The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1900-12-04
rnE OWNING non MYSTERY.
An English Professors Explanation
AFTER Careful Inahiry.

From the Basimoro sun.
The second ina talmons OF an elaborate
report by Professor W =. Barrett on the
"s0-called divlning rod has just made
- appearance. Professor Barrett b. a
mombcr o. the Royal Society occupies
the chair Of Experimental physlcs 81 ,ho
Royal College or sclcnco FOR ireland. ~
Dublin. ana has taken an active pare IN
the work OF the Society for Psychical Ro-
search
Three or four years ago. Professor Bar
retf undertook thorough investigation
81 the subject. collecting an the stories
hc could obsain regarding the use ~ q
forked tw8w for tho discovery 81 water
and minerals. shifting them carefully.
seeking such confederation ns might hr
available and planning experiments ~ his
own. Tho first part Ut his report. which
came out lea lsss cited il2 cases. The
second furnished many more. some or
them having been conducted under Pro
fcssor Harreffs own supervision. thrd
instalmcnt Is promised. and VIII deal
largely with the hunt FOR metals with the
dlvining rod.
In describing the operation of dow
sing" as this use u che f0rked witch
hazel twir b. locally called iu England,
Professor Barrett says that the operator
usually holds the by che pronss. 80
that the stem projects in iron, 81 him
and incunes upward slightly. when the
dowser passcs a spot whore water 81 sup
posed 90 exist the twig rises 60 a vertical
position. striking him on the breast. The
dowaer himself often appears exhausted
hv hi efforts. even complaining ~ sick
ness or gidainess and breaking into pers-
niraiion. These are 20 marked iu In
stances thas he difcards she twig alto
gethcr and b. guided By his sensations
alone During the operation the dowscr
nxss his attention GA the 10 Of she twig
and becomes oblivioua 20 che world around
him.
Eminent people az we'll a. those who
are not conspicuous in public life in Eng
Land employ duwserH Professor barrett
includes Lord Salisbury and Lanaiowne
nmong their patrons. There are scores
of professional dowHcrs in che United
kingdom. 20 say nothing OF Continental
Europe. the United States and Canada.
Amateurs also prncsico tho art. In hia
nrst report Professor Barrett pronounced
fairly successful 100 Of the 10 attempts
recorded. Rejecting the experiments %
amateurs. De Ress nincty-hve succcssful
results our Of i95 cascs. LEA fhe second re-
port BE- finds the proportion about me
same. hut be admits that dowsers may
no. report their failures so fully ana
frankly Us their hits. SIM he does not
estimate the failure ne more than 70 20
r. nor cent. Of the atscmufs.
Two sets o. experiments have been fried
with q Wow 10 ascertain the genuinenea7
az tho phenomenon. in one second 81
third oper4for was taken over the same
grounds a. the nrst and che results of
their divlnation were Identical and sue
ecsafui. some q the leading spirits IN
tho society for psychical Research hold
that when the ordinary senses are luiled
20 inactivity by sleep. natural or hypnotic.
"A faw persons or peculiar or9aaizaiion
exhibit = power ~ perception and sns-
ccpfibnlty 10 influence which u unlike
that experienced hy other people or ~ me
same people under other circumstances.