A Swindle of Souls

Effect

The magician tells the story of a gambler who played a game of chance with a mysterious stranger who smelled like sulfur and had cloven hooves instead of feet! The stranger proposed a bet wherein the gambler would win all of his money back if he found any card apart from the Four of Clubs. However, if he were unfortunate enough to find "The Devil's Bedpost", he would owe the stranger his immortal soul!

You offer to recreate this game with a spectator "just for fun", with the spectator playing the part of the compulsive gambler and you assuming the role of the Devil! 

The cards are thoroughly shuffled and cut. The Ace through King of Clubs are removed from the deck in whatever order they appear, and the thirteen cards are mixed by a spectator using a "deal or switch" shuffle. The spectator then eliminates all but one of the cards, which turns out to be the Four of Clubs.

The participant then remixes the thirteen cards. You explain that you have no need for the participant's immortal soul, so offer to give her a chance to win it back. The spectator eliminates all the cards, leaving her holding only one: the Ace of Clubs. Not only that, but the rest of the cards are now in numerical order!

Background & Credits

Interestingly, early versions of this moral fable didn't specify the identity of the dropped card. Therefore, the Four of Clubs may be a recent addition to the story.

Requirements & Preparation

All you need to perform this trick is a regular pack of playing cards, a piece of paper, a pen and an envelope. Prepare the prediction by copying down the following poem written by Max Maven (the last line is my addition):

Place the prediction face up on your work surface, with the written prediction uppermost. Fold the bottom two-thirds up and crease sharply. Now fold one-third back towards yourself and crease sharply again. This accordion fold should conceal the entire prediction within the folds of the paper. When your participant signs the exposed portion of the prediction, she'll unwittingly sign away her soul!

Put the folded prediction into the envelope and place it in a pocket along with the pen.

Remove the Ace through King of Clubs from the deck and arrange them in the following order: 10C-AC-3C-4C-JC-9C-6C-8C-QC-5C-2C-7C-KC. Put this ten-card setup on top of the pack. The Ten should be the top card of the deck.

Method & Presentation

Tell your audience about the Devil's Bedposts and the associated legend of the man who gambled with the Devil and lost. To try and win his money back, he agreed to one last wager. Explain that you're going to recreate that fateful evening. Select someone from your audience to play the part of "Tom", a compulsive gambler and hard drinker down on his luck. Tell your audience that you'll play the part of the Devil. I do this by saying, "You can be the gambler, and I'll be the handsome Devil!"

To begin, say, "I have a prediction that we'll keep a secret for now. To prevent me from switching the prediction, sign and date it for me here, please."

To begin the story, say, "It was a dark and stormy night when Tom walked into his favourite pub, The Red Lion. He sat down at his usual table and began a game of solitaire to pass the time. After a few hands, a stranger suddenly appeared across from Tom. 'Care for a game, friend?' the mysterious man asked. Not one to turn down a challenge, Tom agreed."

Continue by saying, "As they played, an eerie feeling came over Tom. No matter what cards he was dealt, his opponent seemed to have better ones. Every winning hand went to the stranger. Before long, Tom's money was nearly gone. 'How about we make this more interesting?' the stranger proposed. 'Let's play a game of chance with thirteen cards. If you win, you get all your cash back. But if I win, I get your immortal soul!'"

Look at your participant and ask her, "Would you take that bet?" Regardless of what she replies, say, "Well, Tom hesitated for a moment but then agreed to the stranger's proposal, thinking his luck had to turn around. First, the stranger told him to shuffle the cards..."

Ask your participant to riffle shuffle the cards twice. If they cannot do a riffle shuffle, you can help them perform Lennart Green's Rosary Shuffle instead.

Note: If your helper is absolutely hopeless at handling cards, you can perform the two required riffle shuffles yourself. Once you have separated the deck into two halves and interleaved the cards, spread them vertically to show that they are being shuffled properly. Repeat the shuffle, making it evident that the cards are really being mixed.

Once the cards have been fairly shuffled, offer the deck to your participant and ask her to cut it.

Even though both shuffles are legitimate and have distributed the thirteen club cards throughout the deck, the relative order of the thirteen cards will remain the same.

Run through the face-up pack, upjogging the Ace through King of Clubs as you find them. Strip out the thirteen cards, keeping them in the same order. Discard the remainder of the deck; it isn't needed for the rest of the trick.

To create the illusion of shuffling the packet, perform a couple of face-up Charlier Shuffles on the cards. Because they appear to be in a random order, this false shuffle is still deceptive when done with the cards face up. In fact, it is even more effective when performed in this manner. Casually cut the King of Clubs to the face of the packet. If everything has been done correctly, the cards will still be in their original order.

Flip the packet face down and let your participant perform Paul Curry's "Swindle Shuffle" on the packet. Start by saying, "Let's mix up the cards some more so that you're 100% sure that the cards are randomly mixed. Take the cards and either DEAL the top card to the table or SWITCH the position of the top two cards, then drop them, as a pair, to the table. Keep dealing or switching the cards until they're all in a pile on the table." As you explain how the shuffle works, demonstrate it with the cards. All this does is reverse the order of the cards.

As she's shuffling the cards using the "deal or switch" procedure, say, "How you mix the cards will determine whether you win or lose." Once your participant has performed the Swindle Shuffle, the cards will be back in their original order.

Next, tell your participant that they will perform an "elimination deal" to get rid of all but one card. Walk her through a Down-Under Deal by saying, "Deal one card to me," pointing to a spot on the table in front of you, "and keep one for yourself by placing it on the bottom of your packet." As she places the new top card on the bottom of the packet, instruct her to continue distributing the cards this way until only one remains in her hand.

Finish the story by saying, "Tom's blood ran cold as the truth hit him—this was no ordinary man. The stranger's eyes flashed red, and his grin widened, revealing a ghastly set of sharpened teeth. 'Well played, but I believe I've won. Your soul is mine!' he exclaimed. Tom shrank back in horror, realising he had just lost a fateful bet with the Devil himself. The Dark Lord let out a chilling laugh and vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving poor Tom trembling in dismay over his grave mistake."

Ask your participant to look at her card. When she turns it over, she will discover that she holds the dreaded Four of Clubs!

Look at your volunteer and smile. Pick up the prediction, unfold it and then read the poem aloud:

And so, our little game is done;
The cards are played,
the prize is won.
My Four of Clubs
belongs to thee...
In turn, thy soul belongs to me!*

* But if you happen to find an Ace,
I'll return your soul by God's good grace.

Continue the routine by saying, "Oh dear, it looks like your soul belongs to me! You know what? I don't have any use for an immortal soul, so I'll give you a chance to win it back. If you can find the Ace of Clubs, you owe me nothing."

Establish a Tilt break below the top card of the packet. Pick up the Four and push it into the break. It should look like you're replacing it somewhere in the centre of the packet. In reality, the card is replaced second from the top.

Allow your participant to perform another Swindle Shuffle on the packet, followed by another Down-Under Deal. They'll be left holding the Ace of Clubs. Smile and say, "Congratulations. You have saved your own soul!"

Take the Ace and tap it against the top of the tabled pile. Drop the face-up Ace to the table, then pick up the pile, and slowly deal the cards face up on top of the Ace, revealing that the cards are now in sequential order. As this happens, say, "It's a good job that I only use my powers for good!"

To add a dramatic ending to the routine, you can rip up or burn the contract. Alternatively, you can put it back into the envelope and let your participant take it home as a keepsake of your performance.

Performance Tips & Additional Ideas

The effect described here is technically categorised as Bizarre Magick due to the parable of the gambler who plays cards with the Devil. However, it's possible to present it in a more lighthearted way. Interestingly, some slang dictionaries mention that the Four of Clubs is also known as the "Old Gentleman's Bedpost". Therefore, you could tell a story about an old magician who gets the best of a boastful younger gambler without any references to the Dark Lord.

The fun of this trick lies in its spooky story and dark humour involving a wager with the Devil. You start by sharing a story about a gambler playing cards with the Devil. However, as the story progresses, it becomes evident that you are, in fact, the Devil and the participant is playing the game of chance with you. If you want to take this performance up a notch, consider wearing a pair of prosthetic devil horns beneath your hat to enhance the element of surprise. When you reach the end of the routine, take a bow and remove your hat to reveal your horns!

By allowing the spectator to "win back" their own immortal soul, you make sure that they don't feel uncomfortable at the end of the routine (as they might if they are still indebted to you). 

The problem with ripping up or burning the contract at the end of the routine is that some people might want to keep it as a memento of the magic. Instead of destroying it, you can write "null and void" on it. Alternatively, you might like to purchase a self-inking rubber "VOID" stamp (these can be bought from most office supply stores). This is a Darwin Ortiz idea.

When performing in a more theatrical setting, such as a parlour show, it can be effective to destroy the contract at the end of the routine. To add a dramatic flair, you could make the paper prediction spontaneously combust, reminiscent of the Devil's exit in the old European folk tales. Additionally, a Fire Wallet, a popular trick with close-up magicians, could be incorporated into this routine to imply that the performer is the Devil.

If you prefer, you can present this as a "magician versus the Devil" story. This is a common trope that is still culturally relevant, thanks to performers like Charles Joseph Carter, who included a routine with this theme in his stage show (Cater was the inspiration for the best-selling fictional book Carter Beats the Devil by Glen David Gold). If you take this approach, your spectator gets to play the part of the magician, which most people find a lot of fun. You could even give your helper a stick-on moustache and beard to make their performance more authentic! This lighthearted role reversal is something that would work well as part of a more formal magic show. However, I wouldn't use this idea in a more casual performance environment.

Initially, I performed this trick in a different way. Instead of ending with the cards in numerical order, I finished with the cards in an apparently random order. Then, I named the order of the remaining cards without looking at them as a demonstration of second sight (remote viewing). 

If you prefer to perform the trick this way, start with the cards in numerical order, with the King on top and the Ace on the bottom. After the spectator has performed a couple of Swindle Shuffles, ask them to complete a Down-Under Deal. This will leave them holding the Four of Clubs. To conclude, you can say that the Devil offered to return the magician's immortal soul on the condition that he could name the order of the remaining cards without looking at them—something the Devil knew was impossible. To perform this, you need to memorise the final order of the cards (Q-8-2-6-10-A-3-5-7-9-J-K). If you have a terrible memory, you can write this sequence of numbers in pencil on the back of the envelope, which contains the prediction.

Afterthoughts

To add some more entertainment value to your performance, consider allowing your spectator to take on the role of the Devil while you play the part of a magician or gambler. You need to make sure that you pick someone who won't be offended by this suggestion, however.

If you decide to go ahead with this approach, your participant will still be required to mix the cards using the Swindle Shuffle. However, you will be responsible for completing the "elimination deal" (Down-Under Deal). For this reason, this is an excellent alternative approach if you think the participant is not a confident card handler.

In "Wagers of Sin", the envelope and prediction are an integral part of the method. However, this isn't the case with "A Swindle of Souls". Suppose you want to avoid the added complication of having a written or printed prediction. In that case, you can perform the trick without it by learning the poem by heart and reciting it before the participant turns over the card to reveal the Four of Clubs.

I've written a more elaborate version of Max Maven's delightfully devilish poem, which you might like to use in this situation: