Stage—The Stage Floor—The Cellars—The Flies—The Gridiron—Traps-Sliders—Bridges—The Metropolitan Opera House Stage—Wing Posts—Curtain Calls—The Electric Lighting—Paint Bridge—The Property Man—Striking a Scene—The Dressing-Rooms—The Production of a New Opera,

251 CHAPTER II. Some Remarkable Stages, Ancient and Modern. An Electric Curtain—The Fan-Drop Curtain—An Elevator Theater Stage—Some Remarkable American Stage Inventions—A Revolving Stage—The “Asphaleia” Stage—A Theater with Two Auditoriums—Curio’s Pivoted Theater—The Olympian Theater of Palladio at Vicenza, 268 CHAPTER III. Stage Effects. Scene Painting—Sunrise Effect—Sun Effect—Change from Day to Night—Stars—Moon Effects—Rainbow Effect—Wind Effect—Thunder Effect—Lightning—Snow Effect—Wave Effect—Crash Effect—Rain Effect—Gradual Transformation—Fire and Smoke Effect—Battle Scenes—Theatrical Firearms—The Imitation of Odors, 293 CHAPTER IV. Theater Secrets. Traps—The Swan in “Lohengrin”—The Floating Rhine Daughters in “Rheingold”—The “Sun Robe”—The Ship on the Stage—Miscellaneous Stage Effects—The Destruction of the Temple of Dagon—The Horse Race on the Stage—The Effects in “Siegfried”—Siegfried’s Forge—Siegfried’s Anvil—The Dragon Fafner—Wotan’s Spear—The Bed of Tulips and the Electric Firefly—The Electric Torch and Electric Jewels—An Electrical Duel—The Skirt Dance, 311 CHAPTER V. The Nautical Arena, 345 CHAPTER VI. A Trip to the Moon, 348 CHAPTER VII. Cycloramas. The Electric Cyclorama—The Painted Cyclorama, 354 CHAPTER VIII. Fireworks With Dramatic Accessories, 362 BOOK IV. AUTOMATA AND CURIOUS TOYS. CHAPTER I. Automata. Automaton Chess Players—The Automaton Chess Player—A Curious Automaton—The Toy Artist—A Steam Man, 367 CHAPTER II. Curious Toys. An Optical Illusion—The Money Maker—Experiments in Centrifugal Force and Gravity—The Magic Rose—Electrical Toys—The Electric Race Course—Magnetic Oracle—The Dancers—An Ancient Counterpart of a Modern Toy—Unbalanced Toy Acrobats—Columbus’s Egg—Jacob’s Ladder—The Mikado—A Toy Cart—The Phonographic Doll, 380 CHAPTER III. Miscellaneous Tricks of an Amusing Nature. Interesting Tricks in Elasticity—Novel Puzzle—Simple Match Trick—Crystallized Ornaments—Magical Apparition on White Paper—Magic Portraits—A Trick Opera Glass—A Toy Bird that Flies—The Planchette Table—Japanese Magic Mirrors—Magic Mirrors, 406 BOOK V. PHOTOGRAPHIC DIVERSIONS. CHAPTER I. Trick Photography. Lavater’s Apparatus for Taking Silhouettes—Photography upon a Black Ground—Spirit Photography—Artificial Mirage—Duplex Photography—Illusive Photography—Photographing a Catastrophe—New Type of Photographic Portrait—Photographing a Human Head upon a Table—Photographing a Head on a Platter—A Multiple Portrait—Multiphotography—Pinhole Camera—A Photographic Necktie—Magic Photographs—Electro-Photo Detective Thief Catcher—Composite Photography, 423 CHAPTER II. Chronophotography. Chronophotography—The Registration and Analysis of the Movements of Men, Animals, Birds, Fishes, Insects, etc.—Amateur Chronophotographic Apparatus, 462 CHAPTER III. The