Charles Betram The Court Conjurer by Edwin A. Dawes

Nothing expresses more about what kind of magician Charles Betram was than his presentation for de Kolta’s Vanishing Birdcage:  Betram, noting that there is always the risk of hurting the bird, recitified this possibility by allowing the bird to escape from the cage just before he was about to vanish it.  Betram was well aware that, for the class of audience he appealed to, any suggestion of cruelty would be repugnant …

This is a beautifully produced book with numerous photos and diagrams.  It even 70+ pages reprinted from Lang’s Modern Conjurer.