X Rays   First Method From a pack of unprepared cards a number, say nine, are selected and placed by their several holders into opaque envelopes, which are then sealed. A volunteer assistant then collects the closed envelopes on a plate or tray. At the performer's request, the volunteer hand over any one of the envelopes. The conjurer places the envelope to the forehead and instantly tells the name of the card contained therein. The envelope is then opened by a spectator and is found to contain the card the performer predicted. The contents of the remaining envelopes are next read in the same apparently miraculous manner. The performer attributes the trick to the use of the celebrated Roentgen rays. Fig 52 The envelopes used are perfectly white on the outside and blue on the inside, whereby they are rendered opaque. Eight of them are marked after a plan shown in Fig. 52, the marking consisting of a small dot on the face of the envelope. The dot on the first envelope is placed in the upper left hand corner, the dot on the second one in the middle of the upper edge, the third in the upper right hand corner, etc., the last (ninth) envelope being devoid of a mark. For each envelope the conjurer has memorized the name of a playing card, as, for instance, the Nine of Clubs for envelope number one, the Ace of Diamonds for envelope number two, etc. These nine cards are picked out of the pack and are then placed on top of the pack. The marked envelopes are placed in a corresponding order, on top of a packet of similar, but unprepared, ones. Thus equipped, the conjurer allows the pack to be shuffled, previously palming the nine cards from the top and replacing them without being observed after the pack has been returned. The conjurer then makes the pass and forces the nine cards on different spectators, noting, as the trick progresses, the order of the persons selecting the cards. The conjurer next takes the heap of envelopes and distributes the nine uppermost ones in exactly the same rotation as the cards were forced. Each spectator is told to insert their card and seal it, and all of them are collected as described. All the performer does, in order to become acquainted with the names of the cards enclosed in the envelopes, is to note the position of the mark near the edge, for the cue to the card contained therein.   Second Method In this vastly improved form of the preceding experiment the conjurer is securely blindfold, and, as a further handicap to the clairvoyant powers, the nine envelopes are covered by a handkerchief before being given to the conjurer. Despite these apparently insurmountable difficulties, the conjurer predicts with unfailing accuracy the name of the card that each envelope contains. The difference in how this trick is done lies in the way the envelopes are marked, being pricked with a fine needle instead of being dotted with the ink. These pricking causes a slight bump on the surface of the envelope, which is made more prominent and more lasting by being touched with the tiniest drop of glue. When dry and hard, this causes the mark to be easily detected by the fingers. Otherwise the trick proceeds in exactly the same manner as described in the last method, with the addition of the blindfolding of the performer and covering of the envelopes. As the conjurer does not require sight for this form of the trick, the blindfolding does not matter; the marks on the envelopes can be read through the texture of the handkerchief, the tiny projection being easily felt and interpreted. Home | Card Tricks | Card Trick Skills | The Pass | The Force | Changes False Shuffling | The Glimpse | Card Palm | Card Sleights Copyright © 2003-2006 HowToDoCardTricks.com. All rights reserved worldwide.   You can quickly get a copy of every trick on this web site in a downloadable PDF book. That's over 40 classic card tricks to amaze and astound your friends, all stored on your computer to refer to at any time! Just click the link below to get your own copy today for just $5.