Gilbert, Alfred C: Knots and Splices With Rope-Tying Tricks ©1909 A.C. Gilbert, New Haven, CT. Softcover/Hardcover, 82 pages ©1920 Hardcover, A.C. Gilbert, CT.

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Image courtesy Bryan-Keith Taylor

Comments: "Explains Methods of Knot Tying and Reveals Rope Tricks Made Famous By Great Artists."
Available as an e-Book from LearnedPigProject, HTML Version ©2007 José Antonio González Campos

Contents:

3 Foreword

5 Part I: Knots: 54 knots diagrammed
7 - Overhand Knot
8 - Double, Treble, Fourfold Knot; Figure-of-Eight Knot; Sailor's Knot
9 - Reef Knot; Granny Knot; Overhand Rosette Knot; Weaver's Knot
10 - Overhand Knot Join; Flemish Knot; Fisherman's Knot; Running Knot
11 - Fisherman's Eye Knot; Overhand Eye Knot; Bowline Knot; Bowline on a Bight
12 - Running Knot; Two Half Hitches; Two Half Hitches Over a Pole
13 - Timber Hitch; Killick Hitch; Rolling Hitch; Fisherman's Bend
14 - Fisherman's Bend and Rolling Hitch; Racking Hitch; Slippery Hitch; Sheet Bend
15 - Blackwall Hitch; Marlinespike Hitch; Stationer's Knot
16 - Slippery Ring Knot; Boat Knot; Lark Boat Knot; Lark's Head/Ring Hitch
17 - Lark's Head variations
18 - Back-handed Sailor's Knot; Gunner's Knot
19 - Chain Knot; Twist Knot; Sheepshank
20 - Knot Shortening; Tom Fool's Knot; Double Pitcher Knot
21 - Can or Jar Sling; Davenport Brothers' Knot (used for tricks)

22 Part II: Splices: 4 splices diagrammed
22 - Short Splice
23 - Long Splice
23 - Splicing Eye In End of Rope
24 - Splicing Eye in Center of Rope

25 Part III: Rope Tying
25 History: on the Davenport Brothers
27 Expose: How they did their light Séance cabinet effect
29 The Ingenious Slip Knot: a wrist tie you can release from
29 The Davenport Knot: another knot that looks secure but isn't
30 Anna Eva Fay: although her hands are tied to a post, musical instruments still play
31 Performance: rules of magic - don't repeat a trick, misdirection, etc.
31 - Preliminary Suggestions
31 - Dont's
32 - Handle the Situation
32 - Misdirecting the Attention
32 - Do Not Lose Your Nerve
33 - Selecting the Committee
33 - How to Convince Your Committee
33 - Be Original
34 How to Open Your Performance: magician hides behind a screen briefly and comes out completely and securely tied up! He then ducks behind again briefly and come out still tied but with his jacket off.
35 The Magic Knotted Rope: magician "throws" a knot into a length of rope
37 The Spiritualistic Knot: a quick release wrist tie
39 The Chair Tie: magician's hands are tied under a chair, yet he can take off his jacket or put it back one behind a screen
40 The Burling Hull Strangle Rope Tie: performer is tied from leg on top of leg wrists, and neck, yet is able to escape. This one is not an instantaneous escape!
42 Double Nelson Rope Tie: similar to The Chair Tie, but even the performer's neck is tied
43 The Dangerous Rope Tie: arms tied around the back.
44 The Kellar Rope Tie: another release from behind the back
46 The Excelsior Rope Tie: although tied to a chair, performer is able to play instruments and even link a ring onto the rope
48 The Spirit Tape Tie: another tie that allows magician to slip his hands out as needed
49 Another Spirit Tape Tie: legs are tied to chair legs, arms to the knees, and neck to the chair back.
50 Twentieth-Century Rope Tying Trick: yet another rope tying escape
51 The Ten Ichi Thumb Tie: although the thumbs are securely tied, magician is able to pass large rings onto his arms and so forth
55 The Phantom Rope Escape: a rope first penetrates a handkerchief tied between the wrists, then the performer visibly escapes being tied to a chair
57 Escaping after Being Bound to a Chair By a Committee: with lots of rope!
58 The Mysterious Traveling Ring: hands are tied behind the back while seated on a chair. A finger ring is placed in the magician's mouth. Magcician asks which finger the ring should appear on, and behind a screen, it is done!
61 The Wedding Ring Knotted on a Cord: Although two wrists are tied with a cord, a large bracelet is found hanging on the cord
61 The Rings and Cord Trick: Curtain rings are threaded on ropes, and then released
64 The Vest, Cords, and Ring Trick: variation on the above
65 A Clever Rope Tie: hands are tied with a handkerchief, then a rope is passed around the handkerchief and the ends held by a spectator. Under cover of another cloth, the magician frees himself
66 A Quick Rope Release: another quick release rope tie
68 The Magic Cords: spectators tie two loops around the performer's hand, but when all is released, they find they have tied one large loop
69 The Disappearing Knot: a knot is made in the middle of a loop, and then the ends of the rope are tied. The challenge is to make the middle knot disappear, which the magician does in an instant with his back turned.
69 The Looped Cords Through Head: a rope seems to penetrate the performer's head
71 Decapitation Rope Trick: another approach to the above
73 The Mysterious Chair Escape: Even though the hands are tied, writing appears on a Spirt Slate (another rope tie escape)
75 The Phantom Ring: a ring appears almost instantly on a rope tied between the wrists
75 Chinese Ring on String: a finger ring is looped on a string, the ends of which are held by a spectator. The Magician removes the ring from the string.
77 Great Spiritualistic Trick: another spirit tie
79 Turning Vest Inside Out Without Removing Coat and with the Wrists Securely Tied: your wrists remain tied!
80 The Challenge Rope Escape: a show ending