GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



WATKn-WTTCHING AND THE DIVINING-ROD. 



From away off in New Zealand, at the 

 close of a kin<l letter, we find the follow- 

 ing:: 



I enclose an article on waler-divining to convince 

 A. I. R. that his sweeping statement recentJy made 

 is r.ot always correct. I know personally the Church 

 of England parson referred to. 



H. Bartlett-Miller. 



Kihikihi, N. Z., Sept. 13. 



Our friend inclo.ses three pages of an 

 article in the New Zealand Farmer, This 

 article 2:ives several illustrations and over 

 (wo large pages of reading-matter. The 

 man who has acquired a widespread repu- 

 tation, as I take it, for his skill in finding 

 water, is pictured; and as he is a reverend 

 gentleman there is no question but that he 

 is honest and sincere. If he studies his 

 Bible, however, he will probably learn that 

 " God is no respecter of persons," and he 

 should also be av/are that science is no re- 

 specter of persons. In the scientific world, 

 what one man has discovered and learned 

 in the way of controlling the forces of na- 

 ture, other men can be taught, and I believe 

 our most scientific and learned people rec- 

 ognize this. Yet he writes: 



My theory is this: Flowing water generates a 



force which is at present unknown. This forre, 



which is generated by internal friction, radiates up- 

 ward, widening out, fanlike. 



Eleetricit}', wiieless telegraphy, and all 

 tliese wonderful things, work with every- 

 body alike. I quote from the Rev. Mr. 

 Mason as follows: 



" I have tried hundreds of people and found that 

 only three per cent have the power with the rod — 

 but, as I have said, tihe rod is not reliable." 



I quote again: 



"T can quite understand people scoffing at sucli 

 an idea as the divining-rod," said Mr. Mason, " and 

 I can the more easily excuse it because the rod is 

 not accurate in divination. V/ith me, if I take the 

 rod across a paddock it may move very vigorously ; 

 but in perhaps 25 per cent of the places where the 

 rod responds so freely not a trace of water may Lc 

 found upon sinking. With such a percentage of 

 failures as that, people naturally say that the use of 

 the rod is no good. In those cases I do not know 

 what causes the rod to move; but the fact remains 

 that it does. As I have said, I do not use tlie 

 rod now, but simply move along with my arms in 

 the position I have described." 



" And do you think it possible for you to be 

 mistaken now- " asked the writer. 



Mr. Mason turned the question over in his mind. 

 " Ko," he said, with quiet deliberation, " I really 

 don't think so. Out of about 500 times in 'whicii 

 I liHve located water, on only three occasions were 

 the boring efforts unsuccessful. And even in those 

 cases I feel perfectly convinced that if they had 

 gone deep enough the water would have been got." 



First he admits that only about three per 

 cent of people generally can get any result 

 at all Avith a divining-rod. Then, again, as 

 you will notice in the above, he makes the 



astounding admission that, evjen in his 

 hands, the failures are about 25 per cent. 

 I am very glad that lie has made that ac- 

 knowledgment; and I am glad, too, that 

 he has thrown away the senseless stick or 

 branch of a tree. lie gets the impulse from 

 his I lands alone. I think he has helped the 

 whole wide world, perhaps, to get along a 

 Utile out of this old-fashioned supers' i- 

 tion. In his concluding sentence quoted 

 above he thinks the few failures would have 

 been successes had they gone deep enough. 

 But is it not probable that we might get 

 water almost anyAvhere, sooner or later, if 

 wo only go "deep enough"? You see t!ie 

 explanation of this whole thing is like 

 buying medicine at a drugstore. You take 

 the medicine, and you get better. How 

 can anybody tell if he would not get better 

 just the same without it? Now for the 

 liviiiing-rocl: 



The water-witch tells you where to dig, 

 and you find water. Would you not have 

 found water, even if you had not employed 

 him to locate it? Of course, one who has 

 given the matter much study can judge 

 pretty well by the growth of the trees, if 

 there are any trees, or vegetation smaller 

 than trees, such as weeds and grass. Our 

 ^rood friend owns up that it is not done 

 through electricity or anj' other knov.'n 

 force in nature. Jle gives it as his opinion 

 that the water (perhaps a hundred feet or 

 more below tho surface) will manifest itself 

 to the water-witch by some n^w force at 

 present unknown and unrecognized by sci- 

 ence. These old superstititions, like the 

 moon's influence on animals and vegetation, 

 predicting what the weather will be in cer- 

 tain localities months ahead, etc., die hard. 



We clip the following from the Soientific 

 American: 



G. E. S. asks: I have heard o. a method of find- 

 ing a spring of water. Take a liiiio of a plum-tree 

 which has a crotch in it. Take the two piongs of 

 the crotch in the hands and hold the limb horizon- 

 tally. Walk along, and when you walk over a 

 spring of water the stick will be attracted to the 

 ground. Please let me know through your valuable 

 paper what condition of the wood (dry or green) 

 gives best results. What size of limb should be 

 used? Can any other kind of wood be used? To 

 what depth can a spring be detected? Is this 

 method successful when the ground is covered with 

 snow ? What causes the branch to dip ? One per- 

 son told me that, when he heard of it, the branch 

 was attracted so that it broke. Arw.^We must say 

 that we do not know anythii-g about' the finding of 

 water by means of a crotched stick, nor dp we be- 

 lieve it can be done. As a boy we lived in the coun- 

 try, where wells were depended upon for water, 

 and we saw not a few men use the witch-hazel stick. 

 It was said then that the stick must be of witch 

 hazel. You say it should be plum. One is doubt- 

 less as good as the other. We have seen many fail- 

 ures with the sticks, and have known men to dig 

 deep where the stick had turned down vigorously, 



