The Project Gutenberg eBook of Holiday Frolics; Or, Endless Amusement for the Christmas Fireside

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Title: Holiday Frolics; Or, Endless Amusement for the Christmas Fireside

Author: Anonymous

Release date: January 24, 2020 [eBook #61229]

Most recently updated: October 17, 2024

Language: English

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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HOLIDAY FROLICS; OR, ENDLESS AMUSEMENT FOR THE CHRISTMAS FIRESIDE ***

Transcriber’s Note:

The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.

To make a bird appear as dead.

Marks fec.

A curious trick with a cup of tea.

HOLIDAY FROLICS;

OR,

ENDLESS AMUSEMENT

FOR THE CHRISTMAS FIRESIDE.

CONTAINING,

The most Astonishing Feats of Legerdemain,

AND

ASTOUNDING CONJURINGS;

Entertaining Experiments

IN VARIOUS BRANCHES OF SCIENCE;

TRICKS with CARDS & DICE.

ART OF MAKING

FIREWORKS;

TOGETHER WITH AN EXCELLENT COLLECTION OF

Puzzles, Conundrums, Riddles, Charades, &c. &c.

The whole admirably calculated to beguile the leisure hours of our Holiday Friends.

Embellished with a Copper-plate Engraving.

London:

W. STRANGE, 21, Paternoster Row; G. PURKESS, 61,

Wardour Street; and J. CLEMENTS, 17,

Little Pulteney Street, Soho.

PRICE SIXPENCE.

PREFACE.

Legerdemain and Conjuring are words frequently applied to the same object, but the definitions of them are quite different.

Legerdemain is that which conveys deception to the eye from philosophical principles, while Conjuring is nothing more or less than Sleight of Hand. Simple as the denomination seems from the title which it bears, many of our first Professors have applied much of their valuable time in developing the mysteries of it; and our young friends may rest assured, that the ascertaining of the power of mechanism has, in many instances, emanated from an hour or two’s amusing experiments.

The Tricks, Puzzles, Conundrums, &c. which are now presented, have been selected from the best works,—some have never yet appeared before the Public in print. If the perusal of the following pages, afford one hour’s amusement, the Author’s wishes will be obtained.

Oct. 16, 1830.

HOLIDAY FROLICS,

OR,

ENDLESS AMUSEMENT

For the Christmas Fireside,

&c. &c.

Conundrums.

1.

Why is a drunken man like a Quaker?

2.

Why is a nobleman like a book?

3.

What burns to keep a secret?

4.

When is a door not a door?

5.

Why is your nose like V in incivility?

6.

Which is the left side of a plum-pudding?

7.

Why do we all go to bed?

8.

In which month do ladies talk least?

9.

Why is Paris like the letter F?

10.

Why is London like the letter E?

11.

Which is the greatest Friday in the year?

12.

Why is a book like a tree?

13.

Why is a cobbler like a parson?

14.

Why is a cook like a barber?

15.

Why do cats see best in the dark?

16.

Why is an umbrella like a woman?

17.

Why does a miller wear a white hat?

18.

Why is an apothecary like a woodcock?

19.

Why is money like a whip?

20.

Why is a pack of cards like a garden?

21.

Why is the Pope of Rome like a pepper-box?

Riddles.

1.

My body is thin,

And no bowels within,

Have neither a head, face, or eye;

Yet a tail I possess,

Forty feet and no less,

And without any wings I can fly.

2.

There is a thing was three weeks old

When Adam was no more;

This thing it was but four weeks old,

When Adam was fourscore.

3.

It has mouth, no eyes, nor nose,

It has two feet with which it goes,

Though strange, its feet don’t touch the ground,

But all the way its head runs round.

4.

I’m rough, I’m smooth, I’m wet, I’m dry,

My station low, my title high;

The king my lawful master is,

I’m used by all, though only his.

Charades.

1.

My first is always,

My second durable,

My third without end.

2.

My first I hope you are,

My second I see you are,

My third I know you are.

An Enigma.

A word there is five syllables contains,

Take one away, no syllable remains.

Solutions to the Conundrums.

1.

The spirit moves him.

2.

He has a title.

3.

Sealing-wax.

4.

When it’s a jar.

5.

Because it’s between two I’s (eyes.)

6.

That which is not eaten.

7.

Because the bed will not come to us.

8.

February.

9.

It is the capital of France.

10.

It is the capital of England.

11.

Shrove Tuesday.

12.

Because it’s full of leaves.

13.

Because he mends soles. (souls)

14.

Because he dresses hare. (hair)

15.

They eat lights.

16.

Because her best use is being handled.

17.

To keep his head warm.

18.

Because he has a long bill.

19.

It makes the mare to go.

20.

There are spades in it.

21.

Because he is holy.

Riddles.

1.

A Kite.

2.

The moon.

3.

A wheelbarrow.

4.

The highway.

Charades.

1.

Everlasting.

2.

Welcome.

Enigma.

Monosyllable.

To make an Egg Tumble.

Put a penny-worth of Quick-silver into a quill, and seal it at both ends with wax, then boil an Egg, and as soon as you take it out of the water, put your quill through a small hole in the narrow end; put the egg on the table, and it will tumble about as long as the heat remains.

To make Fire Flash from Water.

Pour a small quantity of clear water into a glass, and put a piece or two of phosphoret of lime into it. In a few seconds flashes of fire will dart from the surface of the water, and end in curls of smoke rising in regular succession.

To suspend a Ring by a Thread which has been Burnt.

The thread having been previously soaked in urine, or common salt and water, tie it to a ring, not larger than a wedding ring; when you apply a flame of a candle to it, though the thread will burn to ashes, it will yet sustain the ring.

To take the impression of Butterflies upon paper.

Clip the wings of the butterfly, lay them upon clean paper in the form of the insect when flying, spread some thick pure gum water on another piece of paper, press it upon the wings, and it will take them up, lay a piece of white paper over it, and rub it gently with your finger, or the smooth handle of a knife. The bodies are to be drawn in the space which you leave between the wings.

To Gild the edges of Writing Paper or leaves of Books.

Screw a quantity of pages strongly into a press, after being cut as smooth as possible, size them with isinglass-glue, mixed up with spirits of wine, and then apply the gold leaves, when the size arrives at a proper degree of dryness.

To clean Gilt Buckles, Chains, &c.

Dip a soft brush in water and rub a little soap on it, and brush the articles for a minute or two, then wash it clean, wipe it and place it near the fire till dry, then brush it with burnt bread finely powdered.

To make Liquid Gold and Silver, for Vellum Painting, Fans, &c.

Grind up gold and silver leaf with gum water or honey, in a mortar, then wash the gum or honey, and use the powder that remains with gum water. This may be applied to any article with a camel’s hair pencil, in the same way as any other colour.

How to produce Fire from a Cane.

Split a Chinese rattan, and strike the parts together when perfectly dry, and they will emit fire like a flint and steel.

To Gild Silk or Ivory by the action of Hydrogen.

Immerse a piece of white satin, silk, or ivory, in a solution of nitro-muriate of gold (in the proportion of one part of the nitro-muriate, to three of distilled water) whilst the substance to be gilded is still wet, immerse it in a jar of hydrogen gas, and it will soon be covered by a complete surface of gold.

Glass broken by Air.

Lay a square of glass on the top of an open receiver, and exhaust the open air. The weight of the external air will press on the glass, and smash it to atoms.

To make luminous writing in the dark.

Fix a small piece of solid phosphorus in a quill, and write with it upon paper; if the paper be then placed in a dark room, the writing will appear beautifully luminous.

Incombustible Paper.

Dip a sheet of paper in strong alum-water, and when dry, repeat the process a second and third time. As soon as it is dry, you may put it in the flame of a candle, and it will not burn.

The Animated Sixpence.

To make a sixpence leap out of a pot. This is done by means of a long black horse hair fastened to the rim of a sixpence, by a small hole driven through it. This feat should be done by night, with a candle placed between the spectators and the operator, their eyes being thereby hindered from discerning the deception.

Wine upon Water.

Half fill a glass with water, throw a bit of the crumb of a loaf into it, about the size of a nut, pour some wine lightly on the bread, and you will see the water at the bottom of the glass, and the wine floating at the top of it.

To cast figures in imitation of Ivory.

Mix isinglass and strong brandy with powder of egg-shells, finely powdered, into a paste. Cast it warm into the mould, which must be previously oiled over; leave the figure in the mould till dry, and upon taking it out, you will find that it bears a strong resemblance to ivory.

To make a bird appear as if it was dead.

Lay any bird upon a table, and wave a small feather over its eyes, and it will appear as dead; but by removing the feather it will revive again. Let it lay hold of the stem part of the feather with its feet, and it will twist and turn about like a parrot; you may likewise roll it about on the table at your pleasure.

The manner of making Water freeze by the Fireside.

This feat can only be performed in winter. Place a stool before the fire, having first put a little water upon the stool; upon it set a quart pot, then put a handful of snow into it, having privately conveyed into the pot a handful of salt; stir it about for eight or ten minutes with a stick, and the congelation will be effected.

Engraving in Relief upon an Egg-shell.

Choose an egg that has a thick shell, wash it well in fresh water, then dry it very carefully with a linen cloth; melt some tallow or fat, and while very hot, make any figures or drawings you please with it upon the shell, either with a pen or pencil. This being finished, take the shell by the two ends, between two fingers, and then lay it gently in a tumbler filled with good white wine vinegar, the acid of which will have eaten enough of the thickness of the shell in about four hours.

To make a party appear ghastly.

This can only be done in a room. Take half a pint of spirits, and having warmed it, put a handful of salt with it into a bason; then set it on fire, and it will have the effect of making every person within its influence look hideous.

To fill a glass with water in such a manner, that it cannot be removed without spilling it all.

Lay a wager with any one that you so fill a glass with water that he shall not move it off the table without spilling the whole contents. Then fill a glass with water, and placing a bit of paper or thin card over the top, so as to cover the water and the edge of the glass, you dexterously turn the glass upside down on a smooth table, and then drawing away the paper gently, the water will remain suspended in the glass, and therefore it will be impossible to remove it from the table without spilling the contents.

How to make your cup draw your tea out of the saucer.

Empty the tea out of your cup into the saucer; then take a piece of paper, light it, and lay it on the surface of the tea, and instantly clap your cup over it, and it will immediately suck the tea into the cup.

To make Touch-Paper.

Dissolve in spirits of wine a little saltpetre; take and wet with the above some blue paper, and when dry it will be fit for use.

To make a Report like that of a gun with a Tobacco-Pipe.

Before performing this feat you must have a powder made of the following ingredients in your pocket:—One ounce of cream of tartar, one ounce of saltpetre, and half an ounce of sulphur, pulverized singly, and then well mixed together. Convey a single grain of this powder into a tobacco-pipe, and when it takes fire it will produce a noise like that of a gun, without breaking the pipe.

To make a sound similar to St. Paul’s Bell.

Tie a poker, or any other piece of metal, on to the middle of a strip of flannel about a yard long; then press with your thumbs or fingers the end of the flannel into your ears, while you swing the poker against any obstacle, as an iron fender, and you will hear a sound similar to that of a large church bell.

How to restore a dead fly to life.

Take a fly that has been drowned in water or spirits, place it in the sun, and cover it with pounded chalk or salt; in a few minutes it will revive and fly away. It is necessary that the fly be not squeezed when taken from the water.

To melt a piece of steel as if it was lead, without requiring a large fire.

Make a piece of steel quite red in the fire; then holding it with a pair of pincers or tongs, take in the other hand a stick of brimstone, and touch the piece of steel with it; immediately after their contact, you will see the steel melt and drop like a liquid.

How to procure laughter.

Take a ball in one hand and another in the other, then stretch your hands as far as you can one from the other; and if any one will lay a wager that you will not withdraw your hands, and yet will make both of them come into either hand, which they please, it is no more to do, than to lay one down upon a table, and turn yourself round, and take it up with your other hand, then your wager is won; and it will move no small laughter to see a fool so lose his money.

To tell any number thought of by another person.

Desire the person who has thought of a number to multiply it by itself; then desire him to add unity to the number thought of, and to multiply that sum also by itself; in the last place, ask him to tell the difference of these two products, which will certainly be an odd number, and the least half of it will be the number required.

For Example.

Let the number thought of be 5, which multiplied by itself gives 25; in the next place, 5 increased by 1 is 6, which multiplied by itself makes 36; and the difference between these two squares is 11, the least half of which is 5, the number thought of.

To make Alum Baskets.

Form a small basket, about the size of the hand, of iron wire; then take some worsted, and wind it round every part of it. Boil a pound of alum in a quart of water, let it boil well, stirring it all the time; when completely dissolved, pour it into a deep pan, and by a thread suspend the basket into it to a good depth, so as that no part shall touch the vessel; let it remain for one day, and when you take it out, the alum will be found crystallized all over the basket. The alum may be coloured pink, purple, or yellow, by boiling Brazil, logwood, or French berries with it.

Silver Tree on Glass.

Put a few drops of the solution of silver in aqua-fortis; on a piece of glass form a bit of copper or brass wire, to represent a tree with its branches, but flat, so as to lie upon the glass; lay it in the liquid, and let it remain for an hour or two. A beautiful vegetation will be perceived all round the wire, which will nearly be covered by it. This may be preserved by washing it very carefully with water, and putting another glass over it.

A person having written an odd number on one card, and an even on another, to tell which is the even and which is the odd.

Desire him to multiply the number in his right hand by 5 (or any odd number) and that in his left by 6, (or any even number) and tell you if the sum of the products added together be odd or even. If it be even, the even number is in the right; but if odd, the even number is in the left hand.

A Metal which bursts into flame when thrown upon cold water.

Place a piece of potassium, of about two grains weight, upon cold water in a bason, when it inflames, and exhibits a beautiful light of a violet red colour.

The Artificial Spider.

Cut a piece of burnt cork, about the size of a pea, in the shape of a spider; make its legs of linen thread, and put a grain or two of lead into it; to give it more weight; suspend it by a fine line of silk between the arch, and an excited stick of wax.

To make waves of fire on the surface of water.

On a lump of loaf sugar, let fall a few drops of phosphorized ether, and place the sugar in a glass of warm water; a very beautiful appearance will be instantly exhibited: and the effect is increased if the surface of the water is made to undulate, by blowing gently with the breath.

Spoons which melt in hot water.

Melt together, in a crucible, five parts of lead, three of tin, and eight of bismuth; these metals will contain and form an alloy (of which spoons may be made, possessed of the remarkable property of melting in boiling water.)

To prepare Phosphorized Ether.

Suffer sulphuric ether (about sixpenny worth) to stand for some weeks over a few small pieces of phosphorus, in a well-stopped phial. The solution is aided by occasional agitation.

How to extract sixpence from under a glass without touching it.

Place two shillings at an equal distance, so as to allow the rim of a glass to rest on them, place a sixpence in the centre of the shillings under the glass; by drawing your nail along the table, the sixpence will follow the motion of your nail. This feat can only be performed on a baize, cloth, &c.

To prepare a luminous Bottle.

Put a piece of phosphorus, the size of a pea, into a phial, add boiling oil until the bottle is a third full. The phial must then be carefully corked; and when it is to be used it should be unstopped, to admit the atmospheric air; the upper part of the phial will be luminous, and if care be taken to keep it in general well closed, it will preserve this illuminative power for six months.

An excellent feat to win a wager.

Lay any person a bet that you will stick a knife in a beam of the ceiling, and place a halfpenny underneath, so that by striking the beam the handle of the knife will fall on the halfpenny. To perform this feat you have only to fill a glass with water, and dip the handle in it while it is suspended; then observe where the water that is on the handle drops on the floor, place the halfpenny on the spot where it fell, and it will be sure to be immediately under it.

How to make Squibs and Serpents.

First, make the cases, of about six inches in length, by rolling slips of stout cartridge paper three times round a roller, and pasting the last fold; tying it near the bottom as tight as possible, and making it air-tight at the end by sealing-wax. Then take of gunpowder half a pound, one ounce of charcoal, one ounce of brimstone, and half an ounce of steel filings; grind them with a muller, or pound them in a mortar. The cases being dry and ready, first put a thimble-full of powder, and ram it hard down with a ruler; then fill the case to the top with the aforesaid mixture, ramming it hard down in the course of filling it two or three times; when this is done, point it with touch-paper, which should be pasted on that part which touches the case, otherwise it is liable to drop off.

To produce an Electric Spark from a piece of Brown Paper.

Thoroughly dry before the fire a quarter of a sheet of stoutish brown paper, place it on your thigh, holding it at the edge with one hand, while with the cuff of the sleeve on the other, you must rub it smartly backwards and forwards ten or fifteen times, if the knuckle be then placed near the paper it will emit a brilliant spark, accompanied with a snapping noise; the prongs of a fork similarly placed, will produce three distinct streams of light. The experiment must of course be performed in the dark, and the trowsers and coat be of woollen cloth.

Magic Squares.

A magic square consists of numbers so disposed that in whatever way you may add the numbers, which the square contains, they will give the same amount, whether it be vertically, horizontally, or diagonally.

15

2

9

4

15

7

5

3

15

6

1

8

15

15

15

34

16

3

2

13

34

5

10

11

8

34

9

6

7

12

34

4

15

14

1

34

34

34

34

65

11

24

7

20

3

65

4

12

25

8

16

65

17

5

13

21

9

65

10

18

1

14

22

65

23

6

19

2

15

65

65

65

65

65

To make Waterloo Crackers.

Take a slip of cartridge paper, about three-quarters of an inch in width, paste and double it, let it remain till dry, then cut it into two equal parts in length, (Nos. 1 and 2) according to the following pattern:

No. 1.

Glass

S

Glass

No. 2.

Take some of the glass composition and lay it across the paper as in the pattern, put about a quarter of a grain of fulminating silver in that place marked S, and while the glass composition is moist, put the paper marked No. 2, over the furthest row of glass. Over all paste twice over the part that covers the silver, a piece of paper, let it dry and when you wish to explode it, take hold of the two ends and pull them quickly from each other, when a loud report will be produced.

A person privately fixing on any Number to tell him that Number.

After the person has fixed on a number, bid him to double it, and add four to that sum, then multiply the whole by five, to the product let him add twelve, and multiply the amount by ten; from the sum of the whole let him deduct three hundred and twenty, and tell you the remainder, from which, if you cut off the two last figures, the number that remains will be that fixed on.

Example.

Let the number chosen be

6

Which doubled is

12

And 4 added to it, makes

16

Which multiplied by 5, gives

80

To which 12 being added, it is

92

That multiplied by 10, makes

920

From which deducting 320, remains

600

And by striking off the two cyphers, it becomes the former number 6.

The Camelion Spirit.

Put into a decanter some volatile spirit, in which copper filings have been dissolved, and it will produce a fine blue tincture, if the bottle be stopped the colour will immediately disappear, but when unstopped, it will return.

Three Dice being thrown on a Table, to tell the Number of each of them, and the order in which they stand.

Let the person who has thrown the dice double the number of that next to his left hand, and add five to that sum; then multiply the amount by five and to the product add the number of the middle dice, then let the whole be multiplied by ten, and to that product add the number of the third dice. From the total let there be substracted 250, and the figures of the number that remains will answer to the points of the three dice, as they stand on the table.

Example.

Suppose the points of the three dice thrown on the table to be 4, 6, and 2.

Then the double of the first die will be

8

To which add

5

13

5

That sum multiplied by 5 will be 65

65

To which add the number of the middle dice

6

71

And multiply the sum by 10

10

710

To that product add the number of the third dice

2

712

Substract

250

462

The numbers of the dice and the order in which they stand.

Easy method of Constructing paper Balloons.

Take several sheets of silk paper, cut them like the covering of the sections of an orange, join these pieces together into a globular body, and border the opening with a ribbon, leaving the ends that you may suspend the following lamp: make a small basket of very fine wire, if the balloon is small, and suspend it from the following opening, so that the smoke from the flames of a few sheets of paper wrapped together and dipped in oil, may heat the inside of it, before you light this paper, suspend the balloon so that it may, in a great measure, be exhausted of air, and, as soon as it has been dilated, let it go, together with the basket, which will serve as ballast.

A Lead Tree.

To a piece of zinc fasten a wire twisted in the form of the worm of a still, introduce it into the bottle suspended to the cork. Let the bottle be filled with spring water, with a small quantity of sugar of lead added. In a few days the tree will begin to grow, and produce a most beautiful effect.

To place a Lighted Candle under Water without extinguishing it.

Take a glass, and fastening a small bit of wood across the mouth, stick on it a lighted piece of candle, and, with a steady hand, convey the glass to the surface of the water, then push it gently down, and the candle may be seen burning under the water.

To make Detonating Balls.

Half a grain of fulminating silver, is to be wrapped up with a hard pea in a piece of tissue paper, this, when thrown smartly on the ground or when trod upon, explodes with a loud report.

Invisible Ink.

Mix alum with lemon juice, the letters and characters written with this mixture are invisible till dipped in water. If a little aqua-fortis be mixed with the water, the writing will dry well and not run out of its form when the paper is wetted.

Blue Ink.

Dissolve a small quantity in a little oil of vitriol, and add a sufficient quantity of water, in which is dissolved some gum arabic.

Scarlet Ink.

Dissolve vermillion in gum water.

A pair of Dice being thrown, to find the number of points on each Dice, without seeing them.

Tell the person who casts the dice to double the number of points upon one of them, and to add five to it, then to multiply the product by five, and add to sum produced the number of points upon the other die. This being done, desire him to tell you the amount, and having thrown out of it twenty-five, the remainder will be a number consisting of two figures, the first of which, to the left, is the number of points on the first die, and the second figure, to the right, the number on the other.

For Example.

Suppose the number of points of the first die which is turned up, to be 3 and that of the other 4, then if to 6, the double of the points of the first, there be added 5, and the sum produced, 11, be multiplied by 5, the product will be 55, to which if 4, the number of points on the other die, be added, 59 will be produced from which if 25 be substracted, 34 will remain; the first figure of which is 3, the number of points on the first die, and the second figure 4, the number of the other.

To make any number divisible by Nine by adding a figure to it.

If, for example, the number named be 72.857, you tell the person who names it, to place the number 7 between any two figures of that sum, and it will be divisible by 9, for if any number be multiplied by 9, the sum of the figures of the product will be either 9 or a number divisible by 9.

To extract Silver out of a Ring, that is thick Gilded, so that the gold may remain entire.

Make a little hole through the gold into the silver, then put the ring into aqua-fortis, in a warm place, it will dissolve the silver, and the gold will remain entire.

Light produced by Sugar.

If two pieces of loaf sugar (about a pound each) are struck against each other in the dark, a light blue flame, like lightning, will be produced. The same effect is produced when a loaf of sugar is struck with an iron instrument.

Singular Experiment with the Snuff of a Candle.

When a candle is burned so low as to leave a tolerably large wick, blow it out, a dense smoke will arise, if another candle be applied to the utmost verge of this smoke, a very strange phenomena will take place; the flame of the lighted candle will be carried to the one just blown out, as if it were borne on a cloud; or, more properly speaking, like a flash of lightning, proceeding at a slow rate. The experiment may be performed by blowing out the candle as often as it is lighted.

Artificial Lightning.

Provide a tin tube that is larger at one end than it is at the other, and in which there are several holes. Fill this tube with powdered resin; and when it is shook over the flame of a torch, the reflection will produce the exact appearance of lightning.

To cause a brilliant explosion under water.

Drop a piece of phosphorus, the size of a pea, into a tumbler of hot water; and, from a bladder, furnished with a stop-cock, force a stream of oxygen directly upon it. This will afford a most brilliant combustion under water.

The Fiery Flash.

Pour iron filings upon the flame of a candle, from a sheet of paper, about eight or ten inches above it, as they descend in the flame, they will enter into a very vivid scintillating combustion.

To split a piece of money into two parts.

Fix three pins in the table, and lay the piece of money upon them; then place a heap of the flowers of sulphur below the piece of money, and another above it, and set fire to them. When the flame is extinct, you will find on the upper part of the piece a thin plate of metal, which has been detached from it.

Sympathetic Ink.

Write with the nitro-muriate of gold, and brush the letters over with muriate of tin in a diluted state. The writing, before invisible, will now appear of an exquisitely beautiful purple colour.

A very easy method of gilding ivory.

Place the figure you mean to gild into a solution of nitro-muriate of gold. On taking out from the latter, it will be covered with metallic gold.

How to make the Constable catch the Knave.

Take a pack of cards and look out the four knaves, lay one of them privately on the top of the pack, and the other three on the table, saying, here you see, are three knaves got together, about no good you may be sure, then lay down a king by the side of them saying, but here comes the constable and catches them together. Oh, oh, says he, have I caught you then together? Well the next time I catch you together I’ll punish you severely for your rogueries. Oh, but, says they, you shan’t catch us together in haste; so they determine to go three different ways. I’ll go here, says one, (so take one of the knaves and put him at the top of the cards.) I’ll go here, says another, (so put him at the bottom.) And I’ll go here, says a third, (so put him exactly in the middle.) “Nay,” says the constable, “if you run I’ll make sure of one, so I’ll follow the first, then take the king and put him at the top of the pack, and let any one cut the cards three or four times, and then deal; cut the cards one by one, and you will find three together, and the constable with them.”

To tell the amount of the Numbers of any two Cards drawn from a common Pack.

Let the person who has drawn the two cards deduct the number of each of them from twenty-six, which is half the number of the pack, and after adding the remainder together, let him tell you the total, which you privately deduct from fifty-two, the number of cards in a perfect pack, and the remainder will be the amount of the two cards.

Example.

Suppose the two cards drawn are 5 and 8; then the person deducting 5 from 26, there remain 21; then 8 from 26 there remain 18; these two remainders added together make 39, which you substract from 52, and there remain 13 the number of the two cards when added together.

To tell the number of Cards by their weight.

Take a parcel of cards, suppose forty, among which insert two long cards, let the first be, for example, the tenth, and the other the fourteenth from the top; seem to shuffle the cards, and then cutting them at the first long card, poise those you have cut off in your left hand, “there should be here ten cards.” Cut them again, at the second long card, and say, “there are only four cards.” Then weighing the remainder, you say, “here are only twenty-eight cards.”

To hold four Knaves, or four Kings, in your hand, and to change them suddenly into Blank Cards, and then into four Aces.

You must have cards made for the purpose of this feat, half cards, as they may be properly termed, that is, one half kings or knaves and the other half aces. When you lay the aces one over the other, nothing but the kings or knaves will be seen. Then turning the kings or knaves downwards, the four aces will be seen. You must have two perfect cards, one a king or knave to cover one of the aces, or else it will be seen; and the other an ace to lay over the kings or knaves. When you wish to make them all blank cards, lay the cards a little lower, and by hiding the aces they will all appear white on both sides. You may then ask the company which they choose, and exhibit kings, aces, or blanks, as required.

Cards in couples.

Select any twenty cards, and having them shuffled by any person that pleases, lay them in pairs upon the table, then desire several persons (as many as there are pairs on the table) to look at different pairs, and remember what cards compose them. You then take up the cards in the order in which they have been placed, and replace them with their faces uppermost upon the table, according to the situation of the letters in the following word.

M

U

T

U

S

1

2

3

4

5

D

E

D

I

T

6

7

8

9

10

N

O

M

E

N

11

12

13

14

15

C

O

C

I

S

16

17

18

19

20

These words, which have no particular meaning, contain ten letters repeated, or two of each sort. You, therefore, ask each person which row or rows the cards he looked at are in; if he says the first, they must be the second and fourth in that row; these being the only duplicates in them, if he says the second and fourth, they must be the ninth and nineteenth, and so of all the rest. This amusement, which is very simple, and requires very little practice, will excite considerable astonishment in the uninformed.

Method of receiving the Electric Shock from a Cat.

Put the left hand under the throat, with the middle finger and thumb slightly pressing the bones of the animal’s shoulders, then gently passing the right hand along the back, sensible electrical shock will be felt in the left hand, and very distinct discharges may be obtained by touching the tips of the ears, after applying friction to the back; the same may be obtained from the foot.

A Brilliant Combustion.

If a piece of inflated phosphorus be plunged in a jar of nitrous acid gas, a very beautiful and brilliant combustion will take place.

To Tell the Number thought of by a person.

Desire the person to take one from the number thought of, and to double the remainder, then bid him take one from this double, and add to it the number thought of; in the last place, ask him to tell you the number arising from this addition, add three to it, and the third of the sum will be the number required.

For Example.

Let the number thought of be 6, if 1 be taken from it, there will remain 5, the double of which 10, being diminished by 1, and the remainder 9 being increased by 6, the number thought of, the result will be 15, if to this we add 3, we shall have 18, the third part of which, 6, will be the number required.

How to lift up a Flint Glass Bottle with a Straw.

Take a straw, which is not broken or bruised, and having bent one end of it into a sharp angle, put this curved end into the bottle, so that the bent part may rest against its side, and you may take the other end in your hand, and lift up the bottle by it, without breaking the straw, and this will be more readily accomplished, as the angular part of the straw approaches nearer to that which comes out of the bottle.

How to produce Flashes of Light resembling the Will O’ Wisp.

Take a small quantity of water in a glass tumbler, and add to it two or three small lumps of phosphoret of lime, shortly will arise little flashes of light, darting out like petty lightning and ascending subsequently into curling clouds, the appearances continue for some time, and constitute a lively illustration of the formation of a light proceeding out of shallow pools of water.

Imitative Medallions.

Medallions, after the antique, cameos and intaglios are made by fusing the iron with a small quantity of antimony, performing the operation in a very small furnace. When finished from the mould, rub them over with burnt porcelain earth, from which they will receive the rich hue of jet, rendering them fit to be set, even in gold.

Method of cleaning Playing Cards.

Nothing soils sooner than playing cards. The following method will be found to remove every thing from them but a stain, and will give the dirtiest pack possible the appearance of being new. Rub the soiled card with a piece of flannel and some good fresh butter, until the butter shall have cleaned off all the dirt. So soon as the dirt is removed, wipe off the butter with a clean rag, and to restore the cards to its former gloss, rub the surface sharply with a piece of flannel and some flour, cut the edges neatly with a pair of scissars, and the operation is completed.

To Detonate Fulminating Copper by Friction.

Put a grain of fulminating copper on a hearth-stone, rub it with the end of a poker, and a loud explosion will immediately follow.

To make a Stone Float.

To a piece of cork tie a small stone that will just sink it, and putting it into a vessel of water, place it under the receiver; then exhausting the receiver, the bubbles of air will expand from its pores, and adhering to its surface, will render it, together with the stone, lighter than water, and consequently both will rise to the surface and float upon it.

The Fiery Fountain.

If twenty grains of phosphorus, cut very small and mixed with forty grains of powder of zinc, be put into four drams of water, and two drams of concentrated sulphuric acid be added thereto, bubbles of inflamed phosphorated hydrogen gas will quickly cover the whole surface of the fluid in successions forming a real fountain of fire.

To make an Exploding Bubble.

If you take up a small quantity of melted glass with a tube (the bowl of a common tobacco-pipe will do) and let a drop fall into a vessel of water, it will chill and condense with a fine spiral tail, which being broken the whole substance will burst with a loud explosion, without injury either to the party that holds it, or to him who breaks it; but if the thick end be struck, even with a hammer, it will not break.

The Changeable Rose.

Take a common full blown rose, and having thrown a little sulphur, finely pounded, into a chafing dish with coals, expose the rose to the vapour; by this process the rose will become whitish; but if it be afterwards held some time in water, it will resume its former colour.

To Write upon Glass by the rays of the Sun.

Dissolve chalk in aqua-fortis to the consistence of milk, and add to it a solution of silver. Keep this liquor in a glass decanter, well stopped. Then cut out from a paper the letters you would have appear, and paste the paper upon the decanter, which is to be placed in the sun, in such a manner that its rays may pass through the spaces cut out of the paper, and fall on the surface of the liquor. The part of the glass through which the rays pass will turn black, and that under the paper will remain white. You must observe not to move the bottles during the time of the operation.

To take a Shilling out of a Handkerchief.

You must have a curtain ring about the size of a shilling, at first you put the shilling into the handkerchief, but when you take it out again, to convince the company that there is no deception, you slip the curtain ring in its stead, and while the person is eagerly holding the handkerchief, and the company’s eyes are fixed upon the form of the shilling, you seize this opportunity of putting it into a hat or basket; when you get possession of the handkerchief again you slip away the curtain ring.

To prepare Gold Powder for Gilding.

Put into an earthen mortar some leaf gold, with thick gum water, and grind the mixture till the gold is reduced to small particles. Having done this, a little warm water will wash out the gum, leaving the gold in a pulverized state.

To melt Lead in a piece of Paper.

Wrap up a very smooth ball of lead in a piece of paper, taking care that there be no wrinkles in it, and that it be every where in contact with the ball, if it be held, in this state, over the flame of a taper, the lead will be melted without the paper being burnt. The lead, indeed, when once fused, will not fail in a short time to pierce the paper, and run through.

To make a Room seem on Fire.

Take half an ounce of sal ammoniac, one ounce of camphor, and two ounces of aqua-vitæ, put them into an earthen pot, narrowing towards the top, and set fire to it. The effect will be so alarming, that persons in the room will fancy their garments are on fire.

To make Artificial Fire Balls.

Put thirty grains of phosphorus into a florence flask, with three or four ounces of water; place the vessel over a lamp, and give it a boiling heat. Balls of fire will soon be seen to issue from the water, after the manner of an artificial firework, attended with the most beautiful vibrations of light.

To break a Staff placed upon two Glass Goblets full of water, without Injuring the Glasses or Spilling the Water.

Place the glasses (being full of water) upon two joint stools, equally distant from the ground, and from one another the length of the staff, then place the ends of the staff upon the edges of the two glasses, so that they be sharp, this being done, strike the staff in the middle, with all the force you can, with another staff, and it will break without injuring the goblets, or spilling the water.

To observe an Eclipse of the Sun without injury to the Eye.

Take a spectacle glass that magnifies very much, hold it before a book, twice the distance of its focus, and you will see the round body of the sun, and the manner in which the moon passes between the glass and the sun, during the whole eclipse.

Invisible Ink.

Take zaffer, and dissolve it in nitro-muriatic acid, till the acid extracts all the metallic part, then dilute the solution with common water, if you write with this liquid on paper, the writing will appear of a beautiful green, upon being partially warmed before the fire.

Bronze for casting Busts, &c.

Melt in a crucible, seven ounces of pure copper, when fused throw into it three ounces of zinc, and two ounces of tin. These metals will combine forming bronze, an alloy, which, from the exactness of the impression which it takes from a mould, has, in ancient and modern times, been generally used in the formation of busts, medals, and statues.

To put a Ring through your Cheek and then to bring it on a Stick.

You must have two rings exactly alike, one of which has a notch which admits your cheek. When you have exhibited the perfect ring, you change it for the other, and privately slip the notch over one side of your mouth, in the meantime you slip the whole ring on your stick, hiding it with your hand, then desire some one to hold the end of the stick, whip the ring out of your cheek, and smite with it instantly upon the stick, concealing it, and whirling the other ring, which you hold your hand over round about the stick.

To tell, by a Watch Dial, the hour when a person intends to rise.

The person is told to set the hand of his watch at any hour he pleases, which hour he tells you, and you add in your mind twelve to it. You then desire him to count privately the number of that addition on the dial, commencing at the next hour to that at which he intends to rise, and including the hour at which he has placed the hand, which will give you the answer.

For Example.

A intends to rise at 6 (this he conceals to himself) he places the hand at 8, which he tells B, who, in his own mind, adds 12 to 8, which makes 20. B then tells A to count 20 on the dial, beginning at the next hour to that at which he proposes to rise, which will be 7, and counting backwards, reckoning each hour as 1, and including in his addition the number of the hour hand is placed at, the addition will end at 6, which is the hour proposed; thus,

The hour the hand is placed at is

8

The next hour to that, which A intends to rise at, is 7, which counts for 8

1

Count back the hours from 6, and reckon them 1 each, there will be 11 hours, viz. 4, 3, 2, 1, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8 7, 6,

11

Making

20

H. HETHERINGTON, Printer, 13, Kingsgate Street, Holborn.

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES

1. Silently corrected typographical errors and variations in spelling.

2. Anachronistic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings retained as printed.

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Table of Contents

HOLIDAY FROLICS; OR, ENDLESS AMUSEMENT FOR THE CHRISTMAS FIRESIDE. CONTAINING, The most Astonishing Feats of Legerdemain, AND ASTOUNDING CONJURINGS; Entertaining Experiments IN VARIOUS BRANCHES OF SCIENCE; TRICKS with CARDS & DICE. ART OF MAKING FIREWORKS; TOGETHER WITH AN EXCELLENT COLLECTION OF Puzzles, Conundrums, Riddles, Charades, &c. &c. The whole admirably calculated to beguile the leisure hours of our Holiday Friends. Embellished with a Copper-plate Engraving.

PREFACE.

HOLIDAY FROLICS, OR, ENDLESS AMUSEMENT For the Christmas Fireside, &c. &c.

Conundrums.

Riddles.

Charades.

An Enigma.

Solutions to the Conundrums.

Riddles.

Charades.

Enigma.

To make an Egg Tumble.

To make Fire Flash from Water.

To suspend a Ring by a Thread which has been Burnt.

To take the impression of Butterflies upon paper.

To Gild the edges of Writing Paper or leaves of Books.

To clean Gilt Buckles, Chains, &c.

To make Liquid Gold and Silver, for Vellum Painting, Fans, &c.

How to produce Fire from a Cane.

To Gild Silk or Ivory by the action of Hydrogen.

Glass broken by Air.

To make luminous writing in the dark.

Incombustible Paper.

The Animated Sixpence.

Wine upon Water.

To cast figures in imitation of Ivory.

To make a bird appear as if it was dead.

The manner of making Water freeze by the Fireside.

Engraving in Relief upon an Egg-shell.

To make a party appear ghastly.

To fill a glass with water in such a manner, that it cannot be removed without spilling it all.

How to make your cup draw your tea out of the saucer.

To make Touch-Paper.

To make a Report like that of a gun with a Tobacco-Pipe.

To make a sound similar to St. Paul’s Bell.

How to restore a dead fly to life.

To melt a piece of steel as if it was lead, without requiring a large fire.

How to procure laughter.

To tell any number thought of by another person.

To make Alum Baskets.

Silver Tree on Glass.

A person having written an odd number on one card, and an even on another, to tell which is the even and which is the odd.

A Metal which bursts into flame when thrown upon cold water.

The Artificial Spider.

To make waves of fire on the surface of water.

Spoons which melt in hot water.

To prepare Phosphorized Ether.

How to extract sixpence from under a glass without touching it.

To prepare a luminous Bottle.

An excellent feat to win a wager.

How to make Squibs and Serpents.

To produce an Electric Spark from a piece of Brown Paper.

Magic Squares.

To make Waterloo Crackers.

A person privately fixing on any Number to tell him that Number.

The Camelion Spirit.

Three Dice being thrown on a Table, to tell the Number of each of them, and the order in which they stand.

Easy method of Constructing paper Balloons.

A Lead Tree.

To place a Lighted Candle under Water without extinguishing it.

To make Detonating Balls.

Invisible Ink.

Blue Ink.

Scarlet Ink.

A pair of Dice being thrown, to find the number of points on each Dice, without seeing them.

To make any number divisible by Nine by adding a figure to it.

To extract Silver out of a Ring, that is thick Gilded, so that the gold may remain entire.

Light produced by Sugar.

Singular Experiment with the Snuff of a Candle.

Artificial Lightning.

To cause a brilliant explosion under water.

The Fiery Flash.

To split a piece of money into two parts.

Sympathetic Ink.

A very easy method of gilding ivory.

How to make the Constable catch the Knave.

To tell the amount of the Numbers of any two Cards drawn from a common Pack.

To tell the number of Cards by their weight.

To hold four Knaves, or four Kings, in your hand, and to change them suddenly into Blank Cards, and then into four Aces.

Cards in couples.

Method of receiving the Electric Shock from a Cat.

A Brilliant Combustion.

To Tell the Number thought of by a person.

How to lift up a Flint Glass Bottle with a Straw.

How to produce Flashes of Light resembling the Will O’ Wisp.

Imitative Medallions.

Method of cleaning Playing Cards.

To Detonate Fulminating Copper by Friction.

To make a Stone Float.

The Fiery Fountain.

To make an Exploding Bubble.

The Changeable Rose.

To Write upon Glass by the rays of the Sun.

To take a Shilling out of a Handkerchief.

To prepare Gold Powder for Gilding.

To melt Lead in a piece of Paper.

To make a Room seem on Fire.

To make Artificial Fire Balls.

To break a Staff placed upon two Glass Goblets full of water, without Injuring the Glasses or Spilling the Water.

To observe an Eclipse of the Sun without injury to the Eye.

Invisible Ink.

Bronze for casting Busts, &c.

To put a Ring through your Cheek and then to bring it on a Stick.

To tell, by a Watch Dial, the hour when a person intends to rise.

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG™ LICENSE