The Wizard shows a dove in a cage held by his
apprentice. Reciting the tale of the Phoenix, the Wizard explains
that there are other birds that spontaneously burst into flames
and are then regenerated from the ashes, and this white dove is
one of those rare birds.
The dove is carefully removed from its cage...
carefully because the Wizard suspects its time to burst into
flames is very near and he doesn't want to get in harm's way when
the time approaches. He places the dove in a special box that has
white paper mounted on all four sides.
There is a handle on the bottom of the box so
the Wizard can hold it high above his head. Almost as soon as he
does so, the paper walls of the box burst into flame and in
moments the Wizard shows that the box is empty. The phoenix-bird
has vanished.
Well, not quite. There are a few ashes left in
the bottom of the box. These the Wizard scoops up with a silver
spoon and drops back into the cage that originally held the dove.
The apprentice is told to hold the cage high so all may see into
it, and when he does so, the dove reappears, completely unharmed
by its experience.
