The inventor of this object may be Bertram Ernest Adams (b. 1885). Adams graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a degree in sanitary engineering in 1915 or 1916 and subsequently became a noted magician based in the Boston area. Best known for his 1921 book on card tricks, <i>Adamatica</i>, he served as president of the Society of American Magicians in 1932 and 1933. He was a registered voter in Brookline, Mass., as late as 1959. His papers are in the Boston Public Library.
References: Library of Congress Copyright Office, <i>Catalog of Copyright Entries: Part 4, Works of Art, Etc.</i>, n.s. 27 (1932): 157; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, <i>Register of Former Students</i> 55, no. 15 (1920): 9; MIT Alumni Office, "News from the Classes: Complete List of the Members and Addresses of the Class of 1916," <i>The Technology Review</i> 18, no. 7 (1916): 791; "List of Voters in the Town of Brookline [Mass.]," August 1959, Precinct 9A, 21, http://archive.org/details/townofbrooklinel599broo.