Knights of the Sacred Whistle

One or two of the group are informed that they are to be initiated into the Order of the Knights of the Sacred Whistle.  They are shown a whistle and told that to become a member they must find this whistle.  It is then pretended that the whistle is handed to one of the members of the party.  An apron is hung around the shoulders of the victim and the whistle is attached to the back of the apron on a piece of string.  The trick is for some of the players to blow the whistle behind the person’s back, immediately dropping it and when he turns the person on the other side will blow.  As all are standing in a circle, with the person who is being initiated in the centre, he is kept guessing for some time before he finds out where the whistle is located.

Hay Stack

Chairs are piled to a considerable height in the centre of the room and the person to be initiated is instructed to take off his shoes and jump over them.  The leader insists that this is possible, but the uninitiated remonstrates, “It can’t be done.”  The catch is that the individual is supposed to jump over his shoes instead of the chairs.

Boots Without Shoes

The leader asks one of the players to say as he directs and then asks him to say, “Boots without shoes.”  The player immediately says, “Boots without shoes.”  The leader says, “That is not correct,” and goes to the next.  The next one also says, “Boots without shoes,” and so do most of the other members of the group, until one bright individual, discovering the trick, simply says, “Boots,” which is the correct answer.

Newspaper Touch

Two individuals are instructed to stand upon a sheet of newspaper, so as not to be able to touch each other.  This seems impossible and the individuals taking their places upon the paper endeavor to maneuver in impossible positions, but find they still can touch each other.  The trick is to spread the newspaper over the sill of a door.  One individual stands on one side of the closed door upon the newspaper, while the other takes his position on the other side of the door.

Coin and Card Snap

A card is balanced upon the end of the middle finger of the left hand, flat side down.  A quarter or some small coin is placed upon the card, directly over the end of the finger.  The trick is to snap the card from under the coin so that the coin will remain on the end of the finger.

Blind Blow

A lighted candle is placed upon a table.  The players are blindfolded in turn, spun around, and instructed to blow out the candle.  The time of each player is recorded and the one succeeding in blowing out the candle in the quickest time wins the game.