Modern Magic: A Practical Treatise on the Art of Conjuring

THE BRASS BOX FOR MONEY, KNOWN AS THE “PLUG-BOX.”--This is a piece of apparatus so ingenious in construction, and capable of being used in so many different ways, that we should recommend the student of magic to make it one of his first investments. It is about three inches in height, and one and a half in diameter, and is composed of four separate parts. See Fig. 88, in which a represents the outside or body of the box, being in reality a mere brass tube open at both ends, with a moveable bottom, b, which fits tightly in the end of a, appearing when in its place to be a fixture, and to form with a one complete whole; a has no lid, properly so called, but is closed by inserting in it what appears to be a solid brass plug or piston. This plug, however, though in appearance solid, also consists of two parts--the plug proper, c, which is really solid, and a brass sheath, d, exactly fitting it as to its diameter, but a quarter of an inch longer, thus leaving, when c is placed in d, and pushed home, a hollow space at the bottom of d capable of containing a florin or half-crown. The sheath d is of precisely the same length as a, and is so made as to fit easily upon c, but tightly within a. When the plug-box is exhibited to the audience, the bottom, b, is in its proper place, and c, which is shown apart from a, is covered with its sheath, d. There being nothing in its appearance to point to any other conclusion, the spectators naturally believe that the apparatus consists of those two parts only. If now the plug be placed within the box, and pushed home, the moveable bottom, b, will be pressed out, and fall into the hand of the performer. On again withdrawing the plug, the sheath d, which, as already mentioned, fits more tightly within a than upon c, is left within a; the bottom of d, which comes exactly flush with the lower edge of a, now appearing to be the bottom of the latter. To the eyes of the audience, the box is exactly as they saw it at first, and it may even be examined pretty freely, with little risk of its secret being discovered by any one.