The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1891-02-25
cHARLEY's EXPERIENCE.
How He Went Water-Witching with n
Twisted Switch.

DEAR II. J.. G. FRIEYDs-The page has
not been as we'll filed the past few weeks
as 1 would like to SEQ it. and thinking
perhaps it was partly my own fault, |
concluded to visit you again, if L have not
much to say.
"Wilmer" has advanced the subject of
"water-witching with a twisted switch"
Well, now, lam not going to argue upon
this subject, but will tell YOU something
that came under my own observation
some actual experience. Where the
writer lives it is hard to get water in
places that is good and plenty of it. We
had well land have it yeti, but tho
water was not very good and not very
much of it. We used cistern water sew
eral years by tiliering it, got tired of that
and concluded if there was water TO be
had within reasonable distance OF the
house we were going to have 1t. So / Sc
cured hand well-auger, and bored for
water in a couple ofplaces. The second
seeming to have the best indications, and
the fact that the biz dropped several
inches 81 II in vein of water, and water
coming 10 within SIX feet of the top of
the ground, caused Us 10 have a we'll dug
at that place, but when we reached the
depth at which the bit dropped (which
was fourteen feetl we found nothing but a
small basin no larger than a small dish
pan, containing some sand and Jew
quarts OF water 1t was no 90 here, and
the man who had done the digging said he
was going TO get e peach-stick and hunt
for water, which he did, but the places
where he said there was water did not suit
very well, so after he had gone home /
got the peach-stick ("Wilmer" calls ii
switch. L presume il is the same thing
and thought 1 would have some fun. /
marched around Tor awhile and came TO
more suitable place for well, where the
stick pulled down" | told father about
it, but ne laughed and made fun of me.
l then asked him II ne would give me s.
II got good well of water at that place,
he said yes he would, that that would be
the easiest part about it. OF course i was
anxious TO lind out whether there was water
there or not, so then went for the we'll
auger and bored a hole eighteen feet deep.
At sixteen feet L struck vein of sand and
water which came within few feet OF the
top. | concluded To test this one without
digging, so j got piece OF gas-pipe about
five or six feet long and made q sand
pump, with which / worked almost one
hall day trying to pump the water out
o. that hole, but made miserable failure
at it. the water coming in as fast as
could pump it out. Father then said he
believed there was water to be got at that
place, and | began TO think there we're
prospects of my getting the So. We had
a well dug there and have had plenty OF
good water ever since. That was near
seven years ago.
Now, [ am not a believer in planting
seeds or doing work according to certain
Sims of the moon, nor in water witching
with peach stick, nevertheless we have
good well OF water, and do not suppose
we would have ever thought of digging a
well there il it bad not been for the peach
stick. This we'll is only about fifty feet
from the old one.
"Wyandot Dewdrop," have been
looking for an answer 10 my questions.
"Carlton Pysche." Pilgrim" School