Modern Magic: A Practical Treatise on the Art of Conjuring

The whole mystery consists in the use of a forcing pack, all the cards of which are alike, and which must not consist of a less number than thirty-six cards. The dice are perfectly fair, but as each card of each row is the same, it is a matter of perfect indifference what numbers are thrown. It is advisable to gather up all the other cards, and to request the person to name his card, before allowing the one designated by the dice to be turned up. This will draw the attention of the company to the card on the table, and will give you the opportunity to re-exchange the cards you have used for an ordinary pack (from which, by the way, the card answering to the forced card should have been withdrawn). This pack you may carelessly leave on the table; so that in the event of suspicion attaching to the cards, it will be at once negatived by an examination of the pack. The trick may be varied by using a teetotum, numbered from one to six, instead of the dice; or you may, if you prefer it, make the trick an illustration of second sight, by pretending to mesmerize some person in the company, and ordering him to write down beforehand, while under the supposed mesmeric influence, the row and number at which the drawn card shall be found. The mode of conducting the trick will be in either case the same.