A Series of Effects Know As

THE Carlyle Touch

PRICE: $10.00 (manuscript only)

Carlyle Enterprises
2753 Livingston Loop
Virginia Beach, Virginia 23456
Phone: 757.427.3235
E-Mail: carlyle@cox.net
Web Site: www.carlyletouch.com
Instructions
Add this strangely eerie concept to those you may draw upon to routine an intimate late-night
seance, for a play-for-pay booking or merely a group of friends. But be warned. There will be
those among your spectators who will credit you with the ability to reach beyond death's veil.
“Spiritualism,” you explain, “is the belief in the continuation of life after death in spirit form.
Indeed, spiritualists believe that spirits of the departed can communicate with the living through
mediums or sensitives.”
“Around the turn of the century, spirit mediums were in their heyday and could be found
in all walks of life. In seances... in spirit cabinets... and in houses that were reported haunted.
Knocks and trappings were heard, bells rung, and items moved about as the mediums tried to
reach the departed.” As you set the stage with your introductory remarks, you introduce and
show a small, "crystal" dinner bell. You quickly point out that the clapper has been removed..
A suitable bell, from which you will have to remove the clapper, can be found for a few dollars
at novelty counters and in gift shops.
“The old-time spirit mediums used a common code to communicate with those in the spirit
world, you continue. A single rap or chime, for example, would be interpreted as a yes. A double
rap or chime would indicate a no. Three might be maybe. During the late 1800s, in some
residential neighborhoods, a person not knowing any better might believe they could hear the
bells of St. Mary. And, increasingly, it was caused to happen under test conditions, as skeptics
scoffed at the concept of spirit life.” As you talk, you use a piece of heavy thread to suspend the
bell from the center of a wooden pencil. You do this by tying one end of the thread around the
center of the pencil near the eraser. The other end of the thread is tied around the big end of the
bell( See Illustration on last page.). The bell should be suspended about a foot or less below the
pencil. The weight of the glass handle combined with the weight of the upper portion of the bell,
itself, will cause the bell to partially invert. The bell will be suspended at about a 50-to 60-degree
angle, with the mouth up, as you grip the pencil between your thumb and forefinger at the
pointed end. Hold the pencil level with the floor “Many modern-day researchers, while
questioning the concept of spirit life, believe some of the early phenomena were merely the result
of the energy of the unconscious mind at work.”
“The rapping sounds and even the ringing of bells were directly triggered by unconscious
mental activity. Let me try to demonstrate.” You approach a spectator and ask him to choose
either the number one or two. Then, when he makes a choice, you have him concentrate on it,
and listen to the bell. As he listens, the bell softly resonates, matching the number he has in
mind. You quickly approach several other spectators, and duplicate the test. A final spectator
may hold the pencil herself, and listen to the bell resonate. The ghostly resonation is controlled
by the person holding the pencil, which should be of the multi-sided type rather than round. You
minutely rotate the pencil between your thumb and forefinger. Do it just enough to build up
the friction between the pencil and the tied thread, which is looped around the wooden pencil.
Friction will cause the string to momentarily bind against a flat side of the pencil. Then, it will
suddenly slip free, as the pencil turns in the loop. The almost invisible snap on the string will
resonate the length of the string and cause the bell to sound. Hold the bell for several spectators.
Then, finish by handing the pencil to a spectator, who is indicated to concentrating on the
number one. Through an ideomotor response, she may cause the bell to sound. Or you can smile
and claim to hear it yourself. Since it worked with others, it will be presumed to have worked
for her.
Added Comments:

Since the writing of these instructions in 1986 by Bascom Jones for his publication Magick,
several thoughts have come to my mind. Also, things have changed in the world to make the
finding cheap bells a little harder. Those inexpensive bells are no longer at every novelty store.
The better the bell the more likely it is to ring. Those thick walled bell just don’t do the job even
though they may be Lead crystal. Bells of a good quality from an up scale glass store are what
you want. Even a very good quality wine glass may be used if you can’t find a bell. Simply smile
and state that though this was used for liquid spirits, you will try to contact another type of
Spirit. Furthermore you will do well to use a new pencil ever time you perform this effect as the
sharp sides ware down fast and the thread will not grip. I have used bow rosin as used by violin
players, on the thread. This helps to ensure that the thread will stick. The thread I use is coat
button thread or a little lighter. It must be strong enough to hold the bell without breaking.

In stage work I usually get five people on stage and sit them in a row facing a little up stage as
the chairs are placed from stage right to stage left. That way all can be seen by the audience as
they face a little to the left side of the stage. The person on the extreme stage right should be a
woman as they are the ones that respond to the suggestion that the bell will ring. The ideomotor
action, the same as the action that makes a pendulum work, will be at work here. Have her hold
it up high so that the opening of the bell is at her ear. That will raise her hand above her head.
You must tell her to keep the pencil level with the ground (stage) so that the thread doesn’t slide
off. As you can see, we are keeping her hand in a very tiring position. Chances are that she will
turn the pencil. I keep a pillow below her side as I have found that the sound of the bell scares
some people and they are likely to drop the bell. This plays very well to the audience. In a home
or small gathering the line up of the chairs is of no importance. On stage or a large hall I use a
mike that I hold close to the opening of the bell so that the audience can hear the bell ring. So
that they will not think that I am hitting the bell I show them what it would sound like if I did. It
makes a dull noise. I also talk about ectoplasm verses protoplasm. I tell them that we of this
world are made of protoplasm and if I flick my finger on the bell it makes this kind of ring.
However if a spirit were to ring the bell it wouldn’t be as loud as they are made of ectoplasm. In
a séance type of demonstration I ask the sitters to ask questions that can be answered by yes or
no. Questions, the answer to which, they do not, at this time, know.

There you have it and I hope that you have fun. I only ask that you play this for entertainment
only. There are some in this country that take this very serious. And you must not intrude on
their grief at the loss of a loved one or their religious beliefs. Enjoy!

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Layout for stage use
Other Mentalism effects By Carlyle May Be Bought from Carlyle direct at

Carlyle Enterprises
2753 Livingston Loop
Virginia Beach, Virginia 23456
Phone: 757.427.3235
E-Mail: carlyle@cox.net
Web Site: www.carlyletouch.com

© Copyright by Edward R. Fowler a. k. a. Ray Carlyle 1986 Revised 2004