11

Ray Wilson of Metcalfe
16 January 2004
Metcalfe, Ontario

12

Often, dousers are called upon to locate something that has been lost. On more than one occasion, Ray has successfully located the burial site of an individual who had been interred in an unmarked grave. In another instance, a person from the London, Ontario area, after hearing stories of Ray's dousing successes, sent Ray detailed topographical maps of an area in Virginia where, supposedly, a vast hoard of gold had been hidden while being transported along a mule train route from Colorado during the days of the California Gold Rush. This "Beihl Treasure", as it is now known, has captured the imaginations of thousands of "treasure seekers" for years ever since a secret code based upon "The Declaration of Independence" was broken which indicated 30 iron pots of gold bullion had been buried for safe keeping. (Another secret code has yet to be broken which would give the exact location of the buried treasure.) Ray plumbed the maps with his pendulum, and gave many details of the existence of the gold , information that was not known to him previously, but, as to the actual whereabouts of the gold, Ray was less promising. According to him, the gold had been found years ago and nothing remained to be "discovered". The treasure seeker from London upon learning of this revelation, doubted Ray's findings and is still on the trail of this missing loot. Perhaps Ray knows best.

How does it work? According to Leroy Bull, a director of the 5,000 strong American Society of Dowsers, of which Ray is a member, one explanation is that everything, all matter, consists of energy, and energy emits electromagnetic waves. These waves have frequency. A divining rod enables the person holding it to actually pick up this frequency much like a tuning fork, or any piece of metal if struck and then touched to a wooden table or musical instrument such as a guitar. The wood picks up the frequency and amplifies it. Other less scientific explanations suggest that dousing is a type of divination whereby the douser tries to locate objects by occult means. Some suggest that dousing is a paranormal occurrence such as ESP involving a mental visualization of the unseen. Although Ray believes that the closeness of underground electromagnetic lines may produce "cancer strips", as Ray calls them, he truly believes that some individuals have the "brain power" to "see" what others cannot. Such devices as the divining rod and the plumb bob are tools to verify these "observations". Like the "Buckley Cough Syrup" commercial, it may be hard to understand, but, "It works!"

Ron Isaac,
President,
The Township of Osgoode Historical Society