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Another plan adopted for teaching this trick is the following: Spread on the sawdust a white cloth containing a liberal supply of oats, lead the animal around the ring and let him take some of the oats. This is lesson first; its object being to fix in the horse’s mind a connection between the cloth and the oats. The march around the circle being once or twice repeated, he stops at the handkerchief as a matter of course. By dint of practice, say in a couple of weeks, he will learn to stop as readily in a trot or a gallop as in a walk. After a time the handkerchief must be doubled over and tied in a knot; the animal shakes it to get at the grain, but not succeeding, lifts it from the ground, which is just the thing wanted. When the horse has done this a few times, and finds that though he can shake nothing out he will receive a handful of oats as a reward, he may be trusted to perform in public.

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In performing this trick in public one of the audience is allowed to choose a card from the pack, and this card, with several others is thrown on the ground. The horse is then asked by his master to select the chosen card from among them, and to give it to the person who chose it. This sounds like quite a difficult feat, especially, as is usually the case, if he has had his eyes blindfolded while the selection of the card was being made.