Later Day Tricks
A. Roterberg
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Ice-Cream Made in a Borrowed Hat
AFTER having removed an immense quantity of articles as cannon balls, baby clothes, handkerchiefs, etc., from a borrowed hat, the conjurer deliberately pours into the latter all the ingredients, as cream, sugar, flavor, necessary for making ice-cream, and to the delight of the juvenile members of the company, immediately begins to produce a large quantity of ice-cream from the borrowed hat.
Although this trick cannot be called a very artistic one, nevertheless its performance will be found to meet with great favor, especially with audiences where children are in the majority.
The apparatus required consists of a tin receptacle a trifle smaller than the inside of a silk hat. By means of an upright partition the tin vessel is divided into two compartments of equal size, each compartment being closed by a separate sliding lid. After one of the compartments has been filled with ice-cream the lid is closed and the vessel placed in readiness on the servante. A silk hat is then borrowed and a quantity of articles, such as handkerchiefs, baby clothes, are produced from it in the regular way, the articles being then laid on the table, near its rear edge. Picking up the entire lot, at the same time introducing the vessel from the servante under it, the performer places everything back in the hat, of course introducing the vessel first, allowing the other things to he on top.
The owner of the hat is then asked whether he desires to have his property wrapped up in order to facilitate the task of taking it home. No matter what the answer is, the conjurer lays the articles aside and proceeds to pour the ingredients for the making up of ice-cream into the empty compartment of the vessel, having slid back the lid in the meantime. This compartment is then closed, the other one opened and the ice-cream ladled out into suitable dishes, being then distributed among the company by the performer himself. While every one's attention is drawn to him, the assistant takes the hat behind the scenes for an instant only, just giving him time to remove the vessel. Immediately returning with a brush and the hat, he vigorously applies the brush to the latter, which after the distribution of the ice-cream is then returned to its owner.
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