THE DIVINING-ROD 393 



in order that I might test his pretensions. The youth 

 arrived with his father, and had half a dozen Y-shaped 

 hazel twigs ready for use. The party staying in the 

 castle met him on the terrace, a broad gravel walk 

 which surrounded the battlements. I asked him to walk 

 round the castle and mark in our presence the spots at 

 which his twig indicated the presence of subterranean 

 water. The circuit was somewhat less than a quarter 

 of a mile, and he indicated eleven spots. We placed 

 obvious marks at each of these spots. I then took him 

 into the castle and, aided by a friend, carefully blind- 

 folded him with pads of cotton-wool over each orbit and 

 a large silk handkerchief We then led him out by a 

 circuitous route on to the terrace and asked him to try 

 again to indicate the spots which he had just discovered. 

 He walked along as before and stopped at several spots, 

 saying that his twig indicated water where he stood. 

 He also made futile efforts by turning and throwing 

 back his head, to catch a glimpse of some of the marks 

 we had placed at the spots previously indicated by him. 

 But the pads of cotton-wool effectually prevented him 

 from seeing anything. In no case (as a large party of 

 onlookers testified) were the spots indicated on his 

 second circuit identical with, or even near to, those 

 marked in the first circuit. His father said he was 

 " upset " by the blindfolding. We then removed the 

 bandage, and took him into a large courtyard beneath 

 and across which from one corner to another a large 

 subterranean conduit ran. We had arranged that the 

 water should be running in abundance through this 

 conduit. We told him that such a subterranean channel 

 existed. He was left free and undisturbed, and his eyes 

 were not bandaged. But he failed to discover the con- 

 duit altogether, although he crossed it several times ; 

 •and he ended by declaring that his twig indicated sub- 



