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Supernormal faculties in Man- Dr Eugene Osty

Using a Lecture by Dr. Marage at the College de France , Bulletin de I'Institut general psychologique, 1919. Dr. Marage. "Ce qu'il faut penser de la baguette des sourciers.” Revue scientifique, Feb. 14, 1920

In 1913 M. d'Arsonval read to the Academy of Sciences a communication by M. Armand Vire, professor of subterranean geology at the Paris Museum, of which an extract here follows :

We experimented
(1) on metals,
(2) on bones,
(3) on water and underground cavities.

We examined various persons: professionals, such as Messrs. Probst, Pelaprat, the Abbe Mermet; and amateurs, such as M. Prodel and others. We followed and confirmed their indications with the hazel rod.

Metals.
At Luzech (department Lot), within the wall of the old Gallic town Impernal, M. Pelaprat and myself felt, at a point which we carefully marked, some unknown body, not water, four yards underground. On digging there was found at that depth a small heap of iron-dross, some iron arrow-points, and some bronze rings; excavation for some yards round yielded nothing.
In another place an iron arrow-head was announced by M. Pelaprat at 65cm. underground and was duly found.
The same took place at Baume- les-messieurs (Jura). It was found, as stated, 45 cm. down.

Skeletons.
At Puy-d'Issolud, in the Commune Vayrac (Lot), M. Pelaprat announced two graves at 1 m. and 3 m. depth. A third, 2 m. deep, contained, according to the dowser, a piece of iron.
Excavation yielded a skeleton and a sceax or large knife of Frankish origin.
At Limogne (Lot) he indicated a skeleton buried 1 1/2m. deep, the upper part of which lay under the foundation wall of the church, which-was found correct.
At Luzech he indicated at the same depth bones which were found as stated.
One inexact description was given: at Puy-d'Issolud he indicated a deposit or bones near the spring of Oulie, at 2.4 m deep. Excavation to this depth revealed a layer of pottery with some bones of animals.

Water, and, Subterranean Cavities.
The experiment at the grottos of Lacave (Lot) by Messrs, Probst, Pelaprat, and the Abbe Mermet was very characteristic. We had an unpublished plan from a careful survey made ten years before by an engineer, Mr. E. Brunet, which had been kept quite secret.
A partial and mutilated version of it to a small scale had-been published, sufficient for the use of tourists, but which, if studied by fraudulent dowsers, would have misled them by several hundred yards. We had therefore a quite ideal test.
The dowsers, working independently of each other, began by marking out on the surface of the ground over a length of 350 m. an artificial tunnel 2.5 m. wide and 2 m. high leading to the grottos- It had an elbow turn, and was at a depth of.75 to 100 m. beneath their feet.
They followed all its bends, down-to the smallest, and arriving at the natural galleries, they followed their walls. A very exact plan was drawn after the experiments to the same scale (1: 1000) as M. Brunet's plan, with which it coincided to a millimetre.
The experiment was repeated with equal success by M. Probst.
These gentlemen also marked out two kilometres of unknown caves which will be sought for, and also a subterranean stream, followed for I200 m. of its course. The upstream side could not be verified, but the lower part, which, according to M. Probst, bifurcated twice, was indicated by him along its course, ending at the cliff fronting the Dordogne, just over four intermittent springs, which at that moment were dry, but were well known to us, and began to flow after the October rains..