the results obtained by Professor de Vries in the Botanical Garden at Amsterdam during twenty years of observations are described. Not the least important service rendered by Professor de Vries in the preparation of these lectures consists in the indication of definite specific problems that need investigation, many of which may be profitably taken up by anyone in a small garden. He has rescued the subject of evolution from the thrall of polemics and brought it once more within reach of the great mass of naturalists, any one of whom may reasonably hope to contribute something to its advancement by orderly observations. The text of the lectures has been revised and rendered into a form suitable for permanent record by Dr. D. T. MacDougal who has been engaged in researches upon the subject for several years, and who has furnished substantial proof of the mutation theory of the origin of species by his experimental investigations carried on in the New York Botanical Gardens. Price, postpaid $5.00 (21s.) net. xxiii+830 pages, 8 vo., cloth, gilt top The Open Court Publishing Company 1322 Wabash Avenue, Chicago London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co., Ltd. Hugo de Vries' "Species and Varieties, Their Origin by Mutation,' at $5.00 per copy, for which find enclosed for $ Address the book as follows: NEW MAGIC BY HENRY RIDGELY EVANS WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY DR. PAUL CARUS 118 ILLUSTRATIONS FAC SIMILES OF PROGRAMS, ETC. PRICE, $1.50 NET. MAILED, $1.70 CIRCA 400 PAGES. NEW book on the magic art, by Henry Ridgely Evans, the well-known authority on the subject of natural magic, prestidigitation, mediumistic feats and allied subjects, is sure to create a sensation among lovers of the mysterious and the marvellous. We take pleasure in announcing that the Open Court Publishing Company has in press the latest product of Mr. Evans' fertile pen, namely, a work on "The Old and the New Magic," with an introduction by Dr. Paul Carus, editor of the "Open Court." This book is Mr. Evans' most ambitious attempt. It embodies the experience of a life time, and is replete with reminiscences garnered in the field of magic, both in this country and Europe. It comprises a complete history of magic from the earliest times to the present day, with exposés of the most famous illusions of the stage. Mr. Evans was intimately acquainted with Alexander Herrmann, Robert Heller and Buatier de Kolta, those shining lights among prestidigitators of the past, and has many interesting anecdotes to tell about them and the tricks that made them famous. Among living conjurers he is well known and admired as a writer on magic. A number of treatises on magic have been written, but no great historical work has been produced on the subject. Therefore this unique book on "The Old and the New Magic" supplies a long-felt want among the confraternity of conjurers. Mr. Evans has delved into many old libraries of this country and Europe for data. A feature of the book is the reproduction of programmes of celebrated prestidigitators. This feature alone makes the book of immense value to every professional and amateur magician. The preparation of programmes is the bete noir of conjurers. With the examples set before him in "The Old and the New Magic," the wizard of the present day can with ease make up his entertainment, and cull here and there his information, like a bee culls honey from flowers of the field. To the general reading public this work will prove a veritable gold mine. To be initiated into the mysteries of the conjurer's art is well worth the while. It is written in a fascinating style, full of anecdotal and historical matter. The chapter on Cagliostro reads like a romance. This great charlatan of the eighteenth century figured in the diamond necklace scandal, in which were involved the beautiful Marie Antoinette, queen of France, Cardinal de Rohan and many famous people of the old regime. To gather information on this subject, Mr. Evans, assisted by M. Trewey, the French conjurer, delved into the musty archives of the French government and gleaned many facts not hitherto known. In this book are passed in review the prestidigitators of the old world: Pinetti, Robertson, Robert Houdin, the father of modern magic, Robin, Anderson, etc. From the surviving members of the Houdin family, curious and rare data were obtained, making the chapter on Robert Houdin one of vast interest. Few readers, if any, will be able to lay down this fascinating book when once begun, without reading through to the word Finis. The unveiling of secrets hitherto kept so sedulously by magicians is of interest to all theater-goers, as well as educators. The more we know about the tricks and deceptions of conjurers, the less apt are we to fall victims to unscrupulous charlatans and impostors like Cagliostro and many of the mediumistic frauds of this century. To the scientific man the book will also be of great interest. It is a well-known fact that in this country today there are thousands of clever amateur magicians, who welcome with open arms a new book on their favorite theme. The avidity with which magical literature is bought, and the great number of manufacturers of magical apparatus extant who cater to the wants of amateurs, are proofs positive of the interest in the subject of prestidigitation. Most of the historical matter in this book is new to American readers. For example, there is not a book in English that gives a correct account of the Chevalier Pinetti, the great luminary among conjurers of the eighteenth century. His life story is worthy of the pen of a Dumas, so strange and adventurous is it. Mr. Evans has picked up many rare prints of this gifted artist, which have been reproduced in the book, as well as one of Cagliostro. We can recommend this book as something really unique in the annals of magical literature; as entertaining as any romance and possessed of real pedagogical value. It should be in every public library and every school in the United States. The illusions of Kellar, the sleight-of-hand tricks of De Kolta, the shadowgraphs of Trewey, and the wonderful handcuff act of Houdini's, are all explained and fully illustrated. THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING COMPANY 1322 WABASH AVENUE, CHICAGO, ILLINOIS BETWEEN THROUGH PULLMAN SERVICE BETWEEN CHICAGO AND HOT SPRINGS, Ark.. DENVER.Colo., TEXAS, FLORIDA. UTAH. IF YOU ARE CONTEMPLATING A TRIP, ANY POTION OF WHICH CAN BE MADE OVER THE CHICAGO & ALTON, IT WILL PAY YOU TO WRITE TO THE UNDERSIGNED FOR RATES, MAPS, TIME-TABLES, ETC. GEO. J. CHARLTON, GENERAL PASSENGER AGENT, CERBERUS THE DOG OF HADES The History of an Idea, by MAURICE BLOOMFIELD Professor of Sanskrit and Comparative Philology Johns Hopkins University "It is a careful compilation of the singular views of the famous mythical dog that is guardian of the realms of the dead, as these views have been expressed in classic art, and in Roman, Hindoo, Persian, and other literatures. The study is certainly a curiosity, but at the same time much more than this. It is the outworking of an idea that is found securely lodged in the literature of many nations." Journal of Education, Boston. "In his interesting and suggestive little essay Professor Bloomfield explains the two beads which Cerberus so frequently has in Greek vase-paintings, and accounts step by step for the transition from the sun and moon as the gates of heaven to Cerberus, the guardian of the doors of hell." Academy, London. Frontispiece, Boards, cloth back, 50 cents. The Open Court Pub. Co. 1322 Wabash Avenue CHICAGO, ILL. THE PAPYRUS A Magazine of Individuality Praise from America's Greatest Poet Dear Mr. Monahan, I can't refrain from telling you how happy I am to see your sturdy defense of Poe's good name. He has been yelped at by the whole pack of literary jackals nosing the ground for carrion. The man who carried the pure idealities of "Helen" and "The Raven" was not inherently immoral, whatever may be the shell-facts of his life. I am also delighted by your talk on "Richard Wagner's Romance." You don't need to write anything else to repay us for our valuable dollar. Of course I don't claim that you have said all that is to be said in defense of the inconstant artist. It is all an anxious inexplicable problem, one whose roots go down to the center. Who will give its rationale? Faithfully yours, EDWIN MARKHAM. Subscription, One Dollar a Year (Send 10 cents for Sample Copy) The Papyrus, Elizabeth, N. J. Plays all that any other plays and plays it easier The handsomest and smallest 65 note player made "TRY ANY OTHER". THEN CALL AND TRY THE BALDWIN Its ease of operation and control will surprise you Its cost is only a fraction of its musical worth D. H. Baldwin & Co., Warerooms: 267 & 269 Wabash Ave. THE KEY TO BUDDHISM HYMNS OF THE FAITH (DHAMMAPADA) Being an Ancient Anthology Preserved in the Short Collection of the Sacred "This celebrated ancient anthology of Buddhist devotional poetry was com- "If ever an immortal classic was produced upon the continent of Asia, it is THE OPEN COURT PUBLISHING CO., CHICAGO, ILL. LONDON: KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRÜBNER & Co., LTD. |