The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1892-02-11
WATER WITCHERY.
Why it is That Some People Are
Able to Discover Water.
AN ALLEGED SCEPTlC CURED.
The Philosophy Of the Divining Rod IA
Eiucidated by a Wisconsin savant-six
Rules About Water and How IL May
BE Eound--A Striking Case.

lie IOunu--a stflkiS Sdse'
Our modern time sorcery is water witch.
cry Skeptics are 10 be confronted OH
every hand; men who laugh at the idea
that there is any other way TO find vein
of water than TO dig for it; unbelievers
who regard the water philosopher either as
n knave or "a fool. II seems 10 be law OF
self preservation that men will trust in
nothing until they have seen it tried time
and again.
This fact alone remains undisputed, that
there is water beneath. 1t runs in veins
far down below the surface of the earth, in
assures that it has worn for itself between
the layers of rock and soil But there is
the problem, how is man TO know where
the water runsS Must he dig blindiy and
trust to chance aud his own imperfect
judgment for successful outcome? Has
nature or her God provided great supply
of something so necessary rs water, run
ming everywhere in the bowels of the earth
without which man and beast would sutfei
and all the earth be barren waste and given
no other way To find the treasure than by
haphazarl digging?
One can reasonably expect such a pro
vision IL is not, however, for even the
rerr-rtrst- to -ttttff,c- save by the fUCts thu1
have been recorded from time To time by
men who have felt enough interest in sci
entifc research 10 make record. First
that you can find of the science of divining
comes from France. There man by the
name Of Bleton made observations, and
had the good sense TO write upon paper the
progress he had made. So far did he dis
cover the conditions Of water witching,
h.. aI . h. H..
cover subterranean veins came to be called
Bletonism.
HOW OWNING is DONE.
For apparatus there is nothing needed
but a freshly cut forked switch of peach,
hazel or willow. 1t must be Of the last
years growth. so as to be small, slim and
full of sap. The tapering tipped ends are
placed horizontally in the hands. The
palms are held above. The fork is brought
upward in the shape Of an inverted V,
thus; A. In the hands Of those for whom
1t will work-and they are more than one
would think--the forked end will be at
tracted as the medium approaches vein
OF water, il it be living spring water and
not dead and stagnant. The rod will also
he attracted by silver or iron or any other
metal that has liking for electricity.
The moment that the twig comes within
the field of the water veins it will curve
downward in spite of all that can be done.
Even if the limb is grasped so tightly that
the hands turn purple and the bark is torn
the switch will bend Unseen behind il is
mighty force OF nature. At first it points
downward at an angle of 45 degs., but as
the operator advances the twig begins to
Straighten.
by the time that the medium reaches the
point just over the vein the limb attains its
usual shape and points directly up When
the iissure of ore or water Is passed the
twig will point backward and right toward
he vein IL is In this way not difficult
ming to locate the vein. 1t is IA harder
matter TO tell the depth at which water
will be found For this there is only one
rule that has for its testimonial an nythipg
reasonable. 1t is knowna as the 10 deg. rule.
The distance from the point where the
green twig is first bent at an angle of -
legs. TO the place over the vein where it is
N no way affected is equal TO the depth OF
the vein beneath the surface of the earth.
a sKEPrlc CURED.
DR. Adam Clark was one of the worst
,keptics on this matter that ever disbe-
.ieved. AS "A Wesleyan Methodist preacher,
ne was sent TO the Guernsey islands, in the
Hritish channel He soon found that water
was the great thing needful. Cisterns had
been resorted TO, but drought frequently
prevailed. There was dire suffering among
the people.
A man came forward who claimed TO
nave the power Of divining lie offered TO
find water II il was TO be found. But DR.
Clark stormed aud denounced him. lie or
lered the fellow away, and said he would
nave no such cheat around him. The man,
however was persistent A spot was
hosen. Water WAS predicted, and water
,yits found. Trial followed trial, and over
tnd over there was the same happy result
DR. Clark WIS astonished. As all did not
nave th- power OF water philosophy, he
concluded, in his pety, that the faculty
WAS gift that God had .iven to some for
the benefit OF the human race DIR. Adam
Clark lived hnndred years ago. Beforea
half century had passed Wisconsin phil.
osopber had figured out for himself what
he called the laws of divining. They are
six.
THAT wonderful fluid electricity is dis
tributed throughout the whole earth, but
some bodies generate or imbbc more OF IL
than others Those that contain more than
natur.s are said to be positively, and those
which contain less To be negatively
charged.
THE LAWS or OWNING.
One Of the established laws of electric
Tty II found ~ The Tact That Two bodies,
10th positively or both negatively charged,
invariably rcpel each other. while IL one is
positively and the other negatively charged
they uniformly attract each other.
1t is we'll known that the best subterra-
mean conductors are beds OF ore or native
metals and veins Of water. IL il their ma