THE DIVINING ROD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 17782, 16 May 1921, Page 8

THE DIVINING ROD.

Si rj " Water : Diviner" writes of blindfolded tck ts > an d says:—" 1 would like to inform nPrV'fSKPr. Segar that the rod also acts on silvk.'f, especially a half-crowji. If planted in. th e ground, it is vei-y easily located provii Iwg thjere is no stream handy." Well, V-' ai ? prepared to wager the blindfolded watk-r-diviner anything from £1 to £50; that>*. T will plant a hdf r crown in any quarter.-aev'6 or half-acre section he selects, and if hfr should discover the plantcd..half:crowu witb. m ) sa y, li hours, he is to take my money 7. if he is unable to do so, I am to have bis money. I have had quite- a large experience among water, etc.. diviners, in this last 10 years, and want; to come- ,across the place where water cannot be found. j. W. Aincs. Sir,—Professor Segar's theory for tha jnovemeut of the divining, rod will not, 1 am sure, be accepted by tl?ose wiio, like myself, have had ample pcoof to the contrsry. I need not just now- relate ray own experience with the rod, 'which has convinced me that the professoi' is wrong, and that oven men of science .may go astray sometimes. I was surprkied that Professor Segar should have so cuytly referred to and dismissed such an authority as Sir W; F. Barrett, F.E.S., without aff&rding. his readers some account of Sir William's tests, as published in the. scientific journal he mentioned — Discovery. The particular issue of Discovery containing Sir W. F. Barrett's tests, referred to by Professor Segar, is September last, and the account is given" in Sir William's „wii, words; they are (<X ibe following effect:—He was anxious to put> a diviner to a severe test to locate wke\ e water would, and would not. beJoond, h&.choosing the sites. A good English divirifeiT in the person of a Mr. W. Stone, of LinctfLnshire, was engaged, and the site selected was on the slope of Carrigoona Mountain, Ireland, "where," Sir William says. " the most sTirewd observer could not possibly predict beforehand the presence- or absence of water _at ajiy particular spot. The rock is sandstone and quartzite, and water-springs only occur in a few places." The?-. diTiner,- after marching to and fro, fixed on two spote, one where he declared plenty, of.. water would be found 20ft. below the surface, and an adjacent spot where there was no water. He was then taken to the- other side of the mountain, where, after trial, he declared there was no water, as the twig refused to m6ve. LAn amateur dowser was taken over the ground a few weeks later/ not knowing what had. occurred before, and his indications exactly coincided with those of the other dowser. A number of bores were put down and water was found in plenty where indicated, and in one instance, a few yards from where a splendid supply was obtained, and where the dowser said there was no water, none was found-, and. the same on the barren side of the mountain-. Many weeks- were spent in testing, and.boring. I. Hopkihs. Epsom.