Scientific amusements . tute, notonly coating the walls of rooms with these phosphorescentsubstances, but also the fronts of houses, when he considersit would be possible to do away entirely with street lights,the house-fronts absorbing sufficient light during the dayto remain luminous the whole of the night. Chemistry Applied to Sleight of Hand. While physics has provided the species of entertainmentcalled sleight of hand with a number of interestingeffects, chemistry has only offered it very feeble contribu-tions. Robert Houdin formerly made use of electricityto move the hands of his magic c
Scientific amusements . tute, notonly coating the walls of rooms with these phosphorescentsubstances, but also the fronts of houses, when he considersit would be possible to do away entirely with street lights,the house-fronts absorbing sufficient light during the dayto remain luminous the whole of the night. Chemistry Applied to Sleight of Hand. While physics has provided the species of entertainmentcalled sleight of hand with a number of interestingeffects, chemistry has only offered it very feeble contribu-tions. Robert Houdin formerly made use of electricityto move the hands of his magic clock, and the electric 44 CHEMISTRY. magnet in making an iron box so heavy instantaneouslythat no one could lift it. Robin has made use of opticsto produce the curious spectacle of the decapitated man,spectres, etc. Those persons who are fopd of this kind ofamusement may, however, borrow from chemistry someoriginal experiments, which can be easily undertaken, andI will conclude this chapter by describing a juggling feat. Amusing experiment in chemistry. which I have seen recently executed before a numerousaudience by a very clever conjurer. The operator took a glass that was perfectly trans-parent, and placed it on a table, announcing that he shouldcover the glass with a saucer, and then, retiring to somedistance, would fill it with the smoke from a this he carried out exactly, standing smoking his SLEIGHT OF HAND. 45 cigarette in the background, while the glass, as though byenchantment, slowly filled with the fumes of the trick is easily accomplished. It is only necessary topour previously into the glass two or three drops of hydro-chloric acid, and to moisten the bottom of the saucer witha few drops of ammonia. These two liquids are unper-ceived by the spectators, but as soon as the saucer isplaced over the glass, they unite in forming white fumesof hydrochlorate of ammonia, which bear a complete re-semblance to the smoke of tobacco. This experiment e
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