Why water and metals should almost always go hand in hand in connection with this peculiar gift, is not quite clear; but the staff of Hermes, having probably the form of the divining rod, was always represented as giving the command over the treasures of the earth, and the Orphic Hymn (v. 527) calls it, hence, the golden rod, producing wealth and happiness. On the other hand, the Aquæ Virgo, the nymph of springs, had also a divining rod in her hand, and Numa, inspired by a water nymph, established the worship of waters in connection with that of the dead. For here, also, riches and death seem to have entered into a strange alliance. Del Rio, in his Disquisitiones magicæ, mentions thus the Zahuri of Spain, the lynx-eyed, as he translates the name, who were able on Wednesdays and Saturdays to discover all the veins of metals or of water beneath the surface, all hidden treasures, and corpses in their coffins. There is at least one instance recorded where a person possessed the power to see even more than the Zahuris. This was a Portuguese lady, Pedegache, who first attracted attention by being able to discover subterranean springs and their connections, a gift which brought her great honors after she had informed the king of all the various supplies of water which were hidden near a palace which he was about to build. Shafts were sunk according to her directions, and not only water was found, but also the various soils and stones which she had foretold would have to be pierced. She also seems to have cultivated her talent, for we hear of her next being able to discover treasures, even valuable antique statues, in the interior of houses, and finally she reached such a degree of intuition, that she saw the inner parts of the human body, and pointed out their diseases and defects.
Savoy seems to be a specially favorable region for the development of this peculiar gift, for if in Cornwall one out of every forty men is believed to possess it, in Savoy the divining rod is in the hands of nearly every one. But what marks the talent in this case as peculiar is that it is by no means limited to the discovery of water, but extends to other things likewise. A very wealthy family, called Collomb, living in Cessens, boasted of more than one member who was able, by the aid of the rod and with bandaged eyes, to discover not only pieces of money, but even needles, evidently cases of personal susceptibility to the presence of metals, aided by electric currents. Once, at least, the gift was made useful. A number of bags filled with wheat had been stolen from a neighboring house, and the police were unable to discover the hiding-place. At the request of his friends one of the Collombs undertook the search with the aid of the divining rod; he soon found the window through which the bags had been handed out; he then followed the track along the banks of the river Cheran, and asserted that the thief had crossed to the other side. At that time nothing more was discovered; but soon afterwards a miller living across the river was suspected, the bags were found, and the culprit sent to the galleys. (Revue Savoisienne, April 15, 1852.) Dr. Mayo mentions, mainly upon the authority of George Fairholm, a number of instances in which persons belonging to all classes of society have exhibited the same gift, but ascribes its efficacy to the presence of currents of Od.
The divining rod, originally a twig of willow or hazel, is often made of metal, and the impression prevails that in such cases an electric current, arising from the subterranean water or metals, enters the diviner's body by the feet, passes through him, and finally affects the two branches of the rod, which represent opposite poles. It is certain that when the electric current is interrupted, the power of the divining rod is suspended. Dr. Mayo tells us of a lady of his acquaintance in Southampton, who at his request used a divining rod of copper and iron wire, made after the fashion of the usual hazel rod; it answered the purpose fully, but when the ends touched by her hands were covered with sealing-wax, it became useless; as soon as she put her fingers in contact with the unprotected wire, the power instantly returned. This certainly seemed to be strong evidence of the existence of an electric current. Nevertheless, many believe that the divining rod acts in all cases simply as an extension of the arms, and thus serves to make the vibrations of the muscles more distinct. It is by this theory they explain the fact which has caused serious trouble to careful inquirers like Count Tristan and Dr. Mayo, that the gift of using the divining rod varies with the state of health in the individuals in whom it has been discovered.
POSSESSION.
"Thereupon St. Theophilus made a pact with the Devil."—Acta, S. S., 4 February.
Many forms of insanity, it is well known, are accompanied by the fixed idea that the sufferer is continually associated with another being, a friend or an enemy, a man, an animal, or a mere shadow. Somnambulists, also, not unfrequently fancy that they obtain their exceptional knowledge of hidden things, not by intuition or instinct, but through the agency of a medium, whom they look upon as an angel or a demon. There is, however, a third class of cases, far more formidable than either of those mentioned, in which the mind is disturbed, and magic phenomena are produced by an agency apparently entirely independent of the patient himself. Such are possession, vampirism and zoanthropy—three frightful forms of human suffering, which are fortunately very rare, being limited to certain localities in space, to a few short periods in time, and to men of the lowest grade only.
Possession is that appalling state of mind which makes the patient believe that he is in the power of a foreign evil being, which has for the time full control over his body. This power it abuses by plaguing the body in every imaginable way, by distorting the features till they assume a scornful, diabolical expression, and above all, by causing the sufferer to give utterance to cynical remarks and horrible blasphemy. All these phenomena are based upon the division of the patient's individuality, which cannot be remedied by any effort of his own, and which makes him look upon the evil principle in his nature as something outside of himself, and no longer under his control. The phenomena which accompany possession are too fearful in their nature, and yet at the same time too exceptional to keep us altogether and easily from believing, as many thoughtful and even pious men have thought, that in these cases a real demon takes possession of the afflicted. The bitter hatred against religion, which is always a symptom of possession, would naturally tend to enforce such a presumption. The possessed know not only their own sins, but also those of the bystanders, and use this knowledge with unsparing bitterness and cruel scorn; at the same time they feel the superiority of others with whom they may come in contact, as the demoniacs of the Bible never failed to recognize in Christ the Son of God. From the numerous cases of modern possession which have been investigated, we derive the following information as to its real nature. Possession is invariably a kind of insanity, which is accompanied by exceptional powers, producing magic phenomena; it is also invariably preceded by some grave disorder or dangerous disease. The former may be of purely mental nature, for violent coercion of will, sudden and subversive nervous shocks or long-continued enforcement of a hateful mode of life, are apt to produce the sad effect. Hence its frequent occurrence in monasteries, orphan asylums and similar institutions, where this kind of insanity is, moreover, liable to become epidemic. At other times the cause is a trivial one, and then a peculiar predisposition must be presumed which only needed a decisive act to bring the disturbed mind to its extremity. But possession is not merely an affection of the mind, it is also always a disease of the body, which in the bewildered and disordered imagination of the patient becomes personified in the shape of a demon; hence the graver the disease, the fiercer the demon. As sickness worries the patient, robs him of his appetite and makes all he used to like distasteful to him, so the demon also suffers no enjoyment; interferes with every pleasure, and consistently rages especially against religion, which alone could give consolation in such cases. The outbursts of rage in demoniacs, when efforts are made to exorcise or convert them, even although nothing but prayers may be attempted, is ascribed to an instinctive repugnance of the sufferers for means which they feel to be utterly inappropriate to their case—very much as if men, mad with hunger, were to be fed with moral axioms. Possession is finally sometimes limited to parts of the body; as when a demoniac is spoken of who was dumb (Matt. ix. 32), and another who was blind and dumb (Matt. xii. 22). In other cases the body is endowed with supernatural strength, and four or five powerful men have been known to be scarcely able to hold a frail girl of fifteen.
A peculiar feature in possession is, that during the most violent attacks of apparent fury, accompanied by hideous cries and frightful contortions, the pulse is not quickened and the physical strength of the patient does not seem in the least diminished. The disease, however, naturally affects his whole system and exhausts it in time. The possessed man, who unlike somnambulists retains, during the paroxysms, full control over all his senses, never speaks of the demon that possesses him, but the demon speaks of him as of a third person, and at the same time of himself, a feature which powerfully contributes to the popular belief of actual demons dwelling in these unfortunate persons. And yet, after the paroxysm is over, the poor sufferer knows nothing of the horrible things he has done, and of the fearful words he has uttered; if he is told what has occurred, he is terribly shocked, and bitterly repents his misdoings.