them at first, until it dawned upon me that I was talking to myself
all the time, instead of out aloud, so that, of course, they did
not know that I was telling them a tale at all, and were probably
puzzled to understand the meaning of my animated expression and
eloquent gestures. It was a most curious mistake for any one to
make. I never knew such a thing happen to me before.

Later on, our curate did tricks with cards. He asked us if we had
ever seen a game called the "Three Card Trick." He said it was an
artifice by means of which low, unscrupulous men, frequenters of
race-meetings and such like haunts, swindled foolish young fellows
out of their money. He said it was a very simple trick to do: it
all depended on the quickness of the hand. It was the quickness of
the hand deceived the eye.

He said he would show us the imposture so that we might be warned
against it, and not be taken in by it; and he fetched Uncle's pack
of cards from the tea-caddy, and, selecting three cards from the
pack, two plain cards and one picture card, sat down on the
hearthrug, and explained to us what he was going to do.

He said: "Now I shall take these three cards in my hand--so--and
let you all see them. And then I shall quietly lay them down on
the rug, with the backs uppermost, and ask you to pick out the
picture card. And you'll think you know which one it is." And he
did it.

Old Mr. Coombes, who is also one of our churchwardens, said it was
the middle card.