Modern Magic: A Practical Treatise on the Art of Conjuring

The pistol employed, being of constant use in magical performances, will demand a special explanation. It consists of two parts, viz., an ordinary pocket-pistol, and a conical tin funnel, measuring about five inches across its widest diameter, and tapering down to a tube of such a size as to fit easily over the barrel of the pistol. This tube is continued inside the cone, and affords a free passage for the charge, which consists of powder only. Any object which is apparently to be fired from the pistol is pressed down between the outside of this tube and the inside of the tin cone, where it remains wholly unaffected by the explosion. The outside of the cone is japanned according to taste, the tube and the rest of the interior being always black. There are numerous other ways of finishing the trick, with or without the use of the pistol. The watch-mortar has discharged its duty when it has apparently reduced the borrowed watch to fragments, and has placed it in reality in the hands of the performer. The sequel of the trick, with which the mortar has nothing to do, will depend on the ingenuity of the performer and his command of other apparatus.