144 THE TREE BOOK 



round tipped head ; but in the southwest it is at 

 its best, growing often one hundred fifty feet 

 high and five feet in diameter. The fruit of the 

 hackberry is a very sweet, one-seeded dark pur- 

 ple berry. It dries and hangs on the tree all 

 winter, furnishing many a delightful bird feast. 

 The wych-elm, or witch hazel as it is most 

 commonly called, was long connected with the 

 elves who hold the treasures of the earth in 

 keeping. In the hands of the right person, a 

 "wishing rod" or "finding stick" cut from this 

 lucky little tree would point unerringly toward 

 hidden veins of precious metal. It is said that 

 the Cornish miners had such firm belief in the 

 rod that seldom was a shaft sunk except by its 

 direction. In our land, the "wishing rod" used 

 often to be brought into service to determine 

 the right spot for a well, it being well known 

 that the stick had special power to point out 

 underground springs. The writer recalls an 

 old man skilled in the use of this "divining 

 rod." It used to delight us children to watch 

 him "find" water. His rod was a straight 

 stick with a Y-shaped handle. He explained 

 that it had grown upon the tree in such a posi- 

 tion that the rising and the setting sun looked 

 between the prongs of the Y. Uncle John 

 always crossed his arms and grasped the 



