to have ?
" No, no, Mr. Hertz,"
said the man who was with Marie
" this is me." And, as he insisted, I gave
Belfry, supper on
way, and the waiters went round the tables taking our orders
for supper. When they came to Barney Barnato he said that
all he wanted was a cup of coffee, and he let Miss Belfry's friend
pay for the refreshments.
It was customary for the results of all the big races in
England to be posted up in the bar of the Empire Theatre.
As a rule, the cables came about seven o'clock in the evening,
by which time the bar was usually packed. In the Liverpool
Cup of that year Barney Barnato had a horse running called
Stowmarket, which was well backed in Johannesburg, though
the owner did not fancy its chance. I was in the bar at the
Empire when the cable with the result of the race arrived, and
before it was posted up the messenger showed it me, and I saw
that Barney Barnato's horse had won at 100 to 8. As I knew
that it would be a big surprise for him, I and another man
called a cab and drove to his house to tell him the good news.
Telling the cabman to wait for us, we went in and found Barney
having tea.
"
We've got some good news for you, Barney," I ex
"
claimed. Your horse has won the Liverpool Cup. We
thought we would come and tell you."
He didn't seem particularly pleased, but asked us to sit
down and wait till he had had his tea, without inviting us to
have tea with him or any other refreshment. I said :—
"
We won't wait, we've got the cab waiting outside."
" "
Never mind," he said, let the cab wait till I'm ready."
He kept us a good half -hour and then drove with us to the
theatre. When we got there, he let me pay for the cab, and
we went into the bar, which by this time was packed. When
they saw him come in they gave him a tremendous cheer, but,
"
instead of saying : Thank you, gentlemen," and calling for
drinks all round, he took not the slightest notice, but walked
"
up to the counter and said : Give me a whiskey-and-soda."
X
With all his faults and eccentricities, however, Barney

Barnato was at bottom a very good-hearted man, who could
never see a friend in need, and I must say he gave me some very
good times during my stay at Johannesburg.
" "
Jo'burg was in those days the happy hunting-ground of
the knights of industry, and woe betide the pigeon who fell into
their clutches, as the following story which I heard will show-
Shortly before my visit to the Golden City, a well-gilt and
" "
extremely callow youth of the Johnny variety, who was
seeing the world, arrived there and was introduced to a certain
club which did not bear the very best of reputations. Here he
was presently enticed by certain of the members, who had
" "
very speedily sized him up as a mug of the purest type,
into a game of poker.
The stakes were high, and though the Johnny won at first,
he soon began to lose steadily, and at the end of an hour or so
was a very considerable sum out of pocket. Presently, how
" "
ever, he found himself with a full hand
and saw a chance of
getting some of his money back. Accordingly, he doubled the
pool, but one of his opponents also seemed to hold a strong
hand, as he promptly redoubled ; and the two went on betting
against one another, the other players having dropped out of
the game. At last the Johnny called his opponent.
" I've ' " " What have
got a full hand,' said he. you
"
got ?
" ' "
I've got a
pluit,' answered the sharp, showing his
hand, which did not contain even a pair, but was a mixture
"
of a 2, a 5, an 8, a 9, and a queen of different suits. So
you're beat."
" Why, "
you've got nothing at all ! exclaimed the aston
ished Johnny.
" I '
tell you I've got a pluit,' as you can see for yourself,
' '
•
and a pluit beats everything."
" "
But I've never heard of such a hand ! protested the
"
Johnny. I shall refuse to pay." (As they had soon exhausted
the ready cash they had about them, they had been putting
LO.U.'s in the pool.)
" Then
you can't know much about poker. But look
here — are you willing to abide by the rules of this club ?
"
"
Certainly I am," answered the other ; upon which the
sharp rang for a waiter and told him to bring a book of the club
rules. On the book being brought, he turned over the pages
and then handed it to his opponent, indicating a certain para
graph relating to the game of poker as played in this particular
establishment, at the end of which the astonished youth read
the following words : —
"A ' '
piuit beats everything."
" Well," "
said he, I have lost and I must pay,
suppose I
but I don't mind telling you that I've held that kind of hand
over and over again and thrown it away."
The game was resumed, and presently the Johnny got the
same hand as his opponent had recently held.
" Now," said he to himself, " this is where I
get my own
back."
" "
So he and the sharp, who held a full hand this time,
started betting furiously again, until at length the latter
called him, saying : —
"I've got a 'full hand'!"
"
Not good enough !
"
cried the youth exultingly. I've
"
' ' "
got you beat ; for I've got a pluit this time ! And he
threw his cards face upwards on the table.
" That's no
good," remarked the sharp contemptuously.
" ' '
No good ! Why, a pluit beats everything !
"
For answer, the sharp picked up the book of rules and
handed it to the other, pointing to the bottom of the last page,
on which was printed in italics :
"
Notice.
" It has been decided by the committee that a
'
pluit
'
at poker
can only occur once during the game."
-..
CHAPTER XII
Continuation of my South African tour — I sail for Australia — Huge
success of the cinematograph at Melbourne — I am summoned for
permitting overcrowding in the theatre— Visit to New Zealand — I
buy a derelict steamer by way of advertisement — The cockatoo of
Charters Towers — I return to Australia and set out from Perth
with a caravan of twenty camels on a tour through West Australia
—Fatigues and discomforts of travel through this waterless
country — Improvised theatres in mining-camps —Seats paid for
with gold dust and nuggets — Liberality of the miners — My adven
"
ture with the Bushmen —Arrival at Coolgardie — A " sacred
illusion show — I sail for Ceylon.
On leaving Johannesburg, I toured all through South

Africa, performing at Pretoria, Kimberley, Bloemfontein, Pieter-
maritzburg, Durban, King William's Town and other places.
In July, I
sailed from Cape Town on a second visit to
1896,
Australia, and opened, as during my previous visit, at the
Melbourne Opera House, where I introduced the cinematograph
in connection with my own entertainment. It proved a tre
mendous draw, and the theatre was so packed that I was
summoned and fined on three different occasions for permitting
overcrowding.
After visiting Sydney and Adelaide, I toured the principal
towns of New Zealand, the cinematograph being everywhere a
great success. While I was at Napier a derelict steamer,
which had been wrecked just outside the harbour, and which
it had been found impossible to refloat, was put up at auction,
and, to my manager's astonishment, I told him to go to the
sale, and, if the steamer could be bought at a low price, to buy
it for me.
"
Good heavens !
"
he exclaimed,
" what on earth are
you
"
going to do with a wrecked steamer ?
" That," said I, " is
just what everyone will say, and is
just what I want. It will be a good advertisement for me,
'
since everyone will be asking : Why on earth has Carl Hertz
bought this wrecked steamer ? Is he going to do some trick
with it ?
'"
There was no opposition at the sale, and the steamer was
knocked down to my manager for the sum of £5, and, as I had
foreseen, the news that I had acquired it was telegraphed all
over New Zealand and Australia. I don't know what became
of that steamer ; it may be lying there still for all I know. But
it was the best five-pounds'-worth of publicity I ever had.
On leaving New Zealand, I made a tour of Queensland. At

the hotel I stayed at in Charters Towers they had a cockatoo
which was a wonderful talker. He was not kept in a cage,
but was always out in the open, fastened to a Tee-piece by a
chain attached to his leg. The proprietor of the hotel told me
that it was no use putting him in a cage, as he invariably man
aged to break open the door and get away.
"
He's never forgiven me for having fastened him to a
chain," said he, " and ever since the word chain has merely
' '
to be mentioned to him, in any form whatever, for him to use

the most awful language."
He then asked me to say to the bird : " What about the
"
chain ? So I said :
" Hallo, "
Cocky, what about the chain ?
" Oh, "
to hell with the chain ! was the answer.
Later in the day I
brought one of the members of my
company up to the hotel, and, showing him the cockatoo, told
him that he was such an extraordinarily intelligent bird that he
understood all that was said to him and could carry on a
conversation just like a human being.
" "
Just try him," I said. Tell him that you're thinking of
buying him a watch, but don't quite know what to do about the
chain."
He went up to the bird and said : —

" Good afternoon,
Cocky. I've just seen a nice watch down
the street which I'm thinking of buying for you, but I'm not
quite certain what to do about the chain."
" Oh, to hell with the chain ! " said the bird.
From Queensland I journeyed

back to Sydney, for a return
engagement ; thence to Melbourne and Adelaide, after which
I set out on one of the most eventful tours I ever undertook,
through West Australia.
Eight assistants accompanied my wife and myself on our
travels, and, in order to get through the country in certain
parts, we were obliged to charter twenty camels to transport
ourselves and all the apparatus necessary for my illusions,
since I my audiences even in the most out-of-the-
presented
way places with precisely the same entertainment as I gave in
England. The effect of some of them on the natives was often
very amusing, and I have frightened them to the point of panic
by transforming a man into a woman, or making a lady float
round and turn somersaults in the air. On witnessing the
latter illusion it was quite a common occurrence for half of
the native part of the audience in country places to jump up
and rush out.
I started from Perth and made a trip five hundred miles
inland to Boulder City, stopping at about a dozen mining camps
on the way. Some idea of the discomforts of travel through
that country may be gauged from the fact that every drop of
water used by man or beast over that five hundred miles or in
the camps had to be carted from Perth. By the time one gets
to Coolgardie water is worth £1 a bucket, and I have paid that
price many a time for water to wash up with after my show.
And at the hotel that was the price charged for a bath. There
was no bathroom, and the bath consisted of an oil tin, about
eighteen inches high and six inches in diameter, suspended from
a nail over your head. To this was attached a cord, which,
when pulled, tilted the tin and upset the water over you.
This was what was called a first-class bath ; but the water
was not allowed to be wasted, and, if no soap were used, you

were only charged half-price for your bath, as in that case the
water could be given to the animals.
In some locations they were able to procure water by
boring very deep, but it was totally unfit for household use,
much less for drinking. One does not fully value the conveni
ence of a plentiful water supply until a tour is made into a
desert country ; but a peculiarity of travel through such
countries is that nowhere does one need water so much as was
the case in Western Australia. The red dust penetrates the
very clothing ; it is impossible to keep it out.
All caravans to the interior are organised at Perth. The
camels in the mining camps are all owned by natives, who are
a hard lot to deal with and have no hesitation in holding up a
stranger and making him pay about double the usual rate.
I spent some weeks in Perth before I started, and, as I took care
to pick up all the information I could, I was pretty well posted
by the time I was ready to organise my expedition. I secured
a caravan of twenty camels and agreed to pay £50 for the trip,
which, of course, sounds very cheap, but then I had to feed
them and their drivers as well, and this was a pretty heavy item.
As I said before, I had to transport all my apparatus, but I only
took one set of stage scenery, and that had to do duty for
every act.
Next to the scarcity of water, the great drawback in that
country is the lack of fresh meat. In Boulder City and
Menzies mutton was five shillings a pound and fresh eggs cost
six shillings a dozen. But Chicago comes nobly to the rescue,
for it pretty nearly feeds the entire country with tinned corned-
beef, roast beef and condensed soup. But even these are
expensive luxuries, for a two-pound tin of corned-beef sells at
six shillings, and sometimes, when the supply trains are delayed,
the price jumps up nearly a hundred per cent.
I shall never forget my first day out from Perth. I had
heard a good deal of the terrors of riding on camel-back, and
during our stay in Perth my wife and I would go out occa
sionally and take a ride on a camel, in order to accustom
>
3
I
n
h
<
E
4-1
8
•9
a
o
U
ourselves to the peculiar motion of the beast. We soon found,

however, that riding all day on a camel over a desert was quite
a different experience from half-an-hour's trot over the smooth
streets of Perth. There is one kind of work that camels are
experts in. They can kick up more dust and make less fuss about
it than any quadruped that walks the earth, and when you get
thirty or forty of them in tow they raise a cloud of dust which
pretty well suffocates everyone but themselves. You can
sight a caravan of camels a long distance off by its dust-cloud,
just as you can locate a steamer at sea by its smoke.
We made slow progress the first day, since no one but the
natives could stand the fatigue and discomfort, but long before
the trip was over we all got hardened to camel-riding and could
endure it almost as well as they could.
My advance-manager had gone on ahead about two months
before, for he had far more work to do than is the case in
England, and in some of the towns which we visited he was
obliged to build his own theatre before we could show. But in
this there is one advantage, in that you can make the theatre
of any size you want and arrange it to suit your own convenience.
The theatre consists of a sort of corral built of sage bush, and
you can enclose as much ground as you think fit. The fence is
about twelve feet high, and the natives weave the twigs so
" "
closely together that the Peeping Toms cannot see through,
much less crawl through.
A theatre capable of accommodating about a thousand
people can be put up at a cost of some £20,which is cheaper than
renting, in the event of one intending to stay a week or more in
the town. In those cases where the theatre was rented we
paid about £5 a night, and for this the proprietors not only
furnished the theatre, but guaranteed to keep the enclosure in
such condition that no one could peep through ; and, to make
doubly sure, a guard of four or five men was placed round the
sage while the show was going on. The proprietor of the
theatre provided and paid the guards.
All through the country the price for reserved seats was
24s. and the other seats 12s., while 6s. was charged for standing
room. Any old thing, from a bench down to a kerosene-box,

answered for a reserved seat. Sometimes it happened that
not enough chairs and boxes could be found in the town to
fill the reserved seat section, and I paid as much as £1 for the
loan of a ten-foot board and a further 8s. for the use of three
boxes on which to place it. But since that plank brought in
£7 on the sale of reserved seats, it turned out a highly profitable
investment. In some places the miners used to pay the 6s.
admission to stand up at the back of the house to see the first
act, and, if they liked the show, there would then be a scramble
for the reserved seats. Sometimes they would bring a chair
along with them, but we charged 12s. for it, just as though it
belonged to the theatre.
Very little currency is seen in that country. Nearly all the
trade was carried on in gold dust and nuggets, and to have
travelled through it without a pair of gold scales would have
been like sailing a ship across the Atlantic without a compass.
As the miners everywhere were very liberal there was always
a good profit in the box-office in overweight gold. In the rush
of buying reserved seats the miners were not very particular as
to the exact weight of the gold which they threw down, and
were almost sure to give a little more than the required amount.
Indeed, I have sometimes found on weighing up after the
show that I had nearly £20 worth more than the box-office count
of tickets called for.
I met with many strange experiences during this tour, but
the most singular of all was one I had in Boulder City, where
a number of Bushmen who had seen my performance plotted
to kidnap me. They were much impressed by my manipula
tion of cards and coins and similar feats, and must have
concluded that a man who could handle these coins so
dexterously would be a great addition to their tribe.
As a rule, there is a very strong feeling against the whites
amongst these Bushmen,, in fact, their case is somewhat parallel
to that of the Indians in the Western States of America. They
consider that the whites have deprived them of their country
and homes, but they are treacherous even towards one another,
x
and it was owing to this that their plot against me came to

nothing.
One of their number, to whom I had been very kind, warned
me of what was in the wind, and though, of course, I might
have reported the matter to the authorities, who would have
punished them very severely, I decided to deal with them
myself.
Accordingly, I arranged, through the man who had given
me warning of their intentions, to meet some of them outside
the town and give them a private exhibition of my magic
powers. They thought, I learned afterwards, that this would
afford them an excellent opportunity for carrying me off, and
had arranged to do so as soon as I had concluded my
performance.
After I had done several tricks, I told them that I would
now call down fire from heaven, and that, if I pleased, my power
was such that I could cause it to consume them all. I made a
few passes and, in tragic tones, began repeating sentences in
Spanish, which they probably regarded as my means of com
municating with heaven. Suddenly the clothes of the bushmen
burst into flames, and they ran in every direction, yelling with
terror and tearing off their burning clothing. Having got rid
of it, they made a bolt for the woods, and I never saw one of
them again.
The trick which I had played on them was very simple, and
similar to one which I employed on the stage. I had a com
bustible fluid, which was perfectly harmless until exposed to the
air. While talking to the Bushmen I had, unobserved by
them, sprinkled a little of this fluid on their clothing, and I so
timed my work as to know at about what moment it would
break into flames. The Bushmen of West Australia to this
day tell stories of the man who could call down fire from
heaven ; in fact the story grew with repetition, until they
credited me with powers I never dreamed of.
When I arrived at Coolgardie it was a Sunday evening,
and I was astonished to find the streets crowded with people
walking aimlessly up and down. I inquired of the manager
of our hotel where all these people came from and if they had
no place to go to on a Sunday night.
" No,"
said he, "there is nothing for them to do but parade
the streets like this."
I
thought to myself what a fortune a person could make if
he coukTgive a theatrical performance, or, in fact, any kind
of an entertainment on a Sunday night which would attract
these people. But I was told that no performance of any kind
was permitted on Sundays. However, I made up my mind
that would have a good try to give one.
1
Accordingly, next day I called on the mayor, gave him

some complimentary tickets for my performance that night,
and contrived to get on quite friendly terms with him. A day
or two later, I called again and asked him if he would give me
permission to give a performance on the following Sunday
evening. He answered that he was very sorry that he could
not oblige me, as no entertainment of any kind was allowed on
Sundays, except a sacred concert.
" Well," said I, " what about a sacred illusion show ? "
" Whatever is a sacred illusion show ? "
inquired the
worthy magistrate in astonishment.
" Well, I am '
It
doing an illusion called Noah's Ark.'
is, as the title implies, a Biblical illusion and of a very sacred
character. Besides this illusion, I have some pictures which
'
I can show on the cinematograph representing The March of
and several other religious films, so that I
'
the Holy Carpet
can manage to give an entirely sacred performance."
On these conditions, the mayor finally granted me the per
mission I asked for, and bills were accordingly got out announc
'
ing A Grand Sacred Magical and Cinematograph Entertain
to be given on the following Sunday. It proved an
'
ment
immense success, the theatre being packed to suffocation, while
hundreds were turned away from the doors.
Some few weeks later, I happened to meet a friend of mine,
Mr. Fitzgerald, manager of the Fitzgerald Brothers' Circus, a
well-known circus which was travelling through Australia at
this time, and when I told him of this incident he said : —
" That
was a great idea of yours !We are going to Cool-
gardie next week, and I must try to get on the right side of your
'
friend the mayor and persuade him to let me give A Grand
Sacred Circus on the Sunday evening ! "
'
At the close of our tour in West Australia, we sailed for

Colombo, Ceylon, where I engaged the Town Hall for three
performances, but our entertainment was such a success
that we remained twelve days, when we went on to Kandy.
From Kandy we returned to Colombo and gave a further series
of performances before sailing for Bombay.
16o A Modern Mystery Merchant
CHAPTER XIII
Refusal of the manager of the Novelty Theatre, Bombay, to give me
another date, notwithstanding the fact that the plague is raging
there — I decide to open on the date I have booked and sail for
Bombay — Notwithstanding the epidemic, we play to packed houses
— Method by which the theatre is darkened to allow of the cine
matograph being shown at a matin 'e— Extraordinary cheapness of
native labour — Continuation of my Indian tour — The Fakirs and
their tricks — The Mango Trick — The Rope Trick — Version of the
latter trick performed by me — My opinion of Indian conjurers.
I had engaged the Novelty Theatre at Bombay for two weeks,

and, as is the custom in India, paid the full rent for the theatre
in advance, about £120. While at Colombo, the news came
that the plague, which had broken out in Bombay some weeks
before, had spread to such an extent that the death-rate was
something like three hundred a day. The theatres had been
closed for nearly a month, as it was not considered advisable
for people to congregate in crowds until the epidemic had
abated.
In these circumstances, I was strongly advised by people
at Colombo not to go on to Bombay, both on account of the
danger and also because, even if I were to succeed in obtaining
permission to give my performance, I should probably have to
play to empty houses, as few people would care to come to the
theatre while the plague continued. Accordingly, I cabled to
the manager of the Novelty Theatre to ask him if he would
oblige me by postponing my date to such a time as the epidemic
should have ceased or at any rate abated. But he replied
that I must either open on the date booked or lose the rent I
had paid him. I cabled again offering to cancel the date and
forfeit half the rent, if he would return me the other half. But
again he refused, saying that I
must either play or pay.
And so, with many misgivings, I sailed for Bombay, and,
having obtained permission from the authorities, opened at
the Novelty Theatre on the date I
had booked. Matters were
in a terrible state when we arrived ; people were dying at the
rate of five hundred a day, and I myself on several occasions
saw natives drop down in the street, stricken by this terrible
disease. Often they died where they had fallen, and lay there
until picked up by one of the carts which went about the streets
collecting the dead. The door of every house in which there
was a case of plague had to be marked by a circle with a cross
in the centre, and house after house I passed was marked in
this way. Everyone told me how foolish I was to come to Bom
bay at such a time, but I explained that I had booked the
theatre and could not get out of it, and therefore had decided
to take my chance.
Greatly to my surprise, we opened to an enormous house,
which was literally packed from floor to ceiling, and every
night numbers of people had to be turned away. The fact was
that, as all the theatres had been closed, the people had seen no
performance of any kind for about six weeks, so that they were
only too pleased to have some place to which they could go to
divert their minds from the plague. I was the first to show the
cinematograph in India, and it proved such a success that my
manager suggested that I should give a matinee on Saturday
afternoon, beginning at three o'clock and concluding about five.
The Novelty Theatre was a wooden building, standing on
an open plot of land, and the theatre was so constructed that
there was a space of two or three inches between the boards,
so as to admit the air, for, otherwise, it would have been too hot
for people to sit there. I had had made all arrangements for
giving this matinee, when, two days before, it suddenly occurred
to me that it would be impossible for me to show the cinemato
graph on account of the light which would come through these
openings between the boards, as it did not get dark until about
eight o'clock. Accordingly, I went to the proprietor and
L
1 62 A Modern Mystery Merchant
asked him if there were any possible way to darken the

theatre, so as to enable me to show the pictures for the benefit
of all the children whom I expected to come.
" Yes,"
said he, "I can get the entire theatre covered up on
all four sides, but it would make it terribly hot in there, and
besides, if you decide to have it covered, the covering will have
to be removed immediately after the matinee, so as to make it
cool for the evening performance."
I asked the manager if he could give me some idea of what
it would cost to have the theatre covered and uncovered again —
it was a good-sized theatre capable of accommodating some
1,500 people — and I begged him to get it done as cheaply as he
could, as I did not think the
matinee would be much of a success,
matinees being seldom given in India on account of the heat,
while the price of admission for children was very small.
However, he would give me no definite price or estimate, but
said that if I would leave it to him he would get it done
for me as cheaply as possible.
At seven o'clock on the Saturday morning about a hundred
natives started to cover the building with long sheets of
brown paper, which they tacked on to the woodwork, and they
only completed their task just in time for the matinee. We had
a pretty fair house, though it was not full, which was not
surprising, as it was simply stifling. However, the children
were highly delighted, and I was quite satisfied, even if I did
not make much out of it. So soon as the matinee was over the
natives began to uncover the theatre, in order to allow time for
it to get cool again for the evening performance, and finished
their work so quickly that at night the audience experienced
but little discomfort.
In the evening I went to the manager, thanked him for
having arranged everything so well, and said : —
" Well,
what do I owe you ? I hope it is not a great deal,
as I didn't make much out of the matinee ?
"
He smiled and said :
"
Will two and a half rupees (about two shillings) be too
"
much ?
I was simply astonished, and at first could not believe that

he was serious. But he told me that the natives usually work
for next to nothing, and that the paper and tacks had been
borrowed and returned afterwards.
To give an idea of how cheap native labour is in the East ;
at one of the towns in Java which I
visited I was unable to
obtain a suitable building to give my performance in, so my
advance-agent had to have one put up. The total cost came
to just £1. It was made of palm leaves and bamboo, and the
wood used was borrowed, and returned at the end of my
engagement.
After leaving Bombay, we visited Poona, Allahabad, Cal
cutta and others towns and did exceedingly well.
I had, of course, all the lore of the white magician at my
fingers' ends, but I desired to graduate in the great university
of the Eastern World, and accordingly had Fakirs gathered
from far and near to give their exhibitions. But the tricks they
showed me were very ordinary ones, and, when their perform
ance was over, I told them, through the interpreter, that I was
very displeased with the childish things which I had seen.
Amongst other tricks, they showed me the mango trick, and I
saw at once that it was done by substitution. With then-
loose sleeves and robes, they have, of course, much greater
facilities for concealing things than Western conjurers.
They began by planting a mango-seed, which they covered
with a cloth. Under this cloth they worked with their hands,
removing it at intervals to show us the mango-bush growing
larger and larger. Finally, they showed us a large bush with
fruit on it. It appeared to have grown from seed, but it was
all a trick, done by substitution.
Almost everyone, I suppose, has heard of the famous
Indian Rope Trick, an illusion which has been frequently
described in books about the East, and is said to be performed
by the Fakirs as a religious rite. I have long sought the
secret of this particular trick and have probed deeply into the
literature and tradition which surrounds Indian magic. Many
novelists, in writing stories with an Indian setting, have
mentioned the Rope Trick, but it is another matter to find

someone who has really seen it. The trick, which is usually
performed out of doors, is as follows : —
The Fakir takes in his hand one end of a coil of rope and
throws it to the sky.The first sensation is that the rope
stays up, the coils unfolding until the rope, apparently supported
by nothing, has attained a height of some 150 feet. Up the
rope climbs a small native boy. He goes up hand-over-hand
until he gets about half-way, when he disappears, and the
rope behaves as any ordinary rope would behave —it falls
to the ground. Before the audience have recovered from their
astonishment, the boy comes running back out of space, as
though nothing at all extraordinary had happened.
Sometimes, as a variant, the Indian magician will make a
few passes over the coiled rope, and induce it to start going up
straight into the air of its own accord.
Another and very interesting account of this famous trick
is given by Mr. William Athey, of London, who claims to have
seen the trick performed in Calcutta some forty-six years ago,
towards the end of 1876. This is what he says : —
"
One evening, I was walking alone in the streets of Cal
cutta. It was just about dusk, and there was a thick haze in
the air. You often get such a haze in Calcutta after a very hot
day at the back-end of the year. I had nothing particular to
do and, noticing a crowd in a small public garden in one of the
streets, I went over to see what was going on. As I walked over
I saw a Fakir about to commence bis performance. He
was a man about five foot six or seven in height, with long
arms, which he kept waving about, and a long, flowing
robe. He had with him a boy, quite a youngster and very
light, dressed in just a linen cloth, with a rag over his shoulders.
I should think he would weigh only four to five stone. There
were only a few Europeans in the crowd, not more than six,
I should think.
"
The Fakir stood with his back to some railings. There
were some trees in the garden, I think, but they were not
overhanging the place where the Fakir stood. Soon after he
-
The Indian Rope Trick, as Reported to be Performed in India.
)). 161.
got there, he started to exhibit the rope ; he had the coils on

his left arm. It was a rope no bigger than a good-sized clothes
line, and taking half of it in his other hand, he threw it up. It
seemed to stay up. I could not see the end of the rope that had
gone out of sight in the mist, but the other hung down on
the ground. Then it seemed the boy came forward and
climbed the rope ; he went up very quickly and was soon lost
in the mist.
" The Fakir called out to the
boy, and the boy answered him.
They spoke in Hindustani, and I could not understand what
they said ; but the Fakir seemed to get very angry with the
boy and presently threw an open knife up to him. There
was a scream, and a few drops of blood spattered down and
splashed on the ground near the rope. Then the conversation
between the man and the boy ceased, and the boy came
walking into the crowd from behind the man.
" I have often "
thought about it," continued Mr. Athey, and
I firmly believe that the Fakir had simply mesmerised every
European who was there. At most there were only five Euro
peans in the crowd, and whether the natives were mesmerised
or not I cannot say, but if they were not, they are clannish
enough not to have given him away. I am sure he mesmerised
me. He talked incessantly in Hindustani, waved his arms
about as if he were making passes, and fixed his eyes on each
of the Europeans in turn. He had very queer eyes in his head.
He seemed to look you right through. Thinking it over, I believe
that Iwas mesmerised at the very beginning. I know well
enough that it would take a very strong man even to throw a
rope fifty feet up, and this seemed to go a hundred and fifty.
The mist was rather low, and often you can't see the house-tops
at dusk in Calcutta. I am as strong-minded as most men
about that sort of thing, but some of those Fakirs would
mesmerise the devil."
Mr. Athey adds that there was no indication that the
natives regarded the trick as in any way part of a religious
ceremony. The Fakir, he says, made a collection at the end,
just the same as any other charlatan.
Another account I had given me of this trick was that it was

performed at great festivals held in the open air, and in the
presence of thousands of followers, to the accompaniment of
the beating of drums, the chanting of music and the burning
of incense. After a few preliminaries, in the course of which
the multitude had been worked up into an acute state of
excitement, the Fakir throws a coil of rope into the air, the
rope being apparently suspended in a perpendicular position.
A boy climbs the rope and is supposed to disappear into space.
To the onlookers, the act appears to be genuine enough ;
in fact, a well-known music-hall manager claims to have
witnessed a similar ceremony, only, in this case, the Fakir was
supposed to climb the rope after the boy and cut him to pieces,
because he refused to come down. First one leg would drop
down ; then the other ; then an arm, then another arm, and,
lastly, the head. The boy, however, later on was brought from
an Indian basket, none the worse for his experience.
I have toured all over India, and I have over and over
again endeavoured to find someone who has seen this trick
performed, but I have never come across any European
upon whose word I was able to rely who could say that he had
seen it done. I have gone off the beaten track and made ex
peditions to remote districts to try and see the trick performed,
but I was always unsuccessful, and although I have myself
asked scores of Fakirs to perform the trick for me and offered
to pay them large sums, they all professed themselves unable
to do it, and some even went so far as to say that they had never
even heard of it.
There are stories current which seem to bear out the theory
of hypnotism, and one is to the effect that a person in the
audience, who imagined he was actually witnessing the trick
being performed, secretly took two photographic snapshots,
one while the rope was supposed to be in the air, and the other
while the boy was apparently on top of it. But, when the
photographs came to be developed, they were both alike and
showed the conjurer squatting on the ground, toying with the
rope, while the boy was sitting quietly by his side.
At a meeting of the members of the Magic Circle, held a

couple of years ago at Anderton's Hotel, in Fleet Street, a
discussion took place amongst the conjurers and others present
regarding the Rope Trick, and it was unanimously decided that
no such trick had ever been performed.
When the late King Edward VII., then Prince of Wales,
went to India in 1876, that country was, at his special request,
scoured to find someone who could perform the trick. But no
one was forthcoming.
I myself have for two or three years been performing a version
of the Rope Trick, and, to all intents and purposes, the effect
is the same. One of the London papers thus describes it : —
"
Carl Hertz has mystified the Palace audiences with the
greatest feat of all — the Indian Rope Trick — which he claims
that he is the only one to produce with a near approach to the
skill of the Hindu fakir. There was a rich Oriental setting for
this act. A Purdee lady reclines on a divan, fanned by a
Punkah Wallah and amused by a Nautch dancer. Then enters
Carl Hertz dressed as an Eastern despot. Dusky attendants
rush about. Carl Hertz throws up the rope, which rises to the
top of the proscenium, which is then tested to be sufficiently
strong to support a person. A semi-naked Hindu youth climbs
the rope in full view of the spectators. A cloth is then thrown
over the youth still clinging to the rope, then the cloth is suddenly
whisked away and it is found that the boy himself has vanished
and the rope drops to the ground. The next moment the same
boy appears from the front of the stalls."
In conclusion, I may say that, in my opinion, the skill of the

Indian conjurers is greatly exaggerated, and that they cannot
be compared with any of our first-class Western conjurers. I
have shown an Indian conjurer a simple trick such as the
cigarette-paper trick, which consists of tearing a cigarette-
paper to pieces and restoring it whole again, and the man was
so astonished at it that he followed me about for hours,
begging me to show him how it was done.
CHAPTER XIV
Burma — Singapore — Manila — Return to Singapore — Java, — I fall ill of
"
malaria at Batavia — " The Actors' Graveyard — I receive an
invitation to journey to Borneo to perform before a wealthy Dyak
Rajah in the northern provinces — After some hesitation, I accept
and sail for Borneo — Journey into the interior — The Rajah's
" palace " — Visit to the town —A Dyak house — Human skulls,
trophies of head-hunting — Appearance of the Dyaks —Their dress
— Their ornaments — Terrible mutilation of the ear — The Rajah
and his daughter — First performance — The Dyaks' manner of
applause — Second performance — I am requested by the Rajah to
defer my departure — The princess smiles — I receive a message from
the Rajah offering me his daughter's hand in marriage — I decline
the proposition, on the ground that my religion does not permit me
to have more than one wife — The Rajah proposes that I shall change
my religion — Serious situation in which I am placed — I feign
acquiescence and resolve to effect my escape by the exercise of
my art — My plan — Its success —A night in a property-basket.
From India we proceeded to Burma, where we played at

Rangoon and Mandelay. From there we went to the Straits
Settlements, and, after performing for a week at Singapore,
sailed for Manila, the capital of the Philippines, which a few
weeks before had been captured by the Americans under General
Merrett. The town was full of American troops of both ser
vices, and for a fortnight we played to crowded and enthusiastic
houses ; then we returned to Singapore. Here we played
another week and then sailed for Java.
On reaching Batavia, I fell ill with malaria and was laid
up for a fortnight, in consequence of which we were, of course,
unable to open at the advertised time. I was told that everyone
gets malaria in Java, and, so soon as I was convalescent, I was
taken to see the cemetery, which is one of the sights of Batavia
and is known as
" The Actors'
Graveyard," being so named
--■
because nearly every theatrical company which goes there

leaves someone behind. I felt thankful that I had managed to
pull through, and, though during our stay in Java nearly every
member of our company was taken ill with malaria, we were
fortunate enough to lose no one.
I had intended on leaving Java to return to Singapore, but
it appeared that my fame as a magician had penetrated to
Borneo, for, while we were at Sourabaya, an agent of a wealthy
Dyak rajah in the northern provinces arrived there with an
invitation to journey with my company to Borneo and exhibit
my magical powers before this potentate. I must confess that
the proposal did not at first appeal to me, as a great part of
Borneo was still in a lawless state and Europeans regarded
with little favour. But the agent assured me that the Rajah's
capital was only a few hours' journey from the coast and that
we should be well guarded both going and returning, and, as the
terms he offered were certainly very tempting, and he readily
agreed to the payment of a substantial sum in advance, I
finally consented to go. Little did I think that I was about to
meet with the strangest adventure of my whole career !
We left Sourabaya in a steamer which the Rajah's agent
had chartered and sailed through the Straits of Macassar and
across the Celebs Sea to Sesaya. The first part of the journey
into the interior was made on horseback, the last part by water
in praus which the Rajah had sent to meet us. The prau in
which my wife and I travelled was, we were informed, the
Rajah's own, and was a very fine boat, about fifty feet long
with a small cabin in the centre, and propelled by some
twenty rowers, who were quite naked except for their waist-
cloths. As dusk was falling we landed at a rickety structure
which did duty for a pier or landing-stage, and were conducted
to the Rajah's
"
palace," a large, square wooden building,
approached through a long, covered courtyard. Crossing the
courtyard, we passed through a door and found ourselves in a
long, lofty room, which was the hall, or reception chamber, of
the palace, lighted by lamps suspended from the roof, which
was supported by massive pillars of ironwood.
At the far end of the hall facing the door was a raised platform
on which was a sort of throne, while in a corner near the
entrance was a huge wooden idol of hideous aspect. It would,
however, perhaps be incorrect to call this image an idol, as it
was not actually worshipped, but regarded as a talisman to drive
away evil spirits and ill luck.
Presently, a grave old man, who seemed to be some kind of
official, made his appearance and, motioning us to follow him,
conducted us to a long, narrow room, furnished with a rough,
unpolished table and a few chairs made of bamboo with straw
bottoms. Small wooden bowls of water were brought us to
wash our hands — evidently the Dyaks did not consider that
we might desire more thorough ablutions after our journey —
and, when these had been removed, supper was served. It
consisted of a kind of salad composed of rice, raw fish and vege
tables, which was, on the whole, quite palatable, and various
kinds of fruit. To drink we had a concoction of lemon-juice
and water, slightly sweetened with honey.
Our food was brought in on earthenware dishes, and the
lemonade was poured out of a blue china jar ornamented with
figures of lizards and serpents. But we ate off plates of
ironwood, with short-handled, bamboo spoons, and drank out
of bowls made of coconut shells. The fact is that though the
richer Dyaks usually possess plenty of crockery, most of which
is imported from China, it serves for ornament rather than for
use, and is reserved for state occasions, wedding-feasts and
so forth.
Supper over, the old man again appeared and conducted us
to our bedrooms. The room which my wife and I were
allotted was a small apartment, with a narrow slit in the
outer wall to serve as a window. On the floor were spread
sleeping mats, and we were each provided with a not-too-clean
blanket. This, we afterwards learned, was a concession to
the fact that we were foreigners, as the Dyak usually sleeps
without any covering.
We were awakened next morning between six and seven
o'clock and conducted to the room in which we had supped the
previous evening, where breakfast, which consisted of tea

flavoured with lemon-juice, a kind of dry biscuit and fruit
awaited us. While we were at breakfast, the Rajah's agent
arrived and suggested that we might like to pay a visit to the
town, to which he offered to be our guide, and, as we were all
curious to see something of the manners and customs of the
Dyaks, we willingly consented.
The Rajah's capital, which was situated about a quarter of
"
a mile from the palace," was a long, straggling town, or rather
a series of villages, built along the river bank. Some of the
houses were merely huts, but the majority were of fair size,
long, narrow, one-storeyed structures, built chiefly of bamboo
and raised about twenty feet above the ground on strong timber
posts. Under each house was a raised floor or platform of boards
and bamboo poles, about four to six feet from the ground and
open on all sides. On these platforms we could see women
pounding rice and children playing about. The floor of the
house proper was reached by a kind of ladder, consisting of a
block of timber, in which deep notches had been cut to form
steps.
Our guide stopped and spoke to a man who was sitting
on the platform under one of the houses mending a fishing-
net, and then, turning to us, said that the man had consented
to show us his residence. We accordingly mounted the primi
tive ladder which led to it, a task which we found very diffi
cult, though the bare-footed Dyak ascended it with the greatest
ease, and entered the house, which I judged to be about 150
feet long and thirty wide. It was, we were told, one of the
largest in the town and served to accommodate three or four
families. A bamboo partition extended almost the whole length
of the house, dividing it into two compartments. One of these
compartments, which we entered through a sliding-door, was
used by day as a general living-room for all the occupants, and
at night served as a dormitory for the unmarried youths and
men. The other compartment was sub-divided into a number
of smaller rooms, for the married residents and the unmarried
women.
We saw neither chairs nor tables, for these form no part of i

the furniture of an ordinary Dyak house. For seats the Dyak ^
uses mats of finely-plaited rattan stained different colours and
worked into various patterns.
On the walls hung various weapons : mandaus, or swords,
one or two old flint-lock guns, spears, used in hunting the
wild boar, and blow-pipes, through which poisoned darts are
discharged with deadly accuracy.
In one of the smaller rooms I caught sight of two objects,
partly covered by banana leaves, suspended from the roof.
I asked our guide what they were, and, raising his arm, he
moved some of the leaves aside, and I saw that they were dried
human skulls. I got my wife out of the room as quickly as I
could, as I did not wish her to see these ghastly trophies.
I had, of course, heard a good deal about the head-hunting
propensities of the Dyaks, but was under the impression that
the practice had now been abandoned. I learned from the
Rajah's agent, however, that such was not the case, and that in
certain parts of the country it was still carried on, though on
a much less extensive scale than formerly. He said that the
practice had been forbidden under severe penalties by the
present Rajah, who had embraced Mohammedanism, and that
the heads I had seen were probably very old heads, procured
many years before in the time of his predecessor, as none of his
subjects would venture to disobey his commands. It was no
doubt true enough that there was a law against head-hunting,
but that it was always observed I beg leave to doubt, since
this horrible practice forms part of the Dyaks' religion and
will probably never be altogether stamped out.
The Dyaks are of a yellowish-brown copper colour, most of
the women we saw being of lighter complexion than the men.
Their hair was black or very dark brown, coarse and straight,
trimmed over the forehead, but worn long behind by both sexes.
Their eyes were dark and very bright, and they had broad
nostrils and prominent cheek-bones. With some few excep
tions they were below the middle height, but strongly-built and
well-proportioned.
■N
The dress of the men consisted of a tjawat, or waist-

cloth : a long scarf of blue cloth or white cotton, which is
wound several times round the waist, the ends being left to
hang loosely down, one in front and one behind, and a turban
of the same materials, the crown of the head being, however,
left uncovered. The mandau, or sword, which is as much a part
of the male Dyak's dress as was the small sword that of an
English gentleman in the eighteenth century, is suspended by
a cord or belt from the left side.
I was allowed to examine one of these swords. The hilt
was of deer-horn, ornamented with figures of animals, trees
and so forth. The blade, which was about two feet long, was
nearly straight, broad in the middle and tapering at the end
to a sharp point. The edge was sharp as a razor, and I could
well imagine that in war it would prove a most formidable
weapon.
The ladies' wardrobe was scarcely more elaborate than that
of the men. Most of them were uncovered to the waist, from
which hung a petticoat of some bright cloth, in some cases
barely reaching to the knees, in others, nearly touching the
ground. A few of them, however, wore a short, loose jacket,
ornamented with some rough embroidery. Their head-dress
was a tall, conical cap, without a crown, embroidered with beads,
which my wife declared to be very becoming. Some women,
however, who were going off to work in the fields, wore straw
hats with enormous brims, very similar to those we had seen
in Java.
The Dyaks of both sexes, however, made amends for the
scantiness of their clothing by the profusion of their ornaments,
which far exceeded in number those worn by any coloured
people I had seen in my travels. In order to load their persons
with them they submit to the most painful tortures. The
lobes of their ears are pierced in childhood, and gradually
enlarged by the insertion of various heavy rings, until they
form loops sometimes three or four inches long. Often the
lobe gives way under the strain and splits. We saw a woman
who must have had at least a dozen rings in one of her ears, each
of them the size of a five-shilling piece. In addition to mutilat

ing the lobe, the upper part of the ear is pierced or slit in several
places, and feathers, red or blue ribbons, or pieces of coloured
wood inserted.
Ear-rings and ear-ribbons were by no means the only orna
ments worn by the Dyaks. Nearly all the women we saw were
loaded with necklaces, bracelets and amulets of various kinds.
Round their necks were several strings of beads or coloured
stones, and girdles of beads encircled their waists.Their arms
were covered with bracelets of brass or ivory or shells and
coils of copper wire, and their legs were adorned with brass or
tin rings.
Although much interested in what we saw.we were, neverthe
less, very glad to leave the place, as the ground outside the
houses was in a filthy state, it being the Dyak custom to throw
all their garbage out of the windows, where it is devoured by
their pigs, which were rooting about in every direction. It was
no easy matter to pick our way through the heaps of refuse which
lay about, the smell from which was most unpleasant.
"
On our return to the palace," we busied ourselves with
preparations for my performance which was to take place that
night in the hall, or reception room, which I have already
described. I told the Rajah's agent what I should require,
and, under his instructions, in a surprisingly short time a
temporary stage was erected facing the platform on which was
the Rajah's throne, for all the country round abounded in
timber, and the Dyaks are excellent workmen.
About noon, by which time the stage was already well on
its way to completion, we dined, the menu being very much the
same as that of the previous evening, except that chicken took
the place of fish. After dinner we had a much-needed siesta,
for the heat was very great.
Shortly before the time fixed for the entertainment the
Rajah's agent came to conduct us to the hall, to which I had
already paid more than one visit to see that everything was in
order. To our surprise, the Rajah was already there, seated
upon his throne and surrounded by his Court. Those whom we
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supposed to be the highest in rank or their sovereign's

favour stood around the throne ; the rest stood or squatted on
mats below the platform. There was only one person seated
on the platform — a young woman, who sat immediately at
the Rajah's feet. The agent whispered to me that this
young woman was the Rajah's favourite daughter.
The Rajah was a stoutish man, whom I judged to be about
fifty, somewhat taller than most of the Dyaks we had seen, with
a clean-shaven, rather heavy face, and fine and very bright dark
eyes. He was dressed in a costume of green and crimson silk,
decorated with beads and embroidery, with a turban fastened by
a diamond clasp on his head. His plump fingers sparkled with
rings, and in the hilt of his sword, which he wore in a richly-
embroidered sash round his waist, was a large ruby.
His daughter, who had fine eyes like the Rajah and also his
tendency to embonpoint, was in native dress. But her jacket
and petticoat were of bright blue silk instead of cloth, and
embroidered with flowers —it was probably an importation
from China — the ear-rings which adorned her mutilated ears and
the bracelets and anklets which decorated her arms and legs
were of gold, while round her neck were several strings of
different coloured beads and a necklace of agates.
The agent led me to the foot of the throne, and, after a
profound obeisance, presented me to the Rajah and then to
his daughter.
I bowed low to each in turn, and they slightly inclined their
heads in response,the princess's lips parting in a smile which
revealed what might have been considered a fine set of teeth,
had they not been black as Whitby jet from betel-chewing.
The Rajah asked me one or two questions about my travels
through the interpreter and then intimated his desire that the
performance should begin.
I certainly could not complain of any lack of appreciation
on the part of my audience, for they followed every trick I
performed with the most rapt attention.
The princess appeared to be particularly interested, and
signified her approval, not in the Western manner, by clapping
the hands, but in the native style, by a series of short grunts,

which, when the rest of the audience, who evidently were
expected to take their cue from her, followed suit, somewhat
disconcerted me, as I was unaccustomed to this form of ap
plause. When I performed tricks with coins and plucked them
from the air, the grunts became louder and louder, and when
I brought the entertainment to a conclusion by performing the
" Phoenix " Illusion, which I have described elsewhere,
they
honoured me with a perfect fusillade of grunts.
Before the audience dispersed, I was summoned before
the Rajah and informed that he was much pleased with my
entertainment and desired that I should give a second per
formance in two days' time. Meanwhile, we should be well
taken care of, and anything we might wish for procured for us.
Although the agreement had been for one performance
only, and I had no wishto prolong my stay amongst the Dyaks,
I thought it might be unwise to refuse, and accordingly I told
the interpreter to thank the Rajah and to say that it would give
me great pleasure to obey his commands.
Time hung very heavily on our hands during the next two
days. It was very hot, and our rooms in the " palace " were
horribly close and stuffy. We could not bathe in the river, as
we were told that it would be unsafe to do owing to the
so
crocodiles which infested it, and we were unable to obtain any
satisfactory substitute for a bath. Naturally, we did not care
to go into the town again, as its unpleasant odours still seemed
to linger in our nostrils, and so there was nothing to be done
but stroll about the forest which surrounded the palace on
three sides, where the great trees afforded a welcomepro
tection from the broiling sun, or go down to the river to watch
the Dyaks fishing. We were glad indeed when the time came
for the second performance, as on the morrow we should be on
our way back to civilisation.
To judge by the loud and prolonged grunting with which the
tricks I performed were received, mj' second entertainment was
as much appreciated as the first, and at its conclusion the Rajah
again sent for me and intimated that I had given great pleasure
both to him and his daughter. I asked the interpreter to

convey to the Rajah my thanks and that of my wife and
company for the hospitable manner in which we had been
treated, and to bid him and the princess farewell. This he
did, and then turned to me with a puzzled expression on his
face, and said that it was his Highness's desire that I should
defer my departure for the present. I inquired of the agent
whether he wished me to give a third performance, but he
answered that he had said nothing about that. I was much
surprised and annoyed, and was about to refuse, when the agent
gave me a warning look, which decided me to consent, though I
did so with a very bad grace. As I was leaving the dais, the
princess flashed her jet-black teeth at me in an expansive smile.
Somehow or other I did not like that smile !
About an hour later, just as we had finished supper, the
agent entered and asked to speak to me alone. I ought
perhaps to have mentioned that this man was not a Dyak, but
a Malay, a very intelligent man and, I believe, a very honest
fellow. He had been at one time in the service of a British
firm in Singapore and spoke English with some fluency. We
went out into the courtyard, which at this hour was almost
deserted. I noticed that he seemed silent and ill at ease, and
wondered what could be the reason, for, as a rule, he was a
cheerful and loquacious sort of individual.
" Well,"
I " what is it
said, you want to speak to me about
my friend ? You look as if you had had bad news."
" Yes," "
something very serious has happened.
he replied,
I would give much not to have persuaded you to come here,
but I could not have foreseen what would follow."
" Well, "
what is it ? I said impatiently.
"
After you and your company had left the hall, the Rajah
called me back and told me you were a great magician and
had found favour with his daughter. It was her desire that
you should become her husband, and he had consented. And
he charged me to come to you and to offer you her hand in
marriage."
To say that I was astonished would be to express but
M
feebly what I felt at this extraordinary proposition. I was

utterly dumbfounded and stood staring at the speaker, scarcely
able to believe that I had heard aright.
"
Good heavens !
"
I exclaimed at length, " I never heard
anything so ridiculous in my life ! Don't they know that I
am already married, and that no white man has more than one
wife?"
" Yes,
but the princess asked me to assure your wife that
she need have no uneasiness about the future, as she was
prepared to treat her as a sister and an equal."
I began to laugh, but stopped, perceiving that I was in a
very awkward situation. Unless I were very diplomatic in my
refusal, I might give mortal offence to this copper-coloured
potentate and his daughter, and then all sorts of unpleasant
things might happen. I therefore asked the agent to inform
the Rajah that I was deeply sensible of the honour which he
proposed to do me in giving me his daughter in marriage, but
that I was strictly prohibited by my religion from having more
than one wife, and I was therefore obliged to decline.
The agent replied that he would deliver my answer, but
he feared that it would have no effect, as the princess was
evidently determined on marrying me, and the Rajah could
refuse her nothing. It appeared that she was of a very
masterful and ambitious character and practically governed the
province, and she no doubt considered that her importance
would be greatly increased by having as a husband a man
who could perform such miracles as I could.
He took his departure, and I went to my wife and told her
what had happened. She was at first inclined to treat the
affair as a joke, but I pointed out to her that it might easily
become a very serious matter. In these interior provinces the
rulers were autocrats with more power than the late Czar of
Russia possessed. So long as they did not interfere with the
administration of any foreign government they could do as they
liked, and no one troubled to ask questions, much less to call
them to account. If the Rajah and his daughter took offence
at my refusal, they might keep us there indefinitely or even put
us to death, and no one outside would be the wiser, for they

would, of course, take good care to prevent our communicating
with the British authorities at Sesaya.
I slept but little that night, but tossed about wondering
how I was to get out of this wretched imbroglio, and cursing
myself for having been so foolish as to come to Borneo and put
my wife and myself in the power of these semi-savages. Soon
after breakfast the agent arrived, and I saw at once by his
manner that he was the bearer of no good news. He glanced
uneasily at my wife, but I told him that he might speak freely
before her, as she wished to hear everything.
"
I gave your answer to the Rajah," said he. " The prin
cess was with him, and, after she had heard what I had to say,
she ordered me to withdraw to the end of the room, and she
and the Rajah talked together for some time in low tones.
Then the Rajah bade me approach and said that he under
stood the difficulty about your religion, but there was an
easy way out of it. As I told you the other day, the Rajah
is a Mohammedan ; he became one some years ago. At least,
he professes that faith, though there is very little of the Moham
medan about him except his harem, which was probably the chief
reason for his change of religion, since the Dyak religion does
not allow a man to have more than one wife. The princess has
not yet followed her father's example, but now she proposes
that both she and yourself shall become Mohammedans. Then
there will be no obstacle to your marriage, so far as religion is
concerned.
" The
Rajah's imam is at present away, but he returns in
two days' time, when it is proposed that you shall both be
received into the Mohammedan faith and married according to
the rites of that religion. The Rajah desired me to say that
your assistants must remain here until after the marriage, when
they will if they wish be conveyed back to Sesaya. If, however,
they prefer to stay here altogether, they will be provided with
lands and houses and wives."
I glanced at my wife, who had grown very white, and
turning to the agent inquired what he would advise me to do.
<S,
" I should
advise you," he replied,
"
to return a favourable
answer which will put the Rajah and his daughter off their guard
and give you time to think of some means of escape."
" And can you suggest any way
"
I
? asked.
" Yes these Dyaks are very ignorant and very credulous.
;
They believe you to be a very great magician, gifted with

supernatural powers, and are firmly convinced that you really
perform all that you pretend to, though I, who have travelled
far and lived much amongst white people, know that when you
make persons and objects appear and disappear you are merely
performing clever tricks. It is possible that you may be able
to devise some means of persuading them that you are dead
or have spirited yourself away, and thus effect your escape."
I clutched at his suggestion as a drowning man might
clutch at a lifebelt, and, after he had left, bearing with him a
message to the Rajah to the effect that I consented to the
arrangement which her Highness his daughter had been
graciously pleased to propose, my wife and I sent for my chief
assistant and proceeded to hold a council of war. After a
short discussion, it was decided that my best chance of escape
" "
lay in the Phoenix Illusion. I was to get the Rajah's consent
to give another performance in celebration of my approaching
nuptials with his daughter, which would conclude with the
" Phoenix " Illusion ; but on this occasion, in place of using my
wife as the sacrifice, I should enter the fiery furnace myself, and,
in due course, descend through the trap-door to the floor below.
There two of my assistants would be awaiting me with a large
property-basket, and, instead of rising again from my own ashes,
as my wife had done, I should enter the basket, which my
assistants would immediately close and lock, and lie perdu
until, aided by the lamentations of my wife and my company,
the audience had persuaded themselves that I had really been
consumed in the flames.
The Rajah willingly consented to my giving the proposed
performance, which was fixed for the following evening. But,
in order to assure the success of our plan, it was necessary for me
to obtain his permission for my assistants, who had respectfully
declined his Highness's offer to provide them with wives and

lands if they elected to remain with me, to return with then-
luggage to Sesaya immediately after the entertainment. For,
of course, it would be impossible for me to remain for many
hours imprisoned in the property-basket.
By a fortunate circumstance, that evening one of my
company had a slight return of the malaria which had attacked
him in Java, and I accordingly told the agent to represent to the
Rajah that the man, who he was to say was a near relative of
mine, was very ill and would certainly die if he were not
conveyed as soon as possible to Sesaya for medical attention.
After some demur, that potentate, who, thanks to the
agent, was now fully persuaded that I was, not only willing but
positively anxious to enter his family, agreed to allow my
company to take their departure after the performance, and
gave orders for the praus to be in readiness to take them to the
village where the horses had been left to await our return.
The next morning I received a summons to the Rajah's
presence, and was conducted to a room in which the agent
informed me his Highness was accustomed to give private
audiences to persons of importance. The Rajah, who was
seated on a divan which was raised a little above the level of
the floor, with the princess squatting as usual on a mat at his
feet, smiled upon me most graciously, and instructed the
interpreter to inform me that he was very pleased that I was
willing to embrace his faith and become his son-in-law, and that
next to himself and his children I should be the first person in
his realm. Then the princess approached me, and taking my
hands in hers, kissed me solemnly three times, once on the
forehead and once on either cheek. It was a trying moment,
but, by a great effort, I managed to preserve my composure,
and, raising one of the lady's hands to my lips, gravely saluted
it.
Muchto my relief, the Rajah then intimated that the
audience was at an end, and I bowed myself out.
When the time arrived for the performance, I proceeded,
with my wife and assistants, to the hall. The audience was
much larger than on two previous occasions, and my

the
appearance on the stage was greeted with loud grunts of
applause. Apparently, the forthcoming matrimonial event, if
not officially announced, was already an open secret. I felt more
nervous than I ever had in my life, and how I contrived to get
through my different tricks without any mishap has always
been a mystery to me. At last, the time came for the " Phoenix
"
Illusion, and my wife was preparing to step into the fire as she
had done at the previous performances, when I brushed her aside
and leaped into the fire myself. As the flames began to rise
around me, I waved my hand to the princess, who uttered a
piercing shriek and, springing to her feet, rushed towards the
stage, evidently with the intention of plucking her intended
husband from the fire.
But the people about her, imagining that she would be really
endangering her life, seized and held her, and I went down
through the trap-door into the property-basket, and was
promptly locked in by the two assistants who were waiting for
me.
For some minutes there was the hush of expectancy in the
hall the audience was waiting for me to rise from my ashes,
;
as my wife had risen. Then an indescribable tumult arose ;

people rushed wildly about over my head, and the place re
sounded with cries and lamentations. This went on for some
time, when one of my assistants came and whispered to me : —
"
It's all right, sir
they think you're really burned up,
;
and the princess has been going on something awful. We'll

have you aboard the boat in half-an-hour."
He went away, promising to return for me in a few minutes,
but the time passed, and he did not come. I began to get very
uneasy, fearing that the Rajah and his daughter were not
satisfied that I was really dead and had decided to detain my
wife and company. In which event I might have to remain in
that confounded basket until I could endure it no longer, and
would be obliged to resuscitate myself. Presently the lights
in the hall were extinguished, leaving me in total darkness, which
naturally did not tend to make me feel the more cheerful,
At length, to my intense relief, I saw a light approaching and

heard the voices of two of my assistants. They told me that
everything was all right, and tha,t we were about to start on
our journey, but that I must on no account show myself, and
must keep as still as possible, until we reached the village where
we were to land, as the Rajah was sending an escort with us.
Then they picked up the basket and carried me down to the
river.
I began to congratulate myself on the success which had
attended our scheme, but I was not out of danger yet ; indeed,
the worst part of my experience was to come.
While my assistants were attending to the rest of our
luggage, some of the Dyaks picked up my basket and put it on
the prau containing the escort, which immediately started,
as their orders were to precede the other boats. My people
shouted to them to bring it back, but they did not understand
and rowed on. Two of the escort came and sat down close to
the basket, and I scarcely dared to breathe, for there was a
small opening in the lid, which had been made to give me air,
and had I made any sound to attract their attention, they would
have been bound to discover me. They moved away after
a time, but then some mosquitoes arrived to keep me company,
and I passed a night of torment, being unable to defend myself
against the attacks of the bloodthirsty insects, from fear of
making a noise which might lead to my being discovered.
At length, after what seemed an eternity, we arrived, just
as day was breaking, at the village where we were to land, and
a few minutes later, the praus and the escort having departed,
I was set free. I felt like nothing on earth and promptly
collapsed. I had been cooped up in that infernal basket for
six mortal hours, the longest I had ever spent in my life !
Later in the day I learned what had happened after I
disappeared through the trap into the property-basket. It
appears that my wife waited for some minutes for my expected
resurrection, and then, with admirably-simulated anguish,
rushed to the front of the stage, cried out that I was indeed
dead and would return no more, and sank down in an apparent
swoon. Thereupon the like a creature distraught,

princess,
rushed upon the stage, followed by all the ladies of the Court,
and began to bewail my untimely demise at the top of her
voice, the other ladies mingling their tears and lamentations
with hers, as etiquette apparently demanded. This was the
hubbub which I had heard over my head as I lay in the
basket.
The delay in fetching me away which had caused me so
much uneasiness was due to the fact that my wife and my assist
ants had been summoned before the Rajah and closely
questioned, through the interpreter, as to why my super
natural powers had suddenly failed me. My assistants professed
themselves unable to explain it, but my wife declared that it
was because I had omitted to pronounce the usual incantations
before entering the fire. Asked if she could account for the
omission, she boldly replied that it was her belief that I had been
suddenly stricken with remorse, because, led astray by love
and ambition, I had consented to abandon the faith of my
fathers in order to espouse the beautiful daughter of the Rajah,
and had resolved to sacrifice my life to appease the wrath of
Heaven.
This answer appeared to cause the Rajah considerable
disquietude, and he bade her and my assistants hasten their
departure, lest evil should befall him and his realm.
\
CHAPTER XV
Singapore again — Saigon — Terrific heat — Flying-bats in the theatre —
Hong-Kong — Shanghai — Performances in the Chinese city —
Burning crackers to drive the devil away — Great success of my
entertainment with the Celestials — Canton — My manager employs
a hose against the Chinese who are endeavouring to get a free
sight of the performance — We are besieged in the theatre — Sad
fate of a favourite dog — We sail for Japan — A typhoon — On our
arrival at Nagasaki we are placed in quarantine — An unpleasant
fortnight — We are liberated and proceed to Kobe — Embarrassing
experience while taking a bath at Kioto — Remark of Arthur
Roberts on hearing of this — A Japanese dinner-party — Sad effect
of drinking saki — The cherry dance at Kioto — Danjaro, the Henry
Irving of Japan— His wonderful acting— Japanese and Chinese
theatres — Fires in Japan— Fiji — Honolulu —We sail for San
Francisco en route for England — Invaluable assistance rendered
me by my wife during my tour in the Antipodes and the East.
From Borneo we went again to Singapore, where we had a

return engagement to fulfil, and thence to Saigon, Cochin
China, en route for Hong Kong.
I
At Saigon was offered the theatre, with staff, lighting and
everything free of charge, provided I would give a performance.
I had, however, some difficulty in getting a piano for my
accompanist, as there was none in the theatre, and I was told
that there was only one in the town, and that belonged to the
Mayor. As I could not very well give a performance without
a piano, I called on the Mayor and explained to him the predica
ment I was in, upon which he very kindly offered to lend his
piano and even paid for its cartage to the theatre.
We had to open the box-office for the sale of tickets from
five to seven in the morning, as the heat during the day is so
great that no one will go out, unless absolutely obliged, and at
mid-day, I was told, no one is ever seen in the streets except

Englishmen and dogs. It certainly was about the hottest
place I had ever struck, and the first night I performed there I
had to leave the stage at least half-a-dozen times to put on a
fresh collar, and my evening-dress coat was soaked with
perspiration.
The theatre was built with openings between the boards,
like the Novelty Theatre at Bombay, and during the whole
evening flying-bats were circling round the stage, some coming
so close as to hit me in the face with their wings.They are
horrid-looking creatures,and my wife nearly fainted when, just
before the performance began, one got into her dressing-room.
She rushed out in terror, saying that there was a thing like a
rat with wings just over her mirror. We stayed for a week
at Saigon and, notwithstanding the heat and the bats, had a
very enjoyable time and were quite sorry to leave.
From Saigon we went to Hong Kong, and from there to
Shanghai, where we opened to an audience of over 2,000 at the
Lyceum Theatre, a theatre run by European amateurs. After
playing there for two weeks, I went to the No 1. Theatre in the
Chinese City. Imade a great success here, though, as I heard
no applause, I was at first afraid that my performance did
not appeal to them. But I was told afterwards that the
Chinese, like the natives in some of the other countries which
I have visited, do not applaud to show their appreciation, but
merely grunt.
In China no woman is allowed to appear on the stage with
a man. The performers must be either all men or all women.
If all men, the men have to play women's parts, and if all
women, the women have to play men's parts. In consequence,
I had to give my performance here without the assistance of
my wife. Even in showing pictures on the cinematograph, I
had to deposit 1,000 dollars, as a guarantee that I would not
exhibit a picture in which a woman appeared.
Immediately the curtain was lowered, the proprietors of
the theatre set fire to hundreds of Chinese crackers, which were
hung on long poles and which they had secretly planted near
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the footlights. They held these crackers over every part of

the stage where I had stood and also in my dressing-room.
This was done for the purpose of chasing the devil and his
attendant demons away and of purifying the atmosphere, the
burning of this compound of saltpetre being apparently con
sidered as an antidote to the sulphurous presence of his Satanic
Majesty.
My entertainment proved so great a draw that, though it
did not start until eight o'clock in the evening, there were
queues of Chinese outside the theatre as early as 10 a.m. They
brought their meals with them and small stoves, on which they
cooked their dinners while waiting for the show to open. The
Chinaman never grudges money for his amusements, and it
was no uncommon tiling for a wealthy Chinese merchant to
take a score or more of the best seats for his wives, assistant-
wives and other members of his family. In the language of the
local Press, I had got Chow (the cant term for the heathen
Chinee) by the pigtail, and the result of my seances amongst the
Celestials spelt cash with a very large " C."
At Canton, to which we went on leaving Shanghai, there
was a curious custom in existence somewhat resembling the
ancient Curfew. Every street there has a gate which is locked
at eight o'clock, and, in order to get an audience, I had to secure
permission from the Totai (or Mayor) for these gates to be left
open. I also had to get the Totai to furnish my wife and myself
with an escort when we walked about the town, as there was at
that time a very strong feeling against Europeans amongst
part of the population, and we were continually being called
" "
foreign devils and were sometimes pelted with stones.
One night, during my entertainment, some of the side-
windows of the theatre were opened owing to the heat, and a
crowd of Chinese congregated at them to enjoy a free sight of
the performance. My manager went out and ordered them
away, but no sooner was his back turned than they were all
there again, and this went on for some time. Eventually, he
lost patience, and, getting a hose, drenched them with water.
When the performance was over, we learned that a crowd of
Chinamen — armed with sticks and stones —were waiting at the

stage-door, ready to attack us when we made our appearance,
and we were strongly advised not to venture out. Consequently,
we had to spend the night in our dressing-rooms.
During my engagement at Canton I lost a valuable dog, a
great pet of my wife's, which I used in my performances, and,
though I offered a reward, we got no news of him. However,
just before leaving Canton, while removing our baggage from
the theatre, we found the bones of the dog underneath the
stage. So, apparently, some of the Chinese had stolen and
eaten him, out of revenge for the drenching they had
received.
From Shanghai we sailed for Nagasaki. Our advance-
manager had, of course, preceded us to Japan, which was lucky
for him in more ways than one, as about three days out from
Shanghai we were caught in a typhoon. During all my travels
this was the first typhoon which I had ever been in, and I sin
cerely hope it will be the last, as the experience was one I am
never likely to forget. It came on without any warning, and
our steamer seemed to be lifted clean out of the water and
turned right round, until her stern was in the opposite direction
from the one in which we had been proceeding. The typhoon
lasted for about twenty-four hours, and during that time all
the passengers were in a terrible state. sailors
The Chinese
behaved in the most cowardly manner, lashing themselves to
the masts and other parts of the vessel and leaving their wives
and other Chinese women to navigate the boat. Several of the
Chinese were washed overboard, and after the typhoon had
subsided the sea was literally strewn with the bodies of those
who had been lost from our own and other vessels.
Eventually, we arrived safely at Nagasaki, and stopped just
outside the harbour, when the police and Custom House officers
came on board with letters and telegrams for the passengers, and
I received a telegram from our advance-manager informing me
that the theatre at Kobe, where we were to open, was sold out
for our first performance.
I was naturally very pleased at this, but my satisfaction
-■.
.3
3
up
a
o
\4
i
0
n
.3
g
did not last very long, for soon after the Health Officer came
on board we learned that a case of bubonic plague had been
discovered amongst the crew, in consequence of which we would
not be allowed to proceed on our journey. We were to be
taken to Nagasaki and put in quarantine on an island which is
used for that purpose.
In due course we were taken in boats to this island and all
our belongings as well. When we arrived at the quarantine
station, the first thing they did was to separate the men and
women. Some Health Officers took charge of the former, and
some Japanese women of the latter. The men were conducted
to bathrooms, each one having a bathroom to himself, and
told to get into a bath-tub which had been prepared with some
powerful kind of disinfectant, and the officers stood by and
saw that we washed ourselves thoroughly with this concoction,
which smelt most horribly. My wife told me afterwards that
she went through the same performance.
When we came out of the bath, we were given some Japanese-
made clothes to put on, as all our own clothes had to be dis
infected, and you should have seen the sights we looked in
these grotesque-fitting and ill-shaped garments. We were
then taken to a large room and given some food and tea, and
afterwards shown where we were to sleep at night. All the
men slept in one long room, and the ladies in another.
The quarantine station was the only building on the island.
We were kept there for over two weeks, which seemed more
like two years to us, as we were without any news from the
outside world in the shape of letters or newspapers. Mean
time, the clothes which we were wearing when we arrived,
and also all the clothes in our trunks, had been put in an
oven and baked, this being their mode of fumigating apparel.
When our time was up, and they were given back to us, the
sight they presented was a thing to marvel at. All my wife's
and my own clothes were practically ruined. They had shrunk
until they were the size of children's clothes, my trousers being
up to my knees and my coat-sleeves up to my elbows. But we
were so pleased to get away from the island, that I verily believe
1 go A Modern Mystery Merchant
we would have gone as Adam and Eve rather than remain there
any longer.
On our arrival at Kobe we were met by our advance-manager,
who told us that all the money had had to be returned to the
people who had bought tickets for the opening night, but that
our coming was very eagerly awaited, and that he did not doubt
the house would be sold out again, so soon as we announced
our first performance. This, indeed, proved to be the case, and
our opening night was such a success that we played to crowded
houses during the whole of our stay at Kobe.
From Kobe we went to Kioto, and from there to Osaki,
Yokohama and Tokio, playing everywhere to large and appre
ciative audiences and being treated with much courtesy and
kindness.
I had an amusing, but decidedly embarrassing, experience
at our hotel at Kioto. On my arrival, I rang for the chamber
maid and asked her to have a bath prepared for me. She went
away to get it ready, and, meantime, I undressed and put on
my pyjamas. Presently, the maid returned and conducted me
to the bathroom, but, instead of leaving me, as I, of course,
expected her to do, she locked the door, took up my flannel
and, after soaping it well, stood there, apparently waiting for
me to get into the bath. I began to take off my pyjamas,
but the girl still stood there, and eventually I got into the bath,
and she sponged and washed me as though I had been a child.
When I returned to my room and told my wife of what
had happened, she said : —
" You must
certainly have no more baths while you are
in Japan."
On speaking to the proprietor of the hotel about it later, I
was told that this was the custom of the country.
One night, after my return to England, I was relating my
experiences at the Eccentric Club, in London. Arthur Roberts,
the well-known comedian, happened to be present, and when I
came to the tale of my first bath in Japan he jumped up,
exclaiming : —
"I "
say, when does the first boat leave for Japan ?
>
"
Passenger Ship Rohilla," Quarantined outside Nagasaki Harbour, Japan.
p. 190.
During our visit to Tokio, I made the acquaintance of a

wealthy Japanese merchant, who invited my wife and myself
to dinner at his house. When we arrived, we were asked to
take off our shoes and were then conducted into the room
in which we were to dine, where we had to sit cross-legged on
the floor, as there are no chairs in Japanese houses. Dinner was
served, and between each course a troupe of Geisha girls, which
had been specially engaged for the occasion, entertained us by
singing, dancing and playing on musical instruments. The
whole thing seemed rather weird, but it was a pleasant novelty.
At intervals during the meal a large bowl was passed round
containing the national drink saki (made of rice). It was
almost tasteless, and I felt that one could drink a dozen bowls
of it without it affecting one. But I was told by my host to be
very careful not to drink too much as, since I was not used to
it, it might go to my head. I said : —
" it tastes
Why, one could drink a dozen bowls of this ;
"
like nothing on earth !
I could hardly touch some of the food. The fish, for in
stance, was not cooked at all, but served raw, with a little
sauce. The only things I really did enjoy in the whole dinner
were the salad, which was made of chrysanthemums and was
really delightful, and the sweets. I was told that no one is
supposed to leave anything on their plates, to do so being
considered an insult to your host, and if you really cannot finish
what you have you must take home what is left. You are
also supposed to take your plate home with you, as Japanese
etiquette prescribes that no one else shall eat off that plate
again.
We left after a very pleasant evening, but when I got into
the street I found I could not stand ; the saki had gone to my
head. It had the same effect on my wife, and we had to be
taken home to our hotel in rickshaws and put to bed.
I was also invited to dinner by Tenichi, the renowned
magician. He was the inventor of the celebrated Water
Trick, in which he would produce fountains from all kinds of
receptacles and instruments and from his own body. He
gave me a very good time, but I took care not to touch

any saki on this occasion !
During our stay at Kioto we had the pleasure of witnessing
the Cherry Dance, which is one of the prettiest sights of Japan.
It took place at the native theatre, which looks from the
outside more like a second-hand shoe-shop, owing to the fact
that all the natives must leave their sandals and clogs at the
door. We were shown up a narrow flight of stairs into a very
small waiting-room, where, with several other sightseers, we had
to wait our turn for the ceremonial tea which is given to all
who take tickets for the upper and best part of the house.
Presently, we were invited to enter another small room, con
spicuous for its cleanliness, in which stood a number of small
black-lacquer tables, in the form of a square, at which little
stools were placed for seating accommodation. One corner
of the room was partitioned off, and beside the partition stood
two other small lacquer tables, on which were bowls for making
tea.
When we were seated like so many school children and
silent as mutes, from the comer of the room a young Japanese
girl made her appearance, beautifully attired in a black satin
kimono, exquisitely embroidered, the under kimono being of
white silk, and, like all the indoor kimonos, worn very long, so
that it trailed on the ground all the way round.completely hiding
the feet. With this was worn a very bright brocaded silk
obi, with long sash-ends instead of the ordinary short bow.
This is the ordinary full dress for state occasions.
The young lady's hair was most wonderfully and perfectly
dressed. She was also a very pretty girl. She sat down at
one of the tables and, taking up a small square of red silk,
folded it crosswise very neatly and methodically ; but, from the
leisurely manner in which she did it, one would have thought
that she had a thousand years in which to accomplish her
task. Next she took up a Japanese teacup without handles
and gently wiped it inside and out, and so with each cup in
succession, until all were ready. Then, when the water boiled
in the large bowl, she put in the tea, and there appeared two
>
little girls, quite tots of about seven or eight years of age, who
brought us each a round, sugar-coated ball made of some kind of
sweetstuff. It was horrible and uneatable, but the little tots
were delightfullyquaint and pretty in their bright red em
broidered kimonos and gorgeous obis, with their hair most
daintily dressed.
The elder girl now ladled out the tea with a large wooden
ladle into the cups and handed them to these little tots, who
carried them round. After handing a cup to each person, they
would bow very low and retire most gracefully. We all drank
the tea, which seemed to me very poor stuff and most nauseous.
Those who did not eat their cake or sweetmeat were supposed
to take it away with them, and were given a piece of paper for
that purpose.
On leaving the tea-room, we were shown into the theatre.
One performance having just finished the audience had not yet
quite dispersed, so we had to wait a few minutes. There were
no seats anywhere in the whole building, even in the balcony
where we found ourselves. So we had to squat on the floor,
which we did in true Japanese fashion, and I don't believe I
" " so
ever had pins and needles badly before in all my life.
The theatre was a small building, with a small, low stage
which reminded one of a marionette performance. On each
side of the theatre was a kind of raised platform, the same
height as the stage, which I learned afterwards was a con
tinuation of the stage. Now the audience began to come in,
thronging and filling the lower part of the house, squatting on
the floor, pushing, crowding and joking, and shouting to one
another from all parts of the building. Some of them carried
lanterns, and in so careless a manner that it seemed a most
marvellous thing that they did not set the place on fire. They
walked about everywhere, even on the stage, without any fear
of being warned off. The place was so crowded with people
that we were hemmed in and could not move.
The footlights, which were enormous candles protected by
pieces of tin, were now lit. There were two gangways, on either
side of the stage leading from the auditorium, up which came
N
little Geisha girls in very bright kimonos, singing and dancing

and posing with their little fans. The curtain then rose, and
the girls went on the stage, where they continued the same
performance. The scenery and background were cherry-trees
in full bloom. On each of the other two stages on either side
of the auditorium, occupying the same position as the stage-
boxes would in our theatres, sat twelve girls, playing samosans
and other instruments. They were all dressed in blue kimonos,
with their hair wonderfully arranged. They formed what we
should call the orchestra. They sang and played in unison
with the girls on the centre stage, making a very pretty picture
and also a charming performance. Finally, the girls who
occupied the centre stage departed down each gangway-plank
in the same way as they had arrived, and I wondered where
their dressing-rooms could be. Afterwards came several
little sketches of Japanese life.
Their method of changing scenery is distinctly peculiar.
Instead of being pulled up, as in our theatres, it turned upside
down, showing another scene painted on the other side. The
actors continued to play during the change. The performance
continued from early morning until late at night, and no doubt
they are the originators of the continuous shows, as well as of
the revolving stage, which we saw for the first time in Tokio.
I tried to arrange to bring the Cherry Dance, with its original
actresses, to England, but the Japanese Government would
not allow the girls to leave the country without a guarantee of
their safe return. I am quite sure that the Cherry Dance as I
saw it in Kioto would make a sensation in London or in any
other of the big European cities.
While at Tokio, I had the good fortune to witness a play in
which the great actor Danjuro, the Henry Irving of Japan, was
appearing. His acting was perfectly wonderful, and at times
the whole audience would be in tears, and, though I did not
understand a word of what was said, his performance made
a profound impression on me.
Danjuro, I may here remark, is the stage-name of a family
of actors which has been famous in Japan for something like a
Scene on Revolving Stage in a Japanese Theatre. (Performer
in foreground is walking down long platform leading to front
theatre entrance, still acting.)
p. 194.
hundred and fifty years. The first of the fine was Ichikawa
Danjuro, who at the time of his death in 1704—he was murdered
on the stage by a fellow-player — had long been the leading
actor of Yedo. His son, Kuzo, then a lad of sixteen, succeeded
to his stage-name. Kuzo made a journey to the shrine of Marika,
some forty miles from Yedo, to invoke the god to aid him in
his art, and when he, in his turn, became a famous actor, he
attributed his success to the interposition of Marika and took
"
in gratitude the name of Maritaya as his trade-name."
Every actor in Japan has since then had three names ; his
own name, which seldom becomes public, his stage-name, by
which he is always known, and his trade-name, which dis
tinguishes his branch from others of the same professional
family. All Danjuro's pupils took the stage-name of Ichikawa,
but some of them, on subsequently making their mark, founded
their own historic families with new trade-names, which were
also bestowed on all their pupils. In the theatre the audience
shout out the actor's trade-name, where in other countries he
would be greeted with plaudits. Beyond this distinction
between the various branches of the same professional family,
the trade-name appears to be of little use.
In all there have been nine actors of the name of Danjuro,
though for nearly twenty years after the death of the eighth the
name was in abeyance, when it was assumed by his half-brother,
the great tragedian whose marvellous acting so impressed me.
On entering the theatre we had to remove our shoes, which

were hung upon pegs in the hall-way and a metal check handed
to us, after which we were given a pair of slippers to put on
before going into the auditorium. In Japanese theatres
scenery is used, but there is neither curtain nor act-drop. The
stages are made to revolve, so that, while one scene is being
acted another is being set at the back, and at the conclusion
of the scene which is being performed the stage revolves, and
the new scene comes to the front, thus doing away with the
necessity for any interval. When properties have to be
brought on the stage, or removed, this is done by two men
dressed in black alpaca,their heads covered by black hoods,

and their hands encased in black gloves. Thus dressed, the
audience are not supposed to see them. At the side of the stage
is a sort of box, in which sits a man with a book, who sings or
chants from this book before a scene begins, to tell you what
is going to take place.
The Chinese theatres are entirely different from those of
Japan. In China the scene in the auditorium beggars descrip
tion, but the acting is of a high order. Very little or any stage
scenery is used, and the Philistine may be prone to think that
this detracts from the realism of the play. On the contrary,
it affords almost unlimited opportunity for the exercise of
gestures, posturing and implication on the part of the actors.
For instance, in the event of a scene by a graveside, the grave
may be represented by a small dome-like structure of lath and
canvas, which one of the numerous attendants carries in and
places on the stage. Or, if a vehicle is being represented, a
super will walk on with a sign-board, on which is painted :
" This
is a carriage." Similarly, on entering a house, the
actor goes through the movements natural to crossing a thres
hold, such as stepping over the sill, stooping to avoid striking his
head against the lintel and so forth.
One of the things which most astonishes a foreigner in
Japan is a fire. So soon as a fire breaks out in a house, all the
furniture and everything of any value it contains are thrown out
by the occupants, for, as the houses are made of wood and
paper, they are very quickly consumed. On the engines arriv
ing on the scene, instead of starting at once to play the hose on
the flames, the chief of the Fire Brigade and his colleagues
hold a sort of council of war and deliberate as to the best way
to extinguish the fire. It is really comical, for by the time
they have made up their minds how to set about it, probably a
dozen houses have been burned down.
On leaving Japan we sailed for Fiji, on the way to Hono
lulu, where we were to take the steamer for San Francisco.
In Fiji the natives paid for admission to my entertainment
in vegetables, poultry, pigs and so forth. If a pig were handed
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz in Rickshaws. (This Idol of the Great
Buddha is believed to be the largest in Japan.)
p. 198.
X
in at the pay-box, two persons were passed in to the cheapest

part of the house. In exchange for a goat I gave a four-
shilling seat. While for a sack of potatoes three of the best seats
were allowed. Some of the poorer people brought a cabbage or
two apiece for admission.
The Fijians are a peculiar people ; they must be about
the most punctual race on earth. For the evening performance,
like the Chinese, they invariably assembled outside the theatre
at nine o'clock in the morning, bringing their meals with them.
If a native of Fiji wants to catch a boat which leaves at ten
o'clock at night, he arrives at the pier at seven in the morning.
They firmly believed I was gifted with supernatural powers,
and on one occasion a Fiji chief, after witnessing one of my illu
sions, jumped on to the stage and, kneeling at my feet, kissed my
hand in the most devoted fashion ; and when I was leaving
Fijidozens of the natives came down to the steamer and
decorated my wife and myself with garlands of flowers.
On our arrival at Honolulu we found the theatre occupied
by an amateur company, and had to wait over a week before
it was at our disposal. I
performed there for a fortnight and
then sent my entire company with most of my luggage and
paraphernalia direct to England. My wife and I sailed for
San Francisco, as I wanted to visit my relatives, whom I had
not seen for nine years, before returning to London.
Throughout the whole of my three years' tour in the

Antipodes and the East, my wife, Mile. D'Alton, accompanied
me, and the assistance she rendered me in my performances
was simply invaluable. It would be difficult to praise too
highly the pluck and endurance she displayed, often in the
most trying circumstances.
It is no easy matter for a woman to travel where my wife
went. Much of our travelling had to be done on the wobbling
backs of camels, in rolling hoodahs on the spines of elephants,
or in jolting palanquins. Women do not take readily to these sort
of conveyances, but my wife seemed positively to enjoy them.
Itinerant showing in the Orient is a trying business for all
concerned, and, besides the fatigue of travel, the journey from

point to point along the highway never fails to excite the
curiosity of the population, and from the Red Sea to the Indies,
from Bombay to Singapore, the travellers are beset by swarms
of dark-skinned natives, importunate beggars, crippled or
afflicted with all kinds of loathsome diseases, thieves and what
not. To be mobbed by such crowds, as we often were, was a
singularly alarming experience for a woman, but my wife
never showed any trace of fear.
She was the first woman illusionist ever seen in India, and
she had to overcome the prejudice which exists in the East
against the publicity of her sex. But she succeeded beyond all
our hopes, and aroused among the natives, who could scarcely
believe their eyes when they saw her, in our aerial illusions,
walking and turning somersaults in the air, seemingly without
any support whatever, an admiration almost amounting to
worship. They were firmly convinced that she was possessed
"
of occult powers and called her the Wonder Woman," and it
was no uncommon thing to see them go down on their knees
and bow their heads to the ground as she passed by.
■
CHAPTER XVI
I buy a film of the Corbett-Fitzsimmons fight — It proves to be a fake
— I determine to get my money back— A risky experiment, which,
however, is attended with success — Return to England — I take a
house at Brixton Hill— My curio room— I meet with a serious
accident while rehearsing at the Metropolitan Music Hall and am
unable to perform for three months — I present " Iris, the Mystic
Cameleon," at the Empire.
While I was performing in Christchurch, New Zealand, where I

exhibited the first cinematograph which had ever been seen
there, I learned that Robert Fitzsimmons, the well-known
boxer, who was a native of this town, and had recently defeated
my old schoolfellow Jem Corbett, the American champion, had
had a film of the fight taken. I thought it would be a fine
feather in my cap if I could get the Australian and New Zealand
rights of this film, and that it would prove a big money-maker,
particularly in New Zealand, where Fitzsimmons was so well
known and had become a popular hero.
Accordingly, I cabled to a brother-in-law of mine in San
Francisco asking him to try to get me at any cost the film of
the Corbett-Fitzsimmons fight and send it at once to New
Zealand. I got a reply saying that William Brady had secured
the Australian rights of this film and that it could not be had
at any price. I
was, of course, greatly disappointed, but about
a week later I received another cable from my brother-in-law,
who informed me that a second film of the fight had been taken
by a firm of film-producers in Philadelphia, and could be
bought for a thousand dollars (£200). I immediately cabled
the money, with instructions to send the film immediately, and
meantime boomed and advertised it as coming shortly to New

Zealand.
The film duly came, and, on the morning of its arrival, after
removing it from the Custom House, I invited representatives
of all the Press at Christchurch to a private show of the picture.
Alas ! the film was a fake ! The combatants were not Cor-
bett and Fitzsimmons, but two men made up to look like
" "
them, with wigs on, and at one stage of the fight the man
who was supposed to be Fitzsimmons nearly got his wig
knocked off. It was the most wretched thing I had ever
seen ! After the performance I was advised by all the Press not
to show this film to the public under any consideration, as,
Fitzsimmons being a native of the town, everybody knew
him, and they might raise a riot, which would ruin my reputa
tion all through Australia and New Zealand. So the film was
never shown there, and I was greatly annoyed at the money
I had lost in purchasing this worthless picture.
When I sailed for San Francisco I took with me the cine
matograph machine and all the films which I had been showing,
including the faked Corbett-Fitzsimmons fight, in the hope of
being able to sell the lot to someone there, as I had no further
use for them. The first thing I did when I met my brother-in-
law was to pitch into him for sending me that worthless picture
which had cost me £200, but he said that he knew nothing about
films and had no idea that the thing was a fake, and so I had to
forgive him.
A couple of days later, while walking along Market Street,
one of the main streets of San Francisco, I happened
to pass a
very large, empty shop. An idea occurred to me, and turning
to my brother-in-law, who was with me, I said :
" See here I
I've got a great idea how I can get back the
thousand dollars I lost over that faked film. Let's go and
find out where the landlord of that empty shop we've just
passed fives."
We went to see the landlord, and I asked him what he would
charge me for one day's rent of his empty shop on Market
Street.
" What do "

you want it for ? said he.
" To show a I
picture," replied.
He did not ask me what kind of picture I wanted to show,
probably thinking it was an oil-painting, and agreed to let me
have the shop the following Sunday for ten dollars ; which I
paid him at once.
"
What on earth do you want that empty shop for on
"
Sunday ? inquired my brother-in-law as we left the office.
"
To show the Corbett-Fitzsimmons fight," I answered.
He looked at me in astonishment.
" "
Good heavens ! he exclaimed.
" You're
surely not going
to show that thing here if it really is as bad as you say ?
Why, Corbett used to live here, and the people know him as
well as the people in Christchurch knew Fitzsimmons. They'll
see at once that it's faked and burn the place down !
"
" Never mind about that," said I. " Has the real Corbett-
Fitzsimmons fight been shown here yet ?
"
" No, not
yet."
" Then that's all I want to know. I'll take my chance
about there being a row."
My brother-in-law begged me not to show the film on any
account, but I told him that I had made up my mind to do
so and it was no good his trying to dissuade me, and, going
to a sign-painter's, I had a large calico sign painted, with the
following inscription :
Sunday next, from 10 a.m. to midnight.

Burlesque of
The Great Corbett-Fitzsimmons Fight.
Admission 25 cents.
The Great Corbett-Fitzsimmons Fight " were in

"
The words
" "
extra large letters, and the words Burlesque of in very small
letters.
This sign I displayed in the window of the shop, and from
the interest it seemed to arouse amongst the passers-by I felt
sure that I should have a full house when Sunday came,
I had the screen on which the picture was to be shown

put up at the back of the shop, and fixed my machine in the
front part, and on Sunday morning I put on an old and none-
too-clean suit and an old cap and made myself look like a
workman.
Long before 10 a.m. there was an enormous queue of people
waiting for admission to my improvised cinema, and the police
had to regulate the traffic. From this I judged that few of my
"
prospective patrons could have noticed the words, Burlesque
of
"
above the staring letters announcing the fight.
At ten o'clock we opened the doors, and the people literally
fought to get in. There were no chairs or seats of any kind in
the shop. It was quite bare save for the screen at one end and
the machine at the other. When the place would hold no more
the doors were closed for the first performance, and, in my work
man's clothes, I
went to the machine and began to operate it.
Thereupon the fight started both on the screen and in the
The audience hooted and hissed and shouted :
" Fake !
shop.
"
Swindle ! and all sorts of uncomplimentary things. Some of
them wanted to interfere with me, but I told them that I was
only a workman getting two dollars for the job, and they let
me alone.
Singularly enough, the people stood and saw the picture
through, and though, when it was over, I was afraid they
might smash up my machine and destroy the screen, they
departed without doing me any more damage than a few
slashes across the screen, which would not prevent my con
tinuing to show the film.
Meantime, an immense crowd had gathered outside, waiting
to come in for the second performance. I thought that the
people who were leaving would warn those who were waiting
as to what was in store for them and that they would go away.
But, apparently, the first crowd, having been taken in by this
faked film, wanted to see the others caught in the same way as
they had been. Anyway, they must have said nothing to them
about it, for presently a fresh crowd came pouring in, to be
succeeded in their turn by another ; and I went on showing the
\
picture until past midnight, by which time we had taken over

$2,500.
At the finish my brother-in-law, who was assisting me, and
myself were completely done up. We had had nothing to eat
all day, and had been showing continuously. But I did not
mind that, as I had got back the money I
had lost over that
faked film and a handsome profit into the bargain.
The next day I
said to my brother-in-law :
"
I'm quite satisfied now. I never want to see this film
again."
So we took the film out into a back street, put a match to
it, and that was the last of " The Great Corbett-Fitzsimmons
Fight."
After spending a month with my relatives at San Francisco,
my wife and I went to New York, whence at the beginning of
December, 1898, we sailed for England. On my arrival in
London I took a house at Brixton Hill, in which I had one room
decorated and furnished with the curios my wife and I had
gathered together during our tour round the world, which
included, amongst many other interesting mementoes, a national
costume of every country we had visited. One of the London
papers sent one of its staff to inspect my curio-room, of which
he afterwards wrote the following description :—
Even in these days of universal and world-wide travel, Mr.

Carl Hertz must be reckoned among the most extensive of
globe-trotters, at all events so far as the profession of enter
taining is concerned. Of course, everyone who is anyone has
" "
done the States or South Africa or Australia or New Zealand,
or two or more of them, but to encompass the whole lot, and
more also, in a single professional tour is a feat worthy of
note even to-day.
Through India, Burma, Java, Japan, China, Borneo and
the Philippines, and, at a very uncertain and critical time during
the late compaign, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and
the United States : these are included in the range of journey-
ings which Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz have just brought to an
eminently successful close.
But work and travel have not exclusively occupied the time
of Mr. Hertz or of his very energetic wife. Between them —

and it is a little difficult and might be invidious to attempt any
apportionment of their spheres of activity — they have acquired
a remarkable collection of curios. Not the sort of curios which
anyone with money in inverse ratio to the extent of his know
ledge may pick up from wily dealers in the neighbourhood of
the Docks or Tower Hill, but genuine specimens of the handi
craft and mementoes of the various places of interest visited
by Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz and acquired by them on the
spot.
We say that these are of exceptional interest, as unques
tionably they are. We are able to speak only from a partial
inspection of the collection, a great part of which still remains
unpacked. What, however, our representative did see, after
threading some of the picturesque passes of South-West London
suburbia, forms an ample and eloquent testimony to the indus
try and good taste of the collectors.
It is not surprising to find that the bulk of the curios come
from India, China and Japan, the mysterious Shining East whose
secrets always exert an irresistible fascination over the Occi
dental mind. Mr. Hertz, by virtue of his travel and experience,
is by way of being learned on these matters, and if he is
cyclopaedic in his knowledge, his method of imparting it is
eminently pleasant, unaffected and entertaining.
For instance, he will point out to you the characteristic
differences between the embroideries of India, China and Japan,
and he has some extremely rich and beautiful specimens of
each, wherewith to illustrate his dissertation.
He will indicate the charm of a gorgeous purple satin
curtain, with a yellow lining, and with irises and marguerites
worked in silk in relief , with a superb screen also worked with
purple and white wisterias, and he will point out the prevalence
of these flowers in all things Japanese, illustrating it with
coloured photographs, of which he must possess some hundreds,
showing the beautiful flowers in cascades, so to speak, giving
in purple what our laburnum gives in gold. These in con
trast with a magnificent piece of Chinese work, silk worked on
silk in the most brilliant colours, most subtly and delicately
graded, the iridescent effect of which is most extremely beau
tiful, even to a Western eye. There is a court dress of a Chinese
mandarin's wife or a lady of similar rank. It comes from the
interior Palace of Pekin, and bears upon it the potent emblem of
the five-clawed dragon. Its decoration consists of flowers and
animals embroidered on a pale blue ground, the over-skirt

being of bright colours on a yellow ground.
One interesting fact in connection with the wearing of this
costume is that its owner is supposed always to be provided on
her visit to the Court with a phial of poison in a pocket designed
for the purpose, in case she should have the misfortune to
displease the Emperor, in which deplorable event it would be
her duty to follow the example set by Ingoldsby's heroine who
"
took prussic acid without any water, and died like a duke and
a duchess's daughter."
There was also for your inspection a genuine pair of ladies'
silk crepe trousers, worn by Chinese ladies on ordinary occasions.
Then you see, as a sample of the textile work of India, an
extremely handsome table-cloth made in Bombay. This was
made there specially for Mrs. Hertz, who explains that during
their stay in Bombay they had the greatest difficulty in getting
things done for them, as most of the people had fled in panic
from the disease-stricken city. The table-cloth is a strikingly
handsome composition of gold and pale pink.
With a certain air of mystery, Mr. Hertz lifts carefully
two tiny little structures, a pair of Chinese ladies' shoes, the
soles and heels of which together are not a fraction over two
inches long, and on the wall you may see a photograph of the
foot-binding process. Not a very attractive spectacle, as may
be imagined, with the lady's toes curled up under the sole of
the foot.
From walking to carriage is not a far step, and specimens
are put before you of the Japanese rickshaw daintily carved in
ivory, and the Chinese neatly constructed of wood.
Then a Japanese lady's comb and hairpins, the latter a for
midable weapon, and, since the Japanese lady does not do her
hair every day, a wooden block or pillow on which she sleeps in
order not to disarrange the elaborate superstructure. As a
rule, the Japanese lady's hair is done up once a fortnight.
Next we are shown a delightful little figure in silver —a
Chinese joss decorated with what looks like a blue enamel, but
is really the feather of a kingfisher. Water colours on rice-
paper, a Chinese marble specimen, different specimens of opium
pipes, Chinese, Japanese and, for ladies, the Burmese lady's
cigarette, which looks immensely like a pale edition of that
"
wondrous show cigar which we read of in The Adventures of
Mr. Verdant Green."
There are one or two articles of grim interest : photographs
of executions, very realistic and showing the severed heads and

trunks ; a hari-kari, showing the blood trickling down the gentle
man's robes, and the executioner preparing to sheer off a head.
Much more innocent-looking is a little lump of half-fused florins
and shillings. This is from Coolgardie, and represents all that
was left of an unhappy gentleman who lost his life in a big
hotel fire there. His small change amounted to about 6s. 6d.,
all melted together.
It is impossible in reasonable space to deal with anything like
the bulk of Mr. Hertz's art treasures. So far we have given
scarcely more than a one-sided glimpse of what is a very various,
instructive and suggestive collection. Australia and Africa
are both represented, some of the Zulu ladies' dresses being
as exiguous as the warmest climate could require. One gem
heads the collection and deserves seeing for itself ; the most
dainty and delightful little Satsuma tea-service which the
heart of man— or woman — could desire. Mrs. Hertz has also
a collection of costumes. She is positively enthusiastic as to
the beauty of the Burmese ladies, but the sweetest specimen
of feminine beauty in Mr. Hertz's gallery is a half-bred
English- Japanese girl.
After my return to England I until the end of May,

rested
when I opened at the Metropolitan Music Hall. Here I had the
misfortune to meet with a serious accident.
One morning, while rehearsing a new illusion, I happened to
have in my hand an uncoiled piece of wire. A page-boy, with a
message for one of the artists, came running across the stage,
caught his foot in the wire and dragged it along with him,
cutting the second finger of my left hand to the bone. I was
taken to St. Mary's Hospital, Paddington, where they put in
nine stitches, and it was not until September that I was able
to perform again. I then appeared at the Empire, where I
a new illusion called
" Iris, the Mystic Cameleon,"
presented
which was most cordially received. It was as follows : —
Mile. D'Alton underwent a species of hypnotism, or arti
ficial catalepsy, at my hands, and, while in a mesmeric state,
her volition was subordinated to me, and ruled and guided
in accordance with my commands. In this condition she
followed me as docilely as a lamb, sat on the back of a chair,
and, when the chair was slanted backwards, sat still, in apparent
defiance of the laws of gravity. She next stood erect on a
throne or couch, and, by means of a lantern and coloured slides,
seemed to wear an infinity of coloured dresses. The final
experiment showed the lady lying on her back at full length
on the throne, which, by invisible means, rose higher and
higher, and I then passed over her a hoop or ring to show that
there were no obstructions, and that the subject was really
without any visible means of support.
CHAPTER XVII
I leave England on a tour of Germany, Italy and France — Command
performance before the Kaiser at Potsdam — Present which I
receive from the " All-Highest
" — The accommodating railway
official at Dusseldorf — An unpleasant surprise — A packed house at
"
Lucca — I learn after the performance that it is three parts " paper
— An unclaimed set of artificial teeth — Performance in a half-
finished theatre at Turin — Singular adventure of one of my
assistants during my engagement at the Folies-Bergeres in Paris —
Return to London — " The Demon, or Magic Kettle
" at the
Canterbury — Difficulties which I experience in procuring the liquid
air required for this — Fortunate chance through which I am able
to surmount them.
In April, I
left England with my company on a Con
1902,
tinental tour, which was to comprise Germany, Italy and
France.
During my visit to Berlin I gave a command performance
before the Kaiser and his Court at Potsdam. I
regret to say
" "
that the All-Highest did not seem altogether to appreciate
my entertainment ; in fact, he looked distinctly bored. The
Crown Prince, on the other hand, appeared to be highly
amused, and laughed boisterously on several occasions, which
served to console me for his august father's indifference. At
the conclusion of my performance the Kaiser presented me
with a scarf-pin in the shape of the German eagle in diamonds.
The last town in Germany at which I performed before
going on to Italy was Dusseldorf, where I had a singular
experience with my luggage.
At that time I to travel with about two tons of
used
luggage, and as luggage is a very expensive thing to take about
on the Continent, every pound having to be paid for, and it
had to travel by passenger-train with me, it was a very big

item in my expenditure. One evening one of the railway
officials at Dusseldorf came to see my entertainment at the
theatre and got into conversation with me, in the course of
which I told him that at the conclusion of my engagement
there Iwas leaving for Milan. He inquired if I proposed
taking my luggage with me, and, when I told him that I did,
remarked that the cost would be very heavy.
"
I suppose it will," I said, " but it can't be helped, un
fortunately."
" Well," " there is a
said he, way in which it can be done
much more cheaply. Come and see me the day before you
are leaving, and I think I may be able to get your luggage
through for about a quarter of what you would otherwise
have to pay."
I was naturally very pleased to hear this, though I didn't
quite see how he was going to do it, and the day before I left
Dusseldorf I called on this kind official. He then told me that
I must bring my luggage down to the station at the last possible
moment, so that there would not be time to weigh it. He
would then give the luggage-clerk an estimated weight of the
entire lot, and I should pay according to this estimate.
His plan sounded beautifully simple, and, in point of fact,
it went off without a hitch. I arrived, with my company, at
the station only just in time for our luggage to be bundled
into the train, and the estimate which my friend gave, and
according to which I paid, was less than a quarter of the
amount it should have been.
I was just tickled to death at having got off so cheaply, gave
my friend a hundred-mark note for himself, which was of course
" "
the equivalent of a fiverin those days, and went off to
Italy, chuckling over my good fortune.
On our arrival at Milan, about seven o'clock in the morning,
I handed the luggage-ticket to my assistants, with instructions
to have the luggage taken at once to the Eden Theatre, where
we were to open that evening. I
My wife and then drove to
our hotel, but, while at breakfast, one of my assistants came
O
2io A Modern Mystery Merchant
would not let them have

to tell me that the railway people
saying
the luggage, that there was another £75 to pay, and,
until the money was forthcoming, the luggage could not be
removed.
I at once sent for a cab and drove to the station, where I
went to the booking-office, saw the head-clerk and angrily
demanded an explanation. I was taken to the station-master,
and was told that the luggage had been incorrectly weighed
at Dusseldorf , as it was more than three times as heavy as the
amount for which I had been charged, and that I must either
pay the balance or they would keep the luggage. It was not
the least use arguing the matter, and so I paid up and left
the station, vowing never to trust a German again.
From Milan we journeyed to Lucca and opened at a beauti
ful theatre there, built in honour of Puccini, the composer of
"
La Bohfime." On looking through the curtain before the
performance began, I was delighted to see a packed house;
but when, after it was over, I went into the manager's office, I
was told that only about a quarter of the audience had paid
for admission, and that the rest had all come in free. I was
naturally very angry, and demanded an explanation, upon
which the manager said that the theatre was run by subscribers,
and that each subscriber had free admission on first nights.
I was so disgusted that I refused to appear again, and left
next day for Genoa, where I performed for fifteen nights with
great success. But I took good care that there were no
subscribers.
At the conclusion of my engagement at Genoa we went on
to Turin. A few minutes before the train left, one of the
porters from our hotel came rushing breathlessly up to me
with a little package in his hand, which, he said, one of my
company had left behind. As none of them claimed the
package, I opened and found that it
it in their presence,
contained a set of lady's artificial teeth. No one would own
that the teeth were theirs, and I do not know to this day
to whom they belonged.
On arriving at Turin we went to the theatre. It was a
A
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Hertz outside Theatre Stage Door, Genoa, Italy.
p. 210.
\
new one, and I had been engaged as the opening attraction.

What was my astonishment to find that the theatre was only
half-finished ! There were no seats ; the plasterers were still at
work, and the scaffolding was still up, and I could not see how
on earth they could get the place ready for that night's per
formance. However, they managed to get the auditorium
cleared, and seats put in, though they were only partially
finished ; but at the back of the stage the artists had to dress
in half-finished dressing-rooms without any doors or any
accommodation for washing. Nevertheless, we contrived to
get through the performance, and by the next night every
thing was properly finished.
After leaving Turin we visited Venice, Savona, and other
towns in Italy, and then started for Paris, where I had a
month's engagement at the Folies-Bergeres, performing at Nice,
Toulon and Marseilles on the way.
During my engagement at the Folies Bergeres a singular
incident happened.
One afternoon my principal assistant, a good-looking,
gentlemanly young Frenchman, came and asked me to give
him leave of absence that evening, as he had an important
engagement. Since I could not well do without him — a fact
of which he was quite aware — I was very astonished, and
reminded hira sharply that he was under contract with me, and
that my business came before even the most important of
engagements. He then told me that, if he could have the
evening off, he had a chance of making 5,000 francs. Naturally,
I inquired how he was going to make that sum, and though
he at first declined to say, eventually, after a good deal of
persuasion, he told me the following remarkable story : —
He said that a married lady whose acquaintance he had
made had offered to pay him 5,000 francs in return for a
service which he was to render her. She was to provide him
with a suit of evening clothes, white kid gloves, opera-hat and
everything complete, and, thus attired, he was to take her to
the theatre that night, afterwards to supper, and then back
to the hotel at which she and her husband were staying.
She was, it appeared, anxious to force her husband to divorce

her, presumably in order that she might marry someone whom
she liked better, and, on arriving at the hotel, she was to admit
my assistant to her bedroom and lock the door ; and, when
her husband came home later, he was to find him in the room.
I strongly advised my assistant to have nothing to do with
such an affair, warning him that there was no telling what
the husband might not do on discovering another man in
his wife's room ; it was quite possible that, if he carried a
revolver, he might shoot him at sight. But he did not seem
in the least alarmed, and said : —
" I amquite prepared to take the risk in order to earn such
a large sum." (His salary was, Ithink, ioo francs a week.)
Finding that his mind was made up and that it was no
use trying to dissuade him, I told him that I could not have
my performance upset by his absence, and that, though I did
not care what he did after the performance, he would have to
be at the theatre at the usual time in order to assist me.
Eventually, it was settled that he should bring the lady to
the Folies-Bergeres, and afterwards take her out to supper
and do what he had promised her ; and in this way my per
formance would not be interfered with.
That evening he came to the theatre in well-cut evening
clothes, and I was astonished at his appearance. He was, as
I have said, a good-looking, gentlemanly young man, and he
certainly looked the part which he had undertaken to play.
After the performance I was told that he had been seen going
away with a tall, handsome woman, and I felt very anxious
to hear the outcome of this extraordinary affair.
Next day my assistant arrived at the theatre looking very
glum, from which I concluded that matters had not gone
exactly as he and the lady anticipated. I asked him what had
happened, when he told me that he had taken the lady out to
supper, and afterwards to the hotel, where, as arranged, she
had admitted him to her room. About one o'clock in the
morning, the husband arrived, and finding the door locked,
called upon his wife to open it.
Instead of doing so the woman began to scream and

whispered to my assistant to take his coat off. The husband
thereupon went downstairs and returned with the manager of
the hotel. They broke open the door, and there stood the
lady in her wrapper and my assistant with his coat off. The
husband turned to the manager and said : —
" Monsieur,
you are a witness that I have found this man
in my wife's room."
Then, without saying a word to his wife or my assistant,
he left the hotel.
My assistant left shortly afterwards, the lady telling him
to call next morning at eleven o'clock for the 5,000 francs she
had promised him. But, when he called, he found, to his
astonishment and mortification, that she had gone away,
leaving no address.
When he had finished his tale, I told him that it served
him right for having mixed himself up in such an affair, and,
at the same time, I gave him a week's notice.
In January, returned to England and, after fulfilling

1903, 1
a number of engagements in London, made an extensive tour

of the provinces, Scotland and Ireland.
In September, 1904, I returned to London and opened at
the Canterbury. During this engagement I presented a
"
sensational episode called The Demon, or Magic Kettle," to
the production of which there is quite a history attached.
Some months before, a great friend of mine in America wrote
to me and explained that some wonderful effects could be
"
produced by liquid air." My friend was a great scientist,
and, from the explanation and instructions he sent me, I made
up my mind to produce this sensational performance. The
effects of which were as follows : —
A kettle was shown to the audience steaming like wild
fire and capable of producing all kinds of uncanny effects.
For instance, it boiled on a block of ice, and the steaming
water from it, apparently as hot as boiling water can be, did
not scald, but positively froze anything put into it. As a
scientific fact, the magic kettle had to be seen to be appreciated,

and had to be tested to be understood. There was no trickery
and no legerdemain about the matter Science had discovered
this strange mystery, which is doubtless still in its infancy,
for, from what has been and is being done, there is no saying
what may arise from it in the future.
When the water from the kettle was poured on flowers,
grapes or any other soft and delicate product, or when they
were dipped into the steaming liquid, they would in a few
seconds become converted into hard and brittle ice, and the
grapes, when dropped on the floor, would sound like bullets.
If an egg were broken and put into a pan, a few drops of this
liquid air poured upon it would fry the egg, and, to all ap
pearance, it would be just the same as if it had been fried over
a fire. Ice-cream could be made in a few seconds by simply
pouring some of the liquid air over a mixture of cream, eggs and
so forth. There seemed to be no end to the things which this
wonderful scientific discovery could do.
The trouble was to get this liquid air. Nobody seemed to
know what it was, and I had practically given up all hope of
being able to procure it, when my friend, Sir Joseph Lyons,
gave me a letter of introduction to Professor Dewar, the great
scientist, at the Medical College in Gower Street, who ex
plained to me what liquid air really was. He said that it was
actually condensed air, and was sometimes, but very seldom,
used for cauterising wounds. It was, he added, very expensive
and very difficult to obtain, as a special machine, which was
also very expensive, had to be constructed in order to produce
it, and it would cost something like £5 a teaspoonful. He did
not know of the existence of any such machine in England.
As there seemed to be no machine in this country capable
of producing liquid air, I had decided that it was no use my
troubling further about the matter, when by chance I learned
that there was a small one at the Brinn Oxygen Works, in
Westminster. I went to see them and found, to my delight,
that they had such a machine, but it was out of order and had
not been used for some time. I agreed, however, to purchase
the liquid air, if they would put the machine in order and start
making it.
The machine was very small and could only produce the
condensed air at the rate of about one drop in ten minutes.
However, by the end of the week I managed to get a litre of
it, which had to be carried in vacuum bottles, resembling
thermos flasks. With this I experimented until I could
produce all the effects I have mentioned. I then tried to get
the managers of various halls to book the show, but, as they
did not seem to understand what it was, none of them would
give me an engagement for it.
Meantime, before I could publicly produce the show, a man
arrived from America and opened at the Palace Theatre with
it. I was, of course, greatly disappointed when I learned this,
as I was most anxious to be the first to produce it in London.
However, I got Mr. George Adney Payne, the proprietor of
the Canterbury and Paragon Music Halls, to witness a private
performance, and he immediately engaged me, and I produced
my magic kettle at the Canterbury about a week later.
But when I went to Westminster to get a further supply of
liquid air, I was informed that I could not have any more, as
the gentleman who was performing at the Palace Theatre had
enteredinto an agreement with them to take all they could
make, and that they were not to supply it to anyone else.
This was a veritable bolt from the blue ; but fortunately I
had enough in stock to last me for the first two days of my
engagement.
Meantime, I was inquiring all over England, France and
Germany to try to get it from somewhere else, and eventually
I ascertained that there was another small machine at Retford.
I at once sent a man down there, and luckily he brought me
back enough to carry me through the first week of my engage
ment. But, on sending him to Retford a second time, he
returned with the news that the same man who had entered
into the agreement with Brum's had also entered into an agree
ment with the Retford people to take all they could make, on
condition that they would not supply anyone else. I then
rushed my assistant over to Paris, as I had heard that there

was a small machine at Charcot's Institute, but the message I
received from him next morning was as follows :—
"
Leaving Paris. No air."
I was in a terrible quandary, and did not know what to

do, as I
had an eight weeks' engagement booked at a large
salary ; but it was impossible for me to continue to perform,
the man from the Palace having forestalled me at the only two
places from which I could procure the liquid air.
Matters looked so hopeless that I actually went round to my
agent with the intention of telling him to cancel my contract,
when, just as I was about to enter his office, I came face to
face with my competitor ! I had never met the gentleman
before, but he evidently knew who I was, for he said :—
" Well,
Mr. Hertz, how are you getting on with your Magic
Kettle ?
"
I answered that I was getting on all right — which, of course,
was very far from being the case, but I did not intend to let
him know the predicament in which I was placed.
He smiled sarcastically.
" " he asked.
Where do you get your liquid air from ?
" That is
my business," I replied.
" Oh,
you needn't be so close about it," he rejoined with a
" I know
short laugh. very well where you get it from, but
you won't be able to do so much longer, let me tell you. I
have stopped you getting it from Brinn's and also from Retford,
and I am going to stop you getting it from Lister's as well."
" "
Very well," I said, we'll see."
I had not the least idea who
" "
Lister was, but he had
given me a tip which I meant to take advantage of, and I said
to myself :—
"
I '
am going to find out who Lister is."
'
I accordingly got a Directory and looked through all the

names of Lister and Lyster. I copied them all down, and
those who looked like having anything to do with science or
chemistry I made a special note of, and for three days I went
round in a cab from one to the other, but without success.
I
At the end of that time was tired and dejected, and though
I had not yet got more than half-way through the list, was on
the point of giving up the search in despair, when I noticed
" Lister,
among my list of names, Scientific Institute of
Medicine." So, as a last resource, I called on them, and had
an interview with the professor who was at the head of the
Institute. I asked him if he had a machine for making liquid
air, and my delight can be imagined when he replied that he
had the largest one in existence. He added, however, that it
was out of order and had not been working for over a year, a
statement which considerably discounted my joy.
After some conversation, he took me downstairs and
showed me the most wonderful machine I had ever seen. It
occupied a long room by itself, and, when in working order,
was capable of producing fifty times as much liquid air as the
others I
had seen or heard of. The professor said he was very
sorry that he could not supply me with any, as the machine
would take some time to repair, and as liquid air was very
seldom used, it was not worth while to go to the expense of
having it done. However, after a long talk with him, he
finally agreed to put two or three men on to the machine at
once to get it into working order, and to supply me with as
much liquid air as I wanted at about a quarter of the price
which I had been paying for it ; and inside of a week I had seven
different shows running in different parts of Great Britain
exhibiting the Magic Kettle. This shows what a hint can do
for a man who is wide-a-wake.
CHAPTER XVIII
Engagement at Copenhagen — My exposure of a well-known medium —
On my return to London I receive news of the serious illness of my
father and sail, with my wife, for New York en route for San
Francisco — At a wayside station on the Union Pacific we learn of
the San Francisco earthquake — We are obliged to remain the night
at Oakland, which is crowded with refugees from the stricken city
— We obtain permission to go to San Francisco — Appalling scenes
of destruction — I find, to my intense relief, that my relatives are
safe — We are obliged to remain in San Francisco for two months
— The scenes in Golden Gate Park— A strange meeting — Death of
my father — We leave for New York — Engagements there and at
Chicago — Singular story of a cardsharper — We return to England
— My second tour in South Africa — Nervous breakdown, which
obliges me to spend some weeks at Las Palmas and Madeira.
At the beginning of 1906, I

left England for Copenhagen to
fulfil a two months' engagement at the Scala Theatre. My
entertainment was so great a success that I received a command
to give a performance before the King, Christian IX., but this
never took place, as before the date fixed for it the King died
suddenly. While at Copenhagen I was the means of exposing
a well-known spiritualistic medium by giving on the stage a
demonstration of all the tests he had been performing.
I returned to England in March, 1906, and was booked
well ahead to appear in various parts of the country, when
one day I received a cable from one of my sisters in San
Francisco informing me that my father was ill and begging
me to come home as soon as possible. This news necessitated
a change of all my plans, and, leaving instructions with my
agent to cancel my contracts, I sailed for New York, en route
for San Francisco, in the s.s. St. Paul, accompanied by my wife.
On our arrival in New York, after a very stormy passage,
we were met by a relation of mine, who handed me a telegram

from my sister asking me to come on to San Francisco without
delay. So we only stayed the night in New York, and left
next day for California via Chicago. At a wayside station on
the Union Pacific we were horrified to hear of the appalling
calamity which had befallen San Francisco on the morning
of April 16th.
As all my sisters and other relatives, as well as my father,
were in the ill-fated town, my feelings may be imagined ! It
was at first reported that nearly the whole of the town had
been destroyed by earthquake, and what had escaped the
earthquake had been destroyed by fire. We got as far as Oak
land, on the other side of the Bay, about seven miles from
San Francisco, which can only be reached by boat. The
authorities would not allow anyone to go over to San Francisco,
and the anxiety and suspense I experienced at being at such a
short distance from my relatives, and yet unable to ascertain
whether they were safe or not, I shall never forget.
We tried to get a room for the night, but this was impossible,
every hotel and house in the place being full, while all the
churches and public buildings were being used to shelter the
refugees from the stricken city, as thousands of people had
flocked over to Oakland for safety when the fire broke out.
Next morning I went to see the Chief of Police and got a
special permit to go over to San Francisco, with my wife, who
was to act as a nurse. I shall never forget the sight when we
arrived in the burning city. Over 200,000 people had been
rendered homeless, and they were living in tents, in tram-cars,
and in roughly-constructed wooden shelters. As the earth
quake and fire had occurred at five o'clock in the morning, when
everybody was asleep, people had had no time to dress, but
had seized the first thing they could lay their hands on, and
The " gets-up
"
rushed out of their houses to save themselves.
of some of them were really comical, and we saw women
walking about with men's top-hats and overcoats on. Even
in the tragic circumstances, one could not help but laugh.
The town was under martial law; the fire was still
burning, and not a building intact for miles. I walked across

acres of bricks and stones to try to reach the district where
my relatives lived. All along the route were ruined buildings ;
some had collapsed entirely, of others the walls alone were
standing. Amongst those which I passed was the Majestic
Theatre, which had been the finest theatre in San Francisco,
but was now a heap of ruins. The streets were strewn with
debris, and the billows in the pavement, showing where the
ground had lifted and fallen, told the story of destruction. I
had to pick my way carefully, keeping as far as I could from
the walls which were still standing and might at any moment
collapse.
At last I that part of the city which had been
reached
partly spared. All the people were huddled together in front
of their houses. Fearful of another earthquake, they refused
to remain in their houses. Their nerves seemed completely
unstrung ; they started at the mere rumbling of a wagon,
and showed by their haggard faces what they had been
through.
After walking for five hours, I arrived, tired and footsore,
at my father's house, and, to my intense relief, found that he
and all my relatives were safe, though my father was so ill
that he did not recognise me. They had had a terrible time.
The house had survived the earthquake, but all the walls were
cracked and plaster was lying all over the place, and every bit
of china and glass had been broken. The police had ordered
them to leave, on account of the proximity of the fire, and my
father had been put on a stretcher and carried from one
street to another as the fire drew nearer. Finally, he had
been taken outside the city and placed in one of the tents
which had been erected there to shelter those who had been
obliged to leave their homes.
After the fire had practically burned itself out came the
scarcity of food. All communication with other towns was
cut off, and what food could be procured was taken charge of
and distributed by the authorities to the people, who had to
line up to receive it. My wife and I had to stand in a queue
1)
.5
o
o
£
en
awaiting our turn, and on one occasion all that we got was a
piece of bread and cheese.
All the railroad lines were broken up, cables down, and
there was no way of letting our friends in England know
whether we were alive or dead, for, aware that we were going
to San Francisco, they were naturally anxious about us.
We were obliged to remain in San Francisco for nearly two
months before we were able to leave, during which time we
were in great straits for money. I had brought very little
money with me, and I could not cable to London for any, or
draw upon the banking account I had in San Francisco, for
the banks, like other buildings, had been destroyed, and the
money in their vaults could not be touched until the vaults
had cooled —a matter of some weeks. The heat generated
some kind of gas, which entered the vaults, and if the safes
were opened without being thoroughly cooled there would be
danger of their contents bursting into flames. I saw, as a
matter of fact, a safe which had been opened in the street
burst into flames and thousands of dollars in paper-money which
it contained destroyed, and this even after the safe had had
water played on it for two or three days.
Out in Golden Gate Park thousands of people were
assembled, living in tents, in old packing-cases, under bits of
carpet propped up by poles and any old thing that would
shelter them. A couple of weeks before I left London I was
having supper in Romano's Restaurant, in the Strand, and a
friend of mine introduced me to a handsomely-dressed woman
covered with diamonds. One afternoon when I was in Golden
Gate Park, I heard someone call my name. I turned round and
saw coming towards me a young woman, attired in a man's
light overcoat and silk hat, with grimy face and hands and her
hair hanging down her back.
" You are "
Mr. Hertz, are you not ? said she.
I replied in the affirmative, upon which she asked me if I
did not recognise her. I said I was sorry, but that I did not,
upon which she told me that she was the lady who had been
introduced to me that night at Romano's. It appeared that
she had come to San Francisco to get married, and she and
her husband had rushed out of their house, leaving behind
everything except what she was now wearing.
A strange incident happened to a man who had come from
London to San Francisco to negotiate the sale of some property
which he had inherited there. He completed the sale the day
before the calamity and received the money, amounting to
$55,000, in notes. These notes he placed in an inside waist
coat-pocket, and when he went to bed that night put the
waistcoat under his pillow. When the earthquake occurred,
he rushed out of the hotel to save his life, forgetting for the
moment in his terror the money under his pillow. On reaching
the street he remembered it and was about to run back to
try to save his fortune when the whole building came down
with a crash, and the fire afterwards consumed everything.
Although he was not yet thirty, the shock turned his hair
snow-white in less than twenty-four hours.
Caruso, the celebrated singer, was in San Francisco at the
time, and I was told that, when the earthquake occurred, he
sprang out of bed, rushed out into the square in front of his
hotel, and the first thing he did was to try his voice, to see if
it had gone.
When I left New York for San Francisco, my company
who had come over with me from England, as I intended
giving performances in America later on, remained behind,
with instructions to go to an hotel and await my return. I
had expected to be away only a short time ; and, in the event
of my being detained longer than I anticipated, I, of course,
intended to send them what money they would require.
But, owing to the earthquake, there was no way of com
municating with them, and in consequence they were without
money for some weeks and in a terrible predicament.
When the panic caused by the calamity had partially
subsided, those who had their homes, or a portion of their
homes, left began to return to them. But the authorities
would not allow lights or fires of any kind in the houses, and
people had to do their cooking in the middle of the street, on
Courtyard of Palace Hotel, San Francisco, before the
Earthquake and Fire.
p. 222.
any improvised stove or fire they could rig up. This lasted
for some weeks.
Meantime, my father had become worse, and although,
singularly enough, he recognised my wife, whom he had only
seen once, a good many years before, he did not recognise me.
However, just before he passed away he did so and burst
into tears.
I experienced the utmost difficulty in procuring a decent
burial for my father, and had to send some fifty miles for a
coffin, as it was impossible to obtain one in San Francisco.
The bodies of most of the victims of the calamity were
taken out into the Bay and buried there.
The sight that met my eyes on entering the cemetery was
a terrible one. Nearly all the tombstones were broken, graves
were thrown open — for the ground was full of deep fissures —
and, in some cases, the coffins seemed to have been lifted
right out of the earth. It was weeks before I could banish the
memory of what I saw that day.
So soon as traffic was once more resumed my wife and I
left San Francisco for New York, the manager of my bank,
with whom I was
well acquainted, having lent me some money
out of his own pocket.
On my return to New York I played a three weeks' engage
ment at Proctors' Theatre, after which I went to Chicago
to perform at the Academy of Music. During my visit to
Chicago I heard a singular story about one of the cleverest
cardsharpers in America.
This individual, whom, for convenience sake, I will call
Smith, was a man of fine appearance and the most engaging
manners and invariably well, though quietly, dressed. When
in Chicago he generally stayed at the Palmer House, one of the
best hotels in the city, where he appears to have found many
victims. On the occasion of which I am about to speak he
made the acquaintance of a wealthy Milwaukee merchant, who
had come to Chicago on business and was likewise staying at
the Palmer House. The two became very friendly, and went
about together a good deal to theatres, restaurants and so
forth. Smith always insisted on paying for everything, and

made himself so very pleasant that when Mr. Brown, as we
may call the other, left Chicago, he gave him his card and told
him that, if ever he came to Milwaukee, he must on no account
fail to pay him a visit, promising that he would do all he could
to give him a good time.
Some weeks later, Smith went to Milwaukee, put up at the
best hotel there, and, taking a cab, drove out to the suburb
where his friend Brown lived and entered a chemist's shop
close to the merchant's house.
" I want some playing-cards," said he.
"
How many packs
have you got ?
"
(Cards, I may here remark, are sold in nearly all chemists'
shops in America.)
"
About half-a-dozen," answered the chemist. We don't
"
keep a large stock, as there is not much demand for them
hereabouts."
" Well, I will take the lot," said Smith, and returned to
his hotel with the six packs. These he carefully steamed opem
removed the outside covers and, after marking the packs so
that he would know every card in them from its back, re
placed them in their coverings and did the packs up
separate
again so neatly that it would be impossible to tell that they
had ever been tampered with.
The next day he called on Mr. Brown, who gave him a
most cordial welcome and invited him to dine with him and
his family that evening. He spent a very pleasant evening,
making himself most agreeable to everyone ; and before he left
his host invited him to dinner again the following Sunday,
saying that he would ask four or five other gentlemen to meet
him, and they would have a game of cards afterwards. This
was exactly what the astute Mr. Smith wanted.
On the Saturday evening the sharper took a cab and
returned to the chemist, with the six packs of cards which he
had purchased from him two or three days before.
"
I suppose you remember me ? " said he. " I bought
some cards from you the other day as I was giving a card
party at my house, but unfortunately there has been a death

in my family, so the party cannot take place. Perhaps you
won't mind taking these cards back, and I will buy some
"
thing else from you instead of them ?
The chemist readily agreed to this, remarking, as he did
so, that he was rather glad to have the cards returned as he
had forgotten to order a fresh supply ; and Smith went back to
his hotel very well pleased, since he knew that the chemist
had no other packs in stock except those he had marked.
The next evening Smith again presented himself at Mr.
Brown's house, and, so soon as dinner was over, the company
sat down to a game of poker. The stakes were pretty high,
for all the players were men of means, and Smith took care to
lose steadily.
Now, it is a common custom amongst those who play for
high stakes, if they have no luck with one pack of cards,
to fling them on the floor and ask for another pack, and I
myself have seen, in a big game of poker at Denver, Colorado
(when the play started at eight o'clock in the evening and went
on until ten the next morning), the floor so literally covered
with cards that you could not see the carpet. Smith kept con
tinually throwing down the cards and asking for a fresh pack,
until his host's stock of cards were all but exhausted.
Accordingly, the unsuspecting Mr. Brown summoned his
butler and despatched him to the chemist's — chemists, as a
rule, are open in America on Sundays — telling him to buy all
the cards he had in stock. The butler returned with the same
six packs of cards which the sharper had bought and returned
and, in the interval, had so cleverly marked. So soon as
these cards were brought into play Smith's luck began to
change, and he eventually left the house a winner of over
$50,000. Next day he left Milwaukee, and had not been seen
since.
The swindle was not discovered until some weeks later,
when Mr. Brown happened to go to the chemist's shop to buy
something and, while talking to him, the subject of playing-
cards happened to crop up. The chemist remarked that it
P
was an odd thing about the six packs of cards which Mr.
Brown's butler had bought that Sunday, as these cards had
been previously bought by some gentleman who had come the
evening before and asked him to take them back, as, owing to
a death having occurred in his family, the card-party for which
he had bought them was not to take place. Mr. Brown, his
suspicions aroused, asked for a description of this gentleman and
found that it was none other than the one he had met at the
Palmer House, in Chicago.
From Chicago I
returned to New York, and thence sailed
for England, where I fulfilled such of my engagements as I had
not been obliged to cancel on my hurried departure for San
Francisco.
In July, 1907, I left England for a second tour in South
Africa, visiting Kimberley, Bloemfontein, Johannesburg, Pre
toria, Pietermaritzburg ; then on through Natal along the
east coast to East London, and back again to Johannesburg
and Capetown. From Capetown I sailed for England, where
I arrived at the end of November.
In the spring of 1908 I had a nervous breakdown and was
ordered by the doctors to take a complete rest. I
accordingly
left England for Las Palmas, in the Canary Islands, where I
remained for some weeks. I then went to Madeira, and re
turned to London at the end of June, greatly benefited in
health.
CHAPTER XIX
I visit Vienna and Berlin and then proceed to Moscow — Russian music-
halls — A generous prince — Religious character of the Russians in
those days —Objections to an illusion of mine called " The Sign of
"
the Cross — I am obliged to change the cross into a tree—St.
Petersburg — Command performance before the Czar and Czarina
— Present of a cigarette-case — Racing in Russia — Tip which I
receive from an American trainer — A nice little win — Riot on the
racecourse — Return to England — Another Continental tour — Fire
at the Eldorado Theatre at Nice —My first visit to Monte Carlo —
I am ordered to leave the Rooms — Interview with the Director,
who explains to me the reason for this — Further experiences at
Monte Carlo — Engagement at the Alhambra in Paris — Harry
Fragson — Incident at the Bal Tabarin — Fragson's unfortunate
infatuation — His tragic death — An autographed cigarette-case —
The Great Lafayette and his dog " Beauty " — Terrible fate of
Lafayette — His funeral — Chung Ling Soo.
In May, 1910, I made another Continental tour, visiting

Vienna and Berlin and then going to Russia, where I opened
at the Establishment Yord in Moscow. In this theatre I
performed for two months and created a big sensation. I
used to appear on the stage at two o'clock in the morning, for,
as a rule, the performance did not begin until about ten o'clock
in the evening. We had mostly lady singers on the pro
gramme, and I have seen as many as fifty turns, the ladies
going on, one after the other, and each singing one song.
During the performances the audience usually sat at small
tables, smoking and having refreshments, and on New Year's
Eve a certain wealthy prince, who had taken a box for the
occasion, gave orders to the waiters to put a bottle of cham
pagne on every table in the theatre. I was told afterwards
that the prince's bill came to over £1,000.
The Russians are very religious, almost fanatically so—or,

at least, the bulk of them were in those pre-war days before
Lenin, Trotsky and Co. had turned things upside down — and
each lady before she went on the stage used to cross herself-
There was an ikon at almost every street corner, and when I
went out in a cab the driver used to cross himself every time
he passed one of them.
I was doing an illusion at this time called " The Sign of the
Cross." In this illusion I had a very large cross, to which I
used to tie a man with ropes by the neck, arms, and legs.
The curtains of the cabinet would then be drawn, but, at a
word of command from me, they would open, when the man
would be found to have vanished, and, in his place, tied by
the same ropes to the same cross, would be a lady, the man
reappearing the next moment in the front of the house. After
I had performed this trick for two nights, the manager of the
theatre sent for me and told me that I could not be allowed
to perform it any longer, unless I discontinued the use of the
cross, as people had complained to him about it, saying that
it was sacrilege to use a cross on the stage. I told him that it
was impossible for me to do the trick without the cross, but
eventually I
got over the difficulty by disguising the cross with
some leaves and bark and making it look like a tree ; after
which no further objection was taken to it.
From Moscow I went to St. Petersburg (now Petrograd),
and while there had the honour of giving a command per
formance before the late Czar and Czarina. At its conclusion
I was presented with a beautiful cigarette-case on which was
the Imperial Arms in diamonds and other precious stones.
During my stay in Russia I became acquainted with an
American trainer who used to train horses for all the Royalties*
As my hotel was near the racecourse and near his training
quarters, I used to visit him nearly every morning. We
became very great friends, and whenever I went to the races,
he always used to mark my card, telling me what horses to
back. He gave me a good many winners. In summer,
races in Russia start at four in the afternoon and go on
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Programme of Theatre, Restaurant Yard, Moscow, Russia.

p. 228.
till ten o'clock at night, and I have seen as many as twenty-

five events run in one day.
One Sunday morning I went to visit my friend the trainer
as usual, when he asked me if I were going to the races that
"
day. I told him I did not think I was. But I want you to
go," said he.
I said,
" I'm tired of it. But why do you want me to
go?"
" Because," said "
there is a particular horse in the
he,
last race I want you to back." I went out and bought a race-
card, which are usually sold in the streets on the morning of
the races, returned to him, and he marked on the card a horse
that I was to back.He continued : —
"
Don't go near the racecourse until just before the last
race; then go and back this horse." I thanked him very
much and left, and later on in the afternoon, although it was
against his orders, I went to the races about four o'clock. I
had made up my mind that whatever I was winning by the
time that the last race came round I would put on the horse
that he had marked on my card. I was winning about £60.
It had been a very bad day for the favourites, as mostly out
siders kept winning.
There were only four runners for the last race, including the
horse that the trainer wanted me to back. On all form the
race appeared a certainty for one of the others, and, when I
went to look at the totalisator, I saw that nearly every one
" "
seemed to be backing this horse, while my friend's tip
had hardly a bet against its number. I
spoke to two or three
acquaintances of mine who knew far more about Russian
racing than I did, and they ridiculed the idea of the latter
having any chance against the favourite, for whom they
"
considered the race to be a gift." In these circumstances,
I did not have the courage to lump down all the money I had
won that day on the outsider, as I had originally intended, but
limited myself to a bet of £10. Indeed, I was in two minds
whether to have a bet at all, but finally decided to do so, as I
did not like the idea of allowing a horse to run loose which
had been given me by a man who had put me on to so many

winners.
It was fortunate indeed for me that I did back him, for that
" "
hopeless outsider beat the favourite all ends up by some
thing like ten lengths, and the Totalisator paid out over him
at the astonishing rate of 175 to i.
No sooner had the horses passed the post than a regular
riot broke out An infuriated crowd surrounded the beaten
favourite, hooting and groaning and trying to strike the
jockey with their sticks and umbrellas, and it was only with
the aid of the police that he succeeded in making his escape
The mob then began to pull down the rails, smash the stands
and the refreshment rooms, and do all the damage they could.
The militia had to be called out to quell the disturbance, but
I did not wait to see the end of the affair, and, having drawn
my winnings, left the course as quickly as I could.
That evening the trainer came to the theatre to see me,
and asked me if I had backed the winner as he had advised me.
I told him that I had, but only for £10, as I had been told
that the favourite could not be beaten and was as near a
certainty as there was in racing.
" So he was," said he, "
if his jockey had been
laughing,
'
spinning (i.e., out to win), but he didn't happen to be, you
see."
He then told me that in a race run the previous Sunday,
which had been won by the beaten favourite, and in which
his conqueror that day and the other two horses had been
amongst the competitors, his son, who was a well-known
jockey, had ridden the winner. Just before the race his son
had been approached by the jockeys of these three horses and
" " his mount, in
asked to pull order that my horse might
win. But he had refused to be a party to the proposed
" "
ramp and had duly won the race. Learning that the
same horses were running again that day, and that the winner
of the previous Sunday was to be ridden by a jockey who did
not bear the highest reputation for honesty, instead of his son,
the trainer came to the conclusion that this time they would
be pretty sure to fix it up between them, and that was why he

had advised me to back an animal which apparently had no
chance at all.
I could not help remarking that I only wished he had told
me his reasons for fancying the horse, in which case I should
have had a lot more on. However, I gave a big supper the
next night to celebrate my success, and before saying farewell
to Russia I made the trainer a handsome present.
After leaving RussiaI returned to England, but two months

later started on another Continental tour, performing at
various theatres in Germany and Austro-Hungary, including
the Orpheum, at Budapest, and the Apollo, at Dusseldorf , and
then proceeding to Nice.
When I reached Nice I found, to my disgust, that there
had been a fire the night before at the Eldorado Theatre,
where I was engaged to perform, which had done so much
damage that it would be impossible for me to appear on my
original date. Fortunately, however, I was able to make
engagements to perform at Toulon and Marseilles, and by the
time I had finished these the theatre at Nice had been partly
restored and I returned there to fulfil my engagement.
I had never been to Monte Carlo, but, of course, had heard
and read a good deal about it, and naturally both my wife and
I were very anxious to see it. So a day or two after our return
to Nice I went to the manager of our hotel and asked him if
he would give me a letter to the Director of the Casino, as I
thought that it was necessary to show credentials of some
kind to gain admission to the Rooms. In point of fact, an
introduction is quite unnecessary, all that is required being to
hand your card to the officials at the Bureau and inform them of
your nationality, profession, and the hotel at which you are
staying. But I did not know this, and the manager gave me
the letter I asked for.
The next afternoon my wife and I went over to Monte
Carlo, where I presented my letter at the Bureau, and we each
received a one-day admission card to the Rooms. We went
in, and I was astonished at the sight which greeted us ; it was

one of the most impressive I had ever beheld. I had always
imagined that the Rooms were a noisy place, with the chink
of money, loud voices, excitement and bustle. The actual
scene was very different.
There was, indeed,
"
a certain liveliness
"
around the
roulette-tables, where the punters were engaged in placing
their stakes, as some of them could not reach the numbers or
combination of numbers which they wanted to back, and had
to ask the croupiers to put their money on for them. But in
the trente-et-quarante room it was more like a church than
anything else. No sound broke the stillness but the stereo
typed voice of the tailleur, or dealer, as he announced the
" "
result of the deal : Cinq, trots ; rouge gagne et couleur perd !
and so forth, and the chink of money as it was raked in or
paid out. The punters hardly ever spoke, except when those
who were playing high desired to insure their stakes against
the chance of an un apris being dealt, which at trente-et-
quarante is the same as the zero at roulette.
For some reason or other, before coming to Monte Carlo
that day, I had decided that my first bet should be a louis
" "
en plein on No. 2 at roulette, and that if I were lucky
enough to win I would play up my winnings upon the same
" chevaux,"
number and its that is to say, on zero-deux, 1 and
2, 2 and 3, and 2 and 5. Accordingly, after walking about
the Rooms for a while, I went up to one of the roulette-tables
and put a louis on No. 2. The croupier spun the wheel, the
little ivory ball flew round and, to my delight, dropped with
a rattle into the number had backed. I
"A louis
"
demanded the croupier, tapping my
qui le ?
louis with the end of his rake.
I claimed it, and was duly handed my winnings — a five-
hundred-franc note and ten louis.
I
picked up my stake, cashed the note into gold and, after
a moment's hesitation, decided to put eight louis on No. 2,
"
and seven louis on each of its chevaux," when I received a tap
on the shoulder, and, turning round, was confronted by two
x
of the officials of the Casino, wearing black frock-coats and

black ties, who called me aside and told me that I must leave
the Rooms at once.
I was thunderstruck and, of course, demanded an explana
tion, but they would give me none, saying that if I went with
them to the Director's office I should be told the reason.
Meantime the game had again been made ; the ball went
spinning once more on its journey round the wheel and clicked
into its fate-appointed socket, and I heard the croupier
announce : —
" Deux, noir, "
pair et manque !
My number had won a second time.
I
do not think I was ever more angry or more disgusted in
my life, since, but for this interruption, I should have won
over 15,000 francs on that single coup. However, the officials
repeated that I must leave the Rooms at once, and placing
themselves one on either side of me conducted me into the
Atrium, feeling for all the world like a pickpocket at being
marched away like this. Fortunately, my wife had wandered
round to one of the other tables and did not see anything of
this scene ; otherwise, she would have been terribly alarmed.
On reaching the Atrium I was taken to the Director's office,
where I angrily demanded why I had been turned out of the
Rooms.
'■
You are M. Carl Hertz, the illusionist, monsieur, are you
not
" said the Director
? blandly.
" Yes."
" And "
you are playing at the Eldorado Theatre at Nice ?
" Yes, but what has that to do with it ? "
" Well,
it is one of our rules that no one earning money in
the Principality of Monaco, or in the municipalities of Nice
and Mentone, is permitted to enter the Casino, and as you are
performing at Nice you come under that rule."
"
But I was given a ticket of admission at the Bureau."
"
Parfaitement, monsieur, but we were not then aware that
you were performing at Nice. I am distressed, but so long
as your engagement lasts you cannot have the entree. When
A
it is at an end, we shall, of course, be charmed to see you

again."
And he rose and bowed as a signal that the interview was
at an end.
Seeing that it was useless to argue the matter, I left the
Casino and waited outside until my wife, who had been looking
for me everywhere, and could not imagine where I had got tot
joined me.
On our return to Nice I related my adventure to the
manager of the theatre, and he told me that the rule of which
the Director had spoken had been made because formerly
clerks and servants who had been sent out by their employers
to collect or pay bills had come into the Casino and gambled
away the money entrusted to them. But he had never heard
of it being applied to an artist performing with his own
company like myself. However, since they had chosen to do
so, it was no use remonstrating, and I would have to wait
until my engagement was over before I paid another visit to
Monte Carlo.
I determined not to wait until then, and a day or
was
two later I went to the manager of my hotel and asked
him to give me another letter, but to put my real name on it
instead of my stage-name of Carl Hertz. This he did, and,
putting on a different suit of clothes and a different hat, I
again went over to Monte Carlo. I presented the letter at
the Bureau as before, and it was duly passed on to the official
who makes out the admission cards. He began to fill up the
card, then stopped, looked at me and said : —
" Is this name, monsieur
"
your ?
" Yes,"
I answered.
" Well,
it is not the name which you gave us the other
day."
So he had recognised me ; the officials of Monte Carlo have
certainly a wonderful memory for faces !
For the moment I was quite taken aback. Then I said :
" Oh,
no, this is my right name ; the name I gave you the
other day was my stage-name."
" Yes," said he,

"
but you were asked to leave the Casino
the other day because, as was explained to you at the time,
you were earning money at Nice and were therefore not
eligible for admission. How is it that you have come here
"
again ?
He spoke so sharply that my wife began to get quite
frightened, and whispered to me to come away at once or I
should get myself into trouble. But I told her that it was
all right and said to the official : —
"
That is quite correct, but I have finished my engagement
at Nice, and am now staying there merely for pleasure."
Upon that he filled in the admission card and handed it to
me, and also one for my wife, and we found ourselves once
more in the Rooms.
I had decided to tempt Fortune once more on deux en
plein, and going to a roulette-table I staked on that number
and lost. I went to another and again backed No. 2, with
the same result, and, though I repeated the experiment at
every table in the Rooms in turn, I did not win once. Evi
dently, it was not my day out, and I left off a loser of over
5,000 francs and wished heartily that they had not let me in.
At the conclusion of my engagement at Nice my wife and
I decided to spend a couple of weeks at Monte Carlo, where
we no longer had the bother of getting our admission tickets
every day, being each given a monthly ticket. I had worked
out a little roulette system of my own, to win a certain amount
at each sitting, and though I do not claim that it is infallible
it worked very well all the time I was at Monte Carlo, and I
soon got back the 5,000 francs I had lost in the pursuit of the
elusive deux en plein.
I was at one of the roulette-tables one afternoon, and
having won the amount I had come to win according to my
system, I stopped playing and sat for a while watching the
game. There was a stylishly-dressed Frenchwoman sitting next
me, with a pile of notes and gold in front of her, and, seeing
me suddenly cease playing, she turned to me and said in
broken English : —
"
Why are you not playing, monsieur Is it that you have
?
lost all your money ?

"
For a joke I answered that I had, upon which she took
five one-thousand-franc notes and pushing them towards me,
said : —
" Will
you take this 5,000 francs and try to get back
what have lost ?
"
you
I was naturally that a perfect stranger should
astonished
offer to lend me 5,000 francs, and said : —
"
My dear madame, this is most generous of you, but I
cannot accept it."
" Oh, "
but you must," said she. I want to see you get
your money back."
Again I refused, but she kept on pressing me, and finally
I said : —
" I can't
accept this money to play for myself, but I have
a system of my own, and if you like I will take it and play
for you."
To this she agreed, and I took the 5,000 francs and began
to play.
I was " in the vein," and in less than an hour I had won
40,000 francs, which I handed to the lady, together with the
5,000 francs she had lent me. She divided the winnings and,
retaining 20,000 francs for herself, handed me the rest,
saying :—
"
This is yours."
"
I I "
but it is not mine, and I
beg your pardon,"
replied,
cannot accept it. I was playing for you and it is yours."
" Oh, but "
you won it," she exclaimed, and you are
entitled to half."
" I thank "
you very much, madame," I said, but I cannot
possibly take it." And, though she tried to persuade me to
accept the money, I again refused and rose to leave the table.
" Well,"
said she,
" if
you really won't accept what is
certainly yours, will you come and have tea with me to
morrow afternoon at the Hotel de Paris ? Here is my card,
and my apartments are on the first floor."
" I
thank you, madame," I said.
"
I will ask my wife
and see what she says."
At which the lady smiled, and I bowed and took my
departure.
Speaking of systems, the majority of people at Monte Carlo
seem to have a system of some kind by which they believe they
are sure to win. Many of them do win for a time, but sooner
or later every system comes to grief, and the punter goes broke .
Some years ago a particular friend of mine told me that he
had an infallible system at roulette and was going to Monte
Carlo to play it. I told him that there was no such thing as
an infallible but he laughed and said that he was
system,
convinced that his really was infallible. About a week after
he had left for Monte Carlo I happened to meet his wife and
said to her : —
"
Have you heard from your husband ? How is he getting
"
along with his system ?
" Oh, "
Here is a telegram I
yes," she answered. received
from him this morning."
I looked at the telegram which she handed me, and read
the following words : —
"
System going well. Send more money."
It is a well-known fact that if anyone loses all his money

at Monte Carlo and is unable to pay his fare home, the directors
of the Casino will pay it for him, though
" le
viatique," as it is
called, is only given to those whose losses exceed a certain
amount, and should they come to Monte Carlo again they
are not allowed to enter the Rooms until it has been repaid.
On one occasion a man went to the directors and asked for
" le
viatique," saying that he had lost all the money he had,
amounting to some 5,000 francs, and had nothing to take him
home. The directors asked at what tables he had lost it, and
told him to come and see them again later in the day, as they
would have to verify his statement. When he returned they
said : —
" Yes, monsieur, what
you told us this morning about the
money you have lost appears to be quite correct, and we are
"
willing to pay your fare home. Where do you live ?
"
In Melbourne, Australia," was the answer.
I was playing roulette one evening at the Sporting Club,

when a lady came and sat down in a vacant chair next me.
She took a louis out of her purse, but she did not seem to know
what to do with it, stretching out her hand, as though to put
the money on one of the numbers, and then drawing it back
again. It was quite evident that she had never played before,
and at last I asked her if I could be of any assistance.
" Thank "
I have never bad a
you very much," said she.
bet before, and I hardly know what to do."
I advised her to back the last six numbers, 31 to 36, and
showed her where to place her louis. No. 33 came up and
she won five louis. I don't think I ever saw anyone get so
excited before.
"
How did you know that that number was going to
"
win ? she asked.
I answered that I did not know, but, according to a system
that I had been playing, I thought that it was the proper time
to back these six numbers.
"
I am so pleased," she said, " because I've never won
anything before, and now I think I shall go."
"
Don't go yet," said I.
" You're
winning five louis ;
you ought to play them up ; you may win again."
" Oh, no,
I'm quite satisfied ; I think I'd better go."
Eventually, however, she took my advice and put two
louis on the transversale 1 to 6. No. 4 came up, and she won
another ten louis. Upon this she got more excited than ever.
" Isn't it wonderful ! " she exclaimed. " I've won fifteen
louis, and now I really must go."
" No," "
said I, give your winnings one more chance, and,
if you lose, then you had better stop."
So, again on my advice, she put five louis on the six numbers
from 25 to 30, and this time 29 came up. Thus she won
\
another twenty-five louis, making forty louis altogether. She

was trembling with excitement as she received her winnings.
" Now I must " she exclaimed. " This is the
really stop I
limit !
"
She rose from the table, and, after thanking me profusely,
hurried over to three ladies, evidently friends of hers, who were
standing some little distance away, and showed them the
money she had won. After she had been talking to them for
some minutes, they all made a move towards the door, but,
before reaching it, the lady turned back, came up to me and
said :
" Excuse me, sir, but are you here every night ?
"
On leaving Monte Carlo, my wife and I proceeded to Paris,

where we had an engagement at the Alhambra Theatre. On
the second night of our engagement there was a strike amongst
the musicians of the Paris theatres and we had, in consequence,
to perform without an orchestra. After some trouble, we
managed to get a pianist, and the next night the whole per
formance had to be given to the accompaniment of a jazz
band.
On the programme with us was Harry Fragson, the well-
known singer and composer, who not long afterwards came to
such a tragic end. It was during this engagement that
Fragson met the girl his infatuation for whom was the cause of
his death. I was with him at the time. He had composed a
new piece of music which was going to be played one evening
at the Bal Tabarin, and he asked Mr. Neighbour, the manager
of the Alhambra Theatre, and myself to go with him to hear
the orchestra play this piece, as he wanted to have our opinion
of it. So we went, accompanied by our wives, to the Bal
Tabarin, where Fragson had engaged a box. The boxes were
all in a row along the balcony, overlooking the dancing-room
below.
Fragson sat with us for a few minutes, and then excused
himself, saying he would be back shortly. He did not return,
however, and we were wondering what had become of him,
when Mr. Neighbour caught sight of him in the dancing-room

below, talking to a girl. Mr. Neighbour said to me : —
"
There's Fragson downstairs, talking to a girl. Let's go
down and, for a joke, tell him before the girl that his wife and
baby are outside waiting for him." (Fragson was, of course,
unmarried.)
We went downstairs and did as Mr. Neighbour suggested,
but Fragson took no notice of us, and we could not get him
away from that girl. She was a very ordinary-looking girl
and struck me as being rather common. After a time we
returned to our box, but Fragson never came near us for the
rest of the evening,
and about three o'clock in the morning we
went home without him.
At the matinee at the Alhambra the next day we were
astonished to see Fragson come in with the same girl. He
took no notice of anyone. The following evening he was
again accompanied by the girl, but what a change was there !
At the matinee she had been very plainly dressed in clothes

which appeared to have seen some service ; at least, so the
ladies said. Now she wore an expensive fur coat and a silk
gown, and was covered with jewels.
Fragson's father, who lived with him at his flat in Paris,
was very fond of his son. He did not like the idea of his
bringing this girl to the flat, and I was told he and the girl
were continually quarrelling. The elder Fragson begged him
to break off his relations with her, but Fragson would not
listen to him ; he was far too much infatuated. As is well
known, the wretched affair ended by the elder Fragson shooting
his son, who died shortly afterwards. The father was arrested
for murder and eventually died in prison. Some people say
that the shot was intended for the girl instead of his son, as he
was too fond of his son ever to think of killing him.
I have in my possession a cigarette-case, which, in its way,
is quite a unique souvenir, as it is decorated with the auto
graphs of over fifty well-known professionals, many of which
can never now be replaced. Among them is that of Harry
Fragson, which he had had put on a few days before the
tragedy. It is singular that upon this cigarette-case are the

autographs of two other artists, both of whom also met with
tragic deaths, namely, the Great Lafayette, the well-known
illusionist, who was burned to death in the fire at the Empire
Theatre, Edinburgh, in 1911, and Chung Ling Soo, the
Chinese conjurer, who was shot dead on the stage at the Wood
Green Empire.
Lafayette, who was a great friend of mine, was one of the
most eccentric men I have ever met. Although he was not a
great illusionist or conjurer, he was a wonderful showman, and
he succeeded in making people think that he really was great.
He had a dog in his show called
"
Beauty," to whom he was
devoted. At his house in Torrington Square, in London, he
had a special bathroom built for this dog, and when he returned
home from the theatre at night the dog used to have supper
with him, seated on a satin cushion, with a waiter specially
told off to wait upon him. The dog would be served with a
regular table d'hote meal ; first the waiter would bring soup,
then fish and then meat. Beauty slept on a special cushion on
the same bed as his master.
Lafayette thought so much of this dog that he had pictures
of him on the outside of his house, and in the dining-room was
a painting of him, beneath which was this inscription : —
TO MY FRIENDS.
My house is yours, my food is yours,
But the dog belongs to me.
He would never sign an engagement on the ordinary con

tracts which managers sent him, but had a special contract of
his own printed, at the bottom of which was a photograph of
his dog and underneath the words : "If
managers were as
loyal and honest as you, this contract would not be necessary."
He even had special cheque-books printed with pictures of
his dog upon them.
I remember going to lunch with him once at the Cavour
Restaurant, in Leicester Square. He left his dog outside in
Q
r
his motor-car, which was fitted up with electric chandeliers

inside, while in front, over the mudguard, were two large
models of the dog sitting up on its haunches. On coming out
of the Cavour we found a crowd looking at the showy car and
at the dog inside. Some passer-by pushed his way through
the crowd and exclaimed : —
" What's the matter ? What's all the crowd about ?
"
" Oh, it's some dog-trainer," answered a man.
On another occasion Lafayette's car was standing in front
of his house and a crowd as usual gathered round it. Someone
again inquired what was the matter, and was told that it was
"
only some damn Yank."
Four days before Lafayette's tragic end his dog Beauty
died, and Lafayette was nearly broken-hearted. He tried
to have the dog buried in the cemetery at Edinburgh, where
he was then performing, but although he offered a large
sum of money, he could not get permission, and was told that
the only way he could get the dog buried in the cemetery was
to buy a vault for himself, and then he could have the remains
of the dog put in his own vault. This he did, and, strange to
say, shortly afterwards he met with his awful death, and was
buried with his dog in the vault which he had bought. There
is an imposing effigy of Beauty over the vault.
The terrible circumstances of Lafayette's death are well
known. He was performing at the Empire Theatre, in Edin
burgh, and had just finished his show ; he had given orders
for the iron pass-door which led from the stage to the auditorium
to be locked, and, when the fire broke out, he made his way
out of the stage-door into the street at the back, but returned
in order to try to save his horse. When he found that it was
impossible to save the horse, he endeavoured to get out again
by the stage-door, but found his retreat cut off by the flames.
So he rushed to the iron pass-door and tried to escape that way,
forgetting that he had given orders for this door to be locked.
When the fire was extinguished they found his charred remains
by the door.
Lafayette's funeral must have been a sight to be remembered
in Edinburgh. All traffic was suspended, and no Royal

personage could have had a more imposing funeral. We had
made arrangements to tour the Continent together, he and I
giving the entire performance, and, had he lived, I have no
doubt that we should have made a wonderful success of it and
a small fortune.
Chung Ling Soo's death occurred at the Wood Green
Empire during the performance of a trick in which he used to
allow marked bullets which had been put in a gun to be fired
at him. These bullets he would catch on a plate held in
front of him. Many years ago I myself used to perform the
same trick, but it was always a very dangerous one, and I left
off doing it after the following incident : —
At that time I was in the habit of using a large old-fashioned
revolver, which was loaded with powder and a wad. My
assistant used to take a bullet down amongst the audience,
which they were allowed to mark and drop into the revolver.
On one occasion, I was performing in one of the mining camps
in Colorado, when a sailor, who was slightly the worse for
liquor, dropped a brass-button which he had taken from his
coat into the revolver, retaining the bullet in his hand, and
my assistant, whose attention had been diverted for a few
seconds, did not notice what had been done. The sailor no
doubt thought that if I could catch a bullet I could catch a
button just as well. Happily, when my assistant fired the
button missed me by a few inches. After this I discarded
the trick and have never performed it since.
CHAPTER XX
The Continent again — Racing at Vienna — A lucky mistake — " The
"— — The outbreak of war finds
horse with the pretty colours 1914
my wife and myself at Ostend — Difficulty of getting back to
England — Refusal of a South Wales manager to allow me to fulfil
an engagement at his theatre on the ground that I am a German
— I bring an action against him and win it— Performance which I
give in hospitals during the war — Tour in France and Belgium in
1919 — Visit to Ireland
— I decline to continue a performance in
Dublin owing to the conduct of the audience — The Lord Mayor's
motor-car.
In 1912 I made tour, visiting Paris,

another Continental
Berlin, Vienna, Budapest and other cities. During ray stay
in Vienna, where I performed at Ronacher's Theatre, I had a
very singular experience at the races.
One night an American jockey whom I
knew was at the
theatre and told me that he was riding a horse the next day
which, if it were all right, would be as near a certainty as you
could wish to have. He said that he would see me again in
the paddock the next day before the race and let me know if
it was advisable to back it. Accordingly, next day I went to
the races and met my jockey friend in the paddock as arranged ;
he told me that the horse was all right, but that there was a
chance that he might not relish the
"
going," which was on the
hard side. I had better stand at the rails near the winning-
post and watch him as he went past in the preliminary canter.
If he touched his cap when he passed me, that would be a
sign that I must let the horse run loose, but if he made no
sign, I
was to take it that the horse was striding out properly,
and that I might back him with every confidence.
Accordingly, I took my place at the spot he told me, and,

as he made no sign as he cantered past me, I went to the
Totalisator — there are no bookmakers in Vienna — and backed
the horse for a good deal more than I usually put on one. I,
of course, backed the horse by its number, which was No. 2.
After investing my money, I went
into the paddock, where
I happened to meet a friend of mine who was also performing
at Ronacher's Theatre. He asked me what I was backing,
and I told him that I was backing No. 2.
" How much have " " Ten "
you got on ? he said. gulden ?
" No, I've
got 500 gulden on."
" Go on ! " he exclaimed.
"
You're joking ! I know you
don't put as much as that on a horse."
" I don't as a rule," said I, " but I've
got a tip for this
horse from the jockey who is riding it, who thinks it some
thing like a certainty, and so I've gone beyond my limit and
put 500 gulden on."
" Oh, don't kid me ! " said he. " Tell me the truth. How
"
much have you really got on ?
I repeated that I had backed the horse for 500 gulden,
and, as he still refused to believe me, I got rather annoyed
and said : —
" Well, if
you don't believe me, here is my ticket ; see for
yourself."
With that I put my hand in my pocket and drew out my
ticket to prove to him that I was speaking the truth, and that
I really had 500 gulden on, when, to my consternation, I
discovered that the clerk at the Totalisator had given me a
ticket for Horse No. 5, instead of Horse No. 2, the one I wished
to back. My friend must have thought I had suddenly taken
leave of my senses, as, without saying a word to him, I rushed
out of the paddock and ran as hard as I could to the Totalisator,
to tell the clerk of the mistake he had made.
But just as I reached it the electric bell rang denoting that
the horses were off, and the windows of the Totalisator were
automatically shut in my face. I shouted out to the clerk
that he had made a mistake and given me a ticket with the
wrong number, but he answered that it was too late and

that, the race having started, no mistake could now be rectified.
I tried to argue the matter with him, but it was no use, and
having called him all the hard names I could think of in
German, French and English, I came away, fully convinced
that my 500 gulden had been thrown into the gutter.
I had been too busy arguing with the clerk to see anything
of the race, and my astonishment and delight may be imagined
when, on looking at the number board, I saw that No. 5 had
won, No. 2, the horse I had intended to back, being second !
Needless to say, I made no further complaints about the
mistake which had been made, and, as the winner was returned
at 10 to 1, my ticket won 5,000 gulden.
During that same tour, while performing at the Alhambra
Theatre in Paris, I went with my wife to a race-meeting at
Chantilly. One of the jockeys, with whom I was well
acquainted, gave me £100 to put on a horse for him which he
was going to ride in the big event. He told me that he thought
" "
the race was a real good thing for his mount, and asked me
to put the money on with a bookmaker instead of with the
Pari-Mutuel, as I would get a better price in this way. He
also advised me to have a nice bet myself, and, thinking that
what was good enough for him to have £100 of his own money
on, was good enough for me to back for a bit extra, I went to
a well-known bookmaker and took £450 to £150 about the
horse. A lot of money came for it soon afterwards, and
eventually it became a hot favourite at 6 to 4, and I was
naturally very pleased at having got the best of the market.
I went back to the grand-stand, where I had left my wife,
to watch the race, and when the horses came out for the pre
liminary canter she said to me : —
"
What horse is that in the pretty colours, mauve and
"
yellow ?
I looked at my race-card, and told her the name of the
horse, adding that it was a rank outsider.
Not a little to my surprise— for I am pleased to say that
my wife, though she is very fond of going to a race-meeting
occasionally, seldom or never cares to have a bet — turned to

me and said : —
"I'd like to have ten francs on that horse."
" "
Don't be silly and throw your money away like that !
"
I exclaimed. That horse has no earthly chance. The
favourite will win this right enough. I've got three to one
about it, and it is only six to four now. If you want to have
a bet, you can stand ten francs with me at the price I've got."
" "
I
don't want to back your horse," said she. I want
to back the one with the pretty colours."
" But that horse
has got no chance, and the other is almost
sure to win," I objected, and I told her about the jockey having
given me £100 to put on for him, and that I had £50 on myself.
" Well,
anyway, go and find out the price of the horse."
I obeyed, and came and told her that it was 40 to 1, upon
which she handed me ten francs, saying :
"
Here you are ! Put this on the horse at 40 to 1, or the
best price you can get."
I tried to persuade her not to throw her money away, but
she had made up her mind and would not listen to reason. So
I took her ten francs and went towards the paddock with the
intention of putting it on the horse she had picked out. But,
on the way, I thought that it would be a pity to let her throw
her money away on a horse which had no chance, and decided
that I would keep it in my pocket and, if the favourite won,
as I
felt quite sure it would, give her a pleasant little surprise
by handing her forty francs and telling her that I had put her
ten francs on the winner.
When I returned to the stand my wife asked me if I had
executed her commission. I answered that I had and had got
her 40 to 1.
" "
So I get 400 francs if the horse wins ? said she.
" Yes, but the horse has
about as much chance of winning,
as I
have of jumping over the moon," I answered, laughing.
"
That remains to be seen," she rejoined.
In the race, to my annoyance and mortification, my wife's
selection took up the running when about half the distance
had been covered, and, though the favourite tried hard to

overhaul him and was catching him fast at the finish, he could
not quite get up, and the despised outsider got home by a
neck. My wife was, of course, jubilant, and, besides losing
my £50, I had to hand her over 400 francs.
I returned to England in April, 1913, and remained there

until the end of July, 1914, when I went with my wife to
Belgium. We were at Ostend at the time war was declared.
Of course, we at once decided to return to London, but when
I went to pay our bill at the Hotel Splendide, where we were
staying, they refused to take English banknotes and told me
they would only accept payment in English gold or French
money. I had nothing with me except five-pound notes, and
though I tried to get these changed, no one would accept
them. I was in a great predicament and did not know what
to do, when fortunately I met an old acquaintance who paid
my bill, and we were able to leave Ostend by the last boat
which left before traffic was suspended.
After arriving in London, I made arrangements for a tour
in the provinces, one of my engagements being at Bargoed, in
South Wales. As will be remembered, for the first few weeks
of the War business was very bad at the theatres and music-
halls, but, as I had a guarantee from the manager of the
theatre at Bargoed, I knew I was on the right side. I had sent
in my billing matter, which, according to my contract, had to
be delivered two weeks before my opening, when I was
astonished to receive a letter from the manager, stating that he
could not allow me to appear, as the people in South Wales
were greatly prejudiced against Germans, and he would not
take the risk of permitting one to perform in his theatre.
I wrote and informed him that he was mistaken, that I was
not a German, but an American born and bred, that Carl Hertz
was only my stage-name, and that, if he wished, I would send
him my passport and papers and birth certificate to prove that
I was an American citizen. He replied that that did not
matter, as the people would think I was a German. I wrote
again saying that he would either have to pay me the guarantee

according to my contract, or I should be there to fulfil my
engagement ; to which he answered that it would be no use
my coming, as he would not allow me to appear.
I consulted my solicitor, who told me to write and tell him
that he need not bill me as Carl Hertz, and might do so in any
other name he liked. But it was no use ; he would not allow
me to appear, and so I brought an action against him for
breach of contract, and also for calling me a German, wliich
was libellous. The case was tried at the Town Hall at Merthyr,
and, needless to say, I won and got damages and costs for
breach of contract. As the manager apologised for calling me
a German, I did not proceed with the action for libel.
During the War I gave over three hundred performances
at different hospitals in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales,
and I think I must have entertained at least a quarter of a
million wounded soldiers. I also sold over a million postcards
during my performances, the proceeds of which were sent to
the various hospitals in each town in which I played for the
purchase of cigarettes and tobacco for the wounded "Tommies."
I am sorry to say that during the War I lost two of my
most valued assistants who had been with me a good many
years, both being killed in action. One of them, who was
serving in Mesopotamia, was on the march one day through
the desert when he caught sight of a small piece of a news
paper about eight inches square lying on the sand. He picked
it up and found that it was a piece of a Leicester paper, and
contained part of a long notice of a performance of mine at
the Palace Theatre in that town. This piece of paper he sent
to me just before his death.
In the autumn of 1919 I made another Continental tour,
playing in Paris, Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent. During this
tour I visited Lille, Dunkirk, Ypres, Louvain, Bruges and
many of the battlefields in Belgium and north-eastern France.
I shall never forget the terrible sight of havoc and destruction
in these places. I was glad to get away, as it had a most
depressing effect upon me.
I visited Dublin and Belfast during the troubles of 1921.

One night during my engagement at the Theatre Royal, in
Dublin, I asked for some gentleman to come on the stage to
assist me. A gentleman came from the stalls, and I was
starting to do one of my card tricks, when some of the audience
shouted : —
" Get another man "
; you know he's a pal of yours !
" "
Ladies and gentlemen," I exclaimed, you are mistaken.
This gentleman is a perfect stranger to me. I never saw him
before in my whole life." And then to the gentleman I said :
" "
Have you ever seen me before ?
" No," was the answer,
upon which the audience yelled
with laughter.
Seeing that they would not be quiet, I thanked the gentle
man for his offer of assistance and asked him if he would
kindly leave the stage and I would get someone else to come
in his place. But, to my embarrassment, he said : —
" No, I
paid my money to come in, and I've just as much
right as anyone else to come up here and see the trick, and
I'm not going to leave."
" But," "
said I, the audience think that I know you and
they will not let me proceed with my performance. So oblige
me by kindly returning to your seat, and I will get someone
else."
Still, however, he refused to budge, and, though I continued
to reason with him and pointed out that my whole entertain
ment was being held up, it was some time before I at last
succeeded in persuading him to go back to his seat.
When he had gone, I advanced to the footlights again and
said :
" Ladies and think I knew that gentle
as you
gentlemen,
man, will some other gentleman kindly step on the stage, and
I will then proceed with my performance."
A second gentleman came forward, and I began my card
trick again, when the audience started to shout once more :
" Oh, him,
"
you know too !
This was a little bit too much, and, after remonstrating
with them without the least effect, I became so disgusted that

I left the stage without finishing my performance.
During my engagement in Dublin a strange incident hap
pened one night. The Lord Mayor was present, and his motor
car was waiting for him at the door. Just before the house
was out, a crowd gathered round the car, upset it and turned
it completely over. Not one of those who were leaving the
theatre would stir a finger to put it right again, and, in the
end, the Lord Mayor had to send to the nearest police-station
for assistance.
CHAPTER XXI
Prosecution of the Vaudeville Club for permitting poker to be played

there — I visit the secretaries of the principal London clubs and
raise a fund to fight the case— It is decided that poker is not an
unlawful game — Amusing incident during the trial of the case —
Jokes played by the members of the Vaudeville Club upon one
another — The Performing Animals Bill — I am summoned as a
witness before the Select Committee appointed by the House of
Commons — Repetition of the charge of cruelty in connection
with my cage and canary trick — I smuggle cage and bird into
the committee room and am allowed to perform the trick —
Amusing account of this incident in the Daily Express — Remarks
on the training of animals — Mr. Bostock's bear and the policeman
— Mr. Ginnett and the lioness —The Wild Australia Show —
Bonita, the rifle-shot, and her two suitors — A race for a wife.
Just after the War I was elected one of the committee of the
Vaudeville Club, and about this time the Club was prosecuted
for allowing poker to be played, the authorities claiming that
poker was an illegal game, as it was one of chance, and not of
skill. This was a very serious thing, not only for the Vaude
ville Club, but for every other club in London, so I suggested
to the committee that we should fight this case out and prove
that poker was not a game of chance, but of skill, just as much
as bridge and whist were. As it would cost a great deal of
money to fight the case, I visited the secretaries of nearly all
the principal clubs in London and asked them each to donate
a certain sum of money to enable us to fight the case, it being
as much to their interest as it was to ours that we should win
it. My appeal met with a ready response, and sufficient money
was subscribed to enable us to secure the services of first-class
counsel, and expert witnesses to give evidence.
The charge was that the police found five men seated at a
table in the club playing poker, and the prosecution endeavoured
to show that poker was an unlawful game. It was admitted
at the various hearings of the case that there was no attempt
at concealment, either by the manager of the club or by any of
those taking part in the game, and that the club was conducted
in a perfectly proper manner. The police, in fact, stated that
there was no question as to the proper conduct of the club.
For the defence, it was contended that no charge could lie
against the management, inasmuch as poker was in itself not
an unlawful game nor a game of chance.
The magistrate, Mr. A. Lawrie, defined the limits of the
charge in stating that the only question the jury had to decide
was whether poker was a game of chance or a game of skill.
If the latter, then the club could not be said to be a common
gaming-house. The jury decided that poker was not an
unlawful game, and pronounced Mr. Dave Carter, the manager
of the club, not guilty of the offence.
Since the hearing of the case at the London Sessions those
responsible for the conduct of the various clubs in London
have acknowledged their indebtedness to the management of
the Vaudeville Club for fighting this test case on behalf of the
poker-playing community, and certainly Variety folk can
congratulate themselves upon the initiative of their repre
sentatives in obtaining a legal ruling on a question which had
caused a considerable flutter of apprehension in Clubland.
An amusing incident happened while one of the expert
witnesses was giving evidence. The magistrate did not under
stand poker, so he requested the witness to give him some idea
of the game. This the latter did, explaining that two pair
beat one pair, three of a kind beat two pair, a straight three of
a kind, a flush a straight, a full house a flush, four of a kind
a full house, and a straight, or royal, flush, four of a kind.
After he had finished, the magistrate said : —
" Now tell me, for instance, supposing you held four aces,
what would you do ?
"
"
"I'd drop down dead ! answered the expert witness.
The Vaudeville was a very lively club, and many were the
jokes played by its members upon one another. One after
noon, about two years ago, four or five well-known professionals
were sitting together there, when one of them, an American
artist, whose first visit to England it was, and who was known
to be most surprisingly ignorant of the geography of the
British Isles, inquired if anyone knew any good rooms in
Hanley, as he was going there to fulfil an engagement the
following week. One of the others replied that there was only
one place worth stopping at in Hanley, and that was the Pier
Hotel.
" It is facing the sea,"
"
and the bedrooms look
said he,
out on a verandah, and in the morning, when you wake up,
you go out on to the verandah, sit in an easy chair and get the
beautiful sea-breeze. Then, after breakfast, you go to the
end of the pier, have a couple of hours' splendid fishing, and
come back in time for lunch. After lunch, you go on to the
verandah again, smoke your cigar, read the papers, get some
more ozone and take it easy till dinner-time. And the terms,
inclusive of everything, for professionals, are only thirty-five
shillings a week."
Now, as everyone knows, Hanley is a dull, dreary town in
the Potteries, far away from the sea !
The American thanked him, wrote down the name of the
hotel, and said that he should most certainly stop there ; he
thought the terms were wonderfully moderate. About ten
days' later, he returned to town, and this was his experience
in his own words :
" When I arrived in
Hanley, I
told a porter to get me a
four-wheeler, had my baggage put on top and got into the
'
Where to, sir ? asked the driver. ' The Pier Hotel,'
'
cab.
I replied. ' Where ? ' he said. ' The Pier Hotel.' ' Pier
'
Hotel ! said the driver,
'
I don't know it. Whereabouts is
' ' ' '
it ? Why, don't you know ? I.
It's facing the sea,
said
with a big verandah running along the front of it.' The driver
jumped off his seat, put his head in at the window and said :
' "
Look here, sir, I think you've got into the wrong train !
'
-■■
There was another American artist at the club, who, aware

that I did a bit at racing, used continually to be bothering me
for tips. He knew nothing whatever about racing and never
had more than five or ten shillings on a horse, but he used to
be almost childishly delighted when he won. So some of us
made up our minds to lay for him and have a bit of fun. The
next morning when I went to the club up he came as usual and
"
inquired if I knew anything."
" Yes,"
I replied, " I do, and something that's as near a
certainty as there can be in racing, although it will probably
start at a decent price. But I'm not going to tell you what
it is, unless you promise to have at least a fiver on it, as I
' '
want you to do yourself a bit of good."

" But," said he, "
you know I never have anything like
that on a horse. I don't mind having a pound on, as you
say it's such a good thing, but I won't go further than that."
" No," " ' '
said I, unless you'll have a fiver on the horse
I won't tell you what it is."
He took a bit of persuading, but at length agreed, on
condition that I should promise to say nothing about it to his
wife, who, it seemed, disapproved of his turf speculations.
" And now what's the horse ? " he asked.
" Victor Wild, for the Irish
Derby. Come along and I will
introduce you to my bookmaker, and you can back it with
him."
Itook him round to a bookmaker I knew, whose office was
close by and whom I had told what to expect, and introduced
him. The bookmaker, though he could hardly keep his
countenance, entered his name as a client, and he put £5 on
Victor Wild, and Ihad £20 on myself.
We then went back to the club for lunch, and about half
past three I went into the card-room, where my unsuspecting
compatriot was playing bridge, and, clapping him on the back,
showed him a telegram which I had arranged for someone to
send me saying that Victor Wild had won at 8 to 1.
Inever saw anyone so delighted in my life. He jumped
up, shook me by the hand, thanked me effusively for having
made him back it, and then insisted on standing champagne

all round. When they started playing again he was so excited
that he trumped his partner's ace, but he said it didn't matter,
as he would pay his partner's losses, as well as his own. Pre
sently, however, a page-boy brought me another telegram,
which read :
"
Victor Wild objected to for bumping and boring."
I it to my friend, and his face was a study.

showed
" "
Cheer up," I said, very likely the objection will be over
ruled, and, anyway, we shall know about it in a few minutes ;
I'm sure to get another telegram."
But more than half-an-hour passed and no telegram came,
and at last he could stand the suspense no longer and sent for
an evening paper. But, of course, there was nothing about
the Irish Derby there —it wasn't run, as a matter of fact, until
the following week — and the only racing in Ireland that day
" "
was some little tin-pot meeting of which they didn't bother
to give the results.
Then one of us suggested that he should ring up the Sporting
Life, as they would be sure to know what had happened. So
he went to the telephone and, having got on to the Sporting
Life, said : —
" Can
you tell me what was the result of the objection to
"
Victor Wild for the Irish Derby ?
" Well, what did " we
they say ? asked.
"
They told me to go to blazes," he answered, with a
puzzled expression on his face.
The murder was out then, and we all rocked with laughter.
Our victim was, of course, pretty sore at first about the way
" had,"
he had been but he was a good fellow, and when I put
him on to a winner a day or two later which enabled him to get
back what he had paid for the champagne, and a bit over as
well, he forgave me.
I have spoken in a preceding chapter of my celebrated

disappearing cage and canary trick. In reference to this trick,

I was asked by the executive committee of the Variety Artists'
Federation, in August, 1921, to give evidence before the Select
Committee of the House of Commons on the Performing
Animals Bill. I accordingly attended, and was astonished to
hear one of the witnesses on the other side declare that Mr.
Carl Hertz, in his performance with the cage and canary,
killed a bird every time he did this trick. The same witness
further stated that he would give £100 if I could perform the
trick without killing the bird.
I made up my mind to confute this gentleman by accepting
his challenge, and, on the day when the Committee met again,
I wrapped up birdcage and bird and went down to the House
of Commons for the purpose of performing my trick there
and proving to the Committee that the witness's assertion was
absolutely false.
When I reached Westminster, I found two or three of the
Committee of the Variety Artists' Federation there, and told
them what I intended to do. But they said that the police
had orders not to allow anyone to bring any packages or any
animals into the House of Commons, and outside I saw several
performers with monkeys, dogs, baboons, parrots and so
forth, but none of them was allowed to enter. One of the
committee told me that I had better take my cage and bird
away and come back again. I accordingly walked away, but
I was determined to get my cage and bird into the House of
Commons somehow, and perform the trick there.
A few minutes later I returned, with my cage and bird
concealed beneath a long, loose overcoat which I was wearing,
and in this way I managed to pass the guard of six policemen
and get into the House without what I was carrying being
discovered. I entered the committee-room where the Select
Committee was sitting, took the cage from beneath my coat
and put it under my chair. Presently, I was called upon to
give evidence, when I indignantly denied the accusation of
cruelty which had been made against me, and ended by in
forming the Committee that I had my cage and canary with
R
me, and would perform the trick before them, first allowing
them to mark the bird in any way they pleased, and prove to
them conclusively that the bird was not injured in the slightest
degree.
When I said that I had brought the cage and bird with me,
two or three members of the Committee rose and said that it
was against the rules to bring anything into the House, and
that they ought to be removed at once. The Chairman,
Brigadier-General Colvin, howeve'r, took a different view of
the matter, and sent one of the ushers to me with a note which
was as follows :—
" The Chairman has no objection to Mr. Hertz performing
his cage and canary trick here."
Accordingly, I performed the trick in the committee-room,
with the members of the Select Committee sitting around me.
The Daily Express of the next day contained the following
amusing account of the incident :—
"A
lively canary entertained the Committee on
Select
Performing Animals at the House of Commons yesterday.
'
The canary's name is Connie,' and she disappears four times
a day, explained Mr. Carl Hertz, who is the canary's owner.
' '
He had brought Connie (in answer to a hundred pound
challenge by an earlier witness, Mr. Haverley, formerly a
theatrical manager), to disprove before the Committee the
allegation that he killed a bird each time he made it disappear
' '
together with the cage. Mr. Hertz placed Connie on the
centre table and asked members to mark it, so that there should
'
be no deception. That is not necessary,' said Mr. James
O'Grady, M.P.
'
I know something about birds. Let me
examine it, and I shall recognise it again.' Mr. F. O. Roberts,
'
M.P., removed the canary and placed it in the cage. One !
'
Two ! Three ! cried Mr. Hertz, and suddenly threw up his
hands. Sir John Butcher was startled and half-rose from his
'
seat, and meanwhile both ' Connie and her cage had
vanished. Mr. Hertz took off his coat, retired a moment, and
reappeared two seconds later holding the bird, which chirped
3
4)
*j o
b
U
o
c
s
Q
c
u
happily, and everybody was satisfied that it was indeed

'
Connie.'
" ' I do not want Mr.
Haverley's hundred pounds,' said Mr.
Hertz in evidence ;
'
I am glad to do the trick for nothing, in
order to refute one of the wild charges made by an earlier
witness. The statement that I kill a canary at each per
formance is absurd on the face of it ; I have had this bird for
twelve months, and some of my earlier birds have remained
with me for six years.'
" The exhibition
given by Mr. Hertz, the illusionist, in the
House of Commons differed, not in kind, but only in degree,
from many similar tricks which are daily performed in that
august assembly. The trick as performed by Prime Ministers
does not consist of making canaries disappear only to appear
again, but they sleight-of-hand in dealing with
show great
facts and figures. They make on occasion facts disappear,
only to appear again as fictions. With figures they are even
more skilful. The trick by which a deficit is converted into
a surplus sometimes calls for the highest praise. This sensa
tion is always caused by the annual transformation of a
sinking fund into a floating debt. The Members of Parlia
ment who were temporarily converted from performers in
legerdemain into spectators of it must have had a fellow
feeling for their brothers in the theatrical world. It must not
be forgotten also that the present Parliament is particularly
fortunate in having a wizard as its star-performer.
"
Mr. Carl Hertz's performance is unique, as it is the first
time in the annals of history that a conjuring performance has
ever been given within the Houses of Parliament."
While on the subject of the training of animals, I should

like to state that in all my experience of over thirty-five years
on the stage I have never seen any cruelty whatever used in
the training. I have had several intimate friends, like
the late Frank Bostock and Fred Ginnett, both great
animal trainers, with whom I have spent a great deal of time
and have seen their modus operandi for the training of animals.
/■"
There was nothing in it to which exception could be taken,

and Mr. Ginnett told me himself that the allegations of cruelty
which are so frequently made are absurd.
No animal can ever be trained to perform a trick which it
dislikes, and no trainer who knew anything of his business
would be so foolish as to try to force an animal to do it. On the
contrary, it is the first object of every trainer to discover how
animals play when at liberty and to attempt to imitate their
games in the performances which he devises. An animal which
will not play is useless from the trainer's point of view.
Mr. Ginnett told me how he first got the idea of teaching a
horse to walk the tight-rope. He was in Ireland, and he
happened to see a colt passing along the top of a very narrow
bank. He bought the animal and tried it with a two-foot
plank. The lessons were given in public at Portsmouth and
lasted about a quarter of an hour each night. Gradually he
reduced the width of the plank to seven inches and raised it a
little way from the ground. The trick pleased the horse
almost as much as it pleased Mr. Ginnett. It was a great
success in public.
If rubber balls had not been invented there would have
been no performing dogs. Dan, the drunken dog, was trained
by rolling a ball from side to side in front of him. The dog,
of course, followed every movement of the ball. Afterwards,
the ball was dispensed with, the trainer's hands indicating the
necessary movements. In a similar way dogs are taught to
turn somersaults. A ball is thrown, and the dog springs up
at it. The next throw is directed behind the dog, which, in
consequence, flings itself backwards. Once the idea is grasped,
subsequent training is easy.
Mr. Ginnett pointed out that elephants, in their
natural state, rise on their hind legs to pull down trees,
and bend down until their heads touch the ground in
order to plumb deep wells with their trunks. He told me
a good story of a performing elephant he had which broke
loose while on tour in Wales and invaded a girls' board
ing-school during the night. The scholars mistook the visitor
x
for a burglar and gathered on the lawn to await the arrival of

the village policeman, whom they had summoned by tele
phone. On the policeman seeing the elephant and reporting,
a general stampede ensued. Mr. Ginnett was sent for and
found his pet in the kitchen regaling himself with loaves of
bread and soapy water from a washing-tub. Unfortunately,
this fare had the effect of distending the creature to such an
extent that it could not pass through the doorway; but
elephants have no respect for doors, a heave of the great
shoulders, and door-posts and walls were scattered like chaff,
and the elephant emerged. Several of the scholars fainted and
the policeman incontinently bolted.
Elephants are exceedingly timid animals. They are
especially afraid of mice, which sometimes run up their trunks ;
when this happens the elephant usually breaks loose and
stampedes. Mr. Ginnett once had to pay heavy damages
because four of his elephants, which had been startled by a
flock of sheep, ran amok on a country estate and destroyed a
greenhouse. An elephant has wonderful balancing powers, and
is thus able to perform tricks like rope-walking with ease. It
is the rarest thing in the world for an elephant to miss its
footing.
Sea-lions, like elephants, are natural balancers. The
wonderful balancing feats performed by Captain Wood
ward's sea-lions were first suggested by the sea-lions at play
in San Francisco Bay. The animals were noticed tossing
pieces of wreckage from one to the other, and it was remarked
that they hardly ever made a miss.
The lion is a noble animal, and easy to train, if one
takes him the right way. He is a natural hunter; the
tiger and the leopard, on the other hand, are assassins. No
trainer would dare to strike a tiger. The red-hot pokers
one hears about in connection with these animals are pieces
of painted wood; they are used for effect only. Wolves
are the most treacherous of all wild animals. They are
so stupid that it is a waste of time to attempt to do anything
with them. On the other hand, it is a wonderful tribute to
the trainer's skill that he has succeeded in evolving so faithful

a companion as the dog from this unpromising material.
" Consul,"
the ape-man in Mr. Bostock's show, was brought
up from his early years as a human being. He always sat at
a table, wore clothes and slept in a bed. He was never at any
time subject to cruel treatment. On one occasion Mr. Bostock
entered his dressing-room and, slapping him on the back in a
"
Well, Consul, how are you to-night ? "
friendly way, said :
Consul grinned and returned the salute, but so forcibly that
his trainer was felled to the ground. Three times the blow
was repeated, always in the most amiable manner. Mr.
Bostock was rather severely knocked about. Animals of that
sort are not, one would imagine, favourable subjects for
cruelty. If you want to see real brutality, go to a fat-stock
show or watch poultry being forcibly fed. As a lover of
animals, that sort of thing disgusts me, and I would abolish it
if I could.
Some years ago while I was spending a few days with Mr.
Bostock I was witness of a very comical incident.
He was travelling with his menagerie in which was a very
big bear. Bears, as a rule, are very difficult animals to travel,
as the cages they are kept in have to be floored with zinc or
some other metal to prevent the bear from scraping through
the bottom of his cage. When wooden flooring was used it
was found that, by the continuous scraping of his claws, the
bear could work through a plank very quickly, no matter how
thick it was. And when he had got a board clawed through,
it was a very easy matter for him to get his head down and
chew away enough of the boards to make a hole large enough
for him to escape.
One night — or rather early one morning —when the
menagerie was at Boston, in Lincolnshire, the bear in question
clawed and chewed through the bottom of his cage and made
a hole through which he got out. It was about six o'clock and,
being mid-winter, still dark. The bear made his way into the
street, which was deserted except for a policeman, who,
observing a dark object approaching, turned his lantern on it
and saw that it was a bear. He immediately started to run

for his life, and the bear promptly ran after him. For it is a
well-known fact that if a person meeting a bear runs away the
bear will give chase, but, if he stands still, the bear, unless he is
absolutely wild, will probably pass on without doing him any
harm.
The faster the policeman ran, the faster Bruin ran after
him, and, finding that the bear was gaining on him, the police
man climbed as high as he could get up a lamp-post and began
to shout lustily for help and to blow his whistle. This brought
another policeman on the scene, who, seeing the trouble his
colleague was in, and not daring to go near the bear himself,
ran to the police-station for assistance. Meantime, the bear
was trying to climb the lamp-post to get at the policeman,
who, on his side, kept hitting it with his truncheon to prevent
it from reaching him.
When the other policeman reported the matter at the
station, they at once decided that the bear must belong to
Bostock's menagerie, and a constable was despatched to Mr.
Bostock, who was called out of bed to hear that his bear was
at large and amusing himself by assaulting policemen in the
execution of their duty. Having awakened four or five of his
men and told them to get ropes, he set off with the messenger
for the lamp-post, where the besieged policeman was still
defending himself against the efforts of the bear to reach him.
He was as yet unhurt, although the bottoms of his trousers had
been torn to shreds by the bear's claws, and the sight was so
comical that Mr. Bostock could not help laughing.
" For God's sake, call
your brute of a bear away and let me
"
get down ! cried the unfortunate policeman. "I've been up
"
here long enough !
Mr. Bostock was about to tell his men to secure the bear,
when it occurred to him that here was a chance of advertise
ment too good to be lost. So he told the policeman to hold on
for a minute or two longer, and despatched one of his men to
the offices of a newspaper, which were near at hand, to ask them
to send a reporter. When the reporter had arrived on the
"
scene and got his copy," the bear was secured without the
least difficulty and marched back to the menagerie.
While on the subject of animals escaping from menageries,
I may mention a most exciting incident which occurred at
Cork, where I was spending a few days with Mr. Ginnett.
It happened that one of the lionesses had sustained an
injury to one of her paws, which had been stepped on by
another lioness. Mr. J. H. Peard, the well-known veterinary
surgeon, was sent for, and came to the menagerie to see the
animal. It was then about eight o'clock in the morning, and
none of the attendants had yet arrived, so that Mr. Ginnett
and Mr. Peard were alone in the place. The former got a step-
ladder and placed it against the cage, his intention being to
enter and force the beast's paw through the bars, so that Mr.
Peard could examine it. He had half opened the gate and was
about to pass in when the lioness made a spring at him and
knocked him over, and he fell, ladder and all, on Mr. Peard,
who was standing by.
Mr. Peard saw the lioness bounding over him and re
membered nothing more, until he found himself outside the
premises with a good high wall between himself and the escaped
beast. Hearing the roaring, as he thought, of several wild
animals, he concluded that some of the other lions and tigers
had also got out of their cages, and shouted as loudly as he
could for Mr. Ginnett to leave the place.
Mr. Ginnett, however, whose courage and presence of mind
never failed him, was searching for the escaped lioness, revolver
in hand. He thought he saw her lying in a corner under her
cage, but presently he heard a terrible noise, and going in the
direction from which it proceeded, caught sight of the lioness
hanging on to the throat of one of the camels. As he
approached, she pulled the camel to the ground and began to
tear its flesh with her claws and teeth, the unfortunate creature
uttering the most pitiful cries the while.
Mr. Ginnett fired a shot at the lioness, but missed, and the
lioness, with a large piece of the camel's flesh in her jaws, re
treated into an outhouse and, lying down, proceeded to devour
\
it. The outhouse had a barred window, at which Mr. Ginnett

stationed himself, and seeing a favourable opportunity, shot
the beast through the head, and she toppled over stone dead.
The camel was still alive, but soon succumbed to the terrible
injuries it had received. A second camel, which had been
tethered alongside the first, was not touched. The lioness was
valued at £200 and its victim at £100.
Something exciting always seemed to happen dtiring my
visits to Mr. Ginnett, and on another occasion, while staying
with him at Blackheath, that locality once the happy hunting-
ground of highwaymen, and still haunted, so it is said, by the
restless spirits of gentlemen of the road long since gone to
their account, I witnessed a romantic comedy which was
worth going a long way to see. In the presence of an en
thusiastic crowd of some two thousand people, a great race was
run for the hand, if not the heart, of a fair lady, by two devoted
admirers, between whom she found it quite impossible to
decide.
All to Mr. Ginnett's Wild Australia Show.
three belonged
The lady, who was called Bonita, was a rifle-shot of marvellous
dexterity, while her two suitors, Billy Lee and Frank Joy,
were roughriders and members of the same troupe. All three
were of the same age— twenty-three — and had worked and
played together in this happy company for two years. The
two young men both fell in love with Bonita at the same time,
"
and both paid her the most ardent court. Bonita, wedded
to her art," as she expressed it, did not know which of them
to choose for a husband. And the two lovers were visibly
losing flesh in their pining for her.
" I'd
marry you both if I only could," said she, with a sigh.
"
It makes my heart ache to see you both so miserable on my
account."
And still the duel went on ! A most alarming railway
accident near Wolverhampton, which happened a little later,
only served to add fuel to the flames. The train in which the
whole company was travelling was run into by another train,
Bonita was pinned under the wreckage of her carriage, and
two huge snakes which were journeying with her were killed.
She was rescued, bruised and bleeding, by the herculean
efforts of her two suitors, who tore away the wreckage, though
they themselves had been hurt in the smash, and so saved her
life (exactly one half each). Each, too, salved a snake from
the splintered baggage-wagon, only to find, to their sorrow
(for both were very kind-hearted fellows), that the reptiles had
passed away. At the pythons' funeral, Billy and Frank
shared the beautiful Bonitas' mourning-coach and mingled
their tears with hers.
It was clear that this state of affairs could not continue
indefinitely, and, in a moment of inspiration, Bonita suggested
that her two gallant suitors should ride a race for her. Billy
and Frank simply jumped at the proposal ; the bargain was
sealed, and the lady solemnly vowed that she would wed the
winner. -
And thus it was that this quiet corner of Essex 'witnessed a
sight such as it had never seen before, and most probably
never will again. Until that afternoon a race for a wife had
only existed in the thrilling pages of novels and illustrated
magazines; but now one was to take place in very truth.
The news spread like wildfire through the town and sur
rounding villages. It was early-closing day in Colchester, and
all the shop lads and lasses scurried off at dinner-time in high
feather at the prospect of an afternoon's sport. All roads led
to Blackheath, where, hard by the Old Cherry Tree Inn, was
the starting-post, and along them came an endless procession
of charabancs, motors, cabs and carriages. The local aris
tocracy were there, aloof and mildly excited, in their high-
wheeled dogcarts. And there, too, on their mettlesome
" "
steeds, were the reckless, good-hearted coo-eeing crowd of
the Wild Australia Show, and Bonita herself, booted and
spurred and sombreroed, astride a mild-mannered, old grey
mare, a slim, dark, slip of a girl with pretty, sun-burned face,
looking just a little bit sad.
The two competitors rode up side by side. They saluted
Bonita gravely, and the smile with which she returned their
'\
A Race for a Wife.
p. 26fi.
greeting was carefully apportioned into two equal parts, one

for William and the other for Frank. A squadron of the 20th
Hussars, on their spirited Irish horses, cleared the course and
shepherded the crowd, and then . . . Bonita dropped her
handkerchief, and to a tremendous shout of
" "
They're off !
the two roughriders started on the race of their lives.
The course was a circular one of a mile and a half, and
Bonita, sitting like a statue on her old grey mare, was the
winning-post. Lee rode a stocky chestnut called The Swell ;
Joy, a hardy-looking bay mare named Snowflake. With a
shout and a squelching of hoofs the other roughriders followed
close behind, a squadron at full charge. The pace was a warm
one from the start, and though first one led and then the other,
for the latter part of the journey they were close together. As
they approached the post they were neck and neck, and the
excitement was intense, for it was impossible to say which
one would win. But in the last few strides Snowflake faltered,
and Billy Lee on The Swell won by a length.
Amidst uproarious cheering, the victor leaped from the back
of his exhausted mount, and approaching the prize he had won,
kissed her on both cheeks with a hearty smack. And then,
together, on the same placid old grey mare, they rode through
the delighted crowd, with Bonita at the helm, where she doubt
less always intended to be. She looked somewhat sad and
pensive. Had she done wrong ? But, no, perish the thought !
Anyway, it was all over, except the wedding.

The happy sequel to this race for a bride took place at St.
Philips Church, Kennington, a few days later, when William
Lee, roughrider and stock-whip expert, was married to Bonita,
champion rifle-shot. A great crowd waited at the church
door for the wedding-party, and when a little group of horse
men, headed by a roughriders' band, came into sight there
was a scene of great enthusiasm. Bonita and Billy rode in
front :Bonita, a radiant and blushing bride, in a light-brown
riding skirt and bright red shirt-blouse with ribbon and stream
lets flowing in all directions, Billy in a yellow shirt, with long
llama-skin leggings, and a lassoo slung across his shoulder.
They both wore sombreroes : only his was white, and hers was
red.
A few minutes later they were made man and wife. Then
every man sprang to his saddle,
and there was one great
"
chorus of Coo-ee ! coo-ee !
" followed
by
a triumphant gallop
and the cracking of stock-whips down the Kennington Road
to the home of the bride's parents. The streets were crowded
with people, who shouted out their good wishes to the bride
and bridegroom. Frank Joy, who might have been the bride
groom, but who was the best man instead, was the first to
follow the wedded couple.
>
CHAPTER XXII
Devices of cardsharpers and other swindlers — The Three Card Trick —
The Top and Bottom Dice Game — The Strap Game — The Padlock
Game — The Dummy Bags— Finding the Ace — The Swindle Trick
— The so-called mystery of Mind-Reading — Claims of its exponents
to the possession of occult powers exposed — An exhibition of
mind-reading by myself — How the tests were performed — P ,
the Chicago mind-reader — His exposure by Dr. Gatchell.
It has occurred to me that it may be as well if I say some

thing here about the devices which are employed by card
sharpers and other swindlers for the victimising of a gullible
public. Of these there are a great variety, but space forbids
me to describe more than a few of them.
" "
The Three Card "or" Find the Lady Trick. —This game
is so well and generally known that an explanation of it would
be superfluous. It will be sufficient to say that when a person
throws three cards, be it on a table or open umbrella at a fair
or on a racecourse, or on an overcoat spread over his knees
in a railway carriage, and challenges you to bet on your ability
" find the lady," don't do it. The
to money is as comfortable
in your pocket as it would be in his, and for this reason a
transfer is undesirable.
Many rich and rare anecdotes could be told about people
— some of them very level-headed men in ordinary affairs —
who have been victimised by this time-honoured swindle,
but the following one must suffice : —
Some years ago I went with a friend to the Derby. On our
way from the station to the course, we found a crowd round
a man who was manipulating the three cards on an open
umbrella and challenging any one in the audience for any

"
amount, from one pound to ten, to find the lady." I was
going to pass on, but my friend said : —
" Wait a I
moment, want to
this." see
" Oh, it's
only a man doing the three-card trick," I answered.
"
Don't waste your time watching it."
" Oh, but " and I'd like
I've never seen it done," said he,
to see it."
So we stopped to watch the man — at least, my friend did,
while I
studied my race-card and tried to make up my mind
what horse I should back in the first race. Presently, happening
to look up, I saw him take two pounds out of his pocket, and
before I could stop him he had put it on a card.
" "
Good heavens, what have you done that for ? I ex
claimed.
"
It's all right," he answered, " I'm certain that the card
I've backed is the queen."
I
told him he had no earthly chance of winning, as these
men were all swindlers, and, sure enough, when the card was
turned over, it was not
"
the lady," and my friend lost his
two pounds.
I felt very angry with him for throwing away his money
like that, and, though he deserved to lose it, I decided to get
it back for him, and a bit over as well, just to show the three-
card gentleman that there were people about who were as
smart as himself. So I called him aside and told him that if
he put his money on the card which I told him he would get
his money back.
Meantime, the operator had taken up the cards again and
was calling out : —
"I'll bet anything from one pound to ten that no one can
find
' "
the lady.'
Iwatched the cards carefully, and when he had finished
manipulating them whispered to my friend : —
" Put
five pounds on the right-hand card."
" No," he " ' '
the lady ; it's the
objected, that's not
left-hand card."
" "
Do as I tell you," I said ; put five pounds on the right-
hand card."
Very reluctantly he obeyed, and no sooner had he put the
"
money down than the operator shouted : Here comes the
"
police ! and picking up the five pounds, made a dash and
disappeared in the crowd, leaving his umbrella and the cards
behind. It was, of course, hopeless to follow him, and we
turned sadly away.
The Top and Bottom Dice Game. —This is generally operated
with three dice, each three dice having seven spots on any two
opposite sides (added together). Three dice will consequently
represent twenty-one spots. This is explained to the intended
victim, who may satisfy himself of the fact by examining the
dice. He may win for ever, so it seems, by betting on twenty-
one, and the chances are that he will try it.
Should he wager
his money, then— of
course, without his knowledge — one of
the three dice will be removed and replaced by one not quite
so correct ; at least, any two opposite sides of it will never add
up seven, and the victim who unknowingly bets that it will is
not likely to add to his wealth. Therefore, beware of this
game, as you would of all others of a like nature, for there is
nothing in it, except for the operator.
The Strap Game. — This is operated by a leather strap about
an inch wide and from twelve to fourteen inches long, made for
the purpose. The point is to catch the loop of the strap when
rolled up. The same game is played also with a long piece of
string or a long chain, which is substituted for the strap. The
whole secret is in the way the strap, string or chain is laid out
on the table. When the operator wishes the punter to win to
encourage him to increase his stakes, he will lay it out in a
straightforward manner. But when he wants him to lose, he
has merely to give it a twist, and then it is any odds against
him doing it.
The Padlock Game. —A padlock is introduced which can be
opened by the touch of a secret spring, and the intended
victim is shown how to do it. A little later, the confederate
makes his appearance, and, of course, tries to open the lock,
but finally concludes that it cannot be done and offers to back

his opinion with any amount of money. The dupe, as a rule,
promptly rises to the bait ; he has just learned how to open
the padlock and thinks that he will be betting on a certainty.
A wager is accordingly made, and he proceeds to try to open
the padlock, for which he is generally allowed ten minutes, but
fails to find the hidden spring, and, after tearing all his finger
nails, gives up the attempt in despair. The padlock which he
was shown how to open has been replaced by one perfectly
solid, but otherwise exactly like it.
The Dummy Bags. — The operator, who pretends to be
suffering from toothache, has two little bags about one inch
in circumference filled with salt. One of these bags he puts
in his mouth and the other in his coat-sleeve or pocket, and
enters a bar or cafe, to which his confederate has preceded
him. The operator sits down at a table by himself and calls
for a glass of beer or other refreshment, while drinking which
he removes the little bag from his mouth and lays it on the
table.
Before finishing his beer he will have occasion to leave
the table for a moment, and this is the confederate's
opportunity to do his part of the programme. In the presence
of other customers, he picks up the bag, opens it and shows
them that it contains salt. This he pours out on to the floor,
refilling the bag with sawdust or whatever else may be at
hand and replaces it on the table.
The operator now returns, complaining of his horrible
toothache and cursing freely for having left his salt-bag on
the table. He grabs it and puts it in his mouth, preparatory
to taking his departure. The others, now very much amused,
inquire of him what he has in the bag, and he will answer
" "
positively : Salt ! The others will say that it is not salt.
He says that it is, and, in order to settle the dispute, a wager
is made, most of the spectators contributing their share to
swell the stake. The operator takes the bag out of his mouth,
which, on being opened, is found to contain salt, and he pockets
the money of the dupes who have betted against him.
The reader need hardly be told that, on returning to the

table, the operator quickly exchanges the bag now filled with
sawdust for one filled with salt, and that the bag of sawdust
disappears up his sleeve, while the bag of salt, which is exactly
similar to it, goes into his mouth. The writer has seen large
sums change hands over this swindling trick.
Finding the Ace. —The operator in this, as in all other
games of a like character, is, of course, assisted by a con
federate. The game — or rather trick— consists in placing
a pack
of cards in three equal parts on the table, reserving two
aces, one of which is placed on top of one of the packs and
the other in the middle of another. The object now is to
bring the two aces out of the pack together.
The operator takes the pack on top of which is the first
ace and places it in his left hand face downwards, with the
fourth finger resting on the top. He next takes the other two
parts and places them on top of the part which is in his left
hand. Then he takes off the cards one by one, until he comes
to the first ace, which he places on the table with the other
cards, showing the next card to the spectators, who will, of
course, see that it is not an ace. He makes a quick pass, that
is, brings the bottom part of the pack to the top and the other
ace will now be on top.
The confederate's duty is to exchange one of the aces with
another card in the first stage of the game, ostensibly unknown
to and for the purpose of misleading the operator, but in reality
to deceive the spectators, for it matters not to the operator
where one ace is, so long as he knows the whereabouts of the
other. This game is very tempting to the uninitiated, but to
bet on it is certain loss. It
is generally introduced by the
operator proceeding to tell someone's fortune, provided that
such a person was not born on a Sunday, which the operator
must first ascertain by placing the two aces as described above.
The Swindle Trick. —The sharper has a card selected and
returned to the pack and the pack shuffled. The cards are
then strewn face downwards about the table. The sharper
picks up the cards one at a time, turns each over, looks at it
S
and looks at the spectator who drew the card, as though he were
trying to read his thoughts, and then puts the card in his left
hand. He continues to do this until he has a number of cards
in his left hand, each one of which the spectator has seen.
Among them is the card which the spectator originally chose
and returned to the pack. Therefore, when the sharper
"
boldly says : The next card I turn over will be yours," the
spectator having seen that the card he chose has already been
picked up and put in the sharper's hand, will certainly say :
"
You're wrong."
" "
exclaims the sharper,
Impossible !
" "
the next card I turn over will be yours." But you've
it," says the dupe. "
passed You're wrong," says the sharper
again, working up the excitement, and, finally, he challenges
the other to bet on it. When the bet has been made, the
sharper quietly takes the card from those he already has in
" "
his hand —not one from the table, as the spectator thought
— and turns it over. It is, of course, the selected card.
Very little explanation is necessary for this trick. When
the card is returned to the pack in the first instance, the sharper
holds his finger under the pack and quickly bends a corner of
the card. He is thus able to tell, from feeling the card, when
he picks up the chosen one, and in putting it into his left hand
keeps his little finger on top of it. He takes care, of course,
that the spectator gets a good view of this card, and then goes
on picking up the other cards and looking at each one before
he brings the swindle to its proper conclusion, to make the other
think that he has already passed the chosen card.
There is a trick frequently practised by cardsharpers and
"
confidence gamblers which has caused many an innocent
"
abroad to stake and lose every penny he has about him.
It is as follows : —
Two players divide the twenty-four lowest cards in the pack
(aces and sixes inclusive) between them, taking an equal
number of all denominations to the extent of twelve cards each.
The cards count on their face value (by the number of pips),
the ace one, the deuce two, and so forth, the highest being six.
The two players play one card alternately, adding up the
points as they proceed. For example : No. 1 plays a six, and

No. 2 plays a five, making a total of 11. No. 1 plays a
three, making the whole 14, and No. 2 plays a four,
making 18, and so on, until the total reaches 31 points,
the player playing the card which makes that number first
being the winner.
The method pursued by the cardsharper, which, by the
way, never fails to win the game, is to make the count 10,
17, or 24 points. If his opponent plays first, and plays
an ace or a deuce, plays a card which will make
he
the total three. His opponent could not make a ten, for six
(the six being the highest card) and three are only nine, and
by playing an ace the sharper can make the desired ten points
first. If his opponent had made the total five or six or
seven, he would, of course, have played a five or a four or a
three and made the count ten. In the same way, he will
make 17 or 24 points, and when that number is reached, it is
no longer possible for his opponent to win. If the card-
sharper plays first, he plays a three, and he will make sure of
winning the game, for from that he can easily make the score
ten, 17 or 24 points. 38, 45 or 52 points may be played for
in the same way, to the like advantage of the person who
understands the game.
Much attention has been paid of late years to the so-called

mystery of mind-reading, and thousands who have witnessed
the apparently wonderful manifestations of certain well-known
exponents of the art are convinced that some occult power is
behind them. As a matter of fact, however, mind-readers, in
the exercise of their calling, only make use of the ordinary
faculties vouchsafed to every human being, the sole difference
being that they have brought these faculties to a high state of
development. There is no such thing as a supernatural gift
of mind-reading, such as that claimed by Bishop, Tyndall,
Cumberland, Brown and others. It is all trickery, accomplished
by a thorough training of the eye and muscles.
Now, we are all, in a certain sense and to a certain degree,
mind-readers, but the power is only a natural one and can be

acquired by any person possessing the proper qualifications.
Professors of occult science and claimants of supernatural
powers have flourished in the world as far back as history or
even tradition reaches, yet none of them has ever really estab
lished their claims, and their tricks, though apparently wonder
ful to those who do not understand them, can all be explained.
From our knowledge of the average intellectual qualities
of mankind and their common habits of thought, we can form
some idea of what is habitually passing in their minds. It is
this knowledge which enables strong, discerning men to read
public sentiment aright and work upon it. Then, in in
dividual cases, from the signs that are given us unconsciously,
we can read or guess very accurately the thoughts of those
with whom we come in contact. There is a vast amount of
mind-reading practised in every-day business, in political,
social and professional life. Successful barristers, physicians,
financiers, gamblers and adventurers of both sexes are all more
or less mind-readers. They accomplish their purposes by
accurately reading what is passing in the minds of those with
whom they have to deal, and thereby bend them to their
wishes. These are the genuine mind-readers, but that there
are supernatural powers bestowed upon a few favoured persons
has certainly never been demonstrated.
The professional mind-readers usually specify some of the
conditions under which these so-called marvellous powers are
to be manifested. This alone is distinctly a confession of
pretence and deception, as anyone possessed of genuine super
natural gifts would be independent of conditions. If these
persons actually have the powers they pretend, why, it may
well be asked, do not they turn them to practical financial
account ? They cannot claim that their supernatural faculties
render them superior to the altogether natural desire to make
money. A genuine mind-reader would not be under the
necessity of seeking affluence or a doubtful livelihood through
the admission fees of uncertain and variable audiences !
Even as a gambler a genuine mind-reader could quickly
.--.
make a fortune. He could sit back serenely behind his cards

and, by reading the thoughts of his opponent, by, in fact,
looking into his hands, win nearly always. He would never
go broke on three aces against a full hand at poker. What an
aid it would be in business, when a man could penetrate the
minds of those with whom he dealt with and be certain of
buying at the lowest and selling at the highest prices obtain
able ! What an easy task a barrister would have with wit
nesses ! What marvellous opportunities the stock-markets
would offer to him who could read the minds of great
financiers !
I might continue to reason thus, but it will be better for me
to explain how these illusions or tricks are performed, for I
dislike to see people gulled by impostors, when they might
easily learn that there is nothing supernatural in so-called
mind-reading, clairvoyance, second sight or similar frauds.
Second sight was first introduced by an Italian conjurer
named Pinitti, at the Haymarket Theatre, in London, in 1774.
His act was performed by means of a confederate and the
deaf-and-dumb alphabet. Robert Houdin, the clever French
magician, followed in his footsteps and also made use of a
confederate. The first person to give second sight stances in
America was Leopold Steen, a Bohemian magician. He first
performed in the Old Bowery Theatre, in New York. Steen
invented a system of cues and signs by which the wonders of
thought-reading were accomplished by himself and a blind
folded confederate on the stage. It created a great sensation.
These performances ante-date those of Robert Heller and the
original Hermann, who died over half a century ago.
Now as to how the work is done. Mind-reading is nothing
but muscle-reading. In all the cases where the mind-reader
is supposed to lead a person to a hidden object, the spectator
is guided entirely by an involuntary movement of the subject's
muscles. A person keeping a hidden object in mind naturally
reveals a slight inclination to move hands, limbs or head in
that direction. So long as a subject is in this condition he
will lead the mind-reader, who is thoroughly practised in his
art of watching for the movement of the muscles, directly to

the object.
This is all there is in it. It makes no difference whether I
take a person's hand in mine or place mine on his head, shoulder
or leg, so long as it is where there are muscles. The practice
all mind-readers have is sufficient to enable them to detect
the slightest movement of the muscles. No convulsions are
necessary ; the system is not so greatly worked up, and
cataleptic fits are as bad fakes as convulsions, and perpetrated
only to inspire belief in the supernatural and for advertising
purposes. Blindfolding is also unnecessary ; it makes no
difference whether they are blindfolded or not. I can, of
course, more easily demonstrate this by actual tests, than by
words, but I will try to explain.
Take the hand of your subject and ask him or her to think
of an object in the room. Ask the subject to keep his mind
on it and then begin changing rapidly from one object to
another in the room, the movements being correctly guided.
As the performer moves away from the object, the subject
will involuntarily pull him back towards it. If you try this,
it will prove the truth of this expose. The mind-reader can
step into another room, and while there the subject can write
a name on a piece of paper unseen by the mind-reader. The
paper can be folded several times, but when he returns he will
find out the name. How ? By muscle-reading simply. After
the usual affected touching of the forehead, rubbing of hands
and so forth, the subject is asked to write the letters of the
alphabet on a piece of paper. Then the mind-reader takes the
first finger of the writer's right hand between two of his fingers
and slowly places them on the subject's index finger over the
letters, beginning with A and pausing over each letter. When
the correct letter is reached, will try to divert
the subject
the mind-reader's attention from the letter, but will succeed
only temporarily, and the mind-reader knows that this is the
chosen letter of the name. In a similar manner the second
and each subsequent letter is discovered. It is successful
muscle-reading of the name selected by a person who tried to
be natural and neither aid nor hinder the accomplishment of

the feat.
I will explain a mathematical trick often used by mind-
readers. Let anyone write down a number of three figures,
reverse it and subtract the lesser number from the greater. For
instance, put down 471 and reverse it, making it 174. Subtract
one from the other, and it leaves you 297. Now cross out
either the left-hand or the right-hand figure and tell the mind-
reader which one and what the figure was. Then the mind-
reader knows that the remaining figures are 29. It is a mathe
matical fact that any three figures so treated, which have a
remainder of three figures, will have a 9 for the central figure,
and the sum of the other two will also be 9. When the mind-
reader has been told what figure has been crossed out, he
instantly knows the others, and still this test is used as mind
reading.
S , a great mind-reader, who caused much talk by his
so-calledconvulsions and cataleptic fits, used to perform the
following trick, which he claimed to be done by mind-reading :
While blindfolded, he would ask someone to pick out a
card from a pack and bring it to him. He would then ask
the person to give him one of his hands, so that he might be
able to read his mind, and, with the other hand, to hold the
card he had drawn at arm's length, and face upwards, so that
he might see the spots on it and keep them in mind. Then
he immediately told the person the name of the card. The
trick was quite simple. When S was standing close to
the person who held the card, he, too, could look down under
the handkerchief which covered his eyes and see the card, as
the nose held off the handkerchief and allowed a view of objects
near the floor. All the tricks of the mind-reader are capable
of similar explanation. No living being can do anything by
supernatural aid, and mediums, mind-readers and others who
claim to work by such means are frauds.
I remember some years ago, while giving an entertainment
at a private house in London, I was asked to give an exhibition
of mind-reading, when I performed certain tests which appeared
to my audience to be very wonderful, though to me they were

simple enough.
I asked one of the ladies to act as my medium, and, while
I was locked in another room in the house, a pin was hidden
by dropping it into one of the holes of a pepper-box which
stood in a cruet on the dining-room table. The pin dropped
into the hole, as far as the head, which stopped it from going
right into the box. I was then brought into the room and told
that the article which had been hidden was a pin. Taking
hold of the medium's hand, I asked her to concentrate her
mind on the spot where the pin was hidden, and in less than
two minutes I found the pin in the pepper-box, to the great
astonishment of the company. It was all done by the move
ments of the muscles of my subject.
A little later I was asked if I
could repeat my performance,
one of the gentlemen present acting as my subject on this
occasion. I was led from the room again, and this time the
pin was hidden in a place where it seemed almost an utter
impossibility for it to be found, even by the person who had
placed it there. On the sideboard stood a box of cigars. One
of the cigars was taken from the box, and the pin pushed
lengthways right into the middle of it, so that it could not
even be seen by the naked eye. This cigar was then put back
in the box, and the whole lot mixed up together. I am per
fectly sure that no one present could tell in which cigar the
pin had been placed ; yet, strange to say, when I was brought
back into the room and took the hand of my medium, in less
than five minutes I found the cigar, broke it in half, and there,
in the centre, lay the pin.
This may seem to the reader altogether impossible, as my
medium could not even tell himself in which cigar the pin was
hidden, as the cigars were all mixed up in the box. But he
will be wrong, because my medium really did know which
cigar it was in, as, in pushing the pin into the cigar, a little of
the tobacco had been loosened, and his mind was, in con
sequence, concentrated on a cigar which had a little of the leaf
displaced. And so, as I took one cigar after another in my
hand, Icould tell by the movements of his muscles, when

I came to the right cigar, that this was the one the pin
was in.
Some years ago, there was in Chicago a celebrated mind-
reader whom I will call P , who used to faint or go into
convulsions, so great was the alleged strain on his brain. He

was extraordinarily successful, and created so great a sensation
that his feats were the topic of the hour in hotels, clubs, and,
in fact, everywhere. But Dr. Gatchell, editor of the Medical
Era, who followed P on his mind-reading trips through the
city, did not hesitate to declare that he was a fraud, and that
his feats were tricks of the shabbiest sort.
He compared notes with Dr. G. F. Butler, who was a mem
ber of the committee in charge of the mind-reader when he
performed his feats. They examined the hood which was
supposed to cover P 's eyes. It was found to be a " sight
" affair,
seeing while the other coverings were transparent or
easily displaced by muscular contraction of the eyebrows.
Dr. Gatchell not only broke up P 's performances by
exposure, but he performed the same tricks without, however,
having recourse to the fainting fits and hysteria which P
had employed to delude the spectators. Gloves were put
—
over his eyes, and a hood a double thickness of black cloth
— drawn over his face, as an additional safeguard. Thus
blindfolded, Dr. Gatchell found the hidden articles just as P
had done before him.
"
I will show you how it is done," said he. " Look at
these two gloves. You see I fold them and place them against
my eyes. This is P 's first deceit. It looks like an ad
ditional safeguard against fraud, but he couldn't read a mind
without it. Tie this handkerchief about my head ; tie it as
tightly as you can and knot it above my ears. P always
tells you to tie it tight, and that seems like another safeguard,
but without it he could not do his trick."
/
The doctor's eyes were apparently securely bandaged, the
strain of the handkerchief falling on that part of the gloves
which rested against his contracted eyebrows. When he
raised his brows, up went the bandage, and the twinkling eyes,
peering out under the gloves, saw everything in the room.
" Now," "
said Dr. Gatchell, look at this hood," and, with
a quick motion of his hands, he jerked the hood apart and
drew the outer cover over his head. The cloth was mohair
and as transparent as a woman's veil. He then showed the
inner hood, which was of thick broadcloth and as difficult to
see through as a board.
"
Wait a moment," said he, and with that pulled the strings
which secured the hood around his neck, whereupon the front
seam opened wide.
That was all there was of it. The apparently supernatural
feat of mind-reading becomes as simple as the commonest
parlour trick. Dr. Gatchell declared that he was satisfied
that what had looked like attacks of congestion of the brain
from which P used to suffer after his feats of mind-reading
"
was nothing but whiskey and hysteria — the kind of hysteria
which a woman gets when she wants to frighten her husband
"
into buying her a new bonnet — and concluded by offering to
pay a large sum to charity if P would repeat his per
formance and allow him to do the blindfolding.
--
CHAPTER XXIII
Experiments apparently simple, but actually very difficult - The cork
and the bottle — The finger-tips — The silk cigar-band — The silk
hat and the pack of cards — The reel of cotton, the pins and the
penny — The clenched fists — Some amusing card tricks —Carto
mancy, or divination by playing-cards.
It may not be unwelcome to my readers if I suggest to them

some experiments which will provide considerable amusement
at Christmas parties and similar gatherings. Most of them
seem simple enough, but they will be astonished to find how
difficult they are when they attempt to put them into actual
practice.
For instance, to place a small piece of cork in a wide-
necked bottle and then to blow it right in seems a delightfully
easy accomplishment. But just try and see if you can do it.
You will find that all you can do is to blow it right out of
the bottle again, and very likely into your own face, and the
harder you blow the less chance you stand of accomplishing
the feat.
Another experiment is to just lightly put the tips of your
fingers together horizontally. Now invite anyone to try to
separate them by taking your wrists and endeavouring to
draw them apart in a direct line with each other. They will
be very much surprised to find that no amount of strength
will avail them at all, as the thing is almost impossible.
If you take a silk cigar-band and, holding it in both hands
in the form of a loop, take the sharpest razor or knife and
attempt to chop it in half by a swift action, you will be
astonished to find that, far from cutting it in halves, you are
unable to cut it at all.
Place a coin upon the edge of the table, and closing one eye
by the opposite hand, that is the left eye by the right hand or
vice versa, attempt to knock it off with the forefinger of the
disengaged hand. You will be surprised to find that your
judgment is at fault, and that in nine cases out of ten you are
jabbing away at nothing but thin air. To do this effectively
you should stand at arm's length from the coin.
Many people find it most difficult to stand in an upright
position and then bend the arms inwards until the fingers are
touching beneath the armpits. It looks easy enough— but
try it !
Borrow a gentleman's silk hat, and, instead of producing a

rabbit or a guinea-pig therefrom, just try to throw in a pack
of cards from a distance of two or three feet, throwing the
cards in one at a time. You will provide the entertainment
just the same, but as card after card falls anywhere but in the
hat, you will discover that the audience provides the enter
tainment at your expense.
Try the following simple experiment : —
In the top of a large reel of cotton stick three long pins in
a slanting direction, so that a penny will pass in and out
between them easily. Remove all paper from the reel, top
and bottom. Place a penny in position, and then placing the
other end to the lips attempt to blow the penny out of the
pins. The result will be surprising, and continued efforts will
prove more surprising still.
Another curiosity of strength is that of placing your
clenched fists one upon the other and inviting anyone to
separate themby pushing them aside. They will be quite
unable to do so, although you are exerting your strength but
little against them. Let them, however, approach you with
the forefinger of each hand only and give a sharp rap at your
knuckles in opposite directions, and the two fists immediately
become separated. You will find in this case that you are
quite powerless against this kind of onslaught and cannot keep
your fists together at all. Finally, let anyone place his or
her hand firmly, yet without any undue pressure, upon the
crown of the head, and you may do your utmost to drag, lift
or push it from its direction, but it will be impossible.
What seems a very extraordinary card trick can be
explained in a few words. Two cards are selected from an
ordinary pack. One card is returned and shuffled fairly into
the pack ; the second card is then returned and likewise
shuffled with the rest by the audience. The performer now
places the pack behind his back and instantly produces the
two chosen cards from the pack. The effect of the trick
depends upon a new application of an old principle, viz., the
difficulty of remembering for more than a few seconds the
suits and values of the two cards, say, the eight of hearts and
the seven of diamonds, without confusing them with other cards
alike in value, but of the opposite suits. The difficulty is
rendered greater by the fact that the person upon whom the
trick is played is unaware of its existence, and, in the unlikely
event of there being any question, will confess by his silence
that he must have made a mistake. He will not care to admit
his inability to remember the names of the two cards.
An illustration will make the matter clear. For instance,
what is the difference between the following two pairs of
cards ? —
Eight of diamonds and seven of hearts.

Eight of hearts and seven of diamonds.
Or the following two pairs : —
Seven of clubs and eight of spades.

Seven of spades and eight of clubs.
Just read them over again and you will no doubt grasp the
situation. Then write down similar pairs quickly, after
which you should thoroughly understand the nature of the
trick. It amounts to this : —
The performer steps forward and, putting a couple of cards
into the hands of a spectator, apparently in a haphazard
manner, requests him to take notice of the same and to examine

them for a few minutes. The two cards are, we will suppose,
the eight of diamonds and the seven of hearts. Without
giving the person much time for reflection, the performer hands
him the pack of cards and requests him to shuffle one of the
cards with the rest, and, when he has done this, to treat the
remaining card in a like manner : in fact, to shuffle the pack to
any extent. When the person is satisfied that the two cards
are completely lost amongst the rest, the performer takes the
pack, and, placing it behind his back, forthwith extracts and
brings forward the two cards, which are at once acknowledged
by the person who noted them. But, as a matter of fact, the
two cards mentally noted remain in the pack undisturbed.
All the performer does while his hands are behind his back is
to remove from his back trouser pocket two cards alike in
value, but opposite in suits, that is the eight of hearts and the
seven of diamonds, which the person, for the reason explained,
unhesitatingly identifies.
" "
The way I generally perform the trick is to force the
eight of diamonds and seven of hearts on a person, having
placed beforehand the seven of diamonds and eight of
hearts on the top of the pack. After the person has noted
the two cards, which he apparently selected of his own free will,
I ask him to hold the pack of cards in his hands in a horizontal
position between his thumb and forefinger, oblong in his right
hand. I next take the two selected cards from him and
slowly push the two cards one in each side of the pack,
until they are clean in out of sight. Then I tell him that he
will be surprised to find that, although I have not taken the
pack from his fingers, if he removes the two top cards from the
pack, he will find his two cards are now there. He removes
the two cards and firmly believes that these are the two cards
he selected.
A very clever little trick is to take thirteen cards and
arrange them in such an order aswill enable you to spell out
the cards in sequence from the ace to the king, by simply
holding the thirteen cards in your hand face downwards and
N
$
It
a
W
u
£
\
removing each card from the top with each letter you spell.
To perform this trick you arrange the cards in the following
sequence : 3-8-7-1-Q-6-4-2- J-K-10-9-5, which arrangement, with
faces downwards, makes the three the top card of the pack
and the five the bottom card.
Beginning at the top, you remove one card with each letter
you spell, but be careful not to disarrange the sequence of the
cards as previously prepared : viz., O-N-E, one. Having
removed one card with each letter, you turn over the fourth
" One,"
card, when you pronounce the word, and it will be
found to be the ace. This you place on the table, as you have
no further use for the card, and, if it is returned to the pack,
it will break up your previously arranged sequence. Next
spell T-W-O, two, and the fourth card will again be turned up
and discarded upon the table, and will be found to be the two
or deuce card. Next T-H-R-E-E, three, is spelt, and, with
" Three,"
the pronunciation of the word the card is turned
up, discarded upon the table, and will be found to be the
three.
Continue in this way to spell F-O-U-R, four ; F-I-V-E,
five ; S-I-X, six ; S-E-V-E-N, seven ; E-I-G-H-T, eight ;
N-I-N-E, nine ; T-E-N, ten ; J-A-C-K, Jack ; O-U-E-E-N,
Queen ; and K-I-N-G, King.
The trick affords excellent pastime, and is very simple, if
you will only remember not to disturb the sequence of the
cards, and be sure not to place a card back into the pack when
it has been spelt and discarded. Should you prefer to spell
the Jack by its other name, K-N-A-V-E, Knave, the sequence
is as follows 3-8-7-1-K-6-4-2-Q-J-10-9-5,
: and it must be
remembered that the card to be spelt must be turned up and
discarded with the last letter named of the word spelt, viz.,
O-N-E, as the " E " is named the card is turned up and will be
" "
found to be the ace ; T-W-O, as the O is named, the card
is turned up and will be found to be the two ; T-H-R-E-E,
"
as the E " is named, the card is turned up, and will be found
to be the three. And so continue to spell each number,
turning up the spelt card with the naming of each last letter,
:
and remembering not to break the pre-arranged sequence and

not to return the spelt card to the pack.
Of tricks with cards the number is legion, but comparatively
few are really ingenious or well executed. It goes without
saying that in order to execute a really mysterious trick with
cards one must be thoroughly familiar with all the various
passes and sleights, and this requires a good deal of practice.
There are, perhaps, five thousand different games played with
cards, and possibly the same number of tricks could be executed
with them. Nor is this all. They are necessary adjuncts to
fortune-telling, and the astrologer and the gypsy, the presti
digitator and the magician alike make use of them. Even the
" "
politicians use them, as, for instance, a Card to the public.
A very mysterious trick consists in placing a pack of cards
thoroughly mixed and shuffled in thirteen different parts, four
cards in each part face down on the table, and in such order
that the aces will be altogether in one part, the kings and the
queens in another, and so on. In order to perform this trick
it is necessary to study and observe the following rules : —
Put up the pack of cards as follows, beginning with the
eight of clubs, which is laid on the table first, face upwards,
with the others in succession on top of one another. Eight of
clubs, six of diamonds, nine of spades, five of hearts, ten of
clubs, four of diamonds, jack of spades, three of hearts, queen
of clubs, deuce of diamonds, king of spades, ace of hearts,
seven of clubs. Eight of diamonds, six of spades, nine of
hearts, five of clubs, ten of diamonds, four of spades, jack of
hearts, three of clubs, queen of diamonds, deuce of spades,
king of hearts, ace of clubs, seven of diamonds. Eight of spades,
six of hearts, nine of clubs, five of diamonds, ten of spades,
four of hearts, jack of clubs, three of diamonds, queen of spades,
deuce of hearts, king of clubs, ace of diamonds, seven of spades.
Eight of hearts, six of clubs, nine of diamonds, five of spades,
ten of hearts, four of clubs, jack of diamonds, three of spades,
queen of hearts, deuce of clubs, king of diamonds, ace of
spades, seven of hearts.
It will be observed that the first, fourteenth, twenty-seventh
and fortieth cards are eights, and that every fourth card from
the eight of clubs (on top) is a club. The next card to the
eight of clubs is the six of diamonds, and every fourth card
from that is a diamond ; the fifteenth, twenty-eighth and
forty-first cards are sixes, the next card is the nine of spades ;
every fourth card down from that is a spade, and the sixteenth,
twenty-ninth and forty-second cards are nines. The next
card (the fourth from the top) is the five of hearts ; every
fourth card from that is a heart, and the seventeenth, thirtieth
and forty-third cards are fives. The next card is the ten of
clubs ; every fourth card from that is a club, and the eighteenth,
thirty-first and forty-fourth cards are tens, and so forth
through the entire pack. You will remember that the cards
are laid alternately, black and red, clubs, diamonds, spades,
and hearts ; also in this order : 8-6-9-5-10-4- J-3-Q-2-K-A-7.
Having placed the cards as indicated above, you are
now prepared to proceed with the trick. You will keep the
prepared pack out of sight, handing over another pack to the
spectators for mixing and shuffling, and, when this is returned,
you change the pack unknown to them and proceed with the
cards which you have already arranged for the purpose. If
you can make a false shuffle, that is apparently shuffle the cards
without displacing the order, then you can dispense with the
exchange of packs.
Before placing the cards (in thirteen parts) on the table,
you must observe the card at the bottom of the pack, in order
to ascertain from that which card is on top. For example,
if the ten of spades is at the bottom of the pack, the four of
hearts is on top. Knowing this, you now lay the four of hearts
on the table, face downwards, taking care that the spectators
do not see the face. Lay the next club from the top, which
will be the Jack of clubs, by itself, and the next and next,
each separate, until there are thirteen cards on the table.
The fourteenth card, the four of clubs, is placed on top of the
first card laid on the table (the four of hearts), the next card on
the second card and so on, until you have gone the round of the
thirteen cards again, each part now containing two cards.
T
'"
Repeat this a third and a fourth time, and all the cards will
be on the table in the following position : —
Fours Queens Aces Sixes Tens

Jacks Deuces Sevens Nines
Threes Kings Eights Fives
the different parts of the cards from the table,

In picking up
you begin with the kings, then the queens, the jacks, the tens,
the nines, the eights, sevens, sixes, fives, fours, threes, deuces,
and aces. The whole pack of cards being now in the left hand,
the four aces on top, the four deuces next and so on, observe
that, in placing the cards on the table, you begin at the upper
left hand corner, proceeding downwards three cards as in illustra
tion. Then begin at the top again and place the next three
cards in a similar row downwards, and continue this until you
come to the thirteenth card, which you place at the right hand
side of the whole. It matters not what card is on the top, for
you will know from the bottom card what position the different
cards are in. Always remember the first card placed on the
table, and there can be no difficulty in performing the whole
trick satisfactorily. At a social gathering this trick well
executed will amuse and astonish the company.
If you
are not adept enough to exchange one pack for another
or do the false shuffle, then a simpler way would be to use the
prepared pack only, and have it cut several times by different
people in the audience. This will look as if the pack were well
shuffled, but, in reality, it does not alter the position of the
cards, as you have only to look at the bottom card to know
what the top card is.
I have been asked times out of number the method or system

of divination by playing-cards, and therefore the following
explanation may interest some of my readers, not that I imagine
any of them to be weak enough to pin their faith to the turn
of a card, but because the art has become a favourite diversion,
with which many amuse themselves, but few understand.
The earliest work on cartomancy was written or compiled

by one Francesco Marcolini and printed at Venice in 1530,
There are many modern French, Italian and German works on
the subject, but, so far as my knowledge goes, very few in
English. The system of cartomancy as laid down by the former
is very different from that used in England, both as regards the
individual interpretation of the cards and the general method
of reading or deciphering their combinations. The English
system is used in all British settlements all over the globe, hav
ing no doubt been carried thither by soldiers' wives, who, as is
well known to the initiated, have ever been considered pecu
liarly skilful practitioners of the art. Indeed, it is to a soldier's
wife that the present exposition is attributed : —
DIAMONDS
King — a man of very fair complexion, quick to anger, but soon

appeased.
Queen
— a very fair woman, fond of gaiety and a coquette.
Knave— a selfish and deceitful relative, fair and false.
Ten —money. Success in honourable business.
Nine — a roving disposition, combined with honourable and
successful adventures in foreign lands.
Eight — a happy, prudent marriage, though rather late in life.
Seven — unpleasant business matters.
Six —marriage early in life, succeeded by widowhood.
Five —unexpected news, genereally of a good kind.
Four — an unfaithful friend, a secret betrayed.
Three — domestic troubles, quarrels and unhappiness.
Two — a clandestine engagement. A card of caution.
—
Ace a wedding ring and offer of marriage.
HEARTS
King — a fair, but not very fair, complexioned man, good-

natured, but rather obstinate, and when angry not easily
appeased.
-
Queen
— a woman of the same complexion as the King, faithful,
prudent and affectionate.
Knave— an unselfish relative, a sincere friend.
Ten — health and happiness, with many children.
Nine —wealth, high position in society. This Is the
" Wish "
card.
Eight —fine clothes, pleasure,
mixing in good society, going
to balls, theatres,
and so forth.
Seven — many good friends.
Six —honourable courtship.
Five — a present.
Four — domestic troubles caused by jealousy.
Three — poverty, shame and sorrow, caused by imprudence.
A card of caution.
Two — success in life, position in society, and a happy marriage,
attended by virtuous discretion.
Ace —the house of the person consulting the decrees of Fate.
SPADES
King — a man of very dark complexion, ambitious and un
scrupulous.
— a very dark complexioned woman, of malicious dis
Queen
position, a widow.
Knave — disgrace, crime, imprisonment, death on the scaffold.
A card of caution.
Ten — tears, sickness, or a prison.
Nine — grief, ruin, sickness, death.
Eight — great danger from imprudence. A card of caution.
Seven — unexpected poverty caused by the death of a relative.
A lean sorrow.
—
Six a child. To the unmarried a card of caution.
Five—great danger from giving way to bad temper. A card
of caution.
Four —sickness.
Three —a journey by land. Tears.
Two — a removal.
Ace —death, malice, a duel, a general misfortune.
CLUBS
King — A dark complexioned man, though not so dark as the

King of Spades. Upright, true and affectionate.
Queen
—a woman of the same complexion, agreeable, genteel
and witty.
Knave— a sincere but rather hasty friend.
Ten — unexpected wealth through the death of a relative.
A fat sorrow
Nine — danger caused by drunkenness. A card of caution.
—
Eight danger from covetousness. A card of caution.
Seven — a prison. Danger arising from the opposite sex. A
card of caution.
Six — competence by hard-working industry.
Five — a happy, though not wealthy marriage.
Four —danger of misfortunes caused by inconstancy or capri
cious temper. A card of caution.
Three — quarrels, or in reference to time, may signify three
years, months, weeks, or days. It also denotes that a
person will be married more than once.
Two —vexation, disappointment.
Ace — a letter.
The foregoing is merely the alphabet of the art, the letters,

as it were, of the sentences formed by the various combinations
of the cards. The person who desires to explore the hidden
mysteries of Fate is represented, if a male, by the king, if a
female, by the queen of the suit which accords with his or her
complexion. If a married woman consults the cards, the
king of her own suit or complexion represents her husband,
but with single women the lover either in esse or posse is
represented by his own colour. Some general rules are applic
able to the ace of hearts, which denotes the house of the
person consulting the decrees of fate. Thus, the ace of clubs
signifying a letter, its position either before or after the ace of
hearts, shows whether the letter is to be sent to the house or
from it.
The ace of diamonds when close to the ace of hearts foretells

a wedding in the house, but the ace of spades betokens sickness
and death. The knaves represent the thoughts of their
respective kings and queens in accordance with their com
plexion. For instance, a young lady of a rather, but not
decidedly, dark complexion, represented by the queen of clubs,
when consulting the cards may be shocked to find her fair
lover (the king of diamonds) flirting with the wealthy widow
(the queen of spades, attended by the king of diamonds).
But she will be reassured by finding his thoughts (the knave of
diamonds) in combination with a letter (ace of clubs), a wedding
ring (ace of diamonds) and her house (ace of hearts), clearly
signifying that, though he is actually flirting with a rich widow,
he is nevertheless thinking of sending a letter with an offer of
marriage to the young lady herself.
And, look ! where are her own thoughts represented by the
knave of clubs ? They are far away with the old lover, that
dark man (king of spades), who, as is plainly shown by his being
attended by the nine of diamonds, is prospering in his adven
ture in foreign lands. Let us shuffle the cards once more and
see if the dark man ever thinks of his old flame, the club-
complexioned young lady far away. No ! He does not.
Here are his thoughts (the knave of spades) directed to this fair,
but rather gay and coquettish, woman (the queen of diamonds).
They are separated but by a few hearts, one of them the sixth
(honourable courtship) showing the excellent understanding
that exists between them. Count now from the six of hearts
to the ninth card, from it, and lo ! it is a wedding ring (ace of
diamonds). They will be married before the expiration of a
twelvemonth.
The general mode of manipulating the cards when fortune-
telling is very simple. The person who is desirous to know the
future, after shuffling the cards ad libitum, cuts the pack into
three parts. The seer, then, taking up these cards, lays the
cards out one by one, face upwards, upon the table, sometimes
in a circular form, but often in rows consisting of nine cards
in each row. Nine is the mystical number. Every nine
,>
consecutive cards form a separate combination complete in

itself ; yet, like a word in a sentence, no more than a frac
tional part of the grand scroll of Fate.
Again, every card, something like the octaves in music,
is en rapport with the ninth card from it, and these ninth cards
form other complete combinations of nine, yet parts of the
"
general whole. The nine of hearts is termed The Wish Card."
After the general fortune has been told, a separate and different
manipulation is performed to learn if the pryor into futurity
will obtain a particular wish, and from the position of the wish
card in the pack the required answer is deduced.
<-
CHAPTER XXIV
Difficulty which I experience in observing the practices of the Jewish
religion while travelling in remote parts of the world — I keep the
Day of Atonement twice over in Queensland, owing to having
mistaken the date on the first occasion — A Jewish service and a
dancing class held simultaneously in the same hall in Honolulu — I
commemorate the anniversary of my father's death with the help
of Chinese Jews —Curious experiences with my assistants — A
singular epistle — My reply — Episode of a lost diamond stud.
It is not easy for people who travel all over the world like
myself to observe the practices of their religion. Being of the
Jewish faith, there are two holy days which I always keep,
which are the New Year, and the most solemn day of all : the
Day of Atonement, when no Jew is supposed to take food or
drink or do any business for twenty-four hours. When in
remote parts of the globe, I have sometimes had great difficulty
in observing this fast, or even in ascertaining the exact date on
which it fell. While in Charters Towers, Queensland, aware
that the Day of Atonement was somewhere near, but being
ignorant of the exact day, I determined to try to find out. I
was a stranger in the town, and therefore knew no one of my
religion of whom I could inquire. Accordingly, I took a walk
down the main street, looking at the names over the shops,
until I saw the name of a jeweller which I
thought was Jewish.
I entered the shop, asked for the proprietor, and said :—
"
Excuse me, but I am Mr. Carl Hertz. I am playing at
the theatre, and I believe that the Day of Atonement is some
day this week. Would you please tell me on what day it
falls, as I, of course, do not wish to give a performance on that
night."
He answered that it fell on the following Thursday, and I

then asked him where the service was held.
" "
Unfortunately," said he, there is no synagogue here,
as there are only five Jews in the town. According to the
Jewish Law, no service can be held unless there are ten or
more men present."
" But," I said, " if there are only five Jews in the town, how
do you manage ?
"
" Well," he replied,
"
there are always a good many com
mercial travellers coming from Sydney and Melbourne, and we
generally have enough to make up the required number. But,
as you are here, we shall only require four more, and those we
shall easily get. Come in on Thursday morning, and I will give
you full particulars where the service will be held. Each year
it is held at the residence of one of the Jews who live here.
Last year it was at my house. I don't know at whose house
it will be this year, but I shall be able to tell you everything
when you call on Thursday morning.
I accordingly put an advertisement in the papers announc
ing that there would be no performance at the theatre on
Thursday night, and on Thurday morning I called on my friend
the jeweller.
" "
Mr. Hertz," said he, I am sorry, but I have some bad
news for you. Unfortunately, no travellers have come to
Charters Towers this week. I have been living here fifteen
years, and this is the first year we have not been able to have
a service."
" Well, "
what is to be done in a case like this ? I asked.
"
I am not very well versed in these matters myself."
" Well," "
said he, the only thing you can do is to fast for
twenty-four hours, say your prayers, and give no performance
on Thursday night."
I
followed his instructions, and from six o'clock on the
Thursday evening until six o'clock the next evening not a
morsel of food or a drop of water passed my lips. I said my
prayers, and on the Friday night my performance took place as
usual. My engagement terminated on Saturday, and on Sunday
-
morning I left for Townsville, which is also in Queensland and

about four hours' journey from Charters Towers.
That afternoon, as I was sitting in the smoking-room of the
hotel reading a newspaper, I noticed that a gentleman who sat
opposite me was looking at me very hard as though he knew me.
At last he said : —
" "
I beg your pardon, but are you not Mr. Carl Hertz ?
I in the affirmative, and he said :

answered
"
I
thought so ; I saw you both in Melbourne and Sydney.
"
What are you doing here ?
"
I begin a week's engagement at the theatre here to-morrow
night."
"
Oh," said he, "then you'll be able to come to the synagogue
on Thursday night."
" "
What's on then ? I asked.
"
Why, it's the Day of Atonement."
" No," exclaimed, "
I you must be mistaken ! The Day of
Atonement was last Thursday."
" Oh,
no, it's next Thursday."
And I
found that he was quite correct, and had to go
through it all over again : fasting, praying, and, of course,
no performance. So I think I made ample atonement for
all the sins I had committed during the previous twelve
months.
On another Day of Atonement I arrived at Honolulu, in the
Sandwich Islands. We should have arrived the day before,
but unfortunately we had been delayed by bad weather. I
landed about ten o'clock in the morning, and, going to my
hotel, at once inquired if there were a synagogue in the town.
I was told there was not one, but that the Jewish community
always engaged a hall purposely for that day. I found out
where it was and proceeded there. It was like a large dance
hall, with a stage at one end, and a piano below it. In the
further corner of the hall a pulpit had been put up for the
services and rows of chairs arranged in front of it to accommodate
the worshippers.
I was astonished on entering the hall to find that there
was not a soul there except the Rabbi, who was saying his
prayers to himself. I went up and asked him if the services
were held there and where the people were. He answered
that the people had all gone home, and would be back again
about two o'clock. So I returned to my hotel, and about
two o'clock I went back to the hall and found the service going
on, with about twenty or thirty people present. I sat down with
my prayer-book, and everything went on all right for about an
hour, when a woman entered the hall with about forty children,
and going to the other end of the hall, where the stage and the
piano were, started to play the piano, while the children began
to dance. The Rabbi immediately stopped the service, went
up to the woman and asked her to take the children away,
as he and his people had engaged the hall for the services of
this solemn day and they could not allow music and dancing
to go on while the services were being held.
" But this is the
day on which I always give my dancing
"
lessons," replied the woman. I have engaged the hall for
the Thursday of each week and I cannot give up my
lesson."
The Rabbi argued with the woman and tried to persuade
her to leave, but all to no purpose. The proprietor of the hall
was sent for, and he tried also, but the dancing mistress would
not give way. Finally, after half-an-hour's debate, one of the
strangest scenes I ever saw in my life took place : services
were held at one end of the hall and piano-playing and dancing
at the other.
It is customary in the Jewish religion for the death of a
parent to be solemnly commemorated by the son on the an
niversary of the death each year, and on this occasion prayers
for the dead are said. There must, however, always be ten
male persons present, and during my travels in foreign countries
I have experienced great difficulty in getting the required
number when I
have been in out-of-the-way places. On one
occasion the anniversary of the death of one of my parents
came round when I was in China, and I was wondering how I
could possibly manage to commemorate it, when I learned,
to my great surprise, that there were Chinese Jews. After

great difficulty, I succeeded in getting the required number
of Chinamen.
I have had some

very curious experiences with the assistants
who help me during my performances. One of the most
amusing, I think, was with a coloured boy, whom I had
engaged to assist me in the Indian Rope Trick.
Besides climbing the rope in this scene, his duties were to
set the stage ready for my performance and keep my apparatus
and so He was not very well educated, and he
forth clean.
has handed me out many a good laugh. I used to have two
small tables on either side of the stage, and on each of these
he had to lay a small embroidered silk tablecloth. He kept
continually putting these covers on the table wrong side up,
and so one night, just before going on the stage, I called him
and said : —
"
Look, Albert, you've put this last cloth on wrong side up.
Can't you tell the difference between the right side and the
wrong side ? It is quite easy, if you look at the tablecloth on
both sides. On the right side you will notice that the table
cloth looks like cotton, but, if you turn it over, you will see all
the raw silk from the embroidered flowers, and therefore it is
impossible to make a mistake. You see, this side is silk, and
the other side looks like cotton. You surely know the dif
ference between silk and cotton ? If you went into a shop to
buy a silk necktie, and the man offered you a cotton one, you
"
wouldn't take it, would you ?
" No,"
said Albert.
" Well, then," said I, "
why don't you look at both sides
of the cover before you put it on the table, and then you will
make no further mistake ?
"
He went away, and stood for some moments apparently
deep in thought. Then suddenly he came back and said :-
"
I've got a necktie home, and it isn't silk and it isn't
cotton."
" Well, what is it ?
" I asked.
^
" It's
poplar," said he.
On another occasion, just as I was going on to the stage,
I saw him sitting in a chair with his hands across his stomach,
looking very dejected, so I went up to him and asked if he
were unwell.
" Yes, sir," *'
I feel very bad."
said he,
"
What is the matter with you !
"
" I've
got a pain in my private apartments," he said.
Seeing him walking very lame one day, I inquired if he had
hurt his foot.
" Yes, sir," "
he answered, and it's very bad. I hit it
against something last night, and it's made me quite lame ;
but it will be all right to-morrow, as I am going to have it
massacred."
Once, while we were playing in Manchester, Albert came
and asked me if I would let him off on the following afternoon,
as he wanted to go to the Belle Vue Gardens to see the animals
there. I gave him leave, and when he came to the theatre in
the evening I enquired which of the animals he had seen
interested him most.
" The
big chemises," he replied.
It appeared that he meant the chimpanzees.
When we were playing in London, Albert used to live with
his father and mother at Chiswick, and he used to be con
tinually asking me when we were going to play at Chiswick,
as he was very anxious for his father and mother to see him do
the Rope Trick. So at last I fixed an engagement to play at
the Chiswick Empire, but I did not say anything to him about
this, as I wanted to give him a surprise.
However, he heard one of my other assistants talking
about it, and two or three nights before I was to go to Chiswick
he knocked at my dressing-room door and asked if he could
see me on a matter of great importance. I could not imagine
what it was that he wanted to see me about, and I was rather
annoyed, as there was a gentleman, a friend of mine, in the
room who had come to the theatre to see me. However, I
told him to come in, and said : —
" Well, Albert ; what is this important matter you want
"
to see me about ?
"
It's very private, sir," said he, glancing uneasily at the
friend who was with me.
I asked the latter if he would mind leaving the room for a
moment, and he went out.
" Now, then, what is it ? " I asked.
" Well, sir,"
said Albert,
" is it
official that we go to Chiswick
"
next week ?
Once, when I was performing at the Holborn Empire, I

had engaged a boy named Lewis to look after some birds and
rabbits which I used in my performance. His duties were to
take the birds and rabbits home each evening, clean their
cages out, feed them and bring them to the theatre next
evening in time for the performance.
On Friday evening, I told him that we had a matinee on
the following day and that I wanted him to bring the birds
and rabbits to the theatre by half-past two. When I arrived
the next afternoon about three o'clock, Lewis had not yet
turned up. I began to get anxious, as the birds and rabbits
were absolutely necessary for my performance, and when
four o'clock came and there was still no sign of him, I was in
a terrible quandary, as my turn was at 4.10. At last I went
to the manager and asked him if he could alter the programme
and let me go on some time later, by which time perhaps the
boy would have arrived. To this he kindly consented, and
my turn was postponed until 4.30. But when 4.30 came, and
the boy was still absent, the manager said he could wait no
longer, and that I must either go on then or lose my salary for
the afternoon's performance.
Accordingly, I decided to go on, though, instead of doing
my regular performance, I had to entertain the audience with
card tricks. I had finished my turn and was in my dressing-
room, it being then past five o'clock, when there came a knock
at the door, and in walked Lewis with the birds and rabbits.
I said: —
"
What do you mean by coming at this time ? Didn't I
tell you last night to be here at 2.30, as there was a matinee.

You've ruined my whole performance, as you know very well
that I have to have the birds and rabbits."
" Well," he replied as coolly as possible,
"
I thought I'd
go and have a look at the Houses of Parliament, as I'd never
seen them before, and the time somehow slipped away."
When I had recovered my astonishment, I gave him a
week's notice, telling him that he could then take a whole
month's holiday, and in that time would no doubt know the
Houses of Parliament by heart.
Having an engagement to perform at the Metropolitan Music
Hall, in London, I came to the theatre for rehearsal at twelve
o'clock on the Monday morning and found that, though my
assistant had brought my luggage there the previous day,
no one had seen him since then. It was customary for him
always to bring my luggage to the theatre at which I was to
perform on a Sunday, and to begin early on the Monday
morning to fix up my paraphernalia ; and I was therefore greatly
surprised to find he was not there. I waited until six o'clock in the
evening, but, as he had not come even then, I had to start
fixing up my apparatus myself, thinking by the time I had
finished he would arrive. I worked till eight o'clock, but still
there was no sign of him, and I was obliged to alter the whole
routine of my entertainment, as he used to assist me in several
of the tricks and illusions I
was then doing, and I could not
perform them without his help. I managed to get through my
turn somehow, but, of course, my performance was not so
good as it would have been had he been there.
Next morning I went to his lodgings to find out what was
wrong, and was astonished when the landlady told me that she
had not seen him since the Sunday morning, and that his bed
had not been slept in since then. I thought something serious
must have happened to him and went to the police to make
inquiries, but could get no news. That evening, just as I was
going on the stage, I got a message from Gaol, saying that
he had been arrested on Sunday afternoon for fighting in the
street, and, in default of being able to pay the fine whjch had
been imposed, sent to prison. On the Wednesday morning

I paid his fine and got him out, and having made him promise
to commit no more breaches of the peace, reinstated him.
I used to perform a trick for which I

borrowed two lady's
rings. I would then produce a frying-pan, break two or three
eggs into it, pour some rum over the eggs and set fire to the
rum. Then I would clap a cover on to the frying-pan, which
would put the fire out, and, upon lifting up the cover, in place
of the eggs there would be two pigeons, with the lady's rings
tied round their necks with a bit of ribbon.
I am giving the secret of my trick away when I say that the
cover had a false bottom, and that the pigeons, with the rings
tied round their necks, were placed in it beforehand by my
assistant. When I clapped the cover on the frying-pan, the
bottom of the cover remained in the frying-pan, and when I
lifted the cover itself, the two pigeons were discovered.
One evening, someone,for a practical joke, removed the
two pigeons from the cover and substituted two kittens, and
my astonishment can be imagined when, on lifting up the cover,
I beheld two kittens instead of the two pigeons. The audience
roared with laughter, and I have never discovered to this day
who played this practical joke on me, as my assistant swore
he had put the pigeons in as usual.
I receive a good many curious letters. Some years ago,

while performing at the Palace Theatre, Manchester, I re
ceived the following epistle :—
" Dear Mr. Hertz,

" with a friend of mine, I visited the
Together
Palace Theatre the other evening and saw your wonderful per
formance in the trick where you are supposed to mesmerise a
lady and, after laying her down on the stage, she rises hori
zontally in the air and remains suspended some six or seven
feet from the floor of the stage without any visible means of
support, and, while in that position, you pass a stick over her
and under her, and also a hoop right along her body, to show
-.
Emilie D'Alton Carl Hertz), as Ogira
in
(Mrs.
Carl Hertz and Pet Pomeranian, Dolly.
the Indian Rope Trick Scene.
p. 304.
that there are no wires. My friend and I discussed how the

trick was done, and finally he wagered me £5 that his solution
was the correct one. This I disputed, and said that mine was
the only correct solution. He said that it was performed by
the aid of very strong magnets, the lady having a steel corset
under her costume, while I suggested that it was done by the
aid of wires. In order to settle the wager, would you kindly
"
let me know by return which of us is correct ?
To this letter I replied as follows : —
" Dear Sir,

" Your letter received with regard to the explanation
of how I perform my Levitation Trick, and I regret to say that
both of you are wrong. So please send me the £$."
Needless to say, I heard nothing further.

During that same engagement at the Palace Theatre, I had
a very curious and lucky experience. One evening, at the
conclusion of my performance, I came off the stage and, going
into my dressing-room, which was on a level with it, began to
change into my street-clothes, and, while doing so, removed a
very valuable single-stone diamond stud which I usually wore
in my shirt-front and placed it on my dressing-table. This stud
had a spiral screw at the back. I had got partly dressed when
I happened accidentally to knock the stud off the dressing-table
on to the floor. Knowing that the stud would be quite safe,
as there was no one but myself in the room, I finished dressing
and then started to look for it. I looked in every corner,
but no trace of that stud could be found. I thought that it
was the greatest mystery I had ever known, and that it even
surpassed some of my own wonderful mysteries. I knew the
stud had dropped on the floor, and, in fact, had heard it drop.
But, though I looked high and low, I could not find it. I
went on my hands and knees, and there was not a square inch
of the floor that I did not examine. Still no trace of the stud !
Suddenly, I caught sight of a small round hole, about half-
an-inch in circumference, and I came to the conclusion that the
u
stud must have gone down that hole. I accordingly sent for
the stage-carpenter and asked him what was underneath the
flooring of my dressing-room. He replied that there was
about six feet of space and that at the bottom was a lot of
sand and dirt. I asked him how we could get underneath, as I
had lost my diamond stud from my shirt-front, and that it
must have gone down that small hole, which I pointed out to him,
as I had hunted everywhere, but could not find it. He said
that there was only one way of getting underneath, and that
was by taking up the flooring. So we decided to wait until
the performance was over, and he would then take up the
flooring and we would institute a thorough search.
So, about half-past eleven, the performance being then over,
the stage-carpenter removed the flooring, and, having obtained
a couple of lanterns and a sieve, we sieved all that sand and
dirt. But though we worked till four o'clock, still there was
no sign of my stud. Eventually, I decided to give up the
hunt until the next day — or, rather, later the same day —when I
said I would come back and have another look.
When I came out of the theatre with my wife, who had
very kindly remained to help me in my futile search, it was a
terrible morning, the rain coming down in torrents. We could
not get a cab for love or money, and were obliged to walk all
the way home, a distance of nearly a mile. We arrived at
last, and found our supper still on the table, where it had stood
since eleven o'clock. But I was so wet and tired that I decided
to go straight to bed. I went up to my bedroom and began
to undress, and while removing my trousers I heard something
drop on the carpet. I looked down to see what it was, and, lo
and behold, there was my diamond stud ! What had happened
was that the stud, having a spiral at the back, had bounced up
again when it fell on the floor and dropped into the turn-up of
one of my trouser-legs. But it was certainly most extraordinary
that, though I had been crawling about the floor of my dressing-
room and walking about for hours afterwards, it should not
have dropped out.
CHAPTER XXV
A few stories — The electric chair — Too much of a good thing — The
"
Scotsman's cigars — A belated performance — Pinch the baby ! "
"
— Blackleg "
elephants — The frown of Mr. Snelbecker — A
singular orchestra— A dressing-room incident — " Ain't they on
" "
speaking terms ? — "(The Bucket of Blood —Conjurers' blunders.
I shall conclude with a few anecdotes, some about myself,

some about others.
Some years ago I used to do a trick in which I would ask a
gentleman from the stalls to come on the stage and assist me,
and, when he came, would invite him to take a seat on a nice,
innocent-looking chair.
This he would proceed to do, but immediately afterwards
bounce up again, declaring that there was either dynamite or
an infernal machine in the bottom of the chair, and that he
would positively refuse to sit down again. Amidst the smiles
of his friends and the hoots of the gallery gods, he would
return to his place in the stalls, but no sooner had he resumed
his seat, than he would bounce up again, just as he had done
on the stage. I had a battery at the back of the stage, the wires
of which ran out into the auditorium to this particular chair,
and each night I would change the position of the chair. By
touching a button on my table on the stage a slight shock would
be communicated to the person occupying the prepared chair.
One morning a gentleman, who had been my victim the
previous evening, called to see me and said : —
" I came on the
stage to assist you last night, Mr. Hertz,
and you made me jump off the chair I sat down on, and again
when I reached my seat in the stalls. Now, I want to play a
joke on a pal of mine. I have booked two seats in the front row
of the stalls for to-night, Numbers 7 and 8, A Row ; my friend
will sit in No. 8. I want you to make him jump off his seat,
just as you did me last night."
I promised that I would do as he asked me, but, instead of
putting the wires on to his friend's chair, I put them on to his
own. In the evening, all through my performance I could see
him smiling and giggling in anticipation of the moment when
his friend was to jump off his chair. When it came to the
finish of the trick, I touched the button on my table, and, in
stead of his friend jumping off his chair, he got a terrible shock
himself, which made him leap about three feet in the air. After
my performance, he came to me in a terrible temper and de
manded an explanation. I excused myself by saying that the
wires must have somehow got mixed, and I think this experi
ence must have cured him of wanting to play practical jokes.
While performing at Halifax, a well-known doctor of that

town, who was interested in conjuring, invited me one night
after my performance to his house, where he was having a
bridge party. I arrived about eleven o'clock and found five
tables going. As I entered the room my host said : —
"Gentlemen, Mr. Hertz," but all the players were so interested
in their game that they took very little notice of me. The
doctor said to me : —
" One of these
games will be finished shortly, and then you
can come in," and presently a game at one of the tables being
over, a gentleman got up and I was invited to take his place.
I sat down ; we cut for partners, and I
won the deal.
On picking up my hand, I found that I had the four aces
amongst my cards, and I thereupon called No Trumps, and we
got a Grand Slam. When the deal came round to me once more,
by a strange coincidence, I held the four aces again. I felt
quite embarrassed and did not know what to do, but, as I had to
study my partner, there was nothing left for me but to call No
Trumps again. This I did, upon which one of our opponents
remarked : —
" I "
hope you haven't got those four aces again !
We got another Grand Slam, and when it came to my deal

for the third time, a most extraordinary thing happened. I
actually held those four aces once more !
I felt exceedingly awkward, and I would sooner have lost

£50 than have held those four aces the third time, because I
knew these gentlemen would be sure to suspect me of mani
pulating the cards. However, I thought once more that my
partner would be annoyed if I did not call my hand properly,
so again I declared No Trumps, and again we got a Grand
Slam.
The other players looked at one another in astonishment,
and then one of them called our host, who had no idea of
what had happened.
" Doctor," "
said he, who did you say this gentleman was ?
We didn't quite catch his name."
"
Why, that's Mr. Carl Hertz, the conjurer, who is playing
"
at the theatre this week ! was the answer.
They all three immediately rose from the table, got their
hats and coats and left the house ; and I never felt so sheepish
and cheap in all my life !
I had an old friend in Edinburgh, a Scotsman whom I will

call MacDougal, although that was not his name, and whenever
I performed there, he was sure to come to the theatre on my
opening night. On one occasion I had an engagement at the
Empire, and on the Monday night, just before I was to go on
the stage, I went upstairs into the dress-circle and ran into
MacDougal, who was very pleased to see me, as we had not
met for some time. After we had been talking for a minute or
two, he pulled out a cigar-case, opened it, and asked me to have
a cigar. There were three cigars on each side of the case. I
was going to take one from the left-hand side when he stopped
me, saying : —
" No, no ! Don't take one of those ; take from the other
side."
" " "
Why," said I, what is the matter with the others ?
-
"
Those are no good ; they are only very cheap cigars, though
I have to keep them to give to people sometimes ; but those on
the other side are Havanas."
I took one of the good cigars and lit it, and MacDougal put
the cigar-case back in his pocket.
Presently, I saw a man coming towards us who was also
I only knew him by sight.
engaged at the Empire, though
MacDougal went to meet him, shook him heartily by the
hand, and said: —
"
How are you, my dear fellow ? I am so pleased to see
you again."
Then, turning to me, he added : —
"
Hertz, let me introduce you to Mr. , the best friend
I have in the world. I have known him for over thirty years."
I shook hands with the gentleman, while MacDougal took
his cigar-case out again, and, holding his hand over the right
side of the case, offered his friend of thirty years a cigar.
Seeing only those on the left side, the latter naturally had
to take one of these. When he had gone, MacDougal said to
me :—
"
Now you see why I keep two kinds of cigars in my
"
case !
While appearing at Bishop Auckland, I gave two perform

ances nightly, the first beginning at seven and the second at
nine o'clock. One afternoon I went for a motor-drive, in
tending to return at about six o'clock. But we had a break
down, and though we did everything we could to get the car
in running order again it was to no purpose. We were in the
depths of the country, miles away from any telegraph-office or
telephone, so that there was no way of letting the manager of
the theatre know that I could not be there in time for the
first house. I determined to do my best to get there in time for
the second, and, leaving the car, started off to try to find some
kind of conveyance. After walking for several miles, I came
across a farmer who agreed for a most exorbitant sum to drive
me into Bishop Auckland, but it was then so late and we were
so far from the town that we didfnot arrive until after ten
o'clock.
When I did not put in an appearance at the theatre at my
usual hour, my assistants, knowing that something must have
happened to delay me, got the rest of the artists to draw out
their turns as much as possible, in order to gain time. But
—
when nine o'clock came the time for the second performance
to begin — and there was still no sign of me, the manager came
before the curtain and announced to the audience that, as Mr.
Hertz had probably met with some accident, he would not
be able to appear at the first house.
The audience, however, most of whom had paid expressly
to see me, refused to leave the building, so the only alter
native was for the artists to go through their performances all
over again, in order to give me further time to get there.
Eventually I arrived, and, without stopping to change, went on
to the stage as I was, though my clothes were in a very dirty
state. The audience, however, accepted my apologies and
gave me a very kind reception, and I managed to give quite a
satisfactory performance.
There was an enormous queue for the second house, people
having been waiting since about 8.30. It was not until 10.45
that they were admitted, but they took the delay in very good
part and appeared very pleased with my entertainment, which
did not conclude until nearly one o'clock. And so I got well out
of an awkward situation, but I made up my mind that in
future I would take no more motor drives into the country
except during week-ends or holidays.
Some years ago, a conjurer while giving a two-hours' show

in a small American town was much interrupted during the
first part of his performance by a crying baby, who had been
brought in by a young couple in the front of the house. There
"
was a notice on the bills which read : Infants in arms five
dollars extra," but this one had got in somehow unseen by the
door-keeper.
The baby cried lustily all through the first act, and at its
s
close jthe .conjurer sent for one of the attendants and told him
to tell the parents that they would have to keep the baby quiet
or else leave the theatre and have their money returned.
The attendant having notified them to this effect.they succeeded
in squelching the baby, and for a time all went well. The
performance was drawing to an end, when the young husband
turned towards his wife and said : —
" "
How do you like the show ?
"
Rotten !
"
was the answer.
The husband was silent for a minute or two, when he again
turned towards his wife, and said in a low tone : —
" Pinch the "
baby !
During the music-hall strike of 1907 the various managers

experienced great difficulty in getting artists to appear. The
few who did continue to perform had to play at five or six
different halls a night, in order to make up a programme
at each hall. At the South London one night two turns only
had appeared on the programme, one being the cinematograph
pictures and the other some performing elephants. When the
elephants had finished, the artists for the next turn had not
arrived. In order to give them time to arrive the orchestra
started to play a selection of music, but after it had been
playing for some twenty minutes the audience began to get
very impatient. The manager accordingly came before
the curtain and said : —
"
Ladies and gentlemen, I am very sorry to say that the
other artists have not yet arrived.but so that you should not have
to wait any longer, I will let either the pictures or the elephants
appear again, in order to fill up the time. Now, which will you
"
have ? The pictures or the elephants ?
" The "
shouted the audience, and so the
elephants !
elephants appeared again.

After they had finished their performance, there being still
no sign of the artists, the orchestra began to play, but, as the
audience soon showed signs of impatience, the manager came
forward once more and said :—
-■
"
Ladies and gentlemen, the artists have not yet arrived,
though I expect them every minute, so we had better have the
elephants or the pictures again. Which will you have this
"
time ?
" The "
cried the audience, and the elephants
elephants !
were coming on for the third time, when some wag got up and
shouted :
" "
Blacklegs !
During my early days in America I was travelling with a

company called Snelbecker's Majesties. Mr. Snelbecker, the
proprietor of the show, was a very big man, well over six
feet, who had formerly been a policeman in Cincinnati. In
addition to almost herculean strength, he was the possessor of
a violent temper and was reported to have once killed a fellow-
policeman, in consequence of which everyone was afraid of
him. We had been travelling for some time, and business had
been very bad : in fact, none of the artists had been paid any
salary for three weeks, though, as it was customary in those
days for the proprietors of travelling companies to engage
their artists at so much per week, which included board and
lodging, we were not in want of food or a roof over our heads
at night.
We were all sitting one Monday morning in the lounge of
the St. Claire Hotel, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, where we were
to open that night, and grumbling to one another because our
salaries were so much in arrears. But we were all so much in
awe of the ferocious Snelbecker that none of us had dared to
make a complaint. There were two performers in the com
pany called Murray and Murphy ; Murray was a terrible growler
and kicker, and that Monday morning he told the rest of the
company that he had made up his mind to stand this sort of
thing no longer, and that the moment he saw Snelbecker he
was going to tell him that he would not proceed further on the
tour, or even appear that night, unless he were paid the money
that was owing to him. And he declared that he didn't care if
he were twice as big as he was, or had killed a dozen policemen ;
f
he was not frightened of him and meant to have his money

or quit. Of course, we all egged him on and told him
he was quite right, thinking that, if he got his money, we
should also get ours.
Presently, in walked Mr. Snelbecker. The moment he
appeared, Murray hurried up to him and said : —
" See here, Mr. Snelbecker, I'm not
going to stand it any
longer !There are three weeks' salary owing to me, and,
"
unless I get my money, I shall refuse to appear this evening !
" "
What ! shouted Snelbecker, in his most truculent tones.
" "
What's that you say ? You want your money ?
Poor Murray looked at the big man towering over him and
all the courage oozed out at his finger-tips.
" Well, let me have ten cents to
get shaved with, anyway,"
said he.
Speaking of Pennsylvania, reminds me of another incident
which happened there during my early days on the stage,
when I was travelling with Harry Williams' company through
the coal-mining towns. We had an orchestra engaged for our
performance, but through some trouble with the musicians,
who quarrelled amongst themselves, they all refused to play,
and we could not get any other musicians for love or money to
take their places. In the end, we had to give the entire enter
tainment with no other music than that supplied by a Jew's
harp, which one of our company played for every turn that
came on.
A very good story is told of Tony Pastor, the well-known

American showman. Tony Pastor used to travel one of the
best companies on the road, and he was always very particular
about the artists he engaged. At one time there were two
artists in his company named Sandford and Wilson who used
to do a black-face musical act, that is to say, they used to black
up with burnt cork, and after the show was over they would
have to strip themselves and wash all the cork off. It so
happened that Tony Pastor engaged a young lady, a very fine
ballad vocalist, who had not been accustomed to travel with
~'\
vaudeville shows. The first week after this lady joined the
company they were playing at a little town in Pennsylvania,
and she had to pass the dressing-room occupied by Messrs.
Sandford and Wilson. They were both very big men, par
ticularly Wilson, weighing something like fifteen stone and
over six feet in height.
Wilson used to have a habit of leaving the dressing-room door
open, and on more than one occasion the lady vocalist, when
passing by, caught sight of him standing as Nature had made
him, engaged in washing the burnt cork off his body. She was
so shocked that she went to Tony Pastor and made a com
plaint about it. Pastor sent for Wilson and asked him what
he meant by leaving the door open when he was in the act of
washing himself and was stark naked, saying that Miss Ains-
worth had seen him and complained about it.
" "
Did she say I was stark naked ? inquired Wilson.
" Yes."
" Then she tells an untruth," exclaimed the artist indig
" I "
nantly. Why, had my socks on !
The dressing-room accommodation in some of the small towns

in America often left a very great deal to be desired, though
the following experience of a certain advance-manager is
probably unique.
Arriving at a town three or four days ahead of his company,
this gentleman proceeded to the theatre to interview the local
manager. Having inspected the stage and auditorium, he
asked to be shown the dressing-rooms, and the local manager
took him back of the stage and showed him a large dressing-
room.
" This'll do
very nicely," said the advance-manager.
" "
Now where are the other dressing-rooms ?
" Oh, there aren't
any others," answered the local manager.
" Do
you really mean to say," exclaimed the astonished
visitor,
"
that this is the only dressing-room you've got in
"
this theatre ?
"That's so,"
" "
But there are ladies as well as men in our company !
" Well, ain't " said the local
they on speaking terms ?
manager.
In the old days the people who ran variety theatres in the
Western States were a pretty rough lot, as were those who
patronised them. There was one place at Colorado Springs
nick-named
" The Bucket of Blood," on account of several
mysterious murders having taken place there. The proprietor,
a big, burly man of violent temper, was said to have killed two
or three persons and to have thrown their bodies into a river
which ran at the back of the stage. Anyway, these people
suddenly disappeared and nothing more was ever seen or heard
of them.
On one occasion, two comedians were engaged to appear at
this theatre, where the performances used to last till about two
o'clock in the morning. They finished their performance,
which was a big success, about midnight, and were dressing
in their dressing-room, which was also occupied by a female
impersonator, when the stage-manager came in.
" What are " "
you boys dressing for ? he said. Where
"
are you going ?
" Oh,
we've finished our turn and are going home," they
replied.
"
But you must not go yet," said the stage-manager.
"
You've got to appear in the after-piece." And he explained
to them that it was customary for all artists who performed
there to appear in a short sketch at the end, called the after
piece.
The two comedians saying that they had only
protested,
been engaged to give their usual performance, and, having
done that, they were going home. The stage-manager, how
ever, warned them not to make any objections, as the proprietor
was a very rough man, and, if he was to go and tell him that
they refused to appear in the after-piece he would come and
make a terrible row.
The artists rejoined that they didn't care how rough he was,
^\
they were not frightened of anyone and should refuse to go on

again.
When the stage-manager saw that all persuasion was use
less, he said : —
"
Very well, I shall have to go and tell the proprietor, and
I warn you that it will go very hard with you when he hears
that you have refused."
With that he went out and told the proprietor that these
two artists refused to appear in the after-piece, and the pro
prietor — a big six-footer —came into their dressing-room in a
terrible rage and said : —
"
Where are these two men who refuse to go on in the
"
after-piece ?
" Here we are," " We've done our
replied the two artists.
business and now we're going home."
" Well," exclaimed the " I'll ask
proprietor, you once more.
"
Are you going on or not ?
" No," "
replied one of the artists, we are not."
Without any further parley, the proprietor suddenly dealt
the speaker a tremendous blow between the eyes and sent
him sprawling. His partner went to his assistance, and met
the same fate. Then, standing over the two men as they lay on
the floor, the proprietor looked up and saw the female imper
sonator at the other end of the room,
" " as fast as
making up
he could and trembling like a leaf. When the female impersona
tor caught the manager's eye, he said : —
" Well, thank God, I've "
always done my level best I
Conjurers, despite the quickness of hand generally credited

to them, make some awkward mistakes and amusing blunders.
But they have this in their favour : that the audience seldom
know of the mishap that has occurred. As is well known, a great
many of the articles used in their performances are borrowed
from members of the audience : such as watches, banknotes,
rings, handkerchiefs and so forth ; and the owners of these
articles should not be surprised if they occasionally receive
them back in a damaged condition when the treatment to
which they are subjected is taken into consideration. They

are supposed to be smashed, burned, or in some other way des
troyed, and then mysteriously put to rights again ; and although
sensible people know full well that the genuine article has not
really been destroyed, but that a substitution has been adroitly
effected, still the process of substitution is often attended by
great risk to the articles used, such as dropping them quickly
into the operator's pocket or into traps, or slipping them into
an assistant's hand.
A conjurer performing recently intheSouth of Scotland asked
for the loan of a watch, and a gentleman lent him a valuable
old chronometer. A wonderful trick was performed with it,
and the audience accorded the performer a hearty round of
applause. But, when the gentleman got his watch back, a
note was slipped into his hand intimating that his watch had
been damaged, but that he would be compensated for this at
the close of the entertainment. The watch was indeed damaged ;
it was irrevocably ruined, but the performer paid the owner its
full price. Some performers have been most unfortunate in
this way. I know one who had to pay the full price for damaged
watches three times in as many years, and each time owing to
the gross carelessness of his assistant.
A few years ago a young conjurer, who has since acquired
some celebrity, gave his first public entertainment, and was
assisted behind the scenes by some kind friends. The loan of
a banknote was asked for, and one for twenty pounds was
handed to the performer. This he successfully substituted for
a sham note, passing the genuine one, by means of a trap in his
table, to his assistant. He then proceeded to burn the dupli
cate at the flame of a candle, all the while enjoying the dis
comfiture of the lender, who believed that his twenty-pound-note
was being destroyed and was heard to remark :
" If I had
known he was going to do that with it, he wouldn't have got it !
"
But the performer's enjoyment was of short duration, for
when the time came for him to restore the note to its anxious
owner, he discovered, to his horror, that his assistant had as
completely destroyed the genuine note as he had the sham one.
The audience was, however, permitted to know nothing of the

disaster, as an explanation was given to the lender, who before
the conclusion of the performance was compensated for his
loss.
Another conjurer, hailing from the North of Scotland, had
acquired great dexterity in his manipulation of eggs, with
which he performed a number of really clever tricks. In
practising these feats, he generally used hard-boiled eggs ;
but he very carelessly allowed several unboiled eggs to get
mixed up with the boiled ones, so that, after some time, he
could not tell the boiled from the unboiled. He was punished
for his carelessness in a way he little dreamed of. He was
engaged to perform at the house of the Lord Provost of a
certain Scotch city, and his audience was the most distinguished
one before which he had ever appeared.
The first experiment consisted of extracting eggs from the
flame of a candle which stood upon his table. These eggs were
successfully produced, after which he proceeded, as was his
custom, to hand them round amongst the audience to prove
their genuineness. But, in handing one of them to a gentleman
to examine, he allowed one of the others to fall, which, happen
ing to strike the knee of a lady, broke and besmeared her dress.
The egg having been for some time in the performer's pos
session, was very decidedly
" stale," and
a most disagreeable
odour speedily pervaded the room . Handkerchiefs and smelling-
bottles were freely requisitioned, and the lady had to retire
and change her dress, which she was never able to wear again.
The other ladies also quitted the room, and the entertain
ment came to an abrupt conclusion.
THE END
PRINTED BY THE ANCHOR PRESS, LTD., TIPTREE, ESSEX, ENGLAND.

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■

WITH FRONTISPIECE AND 24 OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS

LONDON : HUTCHINSON & CO

My boyhood — Fascination which conjuring has for me — am I

I sail for Liverpool on my first visit to England — My appearance

CHAPTER VII ,ao1

Madame O'Della Diss De Bar, the celebrated medium, is prose

the cards, and he loses heavily — His money is subsequently

little game of Nap — " Carl Hertz, the King of Cards —

I leave England for New York to fulfil an engagement at Oscar

Continuation of my South African tour — I sail for Australia —

CHAPTER XIII PA0£

Refusal of the manager of the Novelty Theatre, Bombay, to give

CHAPTER XVI FAO,

Racing in Russia — Tip which I receive from an American

CHAPTER XXIII ,A0I

Experiments apparently simple, but actually very difficult —

Carl Hertz, age 9- - - - - -24

A Stand of Printing of Carl Hertz, Mrs. Hertz, Illusions,

Street in Hong Kong, China - - - - 188

Courtyard of Palace Hotel, San Francisco, before the

Programme of Theatre, Restaurant Yard, Moscow - 228

Chinese Dancers in Gala Costume 258

Carl Hertz with his Pet Pomeranian, Dolly - - 304

I amAmerican born, having first seen the light in San Fran

clever boxer, and I remember several fights between him and

My first appearance on any stage was as an amateur at

Here it was even worse, and we opened to a house that

The manager then explained that the other artists were

back to 'Frisco, when I told the manager that I wanted nothing

City was what is known as an emigrant train. It was really

At that he seemed interested and asked me what was my

only your word for. But if you like to accept a week's

begged me to give up the idea of going on the stage and accept

had made, and accordingly lost no time in writing to the

excused himself for a moment and went over to speak to a

and used to make up for his performance by using a paste

For some time after leaving Kansas City everything went

intervention of his wife, who was a very kind-hearted woman,

My illness, which obliged me to remain in Cleveland for

I decided to walk to my hotel, rather than spend the rest of

I lost, not only ,the whole of my apparatus, but most of my

During these early days on the stage I had a very singular

and very pleasant-spoken individual, who inquired if I could

Missouri, on very tempting terms. It appeared that there

M who was a confectioner by trade, was interested, and

that Iwas to receive my money each night before the curtain

waiting to receive my money in advance, as I had the

you a proposition. I've booked the theatre at Montgomery

directed to that gentleman, which I signed for in his name,

We were soon surrounded by a great crowd of people, most

performing in front of the grand stand, and naturally con

Carl Hertz, and taking letters and papers from my pocket,

impostor, and the performance was a complete frost, the

I in these early days which I can

My next experience was travelling with a circus, as I accepted

I have ever had during my whole career ; and one season of it

to get some compensation out of the railroad company, if I

" Yes, sir," I " I should say I have."

At five o'clock the carriage came round and took me to the