[Avodah] Netziv: Shatnez Blocks Telegraph

[Michael Orr]

The Netziv makes a fascinating claim while commenting on the
verse in Vayikra (19:19) that prohibits shatnez.  He states that it is one of the secrets of nature (mi'sistrei hateva), known to scientists
(chachmei hateva) that taking  a thread that was made of twisting flax and wool together, and tying it onto a telegraph wire, will stop the wire from transmitting speech (dibbur).  He also states that it is known to some of
the wise of the nations of the world that wearing shatnez harms and impairs the
strength of the wearer.
 
Questions:

-Where would he have found a source for such a claim (about the telegraph wire specifically)?

-Isn’t this claim easily disproven by experiment?

-Does a telegraph wire transmit speech anyway?  (Maybe he meant a telephone wire?)

-In my edition (Cooperman, eds.) all  these comments are in brackets.  Does this mean there is a question about
whether it can actually be attributed to the Netziv?

-Any ideas?

Michael Orr
Toronto
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.aishdas.org/pipermail/avodah-aishdas.org/attachments/20130702/935066c2/attachment.htm>