The early Jewish Scriptures abound in indications of the same practice. When the patriarch Joseph put his silver cup in the mouth of his young brother Benjamin's sack, in order that he might have a pretext for recalling his brethren after he had sent them away, his steward, in accusing them of theft, uses this language: "Is not this the cup in which my lord drinketh, and _whereby indeed he divineth_?" Showing the same use of the cup for purposes of divination as that indicated on the walls of the Assyrian Palace. The Urim and Thummim, as their names indicate, were doubtless stones of unusual splendor set in the high-priest's "breast-plate of judgment," and they were made use of to "inquire of the Lord." When Joshua was to be set apart as a leader of the people, he was brought to Eleazar the priest, who should lay his hands on him and "ask counsel for him _after the judgment_ of _Urim_ before the Lord." In the last days of Saul's career as King of Israel he desired to "inquire of the Lord" regarding his future fortunes, but "the Lord answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by _Urim_, nor by prophets;" and it is not uninteresting to note that Saul in his strait directly sought the Witch of Endor, from whom he obtained what proved to be true information regarding the disasters which were to overwhelm him. In a Persian romance it is noted that "if a mirror be covered with ink and placed in front of any one it will indicate whatever he wishes to know." The Greeks had a variety of methods of divination by crystal-gazing. Sometimes it was by the mirror placed so as to reflect light upon the surface of a fountain of clear water, sometimes by mirrors alone; sometimes they made use of glass vessels filled with water and surrounded with torches, sometimes of natural crystals, and sometimes even of a child's "nails covered with oil and soot," so as to reflect the rays of the sun. The Romans made special use of crystals and mirrors, and children were particularly employed for mirror-reading when consulting regarding important events; thus in a manner taking the place of the early oracles. From Jewish and Pagan practices as a means of divination, clairvoyance and prophecy, the art of the crystal seer seems to have passed to early Christian times without material change except in ceremonials. These seers are mentioned in the counsels of the Church as specularii, children often acting as the seers, and although in some quarters they were looked upon with suspicion as heretics, and were under the ban of the Church, yet they had an extensive following. Thomas Aquinas, speaking of the peculiar power of seeing visions possessed by children, says it is not to be ascribed to any virtue or innocence of theirs, nor any power of nature, but that it is the work of the devil.