PROFESSOR HASELMAYER'S ENTERTAINMENT.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1319, 16 December 1880, Page 2

PROFESSOR HASELMAYER'S ENTERTAINMENT.

A very good audience gathered at the Volunteer Hall last evening to witness ;he first of Professor Haselmayev's enter:ainments, and were rewarded with a japital evening's amusement and laystifi3ation. The Professor is a clever .llusionist, and .performs the whole of his ■ricks \rifch the utmost ease and without leaving in any of his audience a singly ray jf hope-of discovering howr the tricks are accomplished. Starting out with an issurance that he would regret deceiving the audience, for. a couple of hours he continued to uttei'ly bewilder the shrewdest of those present-, all the time keeping up a running fire of remarks in delightful, broken English. Tho flrsl portion of tl;e entertainment included a number of tricks with cards, lemons, oranges, and ladies' handkerchiefs borrowed from the audience. Tho hand kerchiefs were apparently torn to piecr; and afterwards consumed by fire, only to bo restored to their rightfu owner in an unimpaired condition. Th< whole of these tricks require to bi seen to be, well, not undtivs-oyd, but ap preciated. The "Professor-gave what souk people might c*\ll an, <.'>:iiibition of seoonc sight, but which he assures us is only ! very cunning- uiok. Completely blind folded, he read .'aloud, and correctly sentences and words written by some c, the audience upon slips of papey. The Professor also gave an exhibition of hii ability as a musician by playing, t( Madame Haselmayer's accom,panimena o\ the piano, a number of melodies upon av instrument of his own invention callec the stylopafe.- Thi3 is composed o wooden plates placed upon bands ofindia rubber, and is made to give out swee sounds by striking it with two light elastii hammers. His performance upon tliii unique instrument was so'pleasing to th< audience that the Professor had to submi to an imperative reclemand. The enter tainmenfc was varied by the introductioi of a number of trained canaries and mice the performances of which were of a very pleasing nature, and gave great pleasure to the audience. Of these performance! that one of the canary, which, sup posed to be fired by one of the audience fro.m a pistol, alighted simultaneously with the report upon the point of a swore' held by the Professor, and remainec there while handed rotund for the close inspection of al} doubting mortals was the most bewildering. This bire: has evidently been carefully and patiently trained, and its performances showed hov Completely these pleasing little creature; may be made subservient to the will o: man. But the whist-playing of the figure Psycho, was perhapa even more clever, By some cupping mechanical contrivance this automaton is go worked as to correctly play his cards,- and is unquestionably one of the strongest features of a clevei performance." The magic drum is an'othei wonderful mechanical contrivances, ringing out answers to questions, naming cards unseen to even the professor, and tellins the figures written .nporv slips of papel and remaining in tho possession of mem bers; of tha audience. The entertainmeir as a whole, as we have already stated, was one of a very pleasihg nature, and those who: were not ; present-last evening shoulc: not miss an opportunity of witnessing thi; evening's perfarrn'anbe. In addition te many other : attractions, Madanie Hasel mayer will perform her wonderful crysta

cabinet feat, which is said by our ex< changes to be very remarkable. Handcuffed and locked up in a small cabinet Madame Haselrnayer succeeds in releasing herself and appearing outside the cabinet in fifteen seconds. Other changes will also bo made in the programme, which is promised to be of an attractive nature.