The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-04-11
USE OF THE OWNING ROD
ELECTION OF sUBTERRANEAN VA
TER NOT ITS ONLY VIRTUE.
IL Has Been Used to Find Criminals. to
Locate Metals and Sometimes for
the Cure Of Disease.
''Nlegargee." in Philadelphia Times.


10 bend downward when held over a spot be-
h Fo,,5h which water o. mineral wealth can be
Cessfully several tim A. J. L.
That communication refers TO a delusion
that is remarkably popular and TO this day
is firmly fixed In the minds OF many people
in the rural districts OF almost every por-
ton of this country. Farmers otherwise
free from superstition. have a firm reliance
in the ability OF a branch OF the witch
hazel to designate where they should bore
for a well and the same mute instrument
is applied. with absolute faith. to reveal the
hidden places of concealed money treasure
rich mineral wealth. The best answer
to the inquiry be found i'm Prot-John
Fiske's interesting work Myths and
Myth-malIers." He gives personal remin-
iscence in the following entertaining form:
In the course OF my last summers va
cation"-this was written in 1S72-'which
was spent at a small village. ! came upon
unexpected illustration of the tenacity
with which conceptions descended from pre-
historic antiquity have now and then kept
their hold upon life While sitting one even
ing under the trees by the roadside my at
tenton was called 10 the unusual conduct
of half dozen men and boys who We're
standing opposite me. An elderly man was
moving slowly up and down the road. hold
ing with both hands forked twig OF hazel
shaped like the letter inverted. With his
palms turned upwards. he held in each hand
a branch of the twig in such a way that the
shank pointed upward. but every go. mo-
ments. as he halted over a certain spot the
twig would gradually bend downwards un-
til ii has assumed the likeness OF n Y in its
natural position, where il would remain
pointing to something i'm the ground be-
meath. One by one the bystanders proceeded
TO try the experiment but with no varia-
ton i'm the result Something in the ground
seemed TO fascinate the bit of hazel. for il
could not pass over the spot without bend
ing down and pointing 10 il. Ny thoughts
reverted az once to Jacques Aymar and
Dousterswivel. as / perceived that these
men We're engaged in sorcery. During the
long drought more than half the wells in
the city had become dry. and here was
attempt 10 make good the loss by the aid
of the god Thor. These men were seeking
water with a divining rod. Here. alive. be-
fore my eyes. was Supersttious obSery-
ance which had supposed long since dead
and forgotten by all men except students
interested i'm mythology. AS j crossed the
road to take part I'm the ceremony. a far
mers boy came up. stoutly affirming his
incredulity and Offering TO show the COM
pany how he could carry the rod notion
less across the charmed spot. But when he
came to take the weird twig he trembled
with an ill-defined feeling or insecurity as
to the soundnesS OF his conclusions. and
when he stood over the supposed rivulet
the rod bent in spite of him-as was not so
very strange. For. with all his vague skep-
ticsm. the honest lad had not and could not
be supposed to have the fol scientihque OF
which Littre speaks.
IT WOULDN'T WORK.
"Hereupon 1 requested leave 10 try the
experiment. but something in my manner
seemed at once to excite the suspicion and
scorn of the sorcerer Yes, take IT said he,
with uncalled-for vehemence. but you
81. 4
you can't help it's bending If you break your
back trying to hold it,. So he gave me the
twig and awaited. with a smile which was
meant to express whitening sarcasm. the
discontinue of the supposed scoffer But
when proceeded to walk four or five times
across the mysterious place, the rod point
ing steadfastly towards the zenith all the
while. our friend became grave and began
TO philosophize. Well said he, you see.
your temperament is peculiar; the condi-
tons amt favorable In your case: there are
some people who never can work these
things. but there's water below here. for
all that. as you'll find If you dig for II;
there's nothing like "A hazel rod for finding
out water Very true; there are some peo-
pie who never can make such things work:
who somehow always encounter 'unfaHOr-
able conditions when they wish to test the
marvellous powers OF the clairvoyant. who
never can make 'planchette' move in con-
formity 10 the requirements OF any known
alphabet. who never see ghosts and never
have .presentiments' save such as are OBJ
viousIy due to association OF ideas The ill
success of these persons - commonly as
cribed to their lack OF faith. bat in the ma
jority of cases il might be more truly re-
ferred to the strength Of their faith-faith
In the constancy of nature and IN the ade-
quacy of ordinary human experience as in
terpreted by science. La FOL scientifique Is
an excellent preventive against that OBJ
scure. though not uncommon kind of self
deception which enables wooden tripods 10
urrffa a fphlTg
to twist upside down without the conscious
Intervention of the performer But our VII
lage friend though. perhaps. constructiNely
right i'm his philosophiZing, was certainly
very defective in his acquaintance with the
tiule-honored art OF rhabdomancy Had ne
extended his inquiries so as 10 cover ne
field of medieval European tradition. ne
would have learned that the mountain ASH,
the mistletoe. the white ana biack morn,
the Hindu asvattha and several other
woods are quite efficient az the hazel for
the purpose of detecting water IN times or
drought and i'm due course OF time he would
have perceived that the divining rod itself
Is but one among a large class OF things TO
with other talismanic properties. the power
of opening the ground or cleaNing rocks
IN order to reveal hidden treasures. Leaving
him i'm peace. then. with his bit OF torked
hazel 10 seek for cooling springs in some
future thirsty season. let US endeavor TO
eIucidate the origin Of this curious super-
stitiOn-
OTHER USES OF THE ROD.
s.The detection of subterranean water Is
hv no means the only use 10 which the d.
vining rod has been put. Among the ancient
Frisians it was regularly used for the de-
lection of criminals. and the reputation or
Jacques AyInar was won by his discovery
of the perpetrator OF a horrible murder IN
Lyons Throughout Europe IL has been used
from time immemorial by miners for ascer-
tanning the position OF veins of metal and
in the days when talents were wrapped IN
napkins 1d buried in the field. instead OF
being expo--i 10 the risks of financial spec
uIation. the divining rod was employed by
persons covetous OF their neighbors wealth
If Boulatruelle had lived in the sixteenth
century. he would have taken forked stick
OF hazel when he went TO search for the
buried treasures of Jean Vatican. II has
also been applied TO the cure OF disease.
and has been kept in households. like a
wizards charm. 10 insure general good Tor
tune and immunity from disaster. As We
follow the conception further into the ell
land of popular tradition. we come upon a
rod which not only points out the situation
ground ard reveals the mineral wealth con-
tanned therein In German legend shep-
herd who was driving his flock over the
Iisenstein having stopped 10 rest, leaning
on his staff the mountain suddenly opened.