Modern Magic: A Practical Treatise on the Art of Conjuring

The Cards.--The adept in sleight-of-hand should accustom himself to the use of every description of cards, as frequently none but the ordinary full-sized playing cards may be available. Where, however, the choice is open to him, he should use in the actual performance of tricks, cards of a smaller and thinner make. The common French cards answer the purpose very well. Among cards of English make, some of the best for the purpose are the small cards of the French pattern made by De La Rue & Co. for use in France, and those known as the “Tankerville” cards, both imported by Peck & Snyder, 124 Nassau Street, New York City, which are thin, well made, and of small size, but of the English pattern. In any case, it is well to use only the piquet pack of thirty-two cards (the twos, threes, fours, fives, and sixes being removed), the complete whist pack being inconveniently bulky for sleight-of-hand purposes. TO MAKE THE PASS. (Sauter la coupe).--The effect of this sleight, which is the very backbone of card-conjuring, is to reverse the respective positions of the top and bottom halves of the pack, i.e., to make those cards which at first formed the lower half of the pack, come uppermost, when those cards which at first formed the upper half will of course be undermost. It is used by card-sharpers, immediately after the cards have been cut, to replace them in the position which they occupied before the cut, and from this circumstance derives its French name. There are various methods of producing this effect, some requiring the use of both hands, some of one hand only. These we shall describe in due order.