Page:The American Boy's Handy Book edition 1.djvu/387

The guests are led to a room, which is discovered to be dimly lighted and apparently unoccupied; they are then told that it is the fairies' night, and that although the little people are incapable of appearing in their natural form so as to be discernible, yet on certain nights of the year the fairies are willing to enter into and animate artificial figures made for their use. While talking in this style, the performer must borrow three or four pocket-handkerchiefs from the guests, and, after bidding the latter be seated, proceed to make the handkerchiefs up into little figures.

Roll up both edges of the handkerchief, as shown by Fig. 217. Fold the end A over toward the end B, as shown by Fig. 218. Next draw the end B up between the corners of A until the handkerchief takes the form illustrated by Fig. 219. Bring the ends of B under C, and tie them in a simple knot, allowing the ends to project as in Fig. 221, which shows the back. The handkerchief now has the appearance of a little white man (Fig. 220—front view).

After the handkerchief men are finished, the company must be requested to stand or sit where they are, near the door, and on no account to move for fear of frightening the little people. Carrying the handkerchief dolls to the middle of the room, under