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Double Dowse – A. Berkeley Davis
$ 29.95
In stock
Quite a warehouse find,….These is an old school manuscript bound in a Meade folder with a painstakingly gimmicked deck of Bicycle cards. The original copyright on the manuscript says 1989/90
Here is how Mr. Davis advertised what was happening:
“A deck of cards is shuffled; then cut into three packets by a spectator whom we will call Anne. Performer, Anne, and one other spectator we will call Bruce each gets one of the packets of cards. Performer begins genuinely shuffling his cards asking Anne and Bruce to shuffle their packets. He points out that they may shuffle in any way they choose, even in multiple ways if desired, as for example by means of overhand and riffle shuffles. The point being that there can be no doubt but that the cards are thoroughly shuffled. While the shuffle is going on, performer is blindfolded and, as if that is not enough, he turns his back as well. When all are satisfied that no living soul (dead ones either!) can know the location of a single card in either packet, the shuffling stops. Bruce is instructed to place his packet into his shirt or jacket breast pocket, faces toward his body. Anne places her packet on the table. She is then instructed to reach into Bruce’s pocket and to remove any card, placing it face down on the table beside her packet. No one sees this card. Again she is asked to remove a second card from Bruce’s pocketed packet (say that three times very quickly!) and to place it face down next to first selection. Now, with performer still blindfolded and with his back still turned, Anne is asked to look at and show the two purely random selections to the audience. The card are memorized by the audience and by Anne. Next Anne is instructed to place the two cards into her packet that rests on the table. The cards are put into different parts of the packet. Now, (and with magicians in the audience you are going to get some raised eyebrows here) the packet containing the selections is shuffled in any way and for as long as is desired. When all are satisfied that no one in the room has even the foggiest notion as to the location of even one of the selected cards, performer turns around, but he does not remove his blindfold yet. Performer retrieves the shuffled packet from Anne (containing the two selections) and proceeds to deal the entire packet in random fashion face down around his mat or working surface. ( Remember, he is still blindfolded!) he deals the entire packet face down in this fashion. He now explains that he will demonstrate how in the old days a “dowsing rod” was used to locate water, except that his time he will not be interested in locating water, but, unbelievably, , the two selected cards. The “dowsing rod” is to be Anne’s first finger of her right hand. She is positioned at performer’s left. Performer takes her right hand in his left asking that she points her forefinger down toward the cards scattered about the working surface. (you can alternatively use a wand, or better still, obtain a rustic looking rod to use as the “dowsing rod” and do the dowsing entirely by yourself, not using assistant’s hand if desired. I must confess that as time progresses, I am more and more that use of an old antique looking stick to use as the “dowsing rod” and dispensing with spectator’s hand and finger.) I like it that way. You take your choice. Performer slowly moves Anne’s hand (or the “real” dowsing rod) over and about the cards the cards when suddenly as if guided by an unknown force her forefinger is pushed downwards where it lands on the back of a card. This card is laid aside without being noted at this point. The above process is repeated. A second card is located in the same fashion and it is placed beside the first card so found. At this point the performer removes his blindfold, reiterates all that has taken place, emphasizing the utter fairness of the entire procedure. Anne is asking to call out the names of the two selected cards. Get verification from the audience that these indeed are the two cards. Finally, with the performer neither touching nor going near the two cards. Finally, with the performer neither touching nor going near the two cards on the table, Anne lifts them and shows them to the company. They are the two actual selections. I am more than slightly prejudiced, but friend, this, to any audience, is a pure unadulterated miracle. I know! Because I have performed it countless times and the response is astounding.”
This is not something you will unpack and perform right away, it will require some effort but the special deck of cards makes this something that is well within reach.
