1942 TIGHTLY BOUND IN BLUE CLOTH - COVER HAS SOME SLIGHT SHELF WEAR AND IS FADED ON THE SPINE - SMALL HOLE UPPER RIGHT CORNER AND A SMALL TEAR ON THE BOOTOM OF THE FLYLEAF - CHIPPING ON THE BOTTOM OF THE FIRST 5 PAGES - BOOK IS IN GOOD COND

• Editor's Preface
• The Author's Overture
• CHAPTER I
  My Birth and Parentage
  My Home
  The Lessons of Colonel Bernard
  Paternal Ambition
  My first Mechanical Attempts
  Had I but a Rat!
  A Prisoner's Industry
  The Abbé Larivière
  My Word of Honor
  Farewell to my darling Tools.
• CHAPTER II
  A Country Idler
  Dr. Carlosbach, Conjurer and Professor of Mystification
  The Sand-bag and the Stirrup Trick
  I turn Lawyer's Clerk, and the Minutes appear to me very long
  A small Automaton
  A respectful Protest
  I mount a Step in the Office
  A Machine of Porter's Power
  The Acrobatic Canaries
  Monsieur Roger's Remonstrances
  My Father decides that I shall follow my bent.
• CHAPTER III
  My Cousin Robert
  The most important Event in my Life
  How a Man becomes a Sorcerer
  My first Sleight-of-Hand Feat
  An utter Failure
  Practising the Eye and the Hand
  Curious Experiment in Prestidigitation
  Monsieur Noriet
  An Action more ingenious than delicate
  I am Poisoned
  Influence of Delirium.
• CHAPTER IV
  I return to Life
  A strange Doctor
  Torrini and Antonio: a Conjurer and a Fanatic for Music
  A Murderer's Confession
  A perambulating House
  The Fair at Angers
  A portable Theatre
  I witness for the first Time a Conjuring Performance
  The blind Man's Game at Piquet
  A Dangerous Rival
  Signor Castelli eats a Man alive.
• CHAPTER V
  Antonio's Confessions
  How to gain Public Applause
  The Count de
  Mountebank
  I repair an Automaton
  A Mechanician's Shop on Wheels
  Nomadic life
  Happy Existence
  Torrini's Lessons
  His Opinions about Sleight-of-Hand
  A Fashionable Greek, Victim of his own Swindling
  The Conjurer Comus
  A Duel at Piquet
  Torrini proclaimed Conqueror
  Revelations
  New Catastrophe
  Poor Torrini!
• CHAPTER VI
  Torrini relates his Life
  Treachery of Chevalier Pinetti
  A Conjurer through Malice
  A Race between two Magicians
  Death of Pinetti
  Exhibits before Pius VII.
  The Cardinal's Chronometer
  Twelve Hundred Francs spent on a Trick
  Antonio and Antonia
  The most bitter of Mystifications
  Constantinople.
• CHAPTER VII
  Continuation of Torrini's History
  The Grand Turk orders a Performance
  A marvellous Trick
  A Page cut in two
  Pitying Protest of the Harem
  Agreeable Surprise
  Return to France
  Torrini's Son Killed
  Madness
  Decay
  My first Performance
  An annoying Accident
  I return Home.
• CHAPTER VIII
  The Prodigal Son
  Mademoiselle Houdin
  I go to Paris
  My Marriage
  Comte
  Studies of the Public
  A skillful Manager
  Rosecolored Tickets
  A Musky Style
  The King of Hearts
  Ventriloquism
  The Mystifiers Mystified
  Father Roujol
  Jules de Rovère
  Origin of the word prestidigitateur.
• CHAPTER IX
  Celebrated Automata
  A Brazen Fly
  The Artificial Man
  Albertus Magnus and St. Thomas d'Aquinas
  Vaucanson
  His Duck
  His Flute-Player
  Curious Details
  The Automaton Chess-Player
  Interesting Episode
  Catherine II. and M. de Kempelen
  I repair the Componium
  Unexpected Success.
• CHAPTER X
  An Inventor's Calculations
  One Hundred Thousand Francs a Year by an Inkstand: Deception
  My new Automata
  The First Magician in France: Decadence
  I meet Antonio
  Bosco
  The Trick with the Cups
  An Execution
  Resurrection of the Criminals
  Mistake in a Head
  The Canary rewarded.
• CHAPTER XI
  A Reverse of Fortune
  Cookery and Clockwork
  The Artist's Home
  Invention of an Automaton
  Voluntary Exile
  A modest Villa
  The Inconveniences of a Speciality
  Two August Visitors
  The Throat of a mechanical Nightingale
  The Tiou and the Rrrrrrrrouit
  Seven Thousand Francs earned by making Filings.
• CHAPTER XII
  The Inventive Genius of a Sugar-baker
  Philippe the Magician
  His Comic Adventures
  Description of his Performance
  Exposition of 1844
  The King and Royal Family visit my Automata.
• CHAPTER XIII
  My proposed Reforms
  I build a Theatre in the Palais Royal
  Formalities
  General Rehearsal
  Singular Effect of my Performance
  The Largest and Smallest Theatre in Paris
  Tribulation
  My first Performance
  Panic
  Discouragement
  A Fallible Prophet
  Recovery
  Success.
• CHAPTER XIV
  New Studies
  A Comic Journal
  Invention of Second Sight
  Curious Experiments
  An enthusiastic Spectator
  Danger of being a Sorcerer
  A Philter or your Life
  Way to get rid of Bores
  An Electric Touch
  I perform at the Vaudeville
  Struggles with the Incredulous
  Interesting Details.
• CHAPTER XV
  Seductions of a Theatrical Agent
  How to gain One Hundred Thousand Francs
  I start for Brussels
  A lucky Two-Sou Piece
  Miseries of professional Travelling
  The Park Theatre
  Tyranny of a Porter
  Full House
  Small Receipts
  Deceptions
  Return to Paris.
• CHAPTER XVI
  Reopening of my Fantastic Soirees
  Minor Miseries of Good Luck
  Inconvenience of a small Theatre
  My Room taken by Storm
  A gratuitous Performance
  A conscientious Audience
  Pleasant Story about a Black Silk Cap
  I perform at the Chateau of St. Cloud
  Cagliostro's Casket
  Holidays.
• CHAPTER XVII
  New Experiments
  Aerial Suspension, &c.
  A Performance at the Odéon
  A Friend in Need
  1848
  The Theatre deserted
  I leave Paris for London
  Manager Mitchell
  Publicity in England
  The Great Wizard
  A Butter-mould used as a Puff
  Singular Bills
  A Prize for the best Pun.
• CHAPTER XVIII
  The St. James's Theatre
  Invasion of England by French Performers
  A Fete patronised by the Queen
  The Diplomatist and the Sleight-of-Hand Man
  Three Thousand Pounds taken at one Haul
  I perform at Manchester
  The Spectators in the Pillory
  What capital Curacoa!
  A Torrent of Wine
  A Catastrophe
  Performance at Buckingham Palace
  A Wizard's Repast.
• CHAPTER XIX
  An Optimist Manager
  Three Spectators in a Room
  A Magical Collation
  The Colchester Public and the Nuts
  I return to France
  I give up my Theatre
  A Farewell Tour
  I retire to St. Gervais
  An Academician's Predictions.
• CHAPTER XX
  Travels in Algeria
  Convocation of the Chieftains
  Performances before the Arabs
  A Kabyle rendered powerless
  Invulnerability
  A Moor disappears
  Panic and Flight of the Audience
  Reconciliation
  The Sect of Aissaoua
  Their pretended Miracles.
• CHAPTER XXI
  Excursion in the Interior of Africa
  The Abode of a Bash-Aga
  A comical Repast
  A Soiree of Arab Dignitaries
  A Marabout mystified
  rent-life in Algeria
  I return to France
  A terrible Storm
  Conclusion.
• CHAPTER XXII
  A Course of Miracles.