Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-01-09
THE OWNING ROD.
England Patronizing the Dowsers-How
Some Curious Facts About the Hazel

by the Hastings Board OF Guardians. he
nouncing the resources of science, and placing
hydro-geology at a discount, these authorities
lately invoked the aid of a 'dowser," or water
d%iviner, to tell them where to sink a well in
order to get a supply of water for their new
workhouse. In this case, the "dowser" is a
well-known expert, one John Mullins, a water
wizard of renown, houored by the patronage of
the nobility and clergy, and even employed, it
is said, by some of the London local authori-
ties. He has testimonials from Lord Winchil-
sea, Lord Stanhope of Sevenoaks, Lord Lee,
the Earl of Dysart. and the Bradford-on-Avon
Corporation. in addition to which a Sheffield
engineer, experienced in water works. bears
witness to the accuracy of the results accom-
plished by this man.
A short time back, one Mr. John Stears. of
Hull. made a striking exhibition of the divin-
ing rod before a number of witnesses from
among the North of Ireland Association of
Gas Managers, then holding a meeting at Lis
burn. Mr.. Stears processes his ability to de-
tect the presence of iron. as well as water, be-
meath the surface of the ground, and, in this
respect, stands distinguished from the mere
''dOwser'' class. He further states that if he
stands upon two china dishes the power no
longer manifests itself. This is held forth as
proof that electricity is concerned in the move
ment of the rod. We are here presented with
~ euhubS
A century ago, one Bartholemy Bleton made
a great sensation in Paris by tracing a suDter-
ranean aqueduct in, the garden of the Luxem-
burg for a distance of 5000 yards. This he
accomplished, to all appearances, by the mere
aid of the divining.rod The power. he said,
was completely stopped if he was insulated. In
proof of this, he stood on q stool with glasslegs,
whereupon the rod ceased to exhibit any move
ment. But, on one occasion, a Shrewd observer,
one DIR. Charles, destroyed the insulation with
out Bleton being aware of the circumstance.
The apparent effect was still the same, the rod
remaining inert, although it ought to have
moved. BY way of explanation, it was argued
that, as Bleton thought he was insulated, so
the rod answered to his condition of mind,
and served as an index to his mental
state. This desperate hypothesis might ap-
pear to some people a mere confession that
Bleton was caught mapping. But another mis-
hap was to follow. Bleton was taken into a
church, beneath which no water could exist for
a depth of 100 feet, owing to the regularity of
the structure. But Bleton professed to dis
cover, at numerous points, large and small
streams. When this was shown to be impossi-
BILE, it was replied that the explorer was at
fected by currents of damp air circulating in
the cellars and vaults. Yet this man after
ward succeeded in discovering a number of
springs in Dauphiny, and enjoyed a considora-
BILE reputation. Concerning the part which
electricity may play in affecting the divining-
rod through the medium of the human body,
scientific authorities assert that the earth cur
rents are far too feeble to produce any ap-
p~reciable effect on the human frame. This
applies not only to the search for water, but
also for minerals.
The circumstance that the divining-rod
shows its effects only in the hands of certain
persons, is a marked feature in the process.
There is no virtue in the wood apart from the
human agent, and actual experiment alone
demonstrates who is invested with the peculiar
sensitiveness requisite for producing the mys-
FERROUS movements. The persons thus quail
fed are few in number. though it is quite
likely that some possess the power who are I'M
conscious of the fact. An old exponent of the
art states that when exercising with the di-
vining-rod it is necessary to have the mind as
free and unembarrassed as possible. Good
animal spirits appear to be requisite. If the
doubts as to whether he shall succeed, or per-
plexes his mind with reasoning upon the sub
1ect, he is very likely to fail; This is said to
quently answers well in the hands of women, |
untaught peasants and children. But the
highly educated are not forbidden to hope for
success. though examples of this kind seem to
be few.
One notable instance occurs in the case of
Lady Milbanke, the wife of Sir Ralph Milbanke
afterwards NOEL, and mother of Anna, the
wife of Lord Byron. In 1772, when 10 years Of
age, Lady Milbanke, being then in France, saw
a peasant use the divining-rod in search of
water with very striking success. On laying
hold of the rod. she found, to her great surprise,
that she possessed the same power as the peas
ant. On her return to England. Lady Milbanke
put her skill to a practical purpose while stay
ing at the residence of a nobleman in Hunt
ingdonshire. The lady of the house was desir-
GUS Of setting up a dairy, but there was a diff
Guilty in getting a proper supply of water. On
bearing this Lady Milbanke volunteered to try
her skill as a water-dlviner, and succeeded so
well that the dairy was soon established. Once,
while in another locality, after displaying her
powers out of doors. she entered a room, and
was proceeding to show the company how to
hold the rod, when it suddenly moved, indi-
eating the presence of water somewhere be-
meath. An old lady, mother of the gentleman
of the house, said that the room vas formed
out of an old cloister. in which was a we'll that
Milbanke, with her family, paid a visit to DR..
Hutton, at his house on WOolwich-common
and, having duly prepared her divining rods,
proceeded to explore the grounds attached to
the doctors dwelling. DR.. Hutton subse-
quently gave his own testimony as to the re-
suits. He states that in places where he knew
there was water beneath the surface the rods
turned and the twigs became twisted. The
no effect followed.
The evidence necessary to prove that rhab-
domancy is something more than a mere fancy
or a fraud must needs be of an irrefragable
character, and of considerable amount. Moth
ing short of this can suffice to demonstrate that
a hazel stick of peculiar form, carried in the
two hands of the explorer. can, by its contor-
tions, indicate the flow of subterranean water
otherwise entirely unknown. The wand, or
rod, consists of a forked twig in the form of
the letter Y. The manner of holding the rod
seems to vary with different operators. One
method is to lay hold of the extremities of the
two branches, one in each hand, the palms up
permost and tightly closed. the stem of the
twig projecting in front. When actuated, the
rod usually begins to curve upward. In some
instances the branches become twisted, so as to
rupture the bark, or even break the twig. The
Bristol operator is described as grasping the
rod firmly with both hands in the foregoing
manner. When the branches moved upward,
he said there was a spring of water below, and ,
gave an estimate of its depth from the surface.
MI. Stears holds a limb of the V-shaped rod in ]
each hand. with the apex to the front. slightly
ner in which the rod moved. so he distin-
guished the presence of a gas or water main, as
well as underground drains and springs. S to
the movements of the rod, it has to be OBJ
served that the two eXtremities are held in the
in so constrained a manner that a very !
slight motion of the muscles, of which the op-
quite sufficient to affect the position of the
wand. The muscles of the arm. and the forked
branch itself, are in q state of tension, and the
whole position is unnatural.
1t is not a little remarkable that the use of
the divinIng rod for the discovery of water is ]
of comparatively recent date. No trace of this 6
practice is to be found earlier than the COM :
mencement of the Seventeenth century, when it
was exercised IN France by the Baron and !
Baroness Beausoleil. The Baron was an eminent
mining engineer, and was ably seconded in
his scientific pursuits by his wife. Both ]
considerably. and discovered mineral
veins in various places, as also medicinal
A charge. of sorcery was maliciously 4
brought against them, and both the Baron
and the Baroness died in prison, one in the
and the other in Vincennes. In their
explorations the worthy pair made use of
seven rods. or else professed to do so, in order 1
to conceal the means actually employed. Fifty
years later. a swarm of experts, called hommes 4
! baguette, arose in the south of France, and
we're employed to find springs of water, hidden
and mineral veins, as well as to de- r
criminals, and even to discover lost land =
marks, so as to settle disputes concerning
In 1740 the Inquisition of Rome
putting its ban on the divining rod a
and all writings in support of it. Al the COM
49, IN anf nf Rho nraSnnf -