There has been no "king of escapes" who at all
measured Up to the stature of Houdini. No handcuffs, no prisons, no safes in the whole world could hold him ; and he fulfilled the most rigorous conditions in struggling out of them. He took care, however, not to be seen in the process of his escapes ; and great fables grew as to his supernatural powers. He himself attributed all his accomplishments to skill, study, practice and, above all, a clear head. Mr. Harold Kellock, who has just Written a biography of Houdini : His Life and Story (Heinemann, 21s.), has been helped by the very com- plete material which Houdini left behind him in his diaries and by the recollections of his wife. His book is startling and vivid, for Houdini's life itself makes a romantic story. The record of his achievements, fully verified, and told without sensationalism, is almost incredible.
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