Manawatu Herald. SATURDAY, JUNE 7, 1910. THE DIVINING ROD.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLI, Issue 1987, 7 June 1919, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. SATURDAY, JUNE 7, 1910. THE DIVINING ROD.

THE opinion expressed recently l»y the Hon. G. AI. Thompson that wat-er-diviuing was a superstitious idea, is being eliallenged by quite a number of writers, who are prepared to demonslrale their belief in a practical way. A contributor to the Otago Daily Times says that he has successfully experimented in both water and coal divining, and lias found that a knife, if held over the spot, will bend towards the ground, and that a twig, if withered, will break. On one occasion lie went into the eoalsbed to tost this, and found that a twig broke when held over the coal. When experimenting on a farm in Southland he felt assured that there was coal on it, and when the place was prospected it was found to be so. Silver also responds. He says he has not had the opporlunity of trying to ‘‘divine" it in the ground, but he has tested it by placing a shilling on a table and holding a knife in front of him, and immediately the attraction was apparent, the knife bending towards the silver. He has also found that i in ail eases the holding out of the anus at the sides of the body nets squally as wcdl as a knife or a twig. Another writer (Air AY. Smaill) relates some interesting experiences lie had with Air John Mosley among 1 the Tfaitangata hills. Their object * was to locate coal and determine its naltirc and its depth. As they drove 1 up the road from Kaitangata, Mr

Mosley got out Ins rod, suying tluit as he particularly wanted to gel the lirsl outer edge of the coal he would try at once. He had hardly had the rod in position before it dipped. “One dip, water,” said Mr Moseley. Then they noticed that they were passing over a culvert. Not many yards further the rod dipped again, but this time it dipped three times downwards. “One, two, three,” counted Mr Mosley, “Kailangata,” he said. Then came 11 dips upwards —the last dip with quite a jump—then one, two, three downwards, (lien followed again with the eleven. Mr Mosley calls these dips three positive, eleven negative. This went on steadily for over a mile, when it slopped. Mr Smaill says he watched this very closely, as he remembered that an old miner told him he was sure there was a hitch in the coal just about here, so they moved across the fault, which they found to be about 100 yards wide, when the rod picked up the coal again. The sensation caused by the steady moving of the rod was almost uncanny. The rod kept going steadily from the edge they had picked up right on to the held to which they were going. Any lingering doubts were completely expelled by (his absolutely accurately counting rod. There avus never a. slip in either time or numbers—so many forward, so many back-wards. It was (he wonderful thing Mr Sum ill had ever seen. Arriving on the held, they wanted to prospect, Mr Mosley located throe seams, noting their depth and thickness, and something of the extent and dip of the lop seam. For the sake of verifying, Mr Sum ill took him over a seam (he details of which he knew. Here again the rod picked up the edge of the coal exactly, and then gave ail the details wonderfully correct. Commenting on coal-divining, Mr Sinn ill says: Our extreme British camion is ever ready to poohpooh or belittle every new tiling, be it discovery or invent ion, and it rarely secs the commercial side of a. discovery, leaving this to (lie tiermans or Americans. Now here is a discovery tJin 1* is worth thousands of pounds in locating metals, coal notably. Air Mosley can not only locale coal, bat can also (ell its quality, the thickness of the seam, and its depth from (he surface. The watch is the only instrument used. No one would consider that an accurate instrument, Ifni it is quite good enough for prospecting. The difference is only a. matter of a few loct, and it gives I lie certainty where to liore, which, of course, must be dime for correct testing. The (.ioverninent is spending vast, sums in prospecting for coal, when the business could be done fur a fraction of the cost, and in a much shorter time.