WATER-DIVINING 3 



of date in the face of growing intelligence 

 which has superseded them. Analogous facul- 

 ties when manifested in animals are vaguely 

 described as " instinct." 



In the case of water-divining, if not actually 

 regarded as an impostor, the sensitive, armed 

 with his wand, is held as some kind of magi- 

 cian, no great faith being attached to his 

 predictions. Nevertheless, his "gift" is very 

 real and very ancient, probably dating from 

 a savage ancestry, men or ape-like creatures 

 with practically no intelligence ; inhabitants, 

 they may have been, of arid tracts where 

 surface-water was scarce or non-existent. 



Water, however, was a necessity of hfe, and 

 the only means these creatures had of dis- 

 covering it was by instinctive mind. Thus, 

 we may suppose, this subconscious faculty 

 prompted them to " sense " the ground until 

 a certain influence affecting them was felt, 

 when they would be led to scoop out a hollow 

 into which the water would percolate. 



A somewhat parallel case will show that 

 such a theory is not improbable. For instance, 

 intelUgent man has no power to detect truffles 

 under ground. The most he can do, using his 

 wits, is to dig to a certain depth which he 

 knows in places he thinks Ukely. If any 

 success attends this method it is entirely due 



