A CLEVER CARD CONSPIRACY.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VIII, Issue 717, 31 October 1914, Page 3

A CLEVER CARD CONSPIRACY.

One of the cleverest swindles ever en gineered has recently been worked with the aid of a pack of ordinary playing cards, the telephone, and a most re> tentive memory—plus, of course, a dis' tant confederate. This is the game: In a public restaurant or bar where there is a telephone call-box the swindler gets into conversation with the intended victim, and, artfully turning the talk in the direction of thought-reading, mentaltelepathy, and second sight, asserts that he has a sympatnetio friend at the Other end of the town who can instantly tell the name of any card which may be selected from the pack, the chooser of that to ring him up ani ask, in his own words and without any prompting, what, the particular card is. The Victim repudiates the possibility of such a marvellous feat, and a bet, the heavier the better, is made. The card is chosen and is seen by the swindler. He does not leave his seat. All he does is to say to the victim, "Ring up (say) 009,099 Gerrard, and ask my friend, Mr. So-and-so, what card you have chosen. The other does so, and- assuming, for the sake of argument, that the selected card was the nine of diamonds, that is the reply which he gets. The modus operandi is simplicity itself. The swindler has memorised the names of thirteen cards of one suit againt thirteen ordinary English surnames. Say clubs have been chosen; then the Ace will be Mr. Brown; the two, Mr. Smith; the three, Mr. Jones, and so on. If the card which is selected is a diamond, he puts a Christian name in front of the surname and says: "Ask for Mr. 'Thomas' Brown." If it is a heart, he makes it "Miss" Brown, and if it is a spade he makes it Miss* "Eose" Brown, or any other Christian name. The confederate at the other end of the wire has only to look at the prepared list, which lays tabulated before him, and according to what name is asked for by the victim—whether just plain "Mr," or Mr" with a Christian name—or the same method as regards the lady, he gives in answer to the inquiry the values and suit of the card which corresponds to it. The swindler, of course, wins the bet, and shares with the confederate later on.