The Hands of a Wizard
The curtain rolls up, and an ordinary pair of gloves appears upon the screen. The hands of the wizard mysteriously fill the gloves, after which the hands east their covering and the gloves, detached, fall to the ground. One of the hands is next occupied with a golf ball, which appears from space, disappears as mysteriously, and changes into a handkerchief. This is manipulated by the fingers, until it takes form and substance of an egg: then into two, three and four eggs of perfect size and appearance, which are securely held between the fingers of the one hand. After which they are enclosed in an ordinary gas-lamp chimney. The eggs now vanish in smoke and reappear, upon which they are crushed in the hand and the pieces of shell are scattered. The broken fragments gradually rise from the ground and an egg is again reformed. Again broken in half, a perfect chick is evolved, which gazes with mild astonishment at its first audience, takes a few mild pokes, and is then enclosed within its shell, which resumes its original shape. A charming picture. The chick apparently pecks holes through the enclosing shell, and from a single egg a set of dice is formed. These perform without human aid, arranging and rearranging themselves in sequence. The dice lose their distinctive markings, and on the face of each appears an animated human face in miniature. The hand of the wizard itself accomplishes the next illusion. The fingers and thumb separate themselves one by one from the hand, and each digit, standing up, is converted into a performing Pierrot. A lively entertainment ending in a whirling dance. These fingers now become absorbed into a small table aquarium, which being inverted, is emptied of a bouquet of autumnal leaves. The leaves are again crammed into a vase, and are changed into goldfish, from which are evolved a lovely mermaid. Another evolution, and vase, mermaid and fishes give place to a beautiful feminine face, which gradually vanishes from the screen.
