Obliging Aces

"I wouldn't want to play cards with you? is a statement inevitably addressed to a good cardman at some time or other. A good trick to use after someone has made this remark is the following easy feat, which has all the appearance of great skill.

Preparation. Secretly place any nine-spot at the ninth position from the top, with the four aces immediately following it. To do this while openly toying with the cards and carrying on your part in the general conversation, spread the cards with the faces towards you. Spot an ace and cut the pack to bring it to the top. Then run through the cards and slip each of the other three aces to the top in turn.

Next find any nine-spot and slip that to the top. Turn the deck face downwards and shuffle overhand thus: Undercut about two-thirds of the deck, run four cards, injog the next card, and shuffle off. Undercut to the jog and throw on top. Repeat the same shuffle, and you will have placed eight cards on top of the ninespot and the aces will lie in the tenth, eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth positions as required for the trick.

Procedure. Now we are ready for the feat itself.

1. Presuming that the conversation has been about gamblers and poker playing, offer to give a little demonstration, under very strict conditions, by having the spectators themselves name the numbers at which certain cards are to be found. Shuffle overhand, using the overhand break control to return the arranged cards to the top of the pack.

2. Invite a spectator to call any number between ten and twenty. Suppose fourteen is called. Deal fourteen cards face downwards in a pile, and lay the remainder of the pack aside. Pick up the fourteen cards. "You named the number fourteen," you say. "One and four make five so I shall take the fifth card." Deal four cards face downwards, take the fifth card and lay it aside face downwards.

Drop the cards remaining in your hands on those just dealt, pick up all, and replace them on the remainder of the deck.

3. Overhand shuffle again, using the injog and break, and again bring the arranged cards into the required position. Ask a second spectator to name another number between ten and twenty. Proceed in exactly the same way as in step No. 2, using the new number. Place the card thus arrived at with the first, also face downwards.

4. Have a third spectator name a number and so arrive at a third card. Place it with the other two.

5. "I want one more card," you say. "This time I'll leave the choice of a number to pure chance." Shuffle overhand again, using the overhand lift shuffle this time but being careful to have more than nine cards in the first packet. This shuffle will return the nine-spot to the top of the pack, and the ninth card under it will be the fourth ace. Turn the top card, the nine, then deal and place the ninth card with the other three cards you have found and laid aside.

"In spite of the fact that you named any numbers you pleased and that the last card was determined by chance alone, look what has happened!" Turn the four cards face upwards with a flourish. They are the four aces!