Card in Pocket
Dr. Jack Daley's Version

There have been many variations of C. O. Williams' subtle trick--"The Card in the Pocket". Dr. Jack Daley, of New York City, who has many ingenious tricks to his credit, has arranged a very clever application of the principle. As in the original trick, a spectator is invited to think of a number and then note the card that lies at that number from the top of a well shuffled pack. The usual suggestion of the choice of a number between one and ten has become somewhat shopworn, a better plan is to ask the spectator to think of his favorite hour. This restricts the range of the choice, avoids loss of time in counting and dealing the cards and gives an opportunity for some amusing patter. You may say that if he is addicted to early rising, six o'clock may be his choice, or the breakfast hour, eight, may appeal to him more. An Amos and Andy fan would choose seven o'clock, while an Englishman would plump for his inevitable afternoon tea hour, four o'clock, and so on.

Hand the deck to the spectator to shuffle and when he has fixed on his favorite hour, take the pack and holding it upright, faces of the cards towards him, count off the cards one by one, beginning with the top card, and saying, "One o'clock, two o'clock, etc.," asking him to note and memorize the card that appears at the hour he has mentally selected. Turn your head away as this is being done to avoid any suspicion of your getting any clue from the person's expression.

Replace the twelve cards on the top of the pack and shuffle overhand thus: undercut about two-thirds of the deck, run one card, injog the next and shuffle off. Repeat by making a break at the job, shuffle off the cards above and throw the cards below the break on the top intact. The chosen card will now he placed one card lower than its original position. Execute as thorough a series of false shuffles and cuts as you have at your command, finally leaving the thirteen cards on top intact.

Remarking that it would be a very wonderful thing if the spectator's card had been shuffled back to the same position it first held, you ask what hour was thought of. Suppose it was six, deal off five cards face down and the sixth face up to one side. It is, of course an indifferent card, the chosen card now being on top of the cards in your left hand. Take these cards with the right hand, fingers at the outer end, thumb at the inner end and drop them on the cards just dealt face down, at the same moment palm the top card by the One Hand Top Palm, (Card Manipulations No. 1).

Let the spectator pick up the cards and shuffle them. As he does this put your right hand in trousers pocket, leave the card there and then with left hand take handkerchief from left pocket, use it naturally and replace it. Take the pack from the spectator and spread the cards from left to right face down on the table. Instruct the spectator to think intently of his card and slowly run his left hand, forefinger extended, over the line of cards; whenever he feels an impulse he is to drop his hand and let the forefinger rest on one card. This done, draw out the card he touched, pick it up, keeping it face down, and put it in your right trouser pocket, but as your hand enters the pocket, palm the card. Gather up the cards by placing that hand flat on the right hand end of the line and sweeping it to the left. This action completely covers the addition of the palmed card to the deck, which you at once hand to the spectator.

Recapitulate what has been done--an hour thought of, a card at that number noted in a freely shuffled deck and finally a card selected from the face down deck by the spectator himself after he had again shuffled the cards. Tell him to run through the deck and take out his card. He cannot find it. Take the card from your pocket and place it face down on the table. The person names his card. Turn over the card and show that he has found that very card himself.