THE
DIVINING ROD:
VIRGULA DIVINA—BACULUS DIVINATORIUS
(WATER-WITCHING.)
By CHARLES LATIMER,
Civil Engineer.
"There are more things in heaven and earth,Horatio, than are dreamt of in yourphilosophy."—Shakespeare.
CLEVELAND, O,
FAIRBANKS, BENEDICT & CO., PRINTERS,
1876.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1876, by
CHARLES LATIMER,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington.
AN ESSAY READ BEFORE THE
CIVIL ENGINEERS' CLUB OF THE NORTHWEST,
AT CHICAGO, FEB. 1, 1875.
PREFACE.
My Essay on the "Divining Rod," (vulgus, "Water-Witching,")having proved interesting to a number of my friends, I have concludedto give it to the public, with the hope that some useful practicalresults may be derived from it. I have no apology to make forpresenting this subject in a serious light. I regard it as onestrictly in the domain of science, and, therefore, worthy of theconsideration of scientific men. I have no fear of ridicule, knowingfor myself and "not for another," that what is here presented is thetruth.
To those who seek absolute truth, I need not recommend a reading ofthese pages. To those who merely live by science, drawing theirsustenance from it as from the "convenient cow," as Goethe says, Iwill simply say, imprison yourselves, gentlemen, in your shell; theworld will move quite as well without you.
I add a number of notes from various sources to which I had not accessbefore writing my own experience.
ABOUT "WATER-WITCHING."
(WHAT I KNOW.)
I have always observed that when any novelty is presented for theconsideration of man, which is not readily proven by already wellknown scientific laws, or which may not be demonstrated by theknowledge and power of most persons, it is found extremely difficult,if not impossible, to gain the attention of the devotee of science.Whether, indeed, it be from lack of interest, from incredulity, orfrom the fear of ridicule, or from any other cause, we look withdistrust upon anything which is not in harmony with our preconceivedideas or theories, and we are apt to raise the cry of humbug orsuperstition, and reject, with a contemptuous assumption ofsuperiority as unbelievers, propositions which properly put to thetest might prove of value to mankind.
Happily for us a wise Providence has not ordained that all minds shallplough in a single furrow of the great field of knowledge. Some,therefore, believe nothing but what they see, and frequently doubt theevidence of their own senses. Others believe everything they see andnearly everything they hear, and seize with too great credulity uponevery new thing presented to them. There are others who disbelievenothing that is presented to them, however apocryphal, without fulland impartial investigation, aided not by testimony alone, but byactual demonstration. Again, there are men who are afraid toinvestigate, lest the world should call them visionary; these arealways prepared to apologize for examining anything outside the mereroutine of their special science. But the most frequent error ofmankind is to doubt and ri