The Bamberg herald. (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, April 26, 1917, Page 2, Image 2
WITCHING FOR WATER.
An Ancient Superstition Descril>ed in
a Government Rejx>rt.
The idea that a forked twig, socalled
divining rod. is useful in locating
minerals, finding hidden treasure,
or detecting criminals is a curious
superstition that has been a subject
of discussion since the middle of the
sixteenth century and still has a
strong hold on the popular mind,
even in this country. This is evident
from the large number of inquiries
received each year by the
United States geological survey, tiepartment
of the interior, as to the
efficacy of such a twig, especially for
locating underground water. To furnish
a reply to these inquiries the
geological survey has published a
brief paper, by Arthur J. Ellis, on
the history of water witching with a
bibliograpnv tnai memoes a uuiy
astonishing number of books and
pamphlets on this uncanny subject.
In the summary the paper states:
It is doubtful whether so much investigation
and discussion have been
bestowed on any other subject with
such absolute lack of positive results.
It is difficult to see how for
practical purposes the entire matter
could be more thoroughly discredited.
It is by no means true that all persons
using a forked twig or some
other device for locating water or
other minerals are intentional deceivers.
Some of them are doubtless
men of good character and benevolent
intentions. However, as anything
that can be deeply veiled in
mystery affords a good opportunity
for swindlers, there can be no reasonable
doubt that many of the
large group of professional finders
of water, oil or other minerals who
? r,*V\ ;
take pay for their "services or ior
the sale of their "instruments" are
deliberately defrauding the people
- and that the total amount of mone>
they obtain is large. To all inquiries
the United States geological survey
V therefore
gives the advice not to expend
any money for the services of
any "water witch" or for the use or
\> purchase of any machine or instrument
devised for locating underground
water or other minerals.
History of the Superstition.
In tracing the history of the subject
iUis found that divining rods
/ - have been used (1) to locate ore deposits,
(2) to discover buried or hid.
den treasure, (3) to find lost landmarks
and re-establish property
boundaries. (4) to detect criminals,
(5) to analyze personal character,
(6) to cure diseases, (7) to trace
lost or strayed domestic animals, (8)
to insure immunity against ill fortune
by use as a fetish, (9) to locate
well sites, (10) to trace the course
of underground streams, (11) to determine
the amount of water available
by drilling at a given spot, (12)
' to determine the depth at which watpr
nr nres noenr (13) to determine
?
the direction of cardinal points, (14)
to determine the height of trees and
(15) to analyze ores and water.
The origin of the superstition is
lost in antiquity. What is believed
to be the first published description
of the divining rod contained in
Georrgius Agricola's "De re metallica,"
which was published in 1553.
"The device became common first in :
Germany as a means /or locating ,
mines and also for discovering buried
treasure, a matter of rather common
interest in those days, when the prac
lice of burying money and plate for ;
"safe keeping was very general. It 1
was introduced into England by Ger- i
man miners during the reign of <
Elizabeth (1558-1603), and before <
the end of the seventeenth century j
it had spread through the countries '
of Europe. Everywhere it aroused <
controversy. The rules prescribed :
for the cutting of the twig partook j
\
largely of heathen sorcery and as- <
trology. There were indeed, to some <
extent, unconscious reminiscences of 5
the old Scandinavian and even of the i
Aryan mythology. But this heathen 1
influence was offset when the rod <
was duly Christianized by baptism, 1
being laid for this purpose in the bed 1
" ? 11?-a j u.. ww-v* /n/h/v ,
witn a newiy Dapuzeu uuuu, u.v ?nujC
Christian nam? it was afterward ad- \
dressed. It is readily conceivable 1
that the motive for surrounding this ;
practice with a religious atmosphere 1
* might not have been altogether a be- 1
lief in its divine character, for at <
that time anyone found engaged in <
mysterious works was in danger of j
-.being charged with sorcery and burn- <
ed to death.
Its Use in Detecting Criminals.
The divining rod continued to be <
a favorite subject with alchemistic ]
writers until about 1660, when a ]
new turn of affairs was brought i
about by a Jesuit father, who de- .
nounced it as in instrument controll- i
ed by the devil. The subject was i
then taken up by the church, and for ]
more than 100 years it was hotly de- <
bated by churchmen. Some approved
of it and authorized its use on !
church property; others condemned i
it and threatened those who used it i
with excommunication. In 1692. the ]
year of the Salem witchcraft, its no- ;
toriety was greatly increased by the 1
arrest and execution of a criminal i
COllX MEAL.
llv Carl Vrooman, Assistant Secretary
of Agriculture.
.
Corn meal is a cheap and valuable
food stuff which is not in as general
use in the American home as it
ought to be. A pound of dry corn
meal provides about five times as
much energy and five times as much
tissue-building protein as does a
pound of raw potatoes. At present
prices, a pound of corn meal costs
from one-third to one-sixth as much
as a pound of potatoes.
When potatoes are scarce or expensive,
corn meal makes an excellent
substitute. Corn meal is not
however, a perfect substitute for potatoes
because it is prepared by modern
milling methods; it contains fewer
minerals and other valuable substances
than do potatoes. When,
Iff rt/\rr? mnfll i c r. 11
tuudC4Ucau^t v;ui 11 mrai 10 suuoiiiuied
for potatoes, the diet should be
balanced with another vegetable, a
salad or a fruit. }
Corn meal mush for breakfast or
supper is a standard and palatable
dish. Fried mush is an excellent
substitute for fried potatoes. There
are dozens of corn meal dishes in
addition to the different varieties of
corn bread. What is known in the
North as Boston brown bread is composed
of about half rye meal* and
half corn meal. Polenta is another
corn meal dish, extremely popular
throughout southern Europe and in
certain parts of the United States.
The tomale is another corn dish
which is in high favor when well
made.
If speculators corner the potato
crop, or if the potato crop?as was
the case in 1916?should be short,
corn meal is the next best thing. Of
course, rice is also a partial substitute
for potatoes, but rice at present
costs more than corn meal.
Corn meal is a wholesome and
typical American food.
i
The Allies' Fight for Democracy.
The outbreak of the struggle took
the president, in common with practically
all Americans and most Europeans,
by surprise. It was only after
neutrality was announced that
there was time to begin to study into
the causes and possible effects.
The public in the United States immediately
crystallized its opinion
about the responsibility for starting
the war and the merits of the two
sides. With the exception of a German-born,
a portion of the Jews, and
a part of the Irish, America hoped
then as now that Germany would be
defeated. But this hope was founded
mainly on the belief that Germany
and her satellites were wrong
in their quarrel with the rest of Europe.
It was founded very little on
the belief that the struggle concerned
America or American institutions.
In various quarters, however, as
time went on it became plain that,
whatever other characteristics the
struggle had, one thing was certain?
if Germany won, world democracy
would receive a terrible blow; if
Germany were defeated, democracy
would receive a tremendous impetus.
Out of this perception grew the
phrases that the allies or that EngJ
? finrhfinnr Alir Hottlo?thp
IClIlU \> CU> li? U 11U5 V/U.& v^x/
battle of democracy.?World's Work.
See our nice line of sample box paper.
Herald Book Store.
through the agency of a peasant who
used a divining rod. Interest in this
case was intense and widespread and
called forth a large amount of literature.
As late as 1 703 this peasant
was employed to point out with his
divining rod Protestants for massacre
under the plea of punishment
for crimes they had committed. The
divining rod was in some respects
closely related to witchcraft, as is
suggested by the use of incantations
in connection with divining, and to
[his relationship may be ascribed in
some measure the strengthening of
belief in it. Witchcraft at that time
bad become a frenzy, and anything
which by any stretch of the imagina:ion
could be suspected of implica:ion
with witchcraft became a subject
of discussion and the basis of
irm opinions and beliefs. In 1701,
however, the inquisition issued a detppi
acainst the further use of the
vv" **o ?
divining rod in criminal prosecution,
and this use of the device rapidly
:ame to an end.
Recent Discussions.
In the latter part of the eighteenth
century an attempt was made to explain
water witching as an electric
phenomenon, and and later it was
discussed as a psychic phenomenon.
A.t almost every step in the advance
of science some one has attempted
to explain its supposed operation by
means of the latest scientific theories.
Before the present war there were
several societies in Germany whose
sole object was said to be the study
of the divining rod. In 1910 the department
of agriculture of France
appointed a committee to investigate
the subject, and in 1914 this committee
was still investigating.
/
LAM) MIGHT (JO DRV. 4
4
No Steps to liring About Prohibition ^
I*nless Crop Failure Demands It.
4
Washington. April 20.?Final de- 4
termination of the government's at- 4
titude on the production of intoxi- ^
eating liquors during the war will
await the return to the United States 4
of Herbert C. Hoover, now in Eu- 4
rope, who will head the food board 4
named by the Council of National 4
Defense. . ^
Administration officials consider ^
the question pressing only as it concerns
the protection of soldiers and 4
sailors from .liquor. 4
No steps to bring about general 4
prohibition will be advocated unless 4
the grain shortage makes such a ^
course essential.
* 4
Scraps. 4
4
Thousands of Mohammedans know
the Koran by heart.
Vienna reported a saving of $142,- 4
000 Wnrth nf aac nn^or locf 4
v w v .. v- V*4. W4 o*-*.o uuu^t iaoc JXZCLl d T
new time schedule.
Rudyard Kipling and Conan Doyle
are confident speakers, and dp not
seem to be troubled with nerves.
The Talmud enumerates rue among
the kitchen herbs and regards it as
free of tithe as being a plant not
cultivated in gardens. The name rue
occurs only in Luke xi, 42.
A blow on the jaw by his cousin,
John Liskas, in a friendly boxing
match at Newcastle, Pa., brought
Mike Liskas's voice back to him after
he had been unable to speak for a
yea?.
The million-dollar insurance fad
didn't last long among Gotham's gold
kings. It's the two-million-dollar
habit now. J. P. Morgan took out
$2,500,000 and H.' P. Davison, his
partner, took out an extra million.
Lachnite, mounted and cut in the
approved fashion, can scarcely be distinguished
from the real diamond.
This imitation is said to be able to
stand every diamond test?fire, acid
and the diamond file.
We know that, the 10,000 verses
of the Rig-Veda have for 3,000 years
been accurately preserved in the
memories of the Brahmins, and that
not one Brahmin alone, but thousands
can today recite it word for
word
ji
An Italian grape grower accident- <
ally discovered that the presence of ^
tomato plants in his vineyard made ^
short work of the phylloxera, with ^
which his vines were infested. This ^
insect destroys both the root and the *
stem of the grapevine. \ Texas
produces in the neighborhood
of 5,000,000 bales of cotton a i
year, yet the State turns out only J
enough cotton goods for her own use.
This is not because her mills are so
few and far between. V
When the authorities of an Alabama
town had reason to believe that
in certain quarters whiskey was be- I
ing sold illegally, they started an in- h
vestigation. This ended in hundreds ^
of barrels of the liquor being drag- 8
ged .out of doors and broken open. ^
The stream of whiskey which flowed j
down the main street of the town is
said to have been worth $150,000. c
"Miss Rose Thibault," known to p
the employment agencies and the a
Salvation army, of Fall River, Mass.,
and Providence, R. I., as a house ^
maitj, has turned out to be Arthur k
Legrasse.- The young man, who had
been arrested for stealing from his ^
employers, said he found six years 0
ago, when he was fourteen, that be- j
cause of his frail physique he had n
to don dresses to obtain employment, u
The custom of lifting the hat is a
traced back to the age of chivalry, 13
when it was customary for knights
s
never to appear in public except in
armor. It became a custom, how- ^
ever, for a knight, upon entering an e
assembly of friends, to remove his a
helmet, signifying, "I am safe in the
presence of friends." The age of 8
chivalry passed away with the fif- *
teenth century, but among the many *
acts of courtesy which can be traced ^
to its influence none is more direct
in its origin than the lifting of the ?
hat to acknowledge the presence of J1
a friend.
Humane Way to Kill Flies.
I noticed in Sunday's Journal a cut
of a valuable device for killing flies
invented by Irving P. Lorentz. The ti
idea is excellent, but I have a very
serious criticism to make regarding 0j
it. Mr. Lorentz instructs that when yj
the trap is filled it be dipped into vi
boiling water. This would be most _
i i j ~
norriDiy cruei, ana is uub uuuuuess
to lack of thought on Lorentz's part. b<
I did this some years ago. I had
caught some hundreds of flies in a
similar trap and dipped them into a
pail of boiling water, and left them
in it about an hour. On taking C
them out about one-tenth were alive. ^
The thought of the agony they en- _
dured has not left my memory yet.
While they are pests, they are innocent
and should be put to death painlessly.
Immersing them in cold water
and leaving them a few hours
will be effectual. I am sure Mr.
Lorentz will agree with me.?Milwaukee
Journal.
^r^rV^r^ri^>ir^rVirTVVTVVTT
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Home testimony for Doan's Kidney III can
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Confirmed testimony forms stillj 1J troubles _p
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Had heavy headache. Vomited
vice to six times a day. Four doses I Best material
: Granger Liver Regulator made me 8hiD iieht rur
ill^"AU.UndaS P' BrindIey' S?mef" I "ttle power; si
Mother had sick headache. Granger I handle. Are n
iver Regulator did her more good I sizes aad are g<
lan all the medicine she had taken I money-making
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ty home.?Jenie Usey, Gadsden, Ala. I caioiog snuwmg
It is a great saver of doctors' bills. I ers and all Saw
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All druggists sell Granger Livei I SL t'trL
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Interest z It pays yoa a Cash Premhini Y
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