LEGERDEMAIN AND APPORTS.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 619, 23 September 1909, Page 8

LEGERDEMAIN AND APPORTS.

'■ME. DRIVER'AT THE TOWN HALL. , 5 The Town Hall was filled' last evening when, T Mr. Thomas Driver, formerly known pr'ofes- s sionally as Professor Kudarz, set out. to , en- j lighten tho Wellington public as to what j "show" Spiritualism is, with particular reforr , ence to' the recent' manifestations 'in this city by Mr. Charles Bailoy, the Melbourne medium. c Mr. Driver prefaced his entertainment bj\ performing some tricks of ' legerdemain, which . though not in any way new wcro performed in I a manner which showed, that the conjurer has lost none of his cunning.in the"lapse of time; j since he was-engaged in the business profes- t sionally. He passed objects from one recep- [ taclo to another, and juggled with a handful of ( silver rings in a mannor • quite mystifying to 1 the majority: of those: present.-' Nor were .the , 'playing cards neglected. His - four-ace trick j was cleanly and ontertainingly - done, 'not a 1 littlo innocent.amusement being derived from c tho man who volunteered his assistance in the f card tricks. The first part- of tno entertain- i ment concluded with the old-time but ever- i puzzling cabinet trick, originated by the Daven- < port' Eros. For-many years, Mr. Driver m- < formed the audience, the public was gulled into ] the belief \that the- tightly-bound conjuror seated within tho cabinet was assisted by spirits j who rang the bells, shook the I and thrust their ghostly: hands: through the i little windows of tho cabinet.: Mr. Driver was . particularly .smart in this part of .the performance, It. being doubtful if the 50-year.old triok ever went'so well before m .Wellington. > A man, well-known to the audience, volunteered . to go into the cabinet with Mr. Driver. When the doors were opened, he was found with his coat and waistcoat on inside i out, and bound round and round with rope, whilst ,Driver was "still knotted stoutly to his chair at tho other end'of the.-cabinet.: < .--■,-- - The second part of the programme opened with an exposure of the spirit materialisation of Mrs. M'ellin, whoso controls, "Geordie, "Josephine," and "Cissie" were once, upoiva time greatly respected by, somo.people.. Mr. Driver explained how a Mr. Henley, a Sydney Spiritualist,' not satisfied with- Mrs> Mellin's materialisations, arranged ■to grab one, whilst a friend turned on the light. It-,was "Cissio lie grabbed, but .when ,thc.. light went up it was only Mrs. Mellin masquerading in the dark .in luminous clothes. Further, she had concealed on her person a falso heard, which she used to wear ns "Geordie." ; Mr. Driver gave a facsimile of Mrs. Mellin's performance He entered a sleeveless sack, drawn tight round tho neck with light ropes, which, wore passed' ' through holes in tho cabinet and 'held by ono of the committee. Tho curtains woro drawn and' all lights save a small oil lamp were put out. In a few moments a vague misty-figure in white could be seen roaming round the static: This was/Geordie redivivus. "Josephine" and "Cissie' also. ap-. peared in like manner to the accompaniment 'of weird music in.a. minor key, and great/was the applause and laughter. ■ v ; The piece-de-resistanoc, however, was an ap-port-pro'ducing ssauce after, the manner of. Mr. Bailov, which Mr. Driver prefaced, with a'rehearsal of the challenge controversy between himself and Mr. W. M'Lean.' He stoutly maintained that ho had Mr. M'Lean "beaten flat," and that had the conditions been carried through as arranged between himself and Mr. M'Leon prior. to tho last meeting but one (at which ho was'not present, and of which ho recoived no intimation) ho would have' had no difficulty in sustaining his challenge. Then to Bhow precisely how Mr. Bailey's apport-pro-dueing is done, Mr. Driver retired, stripped beforo a committee, and donned a suit of pyjamas (originally intended for Mr., Bailoy), and entered a cabinet shaped like a sentry-box, with the side towards tho audience closed in with muslin, and placed on a sheet tacked on the stage, to demonstrate that nothing could come from below. , A stuff curtain was drawn. across the front'for a few seconds, and when drawn back Mr. Driver had two live birds in his hands.' More curtain manipulation, 'and .he produced two or three small eggs,'then two large' hens' eggs. Then there was a long wait, during which the orchestra ployed a fantasia composed of such airs," "Won't You- Como Home, Bill Bailey," "Shall We Gather at thq River," and "I'm Afraid" to Go Home in the Dark." When finally the curtain was drawn aside, Mr. Driver had something oh a tray on his knee. "Do you "know what that 'is, gentlemenf" ho asked tho ■ committee. "Ifsi just dirt from sixteen miles or less from Wellington—just plain dirt, tho 6amo as Bailey's!" The statement convulsed the audience, who appeared to enjoy - the demonstration- that apport-producing can at least/bo clevorly simulated.' At the conclusion, Mr. Driver, stated that he had produced apports under stricter conditions than wcro imposed on .Mr. Bailey at any one of tho latter's seances, and by its applause one could not but conclude that ho had tho sympathy of the audience.