Bellew, Frank: The Art of Amusing ©1866 Carleton Publisher, NY Hardcover, 302 pages

Image courtesy QuickerThanTheEye.com

Comments: "Being a collection of graceful arts, merry games, odd tricks, curious puzzles, and new charades. Together with suggestions for private theatricals, tableaux, and all sorts of parlor and family amusements." Mostly plays, crafts, riddles, and gags, along with a small bit of magic. Book includes a few inappropriate racial references that were sadly too common at the time.

Contents (from book):

7 CHAPTER I
7 Something censorious
11 Blowing a Card Over: stunt
12 Coin Sticks to a Door: stunt
12 The Magic Coin: coin passes from hand to hand
13 The Telescopic Visitor: gag
15 Boy's Head Knocked Off: another gag

17 CHAPTER II
17 Colored Mesmerism: a comedy gag not likely to make friends

20 CHAPTER III
20 Lemon Pig and Root Dragon: conversations around home-made animal figures
21 Portrait of the Gorilla: a comedy book with a mirror
23 Creature comforts: on serving food and dring for a party
26 Optical Illusions: on the height of things
28 Theatre and Theatrical Performances: simple childrens plays
28 - Nose Turned Up and Teeth Knocked Out
28 - The Long-Nosed Night Howler, or Vulgaris Pueris cum Papyrus Capitus
31 - Physical Stunts: balancing chair on chin, etc.
32 - Some Conjuring Tricks:
32 -- No. 1: Card vanished from under a cone to be found somewhere else
33 -- The Reversed Card: signed selection returned to deck is discovered
34 -- The Reduced Gentleman or Dwarf Perforce: comedy illusion
36 More Party Tips: food and decorations

38 CHAPTER IV
38 The Voice of the Night-howler: how to construct the noise-maker
40 The Play of Punch and Judy: with full directions for producing
41 - The Characters
41 - Constructing the Heads
44 - Constructing the Bodies and Props
47 - Dialogue
54 A Charade: puzzle

58 CHAPTER V
58 Parlor Arts and Ornaments
58 Apple-seed Mice
60 Turnip Roses, Beet Dahlias, And Carrot Marigolds
64 Counting a Billion: a math fact
66 The Algebraic Paradox: proving one equals two
68 Half a Dozen Dozen vs. Six Dozen Dozen: math puzzle
69 Answer To Charade On Rattan
69 Riddles, etc.

72 CHAPTER VI
72 A Patent Play: a play in one act

81 CHAPTER VII
81 Pragmatic And Didactic Discourse: getting rich too quick, too much wine, and the art of amusement
85 Aunty Delluvian Gives a Party
89 The Duck And Double-Barrelled Speech: a short play
93 The Dwarf: a small stage illusion
97 Trick with Four Grains of Rice: a puzzle
98 Answers to Riddles

99 CHAPTER VIII
99 The Dancing Highlander And Matadore: making a glove puppet

105 CHAPTER IX
105 Answer To Trick With Four Grains Of Rice
106 How To Make An Old Apple-Woman Out Of Your Fist

110 CHAPTER X
110 About Giants, And How To Make Them

113 CHAPTER XI
113 A Merry Christmas
116 The Boomerang: making one out of card stock
119 Optical Illusion: knocing a cork off a fork
120 How To Turn A Young Man's Head: a comedy outfit
124 The Tiger-Dog, How To Make Him:
126 The Elephant, How To Make Him
128 Two Queer Characters - Captain Dawk And Colonel Gurramuchy: and their hunting story

134 CHAPTER XII
134 Hanky-Panky Instruction In The Art
134 Knocking Your Knuckles Without Pain
135 Knocking Your Head
136 A Two Person Simulated Blow

138 CHAPTER XIII
138 A Tranquil Mood: essay on impulsive persons
142 Transparencies Of Paper: how to make them and mount them
148 The Dancing Pea: small toy to make
149 Artificial Teeth: gag

157 CHAPTER XIV
157 Artemus Ward, Parlor Edition: a comedy sketch imitating Artemus Ward

164 CHAPTER XV
164 Buttywingle the Beloved: A drama for private performance
164 Characters and Preparation
170 A Drama in One Act

189 CHAPTER XVI
189 A Quiet Evening
189 Fruit Animals: making more animals out of fruit & nuts
195 Window Staining
197 Oddities With Pen And Ink

198 CHAPTER XVII
198 A Country Christmas
204 The Trick Trumpet: blows flower on the user
206 Eatable Candle: magic trick
209 How To Cut Off A Head: an illusion
211 Ventriloquism: or noise making
212 The Jumping Rabbit: made from lady's fur cuff
214 Santa Claus Arrives: making the costumes

219 CHAPTER XVIII
219 The Bird-Whistle, How To Make It

222 CHAPTER XIX
222 A Quiet Party: and an Oat joke
224 Electric Nose: lesson in static electricity
226 Miniature Camera: mirror device to look behind you
227 The Hat Trick: optical illusion
229 Fifteen Faces in One: a puzzle picture
229 The Magician Of Morocco: a handkerchief puppet

232 CHAPTER XX
232 Theatrical Red And Green Fire, How To Make Them: chemical trick
233 Red Fire
234 Green Fire
234 How To Get Up A Theatrical Storm

238 CHAPTER XXI
238 Card-Board Puzzles
239 The Cross
240 The Horseshoe
241 The Arch

242 CHAPTER XXII
242 The Swamp
245 The Muffin Man: a song game
248 Earth, Air, Fire, And Water: a game
249 The Broken Mirror: a gag

254 CHAPTER XXIII
254 At A Watering-Place
255 A Ladies Fair
255 Three Sticks A Penny: a carnival game described
259 Smoking A Cigar Under Water
260 Firing At A Target Behind You
261 Firing Firewater: with a magnifing glass
261 A Practical Joke: drawing a fly in a book
262 Explosive Spiders

264 CHAPTER XXIV
264 Arithmetical Puzzles
265 The Wolf, The Goat, And The Cabbage
267 Four Nines Make One Hundred
267 A Herring and a Half
268 Alderman Gobblels Six Geese
268 21 Caskets of Wine

271 CHAPTER XXV
271 Charades: some examples

274 CHAPTER XXVI
274 The Art Of Transmuting Everything Into Coral: using vermilion and resin

279 CHAPTER XXVII
279 Acting Charades
280 list of words that can be acted out
284 Carpet: a Charade in three Acts
292 Catastrophe: A Charade in four acts

299 CHAPTER XXVIII
299 The Worship Of Bud: a Hindoo play