I was watching this documentary about the history of magic, and one of the featured stories about Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin was really interesting.

According to the documentary, some Algerian marabouts claimed to have magical powers and were agitating for a rebellion against France. France called Robert-Houdin out of retirement to out-magician the marabouts, and his supposedly superior magic skills scared them so much they decided not to rebel.

It's a neat story and all, but something seems fishy. The Wikipedia article evidently needs some sources. A quick Google search gives me no scholarly sources to confirm the story, and the best account I can find is from the Fortean Times. Since I can't find a good source, I'm inclined to think that this is a nice little fable to illustrate the supposed superstition and stupidity of colonized peoples.

Anyway, is this story true? Is it exaggerated? What is the original source? Did magic tricks really stop a rebellion?