Posted by Ed Kiser on November 19, 2003 at 04:50:45 from 64.12.96.8 user Kisered.
Looking through some children's literature, I came across this
reference to "devining" using a forked stick. This gives a slightly
different point of view from that which we get from PIGEON POST when
Titty used the forked hazel branch to find where to dig a well for
water, a method that for her, seemed to work. This has always
seemed to be a bit spooky to me, with no scientific reason for this
action by a forked stick.
"Beatrice of Denewood" by Emilie Benson Knife and Alden Arthur Knife
From the St. Nicholas Magazine, the 1913 issues.
First, a brief summary of what has just previously happened...
A deviner had used a Y-shaped branch to locate the position of buried items of silver and other valuables. His wand seemed to dip over the location, and subsequent digging had found the desired items. The question was raised as to how the wand "knew" where the treasure was. Usually the deviner was hired to find water so a well could be dug in a likely place, but this time, it was buried treasure that it found.
And now, a few quotes from the above referenced book itself...
-------------
Chapter 8
"But the wand moved," I broke in. "It bent down to the ground and seemed a thing alive. Is there no virtue in it?"
"Nay," answered the boy, "'t is done with the palms of the hands. 'T is a trick that dozens know. But 't was innocent enough, and sometimes they really did find water in the places he made the wand point to."
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So, was Titty just fooling everybody? Or does it really work? Maybe the quoted piece claiming it is a trick is really just the opinion of that particular author that does not understand how this thing could possible work. Just because this author here claims it is a trick does not make it so.
It seems that some time ago, we had a discussion about this method of finding water, but not sure what our conclusion was, assuming we came to one. But when I encountered the above quote, thought I'd drop it on you guys and maybe we kick this one around. At least, the above quote is a totally independant opinion from someone unrelated to the Ransome world.
That date on the Magazine is not a typo; the magazine is really NINETY years old. Amazing the stuff I dug out of my dear Mother's closet.
Ed Kiser, South Florida