Royal Road to Card Magic The

Foreword
    by Michael Bailey
President of The Magic Circle
    Even in this era when technological advances are made almost every day and the mysteries of the universe are being unravelled one by one, magic retains its popularity because there is a special kind of fascination in watching a good magician perform a baffling trick. Magic comes in all sizes, but there's little doubt that smaller miracles performed up close are the most appreciated by every age group. And perhaps best of all are those that are presented with something familiar to everyone - a pack of 52 playing cards.
    The renowned lending and reference libraries at The Magic Circle Headquarters in London house over 8,000 volumes on the art of magic. The libraries are very popular with members who consider that learning from books is still, in this electronic age, the best way of improving their skills in magic. If I were asked to recommend just one tome from that vast collection it would be
The Royal Road to Card Magic.
It was the first magic book I devoured when I started out as a young conjuror, and I have treasured it ever since.
    Authors Jean Hugard and Frederick Braue were masters at card magic and respected teachers of their craft. They combined their extensive knowledge to produce this comprehensive manual that guides the beginner through the basic sleights necessary to perform a variety of baffling card tricks. Many of these are easy to accomplish after the necessary practice, and some are self-working and need no dexterity at all.
    This new edition with its updated design and clear illustrations is very easy to read, and if the text and instructions are carefully followed, and enough rehearsal given, there is no doubt that the reader will be able to perform little miracles. But knowing the method is only the beginning. The secrets in this book are far too good to reveal other than to fellow magicians, but only half the fun of watching magic is to try to puzzle out how it's done. The other half is to enjoy the personality of the magician who is fooling you. The authors rightly emphasise that it is not so much what you do but how you do it that is important. Also that entertainment value, meaning the blending of carefully thought out, interesting patter with good routining, is the vital ingredient to becoming a magician who will not only amaze but also enchant with skills in presentation. And all this with just a borrowed pack of cards.
    The great British magician David Devant always advised his pupils to learn one trick at a time. Only when you've mastered one should you proceed to the next. He knew that it's better to know a few tricks really well than a whole lot sparsely. Devant also said that there is no short cut to success as a performer, but that the road by which all magicians need to travel is a very pleasant one. I would agree, and simply add that the shortest and easiest route to reach the destination of successful card magic is a careful study of this indispensable book.

Preface

    Many years ago, the great English conjurer David Devant was approached by an acquaintance new to sleight of hand with cards. 'Mr Devant,' said this young man, 'I know 300 tricks with cards. How many do you know?' Devant glanced at the youth quizzically. 'I should say,' the magician responded dryly, 'that I know about eight.'
    Devant was making a point with which all professional magicians are familiar. To perform card tricks entertainingly you must not only know how the tricks are done, but also
how to do them
. There is a vast difference between the two, and if proof were needed one need only watch the same feat performed by a novice and by an expert card conjurer. The novice knows the mechanics of so many tricks that he or she cannot do any one feat really well; the professional performs a smaller number of tricks, which he or she knows how to present in such a way as to create the greatest possible impression upon those who watch.
    We cannot emphasise too strongly that knowing the secret of a trick is not the same as knowing how to perform that trick; and that knowing the secret of hundreds of tricks is of little value unless each can be performed smoothly and entertainingly. It is far better to know only a few tricks that can be performed with grace, skill and effect.
    In writing this book, we have attempted to teach you card tricks that may be performed anywhere, at any time, under any circumstances, for any company and using any pack of cards. You will