THE DAILY EXPRESS

London, England

1 May 1934

(page 6)

These Names Make News

Aleister Crowley's Reply to an Article

about the "Indian Rope-Trick"

Postscript, to yesterday's rope-trick paragraphs, from magician Aleister Crowley:—

Rope-trick: the opposite of little boys, who should be seen and not heard.

Your own confessed ignorance exactly equals the total of all that is known.

Bertram, the great French conjurer, spent a year travelling all over Hindustan on its trails. Nix.

Your humble servant, best beloved Holy Man Yogi (even Paramahansa!) spent many moons inquiring earnestly though incidentally thereof. Nix.

Natives had never even heard of it except as "Sahibs' foolishness."

Origin: page Professor Sigmund Freud. Rope ascending to heaven. Boy in basket. Sword. Blood. Reincarnation of boy. A typical myth.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The article which Crowley replied to:

THE DAILY EXPRESS

30 April 1934

These Names Make News

Conjurers and hypnotists will meet in London to-night to investigate evidence of persons who claim to have seen Indian rope-trick.

Such persons are hard to find. I have never met any one who claimed to have seen it himself. I have met many men who have friends who have seen it, say "there must be something in it. . . ."

Meeting has been summoned by Colonel R. H. Elliot, distinguished ophthalmic surgeon.

Worked for many years in India.

70, sometimes talks of retiring; much too active to do so.

Thin, rather Kiplingesque face. Proud that his dark hair hasn't turned grey: not much left to be proud of.

Complete sceptic:—

     Attributes "magic" to prestidigitation, optical illusion. Attributes "spirit-photographs" to fraud.

Attributes "visions" of mystics to glaucoma.

Himself an expert conjurer. At one time kept the stock red-velveted table in his consulting-room.

Started life as a fervent, almost tub-thumping, evangelist. His wife, devout Bible-Christian till the day of her death in 1925, was an expert photographer; used to fake "spirit-photographs" which he would have sent to Conan Doyle for his opinion.