No. VIII.








ANNALS
OF
ittf craft in:em                          naglanb
AND ELSEWHERE IN
THE UNITED STATES,
FROM THEIR FIRST SETTLEMENT.
DRAWN UP FROM UNPUBLISHED AND OTHER WELL'AUTHENTICATED
RECORDS OF THE ALLEGED OPERATIONS OF WITCHES AND
THEIR INSTIGATOR, THE DEVIL.
By SAMUEL G.! DRAKE.
BOSTON:
W. ELLIOT  WOODWARD,
-258 DUDLEY STREET.
MDCCCLXIX.




No.
Entered according to A&t of Congrefs in the year I869,
BY SAMUEL G. DRAKE,
In the Clerk's Office of the Diftri&t Court of the United States
for the Difitri of Maffachufetts.
EDITION TWO HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-FIVE COPIES, OF WHICH
TWENTY-FIVE ARE ON LARGE PAPER, AND FIVE ON
WHATMAN S DRAWING PAPER.




TO THE
HON. JOHN WENTWORTH, LL. D.,
OF CHICAGO,
ONE OF THE VICE-PRESIDENTS OF THE NEW ENGLAND HISTORICGENEALOGICAL SOCIETY,
AS AN ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF HIS VALUABLE SERVICES
IN THE CAUSE OF RESCUING MATERIALS FOR
THE HISTORY OF THE FOUNDERS
OF NEW ENGLAND,
BY THE
AU T H O R.












WN
--- - - - - - - - -




PREFACE.
HIS is the firft Attempt,
fo far as is known to the
Writer, to colled together
the Annals of Witchcraft in this
Country. Like all firft Attempts
~~.. in an untrodden Path of Hiftory,
this may fall fhort of Expedation
in feveral refpeds.  Thofe who
~:e "Y%~ )look for a Succeflion of Tales of
" ---   Horrour of the moft terrible Kind
may be difappointed, while others will rejoice that
there are no more of them, and may be fatisfied
that the Tragedies are interfperfed here and there
by Comedies.
It has doubtlefs been a Queftion with all Readers
of Accounts of the Witchcraft Cafes which have
occurred in this Country, how it happened that they
were fo fimilar to thofe which took place in Eng



viii             Preface.
land. The Queftion is eafily anfwered; in other
Words the Similarity is eafily accounted for.
Witchcraft was itfelf imported by thofe who firft
praftifed it here, and was perpetuated by the
Importers and their immediate Defcendants.
Books on Magick, Sorcery and Witchcraft were
brought to this Country by the early Settlers.
Thefe were ftudied, and their Contents enlarged
upon according to the Powers of the Imagination
of thofe who were ambitious to appear wirer than
their Neighbours.
So much Prominence has been given to what
is called the Salem  Jtitchcraft, that what had
occurred in the Country before and fince I692 is,
and has been, overlooked or almoft entirely loft fight
of. It will be feen by the following Work that it was
a Part of the focial Life of the People, and to them
of the greateft Importance through all the earlier
Periods of their Hiftory from the Promulgation
of their Laws to the year I700. The Queftion
arifes naturally, Why has the Subjed of Witchcraft been paffed over fo lightly by the general,
and almoft entirely by the local Hiftorian? It
can hardly be fuppofed that they purpofely omit
thofe Details with a Belief that they will be forgotten, and the Reproach they occafion with them.




Preface.               ix
Thiswould be a fhortfighted Decifion indeed. But
the Affair at Salem has not been omitted. That
has been a Peg on which to hang Reproaches
againft New England, early and late; as though
it were the Corner-itone of all the Troubles of
the Kind which ever happened in the Land. No
Attempt will be made in Defence of that terrible
Delufion, nor of thofe concerned in it; as that
would be to defend a debafing Ignorance, the
Progenitor of the more debafing Superftition.
It cannot but be acknowledged that thofe in
Authority at that Day were men "fearing God,"
confcientious to the laft Degree, and therefore felt
themfelves compelled to obey the folemn Injunction "'not to fuffer a Witch to live."  Their
Confciences would allow them no Alternative but
to obey that Command; not entirely upon the
Evidence of their own Senfes but always with the
Decifion of twelve of the beft Citizens of the
Community where the Cafes occurred.
If thofe who are fo free with their Denunciations
of the Proceedings of I692 will refled, they will
find themfelves in a Dilemma of this Sort: with
Believers in the Injundions of the Bible, or Difbelievers in them. The former obeyed thofe
Injunctions, the latter evaded or diibelieved them.
B




x                Preface.
The Inference is too apparent to need further
Attention.
The following Annals have been derived from
Materials widely fcattered. I have thought for a
long Period that fuch a Work ihould be compofed,
becaufe there is, and doubtlefs always will be, a
Defire to know what could be found upon the
Subjed, that might be relied upon as authentick.
As to this latter Particular, it may be proper to
fiate, that I have admitted Nothing into thefe
Pages not well authenticated by Documents, and
generally of the Time of the Occurrences.
It was my Fortune many Years ago, to come
into Poffefion of a great Amount of original Papers, on a large Number of hiftorical Subjedts.
Among them were many upon the Subjed of
Witchcraft, and Witch Trials. From  there a
very important and confiderable Portion of the enfuing Volume has been compofed.
It would feem from many Circumftances that
the early Emigrants to New England were familiar
with Books on Witchcraft, and doubtlefs fome of
them brought Works on that Subjedt with them;
yet the Scarcity of all Kinds of Books and their
high Prices at that Period in England would feem
hardly to allow of their being common. A Cata



Preface.                xi
logue of fuch Works as were extant at that Time
would be one of very great Intereft, but it would
be too extenfive for this Preface. References to
many will be found in the Introdudion to the
Witchcraft Delufon publifihed in I866. The
Work of the Rev. William Perkins, entitled the
Damned Art of Witchcraft, Dr. Cotton Mather's
Memorable Providences relating  to Witchcraft
(I689), Dr. Increafe Mather's Remarkable Providences (i684), Mr. Richard Baxter's Certainty of
the World of Spirits ( I 69 I), and a Trial of Witches,
before Sir Matthew Hale (i 66 I), were perhaps the
Works the bellt known to the People of New
England at the Time of the Salem Tragedies.
As the Work of Hale (written in March, I66I),
was of the firit Authority in England, and referred
to here with  unbounded Confidence, a brief
Extrad from it may be of Intereft in this Connection: He fays, "That there are fuch evil Angels
[as Witches] it is without all Queftion. The Old
Teftament affllures us of it, as it eafily appears upon
the Confideration of the Temptation of our firfi
Parents; the Hiftory of Abimeleck and the men of
Shechem; the Hiftory of Saul and the Witch of
Endor; the Hiftory of Micaiah and the falfe
Prophets; the Hiftory of Job; the Prophecy of




xii              Preface.
the Defolation of Babylon, wherein the Satyrs
were to inhabit. The New Teftament more explicitly and more abundantly clears it, by the
Hiftory of the Temptation of our Lord; the Demoniacks of feveral Symptoms cured by our Lord
and his Apoftles; the Proceffion of the Evil Spirit,
and his Return with feven other Spirits; the Vifion
of the Fall- of Satan from Heaven like Lightning
by our Saviour; the feveral Affertings of it in the
Gofpel and Apoftolical Epiftles; the Prince of the
Power of the Air. It is alfo confirmed to us by
daily Experience of the Power and Energy of
thefe Evil Spirits in Witches, and by them." This,
and a great Deal more was written by the Lord
Chief Juftice after he had prefided at certain
Witch Trials, in Purfuance of which Divers had
fuffered Death. The Subftance of thofe Trials
may be seen in The Wonders of the Invfible World
as introdudtory to and Authority for thofe at
Salem.I And as a further Bulwark againft the
Sadducees of that Generation, the Doctor adds:
"The Venerable Baxter very truly fays, Judge
Hale was a Perfon, than whom, no Man was more
backward to condemn a Witch, without full
Evidence."
1 See The Witchcraft Delufon in New England,, I41-IS I.




Preface.              xiii
The Work of Judge Hale above referred to
would make a very fuitable Chapter in the Magnalia; for his Relations of bewitched Perfons are
as aftonifhing as any contained in that wonderful
Book; and their Reporter as implicitly believed
them as did Dr. Mather thofe which he recorded.
That Judge was more regarded in New England
than any other as Authority, becaufe of his great
Piety and Purity of Charafter; and while there
Qualities are not denied him in this Age, his
Weaknefs, Credulity and Stupidity are quite' as
apparent.
I will notice a few other Works in this Place
upon the Subje&t of Witchcraft.
As late as I715, a Work in two handfome Volumes was publifhed by well known Bookfellers
in London, entitled A Compleat HiJfory of Magick,
Sorcery and Witchcraft. Thefe Volumes were
in the duodecimo Form, and contained above five
hundred Pages, clofe Print. From the Contents
one would hardly be led to fuppofe that the
Reality of Witchcraft had to that Time ever been
queftioned by Anybody, except Infidels. It embraces all of thofe numerous Trials and Executions
in England with the fame Complacency and
Satisfadion as Dr. Cotton Mather detailed thofe




xiv                  Preface.
of New  England in his Wonders of the Inviible
World.  In fadt, it embraces an Abftradt of that
Work alfo. Thefe Volumes were printed for
E. Curll, at the Sign of the Dial and Bible, J.
Pemberton, at the Sign of the Buck and Sun, oppofite St. Dunfian's Church in Fleet Street; and
W. Taylor, at the Ship in Pater-Nofter-Row;
and whoever has recently vifited Fleet Street might
have feen the beautifully fymmetrical old Dunitan,
founded fome 760 Years ago, upon which Curll
and Pemberton daily looked, and which is likely
long to remain for others to look upon, there
being no Back-Bay in London into which to fend
the Churches of that ancient City.'
There were not many  Works written, or if
written were not publifhed, expofing the Belief
in Witchcraft, until a comparatively late Period
of the Delufion.  There were two Reafons for
this. One was there were comparatively few who
did not believe in it, and the other was the Daner of lofing their Standing in Society, and being
expofed to Perfecutions of every Kind.
I The Writer has no Objection there, and to go and live there themto urge againdt the People of Boiton felves to get away from their lefs
for wifhing to have all their Churches opulent Neighbours we recommend
on the lately filled Quagmire. If thofe Neighbours to allow them to
they defire to remove their Churches enjoy their Solitude.




Preface.                xv
I have ihown in the Introdudion to The Witchcraft Delufion that there was one Man in England
who fuccefsfully battled againft it, while at the
fame Time he believed in it, or pretended to believe in it, as the only Courfe then fafe to be taken.
This was Sir Robert Filmer. He preceded Mr.
Calef, but Mr. Calef does not feem to have been
aware that fuch a Champion was in the field.
Cotemporary with Filmer was JOHN BRINLEY,
GENT, who publifhed a Work with this Title,
A Difcovery of the ImpoJlures of Witches and Aftrologers, London, Printed for John Wright, at
the Crown on Ludgate-Hill, and fold by Edward
Milward, Bookfeller, in Leitchfield, I68o.  This
is a fmall I6mo of I27 Pages, dedicated to Sir
Brian Broughton of Broughton, Baronet, dated
Brockton in the County of Stafford, Nov. 7th,
1679.' Like Filmer, Brinley believed or pretended to believe in Witchcraft. His firft Chapter
opens thus: "An Owl, an Hare, and an Oldwoman, was anciently the Emblem of Superftition;
and truly if we fhall diligently fearch into the
Caufes of this Error, we fhall find that Ignorance,
and Dotage, vain Hopes, and foolifh Fears, ground1 The only Copy of this curious Friend GEORGE BRINLEY, ESQ., of
Book known to me belongs to my Hartford.




xvi              Preface.
lefs Expedations, and cafual Events have been the
Springs from whence this Folly proceeds, which is
the Mother of all there Omens and Prognofiications."
This is a good Common Senfe Opening to his
Work. I will in the next and' laft Place give an
Example of the oppofite Sort. His fourth Chapter
is thus headed: "That Devils may do Mifchief
to Man or Beaft, without any Affociation with
Witch or Wizard." He then goes on: "Though
we do not deny, but fhall hereafter prove, that
there are Witches, and Necromancers, and fuch
Perfons as make wicked Contradts with the Devil,
to the Ruin of their own Souls, and the Prejudice
of others; yet it is moft certain, that the Devil
often does much Evil of himfelf (by God's Permiffion) without any Affociation with any of his
forementioned Inftruments." It is unneceffary
to extrad further from this Author, for his Attributes of the Devil do not differ materially from
what is laid down by Dr. Mather; both of which
it may be faid have "whipped the Devil round
the Stump," quite fufficiently.




A
PRELIMINARY DISSERTATION
UPON
teatte:~ t~o~ttet  wtt~ ~tfttctcaft.
As the Mifts clear up from the Mountains, fo
is Ignorance, the Parent of Superftition, forced
from its benighted Places. In the one Cafe the
Mifts of the Valleys loofe their Hold as Cultivation advances; hence they efcape to the neighbouring Elevations, and even there are forced gradually
to recede, and fo by Degrees finally difappear.
But the Mifts of Superftition, hanging over the
human Family, have not yet been entirely difperfed
by the Sun of Education and the unerring
Teachings of fcientifick Difcoveries.
That Superftition oppreffes the World at large,
even to this Day, cannot be difputed, and the
Profpedt appears fmall that it will ever be otherwife. While it is true that, in remote and thinly
fettled Regions its Reign is more fupreme than in
compacl and cultivated Communities, it is equally
true that it has a Hold here, not a little furprifing
C




xviii         DDisertation.
to thofe accuftomed to contemplate, and allow
themfelves to view Mankind as they are. There is
Antagonifm between Reafon and Superftition; a
Warfare which has continued for Ages. And it mufi
be conceded that, upon the whole, the Vitory is
ftill with the latter. Science and its true Votaries
repofe with their Armour on, have gained the Victory for themfelves, thrown up their limited Breaftworks, and faid to their Enemy on the mountain
Slopes, "We have no Intention to diflodge you.
We know you are numerous and a great Power in
the World. We will uphold your Supremacy,
allow your Flag to be flaunted over us and in our
Faces even; but we have the Satisfadion of knowing your Pretenfions are falfe, and that your Empire
muft come to an End."
It is thus that an Empire founded in Intolerance, is
fubmitted to by its lefs powerful Neighbour, under
the falfe Conclufion that its Affumptions and Superftitions are neceffary Evils; and therefore while
knowing their Rights dare not maintain them;
becaufe thofe Rights are declared unpopular,
and fubverfive of elfabliflhed Cuftoms -Cutoms
founded in, what now muft appear to all who think
without Prejudice, a moft tranfparent Syftem of
Deception.




Di/ertation.            xix
The unexampled Efforts to hold the World in
Ignorance, and the vafi Amounts of Treafure expended to propagate and maintain falfe Opinions,
may fafely be faid, to be fufficient to have, ere this,
educated the enflaved Millions pait and prefent,
in Truths of the firft Importance to the Stability
of Nations, and the Peace and Happinefs of all
People.
But whoever hopes or expedts to abolifh or annihilate Antagonifm, may hope and exped to the
End of Time. It is a Principle in Nature, and can
no more be annihilated or obliterated than any
Principle in the material Univerfe. There is Nothing without it, becaufe Nothing can exift without it. And when it is fully underftood, Nations
and Communities may work together for the general Good of all; as it keeps the Planets in their
Courfe, and all Things in their Places upon and
around them. The fame Principles exift in the
animate as in the inanimate World. Their Operation or Adtion in animal Life may be termed Spirit,
and the two antagoniftick Principles here, being as
effential as in inanimate Nature, and being as little
underitood, are denominated good and bad; which
attributes depend entirely on their Management as
refpets their Agency. Thus, Fire and Water are, in




xx             Difertation.
certain Conditions, terrible Agencies, and being
Strikingly antagoniftick, ferve to illuftrate the
Theory. They may be faid to be the Origin of every
Good and every Evil. They largely enter into the
Compofition of all Bodies. It is the antagoniftick
Principle that keeps them there, and they fall
afunder by the Adion of other antagoniftick Agencies, as incomprehenfible as thofe we have juft
mentioned. Whoever pretends to comprehend or
explain them is either deficient in mental Endowment, or is a Pretender and Deceiver.
A Power adtuates Humanity, or Powers, if we
pleafe, but of which we know no more than of that
which caufes the Sun to rife. This Power is Life,
and into this enters the antagoniftick Principles.
This we know, becaufe, we at the fame Time are
conscious of two Motives in our Mind at the fame
Time; one urging the Performance of an Aftion
and the other refifting it. The Minds of intelligent
Beings thus circumftanced gave rife to the Idea
among primitive People, that thefe two Motives
were caufed by a good and an evil Spirit. - If, in following the one, the Refult was to all Appearances,
to the Injury of no one, but on the Contrary, refulted in Benefits to fome, it went to the Credit of
the good Spirit; while, if the Refult was injurious,




Dijertation.             xxi
it was pronounced Evil, and the Performer a
Do-evil or Devil.'
Another View may be taken of the Powers of
Aations: What may appear as an Evil under fome
Circumfiances, may, under others, be pronounced
Benefits. Hence arifes the Saying that what is
good for one Perfon may be bad for another; or,
according to the Proverb, "It is an ill Wind that
blows good to no one." Sailors once thought,
that, when Winds kept them long from their
Courfe, they were caufed by fome evil Spirit; and
they Sometimes charged one or more of their
Number as the Authors of fuch adverfe Wind, laid
violent Hands upon them and caft them into the
Sea. His Executioners did not reflet, that the
Wind againft which they were contending, was
carrying thofe bound in the oppofite Direaion to
their defired Haven. Neither did they refle&t, that
if a Mortal could control one of the Elements, it
would be fingular indeed if he could not control
others, and thereby render their Efforts of no Avail.
At the Time New England began to be fettled
the Belief in Leagues with the Powers of Darknefs
by frail human Beings was nearly univerfal. The
1 This may not be according to Purpofe.
the Lexicographers, but it fuits our




xxii          Di/fertation.
Power or Principle before fpoken of feems to have
found no Place in the human Intelledt. Education was controlled and fhaped according to the
Dogmas of the dark Ages. It is ctill in a great
Meafure under the Preffure of that Incubus. So
wedded do Men become to Abfurdities, becaufe
they are fandtioned and believed by their Predeceffors, that they Seemingly become a Part of their
Natures. And, Deceptions pradiced in an Age of
almoft heathen Darknefs, which would not gain
a Moment's Credence in this Age, are clung to with
as much Faith as they were by the weakeft Minds
in the Age of their Creation.
As the all-pervading Principle of the Univerfe
could not be underftood, its Myftery was pretended
to be folved to a certain Degree by dividing it into
a good and a bad controlling Power. There was,
and is to this Day, among unenlightened People,
oppofite Opinions held, as to the controlling of
thofe Powers. Some believe that natural Phenomena, as Earthquakes, Thunder, and all other
threatening Difturbances of the Elements are the
Work of evil Spirits. Hence that Caufe was to
be worfhipped, and Sacrifices made to it to propitiate it; hoping thereby to avert the Evil from
themfelves.




Doi/ertation.             xxiii
Plagues, Tempefts, Inundations, and indeed all
Occurrences unexplainable by human Sagacity are
Miracles.  Science, however, has diminifhed their
Number, and rendered many natural Refults, formerly viewed as Miracles no Miracles at all.  When
a Town or City was fwallowed up by the Opening
of the Earth under it, and all its People cut off by
it, thofe of other Places tried to perfuade themfelves
that it was not their Lot to meet fuch a Doom,
becaufe they were a better Community! Such
Events were in the Mind of the great poetical
Philofopher when he wrote the following tranfcendently beautiful Lines:
"But errs not Nature from its gracious End,
From burning Suns when livid Deaths defcend;
When Earthquakes fwallow, or when Tempefts fweep
Towns to one Grave, whole Nations to the Deep?"
Another has beautifully expreffed himfelf thus:
"Think ye that they on whom the Ruin fell,
Were worfe than thofe who lived their Fate to tell?"
Thus, in all Ages and in all Countries Superftition held Mankind in thofe difmal Fetters, until
Science by Degrees has partially relieved them.
It had not made fuch flow  Progrefs but for the
inherent Love of Myftery fo firmly enthroned in
the human Mind. Nor is it ftrange that it is




xxiv           DDiertation.
thus, becaufe the Birth of all Things is a Myftery -
a Miracle if you will-to every one. Our Being
and the Being of all Things are equally fo. No
primeval Forefts of a new World are neceffary,
by their gloomy Silence to engender indefcribable
Forms, in the  Imagination. The  Countries
whence our Anceftors came had few of there.
Lonely ivied Ruins and Solitary Depofitories of
the Dead they had indeed, if fuch were neceffary
to the Propagation and Produdtion of Witches,
and their kindred Ghofts and Apparitions.
Strange and contradidtory Notions have always
prevailed regarding the Being, Powers and Agencies of Witches; and in the Attempts of "Believers" to explain them, they have by their Contradictions, and Affumptions of Things as Fadts which
had no Exiftence except in their difordered or
confufed Brains, confounded the Underfiandings of
thofe whom they pretended to enlighten.
Such a Clafs of Inftructors has written numerous
Works on the Origin of Evil, and Original Sin.
If by fuch Books they have advanced Knowledge
a Hair's Breadth in the DireStion intended, it may
perhaps be found exhibited in the more modern
Effays of a tranfcendental Charadter. If thefe or
thofe Writers have made the World better, they




Difertation.            xxv
have certainly taken a round-about Way for it;
and with the fame Kind of Teachings it is quite
certain that much Time will elapfe before the
People "of the moit enlightened Country on the
Globe" will be fufficiently enlightened to diftinguifh whether a Man will make a good or bad
chief Magiftrate of a Town or of the Nation;
yet, with fuch Light as is fuppofed to furround a
Centre of Intelligence, a moft contemptible Demagogue may fucceed in obtaining what had hitherto
been deemed a high Pofition, but by him  fo
degraded that it may be a Queftion whether the
Pofition will confer Honor on a Succeffor.
It is evident that when our Anceftors left the
Shores of England, they did not leave behind them
the Superftitions of their Progenitors. From the
remoteft period Stories of the moit marvellous
Charadter had been tranfmitted from thofe of one
Generation to the fucceeding one, and there does
not appear to have been any Time when the
World was free from the Vifitations of what was
termed Witchcraft. There was indeed a fhort
Period after the Settlement of this Country that
little feems to have been heard about it. This
Paucity was doubtlefs owing to the Circumftance
that Everyone had too much to do to provide
D




xxvi               Dijgertation.
himfelf with the Neceffaries of Life, to allow his
Mind to dwell on Matters, which, if clofely followed up, could lead to Nothing but Poverty,
Starvation and Ruin.
Yet all through thofe few Years between the
coming over and the first Outbreak of Witchcraft,
it was fmouldering among the People, like the
internal Fires of the Earth preparatory to a volcanic
Eruption.
It appears that the People of the New Haven
Colony were the firIt to be difturbed by "the
Powers of the Invifible World," but the Records
of the early Affairs are very deficient, and afford
but an imperfed Infight into them. The early
Enadments of Laws against Witches were occafioned by Accufations of Perfons believed or
pretended to be fuch. Of this there can be no
Doubt. But no Records of Accufations appear
previous to the Laws, notwithftanding they were
the Occafion of fuch Laws.
As early as 1642,' the Laws defined eleven
Crimes punifhable by Death. The Second in
t It is fcarcely neceffary to itate to the King's Opinion of Devils and
that all the Proceedings againit Witches, and to the Book he wrote,
Witches in England and this Coun- entitled Demonology, reprinted in
try, were in Purfluance of the Act London the fame Year (1603.)
pafred by the Britifh Parliament, See Witcbcraft De/uion in New
in Compliment, (as De Foe fays) England, 1, xliii.




D{ifertation.         xxvii
the Series reads, "Yf any Man or Woman be a
Witch, that is, hath or confulteth with a familiar
Spirit, they ihall be put to Death." This is
agreeable to the thirteenth and fixth, feventeenth
and fecond of Deuteronomy, and Exodus the
twenty-fecond and twentieth. No Perfon, therefore, could have the Hardihood to open his Mouth
to queftion fuch a Law. To define what was
meant by Witchcraft and what were the Attributes
of a Witch, Refort was probably had to Books on
Witchcraft, as there does not appear to have been
any generally fettled Idea or acknowledged Standard for Definitions of any Kind, though it is true
that Diktionaries of the Englifh Language, or
rather of many (for there was no Completenefs
to them) Engliih Words had been publiihed a few
Years before the great and final Outbreak of
I692-3. Hence we are told, that People had
different Opinions about Trials, and Statutes on
the Subjed. We are told too, that many faw
the Danger of Proceeding in Trials of the accufed,
but that none had the moral Courage to oppofe
such Proceedings; for the Few in Authority were
viewed as infallible by the great Body of the
People. To deny the Authority of Rulers was
next to a capital Offence. The Courts did not




xxviii             Di  /ertation.
have the Sandion of Lord Chief Juftice Hale, for
his Matters of Fadc concerning Witches and Witchcraft was not printed till I693, and its Licence is
dated May I 8th of the fame Year.
It is a pitiful Extenuation of the Adts under
Confideration, that they were thofe of pious and
good People, but there feems to be nothing better
to offer.  That fuch Men as Robert Burton, Lord
Bacon, and Jofeph Addifon believed in Witchcraft;
and that, Sir William  Blackftone "quite frowned"
on Difbelievers in it,' and that Dr. Samuel Johnfon
" more than inclined to the fame Side," only proves,
that however great (in common Eftimation) and
learned a Man may be, there are no Guaranty that
his Intelledt may not be too fhallow at fome Points
to afford a Footing for common Senfe.  Even the
great Sir Ifaac Newton, although he may not have
come in Contadt with.Witchcraft, was as fuperftitioufly inclined as many other great Minds of the
Time in which he lived. Perhaps he might fafely
be claffed with the learned Cudworth, with his
1 Judge Blackftone's Opinion, as that having a Bill, the Genuinenefs of
given in his Commentaries (iv, 60, which he was unable to determine,
ed. 1775), on the Laws of Eng- took it to the General to get his Opinland amounts to about as much as did ion. After confiderable Scrutiny,
that of Gen. Jackfon, as to the Gen- the Sage replied, that he thought it
uinenefs of a Bank Note, as related by was about middling!
Major Downing. The Major states




DiJertation.           xxix
three kinds of Fatalifm, who maintained that thofe
that did not believe in the Exiftence of Witchcraft
were Atheifts. But they lived in Times when the
abfurd Opinion prevailed, that Beliefs were fubject to the Bidding of thofe in Authority; -and to
this Day, wherever the Minds of the People are
under there Shackles, human Progrefs is kept in
Abeyance.
The Delufion was not confined to any particular
Sect in Religion, but it prevailed about equally
among Catholicks, Proteftants, and the Aborigines
of all Countries.  It is probable, however, as is
elfewhere remarked, that it flourifhed moft where
Ignorance prevailed, to the greateft Degree.
It is faid, that after the famous Bull of Pope
Innocent the VIII, in I484, dooming Witches to
Death, the Numbers that fuffered furpaffes all rational Belief. It became a Reign of Terror in
every Land. None were fafe, but every Moment
of their Lives were liable to be feized and hurried
before Judges, and the vileft Fidions given in and
received for Evidence; all of which, by calm and
rational Inveftigation, would generally be found to
have had its Origin in fome private and childifh
Quarrels among Neighbours, or in the Brain of
fome Individuals whofe Reafon had been wrecked




xxx            D~iertation.
by Caufes beyond the Power of thofe profeffing
"Chirurgery" to underftand.
But whoever has attended at all to the Hiftory
of the Progrefs of human Intelligence, knows that
no Sedion of Country can claim an Exemption
from having been, at fome Time, under the humiliating and combined Powers of Ignorance and
Superftition. Yet, as Communities advanced into
the dim Light of Knowledge, fome came accidentally in Advance of others. If this Advance happened to be owing to Circumftances not controlled
by fuperior intelletual Endowments, it would fhow
a Want of Civility for the more fortunate to taunt
the lefs fo by Flings to remind them of a former
degraded Condition, from which themfelves had
juft emerged. We remark this, becaufe many
Writers and Speakers refer to the Delufions of
I692, and I693 as though they were the firft, laft
and only ones ever known in all the World.
Hence many imagine that Salem was worfe than
Sodom; while the Truth is, the mournful Calamity
of Witchcraft neither began nor ended at Salem.
Some of the fame Clafs of Writers of the prefent
Day, if not infidioufly, ignorantly fpeak  of
"Witchcraft among the Puritans," as though it
was Something peculiar to that Sed; although




Di/fertation.             xxxi
they may not intend to give that Impreffion, it
will neverthelefs be inferred by cafual and fuperficial Readers. It fhould be expreffly itated that
the Delufion came to an End only by the Light
fent forth by that much abufed Denomination.
It is not a Cuitom among the moft enlightened
to harp and ring Changes upon Puritans and
Witchcraft. It favors of the Times Succeeding
the Reftoration of the Stuarts, in the Perfon of
Charles the Second. Writers then pointed to the
Cromwellian Period as that in which Witchcraft
flourifhed more than ever before, which only betrayed their Ignorance of its previous Hiftory.'
The amiable and excellent Dwight remarks
to fuch as are here fpoken of, "the early Settlers of
New England have been accufed of Superitition.
In fome Degree juftly. To what Nation is it not
applicable? Their Defcendants hung the Witches
at Salem, and for this Condud merited the fevereft Cenfure. Still the New England People were
as little itained with this Guilt, as thofe who with
as little Indecency exult over their Faults and Errors."2  It might be well to inquire what ClaSs of
1Sycophantick and bigoted Lloyd, cans.- State Worthies, Page zo9
gives Currency to a Story about the edition i668.
Declaration of a Witch, in Favour
of the Proceedings of the Republi-   2 Travels in New England, I,
135.




xxxii           Di fertation.
People it was who "indecently" exulted over the
Faults and Errors of the Puritans of New England?
That Queftion has been anfwered fo triumphantly,
and handled fo mafterly by the accomplifhed Dr.
Bacon, that if the Revilers of the Puritans will
read it with Candour, it would Seal their Mouths
forever.I
Elaborate " Chronicles " and " Hiftories of New
England" have been written without noticing the
Troubles of the People occafioned by their Superftition and Belief in an Agency of the Devil.
As well might a Hiftory of the Country be written
leaving out what a Belief in Chriftianity has
done.2  And yet, from Intimations like the following, we fee what Terrors our Anceftors lived in,
and by which their Advance in all intelledtual
Improvement muff have been greatly impeded:
"I could with unqueJfionable Evidence relate the
tragical Deaths of feveral good Men in this Land
attended with fuch preternatural CircuniZjances,"3
as that of Mr. Philip Smith.
To thofe who wonder that People ever believed
1 Thirteen Hifloriral Di fcourfes, we judge by the Abfence of any
33, &c.                 Reference to the Subjedt in their
Indexes.
2 Neither Young nor Palfrey has
taken any Notice of Witchcraft, if  3 Mather, Magnalia.




Dijertation.         xxxiii
in, and profecuted fuppofed Witches in New England, we recommend them to inquire if there be
not yet thofe labouring under a Superftition themfelves, equally reprehenfible for the Times in
which they live.
By many it has been urged in Extenuation of
what was done in New England in Refpedt to
Witchcraft, that it was much worfe in every
Country of Europe gt the fame Time and long
after. Let that Confideration excufe us as far as
it may; while the Confolation thus afforded is the
fame as in a Cafe of Lofs to a Man who had
learned that his Neighbour had been equally unfortunate; or, to confole ourfelves we had found
out that Ignorance and Superftition prevailed to as
great, if not in a greater Degree, in Europe, than
in New England. Thus Dr. Cotton Mather
brings forward feveral Cafes of European Witchcraft as a Sort of Palliative for thofe in this
Country. Certainly if European Examples are
any Excufe we have enough of them. For the
Remark of Hutchinfon will, on Examination be
found to be true, namely, that "more had been
put to Death in a fingle County in England, in a
ihort Space of Time, than have fuffered in all
E




xxxiv          D'isertation.
New England from the firft Settlement to his
Time."
No Matter what has been done elfewhere.  It
excufes us in the fame Way as we are excufed for
having Progenitors, born in a Country where
it was Infidelity not to believe in Witchcraft.
Viewing the Matter in this Light, we find a weftern
Bifhop indulging in Sentiments like thefe:  "'We
can fcarcely even guefs, why it was that the
Witches took fo remarkable a Fancy to the early
Yankees. Whether it was that there was fome
fecret Congeniality of Feeling between the two,
or that the Devil envied, and fought to mar by
his diabolical Incantations, the extraordinary Sanctity of the Pilgrim Fathers, we know not." Then,
after copious Extrads from  that Part of Dr.
Mather's Magnalia devoted to Witchcraft, this
model Bifhop flippantly, and doubtless fatisfatorily to himfelf, proceeds: "Verily, if all thefe
Things be true, we muft admit that the Demons
were particularly intimate with the early Puritans
of New England; rather more, in Fa&t, than was
at all comfortable for the Latter. Shrewd and
calculating as were the early Yankees, the Imps
who played fuch fantaftick Tricks among them,
were much fhrewder. The invifible Spirits knew




Di/ ertation.         xxxv
their Trade much better than to try wooden Hams
or Nutmegs, or to attempt the impoffible Talk of
overreaching their Friends in a Bargain."
When fuch are the Inculcations of a fouth-weftern Head of the Church, we ought not to expeft
Anything but ruffianly Treatment when any of
us of New England happen to travel into that
Region. We are forry to obferve that this Bithop
bears a New England Surname, yet he may never
have feen the Country of which he fo fneeringly
fpeaks, while he may know by this Time, that to
fuch ApoJiles as he, is mainly attributable the
bloody Scenes of a four years' Rebellion.
It is not fo ftrange that ignorant People fhould
be found even in great Cities wallowing in Superitition, and believing in the Reality of Witchcraft;
but that Men accuftomed to literary Society fhould
be the Dupes of fuch Abfurdities amidft the
Means of daily Improvement, is not fo eafily
comprehended.
In all Periods of Hiftory have appeared Prophets,
or Pretenders to the Ability to foretell future
Events. As Witches were fuppofed to be able to
do this they too were Prophets; but to the Apprehenfion of fenfible People of this Age, there
are few more contemptible Beings than thofe who




xxxvi          DiJSertation.
are going about prating of an approaching Millennium, pretending to fix the Date when Chrift
is to make his Appearance. Illiterate People, like
the late William Miller, who have fcarcely read
Anything except the Bible, may claim fome
Excufe for not knowing how many have, from
actual Calculations, fixed upon the precife Day
and even Hour of that Event. It would feem, that
if thefe millennium Quacks ihould once fee a
Catalogue of thofe Prophecies, and learn the
Confidence with which they were put forth, and
that their Calculations were as well grounded as
any that can in Reafon be made, from the Premifes
made Ufe of, the World might in Future be relieved
from the Inflition of Floods of ill-literature upon
this Subjea. But, as though Mankind had learned
Nothing from the Pail in this Refpe&t, we fee the
Prefs teeming with millennium humbug Pamphlets even to our own Times. And however
this may be viewed, it is only a Branch -of that
Superftition, out of which Witchcraft is another
and perhaps earlier Branch.
Great Pains have been taken to explain away
the Devil out of the New Teftament, by Attempts
to prove that the plaineft Language is, and always
has been mifunderftood. When to Perfons of




Dijertation.            xxxvii
ordinary common Senfe it is perfedly clear, that if
what is written and received as the Word of God
means Anything it means what it fays. Neverthelefs we meet with fome moit ingenious and learned
Arguments, turning all Paffages where the Devil
figures into Allegories, while they do not meddle
with Witches.'
The eminent Dr. Lardner has proved to the
Satisfadtion of Thoufands that the New Teftament
is full of Fads fuftaining the Words of thofe
Books as they ftand, literally.a Befides, every good
Lutheran believes in the perfonal Encounter the
old Saint of Erfurth had with the Devil on a certain Occafion.  And one much nearer the Time
of the Event than we are fays:
"Did not the Devil appear to Martin
Luther in Germany, for certain?
And would have gull'd him with a Trick,
But Mart. was too, too politick? "
Thus verifying to his early Friends, (the Catholicks), their old Proverb, "that a young Saint will
prove an old Devil."  Yet, one of our early New
England Divines believed with Erafmus, who faid
"the Devil was the Author of that Proverb."3
1 The Rev. M. C. Conway's   3 See Dr. I. Mather's EleTion
Natural HiJlory of the Devil.    Sermon, 1677, P. IOI.
2 Cafe of the Demoniacs. 1758.




xxxviii        Difertation.
The Undertaking would be by no Means inconfiderable, to collect even the Titles of Works
on the Subjed of Witchcraft, without including
thofe of our own Times. For the laft half Century
they have been iffued generally as Novels, but
fome of them fo artfully that many have doubtlefs
taken them for Realities. Here is a Specimen:
The Phantom World, tranjfated from the French
of Calmet, with a Preface and Notes by [the] Rev.
Henry Chri/imas; giving a general Survey of the
Hijlory and Philofophy of Spirit  Ghos, Elves,
Fairies, Spooks, Bogles, Bugaboos, and Hobgoblins.
Upon this Title one, a Writer in a popular
Work, remarked: " It will probably meet with
an extenfive Circulation, in there Days when
Conneticut Divines are haunted by infernal Vifits,
and the Rochefter Sibyls are on Exhibition in
New York."
When the above Announcement was made,
about eighteen Years ago, the Farce of Spirit-rappings and Table-turnings was at its Height; and it
was reported, with what of Truth we cannot fay,
that a Number of Believers in thefe "fpiritual
Manifeftations" had formed a Settlement at a Place
called Mountain Cave, in Fayette County in
Virginia, having purchafed fourteen thoufand




Dgi ertation.         xxxix
Dollars' Worth of farming Lands thereabouts, and
that Families were being added to the firft
Adventurers which had previoufly refided at Auburn in New York. They carried on the Iffue of
Newfpapers, the Writings in which were "the
Didation of the Spirits."  Whether this Community was in Exiftence in the Time of the late
Rebellion, we have not heard. This is introduced
as another Illuftration of what has been often
afferted, that there is Nothing too abfurd or ridiculous, where Myftery lies at the Bottom, to obtain
devoted Followers. About the Time this Colony
of Spiritual Rappers was formed, fome waggifh
Editor remarked: "Somewhere in Virginia, is a
Place called Mountain Cave, where Spiritual Rappers have colonized in large Numbers and flarted a
Paper. The Covies, fays the New York Dutchman, have bored a Hole down through this poor
contemptible Hemifphere and can fee clean into
the next World."
Having become tired of the old Notions of
Revelation taught them by their Anceftors, new
Theories are invented. Thofe find Followers for
a Time, and are then Succeeded by others; which,
though equally fhallow and abfurd, have their
Followers; and thus it will probably always be,




xl             Di /ertation.
becaufe all People are born in Ignorance and have
Everything to learn.
The Thoufands, if not Millions of Volumes
which have been written and circulated for the
Enlightenment of the ignorant World regarding
a future State and Things appertaining thereto
cannot but be immeafurably bewildering to all
thofe who are inclined to confult them for the
kind of Information moft interefting, and in their
Opinion, moit important to them. Nor will it
ever be otherwife fo long as the Writers of fuch
Works as we refer to bafe all their crude Arguments on falfe Foundations, or rather on no
Foundation at all. With this Clafs of Writers it
makes no Difference how often their Foundations
have been fhown to be falfe, they have no Will to
defert them. They begin and end their Labours
on Affumption. To explain away Witches from
the Bible has occupied Pens which ihould have
been better employed. The fame may be faid of
thofe who have attempted to argue the Devil out
of the New Teftament. The elegant Style of
Lardner has effeCed Nothing but an Exhibition
of fine Writing. His lateft Imitators will foon
be forgotten, though fome of them may have been
read on Account of the Singularity of their Subjed.




.Di/ertation.            xli
One who wrote anonymoufly, and publifhed his
"Effay" in 1833, among fome senfible Remarks
has this:  "Thofe who think that Demoniacks
were adtually tortured by the Devil-that he
brought Diforders upon  them -threw  them
down- prevented them from fpeaking, hearing,
and feeing, generally fay it was Something peculiar
to that Age," &c. To which this Effayift very
fignificantly inquires, why it was that the Devil
always threw his Vidims down, and never threw
them up?  There was publifhed the previous
Year an Ejay on the Demoniacs of the New Tefiament, accompanied by the well known Initials of
E. S. G. In this there is fuch a-nice balancing
of fyllogiftick Ideas, that a common Mind may
find itfelf bewildered and in ferious Doubt whether
the Writer does really mean Anything.
In an Attempt to controvert the Theories of
modern Spiritualifts, a Preacher tells us that
"what was Falfehood and Impofture in the Days
of the Hebrew Commonwealth, has not become
by the mere Lapfe of Time, a great and beneficent
Difcovery, opening new Fountains of Knowledge."
At the fame Time he tells us that Spiritualifm
"is a Branch of the Art of Divination pradifed
in the Old World from  Time Immemorial."
F




xlii               Dig ertation.
But it is better to give Things their real Names.
It is not eafy to diftinguifh between a Branch of
this Kind and the Tree itfelf. The Truth feems
to be, that the Witchcraft of former Days had
become fo unpopular, that it could not be made
any longer to fubferve the Interefts of thofe who
pradifed it.  Hence it is given a new Name, and
yet retains the fame Myftery of Development.
Fortune-telling is as much a Branch of Witchcraft as Spirit-rapping, Table-turning, or any
other of the "occult Sciences." Thefe are the
legitimate Progenitors of Ghofts or Apparitions.
It would not require a very dark Night to produce
ihefe Spedres in the Imagination of thofe returning from a Vifit to a Fortune-teller, or by paffing
the filent and lonely Church-yard. How woefully did our Quaker Poet err, when he fancied
he was finging a Requiem over the laft Witch
of his native Land in there Lines:
" How has New England's Romance fled,
Even as a Vifion of the Morning!
Its Rites foregone -its Guardians dead —
Its Altar-fires extinguifihed
Its Priefteffes, bereft of Dread,
Waking the verietf Urchins fcorning!
No more along the (hadowy Glen,
Glide the dim Ghofts of murdered Men,



Difertation.                   xliii
No more the Unquiet Church-yard Dead,
Glimpfe upward from their turfy Bed,
Startling the Traveller, late and loane;
As, on fome Night of cloudy Weather,
They commune filently together,
Each fitting on his own Head-ftone!
The rooflefs Houfe, decayed, deferted,
Its living Tenants all departed,
No longer rings with Midnight Revel,
Of Witch, or Ghoft, or Goblin evil;
No hellifh Flame fends out its Flafhes
Through creviced Roof and fhattered Safhes!The Witch-grafs round the Hazel spring,
May fharply to the night Air sing,
But there no more fhall withered Hags
Refrefh at Eafe their Broomftick Nags;
Or tafte thofe hazel-fhadowed Waters
As Beverage meet for Satan's Daughters;
No more their mimick Tones be heardThe Mew of Cat-the Chirp of Bird,
Shrill blending with the hoarfer Laughter
Of the fell Demon following after."
We fay how  egregioufly  he erred in fuppofing
that "New  England Romance had fled!" thirtyfeven Years ago, becaufe he muft have known
that haunted Houfes exifred and Ghoits flitted
about as they lifted in the very Borders of the
great Metropolis near the prefent Time; that
within a Year, many, perhaps feveral thoufands,
went out of this City of Boftilon to fee a haunted




xliv          Difertation.
Houfe in the Vicinity. Whether, as they approached the Place, the Hairs of their Heads ftood
ered, their Teeth chattered, and their Knees
fmote together, we cannot fay, but fome of them
returned with myfterious Countenances, and it
was many Days before they were willing to give
up the Idea that they did not come very near
feeing a Nonentity. About the fame Time, Ghofts
were having a brave Time at Fort Warren down
in the Harbour, according to Reports current in
the City, Many Perfons, it is faid, went down
towards the Ifland on which the Fort is fituated,
but probably had not the Courage to land, as they
made no Report afterwards.
The Reader fhould now be informed that the
poetical Extrad foregoing is from a Poem commemorative of as great and notorious a Witch as
any that can be found defcribed in the ANNALS OF
WITCHCRAFT; and that we are indebted to the
Bard of Lynn for a graphic Outline of her real
Hiftory. But the Reader fhould be reminded
that the amiable and excellent Author of that
Work was himfelf a Poet, and that it is poffible
that his Account may have a Tinge of Poetry,
or be a little bordering on Romnance. With this
Premonition it flall follow in his own Words:




Difertation.            xlv
"The celebrated Mary Pitcher, a profeffed
Fortune-teller, died April 9th, I813, aged 75.
Her Grandfather, John Dimond, lived at Marblehead, and for many Years exercifed the fame
Pretenfions.  Her Father, Capt. John Dimond,
was Mafter of a Veffel from that Place, and was
living in I770. Mary Dimond was born in the
Year I738. She was conne&ed with fome of the
bell Families in Effex County, and with the
Exception of her extraordinary Pretenfions, there
was Nothing difreputable in her Life or Character. She was of the medium Height and Size
for a Woman, with a good Form and agreeable
Manners. Her Head, phrenologically confidered, was fomewhat capacious; her Forehead
broad and full, her Hair dark Brown, her Nofe
inclining to long, and her Face pale and thin.
There was nothing grofs or fenfual in her Appearance-her Countenance was rather Intelledual;
and fhe had that Contour of Face and Expreffion
which, without being pofitively beautiful is, neverthelefs, decidedly interefting -a thoughtful, penfive, and fometimes downcaft Look, almoft
approaching to Melancholy- an Eye, when it
looked at you, of calm and keen Penetration
and an Expreffion of intelligent Difcernment,




xlvi           Di/ertation.
half mingled with a Glance of Shrewdnefs. She
took a poor Man for a Hufband, and then adopted
what fhe Doubtlefs thought the harmlefs Employment of Fortune-telling, in Order to fupport her
Children. In this The was probably more fucceffful than {he herfelf had anticipated; and fhe
became celebrated, not only throughout America,
but throughout the World, for her Skill. There
was no Port on either Continent, where floated the
Flag of an American Ship, that had not heard of
the Fame of MOLL PITCHER. To her came the
Rich and the Poor-the Wife and the Ignorant- the Accomplifhed and the Vulgar-the
Timid and the Brave. The ignorant Sailor, who
believed in the Omens and Dreams of Superftition,
and the intelligent Merchant, whofe Ships were
freighted for diftant Lands, alike fought her
Dwelling; and many a Veffel has been deferted
by its Crew, and waited idly at the Wharves,
for Weeks, in Confequence of her unlucky Predictions. Many Perfons came from Places far
remote, to confult her on Affairs of Love or Loss
of Property; or to obtain her Surmifes refpecting
the Viciffitudes of their future Fortune. Every
Youth, who was not affured of the reciprocal Affe6tion of his fair one, and every Maid who was




Di//ertation.              xlvii
defirous of anticipating the Hour of her higheft
Felicity, repaired at Evening to her humble
Dwelling, which flood on what was then a lonely
Road, near the Foot of High Rock, with the
fingle Dwelling of Dr. Henry Burchard nearly
oppofite; over whofe Gateway were the two
Bones of a great Whale, difpofed in the Form of
a Gothic Arch. There for more than fifty Years,
in her unpretending Manfion, did ihe anfwer the
Inquiries of the fimple Ruitic from the Wilds of
New Hampfhire, and the wealthy Noble from
Europe; and, doubtlefs her Preditions have had
an Influence in ihaping the Fortunes of Thoufands."
This is a Sketch drawn from Life.  Mr. Lewis
remembered Mary Pitcher well, for he lived
near her, and was eighteen Years of Age when
ihe died.  "Her Hufband was a Shoemaker
named Robert Pitcher, to whom fhe was married
October 2d, I 760, of Courfe at the Age of twentytwo. She had one Son, John, and three Daughters, Rebecca, Ruth, and Lydia, who married
-refpeEtably, and fome of her Defcendants are
among the prettieft young Ladies of Lynn."'
1 Mr. NEWHALL in his valuable graph of MARY PITCHER, and an
Additions to the Hiitory of Lynn Engraving of the Houfe in which
has given a Fac Simile of the Auto- the lived.




xlviii        Dif ertation.
Another, one of New England's elegant Writers,
who alfo knew the celebrated Mary Pitcher, has
left the following Note upon her: "She was
fo well known to moft Perfons, that their Recollections will be better than any Defcription.
She had thin Lips, the arched Eyebrows, the
chappy Finger, and that Shrewdnefs which have
fo often been the Charadteriftics of thofe who have
deceived the World by pretending to tell Fortunes, or to find loft Goods. It can do no Harm
to amufe ourfelves by the Hiftory of any Delufion
when it has paffed. The Age of Reafon has come,
and Superftition is now fhaking from her Raven
Wings the laif Dewdrops fwept from the Fens
of Ignorance, and the Light of Knowledge has
broken the Enchanter's Wand and the Sorcerer's
Cup.') I
Had this excellent Writer lived thirty Years
later he would have found that Something of the
Wand Kind has been more active than ever, and
that the Wand of the Spirit-Rapper is far in
advance of that of the Conjuror of his Time.
They hold Communion with the Dead and lead
captive the ftrong minded living of our Day.
Alas for the Age of Reafon! It is in Profpeat
1 Samuel L. Knapp in 8 z25.




Dfiertation.            xlix
like that glorious funny Point called the Weft,
which when reached is no longer there, but becomes the oppofite -the Eaft.
Notwithftanding the great Fame of Moll
Pitcher, there was another Female quite as notorious and contemporary with her, refiding in
Newburyport, and therefore better known perhaps to Mr. Knapp than the Former.  This
Woman would probably have rivalled Mary in
Fame, had fhe refided as near Bofton. Of that,
however, the Reader can judge, after the Perufal
of what Mr. Knapp has left us. He fays: "The
Writer remembers, in his fhort Life, three Perfons, not only reputed, as many more have been,
but abfolutely believed by a great Portion of the
Credulous, to have pradtifed the Arts of Witchcraft.  The firft lived in Newburyport.  She
was a Woman of extraordinary Appearancefhe was fhort, but ftout; had a ftrongly marked
Face, large greenifh Eyes, prominent Nofe, and
a large Mouth, with a perfedt Set of double Teeth
all around.  Her Voice was ftentorian.  She
came to Newburyport in I759 or 6o, and was
probably the Appendage of a Scotch Officer in
Amherit's Army. Her Acquirements and her
Addrefs were fuch that fihe at once obtained a
G




1  Diertation.
School, and received the honourable Appellation
of Dame Hooper, and afterwards that of Madam
Hooper. Her Temper was excenfively irrafcible,
and being rather reftive under fuch Confinement,
(he gave up her School, after the had formed a
thorough Acquaintance with the People. Her
Gueffes were often fo ihrewd that fome began to
flare, and at length, as the Wonders of her Skill
increafed, pronounced her a Witch. This Character being once fixed, fhe availed herfelf of the
Belief, to live upon the Credulity of the Publick.
The belt informed felt no Defire to quarrel with
her, and others often propitiated her good Will
with Prefents. She had Accefs to every Houfe, and
made frequent Vifits to numerous Families. The
Children bowed to her Divinity as fhe entered
the Houfe of their Parents, and ihe being well
informed, aitonifhed them with fage Remarks.
She was the moft acute Phyfiognomift I ever faw,
and read the Charader even of a Child at a
Glance. Her Speeches were ihort, ftriking, and,
like thofe of the Sybil, generally equivocal. An
hundred of them are frefh in my Memory at this
Moment, and are quite equal to thofe left us from
the ancient Oracles. She told Fortunes, found
loft Goods, and was confulted on other Subjets




Difertation.              i
with Gravitr, by the fober part of the Community. In her latter Days fhe degenerated from
her high Standing, and became not only a Fortune-Teller, but Something lower, in the Eftimation of many; yet, fuch was the Fear of this
Woman, that the grave Fathers of the Town,
quick fcented, and unequalled in their Exertions
to exterminate Vice, did not dare interfere with
her. The Orgies of Bacchus and Venus were
celebrated in her Den, without the flightefi Fear
of Detedion or Punifhment. It is true her
Habitation was on the fartheft Verge of the
Town, and where her Bacchantes could not difturb many. Boys ran pail her Houfe, if obliged
to go that Way in the Evening, without looking
about them. Old Age at length came upon her,
and her fhrewd Gueffes no longer paffed for Foreknowledge. Many who had often confulted her,
and believed in her Power, now thought her
League with the Devil had run out-that ihe
was a miferable Wretch, polluted by infernal Affociates, without retaining a Particle of their accurfed Knowledge. None but Hags came near
her, and Ihe expired on a Bed of filthy Straw.
The Wardrobe ihe poffeffed on her Arrival, was
fo abundant as to have lafted during her Life."




lii           ~Difertation.
Our Author extrads Edmund Spenfer's Defcription of the Abode of a Witch,I in fpeaking
of another Woman, who in her Time paffed current for a Witch. This was one "Mother Danforth." But where the "gloomy, hollow Glen"
was containing her Cottage he does not inform
us; but fays, "This harmlefs old Woman was
often charged with affliding Men, Women and
Children, and playing off her Pranks upon
Horfes, Cattle, Sheep, and above all on Cats.
The beft authenticated Stories were told of her
being feen in the Air on a Broomftick, and holding a Sabbath, with others of her Race, in a defolate Ifland. Mother Danforth was the Leader of
the frightful Band. None of thofe Experiments
which often fent lefs careful Witches to their
long Account, ever reached her — he was Proof
againft every witch-killing Procefs; the had been
fhot at in the Form of a Cat, with filver Bullets,
but all to no Effe&."
But the Author of this Extrad does not tell
what became of Mother Danforth.  She no
doubt died a natural Death, as thoufands of other
aged Females have in various Parts of the Count See The Witchcaft Delufion in N. Eng., I, xlix.




Di/ertation.             liii
try. The Writer is not as old as he from whom
the above Extrads are made, but it was his Fortune in Youth to be acquainted in many Towns,
in nearly all of which there was a reputed Witch.
In one in particular, a Daughter-in-law fuftained
the Belief of her Neighbours that her Mother-inlaw was a Witch, that the was known to have been
abfent at Nights attending Witch-Meetings; that
The had been rid by her and exhibited her worn
Hands, though when rid fhe was turned into a
Horfe. At the fame Time it was well known
that the old Mother-in-law  had been bed-rid
many Years, and had not for a long Time left her
Bed without Affiftance!








ANNALS OF
l[trc craft in                 Ine ~nglanb+
LAWS againit Witchcraft naturally grew__... out of a Demand by the
People'for a Remedy for
_____ ___ ____ thatparticular Evil. That
it was a fancied or imaginary Evil made no Difference. Thefe Laws gradually dropped out of the
Statute Books, as the People became enlightened;
i and fo it was with many
other Laws, enataded in
about as much Darknefs as were
thofe againft Witchcraft.  But with
thefe-fome of which difgrace the
~'  Statute Books of the prefent Day —we
now have Nothing to do.




56        Annals of Jfitchcraft 1636-+6
1636.
The People of Plymouth had been difturbed
by Witches doubtless before the Year 1636, or
they would not have, in that Year, included in
their Summary of Offences "lyable to Death,"
one in thefe words -" Solemn Compadion or
converfing with the Divell by way of Witchcraft,
Conjuration or the like."  Te n Years later it was
reenaded, yet no Intimation is found in the Records that any new Caufe had tranfpired.
I6422.
There does not appear to have been any particular Caufe for including Witchcraft among the
capital Offences at this Period in the Colony of
Conneaicut; but as they drew their Capital Code
from the Bible, it was neceffarily included, and
in thefe words- " Yf any Man or Woman be a
Witch, that is, hath or confulteth with a Familiar
Spirit, they Ihall be put to death."  The Colony
of Maffachufetts had the previous Year adopted
the Body of Liberties, which contains the fame
Claufe concerning Witches and Witchcraft.
I646.
The Law againft Witchcraft, enacted in I 642,
is reenaded, and we do not find any Alteration or
Reenadment until Odober, I692.  Up to this
Time Proceedings in Cafes of Witchcraft were
"'according to the Diredtions given in the Laws




1647         in New  England.              57
of God and the wholefome Statutes of the Englifh
Nation." But upon the Opening of the Tragedy in Salem Village, in the Beginning of I692,
the old Enadments were thought infufficient, and
a new and more verbofe one was drawn up and
paffed I by the General Court, the Governour and
Council having in the mean Time requefted the
Opinion of feveral of the principal Minifters upon
the State of Things as they then flood, according
to the Practice under the old Charter.  Their
Opinion was given in Writing, and confifted of
eight Articles, which may be read in the Hiftory
of MaJ/achufetts.1
A Perfon of Windfor was put to Death on the
Charge of Witchcraft at Hartford. No Circumflances have been found, nor the Name of the
Sufferers3
I647.
What had influenced the People of Rhode
Ifland to caufe the General Court of that Colony
to make the following Enadment, does not appear.  In the Ads of May of the Year I647, we
find "Witchcraft is forbidden by this prefent Affembly to be ufed in this Colonie; and the Penaltie impofed by the Authoritie that we are fubjedt
1 See Dane's Charters and Laws, ton Mather. But Mather, in his
735.                    War with Calef, fays,' it was my
Poor Hand which drew up that
2 Hutchinfon, II,, 5 5x, who Advice."-Some Few Remarks, 39.
does not appear to have known
that it was compofed by Dr. Cot-  3 Winthrop, Journal, 11, 307.
H




58        Annals of WIitchcraft        I648
to, is Felonie of Death." It is probable that
Somebody had been "ufing" it, or their Intentions to do fo were ftrongly fufpeded.
I648.
The firft Execution for Witchcraft in the Colony of Maffachufetts Bay, was at Bofton on the
i5th of June, I648. Accufations were probably
common long before this, but now came a tangible Cafe, and it was carried through with as
much Satisfaction to the Authorities, apparently,
as ever the Indians burnt a Prifoner at the Stake.
The Vidim was a Female named Margaret
Jones, the Wife of Thomas Jones of Charleftown, who perifhed on the Gallows, as much for
her good Offices, as for the evil Influences imputed to her. She had been, like many other
Mothers among the early Settlers, a Phyfician;
but being once fufpe&ed of Witchcraft, "'was
found to have fuch a malignant Touch, as many
Perfons were taken with Deafnefs, or Vomiting,
or other violent Pains or Sicknefs."  Her Medicines, though harmlefs in themfelves, ""yet had
extraordinary violent Effefts;" that fuch as refufed her Medicines, "fhe would tell that they
would never be healed, and accordingly their
Difeafes and  Hurts continued, with  Relapfe
againft the ordinary Courfe, and beyond the Apprehenfion of all Phyficians and Surgeons." And,
as fhem lay in Prifon, "a little Child was feen to
run from her into another Room, and being fol



1648        in gNew England.            59
lowed by an Officer, it was vanifhed."  There
was other Teftimony againft her more ridiculous
than this, but not neceffary to be recited. To
make her Cafe as bad as poffible, the Recorder of
it fays "her Behaviour at her Trial was intemperate, lying notorioufly, and railing upon the Jury
and Witneffes," and that "in like Diftemper ihe
died." It is not unlikely that this poor forfaken
Woman was diftradted with Indignation at the
Utterances of the falfe Witneffes, when fhe faw
her Life was fworn away by them. The deluded Court denounced her frantick Denial of the
Charges as "lying notorioufly."  And in the
probably honeft Belief in Witchcraft, the same
Recorder  fays, in the moft complacent Credulity,
that "the fame Day and Hour fhe was executed,
there was a very great Tempeft at Conneaticut,
which blew down many Trees, &c." Another
equally credulous Gentleman, writing a Letter to
a Friend, dated at Boflon on the i3th of the
fame Month, fays:  "The Witche is condemned,
and to be hanged Tomorrow, being Ledture
Day."
Whether there were any other fufpedted Perfons at the time Margaret Jones was prosecuted,
we have no Means of afcertaining, yet it is more
than probable that a fuppofed Spirit of Darknefs
had been whifpering in the'Ears of the Men in
Authority in Bofton; for about a Month before
the Execution of Margaret, they paffed this Order:
1 John Winthrop.




6o        Annals of ZWitchcraft       i648
" The Courte defire the Courfe which hath been
taken in England for Difcovery of Witches, by
watching them a certain Time. It is ordered,
that the bellt and fureit Way may forthwith be
put in Pradice; to begin this Night, if it may
be, being the I8th of the third Month, and that
the Huiband may be confined to a private Roome,
and be alfo then watched."
That the Court was ftirred up to ferret out
Witches, by the late Succeffes in that Bufinefs in
England,- feveral Perfons having been tried, condemned and executed in Feverfham  about two
Years before - is not improbable.  By "the
Courfe which hath been taken in England for the
Difcovery of Witches," the Court had Reference
to the Employment of Witch-Finders, one
Matthew Hopkins having had great Succefs. By
his infernal Pretenfions "fome fcores" of innocent bewildered People met violent Deaths at the
Hands of the Executioner, all along from I634
to i646. But to return to the Cafe of Margaret
Jones. She having gone down to an ignominious
Grave, leaving her Hufband to fuffer the Taunts
and Jeers of the ignorant Multitude, efcaped
further Profecution. Thefe were fo infufferable
that his Means of Living were cut off, and he was
compelled to try to feek another Afylum. A
Ship was lying in the Harbor bound for Barbadoes. In this he took Paffage. But he was not
thus to efcape Perfecution. On this "Ship of
300 Tons" were eighty Horfes. Thefe caufed
the Veffel to roll confiderably, perhaps heavily,




I648         in New  England.             6x
which to Perfons of any Sea Experience would
have been no Miracle.  But Mr. Jones was a
Witch, a Warrant was fued out for his Apprehenfion, and he was hurried thence to Prifon,' and
there left by the Recorder of the Account, who
has left his Readers in Ignorance of what became
of him. Whether he were the Thomas yoanes
of Elzing, who in 1637 took Paffage at Yarmouth
for New England, cannot be pofitively ftated,
although he is probably the fame Perfon.  If fo,
his Age at that Time was 25 Years, and he married fubfequently.z
To whom  is referred in the following Paffage,
written about I693, is not clear:  "We have
been advifed by fome credible Chriftians yet
alive, that a Malefactor, accufed of Witchcraft,
as well as Murder, and executed in this Place
more than forty Years ago, did then give Notice
of an horrible PLOT againft the Country by
WITCHCRAFT, and a Foundation of WITCHCRAFT then laid, which, if it were not feafonably difcovered, would probably blow up and pull
down all the Churches in the Country. And
we have with Horror feen the Difcovery of fuch
a Witchcraft. An Army of Devils is horribly
broke in upon the Place, which is the Centre, and
after a Sort, the Firit-born of our Englifh Settlements."3
1See Hi/f. and Antiq's B oron, 49.
and Authorities, 308-9.
3 Wonders of the Invifible World.
2 See Founders of New England,




62        Annals C lWitchcraft        i648
Mary Johnfon was executed at Hartford for
Witchcraft. Neither her Trial nor Execution
appear in the publifhed Records of the General
Court of Connedicut. She was the fame Perfon,
it is fuppofed, who at the Auguft Term, I646,
the General Court ordered, "for Theuery, is to
be prefently whipped, and to be brought forth a
Month hence at Wethersfield, and there whipped."
About two Years later, namely, December 7th,
1648, is found the following brief Entry refpeting Mary Yonfon, doubtlefs the fame who had
been ordered to be whipped, as juit mentioned:
"The Jury finds the Bill of Inditement againft
Mary Jonfon, that, by her owne Confeffion, fhee
is guilty of Familiarity with the Deuill."
Concerning this Cafe, as in many others, we
have a good deal in Amount, and yet but few
Fafs; are told that "her Confeffion was attended
with fuch convitive Circumftances, that it could
not be lighted." But unfortunately none of the
convidiive Circumftances are given, that the Readers might have the Satisfadion of exercifing their
own Judgement, as to their convi&divenefs. We
mull therefore take the only Account we have as
we find it, feeling that the original Narrator implicitly believed every Word of it. He fays,
"very many material Paffages relating to this
Matter are now loft; but fo much as is well
known, and can ftill be proved, fhall be inferted.
"She faid her firit Familiarity with the Devil
came through Difcontent, and wifhing the Devil
to take this and that, and the Devil to do that




64-8        in New England.             63
and t'other Thing. Whereupon a Devil appeared
unto her, tendring her what Services might beft
content her. A Devil accordingly did for her
many Services. Her Mafler blamed her for not
carrying out the Afles, and a Devil afterwards
would clear the Hearth of Afhes for her. Her
Mailer fending her to drive out the Hogs, that
fometimes broke into their Field, a Devil would
fcowre the Hogs away, and make her laugh to
fee how he fcared them. She confeffed that fhe
had murdered a Child, and committed Uncleannes both with Men and with Devils. In the
Time of her Imprifonment, the famous Mr.
[Samuel] Stone was at great Pains to promote
her Converfion from the Devil to God." The
fame Author tells us fhe went out of the World
with comfortable Hopes, having been by the
"'befi Obfervers judged very Penitent before her
Execution and at it."
Thus we are left in utter Ignorance as to what
was produced againft Mary Johnfon at her Trial,
if fhe had any. But at the Term of Court before mentioned, we find a Lift of the Jury, compofed of the following Names:  "Mr. Phelps,
John Tailecoate, Will. Wadfworth, Andr. Bacon,
Sam. Smith, Nath Dickerfon, Thomas Coleman,
John Demyn, Mr. Clarke, Mr. Allyn, Will.
Gibbens, John More." Edward Hopkins, Efq.,
was Governour.  "Mr. Wells, Mr. Woollcott,
Mr. Webiter, and Mr. Cullick," were Magiftrates."




64        Annals of Witchcraft   x650-I
I65o.
It is incidentally mentioned by Hutchinfon,
that no Perfon was convikted for Witchcraft in
New England, before the Year I650, "when, a
poor Wretch, Mary Oliver, probably weary of
her Life from the general Reputation of being a
Witch, after long Examination, was brought to
Confeffion of her Guilt, but I do not find that
fhe was executed."  It would feem  from  this
Paffage of the Hiftorian, that he did not confider
Mary Johnfon to have been convidted, or probably he had no Knowledge of her Cafe.
I65i.
We come now to a Cafe quite as deplorable as
that of the Year i648, already confidered. It
occurred in the Town of Springfield, on the Connedicut River, and has been feveral Times noticed by local and other Writers, none of whom,
however, have given a fatisfactory Account of it,
becaufe the Materials were unknown to them.
It is referred to by Capt. Edward Johnfon, in his
loofe way, in his Wonder Working Providence,
&c., which brings down his Hijtory of New
England to I65I, and was printed in 1654. In
fpeaking of the Settlement of Springfield he fays:'"There hath of late been more than one or two
in this Town, greatly fufpe~ted of Witchcraft, yet
have they ufed much Diligence, both for the
finding them out, and for the Lord's affifing them
againft their Witchery; yet have they, as is fup



650           in New England.                   65
pored, bewitched not a few Perfons, among whom
two of the Reverend Elder's Children."   The
Reverend Elder was Mr. George Moxon, the firft
Minifter of the Place.' The Author juft mentioned is the only one remembered among the
early New England Writers who notices the
Witchcraft Troubles at Springfield.  Some  of
our own Times relate them, or what they happen
to know of them, with the fame Feeling, apparently, as they would relate a nurfery Tale to
their Children; feeming not to be fenfible of the
H[orrors and Privations fuffered by the Fathers
and Mothers of the Land, in that dark Period of
its Hiftory.
It is quite Evident from Capt. Johnfon's Account, that Witchcraft in Springfield was about
coeval with  the firft Settlement of the  Place,
which was in I636. The Company which made
the Settlement there was led by Mr. William
Pynchon, a Gentleman of Learning and Enterprife, and afterwards a Magiftrate.
According to Captain Johnfon, Witches were
difturbing the Peace of the People of Springfield
ten Years before legal Steps were taken to put a
Stop to them.  On whom  or how  many Sufpicions were fixed before Mr. Pynchon felt com1 It is reported that Mary Par- divers devililh Pradices by Witchfon was tried, about the End of craft, to the Hurt of Martha and
February (I66I) for, as the Indid- Rebeca Moxon, againft the Word
ment runs, that being reduced by of God, &c.  She pleaded not
the Devil, at Springfield, fhe con- Guilty, and the Court finally diffulted with a familiar Spirit, making charged her.- See Judd's Hifiory
a Covenant with him, and had ufed Hadley, 234.
I




66        Annals of [[itchcraft   x650-I
pelled to fet up his Inquifition, we fhall probably
never know. Perhaps they were at firft among
a Clafs of Denizens of too high focial Standing
to admit an Interference.  But in the latter Part
of the Year I650, Sufpicions fell on a Man
named Hugh Parfons. This Man appears to
have been one of the firft Settlers of the Town,
probably went there in Mr. Pynchon's Company.
He was an honeft, fenfible laboring Man, a Sawyer by Occupation, and it may be well to remark
that, before Mills were built, the Bufinefs of a
Sawyer was not inconfiderable, in the then Wildernefs of New England. After a few Years'
Refidence at Springfield, Mr. Parfons married a
young Woman named Mary Lewis. The Marriage took place Otoober 27th, I645.  Their firft
Child, at leaft the firfP we find recorded, was born
on the 4th of Otober, 1649.  This Child was
named Samuel, and it died at the Age of one
Year. The following Year, on the 26th of October, they had another, a Son, which they named
Jofhua. It was foon after the Birth of this Child
that the Charge of Witchcraft was made againft
the Father.  The Mother's Sicknefs, confequent,
perhaps, upon the Privations and Hardfhips of a
Wildernefs, deprived her of Reafon, and the
Courfe purfued after fhe was thus afflided, rendered her permanently infane. This Condition
was declared to be produced by Witchcraft, and
the Teftimony of this fick and infane Woman
was taken as legal Evidence againft her Hufband,
and afterwards againft herfelf.  Her Illnefs im



1651        in New England.              67
mediately after the Birth of her Child, was, as
before remarked, doubtlefs caufed by prematurely
expofing herfelf, which fo affedced the Health of
the Child, that it fell into a Languifhment, and
being deprived of the Care it required, its Death
followed on the Ift of March, 65 I.  Whereupon the Clamour againft the Father increased,
and he was denounced as a Witch on all Sides.
Mrs. Parfons was fent to Bofton and here imprifoned, about the Ift of May. At length, on
the 7th of May, I65I, her Cafe was brought
before the General Court, and the following
Record  is the Refult of their Deliberation:
""Mary Parfons of Springfield having two Bills
of Indidment framed againft her, the one for
having Familiarity with the Devill as a Witch,
to which fhe pleaded not Guilty, and not fufficient
Euidence appearing to proue the fame, fhe was
aquited of Witchcraft. The fecond Inditment
was for wilfully and molt wickedly murdering
her owne Child, to which Thee pleaded guilty,
confeft the Fad, and according to her Deferts
was condemned to Dy."
A Jury had previoufly convited Hugh, the
Hufband of Mary Parfons, of the Crime of
Witchcraft, by the Pracdice of which as charged,
he had caufed his Child's Death; but in the mean
Time the poor, diftreffed and wretched Wife had
confeffed herfelf a Witch, and that flhe had killed
the Child. This Confeffion caufed the Court to
come to the Decfion juft recorded; and on the
27th of the fame Month they came to the fol



68        Annals of [litchcraft        1651
lowing Decifion in the Hufband's Cafe:  "The
Magifitrates not confenting to the Verdid of the
Jury in Parfons's Cafe, the Caufe coming legally
to the General Court for Iffue, the Court on
Perufal of the Euidence brought in againft him
for Witchcraft, doe judge that he is not legally
Guilty of Witchcraft; fo not to Dy by our
Law."
Hence in the Law-Logic of that Time one
was confidered Guilty till another for the fame
Crime was found fo; reminding us of the vicarious Punifhment (though not exaCly a Parallel
Cafe) fo ludicroufly paraded by Butler, as being
in Ufe in New England, in its early Settlement.
Thus, after a long and tedious Profecution at
Springfield, he was fent to Bofton to be finally
difpofed of; and here a Bill of Indidment was
"framed" againft him, of which this is a Copy:
"The Grand Jurie for this Comanwelth prefent
Hugh Parfons of Springfield, not haueing ye
Feare of God before his Eyes, in or abought
March laft, and diuers Times before and fince,
at Springfield aforesaid (as they conceued) had
familier and wiced Conuerfe with ye Deuil, and
did ufe diuers duelifh Praftifes and Witchcrafte
to ye Hurte of diuers Perfons, as by feueral Witneffes and Sercumftanfes doth apr. and doe leaue
him to ye Corte for his further tryal for his Life."
The Verdi&t of the Trial Jury was rendered in
Writing and is in thefe Words:
"The Jurie of Life and Death findes againft
Hugh  Parfons, by ye Teftemony of fuch as




165x          in lNew  England.               69
apearde in Corte, foe much as glues them Grounde
not to cleare him, but cofidered with ye Teftimonys of diuers yt are at Springfield, whofe
Teftimonys were onely fent in Writeinge, as alfo
ye Confeffion of Mary Parfons, and ye Impeachment of fome of ye bewitched Perfons of ye faid
Hew Parfons, which, if ye General Corte make
ye Confeffion of Mary Parfons and ye impechment of ye bewitched Perfons or other of them,
and ye Teftemonys yt are in Writeinge, but appeared not in Perfon authentike Teftimonys
acordinge to Law, then ye Jurie findes ye faide
Hugh Parfons Giltie of ye fin of Wichcrafte.
EDWARD HUTCHINSON,I Foreman,"
with ye Confent of ye reft of ye Jurie.
It is Plain that the Jury intended to throw the
Refponfibility on the General Court, which was a
fafe and eafy Way to difpofe of the Cafe, the Murder of the Child having been affumed by its poor
demented Mother.  It is Evident, however, that
there was a lingering Belief in the Minds of the
Jury, that Hugh had been pradifing Witchcraft
on his Neighbours at Springfield; but as it was
chiefly in cutting boiled Puddings longitudinally,
filing of Saws in the Night Time, and fome few
other equally innocent (though invifible-handed)
Amufements, they thought it Bell to ihuffle over
them, as fet forth in the above Verdid.
1 The Great-Grand-Father of dians at Wickabang Pond, a few
Gov. Thomas Hutchinfon, the Hif- Days previous. The Governour
torian of Majfarhufetts Bay. He does not mention this Circumftance
died Aug. I9th, 1675, of Wounds in his Hiftory.
received in an Attack by the In



70        Annals of [llitchcraft       x651
What became of the friendlefs Man, after his
Trial, does not clearly appear. He did not probably remain long in Bofton, and never returned
to Springfield, as fome of his Effeds were not
long after fold for him by Mr. John Pynchon,
and the Proceeds remitted to him in Bofton. It
is believed that he went to Narraganfet, and
thence to Long Ifland, which are all the Traces
we have of him.
It appears from the Teftimonies (which will be
found in the Appendix) that there was Something
like Confpiracy againft Parfons, for as late as the
7th of April, when Jonathan Taylor gave in his
Teftimpny at the Court, he faid that Hugh Parfons came to him and defired to know who were
his Accufers; and on Taylor's refufing to tell him,
Hugh replied, "I know you can tell. Was it
ever known that a Man fhould be accufed and
not know his Accufers?" It will be found that
whenever Anything is recorded of what Parfons
faid, on any Occafion, it fhows a good Underftanding and Common Senfe. Some Allowance
will of Neceffity be made, as it all comes from
his Accufers.
There no doubt was Something of an extenfive
Enmity againft Parfons, as is inferred from the
general Tenour of the Teftimonies againft him,
and his Examinations.  The Teftimonies amount
to Nothing, being a Colledion of as childifh
Nonfenfe as ever was got together; and how a
Man of Senfe, as Mr. Pynchon is fuppofed to:
have been, could have fat, day after day and lif



x65X        in New England.              7 X
tened to it, is as aftonifbing as the Matter itfelf
is puerile, abfurd and ridiculous.
As has been noticed in other Profecutions, fo
in this, it is very obfervable that the accufed
Party had many Enemies. He was fhrewd in
making Bargains, and perhaps might have taken
advantage Sometimes, when he thought he had
made a hard one, or been overreached, of attempting to "throw  it up."  But there is no
Evidence of Difhonefty on his Part. He was a
Brickmaker as well as a Sawyer, or he carried on
the latter Bufinefs.  He had a Difficulty with
Mr. Moxon, the Minifter, refpeding the Bricks
for the Chimney of his Houfe. Hence Mr.
Moxon was among his Accufers. It is inferred
that the Minifter had fome Advantage by the
Contra&t, and that Parfons thought he ought not
to be held to perform it, but he did not refufe to
perform his Part, only, was wont to remark as
on fimilar Occafions, that if Mr. Moxon exacted
its Performance "it would do him no good," or
that he "'would be Even with him."  Thefe
were very common Expreffions with him, and
feem to have had great Weight with his Accufers,
as Evidence that he pra6tifed Witchcraft.
Parfons was profecuted fome Time before this
( 1649) Witchcraft Affair, by "the Widow Marfhfield," for a Libel, by Words uttered by his Wife.
We learn this incidentally, and by Inference alfo,
that the Libel confifted in Mrs. Parfons faying
that Goodwife Marfhfield had bewitched Mr.
Moxon's Children. The Cafe went againft him




72        Annals of Witchcraft        I649
and he was condemned to pay the heavy Amount
of twenty-four Bufhels of Indian Corn, and
twenty Shillings in Money. Both Parfons and
his Wife declared that this was owing to falfe
Swearing.  Hence, the Records of that Cafe
would doubtlefs difclofe the Names of thofe who
fwore againft him, and that the fame Individuals
came forward on the fame Side to prove him a
Witch.
From what can be gathered in examining the
Teftimonies, it is Evident that Parfons's Wife
was a turbulent Woman, and by her unbridled
Tongue had been the Means of the Profecution
for Slander before mentioned. This may have
been the Caufe of fome Negle&t of her on his
Part. This NegleC may alfo have been a Caufe of
inconfiderate Complaints and harih Speeches to
Others by her againft her Hufband; and he appears to have been a Man of ftrong Refentments,
and it was very Natural that he fhould exhibit
them on fuch Occafions, and that Altercations
arofe, and were continued until an entire Eftrangement and Hatred put an End to all Affection. At length ill Health, and a naturally bad
Temper threw her into a State of Infanity, fo
plainly exhibited at the Examination of her
Hufband.
Some Time previous to the I5th of May of
this Year the People of Stratford, in Connedicut
were in great Commotion by Witchcraft breaking out there. Records, fo far as can be learned,
are nearly Silent refpeding it. From fuch Inti



6651        in New England.             73
mations and incidental Notices as have been
gathered, it is Evident that one Goodwife Baffett
was tried, condemned for a Witch, and executed
in that Town. Her Trial took place fubfequently to the i5th of May, as will appear from
the following Entry in the Court Records of
Connelticut, in there Words:  "The Gouernour,
Mr. Cullick and Mr. Clarke are defired to goe
downe to Stratford to keepe Courte vppon the
Tryall of Goody Baffett for her Life; and if the
Gouernour cannott goe, then Mr. Wells is to goe
in his Roome." It may be worth Attention to
remark that John Haynes, Efq., was Governour,
Mr. John Cullick, Mr. Daniel Clarke, and Mr.
John Wells were Magiftrates.
As to who Goodwife Baffett was there appears
no prefent Means,of knowing, and it may hardly
be worth While to venture Conje6tures on the
Queftion. Prefident Dwight Somewhere mentions her Execution, and Profeffor Kingfley adverts to it in his Centennial of I838 at Newhaven.
She was moft likely an elderly Woman, who
came -to New England as a Member of fome
Family, and perhaps without any near Relative;
and having become old, and none to take an Intereft in her Welfare, it was eafy, in thofe Days,
and under fuch Circumftances, when the Cry of
"6 Witch" was once fet up, to hunt down and
ruin the decrepit and friendless.
Some Writers, with a greater Defire to make
their Neighbourhood appear free from Blemifhes
than to relate Fadts, have denied that there is any
K




74        Annals of Wl'itchcraft        i652
Proof that Executions for Witchcraft took place
within their Jurifdicaion. But in the Cafe of
Goodwife Baffett, Doubts appear to be gratuitous. Three Places were known in Stratford
where Gallows had ftood, before I680o.   Perfons of the Name of BaJ/2tt were early quite
numerous in Connedticut.
I652.
No accurate Opinion can be formed as to the
Extent of a Difturbance occafioned by Agents
from the Invifible World, by a fingle Inflance
that happens to be recorded.  It is reafonable to
fuppofe that Accufations went on in a Village or
Town many Months, and perhaps Years, before
the Courts felt obliged to take Cognizance of
them.  Thus in the Town of Ipfwich, in a
Court held there in I652, we are aifured on the
beft Authority, that a Man was Sentenced to be
whipt, or to pay twenty Shillings "for having
Familiarity with the Devil; " while we are not
told the name of the Man, or what Evidence he
was convided on.  How fuch a Sentence could
have been rendered under the Laws even then in
force, it is not Eafy to fee.
On recurring to a late elaborate Work3 the
Name of the Accufed was found to be John
Bradftreet of Rowley, and that his Crime pro1 Hinman, Genealogy of the Pu- terly Court Files, 207.
ritans, I60.
3 By the Rev. Mr. C. W. Up2 Felt, Hft. Ipfwich, from Quar- ham.




1653        in New England.             75
bably was for telling his Dreams. Francis Parat
and his Wife, of Rowley; and William Bartholomew of Ipfwich, evidenced that Bradftreet
told them that he read in a Book of Magick, and
that he heard a Voice aiking him what Work he
had for him. He [the Voice] anfwered, "Go
make a Bridge of Sand over the Sea; go make
a Ladder of Sand up to Heaven, and go to God
and come down no more." For this idle and
nonfenfical Talk, and "telling a Lie," he was
condemned to pay twenty Shillings or be whipped. He had been conviSted before of lying.
I653.
The Affairs at Springfield were fcarcely over
before the "' Devill" was "difcovered" among the
Women of New Haven Colony, and indireatly
among the fober and ftrong minded Men of that
Place. It is told, by way of prefatory Matter,'
that " Moleftations from  Evil Spirits, in more
fenfible and furprifing Operations than thofe finer
Methods wherein they commonly work upon the
Minds of all Men, but efpecially of Ill Men,
have fo abounded in this Countrey, that I queftion
whether any one Town has been free from fad
Examples of them. The Neighbours have not
been careful enough to Record and Atteft the
prodigious Occurrences of this Importance, which
have been among us. Many true and Jtrange
Occurrences from the Invifible World, in thefe
1 By Dr. C. Mather, Magnalia, B. VI, 66.




76           Annals of f'Kitchcraft    1653
Parts of the World, are faultily buried in Oblivion.'
But fome of there very ftupendious Things have
had their Memory preferved in the written Memorials of honeft, prudent, and faithful Men;
for every one of which we have had fuch a
fufficient Evidence, that no Reafonable Man in
this whole Countrie ever did queftion them."
Whence it follows, that all who did queftion
them  were un-reafonable Perfons.
The fecond Perfon who fuffered Death in the
New  Haven  Colony, fo far as Refearches up to
this Time have difcovered, was a Woman, named
Knapp.  It is remarked by a modern Hand, that
"fhe  fuffered   terribly   by  Witchcraft, if the
trifling Story in the Magnalia is good for Anything."2 But if the Accounts contained in the
original Records are reliable, of which there can
be no Doubt, the "trifling" lies at the Door of
our Cotemporary. In following that Account,
however, he  has placed  the  Cafe of "terrible
Suffering"  about  twenty  Years  later than  its
actual Occurrence; unlefs there were two Perfons
of the Name of Knapp who fuffered for WitchI Was the "prodigious Occur- Opinion.
rence" at Springfield unknown to
the Drs. Mather, or did they pur-   2 The "Story" is copied by Dr.
pofely omit it? I fee no Reafon for C. Mather from the Remnarkable
their omitting it, unlefs it were to  Providenices of his Father.  Mr.
obliviate Mr. Pynchon and Mr. Savage probably knew this, but it
Moxon. The former being in Ad- afforded him more Pleafure to hurl
vance of the Age on the Queftion  a Miffile at the Son than at the real
of Religious Liberty, and the lat- Author. See N. Eng. Gen. Dig.
ter becaufe he was of the fame  Art. KNAPP.




1653        in New England.             77
craft, one in I653, and the other in I67I. This
Point we muft leave for him or others to reconcile, and fpeak from the Record before us.
Of the Trial and Execution of Goodwife
Knapp.  What Fafts we poffefs regarding her
Cafe came out at an Arraignment of Mr. Roger
Ludlow, at the May Term  of the "Court of
Magiftrates" at New Haven, for defaming the
Charadter of the Wife of Thomas Staplies, "in
reporting to Mr. Dauenport and Mrs. Dauenport, that ihe had laid herfelfe vnder a new Sufpition of being a Witch; that ihe had caufed
Knapp's Wife to be new fearched after ihe was
hanged, and when fhe faw the Teates, faid, if
they were the Markes of a Witch, then fhe was
one, or ihe had fuch Markes; fecondly, Mr. Ludlow faid Knapps Wife told him that Goodwife
Staplies was a Witch; thirdly, that Mr. Ludlow
hath flandered Goodwife Staplies in faying that
(he made a Trade of lying, &c."
On the Trial, Mr. Ludlow failed to convince
the Court that he did not thus charge Mrs. Staplies with being a Witch, or to make it appear
that fhe was a Witch. Whereupon the Court
ordered that Mr. Ludlow "pay to Thomas Staplies, by way of Fine, for Reparation of his
Wiues Name Ten Pounds, and for his Trouble
and Charge in following the Suit Five Pounds
more."  He was fined at the next Term  Ten
Pounds additional for accufing her of lying.
It would feem that Mr. Ludlow had been in



78         Annals of Wlitchcraft          1653
frumental in caufing Mrs. Knapp' to be put to
Death; and that Mrs. Staplies's chief Sin was in
not believing that Ihe, Goodwife Knapp, was
Guilty, and in reporting agreeably to her Belief.
Lawyers were employed on both Sides; Enfign
Alexander Bryan on the Part of Mr. Ludlow,
and Mr. John Banks for Mr. Staplies.  Specimens of the Teftimony, fo far as they bear on
the Cafe of Mrs Knapp, follow:
Mr. Davenporta teftified, "that, Mr. Ludlow,
fitting with him  and his Wife alone, and difcourfing of the Paffages concerning Knapp's
Wife the Witch, and her Execution, faid that
fhe came down from the Ladder, (as he [Davenport] underftood it,) and defired to fpeak with
him [Ludlow] alone, and told him who was the
Witch fpoken of; and fo farr as he remembers,
he, or his Wife afked him who it was; he faid
fhe named Goodwife Staplies. Mr. Dauenport
replyed, that he beleeued it was vtterly vntrue,
and fpoken [by Knapp] out of Malice.  Mr.
Ludlow anfwered that he hoped better of her
[Staplies] but faid fhe was a foolifh Woman; and
then told them a further Storey -how fhe
tumbled the Corpfe of the Witch vp and downe
after her Death, before fundrie Women, and
I 4 have not followed the Record themfelves having little of Uniin refpe& to the Prefixes or Titles formity in this Particular.
of fome Perfons, but have ufed
Mrs., Mr., Goodwife and Good-  2The Rev. John Davenport, afterman indiscriminately, the Records wards of the Firft Church, Boiton.




1653        in New England.             79
fpoke to this Effe&,  If thefe be the Markes of
a Witch, I am one, or I have fuch Markes."
Mrs. Davenport corroborated the Evidence
given by her Hufband. "Goodwif Sherwood of
Fairfield affirmeth vpon Oath, that vpon fome
Debate betwixt Mr. Ludlow  and Goodwife
StAplies, fhe heard Mr. Ludlow charge Goodwif
Staplies with a Tra& of lying, and that in Difcourfe fhe heard him  fo charge her feuerall
Times."
Hefter, Wife of Andrew Ward, teftified, "that
aboute a Day after that Goodwife Knapp was
condemned for a Witch, the goeing to the Prifon
Houfe where faid Knapp was kept, fhe, the faid
Knapp, voluntarily, without any Occafion giuen
her, faid that Goodwife Staplyes, told her that an
Indian brought vnto her, the faid Staplyes, two
little Things brighter than the Light of the Day,
and told the faid Goodwife Staplyes they were
Indian Gods, as the Indian called them, and the
Indian withall told her, the faid Staplyes, if fhe
would keepe them, ~he fhould be fo big Rich, all
one God; and that the faid Staplyes told the faid
Knapp ihe gaue them again to the faid Indian,
but fhe could not tell whether ihe did fo or no."
Lucy, the Wife of Thomas Pell fwore, "that
aboute a Day after Goodwife Knapp was condemned for a Witch, Miftris Jones earneftly intreated her to goe to the faid Kapp, who had fent
for her; that the called the faid Hefter Ward,
and they went together;" that the faid Knapp
fpoke "Word for Word as Hefter Ward had




80o       Annals of WEitchcraft        1653
teftified.  Further, Miftris Pell teftified, " that
fhe being one of ye Women that was required
to fearch the faid Knapp before fhe was condemned; and then Miftris Jones preffed the faid
Knapp to confefs whether ther were any other
that were Witches; becaufe Goodwife Baffett,
when fhe was condemned, faid there was another
Witch in Fairfield, that held her Head full high;
and then the faid Goodwife Knapp fepped a little afide, and told her, this deponent, Goodwife
Baffett meant not her. She afked her whom fhe
meant, and fhe named Goodwife Staplyes, and
then uttered the fame Speeches as formerly concerning the Indian Gods."
Elizabeth Brewifer fwore, "that after Goodwife Knap was executed, as foone as fhe was cut
downe, fhe, the faid Knapp, being carried to the
Graue Side, Goodwife Staplyes with fome other
Women went to fearch the faid Knapp, concerning findeing out Teates; and Goodwife Staplyes
handled her very much, and called to Goodwife
Lockwood, and faid, thofe were no Witches
Teats,  but fuch as fhe herfelf had, and other
Women might have the fame; and wringing her
Hands and takeing ye Lords Name in her Mouth,
and faid, —Will you fay thefe were Witches
Teates, they were not, and called upon Goodwife
Lockwood to come and fee them. Then fhe
called on Goodwife Odell to come and examine
the Teats, for fhe had been one of the Searchers
before the Execution, but {he would not. Then
fhe [Staplies] called Goodwife Lockwood to come




1653        in New England.              8x
forward and examine the Teats, and faid to her,Will you fay thefe are Witch Teats? I have
fuch myfelf, and fo have you. Goodwife Lockwood replyed, if I had fuch I would be hanged,
and deferve it too. Then Goodwife Odell came
neare, and told Goodwife Staplies that no honeft
Woman had fuch Teats.  And then all the
Women rebuking her [Staplies] and faid they
were Witches Teates; then the faid Staplies
yielded it." Her yielding doubtlefs amounted
to this, that finding ihe could not convince the
others, ceafed to fay Anything further at that
Time, as fenfible People do now-a-days.
Mary Brewfter teftified that ihe was "at the
Grave-Side" after the Execution, and faw Goodwife Staplies make the Examination of the
Teats, but "went away, as having no Defire to
look vpon them."
Sufan, Wife of Robert Lockwood, fwore that
ihe was at the Execution of Goodwife Knapp,
"that was hanged for a Witch," and after the
was cut down and brought to the Grave was
prefent with other Women to fearch for Teats;
that Goodwife Staplies was handling the dead
Woman "where the Teates were;" that Goodwife Staplies "flood vp and called three or four
Times, and bid me come looke of them." When
fhe had done fo Mrs. Staplies afked her Opinion,
as to whether they were Witch Teats? She
anfwered, "No Matter.  She had Teates, and
confeffed ihe was a Witch.  That was fufficient."3
Whereupon Mrs. Staplies faid:  "If there be
L




82        Annals of Witchcraft        I653
Teates, here are no more than I myfelf have, or
any other Woman, or you either if you would
fearch your Body."  Sufan Lockwood replied
that fhe did not know what Mrs. Staplies had,
but for herfelf, "if any finde any fuch Things
aboute me, I deferued to be hanged as {he was."
"Thomas Sheruington and Chriftopher Combftocke and Goodwife Baldwine were altogether
at the Prifon Houfe where Goodwife Knapp was,
and the faid Goodwife Baldwin afked her the
faid Knapp whether fhe knew of any other
[Witch]. She faid there were fome, or one, that
had received Indian Gods that were very bright.
Baldwin aiked her how fhe could tell if fhe were
not a Witch herfelf. She faid the party told her
fo, and her Huiband was Witnefs to it."
Rebecka, Wife of Cornelius Hall, fwore that
when Mrs. Knapp was on her way to be executed,
Mr. Ludlow and her Father (Mr. Jones) preffing
the faid Knapp to confers that the was a Witch,
Mrs. Staplies faid, "Why fhould The confefs that
which fhe was not?  She made no Doubt if fhe
were one ihe would confefs it."
Deborah Lockwood, aged about Seventeen,
fwore, that fihe was prefent when Mrs. Knapp
was going to Execution, "betweene Tryes and
the Mill, ihe heard Goodwife Staplyes fay to
Goodwife Gould, (he was perfwaded Goodwife
Knapp was no Witch. Goodwife Gould faid,
Sifter Staplyes, mhe is a Witch, and hath confeffed
having had Familiarity with the Deuill. Stap



653        in New England.             83
lies replied, I was with her Yellerday or laft
Night, and fhe faid no fuch Thing as I heard."
Bethia Brundifh, aged about Sixteen, faid as
the was "goeing to Execution of Goodwife
Knapp, who was condemned for a Witch by the
Court and Jury at Fairfield, there being prefent
herfelfe and Deborah Lockwood and Sarah Cabel,
the heard Goodwife Staplyes fay, that the
thought Goodwife Knapp was no Witch, and
Goodwife Gould prefently reproved her for it."
Goodwife Whitlocke of Fairfield was the next
Witnefs.  She teftified before Mr. William
Fowler of Milford, May 27th, I654, was prefent
at the Execution of Mrs. Knapp, "and nex to
Goody Stapleys when they were goeing to put
the dead Corpes into the Grave, feuerall Women
were looking for the Markes of a Witch vpon
the dead Body, and feuerall of them faid they
could find none, and this Deponent faid, nor I;
and ihe heard Goodwife Staplyes fay, nor I; then
came one that had fearched the faid Witch, and
ihewed them the Markes that were vpon her;
then Goodwife Staplyes faid (he never faw fuch
in all her Life; and that the was perfwaded that
no honeft Woman had fuch Things as thofe
were.
Goodwife Barlow of Fairfield fimilarly teftifled. She with one of her Neighbours defired
to fee the Marks of a Witch when Mrs. Knapp
was ready to be buried, and they looked but
found none. Then Goodwife Staplyes came and
one or two more. " Goodwife Staplleyes kneeled




84        Annals of Wlitchcraft          i653
downe by them, and they all looked but found
them not, and faid they iaw Nothing but what is
common to other Women; but after they found
them they all wondered, and Goodwife Staplyes
in Particular, and faid they never faw fuch Things
in their Life before, fo they went away."
The Wife of John Thompfon of Fairfield
went to the Grave alfo with the others, and " defired to fee the Marks of the Witch," but found
none at firif; " then the Midwife came and
_hewed them," and Goodwife Staplyes exclaimed
as ftated by the other Witneffes. The Wife of
Richard Lyon, and Goodwife Squire of Fairfield
fwore alfo to the fame purport.
Goodwife Sherwood of Fairfield fwore that on
the Day Mrs. Knapp was condemned, " fhe was
there to fee her, all being gone forth but Goodwife Odill and herfelf, then there came in Miftris Pell and her two daughters, Elizabeth and
Mary, Goody Lockwood and Goodwife Purdy."
Miftris Pell told Mrs. Kapp fhe was fent to her
"to have her confefs," and that if fhe knew any
other Witches to difcover them, that now fhe
was condemned, and muft die, her Confeflion
could not prejudice her Cafe. As to herfelf and
Family, Miftris Pell faid they had not teftified
againit her; that "the Jury and Godly Magiftrates had found her Guilty, and that the laft
Evidence caft the Caufe."I The next day Miftris
1 This has Reference probably Teftimony of Goodwife Sherwood
to the Perfon who teftified laft be- it is inferred that Goodwife Staplies
fore the Jury, on Mrs. Knapp's was the laft Witnef.
Trial at Fairfield; and from the




1653       in New England.             85
Pell went "to the Witch again," with Mr. Jones,
Elizabeth and Mary Pell, Miitris Ward and
Goodwife Lockwood. Mifiris Pell defired Mrs.
Knap "to lay open herfelf, and make Way for
the Minifter to do her Good."  Elizabeth Pell
"bid her doe as the other Witch at the other
Towne did,' and difcover all fhe knew to be
Witches." Mrs. Knapp meekly replied that fhe
mufft not fay what was not true, and mufft not
wrong Anybody; that when fhe came to the
Ladder, if the had Anything to fay fhe would
fay it to Mr. Ludlow and the Minifter. Elizabeth Brewfter then prefent faid to her, "If you
keepe it till you come to the Ladder, the Diuill
will have you quick." Mrs. Knapp replied, "you
would have me fay that Goodwife Staplyes is a
Witch, but I have Sins enough to anfwer for
already, and I hope I fhall not add to my Condemnation." She denied ever having faid the
knew of a Witch in the Town.
The poor Woman was evidently crufhed by a
Swarm of deluded Wretches, all endeavouring to
convince her that ihe was going into Eternity
with a Lie on her Tongue, and knowing of other
Witches, would not name them; warning her
to "take heede that the Deuill perfwaded her not
to fow malicious Seed to doe hurt when fhe was
dead." At this, and much other fimilar Stuff,
Goodwife Knapp "burft forth into weeping,"
I The "other Witch" was executed in I651.- See ante, fub
probably a Woman named Baf- ano idem.
fett, who it would feem had been




86        Annals of Witchcraft         I653
and defired her Tormentor to pray for her.
Whether Mr. Buckley was prefent does not appear, but he was at the Execution, and among
thofe who faw the Grave clofe over her. This
was Mr. Gerfhom Buckley the Minifter of Fairfield, and no Voice of his was raifed againit the
Execution, fo far as appears anywhere.
With all the Details here related, and acceffible to a Hiftorian of Connefticut, it is ftrange
he fhould fay, "From a careful Examination of
the Records of New Haven Colony, it does not
appear that there ever was even a Convidion for
the Crime of Witchcraft, within that Jurifdiction, much lefs was there ever an Execution "!'
Not long after Mr. Ludlow was fined twentyfive Pounds for defaming the Charader of Mrs.
Staplies, he left the Jurifdidion, is faid to have
gone to Virginia, and nothing was heard of him
afterwards. It would feem that he had rendered
himfelf very unpopular by the Part he had taken
in bringing Mrs. Knapp to the Gallows. That
Unpopularity may have had an earlier Date, perhaps Mrs. Baffett's Profecution and Execution
may have been under his Diredion. It is evident that the People were divided into bitter
Parties, and that one Party oppofed the other,
not on the Ground that either diibelieved in
Witchcraft, but becaufe of Quarrels which had
Nothing to do with that Phantom.
There is a little Uncertainty as to the precife
1 Hollifter's Hi/t. Connecticut, II, 533.




1653        in New England.            87
Year in which the grim Meffenger of Darknefs
firif appeared in the Difguife of a Bird to a
Family in Andover. The following Copy from
the original Depofition in the Writer's Poffeffion
will difplay all the Fads for the Reader's De-,
liberation. It was made before the venerable
Governor Bradftreet in I659, from which it
appears that the Vifit of the Witch took place
about five or fix Years previous, namely, in i653
or I654. Bradftreet found himfelf circumftanced
fimilarly to Mr. Pynchon, not long before, as has
been related. Thefe Gentlemen probably would
never have taken away the Life of an Individual,
although Believers in the Reality of Witchcraft;
but if left to themfelves would have found ample
Excufe for not proceeding to Extremities, from
honeft Doubts as to the Fad being fully proved.
"The Depoficons of Job Tylar aged about 40
Years, Mary his Wife, Mofes Tylr his Son aged
betwixt 17 and I8 Years, and Mary Tylar about
15 Yeares old.
"Thefe Deponents witneffe that they faw a
Thing like a Bird to come in at the Dore of
there Houfe with John Godfery in the Night
about the Bignes of a Black Bird or rather bigger, to wit as big as a Pigion, and did fly about;
John Godfery labouring to catch it and the Bird
vanifhed, as they conceived, through the Chinck
of a ioynted Bord, and being afked by the Man
of the Houfe wherfore it came, he anfwered, It




88        Annals of Witchcraft   1653-5
came to fuck your Wife. This was (as they remember) about 5 or 6 Yeares fince.
"Taken vpon Oath of the 4 aboue menconed
pties, this 27. 4. 59. before mee
"Simon Bradftreete.
"Ouned in Court 7 Mrch, I665, by Job Tylar
and Mofes Tylar.                E. R. Sec.
" Ouned in Court I 3 March 65 by Mary Tyler
on her former Oath.             E. R. SC,).
I653-5.
The Commotion of I653, in the Town of
New Haven, alleged to have been caufed by
Witchcraft, muit have been long and fadly remembered.  At this Period there was living
there, a reftlefs inquifitive old Woman, named
Elizabeth Godman.  She was probably one of
the moft intenfe Believers in Witchcraft, being
always ready when Anything tranfpired, which
fhe, in her very limited Knowledge, could not
fee the remote or even the immediate Caufe, to
charge it to the Work of the " Diuell," or his
Agents, fuppofed then by Everybody to be hovering in the Air juft above them, ready to take
advantage of all human Frailties.
How long before the Seflion of the "Court
of Magilfrates" of New  Haven, which commenced on the 4th of Auguft of this Year, the
firft Trouble from the " Invifible World " began,
cannot be ftated; but there was living at New
Haven at that Time a Mrs. Godman, as juft




1653-5      in New England.             89
mentioned, in the Family of Thomas Johnfon.
She appears to have previoufly refided in the
"Bay," at or near Boiton, at the Time of fome
Witch Troubles in that Colony, and may have
left there in Confequence of thofe Troubles, but
how that may have been cannot be definitely
ftated. At all Events, many of the firft People
of New Haven faw, or thought they faw Caufe
to accufe Mrs. Godman of Witchcraft; but the
Profecutions which followed in Confequence were
inftituted by Mrs. Godman herfelf. She went
before the Court for Redrefs, becaufe of, as The
alleged, falfe Accufations; but as the Parties
accufed were of the higheft Standing the Tables
were at once turned, becaufe the Court believed
her Accufers inftead of her. Among there were
Goodwife Larremore, Goodman Jeremy Whitnels,
Mr. Stephen Goodyeare, and Mrs. Goodyeare,
Mr. William Hooke, and Mrs. Hooke, Mrs. Atwater, Hannah and Elizabeth Lamberton, Goodwife Thorpe, Mrs. Bifhop, Mary Miles, "&c."
The Court confifted of Theophilus Eaton,
Efq., the Governour, Mr. Stephen Goodyeare,
Dept. Governour, Francis Newman, Capt. John
Aftwood and Mr. William Leete, Magiftrates.
The firfi who gave her Reafons for what fhe
had faid of Mrs. Godman, was Goodwife Larremore. She faid that as foon as " fhe faw her
come in at Goodman Whitnels the thought of a
Witch; once the fpoke to that Purpofe at Mr.
Hookes; and her Ground was becaufe Mr. Dauenport, about that Time, had occafion in his
M




90        Annals of Witchcraft   1653-5
Miniftry to fpeak of Witches; and ihowed that
a firoward difcontented Frame of Spirit was a Subjedt fitt- for ye Devill to worke vpon in that way,
and fhe looked vpon Mrs. Godman to be of fuch
a Frame of Spirit, but for faying fo at Goodman
Whitnels (he denies it."  Mrs. Godman anfwered
that Mr. Whitnel's Maid confirmed what the
faid; but when the Maid came The faid ihe
thought ihe heard Goodwife Larremore fay
"' fhe thought of a Witch in the Bay when (he fee
Mrs. Godman."  The Governor afked Mrs, Larremore if ihe thought Mrs. Godman a Witch,
and (he faid (he did not. The Court then told
Mrs. Godman that the had warned divers Perfons to appear, and demanded of her what her
Charges were againft them. She faid they had
given out Speeches that made Folks think the was
a Witch; "and firit ihe charged Mrs. Atwater
to be ye Caufe of all;" who had faid fie was a
Witch, and that Hobbamock (the Divil of the
Indians) was her Huiband. The Court informed
her that ihe could prove Nothing, although ihe
had been notified to have her Witneffes ready.
Then "fiundrie Paffages in ye Wrighting were
read."  As "yCe Wrighting" is not given in the
Record, it is conjedtured that it was Notes taken
before a previous Court, and confifted of Charges
and Evidence going to prove that Mrs. Godman
was a Witch; for when the Writing was read
the Court inquired of her "if thefe Thinges did
not giue juft Ground of Sufpition to all that
heard them, that ihe was a Witch? "' She con



1653-5      in New England.              9'
feffed they did; "'but faid if ihe fpake fuch
Things as is in Mr. Hookes Relation, (he was
not herfelfe; but Mrs. Hooke teftifyed that the
was in a fober Frame, and fpake in a deliberate
Way, as ordinarily fhe is at other Times."
Befides what was evidenced in the "' Wrighting,"
Mrs. Godman was reminded of what was faid at
the Governour's, where the Writing was made,
"aboute Mr. Goodyeares falling into a fwonding
Fitt, after he had fpoken Something one Night
in the Expofition of a Chapter, which fhe, being
prefent, liked not; but faid it was againft her, and
as foon as Mr. Goodyeare had done Duties, the
flung out of the Roome in a discontented Way,
and cait a fierce Looke vpon Mr. Goodyeare as
ihe went out; and immediately Mr. Goodyeare,
though well before, fell into a Swond. And befide her notorious lying in this Bufinefs, for being
afked how fhe came to know this, the faid (he
was prefent, yet Mr. Goodyeare, Mrs. Goodyeare,
Hannah and Elizabeth Lamberton all affirm the
was not in ye Roome, but gone vp into the
Chamber."
The Court, having adted the Part of an Attorney for the Perfons accufed, now fummed up
their Judgment in there Words:  That "Mrs.
Godman hath vnjuftly called heither the feuerall
Perfons before named, being (he can proue Nothing againft them, and that her Cariage doth
juftly render her fufpitious of Witchcraft, which
fhe herfelfe in fo many Words confeffeth, therefore the Court wifheth her to looke to her Car



92        Annals of Witchcraft   i653-5
riage, for if further Proofe come, thefe Paffages
will not be forgotten, and therefore gaue her
Charge not to goe in an offenfive Way to Folkes
Houfes in a rayling Manner, as it feemeth fhe
hath done, but that fhe keepe her Place, and
meddle with her owne Bufinefs."
On the previous Examination of Mrs. Godwin, fhe was afked what the had againft Mr. and
Mrs. Hooke?  It feems they had intimated that
fhe had caufed the Sicknefs of their Son. Now
"Mr. Hooke faid hee was not without Feares,
and hee had Reafons for it, becaufe fhee was {hut
out at Mr. Atwaters vpon Sufpition, and he was
troubled in his Sleepe aboute Witches when his
Boye was ficke, which was in a verey ftrang
Manner; and he looked vpon her as a mallitious
one, prepared to that Mifchief; and fhe would
often fpeak aboute Witches and rather juftifye
them, and faid, Why doe they provoake them?
Why do they not let them come into the Church?
Another Time The faid Ihe had fome Thoughts,
what if the Devill ihould come to fucke her and
(le refolued he fhould not."
Another of Mr. Hooke's Accufations was that
Mrs. Godwin would know what was faid and
done at Church Meetings, before the Meetings
were over, "as aboute Delaware Bay, aboute
Mr. Cheever, and aboute Goodman Lawfon, and
fome other Things."  An Indian Squaw Servant
named Time, figuered alfo as a Witnefs againft
her. When Time afked Mrs. Godman how ihe
knew Things? She anfwered the would not tell.




I653-5       in New England.              93
To which Time faid "Did not ye Devill tell you?"
Quite as fenfelefs was the Teftimony of one
Henry Boutle; to the Effed that Mrs. Godwin
talked and muttered to herfelf.  Mr. Hooke teftified further, that he had heard that Witches,
that is, Perfons afflidted "that way, would hardly
be kept away from ye Houfes where they doe
Mifchief; and fo it was with her when his Boy
was ficke, fhe would not be kept away from him,
nor gett away when fhe was there; and one
Time Mrs. Hooke bid her goe away, and thruft
her from ye Boy, but fhe turned againe, and faid
ihe would looke on him." On one Occafion
Mrs. Goodyeare and Mrs. Godwin had a Talk as
to the Occafion of the Illnefs of the Child.
The laft named afked the other if (he thought
it was bewitched?   Her anfwer implied the
Affirmative. And when Mr. Goodyeare afked
Mrs. Godwin if fhe was not the Caufe of the
Boy's Sicknefs?  "She denyed it, but in fuch a
Way as if (he could fcarce denye it."  In being
importuned to give a Reafon for the Boy's Sicknefs, fhe faid it might be "that he had turned
his Braines with fliding;" yet fhe doubted not
he would recover, "though he was handled in
fuch a ftrange Manner as the Dodtor faid he had
not met with the Like."
Mr. Hooke appears as the leading Accufer.  In
the Courfe of his Evidence he faid that when
1 For Shallownefs of Under- bad enough to be a Witch, and yet
ftanding it would be difficult to find the fame Perfon hefitate to tell a Lie!
a Parallel to this. Believe a Perfon




9+        Annals of Jfitchcraft   1653-5
Mr. James Bifhop was married, Mrs. Godwin
came to him  in much Trouble, "fo as he
thought it might be from fome Affedtion" fhe
had for Mr. Bifhop; fo he afked her if that were
not the Cafe, and The faid it was. Mr. Hooke
further adds, that as foon as Mr. and Mrs. Bifhop
were "contrated," Mrs. Bifhop fell into "very
firang Fitts, which hath continewed, at Times
ever fince; and much Sufpition there is that fhe
hath bine the Caufe of the Lofs of Mrs. Byfhop's
Children, for ihe could tell when Mrs. Bifhop
was to be brought to bedd."  When Mrs. Godman was afked why Mrs. Bifhop's Children died,
ihe faid fhe fuppofed it was becaufe of the
Mother's " longing," or Something to that Effecft;
and Jane Hooke faid that Mrs. Godman told her
that Mrs. Bifhop was much "given to longing,
and that was the Reafon fhe loft her Children."
Another very remarkable Circumftance was,
and it was a "fufpitious" one, that on a certain
Time (he knew that Mrs. Atwater had Figs in
her Pocket. She knew (he had becaufe ihe
fmelt them, but Jane Hooke was prefent at the
Time and could not fmell Figs; therefore Mrs.
Godman came under additional "Sufpition" of
Witchcraft. And Mrs. Atwater faid Mrs. Godman "could tell that they at one time had Peafe
Porridge, when they could none of them tell
how fhe came to know" it. Further, Mrs. Atwater faid that on the night the Figs were fmelt,
they had Strangers to Supper, and Mrs. Godman
was there; " he cutt a Sopp and put in Pann;




1653-5      in New England.             95
Betty Brewifer called the Maide to tell her, and
faid fhe [Godman] was aboute her Workes of
Darknefs, and was fufpitious of her, and that
Night Betty Brewfter was in a moft miferable
Cafe, hearing a molt dreadfull Noife, which put
her in great Feare and Trembling, which put
her into fuch a Sweate as fhe was all on a Water
when Mary Miles came to go to Bed, who had
fallen a fleepe by the Fire, which the vfed not to
doe, and in ye Morning ihe looked as one yt had
bine almoft Dead."  Mrs. Atwater now  told
Mrs. Godwin ihe was fufpicious of her, and
"forwarned her of her Houfe;"  at which " fhe
faid ihe would haue her before ye Court; yet the
next Night fhe came againe for Beare."
With fuch trifling Details was much Time
confumed by the Court, occupying feveral Days
and many Pages of its Records. So much only
was intended to be given here as would enable
future Inquirers into the Condition of Society
and its Laws at this Period in the Life of New
England, to form a corred Opinion. No Decifion of the Court is recorded, refpedting the
Difpofal of Mrs. Godman. But about two Years
later, namely, on the I7th of Odober, i655, the
was called before the Court of Magiftrates, conrifting of Theophilus Eaton, Efq., Governour,
Francis Newman, Mr. Benjamin Fenn, and Mr.
William Leete, Magiftrates. Being "called before this Court and told that vpon Grounds
formerly declared, which ftand vpon Record, ihe
by her owne Confeffion remains vnder Sufpition




96        Annals of Witchcraft   I653-5
for Witchcraft, and one more is now added, and
that is, that one time this laft Summer, comeing
to Mr. Hookes to beg fome Beare, was at firft
denyed; but after, fhe was offered fome by his
Daughter which ftood ready drawne, but fhe
refufed it and would haue fome newly drawne,
which fhe had, yet went away in a muttering
difcontented Manner; and after this, that Night,
though the Beare was good and frefh, yet the
next Morning was hott, foure and ill tafted; yea fo
hott as the Barrell was warme without Side; and
when they opened the Bung it fleamed forth.
They brewed againe and it was fo alfo, and fo
continewed foure or flue Times, one after
another."  Such were the principal Charges
againft her; at leaft there thus vaguely fet forth
appear in the Records of the Supreme Court ofthe Colony, then denominated the "' Court of
Magiftrates."
The Records contain none of the Evidence
which ihe brought forward on her Part, but fay
" fhe brought diuers to the Court that they might
fay Something to cleare her, and much Time was
fpent in hearing them, but to little purpofe; the
Grounds of Sufpition remaining full as itrong as
before, and the found full of lying; wherefore
the Court declared vnto her, that though the
Euidence is not fufficient as yet to take away her
Life, yet the Sufpitions are cleere and many,
which the cannot by all the Meanes ihe hath
vfed, free herfelf from; therefore fhe muf forbeare from goeing from Houfe to Houfe to give




1655        in New England.             97
Offence, and carry it orderly in the Family where
fhe is; which, if ihe doe not, the will caufe the
Court to committ her to Prifon again; and that'
the doe now presently, vpon her Freedom giue
Securitie for her good Behauiour: and the did
now, before the Court, ingage fifty Pound of her
Eftate, that is in Mr. Goodyeers Hand, for her
good Behauiuor, which is further to be cleered
next Court, when Mr. Goodyeare is at Home."
As no notice appears in the Records of the
"' next Court," no further Proceedings, were probably had againft her; and from the New Haven
Records we learn that Mrs. Godman lived in the
Family of Thomas Johnfon, and that the died on
the 9th of Odober, I66o.'
I 655.
An Abftrad of the Laws of New England, as
prepared by the Rev. Mr. John Cotton was publithed in London. In this, among. the Capital
Crimes is Witchcraft, "which is Fellowfhip by
Covenant with a familiare Spirit, to be punifhed
with Death."  It futher enacts, that, Confulters
with Witches not to be tolerated, but either to
be cut off by Death or Baniffiment, or other fuitable Punithment."z
It was thought an appropriate Time to re-enad
and promulgate Laws againit Familiarity with
the Devil, the Fathers of that Day being weak
1 See Colonial Records of New   2 Hutchinson's Colle6tion of OriHaven, I, 29,   5.   ginal Papers, 172.
N




98        Annals of lJitchcraft        1656
enough to fuppofe they could prevent it; and we
are told-what it is eafy to believe- that Accufations at this Period were common in all Parts
of New England.' One certainly was executed in
Bofton in I656, but her Profecution and Condemnation took place the Year before. This
was Mrs. Anne Hibbins, Wife of Mr. William
Hibbins.2  It is faid that feveral Perfons were
executed in the Vicinity and certainly one in
Bofton, in I655' but no Names or other Facts
appear.
I656.
Refpeting the Execution of Mrs. Hibbins,
that thofe who confummated it may bear their
Share of the Tranfaction, their Names are here
fubjoined: John Endicott and Richard Bellingham were Governour and Deputy Governour;
Simon Bradftreet, Samuel Symonds, Robert
Bridges, Thomas Wiggin, Daniel Gookin, Daniel
Denifon, Simon Willard, and Humphrey Atherton were Affiftants; Edward Rawfon was Secretary.
The Cafe is abruptly brought up on the I4th
of May in the General Court, and thus difpofed
of; the Jury having failed to bring her in guilty:
"The Magiftrates not receaving the Verdi& of
the Jury in Mrs. Hibbens hir Cafe, having binn
on Triall for Witchcraft, it came, and fell of
1 Dr. William  Bentley, the ex-  2 For  further  Particulars,  see
cellent Hiftorian of Salem.  Hift. and Antifs. Bofton, 346.




i656        in New England.            99
Courfe to the Generall Court. Mrs. Ann Hibbins was called forth, appeared at the Barr. The
Indihtment againft her was read, to which lhe
anfwered, Not guilty, and was willing to be
trjed by God and this Court. The Evidences
againft hir was read, the Partjes wittneffing being
prefent, hir Anfwers confidered on and the whole
Court being mett together, by theire Vote, determined that Mrs. Anne Hibbens is guilty of
Witchcraft, according to the Bill of Inditment
found againft hir by the Jury of Life and Death.
The Governour, in open Court, pronoun&t Sentence accordingly; declaring the was to goe from
the Barr to the Place from whence fhe came,
and from thence to the Place of Execution, and
there to hang till ihe was dead." Then follows:
"Itt is ordered, that Warrant fhall iffue out from
the Secretary to the Marlhall General for the
Execution of Mrs. Hibbens, on the 5th Day
next come Fortnight, prefently after the Ledure
at Boiton, being the i9th of June next; the
Marfhall Generall taking with him a fufficient
Guard."
The Evidence which fent this poor Woman to
an ignominious Grave, was doubtlefis imilar to
that given at other Trials; but if preferved it
has not been met with. According to Hutchinfon, this was the fecond Execution for Witchcraft in New England, of which there is any
Record.
In Hampton, New Hampfhire, a Profecution
commenced againif a fuppofed Witch in the Year




I0oo     Annals of fWitchcraft       1656
i656; and although Everybody in the Town, or
nearly Everybody "and his Relations" believed
the Accufed a Witch, fhe was "f uffered to live."
Her Name was Eunice Cole, Wife of William
Cole who died in I662. From his Will made a
few Days before his Death, the Inference is
drawn that he was much younger than his Wife;
but if fo it is a fomewhat of an anomalous Cafe,
as Eunice was old enough for a Witch fix Years
earlier, and as a general Thing, only aged Females were Witches in thofe Days.
According to the unvarying Traditions in the
Town, Unice was a terrible Charader, who, in
the Imaginations of moft of the People, could
do Superhuman Things. The very Mention of
her Name would hufh crying Children, and
hurry truant Boys to School. The Hiftorian of
the Town was difpofed to give her no enviable
Charader, averring that " he was a fruitful
Source of Vexation for a long Series of Years;
hated and defpifed for her ugly and malicious
Difpofition, and feared on account of her fuppofed Alliance with the Devil."' But the diligent Hiftorian did not meet with her earlieft
Profecution. He informs us that foon after the
Death of her Huiband, the Deputy from the
Town to the General Court was charged with a
Petition to allow the Town to detain "Unice
Coule att the Houfe of Corredion according to
the Court Order."  About three Years later,
1 Manufcript Hifory of Hampton, by the late E. W. Toppan.




i656        in New England.           IoI
namely, O6tober, I665, William Salter acknowledged the receipt of eight Pounds, " on Account
of the Town of Hampton, being due unto me
for the Maintainance of Eunice Cole, Prifoner."
And, on the 8th of June, i668, Mr. Salter acknowledged the Receipt of another eight Pounds,
"in hogfhead Staves, for keeping Goodwife Cole
this Yeare."
Eunice feems to have been alternately at large
and in Prifon; and although reprefented as being
a Terror to the Town, owing to her fuppofed
League with the Devil, ihe does not feem to
have prevented mischievous Youngfters from exercifing their diabolical or fome other Propenfity
of playing all Kinds of malicious Tricks upon
her. Hence fhe became a poor Outcait, defpifed
by the Ignorant, and but faintly pitied, if at all,
by the better Part of the People. Hence the
Cry of Witch! Witch! was eafily ftarted at any
Time, and as late as September, i680, fhe was up
before a "Quarter Court" in Hampton, Maj.
Richard Waldron prefiding, "being by Authoritie committed to Prifon on Sufpition of being a
Witch; and from Examination of Teftimonys
the Court vehemently fufpedts her fo to be."  But
the Court decided that "no full Proof" appearing, ordered her to be imprifoned, and "a Lock
kept on her Leg," at the Pleafure of the Court,
and the Seled Men "to take Care to provide for
her as formerly."  She muff now have been very
old, as it was twenty-four Years after her Profecution in i656. For fome Years, how many is




102      Annals of Jitchcraft        i656
not itated, fhe lived alone in a little Hut which
fltood on a Spot in the Rear of that on which
the Academy now ftands. In that (he died, with
none to affuage her laft Sufferings. Some Days
having elapfed before her Death was known, and
then, according to the current Tradition, it required no little Bravery on the Part of the Inhabitants, to muller Courage enough to break
into her Cabin; this was at length effeded, and
the Remains dragged out, a Hole dug near by,
and the Body tumbled in, and thus The was there
buried; and then a Stake was driven through the
Body agreeably to the Superftition of the Times.
So far as is known, the following Depofitions
are the firft Ads in the Tragedy of Eunice Cole.
Thomas Colman or Coleman, on whofe Account
an Adion was commenced, fettled in Hampton
before I650. He came there from Newbury, in
which Place he is found as early as I635. His
Children, born in Hampton, were Benjamin,
I640; Jofeph, I642; and Ifaac, I647. Abraham Drake was Son of Robert, at whofe Houfe
the Meeting of the "Celekte" Men was held,
as mentioned in the Depofition. Robert Drake
and his Family came from Colchefter, in Effex,
England. Coleman, if the fame mentioned in
the Founders of New England, came from Marlborough in Wiltfhire, in I635.
"The Depocefhon of Thomas Coleman and
Abraham  Drake.  Theafe  Deponents faith,
aboute a Yeare and halfe agon, thay being at
Robart Drakes Houce at a Metinge with the




I656        in New England.            103
Celekte Men, Eunes Cooles cam in two the faid
Houce and demand Help of the Celkt Men for
Wood or other Thinges, and the Celekt Men
tould hur fhee had an Eftate of hur oune, and
neded noe Help of the Toune; whar vppon
Eunes ancered, they cold help Good man Robe,
being a lufte Man, and fhee coolde hau none,
but Eunes faid all ould not, or Jhould not doe, and
about two or thre Dayes after this, faid Robe
loft a Kowe and a Sheepe yerry ftrangly, and one
of the Men then prefant tould Yunes Cooles fhee
{hold looke at a Hand of God in it, for withdrauing the Pepell Hartes from helping of hur.
Eunes Cooles ancered, noe, twas the Deuill did
it. Depofed in Court, 5 September, 56.
" EDW. RAWSON, Secret.
"Thomas Coleman and John Redman, depofed to ye Evidence, and pticularly to ye Words
jtould not doe. 5th September, 56.
"EDw. RAWSON, Secrety."
[The laft Sentence in the firft Paragraph, and
all of the laft Paragraph are in the Autograph of
Secretary Rawfon.]
One Cafe of Witchcraft is recorded this Year
at Portfmouth in New Hampfhire. Jane, the
Wife of Thomas Walford, fell under as ftrong
Sufpicions as could well be imagined; and probably as much to the Point as any ever indulged
in elfewhere; but fortunately the Authorities
could not be inftigated by the Clamours of the
Multitude to proceed to Extremities.
The Evidence againit Goodwife Walford being,




Io4      Annals of lfitchcraft       I656
in fome Refpedts a little peculiar, a Specimen of
it follows, She was brought before the Court of
Affiftants on the Complaint of Sufannah Trimmings, who teftified: "As I was going Home
on Sunday Night, the 3oth of March, I heard a
ruffling in the Woods, which I fuppofed to be
occafioned by Swine; and prefently there appeared a Woman whom I apprehended to be old
Goodwife Walford. She afked me where my
Confort was. I anfwered I had none. She faid,
thy Confort is at Home by this Time. Lend me
a Pound of Cotton. I told her I had but two
Pounds in the Houfe, and I would not fpare any
to my Mother. She faid I had better have done
it, that my Sorrow was very great already, and it
fhould be greater, for I was going a great
Journey, but fhould never come there. She then
left me, and I was ifruck, as with a Clap of Fire
on the Back, and fhe vanihfed toward the Water
Side, in my Apprehenfion, in the Shape of a Cat.
She had on her Head a white linnen Hood, tied
under her Chin, and her Waiftcoat and Petticoat
were red, with an old green Apron, and -a black
Hat upon her Head.
"Taken upon Oath, I8 April, I656, before
Bryan Pendleton, Henry Sherburn, and Renald
Fernald."
If this Teftimony did not ferve to convi& Mrs.
Walford of Witchcraft, it will ferve fome future
Artift as an excellent Defcription of the Coftume
of an old Woman of this Period; for there may
be no Queftion but that the Witnefs defcribed the




I 656       in New England.            o05
common Drefs of the Party againft whom fhe
was witneffing, which no Doubt was the nearly
univerfal Coifume at the Time.
Oliver Trimmings, Hufband of this Witnefs,
teftified: "My Wife came Home in a fad Condition. She paffed by me with her Child in her
Arms, laid the Child on the Bed, fat down upon
the Cheft, and leaned upon her Elbow. Three
Times I afked her how fhe did. She could not
fpeak. I took her in my Arms and held her up,
and repeated the Queftion. She forced Breath,
and Something ftopped in her Throat, as if it
would have ftopped her Breath. I unlaced her
Clothes, and foon the fpake, and faid, Lord have
Mercy upon me, this wicked Woman will kill
me. I afked her what Woman. She faid Goodwife Walford. I tried to perfuad her it was only
her Weaknefs. She told me no, and related as
above, that her Back was as a Flame of Fire, and
her lower Parts were, as it were, numb, and
without Feeling. I pinched her, and ihe felt
not. She continued that Night, and the Day
and Night following, very ill, and is frill bad of
her Limbs, and complains frill daily of it."
Sworn as above.
Nicholas Rowe teftified: "That Jane Walford, fhortly after ihe was accufed, came to the
Deponent in Bed, in the Evening, and put her
Hand upon his Breaft, fo that he could not fpeak
and was in great Pain till the next Day. By the
Light of the Fire in the next Room, it appeared
to be Goody Walford, but ihe did not fpeak. She
0




o6       Annals of Witchcraft         1656
repeated her Vifit about a Week after, and did as
before, but faid Nothing."
Elifa Barton depofed, that "Ihe faw Sufannah
Trimmings at the Time (he was ill, and her Face
was coloured and fpotted with feveral Colours.
She told me the Story, who replied, that it was
Nothing but her Fantafy.  Her Eyes looked as
if they had been fcalded."
John Puddington faid, that "three Years ago,
Goodwife Walford came to his Mothers.  She
faid that her own Hufband called her an old
Witch; and when fhe came to her Cattle, her
Hufband would bid her begone; for fhe did
overlook the Cattle, which is as much as to fay
in our Country bewitching."
Agnes Puddington faid, that "on the IIth of
April the Wife of Mr. Evans came to her Houfe,
and lay there all Night; that a little after Sunfet
(he faw a yellowifh Cat; and Mrs. Evans laid fhe
was followed by a Cat wherever fhe went. John
came and faw a Cat in the Garden, took down
his Gun to fhoot her.  The Cat got upon a Tree,
and the Gun would not take Fire, and afterward
the Cock would not (rand. She afterwards faw
three Cats. The yellow one vanifhed away on
the plain Ground, and the could not tell which
Way they went."'
Three others depofed that they heard Elizabeth, the Wife of Nicholas Rowe, fay there were
three Men Witches at Strawberry Bank. One
1 Adams's Annals Portsmoutb, re&ions from the New Hampjhire
38-49, with Additions and Cor- Provincial Papers.




1656          in New England.              107
was Thomas Turpin, who was drowned; Another
was "old Ham.  The other fhould be Namelefs,
becaufe he Ihould be Blamelefs."
Upon thefe Teftimonies Goodwife Walton was
bound over to the next Court, which fat in June
following, when fhe was again "bound over."
When the Aation was finally dropped does not
appear, but about thirteen Years after, namely, in
I669, Jane profecuted one Robert Coutch or
Couch, for Slander, in that faid Couch had reported that ihe was a Witch. She got her Cafe,
but not her Claim entirely. The Court feem to
have thought, that to be called a Witch, at that
Time, was not very damaging to the Charader
of an old Woman, who probably, or poffibly had
a high Charader as a Termagant.  They therefore ordered Couch to pay her five Pounds, and
the Court the Coils of the Profecution.
The following is given from fpicy George
Bifhop,' who not very unaptly fpeaks of the
"Bloody Laws and Proceedings" in Maffachufetts during the Adminiftration of Lieutenant Governour Bellingham  as " Draconica."  He fays,
and it is believed truly, that fome of the Quakers
who came to Boiton this Year were treated as
Witches, and accufed by Perfons in Authority as
being fuch.
Ann Auftin and Mary Fifher, were, for dif1 New England 7udged, by the Women, the Reader is referred to
Spirit of the Lord, &c. But for Betfe's Suferings of the Q.uakers,
a more full Detail refpefting the II, I77, &c. A Work of the highTreatment of thofe mifguided eft Authority in Quaker Hiftory.




Io8      Annals of JYitchcraft       I656
tributing certain Books to make Profelytes to the
Principles of their Sed, fent to Prifon by the
Governor, declaring them  Witches, "and appointing Women to fearch them, who took Men
to help them, in Cafe they had refufed, who
ftripped them ftark naked, not miffing Head or
Feet, fearching betwixt their Toes, and amongft
their Hair, turning and abufing, their Bodies in
fuch a Manner, as Modefty will not admit to
mention."
Their Books were taken from them, and "the
Executioners appointed to deftroy them."  Although there Females were denounced as Witches,
and although the Law  exifted that Witches
flould be put to Death, the Authorities either
fet the Law at Defiance, or they did not believe
their own Charges. No Efcape from this Dilemma could be pretended. But they undertook
to cheat the Devil by tranfporting them beyond
Seas.
We do not hear that Caffandra Southwick was
accufed of being a Witch, and yet if any Quaker
ever was a Witch fhe muft have been one, as the
Authorities treated her in the fame Manner as
they did the two Females juft noticed. Whittier, however, has given the worft Phafe of the
Proceedings in Caffandra's Cafe, relying, it feems,
entirely upon George Bifhop, while Beffe is more
reliable.
She is thus poetically painted in Prifon, the
Night before the was to be fhipped away to be
fold for Prifon Fees:




i656            in New England.                    1og
"All Night I fat unfleeping, for I knew that on the Morrow
The Ruler and the cruel Prieft would mock me in my Sorrow,
Dragged to their Place of. Market, and bargained for and fold,
Like a Lamb before the Shambles, like a Heifer from the Fold!
"Slow broke the gray cold Morning; again the Sunfhine fell,
Flecked with the Shade of Bar and Grate within my lonely
Cell;
At length the heavy Bolts fell back, my Door was open caft,
And flowly at the Sheriff's Side, up the long Street I paffed;
I heard the Murmur round me, and felt, but dared not fee,
How, from every Door and Window, the People gazed on me.
And Doubt and Fear fell on me, Shame burned upon my
Cheek,
Swam Earth and Sky around me, my trembling Limbs grew
weak."
Having arrived at the Place of Embarcation,
Caffandra is made to fay:
"And there were ancient Citizens, cloak-wrapped and grave
and cold,
And grim and ftout Sea-captains with Faces bronzed and old,
And on his Horfe, with Rawfon, his cruel Clerk at hand,
Sat dark and haughty Endicott, the Ruler of the Land.
" Dark lowered the Brows of Endicott, and with a deeper Red
O'er Rawfon's wine-empurpled Cheek the Flufh of Anger
fpread;'Good People,' quoth the white-lipped Prieft,'heed not her
Words fo wild,
Her Mafter fpeaks within her,  the Devil owns his Child!'
" Then to the ftout Sea-captains, the Sheriff, turning, faid,-' Which of ye, worthy Seamen, will take this Quaker Maid?
In the Ifle of fair Barbadoes, or on Virginia's Shore,
You may hold her at a higher Price than Indian Girl or
Moor."'
And fo on, with full poetic Licenfe, the Poet




I Io       Abnnals of t[7itchcraft   1657-8
tells us that no one would undertake the Tranfportation of the "Quaker Maid," and that the
thus triumphantly and Scornfully added:
"I looked on haughty Endicott; with Weapon half-way drawn,
Swept round the Throng his Lion Glare of bitter Hate and
Scorn;
Fiercely he drew his Bridle-rein, and turned in Silence back,
And fneering Prieff and baffled Clerk rode murmuring in his
Track."
I657.
A Cafe of the fuppofed black Art of Diabolifm difturbed the People of Eafthampton on
Long  Ifland in 1657.  A  Mrs. Garlicke was
brought before the Town Court on Sufpicion of
Witchcraft, and a Number of Witneffes were examined in Support of the Charge. The Magiftrates after hearing the Teitimony,' and not being
fkilled in the Science of Demonology,z concluded
to fend the Accufed to the General Court of
Connedicut, in which the occult Dotrine would
probably be more fafely applied.
Goodwife Garlicke was accordingly fent to
Hartford, and the General Court took the following Adion upon her Cafez at the May Term,
i658. Eafthampton was then within the Jurifdiction of the Colony of Connedicut, having
been formally "annexed" at this Court.  The
Court returned the Woman, and in a Letter fignified to the Town Authorities, that they had
t Wood, Hilt. L. Il/and, 24.  2 Prime, Hiot. L. IJland, 89.




1657-8        in New  England.                rII
duly confidered the Cafe of Goodwife Garlicke,
having "paffed a legall tryall therevpon; wherevpon, tho there did not appeare fufficient Evidence to proue her guilty, yet we cannot but well
approue-and commend the Chriftian Care and
Prudence of thofe in Authority with you, in
fearching into yt Cafe. Alfo we thinke good to
certify, that it is defired and expeSed, by this
Court, that you ihould carry neighbourly and
peaceably, without juft Offence to Jos. Garlicke'
and his Wife, and that they fhould doe the like
to you. And ye Charge, we conceive and advilfe, may be juftly borne as followeth:   That
Jos. Garlick fhould beare ye Charge of his Wives
Dyet and Ward at Home, with ye Charge of her
Tranceportation Hither and returne Home; that
your Towne fhould beare all theire owne Charges
at Home, and the Charge of theire Meffengers
and Witneffes in bringinge the Cafe to Tryall
here and theire returne Home. The Court being content to put ye Charge of the Tryall here,
vpon ye Countrys Account."z
It is creditably reported by a local Authority,
that Mrs. Garlick  had been employed in the
Family of Capt. Lyon Gardiner, and that another
Woman in the fame Employ had accufed Mrs.
i His Chriftian Name may be not know) takes the Abbreviation in
very uncertain, from what is here Ct. Co. Rerords, as printed by
or elfewhere given of it. Thomp- Trumbull, to be ffepth. Jofiah would
fon, Hi!!. Long IJiand, I, 302, fays have anfwered his Purpofe as well.
it was Jojhua, Prime has it 7obn.
Thompfon is probably Right. Sa-   2 Co. Records Connefticut, I,
vage (upon what Authority we do 572-3.




112       Annals of Witchcraft         1659
Garlick of caufing the Death of her Child;
while, according to Capt. Gardiner, the Woman
who had been a Witnefs againft Mrs. Garlick,
had taken an Indian Child to nurfe, and ftarved
her own Child to Death for the Sake of the Pay
(he was to receive for fupporting the Indian
Child.'
I659.
To what Extent "Witchery" was practifed in
Say Brook in Connedicut, in I659, we are not
informed; that it did exift, and difturb the People there is very lure, or the following Order
would not have been paffed by the General Court
of that Colony; namely, that Mr. Samuel Willis
"is requefted to goe downe to Sea Brook, to affilt
ye Maior in examininge the Sufpitions about
Witchery, and to ad therein as may be requifite."' We do not find any Mention of the Cafe
afterwards, which leads to the Belief that Mr.
Willis did not find enough of Witchery to make
any Report upon to the Court.
The "Maior," whofe Afliftance Mr. Willis was
to receive, was Major John Mafon, long the chief
military Man of Connedticut.  He was ftationed
at Saybrook in I647.
Mr. Samuel Willis was Son of Mr. George
Willis of Hartford, who came from Fenny
Compton, in Warwickfhire, England, and fettled there in I638, and was Governour of Con1 Prime, in his HiJory of Long' Connelicet Colonial Records,!dqand, 89.           I, 338.




1659        in New England.             II3
neticut in I642.' The Name was afterwards
written WVyllys, at leaft in fome Branches of the
Family, perhaps prefuming this to have been the
original Spelling; but George the Emigrant
figned his Name Willis to his Will, and Elfewhere.
There was a Commotion in Andover, Maffachufetts, in I659, which muft have been quite
confiderable, or it would not have caufed the
venerable Simon Bradftreet to move in the Matter, as there is clear Evidence that he did.
Two original Papers are at Hand, going to
fhow that one John Godfrey of that Town was
accufed of Witchcraft, that Evidence was taken
by Mr. Bradftreet, and that Godfrey was tried at
Boiton fix Years after. The Minutes of Teftimony in Mr. Bradiftreet's Hand are as follows:
"The Depofions of Job Tylar, aged about 40
Yeares, Mary his Wife, Mofes Tylar his Sonn,
aged betwixt I7 and I8 Yeares, and Mary Tylar
about I5 Yeares old.
"Thefe Deponants witneffe that they faw a
Thing like a Bird to come in at the Dore of there
Houfe with John Godfrey, in the Night, about
the Bignes of a Black Bird or rather bigger, to
wit, as big as a Pigion, and did fly about, John
Godfrey labouring to catch it, and the Bird vanifhed, as they conceived through the Chinck of a
jointed Board; and being afked by the Man of
the Houfe wherefore it came, he anfwered, it
1 Ibidem, 468-70.
P




I I+      Annals of Wllitchcraft       1659
came to fuck your Wife. This was (as they
rember) 5 or 6 Years fince.
"Taken upon Oath of the four aboue menconed Parties, this 27. 4. 59, before me
"SIMON BRADSTREETE."
How it happened that no legal Steps were
taken for "'five or fix Years" after it was difcovered that John Godfrey was accompanied by
an evil Spirit, or Imp, we are unable to explain.
And equally unaccountable it is to explain why
fix other Years were allowed to pafs before any
AMtion was taken on the above Depofition.
Whatever the intermediate Steps may have been,
if any, they are quite as invifible as thofe of
the preceding "five or fix Years." Yet it is certain that the faid John Godfrey and his four Accufers did, about fix Years after the above Depofition was taken, appear before the Court in Bofton; for Edward Rawfon, under his own Hand,
endorfes that Depofition thus:  66 Owned  in
Court, 7 March, i665, by Job Tylar and Mofes
Tylar."  Then again, "Owned in Court, 13
March, 65, by Mary Tyler, on hir former Oath.
E. R., Sc."
It feems that for fome Reafon the Wife of Job
Tyler did not arrive as foon as the other'Members of the Family, and the Court may have been
kept waiting for other Wifneffes. At all Events
there feems to have been a Backwardnefs among
fome of the Witneffes, as will appear by the
following Letter from one of them, dated, as will
be feen, two Days before two of the Witneffes




x659        in New England.             115
appeared in Court. They had probably been all
fummoned at the fame Time, and one of them
may have brought Mr. Dane's Letter of Excufe.
"'To the honourable Court at Bofton.
"May it pleafe your Worfhips, I received a
Warrant under Mr. Secretaries Hand for my Appearance at Boiton this Court, to giue in Evidence, about fome Words that Godfery fpake to
mee concerning Witches, the which I underfiand
were fhewne in the Court vnder my owne Hand;
but confidering ye Neceffity thats incumbent by
Reafon of prevailing Infirmity, I humbly crave
your favourable Interpretation of my Abfence;
tis not Difrefpedt, nor Negled of Dutie, my Confcience witneffing, but Frailtie, Nature, and the
Rawnes of the Weather; and now hauing prefented ye Caufe, I Craue Leaue to draw a Vayle,
defiring Almighty God to be with you, and to
condud you in Pathes of Juftice and Rightoufnes, and Reft.
"Your Honours obliged unto
"'all due Seruice in the Lord.
"March 5. 65.         FRANCIS DANE."I
It would be highly gratifying to know the
Contents of what was Jhewn in the Court under
Mr. Dane's Hand. It muff have been very unfatisfa(iory in making out a Cafe of Witchcraft,
or Mr. Dane would not have been fummoned to
I Mr. J. W. Dean has given an Gen. Reg., VIII, 147-56. The
excellent Account of the DANE Hon. Nathan Dane was defcended
Family, in the N. Eng. HiJf. and from John, Brother of Francis.




ii 6      Annals of lYitchcraft        i66o
appear in Perfon.  His Infirmities from  Age
could not have been great, for he was fcarcely
fifty Years old.
It is very reafonable to fuppofe that the Evidence againft Godfrey was of too ridiculous a
Charader to be ferioufly confidered, and that he
was difcharged. After this he probably left Andover, as the Hiftorian of that Town does not
give him a Place in his Work. Whether he belonged to the Hampton Family of Godfrey is not
known. He may have been the John Godfrey
who came to Newbury in I634.'
In the great and diftreffing Calamity of i692,
Mr. Dane did what he could to allay the Witchcraft Excitement, and had his Obfervations been
liftened to, and his Judgment heeded, many Lives
would have been faved. But like the Phrenfy
engendered in the French Revolution, one hundred Years later, this was a Parallel.   His
Brother John, of Ipfwich, was one of the Jurors
of the Trials of I692, and with others figned an
Apology afterwards.2
I66o.
An Attempt was made at Scituate, in the old
Colony of Plymouth, to inaugurate a Crufade
againft a fuppofed Witch, but the Plot was too
fhallow, and whatever there was of Deviltry in it
was thrown upon the one who made the Attempt.
1 See Founders of New England,  2 See The Witchcraft Delufon in
page 70.               New England, III, I 2 I, 13 5.




I66o         iZ New England.             17
Dinah Sylvefter accufed the Wife of William
Holmes of being a Witch.  From the imperfed
Record preferved it appears that Dinah fwore that
Mrs. Holmes appeared to her in the Shape of a
Bear, "about a Stones Throw from the Path,"
perhaps in the Night or Dufk of the Evening,
but on this Point the Records are filent. On
being queftioned "as to what Manner of Tayle
the Bear had," Dinah laid fhe could not tell,
"becaufe the Bear's Head was towards her."  A
Blank in-the original Record is conftrued to mean,
by the able Hiftorian of the Town' where the
Cafe happened, that the Teftimony was probably
too ridiculous to be entered in full. And the
Proceedings at the next Court fully fuftain the
Remark. Dinah was fummoned before the Court,
Sentenced to pay the Cofls of Profecution, be
whipt or make public Acknowledgment for
falfely accufing Mrs. Holmes.  She chore the
latter, and her Acknowledgment was entered on
the Records of the Court.
Another Cafe of recorded Witchcraft in the
Old Colony took place in I 676, as will be feen in
the Order of Time.
In the Year I66o, Sufpicions of Witchcraft
fell on Mary Wright of Oyfter Bay, Long Ifland.
She was a poor and ignorant Woman, and it became a Matter of grave Neceffity, according to the
Hiftorian of Long Ifland,z "that an Offence of
fuch enormous Depravity fhould be fully and
1 Samuel Deane, Hfitory Scitu-  2 B. F. Thompfon, Hi/lory Long
ate, 152.       Tlandl, X 6 1 -2.




I I8      Annals of Witchcraft          i66o
fatisfatorily inveftigated; but as there exifted at
that Time no domeftic Tribunal which the People confidered competent to hear and determine
a Matter of fuch Magnitude, or none to which
they thought proper to fubmit the Cafe, it was
finally concluded to tranfport the accufed Party to
the General Court of Maffachufetts, where
Charges of this Sort were more common, and
the Proof neceffary to fupport them better underftood. She was accordingly arraigned there, and
the Matter inquired into with all the Formality
ufual on fuch Occafions.  The Evidence of her
Guilt failed, and ihe was acquitted of the Crime
of Witchcraft.  She was neverthelefs convided
of being a Quaker, a Crime, in the Eftimation of
the Court, of almoft equal Enormity, and was
Sentenced to be banifhed out of the JurifdiCion."
Unfortunately for this Story, Nothing of a
legal Proceeding is produced from the Long
Ifland Records, or appears in the General Court
Records of Maffachufetts. Nor do the Quaker
Hiftorians, who let no Name of a perfecuted Perfon efcape them, allude to any Charge of Witchcraft having been brought againft any one of
their Sed at the Period in Queftion.  But under
the Year I664, Sewell,' after detailing the Treatment of Chriftifon and others in the "bloody
Town of Bofton," and lamenting that "no Exhortations feemed to take any Hold of the Perfecutors," continues: " For once a Girl of thirteen
1 HiJZ. of the Rife, Increafe and Edit. z Vols., 8vo., Philadelphia,
Progrefis of the.tuakers, I, 370. 1832.




I662          in New  England.                Ii 9
or fourteen Years of Age, called Hannah Wright,
whofe Sifter had been banithed for Religion, was
ftirred with fuch Zeal, that coming from Long
Ifland, fome Hundreds of Miles from Boiton, into
that bloody Town, fhe appeared in the Court
there, and warned the Magiftrates to fpill no more
innocent Blood. The Saying fo ftruck them at
firft, that they all fat filent; till Rawfon, the
Secretary, faid: "What, fhall we be baffled by
fuch a one as this? Come, let us drink a dram.
And here the Hiftorian abruptly leaves his Readers. But in Beffe, under the Year I66I, it is
ftated that after Sentence of Death was paffed on
Wenlock Chriftefon, and he was remanded to
Prifon to await Execution, which was to be on
June I3th (i66i), an Order of Court (probably
occafioned by fome Intelligence from London, of
Complaints againft them) was iffued for the Enlargement of him, and twenty-feven others then
in Prifon,"' for the Crime of being Quakers.
All the Names are given, and among them are
found thofe of Mary Wright and Hannah Wright.
Neither does George Bifhop,2 who wrote near the
Time, add Anything but the Names before referred to.
I662.
A Woman and her Hufband, of the Name of
Greenfmith, were executed at Hartford in I662,3
i Suferings of the People called   3 From an Entry in Goffe's DiQuakerr, II, 223-4. Alfo,4bJtrat  ary, extracted by Hutchinfon, it apof the Sufferings, III, zo07-8.  pears that on Jan. o20, 662, three
Witches were condemned at Hart-' New' England Yudged, 340.  ford, which doubtlefs refers to this
Affair, and the true Date is 1 662-3.




120       Annals of Witchcraft        1662
or in purfuance of A6ts of Witchcraft begun this
Year. From what can be learned from Sources
now before us, they may have been put to Death
by a Mob, as the General Court Records contain
no Account of their Trial nor Condemnation.
Mrs. Greenfmith is alleged to have been "a lewd
and ignorant Woman;" that the latter Part
of the Charge was true is very likely, judging
from the Anfwers fhe gave when queftioned about
the Charge of a League with the Devil. She
had been caft into Prifon under that Charge, and
while ihe lay there a Woman named Ann,
Daughter of John Cole, who lived near a Dutch
Family, was feized in a ftrange Manner with Fits,
"cwherein her Tongue was improved by a Demon
to exprefs Things which {he herfelf knew Nothing of." Among her Incoherencies when in
thefe Fits, fhe faid certain " Perfons were confulting how they might carry on mifchievous Defigns
againft her; that they would afflict her Body,
fpoile her Name, &c." After-which the Demon
faid, "'Let us confound her Language, that ihe
may tell no more Tales." Then fhe made Utterances in Dutch, of which Language fhe knew
Nothing, "The Rev. Mr. Stone being by, declared, that he thought it impoffible for one not
familiar with the Dutch ifould fo exadtly imitate
the Dutch Tone in the Pronunciation of Englifh."
And "feveral worthy Perfons wrote the intelligible Sayings expreffed by Ann Cole, whileft ihe
was thus amazingly handled,"   Among thefe




I662        in New England.           121
"worthy Perfons" were "Mr. John Whiting,
Mr. Samuel Hooker, and Mr. Jofeph Hains."
Among the Attendants on the bewitched
Woman, fome one of them mentioned the Name
of the poor "lewd and ignorant" Woman then
lying in Prifon, as already mentioned. She was
immediately fent for, and charged with certain
Ats done and intended to be done againIt Mrs.
Cole; the fame having been written down, and
now read by Mr. Whiting and Mr. Haines. And
we are told that "the Woman being aftonifhed
thereat, confeffed thofe Things to be true, and
that {he and other Perfons named in this preternatural Difcourfe, had had Familiarity with the
Devil." But on the next Day, having probably
refleded that fhe had fallen into a Snare prepared
for her, was in a Rage againft Mr. Haines, and
denied all Knowledge of Witchcraft; but at
Length, probably bewildered by the ftrange Queftions of her Tormentors, "ifhe declared that the
Devil firft appeared to her in the Form of a Deer
or Fawn;" and that finally "the Devil had frequently carnal Knowledge of her;" that "the
Witches had Meetings not far from her Houfe;
that fome appeared in one Shape, and others in
another. One came flying amongft them in the
Shape of a Crow." Upon this Confeffion, with
other concurrent Evidence, the Woman was executed; fo likewife was her Hufband, though he
Q




122         Annals of tYitchcraft             1662
did not acknowledge himfelf guilty."'  There
were fome other Perfons accufed at the fame
Time, but they had the good Fortune to make
their Efcape by Flight.
It is conclufively added, that, as foon as the
fufpeted Witches were either executed or fled,
Mrs. Cole was reftored to  Health! 2  But the
crowning Part of this Tale is to come, from
which it will appear that Mr. and Mrs. Greenfmith were not hanged, according to the ufual
Cuftom, but "there were fome that had a Mind
to try whether the Stories of Witches not being
able to fink under Water were true," that accordingly a Man and Woman accufed by Ann Cole, had
their Hands and Feet tied together and catl into
the Water, and that they "both fwam  after the
Manner of a Buoy." A third was thrown in,
and "he immediately funk right down."
The Preferver and Relator of this Affair in the
Style of the Dark Ages, adds concerning thofe
thus inhumanly executed, "they very fairly took
their Flight, not having been feen in that Part of
the World fince." 3
All we find in the Records in which the Name
of Greenfmith appears, occurs feveral Years later,
I I. Mather, Remarkable Provi-' Feb. 24 [1662-3]. After one
dences. Mather compofed his Ac- of the Witches was hanged, the
count from a Communication of Maid was Well. Goffe's Diary,
Mr. John Whiting, before men- in Hutchinfon, ifjlZory of Mad/ationed. The Story as given by the chufetts Bay, II, p. I8.
Latter is now publifhed in Hifl.
Colls. Ms. H. Soc., XXXVIII,   3 Remarkable Providences, as be466-9.                    fore cited.




x1662           in New England.                   123
and is as follows:  "This Court impowers Mr.
Samll Willys, Captn Tallcott and the Secretary
[Mr. John  Allyn] to  make a Deed of Sale to
Andrew Benton, of Nath: Greenfmith's Houfe
and Land, which was feized for Charge expended
on faid Greenfmith, and fold to G. Benton." 
The diabolical Method of determining whether
Perfons were Witches by cafting them into the
Water with their Limbs tied together with Cords,
is afcribed byf ome to that abominable Mifcreant,
Matthew  Hopkins, though it is faid to have been
recommended by King James (if he did not invent it), who affigned as a Reafon, "that as fuch
Perfons have renounced their Baptifm by Water,
fo the Water refufes to receive them."
Butler, in  his peculiar Manner thus refers to
Hopkins, who, it is faid, fuffered by the fame
Ordeal by which he had caufed the Death, in one
Year, of no lefs than fixty Perfons in his own
County of Effex: 
i'      the Godly may alledge
For any Thing their Priviledge;
And to the Dev'l himfelf may go,
If they have Motives thereunto.
For as there is a War between
The Dev'l and them, it is no Sin,
If they by fubtle Stratagem,
Make ufe of him, as he does them.
Has not this prefent Parliament
1 Col. Records of Connec~icut, Adts, I will only refer the Reader
II, 91.                     to Dr. Hutchinfon's Efay, p. Si92, where Enough will be found to
2 It not being my Purpofe to give enable him to underftand Hudibras
an Account of Hopkins and his fully, in the Lines extra6ted above.




124           Annals of Witchcraft    i664
A Legar to the Devil fent,
Fully empower'd to treat about
Finding revolted Witches out:
And has not he within a Year,
Hang'd Threefcore of them in one Shire?
Some only for not being drown'd,
And fome for fitting above Ground,
Whole Days and Nights upon their Breeches,
And feeling Pain, were hang'd for Witches?
And fome for putting knavifh Tricks
Upon Green-Geefe and Turkey Chicks,
Or Pigs, that fuddenly deceaft,
Of Griefs unnat'ral, as he gueft;
Who after prov'd himfelf a Witch,
And made a Rod for his own Breech." t
In  this Connection  it will be worth While  to
notice, that, a Queftion went about many Years
ago in England, refpeating Perfons formerly burnt
for Witchcraft; as to where  and  when  the  laft
Cafe  of  the  Kind  took  place?    The  Anfwer
which was given, has not, it is believed, been
called in Queftion.   It amounted  to  this:   It is
not quite certain that Amy Duny, and Rofe Cullender or Callender, condemned  by Sir Matthew
Hale, at Bury St. Edmunds, were burnt, although
by fome Accounts it is fo ftated. In the fame
Year (1664) Alice Hudfon was burnt at York,
1 Butler's Hudibras, Canto III, into the Water, and he was found
p. 333-4, edition 1684.  It will be  to fwim as others did. Thus they
feen by the Authority before cited, cleared the Country of him; " and
that when People began to refle&t it was a great deal of Pity," fays
upon Hopkins's Doings, they feized  the Relator, "that they did not
him, tied his own Thumbs and  think of the Experiment fooner."Toes together, as he ufed to tie  Dr. Francis Hutchinfon, HifJorical
others; in this Condition caft him  Efay Concerning Witchcraft, 87.




1665          in New rork.             125
having been condemned for receiving ten Shillings
on a certain Time of the Devil. As late as I722,
the Ninth of George the Firit, a Cafe occurred
at Little Dean, in Scotland, where a Captain
David Rofs was Judge. But a Girl was Burnt at
Glarus, in Ireland, in 1786!
The Experiment of calling into the Water
occurred as late as I785. According to a Report
in a Northampton Paper (England), a poor
Woman named Sarah Bradfhaw, being proceeded
againff for Witchcraft, was thrown into a Pond.
She immediately fank to the Bottom; and thus
the Wretches who aded as Executioners were
fatisfied the had been falfely accufed.  This
occurred at a Place called Mears Afhby.
i665.
During the Adminiftration of the Government of New York by Richard Nicolls, Efq.,
one Cafe of Witchcraft, at leaft, found its Way
into the Courts. That they were as common as
in other cotemporary Communities of the Day,
there is not much Doubt. That they were not
Matters of legal Inveitigation, poffibly depended
on the Abfence of a fpecial Law for fuch a Contingency, or that the Laws in general were lefs
regarded than they were among their Neighbours
in fome of the other Colonies. Certainly in
New Jerfey, the Legends of an exifting Witchcraft, or a certain Belief that it had exifted there
is current in many Places, and a Witch Tree is,




12 6      Annals of lfitchcraft        1665
or was, pointed out not many Years ago, in a certain Locality.
The Cafe which came before the Court of
Affizes in New York in I665, was that of Ralph
Hall, and his Wife Mary Hall; and although
they were eventually acquitted, they were held in
Durance about three Years.' The Charge in the
Indidment againft Hall was that he "upon the
25th Day of December [I6631, being Chriftmas
laft was twelve Months, and feveral other Days
and Times fince that Day, by fome deteftable and
wicked Arts, commonly called Witchcraft and
Sorcery, did (as fufpeded) malicioufly and felonioufly praaife and exercife, at the Town of Seatalcott [fince Setauket, now Brookhaven], in the
Eall Riding of Yorkfhire, on Long Ifland, on
the Perfon of George Wood, late of the fame
Place, by which wicked and deteftable Arts the
faid George Wood (as is fufpedted) moit dangeroufly and mortally fickened and languished, and
not long after, by the aforefaid wicked and deteitable Arts, the faid George Wood (as is likewife fufpeded) died."  Alfo it was alleged, in the
fame Indidment, that an Infant Child of Ann
Rogers, Widow of the aforefaid George Wood,
had, "fome While after the Death" of Wood,
fickened and died,. and that its Death was caufed
by the faid Hall. The fame Indidtment was alfo
recited againft the Wife of Hall, and then a
Bundle of Depofitions was read to the Court (no
1 It is doubtlefs to this Cafe that  York, refers, p. 166, though in fach
Watfon, in his Annals of New an obfcure Way it is uncertain.




i665         in New  England.             127
Witneffes appearing in Perfon), and the Accufed
called upon by the Clerk to hold up the right
Hand, and the fubftance of the Charges- were
reiterated. They pleaded not Guilty, and their
Cafe was committed to the Jury. In due Time
the Jury rendered a Verdid, to the Effedt that
they " found fome Sufpicions of what the Woman
was charged with, but Nothing confiderable of
Value to take away her Life; but in Reference
to the Man, we find Nothing confiderable to
charge him with."'
The Sentence of the Court was, that Hall
"fhould be bound Body and Goods for his Wife's
Appearance at the next Seffions, and fo on from
Seffions to Seflions, as long as they fRay in this
Government. In the mean While to be of good
Behaviour."  Under thefe Bonds they continued
until the 2Ift of Auguft, I668, at which Time
"they were living upon the Great Miniford's
Ifland." And we do not find that they were
compelled to pay the Coils, as was often the Cafe
with Parties acquitted elfewhere.
In March of this Year a Woman named Elizabeth Seger was tried for Witchcraft at Hartford,
and found Guilty by a Jury. But the Court was
not convinced of the Truth of the Charge, or of
the Sagacity of the Jury, and the Woman was
fet at Liberty.z Whether fhe was mult in Cofis,
I Yates, Appendix to Smith's tory of New 7ork, IV, 133.
Hyt. N. York, 509-I I. Spafford's
Gazetteer of N. York, 6I-Z. Edi-'2 Judd, HJt. Hadley, 233. Mr
tion I824. See a more accurate Judd has given us one of the very
Account in the Documentary Hif- beft Local Hiftories.




128       Annals of Iffitchcraft      i669
as was frequently the Cafe in fimilar Acquittals,
is not known.
i669.
The Profecution of Sufannah Martin, of Salifbury, for Witchcraft, in I669, very likely was
prompted on the Part of certain Perfons by
Malice. She was fubfequently, and no Doubt
previoufly, engaged in Litigations. Thefe before
1669, it is affumed, were the Caufe of this Profecution. Several Perfons who gave Evidence adverfe to her Claims in fome civil Adtions, appeared
as fwift Witneffes at her final and fatal Trial
afterwards, as will be feen by confulting the
WI~onders of the Inviible World.
In I672 Ihe had the Liberty of the General
Court to review her former Adion, "and fue at
Salifbury Court, fub forma Pauperis." The next
Year the following Record is made under the
fame Authority: "In Anfwer to the Petition of
Sufanna Martyn, humbly defiring the Favour of
this Court to grant her further Liberty, and that
her Sifter Jones may be joined with her, further
to profecute and trye hir Accion in the next
County Court in Norfolk, the Court grants
hir Petition, and that hir Sifter Jones be joyned
with hir in the Profecution and Trjall of Adion,
as hath binn formerly granted by this Court."
The following Year (1674) the General Court
Records recite: "In Anfwer to the Petition of
George and Sufanna Martyn and Mary Jones, the
Court judgeth it meet to grant the Petitioners a




1670         in New England.             129
Hearing of the whole Cafe the next Seffion of
this Court, the fajd Peticoners giving Notice to
all Partjes concerned." At the next Court Judgment was given againft the Plaintiffs, with Cofts,
and "five Pounds for hearing the Cafe, which
laft was remitted on the importunat Peticons of
faid Sufanna Martyn."  Nathaniel Winflow was
the Defendant.
The Fate of Sufanna Martin in the memorable
Year 1692, is fpecially dwelt upon in the Work
before mentioned, and will be found noticed
when we come to that Year.
I670.
Some Time previous to the May Term of the
General Court of Connefticut, Katharine Harrifon, of Wethersfield, was arrefted, charged with
the Crime of Witchcraft, and imprifoned.' How
long fhe fuffered Imprifonment we have not the
Means of ftating. She had been convited by a
Jury, at the May Term of the Court of Afliftants. A fpecial Court was affigned for her Trial,
with other Prifoners, charged with other Offences.
What we find on Record refpedting her runs
thus: The Special Court "hauing confidered
the Verdit of the Jury refpedting Kathern Harrifon, cannot concur with them fo as to fentence
her to Death, or to a longer Continuance in Reftraynt." The Court thereupon ordered her to
1 According to Judd, the was vious Odtober (I669).-fiflaory of
tried by a Jury at Hartford the pre- Hadley, 233.
R




13 o      Annals of WIfitchcraft       I670
be fet at Liberty; but with the monftrous Provifo
that fhe fhould pay the Coifs of her Imprifonment! Alfo "willing her to minde the Fullfilment of remoueing from Weathersfield, which is
that will tend moit to her owne Safety and the
Contentment of the People who are her Neighbours."'
From there fcanty Fa~ds it may be conjedtured
without great Hazard, that Mrs. Harrifon may
have been a troublefome Neighbour, but how the
Court juftified itfelf for fuch Decifion a modern
Jurift might find it difficult to determine. As
Mrs. Harrifon was obliged to leave Weathersfield,
the proceeded to Weftchefter in New York, and
there probably hoped to remain Quiet, but her
evil Genius followed her, and the was profecuted
there the fame Year, and bound over to good
Behaviour. But at the Court in Odober following (i 670), it was ordered, " that in Regard there
is no Thing appears againft Katharine Harryfon,
Widow, deferving the Continuance of that Obligation, the is to be releafed from it, and hath
Liberty to remain in the Towne of Weftchefter,
where the now refides, or Anywhere elfe in the
Government, during her Pleafure."2
The perfecuted Woman had a Family of Children, but how many is not mentioned. There
were feveral Petitions fent to the Governour requefting that the fhould be fent out of Weftchefter, and the Complaints againft her feem to
1 ColonialRecords of Conneaticet,  2 Yates, Appendix to Smitb's
II, 3 z.               Hift. New York, 5  I.




167I             in N]ew England.                      131
have  been  very  general.    She  was  given  an
Afylum in the Houfe of one Captain Richard
Panton,' a Name of rare Occurrence in our Annals; but once occurring, and then in Connedtion
of a moit tragic Event.2
I 67I
We come now to the Cafe of Elizabeth Knap,3
a Maid, of Groton, "who, in the Month of October, I671, was after a very  ftrange  Manner,
fometimes weeping, fometimes  laughing, fometimes roaring hideoufly, with violent Motions
and Agitations of her Body, crying out, Money!
Money!  &c.    In   November  following,  her
Tongue for many Hours together was drawn like
a Semicircle up  to  the  Roof of her Mouth, not
to be removed, though Some tried with their
Fingers to do it. Six Men were fcarce able to
hold her in Some of her Fits, but fihe would ikip
about the Houfe, yelling, and looking with a
moft frightful Afpedt. On December I7th her
Tongue was drawn out of her Mouth to an ex1 Documentary HJiory of New  and is in the Form of a Diary.
York, IV, 136-8.               Towards the Clofe he fays: "Shee
freely acknowledged that the Devill
2 See Niftory and Antiquities of was wont to appear to her in the
Bofton, 765-6.                 Houfe of God and divert her Mind
and charge her fhee ihould not give
3 The Account of this Perfon's  Ear to what that black coated Rogue
"Strange Cafe" is taken from one  fpake.  Whether Lhee have coveof extenfive Detail by the Rev. nanted with the Devill or not, I
Samuel Willard, who in the Time  thinke this is a Cafe unanfwerable:"
of it lived at Groton. It occupies i. e., in this Cale he believed fhe had.
fifteen clofely printed o6tavo Pages, ColMs. IMs.. Sor., XXXVIII, 570.




132       Annals of Wlitchcraft       i671
traordinary Length. And now a Daemon began
manifeftly to fpeak in her, in a Voice not her
own, and without any Motion of her Lips, and
without the Ufe of any of the Organs of Speech.
The Things then uttered by the Devil were
chiefly Railings againft the Rev. Mr. Samuel
Willard, then the Minifter of Groton. Alfo the
Damon belched forth moft horid Blafphemies,
exalting himfelf above the Moft High. After
this fhe was taken Speechlefs for fome Time. In
fome of her Fits fhe accufed one of her Neighbours of being the Caufe of her Afflidtions."
But it fo happened that the Perfon thus cried out
upon "was a very fincere holy Woman," who on
hearing that fhe was accufed, went to fee the
"poor Wretch."  She found her in one of her
Fits, and though with her Eyes faft clofed, "declared who was there, and could tell the Touch
of that Woman from any One elfe. But the
Party thus accufed and abufed by a malicious
Devil, prayed earneftly with and for the poffeffed
Perfon; after which ihe confeffed that Satan had
deluded her, making her believe Evil of her good
Neighbour, without any Caufe. Nor did fhe
after that complain of any Apparition, yea, fhe
faid, that the Devil had himfelf in the Likenefs
and Shape of Divers, tormented her very Diverfly
and cruelly, and then told her it was not He but
They that were her Tormentors."'
This Story has been given to fhow  how, in
1 1. Mather, D. D., Remarkable Providences, and Magnalia, B. VI, 67.




1672-3      in New England.             133
thofe Times, a tolerably revere Cafe of Hyfterics'
could be magnified by thofe who had an exceedingly large Maggot of Credulity in their Brains.
Groton is only thirty-three Miles from Boiton,
but the Story, in travelling even that fhort Diftance, had no Doubt fwollen into fuch Proportions, as to have but a faint Likenefs to the
Original.
The Condition of Elizabeth Knap was probably very fimilar to that of Elizabeth Barton (the
Holy Maid of Kent), who, for her Pretenfions to
Infpiration, "Convulfions and itrange Motions of
Body," was put to Death in the Time of Henry
the Eighth, I584.
i672.
A  Cafe of Witchcraft is reported to have
occurred in Weftchefter County, New York, in
i672. A Complaint was preferred "to the Governour and Council againfi a Witch which had
come among them." This has Reference, without Queftion, to Katharine Harrifon, whofe
Profecution has been detailed under the Year
I670I673.
The Cafe of Katharine Harrifon is fuppofed to
have been revived again this Year; and the Complaint againft her happened to be prefented juft
after the Dutch had repoffeffed themselves of
1 Hutchinfon calls her " another fentriloqua."-Hi/Z. of Majs., II, 17.




x134      Annals of Jlitchcraft        i674
New Amfterdam. At the Time of the Complaint Captain Anthony Colve, who was in Command of one of the Dutch Men of War at the
Capture of the Fort, feems to have had the Government in his Hands, as the Complaint was
prefented to him for Aftion. He treated it with
Contempt, and thus the Affair ended.
I674Mrs. Mary Bartlett, Wife of Mr. Samuel Bartlett, of Northampton, having died in July of this
Year, and as her Complaint was not underftood
by fuch " Chirurgeons" as the Neighbourhood
afforded, a ready Solution of the Cafe was found
by attributing it to Witchcraft. The next Step
was to fix upon the Witch; and ftrange to fay, in
this Inftance, one of the moit, if not the moft
accomplifhed, and of the higheft Standing in the
Place, was fixed upon. This was Mrs. Mary
Parfons, whofe Huffband, Mr. Jofeph Parfons,
was one of the wealthieft Men in Northampton.'
It is conjectured that the Standing of Mrs.
Parfons had much to do with the Accufation.
She may have been fomewhat Exclufive in the
Choice of her Affociates, and even of haughty
Manners towards the Parties by whom fhe was
fingled out for Perfecution; but as to this Nothing
is pofitively known.
On the 29th of September, about two Months
1 As thefe were the maternal An-  as Particular in detailing the Fads
ceftors of the Writer, he has been as the Documents warrant.




I675        in New England.            3 5
after the Death of Mrs. Bartlett, a Court met at
Springfield. Mr. Bartlett in the Meantime had
bestirred himfelf to procure Evidence to fuftain
his Charge of Witchcraft againft Mrs. Parfons,
in the Shape of Depofitions. This Lady knowing what was going on, did not wait to be fummoned, but appeared before the Court in Perfon.
The Subftance of her Speech was, that "Ihe did
affert her own Innocency, often mentioning how
clear fhe was of fuch a Crime, and that the
righteous God knew her Innocency, and ihe left
her Caufe in his Hand." But her Proteftations
and Difclamations of all Knowledge of Witchcraft had little or no Effedt upon the Court of
Springfield, and that Court at once proceeded to
do all which lay in its Jurifdiftion. It "appointed a Jury of foberdized, chafte Women to
make diligent Search upon the Body of Mary
Parfons, whether any Marks of Witchcraft appear, who gave in their Account to the Court on
Oath, of what they found." Whether they found
Anything extraordinary in their Search is not
known, although it is faid, that the Report which
they made, together with the Evidence, was
forwarded to the Governour and Magiftrates at
Boflon. The Accufed was alfo ordered to appear
before them, and was bound over for her further
Appearance, in the Sum of fifty Pounds, her
Hufband becoming bound in that Sum.
On the 2d of March, I675, fhe was indited
by the Grand Jury, and fent to Prifon to await
Trial. On the I3th of May following the was




136       Annals of *Witchcraft       1675
tried, on the Charge of Witchcraft, "in that fhe
had, not having the Fear of God before her
Eyes, entered into Familiarity with the Devil,
and committed fundry Ads of Witchcraft on the
Perfon or Perfons of one or more." She of Courfe
pleaded "not Guilty," and fhe was cleared by the
Jury.'
It may be worthy of Notice that at this Time
the Hon. John Leverett was Governour, and
Generals Gookin and Denifon were Aflfitants.
Thefe were three of the moit enlightened Men
of the Time, and they doubtlefs exerted a benign
Influence on the Jury. Hence Witch Finders
were discouraged, and the Country was relieved
for a Time. An Attempt was however made
againit John Parfons, Son of Jofeph and Mary
Parfons, and a Quantity of Evidence was made
up to prove his "Familiarity with the Devil,"
but the County Court did not think the Evidence
ftrong enough, or they had not Faith enough
in the Weaknefs of the Governour and his Affiftants to fend the Accufed down to Bofton, and
thus the Cafe was abandoned.
I675The Pradice of Witchcraft among the Indians
gave the Englifh a good deal of Trouble. Perhaps it did not occur to them that it was a Child
of Barbarifm, and that in Proportion to the Prevalence of Knowledge it would difappear.~ But
1 Chiefly from Fa6ts found in Judd's Hifory of Hadley.




1676        in New England.           137
when Mankind at any given Period take a retrofpedive View, they have affumed that all Men previous to their own Age and Country were wallowing in an Ignorance far greater than that by
which they were beret.  Hence, in the Year
i675, among other Laws for the Government of
the Pequot Indians, this was enaded by the
General Court of Connedicut:  "Whofoever
Shall Powau or vfe Witchcraft, or any Worfhip
of the Devill, or any fals Gods, fhall be convented and punifhed."
i676.
Notwithitanding her Stringent Laws againft
Witchcraft, the Old Colony of Plymouth never
found itfelf obliged to execute any one for that
Crime, as is believed.  And for about fixteen
Years no Cafe of the Kind, fo far as known, was
ever carried into Court. But, in the Midft of
the terrible War with King Philip, namely, in
March, 1676, one Mary Ingham, Wife of Thomas
Ingham, of Scituate, was indided and arraigned
before the Court. The Indidtment runs thus:
"Mary Ingham: thou art indited by the Name
of Mary Ingham, of the Towne of Scittuate, in
the Jurifdidion of New Plymouth, for that thou,
haueing not the Feare of God before thyne Eyes,
haft, by the Healp of the Deuill, in the Way of
Witchcraft or Sorcery, mallicioufly procured much
Hurt, Mifcheiffe, and Paine vnto the Body of
Mehittable Woodworth, the Daughter of Walter
S




138       Annals of flitchcraft       I676
Woodworth, of Scittuate aforefaid and fome
Others, and particularly caufing her, the faid Mehittable, to fall into violent Fitffs and caufing
great Paine vnto feueral Parts of her Body att
feuerall Times, foe'as fhee, the faid Mehittable
Woodworth, hath bin almoft bereaued of her
Sences, and hath greatly languifhed, to her much
Suffering therby, and the Procuring of great
Greiffe, Sorrow, and Charge to her Parents; all
which thou halt procured and don againft the
Law of God, and to his great Difhonor, and
Contrary to our Soueraign Lord the King, his
Crowne and Dignitie."
After all this high founding Manifefto, fome
Show of a Trial might reafonably be expected,
and at leaft the Names of Witneffes given; but
there appears Nothing of the Kind on Record.
The Records, however, do fay:  "The faid Mary
Ingham did putt herfelfe on the Tryall of God
and the Countrey," and was cleared of this " Inditement in Proceffe of Law by a Jury of twelue
Men."
It would be exceedingly Interefting to know
what the Evidence was againft the Accufed; for
without it we cannot give the Court credit either
for Sagacity or Lenity. But in the State of Society of that Time, we may reafonably conclude
that the Evidence muft have been lame indeed,
or the Party would not have efcaped Convidtion.
Jofiah Winflow was Governour of the Colony,
and the Jury that tried Mary Ingham confifted
of Mr. Thomas Hafkins, John Wadfworth, John




I678        in New England.            139
Howland, Abraham Jackfon, Benajah Pratt, John
Blacke, Marke Snow, Jofeph Bartlett, John Richmond, Jerud Talbutt, John Fofter, and Seth
Pope.
This Trial took place during the darkeft Days
of a War, which, of itfelf was enough, as fince
viewed, to have diverted the Mind of every Inhabitant from all Subjedts excepting what might
tend to the Prefervation of the Country. But
Superftition and Fanaticifm cling to the uncultivated Mind, even to the Jaws of Death.
To urge at this Day, the Claim for the People of Plymouth, that it was owing to their
"good Senfe," or fuperior Wifdom, that None
were put to Death for Witchcraft, is very Prepofterous. The fimple Reafon that no Executions took place in fome of the New England
Colonies is, the Evidence brought forward was
not fo ftrong as was produced in thofe Colonies
where Executions followed Convidions; not
that the Authorities were lefs difpofed to fuch
Profecutions.
1678.
Thomas Mayhew, of Martha's Vineyard,
wrote to the Commiffioners of the United Colonies, apparently in Anfwer to Queftions relating
to the Condition of the Indians of that Ifland,
that there were about one hundred and forty
Men  there which  were "not tainted with
1 His Letter may be feen in the nealogical Regifier, Vol. IV, I7.
New England Hiforical and Ge



xIo      4Annals of Witchcraft        I679
Drunkenneffe," and that as to Witchcraft, that
was out of Ufe among them. Hence, if this
Statement was corredt, the Indians of that Locality were much in Advance of their white
Neighbours.
I679.
In Northampton the Powers of Darknefs were
again "vifible" in x679. On the 7th of March
of this Year died one John Stebbins in an unufual
Manner, as was alleged by a Jury of Inqueft,
confifting of twelve Men, among whom was Dr.
Thomas Haftings of Hatfield. The Jury found
"Ifeveral hundred fmall Spots on the Body, as if
made with fmall Shot. Thofe Spots were fcraped,
and Holes found under them into the Body."
Whereupon it was fufpeded that it was done by
Witchcraft. The Wife of the Deceafed was a
Sifter to Samuel Bartlett.  This Individual,
although he had failed to convid Mrs. Parfons,
as before detailed, probably hoped now to have
better Succefs. The County Court, as appears
by its Ads, had more Faith in this Accufation
than in that of the Cafe of John Parfons, for
they received the Evidence and tranfmitted it to
Governor Bradftreet, but the Governor did not
take Notice enough of the Accufation to fend
for the Party, and thus the Matter went by.
Tradition in Hadley fays, that John Stebbins
was at Work in a Saw-mill a little Time before
his Death; that the Logs and Boards became bewitched and cut up ftrange and divers Capers,




I679        in New England.           I4I
and that in fome of their diabolical Manceuvres
they interfered with John, but in what Manner
is not ftated, though they were fuppofed to have
caufed his Death.
Simple, unfufpedting, and honeft People have
often been the Vidtims to thofe who pradtife
malicious Mifchief, as well as to thofe who practife different Kinds of Rafcality. There were
living at this Time in Newbury feveral Families
of the Name of Morfe; the oldeft or principal
Family was that of William Morfe. He had
lived in that Town fince I635, having emigrated
from Marlborough, in Wiltfhire, in the early
Part of that Year, and was by Occupation a
Shoemaker. He had a Wife Elizabeth whom
he probably married after he came to New
England.' In this Family lived a Boy. named
John Stiles, a Grandfon of William Morfe.
What was the Age of this Boy, or what inftigated him to undertake the tormenting of his
Grand-parents, there is no Mention as yet difcovered. Perhaps he intended no more at Firit
than to frighten them by fome deceptive boyifh
Pranks, and fucceeding fully in that, proceeded
till his Pranks became Outrages, by which he
deceived nearly Everybody.
It was a Period when, if Anything occurred,
the Origin or Reafon for which. was not underftood or comprehended, and appeared ftranger
than ufual, the Mind, inftead of inveftigating,
1 Founders of New England, Page 56.




142       Annals of JYitchcraft,     1679
fell back upon the ever ready and eafy Solution,
that fuch was caufed by Witchcraft.
How long the young Scamp carried on his
Annoyances before any Complaint was made to
the Authorities, does not appear, but it was for
fome Time previous to December of this Year
(1679), as one Caleb Powell had become acquainted with what was going on, and offered
his Services to put a Stop to the myfterious Fall
of Brick-bats down the Chimney, Pots and Kettles dancing on the Crane, and Irons jumping in
and out of the Kettles, and fuch like extraordinary Manceuvres. Powell, it feems, was a feafaring Man, and it is fuppofed, that in Order to
give himfelf large Importance in the Eyes of the
People of Newbury, he pretended to a Knowledge in the occult Sciences, and that by Means
of this Knowledge he could dete&t the Witchcraft then going on at Mr. Morfe's. However
this may have been, Powell faid that if he had
the Boy in his Cuftody he could put a Stop to
the Trouble; and to teft the Truth of what he
laid, Confent was given, though relucantly, and
he took away the Boy, and the Witch Operations
did a6tually ceafe. Whether he had Connivance
with the Boy Stiles, or failed to accomplifh fome
private End he may have had in View, is not
known, but the Tragedy of the dancing of Pots
and Kettles, bowing of Chairs, &c., was refumed
with more Vigour than ever. Whereupon it was
affumed that the faid Powell was himfelf the
Witch, was profecuted and in much Danger of




1679        in New England.'+3
fuffering for the Part he had volunteered to take.
Morfe was his Profecutor. By what Means he
became fo is not known, and was bound to appear at the Court in Ipfwich to make good his
Charges againit Powell. There are fome fcraps
of Teffimony in Coffin's Hijiory of Newbury,, and
the Decifion of the Court, which, being very
extraordinary, is here reproduced:   "Upon
hearing the Complaint againft Caleb Powell for
Sufpicion of working by the Devill, to the molefting of the Family of William Morfe of Newbury, though this Court cannot find any evident
Ground of proceeding farther againft the faid
Powell, yett we determine that he hath given
fuch Ground of Sufpicion of his fo dealing, that
we cannot fo acquit him, but that he jufftly deferves to beare his owne Shame and the Coifs of
Profecution of the Complaint."
This only adds another to the ridiculous Decifions of the early Courts to thofe already noticed. The Judges had put the County to the
Expenfe of a Trial, of which they muff pay
their Proportion, unlefs it could be faddled on
Somebody, and there was Nobody but the Perfecuted Party on whom it could be laid with Impunity.
The Teftimony given in by Mr. Morfe, before
Sufpicion lighted on Powell, is as aftonifhing as
any of the Details of Witch Tranfadions given
by Cotton Mather. So extraordinary is his Tef1 The Reader Ihould bear in Work is Separated and mifplaced,
Mind that the Teftimony in that but all between Pages 122 and 135.




I+4q      Annals of Jfitchcraft      I679
timony, that one, on reading it, cannot efcape
the Conclufion that fome ftrange Compofition
muft have occupied the Place in his Head defigned for Brains.
It appears that about the Time Powell was
fixed upon as the one "working by the Devill,"
it began to be whifpered about that Mrs. Morfe
was the Witch; and no fooner was Powell
acquitted than the Clamour againft her began
openly to be made, and on the 7th of January
following Commiffioner Woodbridge commenced
taking Evidence in the Cafe, all of which will
be found in the Appendix. It has, as will be
feen by a Perufal, the ufual CharaCter of fuch
Teftimony, altogether too childifh to be worthy
of Prefervation, did it not fhow the Charader of
the People of the Age, and how much Improvement has been fince made in all that is effential
to the Happinefs of a People.
A great many Witneffes were fummoned to
appear at the May Seffion of the Court in Boflon;
many did appear in Perfon, fome walking on
Foot the whole Diftance. The poor Accufed
(then about 65 Years of Age) was taken from
Ipfwich Jail, where fhe had been for fome Time
kept, and on the 20othof May conveyed to Bofton, by the Conitable, Thomas Knowlton, who
queftioned her on the Way about her Cafe. She
faid, among other Things, "fhe was accufed
about Witchcraft, but that the was as clear of it
as God in Heaven."
Fortunately perhaps for the Accufed, Simon




1679          in New  England.               I45
Bradftreet was rechofen Governor; among the
other Officers compofing the General Court were
Thomas Danforth, Deputy Governor, Richard
Saltonfrall, Daniel Gookin, Daniel Denifon, John
Pynchon, Edward  Tyng, William  Stoughton,
Jofeph Dudley, Peter Bulkley, Nathl Saltonftall,
Humphrey Davy, James Ruffell, Samuel Nowell,
Peter Tilton, John Richards, John Hull, Bartholomew  Gedney, Tho. Savage, Wm. Browne.
The Trial was before the Affiftants, but no
Record of it appears in the Journals, but fortunately there is found a Lift of the Jury.'  A
Copy of the Indi6tment is printed in Coffin's Newbury, and is in the ufual Form -" instigated by
and Familiarity with the Devil." Argument on
the Part of the Prifoner there was none, and the
Jury brought her in "guilty, according to the
Inditment." Whereupon the Governour could
do no lefs than pronounce Judgment, which was
performed on the 27th of May, after the Ledure.
She was to be "hanged by the Neck till fhe was
dead."
Whether a Queftion of Law came up from
fome Quarter, or whether the Governour or fome
of the Affiftants had Doubts in the Matter, does
not appear; but in the Courfe of the Trial the
1 Derived from the Documents wood, of Bofton; John Stone, and
in the Appendix. They were Mr. Richard Child, of Watertown;
Nathan Heyman, and Mr. John Bro. John Green, and Richard
Knight, of Charleftown; Mr. Robins, of Cambridge; Jacob
Richard Middlecott, Mr. Jeremiah Huen, and John Capen, of DorCufhin, Mr. John Wait, Lt. Rich- chefter. The Spelling of there
ard Waye, and Mr. Thomas Har- Names is given as in the Originals.
T




146       Annals of Witchcraft         I679
following  Queftion  was  before  the  Court:
"Whether feuerall diftindt ingle teftimonyes of
preternaturall and Diabolicall Ations by the
prifoner at the barr, though not any two concurring to proue the fame indiuiduall Ad is to
be accounted Legall evidence to Convid of
Witchcraft. This was Refolued on the affirmative by ye Court. 22 of May, i68o, as Attefts
EDWARD RAWSoN, Secret."'
There feems to have been no Diffent on the
Part of any one, and why the Time for the Execution was not fixed, muff for the Prefent, at
leaft, remain unexplained. It has been affumed
by Coffin and later Writers, that the Life of Mrs.
Morfe was fpared through the Backwardnefs of
Governour Bradftreet to proceed in carrying out
his own Sentence. It may have been fo, but
Evidence is wanting to fully warrant the Surmife. If he had any Scruples why did he fo
promptly pronounce the Sentence of Death?
However this might have been, before the Adjournment of the Court, namely, on June Ift,
but three Days after Sentence was paffed, "the
Governour and Magiftrates voted the reprieving"
of Mrs. Morfe till the Odober Seffion of the
Court. But Nothing is heard of the Cafe in
Odtober. On the 3d of November, however,
the Deputies fent up an Inquiry, defiring to know' why Execution of the Sentence" had not been
carried into Effedt?  It is evident that no incon1 All in the Autograph of the and Capitalization. So in all other
Spcrtary, as well as Orthography   Extrads.




1679        in New England.           I47
fiderable Movement had been Somewhere made
(though but its Shadow is vifible) to itay Proceedings, for the Deputies clamoured againft a
"~fecond Repreeval," as beyond what the Law
will allow. Still the Magiftrates held out and
would not give their Confent to have the Prifoner
executed. And, bad as CircumfLances appeared
againit her, fome Humanity was maintained by
a Portion of the Officials. It would feeIm like
the laft Stages of Depravity, had not Documents
like the following had fome Effedt upon them:
"To the Honrble Govr and Council now fitting in Bofton, June 4th, I68o. The Petition
of William Mofs. Humbly fheweth, That whereas
his deare Wife was by the Jury found Guilty of
Witchcraft, and by the honble Court Condemned
to dye: Yet fince God hath beene pleafed to
move yor Honors Harts, to grant her a Reprieve
until Odtober next, yor Petitior humbly prayes
that yor Honors be pleafed to fhew her fo much
Pitty as to grant her Liberty, in the Day Time
to walke in the Prifon Yard, and to ye Prifon
Houfe, and that in the Night Shee may have
Priviledge of a Chamber in the Common Goale,
and be freed from the Dungeon wch is Extreame
Clofe and hott in this Seafon, and alfo Liberty on
the Sabboth to goe to Meeting; he and his
Children giveing Security for her fafe Imprifonment. So fhall he be ever Obliged to pray as in
Duty bound.                WM. MoossE."
How far this Petition was liftened to is not
known; nor is it known how it happened to be




I48      Annals of *Witchcraft      I679
in the Hand Writing of Ifaac Addington (excepting the Signature), a Circumftance which
may reafonably lead the Reader to infer that that
worthy Man rendered what Service he could in
Favour of the Prifoner.
We meet with Nothing farther in the Records
relative to the Cafe of Mrs. Morfe till the next
Year, when by another Petition from her Hufband, dated on the I4th of May (I68I) it appears ihe was ftill in Prifon in Boiton. The
Petition here mentioned is elaborately drawn up,
and is an Argument to explain away the Evidence
of certain Perfons who had teftified againfi his
Wife. But Arguments were of fmall Avail when
it was contended that the Devil might have inftigated them. The Petition may be feen entire in
the Hijtory of Newbury, and applies to the Teftimonies given in our Appendix.'
On the I8th of the fame Month Mr. Morfe
again Petitioned the Governour and Magiftrates
"in Behalf of his Wife," begging them  " to
hearken to the Cry of your poor Prifoner, who
am a condemned Perfon," having "pleaded not
guilty, and by the Mercy of God and the Goodnefs of the honored Governor, I am reprieued
and brought to this honored Court, praying your
Juitis. I do not underftand Law, and know not
how to prefent my Cafe, but humbly beg that
my Requeft may not be rejeded, it being no
1 Thefe were unknown to the excellent Hiftorian of Newbury.




[679        in New England.            149
more but your Sentence upon my Trial whether
I fhall live or dy."
Six Days later the Deputies had fo far overcome their Defire to have the Prifoner executed,
that they voted to grant her a new Trial, but the
Magiftrates would not confent to it; and it feems
that after her fecond Reprieve, her Family was
allowed to take her Home, and although ihe was
never relieved from the Sentence of the Court,
it does not appear that ihe was further molefted,
and finally clofed her Life at Home and in Peace,
but at what time is not ascertained. The Hufband furvived the haraffing period of his Wife's
Perfecutions, about two Years, dying November
29th, I683, aged 69, according to Coffin, but
according to the more recent Invefligations of a
Genealogift,' he was 76; the latter Account
ieeming more Probable.
A View of the old Houfe in which the Morfe
Family lived, is given in the HiJ/ory of Newbury.
The Time of Eredtion has not been found,
though the Lot on which it was built was granted
to William Morfe in I645. A Part, if not the
whole Houfe, was built foon after the Lot was
granted. It itands at the Corner of Market
Street, oppofite St. Paul's Church.z
That.Mifs Gould had this old Houfe in her
Mind, and the Traditions of the Days when Mrs.
Morfe was reputed a Witch, when ihe wrote the
1 The Rev. Abner Morfe, in his 1850. 8 vo.
Memorial of the Morfes, Boifon,  2 See Coffin, 134.




150          Annals of Wfitchcraft    i68o
following Lines, will fcarcely be doubted.' She
thus reprefents her Vifit to a Fortune-teller:
"When I came near the Hut I began to relent,
And how, though I'd run, till my Breath was nigh fpent!
For Nightfhade and Hemlock grew under the Eaves,
And feemed to have' Sorcery' writ on their leaves.
When the feathery Group gave their ominous fhout,
I thought of the Chicks Mother Carey fent out!
Then there lay old Growler at Length on the Floor,
And looked like the Wicked One keeping the Door;
With Eyes femi-clofed, as inclining to Sleep,
But ope'd now and then for an impious Peep;
And even the Puff, as fhe dozed on the Hearth,
I thought had a Spice of the Witch from her Birth."
I 68 o.
While Witchcraft was flourifhing in Newbury,
a moft exciting Cafe of it broke forth in Hampton, in I68o. Rachel, the Wife of John Fuller,
of that Town, was charged with caufing the Death
of a Child by the Praftice of Sorcery. A Jury of
twelve Men was impanneled to inveftigate the
Charge, and the Refult as recorded is briefly as
follows:
The Jurors fay, "being called by Authority to
view a dead Child of John Godfres, being about
a Year old, which was fufpeded to be murdered,
we find Grounds of Sufpicion that the faid Child
was murdered by Witchcraft: firit, in Part by
what we faw by the dead Corpfe; fecond, Something we perceived by the Party fufpeded, which
1 Madam Hooper was nearly her Lines may have Reference to
Cotemporary with Mifs Gould, and her, as more applicable.




I68o            in New England.                     151
was then prefent, and was examined by Authority; and third, by what was faid by the Witnefs."
The  Names of  the  Jury  were:  "Henry
Roby, forman; Tho. Marfton, Willyam   Marfton, Abraham  Drake, Abraham   Perkins, Anthony Taylor, John Smith, Tho. Levet, Aratus
Levet, Gerfhom Elkins, Henry Derbond, and
John Sanborne.
"This true Lift was given in upon Oath, the
13th of July, i68o, before me,
"SAMUEL DALTON, of the Council."
The  next Day  John  Fuller, the Hufband of
the Accufed, entered into Bonds of ~Ioo, for
her Appearance "to anfwer to what fbhall be
charged againft her in Point of Witchcraft,"
when called for. The Cognizance is thus underwritten:   "Owned before me I4 July, I680.
" CHRISTOPHER  Lux,I
"SAMUEL DALTON, of the Council."
The fame Day Elizabeth Denham and Mary
Godfrey depofed, "that we, being  in Difcourfe
with  Rachel Fuller, the told us how  thofe that
were Witches did fo go abroad at Night; they
1 There was a Family of this Property to go to " Abifhag MarName living at Great Ifland (New- fhall, my dau., wf. of Tho. Marcaftle) a little later.  "' Audrey  fhall, of Great fland." To Son-inLux, of Portfmouth on Great Ifland, law, Adrew Cranch, 5 Shillings.
Widow," made her Will 9 June, To dau. Abifhag Marifhall, all my
I688; mentions Grand Children, Houfes, Lands, Wharues and OrJohn and Elizabeth Cranch, Child- chards. Witneffes, Geo. Pearfon,
ren of Andrew Cranch, of Great Jas. Booth, Geo. Payne, Proved,
Ifland; faid Children not then zi. 18 March, I692-3.  Lux is not
If they died before 21, then the found in the N. Eng. Gen. Did.




152       Annals of WYitchcraft         I680
did lay their Hufbands and Children afleep; and
fhe laid Rachel Fuller told us of feveral Perfons
that {he reckoned for Witches and Wizzards in
this Town, to the number of feven or eight.
She faid eight Women and two Men; fome of
whom Ihe expreffed by name, as Eunice Cole,
Benjamin Evans Wife and her Daughters, Goodwife Coulter and her Daughter Prefcott, and
Goodwife Towle, and one that is now dead."
"Nathaniel Smith, aged about twenty Years,
faith, that going to the Houfe of John Fuller, as
he was coming Home with his Herd, the faid
Fuller's Wife afked him what was the News in
the Town?  The faid Smith faid he knew none.
She told him that the other Night there was a
great Route at Goodman Roby's.' This was at
the firft Time when Dr. Reed was at this Town.
She faid they had pulled Dr. Reed out of the
Bed, and with an enchanted Bridle did intend to
lead a Jaunt; and he got her by the Coat, but
could not hold her. I afked her who it was?
and fhe turned from  me, and as I thought did
laugh.2 Sworn the I4th of July, I68o, before me,
"SAMUEL DALTION, of the Council."
Mary, the Wife of John Godfrey, and Sarah
her Daughter, aged about 16 Years, gave Teftimonies too loathfome for Recital. They fpeak
of a Circumftance which took place "the fame
1 This was doubtlefs Henry He was at Exeter as early as 1638.
Roby, a Juftice of the Court of See Belknap, Hifi. N. HampJhire.
Seffions. He was in the Intereft of
Cranfield at one Period, and gene-  2 No doubt the laughed to think
rally in fome Kind of Trouble. he was fo eafily made a fool of.




I68o        in New England.           I53
Day that Mr. Buff went through the Town,
about three Weeks or a Month ago."  They
attempted fome Experiments with the Water of
the Child; and "by and by Rachel Fuller came
in and looked very Strangely; bending, daubed
her Face with Molaffes, as The judged it, fo as
fhe almoft daubed up one of her Eyes; and fhe fat
down by Goody Godfrey, who had the fick Child
in her Lap, and took the Child by the Heand,
and Goodwife Godfrey being afraid to fee her
come in that Manner, put her Hand off from
the Child, and wrapped the Child's Hand in her
Apron. Then the faid Rachel turned her about,
and fmote the Back of her Hands together fundry
Times, and fpat in the fire. Then, having Herbs
in her Hands, rubbed and firewed them about the
Hearth by the Fire. Then fhe fat down again,
and faid, Woman, the Child will be well. She
then went behind the Houfe. Mehitable Godfrey then told her Mother that Goody Fuller was
adting ftrangely. Then Mary Godfrey and Sarah,
looking out, faw Rachel Fuller ftanding with her
Face towards the Houfe, beating herfelf with her
Arms, as Men do to warm their Hands. This
flhe did three Times.  Then gathering Something from the Ground, went Home. Sworn
the I4th of July, I68o."
The fame Day, Mary Godfrey further declared
that upon the next Day after Rachel Fuller had
been "at her Houfe with her Face daubed with
Molaffes, the Children told their Mother that
Rachel had told them that if they did lay fweet
Bays under the Threflhold, it would keep a Witch
U




154      Annals of fWitchcraft       i68o
from coming in. One of the Girls faid, Mother
I will try it, and fhe laid Bays under the Threfhold
of the back Door, all the Way, and half Way of
the Breadth of the fore Door; and foon after Rachel Fuller came to the Houfe, and fhe always had
formerly come in at the back Door, which is next
her Houfe; but now ihe went about to the fore
Door, and though the Door ftood open, yet the
crowded in on that Side where the Bays lay not,
and rubbed her Back againft the Poft, fo as that
The rubbed off her Hat, and then the fat her down
and made ugly Faces, and nettled about, and would
have looked on the Child, but I not fuffering her,
the went out rubbing againit the Poft of the Door
as fhe came in, and beat off her Hat again; and I
never faw her in the Houfe fince. Sworn the
I4th of July, i68o."
John Godfrey, aged about 48 Years, and his
Wife about 36 Years, faid that Rachel Fuller
came into their Houfe about eight or nine o'Clock
in the Day. Their Child was very ill, at which
Mrs. Fuller, feeing the Mother much troubled,
faid that "this would be the worft Day with it.
To-morrow it will be well." She then "patted
the Child's Hand, and took it in hers; at which
the Mother fnatched it away and wrapped it in
her Apron. Then Mrs. Fuller rofe up, and turning her Back to Mr. Godfrey, did fmite the back
Side of her Hand together, and did fpit in the Fire.
"Sworn before SAMUEL DALTION, of the
Council, July I4th, I68o, and in the Court at
Hampton, Sept. 7th, I68o.
" ELIAS STILEMAN, Sect."




I68o        in New England.             I55
The Depofition of one Hazen Levit clofes the
Evidence againft Rachel Fuller, fo far as Difcovered, and the Proceedings againft her end with
that Depofition. If any further Adion was had
the Account of it has not been met with. It is
probable the Matter was dropped, as the Evidence
was too filly and puerile for even thofe benighted
Times. Hazen Levit faid he was about thirtyfix Years of Age. "Riding up to his Lot in
July laft, Sun about an Hour high, he faw John
Fuller's Wife upon her Hands and Knees, fcrambling too and fro, firft one Way and then another,
and feemed to him to be mighty lazy;  but after
(he efpied him ihe left off that Manner of adting,
and feemed to take up her Apron with one of her
Hands, and with the other to gather up Something."  It feems ihe had a "little Child with
her," and was perhaps gathering up fome Chips.
While fhe was thus employed, ihe may have felt
annoyed at Leavit's rude Scrutiny, for, he fays,
"_(he gave him a frowning Look at Firft," and
when he went along " he laughed on him."
After that he faw "a Thing like a little Dog,"
which came from the Gate leading to her Houfe
and went to her "who was frill in the fame
Adtions" of Scrambling Something to put in her
Apron.
Mrs. Fuller's maiden Name was Rachel Brafbridge. She was married to John Fuller, March
I9th, I677, and had fix or more Children.  He
I It could be wiihed he had given feems to have been the reverfe of
his Definition of this Word, as it that as now underRood.




156         Annals of AWitchcraft             I68o
died in I 7 I 9. His Inventory fhowing confiderable Eftate for the Time, about ~460.
Ifabella Towle was committed at the fame
Time on the Charge of Witchcraft, but we find
Nothing further in Regard to her, or how long
fhe and Mrs. Fuller were imprifoned.
At a fomewhat later Day, the People of Hampton gave pretty free Scope to their imaginative
Powers; and what one fancied or dreamed, and
told to his Neighbour with an ominous Shake of
the Head, was by that Neighbour told to another
under a full Belief that it was true. Not far back
into the laft Century there lived in Hampton,
New  Hampfhire, a wealthy Gentleman, widely
known as Gen. Jonathan Moulton.  He was a
Man of great Energy and Enterprife, and having
by good Luck, Shrewdnefs, or both, fecured a
large Eftate in a comparatively brief Period, his
ignorant and fuperfiitious Neighbours furmifed he
had made a League with the Devil, by Virtue of
which he received all the Money he wanted.
Having met with a Check in his Profperity, by
his Houfe taking Fire and being entirely confumed,' the Report was at once fpread Far and
Wide, that the Fire had been fet by the Devil
1 This was long a memorable with their Lives, though with the
Event in the Hiftory of Hampton. Lofs of moft of their Clothes. The
It occurred about four o'Clock on Owner efcaped with his Cloak only,
Wednefday Morning, March 15th, and a Gentleman was faved only by
1769. A large Manfion Houfe jumping from a Chamber Window.
and two Stores were entirely con- Colonel Moulton's Lofs was eftifumed. Of fome I8 Perfons in mated at ~3000 Sterling.- Newfthe Houfe at the Time, all efcaped papers of the Day.




i68o        in New England.           157
becaufe the General had cheated him in a Bargain! No one feemed to know what the Bargain
was, but on this or fome other Occafion it was
averred that he cheated the Devil, not exaftly out
of his Boots, but out of Boots full of Money.
The Facs have been thus ftated: The Devil
was to have the General's Soul, after a certain
Number of Years; in Confideration of which, at
ftated Periods he was to fill the General's Boot
with Gold and Silver, the Boot being hung up in
the Chimney for that Purpofe. Whether a Bootfull at a Time was not fufficient to meet his Demands for Money, is not ftated; but on a Time
when his Majefty came to fill the Boot, he found
it took a Quantity fo vaft that he defcended into
the Chimney to fee what the Matter was, and to
his furprife he found that the General had cut off
the Foot of the Boot! and the Room below
was fo full of Money that he could not proceed
to the Door, and was compelled to go back up
Chimney again.
When the General died (which was in the
Year I788) and was put into a Coffin, his Body
was miffing immediately afterward. Whereupon
all the knowing ones hinted that "the Devil had
got his own at laft."
There were People within the Remembrance
of the Writer who would tell the above, and
other equally credible Stories refpeding the Operations of the Devil "in the Money Market."




1158      Annals of JWfitchcraft      i68 
I68i.
Plymouth Colony had a Vifitation of "Devilifm " again in the Year I68. The Tranfadions
about to be related have not been claffed hitherto
among the Exploits of Witches, yet they clearly
belong to them. "One Jonathan Dunen drew
away the Wife of a Man to Marfhfield, to follow
him, and one Mary Rofs falling into their Company, prefently was poffeffed with as frantick a
Daemon as ever was heard of; fhe burnt her
Cloathes; the faid the was Chrift; fhe gave
Names to the Gang with her, as Apoftles, calling
one Peter, another Thomas; fhe declared that
fhe would be dead for three Days, and then rife
again, and accordingly ihe feemed then to die.
Dunen then gave out that they ihould fee glorious Things when (he rofe again; but what (he
then did was thus: Upon her Order Dunen facrificed a Dog. The Men and the two Women
then danced naked together; for which, when
the Conftable carried them to the Magiftrates,
Rofs uttered ftupendous Blafphemies, but Dunen
lay for Dead an Hour on the Floor, faying, when
he came to himfelf, that Mary Rofs bid him, and
he could not refift."
This Dunen, it appears, was a Difciple of
Thomas Cafe, who had "bewitched" certain
Quakers, detached them from that Sedt, and were
known as Cafe's Crew. Thefe were eftablifhed
at Southold on Long Ifland. From this Company Dunen found his Way into the Old Colony




i68I        in New England.             159
and commenced working Miracles, but his Career was cut fhort in the Manner juft defcribed.'
I682.
Had there been a Chronicler in all of the New
England Towns in the early Times of New
England, and he had diligently recorded all of
the Mifchief that was laid to the Charge of the
Devil, "the World would hardly have contained
the Books," unlefs the People had been aided by
the fame Jugglery that caufed them.
There were no lefs than " three Houfes in three
feveral Towns," in a ufually quiet Part of New
England, beret this Year by Evil Spirits. But the
diabolical Manceuvres at only one of the Houfes
are preferved, fo far as is known to the Writer,
the Preamble to which runs thus:  "A  brief
Narrative of fundry Apparitions of Satan unto,
and Affaults at fundry Times and Places upon, the
Perfon of Mary, the Wife of Antonio Hortado,
dwelling near the Salmon Falls. Taken from
her own Mouth, Auguft I3th, I683."
Satan began his Game in the Month of June,
I682, by a Vifit to the Door of Antonio's Houfe,
and hooting out the Queftion to his Wife, "What
do you here?"  About an Hour later, as Mary
was ftanding in the Door, fhe received a Pelt on
her Eye "that fettled her Head near to the Door
Poft." Two or three Days later, a Stone of
1 From a Work figned " Anti- in 1742, fmall 8vo., p. 84-86. Said
Enthu.liaflicus," printed in Bofton, to be by Dr. C. Chauncy.




I6o       Annals of Wfitchcraft       1682
about an half a Pound's Weight was thrown
"along the Houfe within into the Chimney; and
going to take it up it was gone. All the Family
was in the Houfe, and no Hand appearing which
might be inftrumental in throwing the Stone."
Soon after, a Frying-pan, then hanging in the
Chimney, was heard to ring fo loud that it was heard
away acrofs the River, a Diftance of a hundred Rods
or more. Upon this Mary and her Hufband embarked in a Canoe and croffed over the faid River;
and as they went they faw juft forward of them
in the River, a Man's Head fhaven, and two or
three Feet behind it, the Tail of a white Cat,
but they could fee no Body by which the Head
and Tail were conneded. After an Hour or fo
they returned, and this Time the marvelous bald
head and white Tail followed the Canoe, but
when it reached the Shore they vanifhed and were
feen no more.
Whether before or after the Voyage juft mentioned, is not ftated, nor is it material, "Mary,
being in the Yard by her Houfe, in attempting to
go into the Houfe, was bitten on both Arms
black and blue; the Impreffions of the Teeth.
being like Men's Teeth were plainly feen by
many."
Here was a Cafe fimilar to that of Hudibras,
when Ralpho counterfeited the Ghoft:
"I do believe thee quoth the Knight;
Thus far I'm fure thou'rt in the Right,
And know what'tis that troubles thee,
Better than thou haft gueffed of me.




I682         in New England.             x 6 I
Thou art fome paltry, blackguard Sprite,
Condemned to Drudgery in the Night;
Thou halt no Work to do in th' Houfe,
Nor Half-penny to drop in Shoes;
Without the receiving of which Sum
You dare not be fo troublesome;
To pinch the Slatterns black and blue,
For leaving you their Work to do."
Mary was not only bitten but Scratched on her
Breaft, when the Devil caught her making for
the Houfe as juft related. So ihe and her Hufband concluded to abandon their Dwelling.
They did fo, and croffed the River, and fojourned
for a Time with a Neighbour. They had not
been long there before a Woman appeared to
Mary, "'clothed with a green Safeguard, a fhort
blue Cloak and white Cap," brandifbing a Firebrand, as though fhe intended to ftrike her with
it, but did not do fo. The next Day the Shape
came again. Now Ihe had on a gray Gown,
white Apron, and a white Head Drefs.  She
laughed feveral Times, but no one heard any
Voice. This we are told was the End of Mary's
"fatanical Moleftations."  Not fo with Antonio;
for on returning to his Houfe the following
March, he heard the Noife of a Man walking in
the Chamber over his Head, and faw the Boards
"buckle" under his Feet; yet no one could be
feen there, "for they went on Purpofe to look."
So they went again to refide on the other Side of
the River, but Antonio carried on his Planting as
ufual, notwithftanding the Devil made Spoil upon
him in divers Ways. One Time he pulled down
V




162       Annals of litchcraft         I682
"five Rods of good Log-fence," and the Tracks
of Cattle were feen between nearly every Row of
Corn, yet the Corn was untouched, not even the
Leaves cropt.  Hence the Conclufion may not
be unreafonable, that the Devil was not fond of
Corn.
The Narrator faid he was further informed,
that Mary, by Advice of fome, "who fhould have
been wirer," fluck her Houfe round with Bayes
to keep off the Evil Spirits, and that they had
the defired Effe&t; but as foon as there began to
wither, they were all carried away by an unfeen
Hand, and her Troubles returned as before.
The People of Portfmouth, in New Hampihire, were again difturbed in I682. So far as
any Record is found to the Contrary, they had
had no ferious Annoyance from the Invifible
World for about a Quarter of a Century. But
"'on June IIth, being the Lord's Day, at Night,
Showers of Stones were thrown both againit the
Sides and Roof of the Houfe of George Walton;
fome of the People went abroad, and found the
Gate at fome Diftance from the Houfe, wrung
off the Hinges, and Stones came thick about
them;" and although they feemed to come with
great Force, hitting Perfons, yet they hurt no
one. The Objed which the Witches had in this
Management of the Stones feemed to puzzle People.  But Matters foon grew  more ferious.
Stones began to fly about the Rooms within
Doors; the Glafs in the Windows was ihattered to
Pieces, and the leaden Safhes were bent outward,




I 682       i New England.             63
the Stones being thrown from within. "While
the Secretary was walking in the Room, a great
Hammer came brufhing along againft the Chamber Floor that was over his Head, and fell down by
him, and a Candleftick was beaten off the Table."
Nine of the Stones were gathered up and Marks
put upon them, fome of which were as hot as if
they came out of the Fire; and being laid upon
the Table, were foon found to be flying about
again. Thus for four Hours the Mifcreants kept
up the Shower of Stones that Night. The Secretary was not fo frightened but that he went
to Bed, but a Stone came and fmafhed through
his Chamber Door. Then came a Brick-bat
("on the like Errand."  And notwithftanding
Mr. Walton fhut the Stone up in his Room and
locked it in, it rufhed out "with a great Noife
into the next Chamber." The Spit ran or flew
up Chimney, and when it came down it came
Point firflt, like a Dart, and ftuck in the back
Log. Immediately after it was fent out of the
Window by an unfeen Hand. "This Trade was
driven" feveral Days, but with fome Intermiffions.
It was remarked that the Stones came thickeft
where the Mailer of the Houfe was. On one
Occafion a black Cat was feen while the Stones
were falling, and was fhot at; but the unfeen
Hand that could prevent the Stones from hurting
People, could prevent Bullets from Hurting Pufs,
and fhe efcaped unharmed. On another Time
fome of the Family "faw the Appearance of a
Hand put forth at the Hall Window, throwing




i 64+      Annals of Witchcraft              i682
Stones towards the Entry," yet there was Nobody
in the Hall at the Time.  Difmal Howlings were
Sometimes heard, and the Trotting and Snorting
of Horfes, but nothing could be feen. Mr. Walton went up the Great Bay in his Boat for Timber, but Stones followed him. He carried a
Stirrup-iron to his Boat and left it there, but when
he left it to  return  to the  Houfe, it "came
jingling after him  through the Woods."   His
Anchor leaped overboard without Hands and
ftopped the Boat as he was endeavouring to return Home.' When he had mown fome Grafs
and left it in Cocks, on going into the Field again
the Cocks of Hay were found hanging on Trees.
Thefe are only a few of the many Pranks
which a Demon played off on Secretary Walton.
He was "forely hurt" in fome of them. The
Account was written in Auguft of this Year
(I682), at which Time it was reported that
"during the laft Winter" the Devil was tolerably
quiet, but on the Return of Spring he paid Mr.
Walton a Vifit, not in  Perfon  probably, and
managed to carry off his Axes, notwithftanding
they were under Lock and Key at the Time.
What old Clovenfoot wanted of Axes no Conjedture was made.z
1 There is a Creek fome Mile Deputies caufed the Death of two
and a half from the former " State Cows at that Creek eighty-two
Houfe," in Portfmouth, known as Years after that Voyage, by Lightlate as 1769, as Witch Creek. ning.
Whether it took its Name from the
Incidents of Walton's Voyage, I   2 Since the Text was written my
am unable to fay; but in the Be- Attention has been called by a litelief of thofe Days, the Devil or his rary Friend to a new Volume of




I 683          in New  England.                 165
No Reafons are fuggefted why Mr. Walton was
fingled out to be tormented. He was a refpedtable Gentleman for Anything that is known to the
Contrary. His Son Shadrach was a Man of Diftindion, and ferved as a Colonel in the Indian
Wars; at one Period with the redoubtable Col.
Benjamin  Church.' He was a Quaker, and it
was faid that he fufpeded a certain Woman did
by Witchcraft occafion the above preternatural
Occurrences.2
I683.
Almoft a Cafe of Witchcraft happened in
Southampton, on Long  Ifland, "about I683."
One Thomas Travally entered a Complaint
againil Edward Lacy, in that the faid Lacy
charged his, the faid Travally's Wife with being
a Witch; and that he himfelf had been hagridden three Nights by her.3  The Adion  appears to have been withdrawn, and the Bill of
Coils was ordered to be paid by the Defendant.
Hence it would feem that Mrs. Travally was a
Witch to the amount of three Shillings and fix
Pence, that being the Amount of Cofts.
Hiftorical Colletions, in which   I See Church's Indian tYars,
there is a Copy of a Letter from  184-224. Edit. 1827. See alfo
Jothua Moody to Increafe Mather, Baylies' New Plymouth, IV, 1I4,
noticing this Cafe of Witchcraft. V, 96. Edit. 1866.
Amongift the many learned Notes
in the Volume, none accompanies   2 Magnalia, VI, 69.
this Letter, although the Subftance
of the Narrative has been long   3 Howell's HiJtory of Soutbamppublithed.                ton, 98.




i66       Annals of JYitchcraft       1683
In i683, a Demon, as was alleged by a Contemporary, befet one Nicholas Defborough, of
Hartford, in a Way altogether too puerile for
ferious Narration, were it not that it affords a
Sort of Criterion by which to judge of the
Standard of Intelligence of our Anceftors at a
given Period in their Hiftory.
It appears from the Narrator' of the Story,
that Nicholas was caught in the firft Place in a
Shower of "Stones, Pieces of Earth, Cobs of Indian Corn, &c.," all "falling upon and about
him; which Sometimes came in through the
Door, Sometimes through the Window, fometimes down the Chimney; at other Times they
feemed to fall from the Floor of the Chamber,
which yet was very clofe; Sometimes he met with
them in his Shop, the Yard, the Barn, and in the
Field when at Work. In the Houfe fuch Things
happened frequently, not only in the Night but
in the Daytime, if Defborough himfelf was at
Home, but never when his Wife was at Home
alone." The Devil did not feem to be very furious in the Adminiftration of his Miffiles, for it
is faid, that although other Perfons about Nicholas were ftruck, they were not hurt, from which
Circumftance we are to infer that an invifible
Hand fo reduced their Velocity or Impetus that
they loft their Power to injure. But on one
Occafion Nicholas received a Blow on his Arm
which caufed it to ache a little, and at another
1 Dr. Increafe Mather.




1683          in New  England.               i67
Time he received "a Scratch on one of his Legs,"
fo as to draw Blood.  What the Miffile was that
made the Scratch, there is no mention. "Some
of the Stones hurled were of confiderable Bignefs;
one weighed four Pounds.  One Time a Piece of
Clay came down Chimney, falling on the Table
which ftood at fome Diftance from the Chimney.
One of the Family threw it on the Hearth, where
it lay a confiderable Time; but while they were
at Supper the Piece of Clay was lifted up by an
invifible Hand and fell upon the Table," and was
quite hot.
After Narrating this childifh Story, as a Marvel, and as the immediate Work of the Devil,
the Relator informs us that Nicholas had had an
Altercation with a Neighbour; that he had
wrongfully withheld fome valuable perfonal Property from that Neighbour, and that after he had
made Reftitution the Devil let him  alone.  The
honeft Narrator never imagined, probably, that
the Devil was engaged, for this Time at leaft, on
the Side of Juftice, and hence was a very good
Sort of a Devil. But how Mr. Deibrough viewed
the Cafe we are not informed. But from a Record made in I687,' of an Adminiftration on his
Eftate, and according to Trumbull, he was one
1 Colonial Recs. Conneticzt, III, Parliaments, and Jo called Lords.
241. Savage did not meet with It may be a Weaknefs of ours, hut
him, or overlooked him in his we believe a Lord made by CromEagernefs to dilate on Maj. Gen. well is as much to be regarded as
John Defborough, which afforded though his Title had come down
him the Pleafure of denouncing the from the Ufurper William the
Ufurper Cromwell, his nicknamed Conqueror.




i68       Annals of W(Yitchcraft      1683
of the firift Settlers of Hartford, and died there
the fame Year (I683) in which he had been fo
c"molefted by an invifible Hand," and in Confequence of thofe Moleftations.
A Cafe of Witchcraft which came up in Hadley this Year, is faid to be the moft notable of
any that ever occurred in the County of Hampfhire. The Witch appeared in the Perfon of
Mrs. Mary Webfter. Before her Marriage to
Mr. William Webfter (he was a Reeve. Thirteen Years after they were married, Mary was
fuppofed to have made a League with the Devil,
and could ride through the Air on Broomfticks
or without them.
It happened, as is often the Cafe with other
Men, that William Webfier became very poor,
perhaps lived unhappily with his Wife. Poverty
is difcouraging, and it is intimated that it did
not improve the Temper of Mary Webfter; and
it is alfo intimated fhe became fpiteful, and in
fhort a Termigant, looked upon all thofe about
her as Enemies, and a6ted accordingly. Neighbours at laft folved the Myftery of Behaviour by
declaring her a Witch. Then numerous hitherto
myfterious Circumftances were explained, and
fimple Occurrences were called to Mind and
magnified in the Brains of fome until their Explanation ended in Sorcery.  Cattle refufed to
draw as they approached her Houfe, and Horfes
balked, and could not be driven paft her Door.
In fuch Cafes Drivers would enter the Houfe and
beat her, or threaten to do fo, and then the gene



1683         in New England.             I69
rally let them pafs. On one occafion fhe overturned a Load of Hay as it was about to pafs,
and the Man in Charge of it entered the Houfe
to whip her, but in the mean Time his Load of
Hay was placed right Side up by an invifible
Hand. At another Time, by looking at a Child
in a Cradle at a Neighbour's Houfe, fhe caufed
it to afcend to the Chamber Floor three fucceffive Times when no vifible Hands touched it.
Once a Hen came down (Somebody's) Chimney
and was fomewhat fcalded in a Pot which happened to be over the Fire. It was found that
Mary Webiter was fuffering from  a Scald, about
that Time. Thefe are but a fmall Part of the
Sorceries attributed to her at the Time.
At Length, the People not being able to endure
fuch Horrors any longer, brought Mary before
the Court at Northampton, which confifted of
Col. John Pynchon, of Springfield (Son of Mr.
William Pynchon, who officiated in the Cafe of
Hugh Parfons, in i 65 i), Peter Tilton and Philip
Smith,' of Hadley, William  Clarke and Aaron
Cooke, of Northampton.  Saml. Partrigg, of
Hadley, being Clerk. The Record thus proceeds:  "Mary Webfter, of Hadley, being under
ftrong Sufpicion of having Familiarity with the
Devil, or ufing Witchcraft, and having been in
Examination, and many Teftimonies brought in
1 The fame, I fuppofe, who was Year. This correfponds with his
brought over from Ipfwich to New Age as itated by Dr. C. Mather, as
England, in i634, by his Father, will be feen prefently. See FouindSamuel Smith, at the Age of one ers of New England, 53.
W




170       Annals of Ifitchcraft       1683
againft her, or that did feem to centre upon her,
relating to fuch a Thing; and the worfhipful
Mr. Tilton binding her to appear at this Court,
and having examined her yet further, and the
Teftimonies aforenamed, look upon her Cafe
a Matter belonging to the Court of Affiftants to
judge of, and have therefore ordered faid Mary
to be, by the firft convenient Opportunity, fent
to Bofton Gaol, and committed there as a Prifoner, to be further examined there, and the
Clerk is to gather up all the Evidences and fit
them to be fent down by the Wpfl Mr. Tilton
to our honored Governour," for his Difpofal.
Mary Webfter was accordingly fent to Bofton
in the following April, and on the 22d of May
fhe was taken from the Jail and placed before
Governor Bradftreet, Deputy Gov. Danforth and
the nine Affiftants. The Grand Jury then proceed to indict her in the ufual Verbofity of the
time, "that, not having the fear of God," &c.,
" and being inftigated by the Devil, hath entered
into Covenant and had Familiarity with him in
the Shape of a Warraneage,' and had his Imps
fucking her, and Teats or Marks found on her,
as in and by feveral Teftimonies may appear,
contrary to the Peace," &c. Hence the Grand
Jury founded their Indidment mainly perhaps
on Teftimonies of Women who had fearched her
for Witch Teats.
Whether the poor perfecuted Woman lay in
1 An Indian Name for a black Cat.-Judd,




I68+         in Pennfylvania.          17 
Jail from April to September is not certainly declared, but the probably did. However, fhe was
brought to the Bar for Trial on the 4th of September, in Bofton, and pleaded Not Guilty, making no Exception to any of the Jury. To what
Length the Trial extended is not mentioned, but
the Jury brought in a Verdict of Acquittal.
By a Note accompanying the Trial of Mrs.
Webifer, it is ihown that the Expenfe of it
amounted to twenty-three Pounds, fifteen Shillings and two Pence; five Pounds of which were
for "bringing her down from Hadley to Prifon,"
and two Pounds for taking her back to Hadley.
I684.
As ftrong a Cafe of Witchcraft was made
out in Pennfylvania, at the Trial of Margaret
Matfon, in Delaware County, in I684, as moft
of fuch Trials can fhow.  The Parties in the
Cafe refided near the Mouth of Crum Creek;
and it is faid by the Hiftorian of that County,'
that the Accufed ftood as well for Refpedability
as her Accufers. The Trial took Place in Philadelphia, before William Penn, on the 27th of
February, 1684, or 1683, 0. S. The Accufations were as ridiculous as any alleged at Witch
Trials in New England or Elfewhere. Henry
Dryftreet alleged that he was told that the Prifoner was a Witch twenty Years ago, and that
I George Smith, M. D.




172       Annals of Wlitchcraft       1684
feveral Cows were bewitched by her; that James
Saunderling's Mother told him that fhe bewitched
her Cow.
Charles Afhcom teftified that one Night the
Daughter of the Prifoner called him up haftily,
and when he came ihe "fayed there was a great
Light but juft before, and an old Woman with a
Knife in her Hand at the Bedds Feet, and therefore fhe cryed out, and defired Jno. Simcock to
take away his Calves, or elfe fihe would fend them
to Hell."
"Annakey Coolin faid her Hufband tooke the
Heart of a Calf that died, as they thought by
Witchcraft, and boyled it; whereupon the Prifoner came in and afked them what they were
doing?  They faid boyling of Flefh. She faid
they had better they had boyled the Bones, with
feveral other unfeemly Expreffions."
"Annakey  Cooling's Atteflation about the
Gees, faying fihe was never out of her Conoo;
and alfo that fhe never faid any fuch Thing about
the Calves Heart."
There were other Teftimonies neither better
nor worfe than thefe, upon which the Jury
brought Margaret in "Guilty of haveing the
common Fame of a Witch, but not Guilty in
Manner and Form as fhe ftands indidted."
The Suggeftion that the Verdid was according to the Ruling of Judge Penn, is quite a
reafonable one; and "it is to be regretted that
the Charge given by the Governour was not preferved, as it doubtless fhaped the very righteous,




1684          in Pennfylvania.            173
though rather ridiculous Verdid."  And, as in
fome fimilar Cafes, the Accufed was bound over
in the Sum of one hundred Pounds, for her good
Behaviour for fix Months. Her Hufband, Neels
Matfon, and her Son-in-law, Anthony Neelfon,
were her Sureties.'
It was probably at this Trial that Governour
Penn inquired of the Accufed, according to a
Tradition, whether it were true that fhe was a
Witch, and whether, as was alleged, fhe had rid
through the Air on a Broomftick? And, on her
anfwering in the Affirmative, the Judge faid fhe
was at perfed Liberty to ride on Broomiticks,
for he knew of no Law againft it, and thereupon
ordered her Difcharge.
It will be borne in Mind that Pennfylvania
was yet a Wildernefs, and that Philadelphia had
been laid out fcarcely three Years,z when this
Cafe of Witchcraft occurred.
It has been claimed that this is the only Profecution for Witchcraft in Pennfylvania, and our
Refearches are too limited to allow us to queftion
the Affertion. An Annalift of that Locality has
rather injudicioufly remarked, that by the Verdidt in the Cafe juft recorded, "Pennfylvanians
have probably efcaped the Odium  of Salem!"
There may be different Degrees of Ignorance
and Superftition. Let thefe afford what Exulta1 Smith's Hiflory of Delaware confifted of three or four little
CotnWgy, I 52-3.        Cottages." — Watfon's Annas of
2 The Year previous (1683) it Philadelphia, 61.




174  Annals of JVitchcraft            1685
tion they may. The Statute of James I. was
acknowledged to be in full Force in the Colony.
A few Years later, namely, in I695, Robert
Reman was complained of at Chefter for practifing Divination, or, as it was then termed,
Geomanty.  He was "prefented by the Grand
Jury, which alfo prefinted for Prohibition divers
Books relating to Witchcraft, Necromancy and
fo forth; as Hidfon's Temple of WYidom, Scott's
Difcovery of Witchcraft, and Cornelius Agrippa.'
i685.
How it had fared with Mary Webfter, fince
her Acquittal in Boiton, in i683, we are not
prepared to fay, but in I685 fhe was again
accufed of practifing Sorcery, and of the ferious
Charge of Murder by that Practice. To underftand the Feelings entertained by a large Majority
of the Community when a Witch was fuppofed
to be difcovered, one of the Prefent Day fhould
read fome of Dr. Cotton Mather's Defcriptions.
It is true he may be thought an Extremift of his
Time, but it is alfo true that his Views and Defcriptions were nearly univerfally thofe of Everybody, the World over, at the Time of thefe
Occurrences.
The Name of Mr. Philip Smith has been
mentioned before, in Connedion with Mary
Webifer.  He was a Man of confiderable Diftindion in Hadley, was well known as Lieu1 Watfon's Annals, 228.




I685        in New England.           I75
tenant Smith, in a Period when Titles of Office
were regarded with much Refped. This Gentleman died after a fhort Illnefs, on the i oth of
January, i685; and as his Malady was not
underifood by thofe who attended him, and as he
had been among thofe who had brought Mary
Webfter to Trial at Bofton, it was at once decided that his Death was occafioned by Witchcraft, and that Mary Webfter was the Witch.
And our Narrator,' being contemporaneous with
the Event, ought to have been well informed
with all the Particulars, he fhall therefore fpeak
for himfelf:
"Mr. Philip Smith, aged about fifty Years, a
Son of eminently vertuous Parents, a Deacon of
the Church in Hadley, a Member of the General
Court, a Juftice in the Countrey Court, a Selet
Man for the Affairs of the Town, and which
crowns all, a Man for Devotion, Sanctity, Gravity,
and all that was honeft, exceeding exemplary.
Such a Man was in the Winter of the Year I684
[I683-4], murdered with an hideous Witchcraft,
that filled all thofe Parts of New England with
Aitonifhment. He was, by his Office concerned
about relieving the Indigencies of a wretched
Woman in the Town; who being diffatisfied at
fome of his juft Cares about her, expreffed herfelf unto him in fuch a Manner, that he declared
hinmfelf thenceforward apprehenfive of receiving
Mifchief at her Hands.
1 Cotton Mather, D. D.




I76      Annals of W~itchcraft       I685
"About the Beginning of January he began
to be very valetudinareous, labouring under Pains
that feemed ifchiatic. The Standers by could
now fee in him, one ripening apace for another
World, and filled with Grace and Joy to an high
Degree. He fhewed fuch Weanednefs from, and
Wearinefs of the World, that he knew not, he
faid, whether he might pray for his Continuance
here. And fuch an Affurance he had of the
Divine Love unto him, that in Raptures he
would cry out,'Lord flay thine Hand, it is
enough, it is more than thy frail Servant can
beare.' But in the midit of thefe Things he frill
uttered an hard Sufpicion that the ill Woman
had threatened him, had made Impreffilons with
Inchantments upon him. While he remained
yet of a found Mind, he very fedately, but very
folemnly charged his Brother, to look well after
him. Tho', he faid, he now underitood himfelf, yet he knew not how he might be.'But
be fure' faid he'to have a Care of me; for you
fhall fee ftrange Things.  There ihall be a
Wonder in Hadley! I fhall not be dead, when'tis thought I am!' He preffed this Charge
over and over, and afterwards became Delirious;
upon which he had a Speech inceffant and voluble, and (as was judged) in various Languages.
He cried out, not only of Pains, but alfo of Pins
tormenting him in feveral Parts of his Body;
and the Attendants found one of them.
"In his Difireffes he exclaimed much upon
the Woman aforefaid and others, as being feen by




I685        in New England.            1 77
him in the Room; and there was divers Times
both in that Room, and over the whole Houfe, a
ftrong Smell of Something like Murk, which
once particularly fo fcented an Apple roafting at
the Fire, that it forced them to throw it away.
Some of the young Men in the Town being out
of their Wits at the ftrange Calamities thus upon
one of the moft beloved Neighbours, went three
or four Times to give Difturbance unto the
Woman thus complained of. And all the While
they were difturbing of her, he was at Eafe, and
flept as a weary Man. Yea thefe were the only
Times that they perceived him to take any fleep
in all his Illnefs. Gally Pots of Medicines provided for the fick Man, were unaccountably
empty'd. Audible Scratchings were made about
the Bed, when his Hands and Feet lay wholly
ftill, and were heard by others. They beheld
Fire Sometimes on the Bed, and when the Beholders began to difcourfe of it, it vanifhed away.
Divers People adtually felt Something often ftir
in the Bed, at a confiderable Diftance from the
Man. It feemed as big as a Cat, but they could
never grafp it. Several trying to lean on the
Bed's Head, tho' the fick Man lay wholly frill,
the Bed would fhake fo, as to knock their Heads
uncomfortably. A very ftrong Man could not
lift the fick Man to make him lie more eafily,
tho' he applied his utmoft Strength unto it; and
yet he could prefently lift a Bedfted and a
Bed, and a Man lying on it, without any Strain
to himfelf at all. Mr. Smith dies. The Jury
x




78       A4nnals of Iitchcraft      1685
that view'd his Corpfe, found a Swelling on one
Breaft, his Privates wounded or burned, his Back
full of Bruifes, and feveral Holes that feem'd
made with Awls. After the Opinion of all had
pronounced him Dead, his Countenance continued as lively as if he had been alive; his Eyes
clofed as in Slumber, and his nether Jaw not
fallen down.
"Thus he remained from Saturday Morning
about Sun-rife, till Sabbath-day in the Afternoon;
when thofe who took him out of the Bed, found
him ftill warm, tho' the Seafon was as cold as
had almoft been known in any Age. And a
New England Winter does not want for Cold.
On the Night following, his Countenance was
yet frefh as before; but on Monday Morning
they found the Face extremely tumil'd, and difcolour'd. It was black and blue, and frefh Blood
feem'd running down his Cheek upon the Hairs.
Divers Noifes were alfo heard in the Room
where the Corpfe lay; as the Clattering of Chairs
and Stools, whereof no Account could be given."
As in this Recital, fo in all fuch by our Author,
the Reader might be led to think him an Eye
and Ear Witnefs to all his Narratives; but it
fhould be remembered that all, or nearly all his
Accounts came to him, at leaft, fecond handed;
and often, perhaps, through a third or fourth
idle Head, all Lovers of the Marvellous; ready at
all Times, efpecially in the Night, to believe the
Air full of ill fhapen Monfters, bearing Commiffions from the Devil, to enlift Followers, of




1685          in New  England.              179
whom he might make Witches and fend them
forth to vex and torment Mankind.
As a Sort of Sequel to the Tragedy of Mary
Webfter, it fhould be related, that the poor and
haraffed old Woman lived many Years after fhe
was believed to have killed Philip Smith by Sorcery.  She died in I696.'
It will be remembered, that, in the Narrative
juft extraSted, Mention is made of "fome young
Men" who "went three or four Times to give
Difturbance" to Mrs. Webfter. It is faid by a
reliable Hiftorian,2 that the young Mifcreants
went to her Houfe, dragged her out, and hung
her up till fhe was almoft dead. They then cut
her down, rolled her fome Time in the Snow,
and then buried her up in it, leaving her, as they
doubtless fuppofed, for Dead!  But by a Miracle,
as it were, fhe furvived this Barbarity. Still more
miraculous it was, that the fick Man was greatly
relieved during the Time the helplefs old Woman
was being fo beaftly abufed by the Ruffians!
The Tormentors muft have been Infidels of the
worft Type, elfe they would never have dared to
moleit one whom they believed to be a Witch,
and hence able to afflit them as forely as Mr.
Smith was afflided. And yet they doubtlefs believed that a Witch " could take off her Shoes and
1 As though fhe had been tried to falfe Impreffions, the was acfor the Murder of Smith (which quitted. Years more were needed
was not the Cafe), Savage fays, for the full Triumph of the Devil
" even though fhe was before a Jury and Cotton Mather"!
at Bofton, then peculiarly expofed   2 Hutchinfon.




I80       Annals of Witchcraft        i688
go through a Keyhole" to torment whoever (he
pleafed.  Such are the Inconfiftencies of Believers in Witchcraft.
A Cafe very fimilar to this occurred many
Years later, in the County of Hereford, England,
namely, in I751, in the Town of Barkhamfted.
"The People of this Place," writes De Foe,'
"muff be believed to be highly addided to Superftition, if we form our Notions of them from
the Barbarity great Numbers of them exercifed,
in the Month of April, I75I, thro' the Infligation of a Publican, who took himfelf to be bewitched by one Ruth Ofbourne, and her Hufband, two poor Creatures, whom, after various
Intfances of the moit diabolical rage, under pretence of the exploded Trial of ducking, they
dragged about the Length of two Miles, and
threw into a muddy Stream; thro' which ill
Ufage the Woman died, and for which one Collins fuffered Death."
I688.
There are few more remarkable Cafes in the
Annals of Witchcraft than that related as having
happened in Bofton, in the Year I688, in the
Family of a reputable Inhabitant of the Name
of John Goodwin, living at the North End of
the Town. As the Circumftances are minutely
detailed by Dr. Cotton Mather, in his Magnalia,
by Gov. Hutchinfon in the Hi/ory of Mafachu1 Or rather the Editor of his Tour through Great Britain, II, I87-8.




X688        in New England.           18 I
fetts and in the Hijiory and Antiquities of Bojton,
it is not propofed to repeat them  here.  We
therefore will only mention, that one Perfon
fuffered Death as the final Refult of the ftrange
Infatuation. The Vieim appears to have been a
poor old Woman, according to Robert Calef,
"crazy and ill-conditioned, and an Irifh Roman
Catholic."  She was arraigned before Judge
Jofeph Dudley, condemned and executed. Her
Name was Glover, and we have no other Clue to
her Hiftory. She was not a crazy Perfon, as we
now underftand the Word; that is, it was not
meant that the was infane, but fimply that fhe
was weak and infirm. We have, in our Time,
heard the Word Crazy applied to aged and feeble
Perfons.
It may, however, be intereriing to have a few
Specimens of what it is alleged that the bewitched Children experienced during the Time
of their being tormented by "invifible Hands."
And it may be fafely remarked, that if the Half
of what is folemnly vouched for, be true, it is no
Wonder the Witneffes were amazed and aftounded.
John Goodwin, the Father of the bewitched
Children, came to Bofton from Charleftown.
His Children were Nathaniel, born 1672, Martha,
born I674, John, I677, and Mercy, I68I. All
thefe were in the Plot of "childifh Mifchief"
which fo "fadly perplexed and befooled Cotton
Mather," as our Cotemporary expreffes it, as
though he were the only one "befooled." The




182      Annals of *Witchcraft       1688
Commencement of the Trouble did indeed arife
from a childifh Circumifance. Some Article of
Clothing was miffed by the Family, when Mary
Goodwin charged their Wafherwoman's Daughter
with purloining it. This Charge the Mother
indignantly repelled, and perhaps in rough and
irritating Language; whereupon Mary "was immediately taken with odd Fits, that carried in
them Something diabolical." Soon after the
other Sifter and two Brothers "were horribly
taken with the like Fits." What was thought
to be extraordinary and preternatural by the moft
experienced Phyficians, was the Fad that all the
Children "were tormented alike; juft in the
fame Part of their Bodies, and at the fame
Time," though they were far apart, and neither
heard nor faw one another. At the fame Time
"their Pains flew like fwift Lightning" from
one Part of their Bodies to another. Yet, notwithftanding their Tortures, it was with fupreme
Credulity remarked, that they flept well all
Night after nine or ten O'clock at Night! Undoubtedly, after performing their Deceptions all
Day, they were too tired to keep awake all
Night. "But, when the Day came, they were
moit miferably handled " again. They would fo
affed Blindnefs, Deafnefs and Infenfibility generally, as completely to deceive their credulous
and fimple Friends. Their Tongues would be
drawn down their Throats and then thruft out
upon their Chins, "to a prodigious Length."
Their Jaws would be thrown out of Joint, by




i688        in New England.            183
unavoidable Yawnes, "and anon clap together
again like a fpring Lock. They made piteous
Outcries, that they were cut with Knives and
ftruck with Blows, and the plain Prints of the
Wounds were feen upon them."
Their Necks would be broken, fo that the
Bone would feem to be diffolved, and then it
would become fo ftiff that there was no ftirring
of their Heads. At Devotions they were entirely deaf, and could hear Nothing of what was
faid; yet the Boito~ic.and Charleftown Minifters
held a Faft at Mr. Goodwin's Houfe, which
relieved the youngeft Child. It is not ftrange
that a Child of eight Years was not able to keep
up the juggling Bufinefs any longer, on the other
Hand it is ftrange it held out any Length of
Time.
But the Magifirates, "being awakened by the
Noife of thefe grievous and horid Occurrences,"
ordered Mrs. Glover to be taken into Cuftody.
At her Trial her pleading "was with owning
and bragging rather than Denial of her Guilt,"
fo that the Court fufpe6ted fhe was under the Influence of another Witch of a higher Grade than
herfelf. They caufed her Houfe to be fearched,
in which were found feveral Rag-babies. Thefe
were decided to be Puppets, being ftuffed with
Goats Hair, at which " the vile Woman confeffed
that her Way to torment the Objedts of her Malice was by wetting of her Finger with her Spittle, and ftroaking of there little Immages.




I 8+      Annals of WVitchcraft       I688
When the was made to take one of thefe in her
Hand, one of the Children fell into fad Fits."
The poor Woman fpoke Englifh but poorly,
and from her Anfwers to perplexing Queftions it
was believed the Devil had deferted her, for
Somebody heard her expoftulating, the Night
following, with a Devil, for thus deferting her,
and telling him (he had confeffed all. Being a
ftri& Catholick, fhe probably anfwered with a Sort
of Fear that the had fomehow gotten into a
ftrange Inquifition. Our Author fays, "I did
myfelf give divers Vifits unto her, wherein the
told me," among other Things, that "her Prince
was the Devil." Evidently the poor ignorant
Creature thought the Reverend Divine was catechifing her upon fome Points of her Religion;
and from all that can be gathered from their
Converfation as reported by the Divine himfelf,
he underftood her quite as well as fhe did him.
She was not willing he fhould pray with her
without the Confent of ibme good Catholick
Spirits. This the Reverend Divine confirued to
mean that fhe could not allow of it without the
Confent of the Devil!
At her Execution fihe faid the Children would
not be relieved by her Death, and that it was not
fhe that afflided them. This was conftrued into
a Threat that "they Jhould not be relieved by
her Death," and that others as well as fhe afflidted
them. "Accordingly the three Children continued in their Furnace as before, and it grew
rather feven Times hotter than it was, and their




1691        in New England.            185
Calamities went on, till they barked at one
another like Dogs, and then purred like fo many
Cats; would complain that they were in a redhot Oven, and fweat and pant as if they had been
really fo. Anon they would fay cold Water was
thrown on them, at which they would lhiver
very much.  They would complain of being
roafed on an invifible Spit, and then that their
Heads were nailed to the Floor, and it was beyond
an ordinary Strength to pull them from it."
"One of them dreamt that Something was
growing within his Skin, acrofs one of his Ribs.
An expert Chirurgeon found there a brafs Pin,
which could not poffibly come to lie there as it
did, without a preftigious and myiterious Conveyance. Sometimes they would fly like Geefe,
and be carried with an incredible Swiftnefs
through the Air, having but juft their Toes upon
the Ground (not once in twenty Feet), and their
Arms waved like the Wings of a Bird."
Thus are fketched but a fmall Part of the
Wonders performed by the Goodwin Children,
yet there will probably fatisfy our Readers, as we
have not Room for more.
I691.
At a Court in Springfield, on the 29th of September, I691, Mary Randall was charged with
Witchcraft. The Court entertained the Complaint, but why the Cafe was put off for a Year,
unlefs the Evidence was deemed infufficient imY




i86       Annals of Wlitchcraft        i692
mediately to try her, is left to Conjedture. At
the end of a Year no Trial was had, but the
Father of the Accufed, William Randall, became
bound for her good Behaviour; and this feems to
be the Laft heard of the Adion, and the laft Cafe
of Witchcraft in the County of Hamplhire.
I692.
So far as we have been able to learn, thirty
Years had elapfed fince the experimental Trial of
a Witch by Water had taken Place in the Colonies. That related by Dr. Increafe Mather, of
i662, was the firft and only one up to that Date,
fo far as known.  However hard it may be to
believe that fuch Things ever happened in this
Land, that comes to us fo dired, and from fo
veracious a Contemporary of it, that a Difbelief
in it cannot be entertained for a Moment.  And
as we have one other well authenticated Cafe it
is here given. This, according to our Authority,'.
took place in Fairfield, Connedicut. In September of this Year (I692) Mercy Difborough,
Wife of Thomas Difborough, of Campo, in
Fairfield, and two or three other Women, were
tried at Fairfield for Witchcraft, and all were
acquitted except Mercy Difborough, who was
found Guilty and Sentenced to die. She is fuppofed to have been acquitted; and why fhe fhould
have been fubjeded to the Ordeal of being thrown
into the Water it is not eafy to fee; but our
1 Sylvefter Judd, Efq., in his Hiflory of Hadley, 233-4.




1692        in New England.            I87
Authority goes on: "Mercy Difborough and
Elizabeth Clauffon were bound, Hands and Feet,
and put into the Water; and Witneffes teftified
that they'fwam like Cork;' yet Elifabeth was
acquitted, and Mary was not condemned, becaufe
fhe floated."
Notwithftanding the Record of this Barbarity
is unimpeachable, and may have been fuppofed
unparalleled in this Country, it will fubfequently
appear that a fimilar one tranfpired in Virginia,
and at a Date allowing lefs Excufe for its Perpetration.
So much has been written and publifhed upon
the great Outbreak of I692, that only a brief
Outline will be attempted in this Treatife. All
Things confidered, it is one of the moit furprifing
Events in Hiftory. The Smallnefs of the Number of thofe engaged in it, in its Beginning, their
Youth and Pofition in Society, their Ability to
deceive Everybody for fo long a Time! In any
View that has yet been taken of it, its Narrator
has found himfelf baffled to a Degree beyond
that of any other Event in the whole Range of
Hiftory, to account fatisfadorily for the Condudt
of the young Females through whofe Inftrumentality it was carried on. It required more devilF/h Ability to deceive, Adroitnefs to blind the
Underftanding, and to keep up a Confcioufnefs of
that Ability among themfelves, than ever fell to
the Lot of a like Number of Impoftors in
any Age of which the Writer has ever read; and




188       Annals of Witchcraft        i692
he can only fay, if there are parallel Cafes they
have not fallen under his Obfervation.
It is true, that when once the Imagination is
excited, the Reafon may become confufed, and a
Lofs of Judgment follows. Thefe Circumftances
happening in a Community bound in a Spell of
fuperftitious Awe, may account in fome Degree
for the total Want of Judgment, common Senfe
and Humanity, fo prominent in all Profecutions
for Witchcraft. Such, however, is believed to
be the Mafter-Key to the Profecutions and Perfecutions to which a Belief in'Witchcraft has
given rife.
That which gave the Accufers great Advantage
over all Oppofition from every Quarter, was the
religious Belief that nearly Everybody had in its
Reality. It was at the Hazard of being denounced
by every Chriftian as an Infidel, to utter a Word
againft its Exiftence, and it was believed that any
Perfon might become a Witch. So thoroughly
imbued with that prepofterous and pernicious
Belief, were all Parties, that not only the Court
and Juries were demented by it, but the Accufed
alfo; for not one is remembered, who, in their
laft Moments, even queftioned the Reality of
Witchcraft; but on the other Hand, diredly or
indirectly acknowledged that there were Witches,
and hoped they would be found out and punifhed,
while they themfelves difclaimed all Knowledge
of it.
The principal Accufers and Witneffes, too, in
the whole Term of the Witchcraft Profecutions




1692        in New England.            189
were eight Females, nearly all young Girls, from
eleven to twenty Years of Age. Thefe were
Abigail Williams, eleven; Mary Walcut, feventeen; Ann Putnam, twelve; Mercy Lewis,
Seventeen; Mary Warren, twenty; Elizabeth
Booth, eighteen; Sarah Churchill, twenty; and
Sufannah Sheldon.
Mary Walcutt was Daughter of Captain John
Walcutt; Ann Putnam was a Daughter of
Thomas Putnam; Mercy Lewis was a Servant
living in Mr. Putnam's Family; Mary Warren
lived in the Family of Mr. John Proder; Elizabeth Booth lived near John  Prodter; Sarah
Churchill lived in the Family of George Jacobs,
Senr.; Sufannah Sheldon lived in the Village.
Thefe Females inftituted frequent Meetings, or
got up, as it would now be ftyled, a Club, which
was called a Circle. How frequent they had
thefe Meetings is not ftated, but it was foon afcertained that they met "to try Proje&s," or to do
or produce Superhuman A&s.  They doubtlefs
had among them fome Book or Books on Magic,
and Stories of Witchcraft, which fome one or
more of their Circle profeffed to underftand, and
pretended to teach the Reft.  Yet they were
generally very ignorant, for out of the eight but
two could write their Names. Such were the
Charadters which Set in Motion that ftupendous
Tragedy, which ended in Blood and Ruin.
Inquiry as to there Accufers muft have early
occurred. Whether they or any of them were
ever punifhed?  They were not, becaufe the




Igo       Annals of Witchcraft        I692
Party which had believed in them in the firft
Place, believed in Witchcraft ftill. The Believers
and Infidels died out together. Years affuaged
the aggrieved Minds of fuch as were living long
after, and Nothing was done, excepting the Beftowal of a few paltry Pounds on fome clamorous
pretended Sufferers, and a few Shillings on thofe
who needed it more, and were far greater Sufferers. And as to thofe who caufed the Profecutions, adds Hutchinfon, "fome of them  proved
Profligates, abandoned to all Vice, others paffed
their Days in Obfcurity or Contempt."
March  ft. Sarah Good is apprehended and
committed to Jail. On the fame Day an Indian
Woman is brought before Jufrices Hathorne and
Corwin, who examined her refpeding what had
taken Place in the Rev. Samuel Parris's Family.
March 7th. Sarah Good, Sarah Ofburn, and
Tituba, are all fent to Boiton to be there imprifoned. Sarah Ofburn died there (in Jail) on the
Ioth of May following.  Tituba lay in Jail
thirteen Months, and was then fold to pay her
Prifon Charges. Befides Sarah Oiburn, Anne
Fofter alfo died in Jail. And it is not unlikely,
but on the other Hand is extremely probable,
that many others fuffered Death during the long
and cold Winter of I692-3, after inevitable Privations, and in many Cafes loaded with Iron
Chains!
From March, 1692, to May, 1693, nearly, if
not more than two hundred Perfons had been
dragged to Prifon, under color of Law and the




1692        in New England.             191
Mockery of a Trial. Some it is certain efcaped
through the good Offices of Friends outfide, and
fome by Connivance with their Jailors. Thefe,
added to the Number which had died in Durefs,
could hardly have been lefs than fifty. and we
know from good Authority, that the Number fet
at Liberty in May, I693, by Governour Phips'
Proclamation was one hundred and fifty! moft of
whom, if not all, had lain all Winter in Jail.
It requires no Flexibility of Imagination to
prefume that many Families had been utterly
ruined. The Imprifoned were generally Perfons
of fmall Eftates, and fmall as they were, Confifcation fell upon them. Befides that Befom of
Deftrucion, Jailor's Fees and Court Expenfes
were added to their Burthens.
The Number that perifhed by violent Deaths
is flown to have been twenty, and of each of
them follows brief Notices.
I. Bridget Bifhop, faid to have "long undergone the Repute of a Witch." One Samuel
Gray teftified to her having performed Witchcraft twenty Years previous. But on his Death
Bed he acknowledged his Perfidy, and that his
Accufations were wholly groundlefs. She was
executed protefting her Innocence, June Ioth,
I692.
2. George Burroughs, a Minifter of the Gofpel, was executed Auguft I9th, I692, under
Circumftances which mufft ever caufe a Thrill of
indignant Horror, and the deepeft Commiferation




192       Annals of [JVitchcraft      1692
to all who have, and ever hereafter may read the
Story of his laft and dying Scene.
3. Martha Carrier, of Andover, was executed
the fame Time with the Rev. Mr. Burroughs.
She was the Wife of Thomas Carrier, Hufbandman. The Number of Teftimonies againft her
were many and furprifing, but not fo furprifing as
that any were weak enough to believe them.
4. Giles Cory was by an old Law put to the
moft cruel Death. When arraigned before the
Court he refifed to plead, or anfwer Queftions;
for he knew what his Fate would be in either
Cafe. So to avoid giving the Profecution any
Advantage, he would anfwer Nothing. Whereupon he was Sentenced to be preffed to Death.
Hence, refuting to put himfelf on Trial, no Trial
adtually took place, and his Death was the Refult
of his Obftinacy, and a Firmnefs with fcarcely a
Parallel, certainly not in American Annals. At
the Time of his Death (September I6th, I692)
he was over eighty Years old. He had been an
"Iron Man," as would be faid of fuch in our
Times. In the Commencement of the Troubles
he aded a fingular Part, and in his earlier Career
had acquired, whether juftly or not it is difficult
to determine, the Ill-will and Envy of many of
his Neighbours, fome of whom were glad of an
Opportunity to fee him troubled and humbled.
But in the latter Particular they fignally failed,
for he ftood firm to the laft Breath. Whether
he was more than once required to plead " Guilty,"
or "Not Guilty," our Records do not ftate, but it




1692             in New England.                      1 93
is likely the old Englifh Law was obferved, and
that he was brought before the Court three
Times, and three Times required to plead.'
Well, though ironically, has the Ballad perpetuated the Memory of Giles Cory, in the Lines
which follow:
"Giles Corey was a Wizzard ftrong,
A ftubborn Wretch was he,
And fitt was he to hang on high
Upon the Locuft Tree.
So when before the Magiftrates
For Triall he did come,
He would no true Confeffion make
But was compleatlie dumbe.'Giles Corey,' faid the Magiftrate,'W hat haft thou heare to pleade
To there that now accufe thy Soule
Of Crimes and horrid Deed?'
Giles Corey - he faid not a Worde,
No fingle Worde fpake he;
6 Giles Corey,' fayth the Magiftrate,' We'll prefs it out of thee.'
They got them then a heavy Beam,
They laid it on his Breaft;
They loaded it with heavie Stones,
And hard upon him preft.
More Weight,' now faid this wretched Man,' More Weight,' again he cryed,
And he did no Confellion make,
But wickedly he dyed."
1 Mather fays he was often be- InvfiJble  World, 2Io,  Edition
fore the Court.-Wonders of the I866.
z




194.      Annals of W itchcraft        1692
He laid in the Jail at Ipfwich from the g9th
of April till the I6th of September, excepting
the Time occupied in his Examination and Execution.
5. Martha Cory was the Wife of Giles Cory,
a Woman of blamelefs Life, a pious and worthy
Woman.  She was "cried out upon" for that
very Reafon; for hitherto the miscreant Accufers
had ftruck at Perfons in more humble Circumftances, and now to raife their own Importance began to accufe Perfons whom they did not
dare to attempt at firft. She was executed September 22d, I692, "protefting her Innocency,
concluding her Life with an eminent Prayer upon
the Ladder."
Upon her Cafe our Balladiit fays:
"Dame Corey lived but fix Dayes more,
But fix Dayes more lived fhe,
For fhe was hanged at Gallows Hill
Upon the Locuft Tree."
6. Mary Eafty was Wife of Ifaac Eafty, about
fifty-eight Years of Age, and the Mother of
feven Children.   She was Sifter of Rebecca
Nurfe and Sarah Cloyfe. She appears to have
been a meek and amiable Lady, and the Judges
feemed fomewhat ftaggered when in this Character fhe ftood before her Accufers. But as yet
the Monfters had met with no Check, and their
Teftimony was believed by the imbecile Court.
After her Condemnation, ihe made a moft touching Petition to the Judges "and the Reverend




i692        inl New England.           195
Minifters," in which fhe befought them, " not for
my own Life," ihe urged, "for I know I muit
die, and my appointed Time is fet; but, if it be
poflible, that no more Innocent Blood be fhed,
which cannot be avoided in the Way and Courfe
you go in." All availed Nothing. She was one
of the eight hung at the fame Time, namely,
September 22d, I692. It was upon this Occafion that the Rev. Nicholas'Noyes, then prefent,
and viewing the Vidtims, remarked to the Byftanders:  "What a fad Thing it is to fee eight
Firebrands of Hell hanging there!"  What could
be expeded of Followers when fuch were the
Leaders? Mr. Noyes was a fingle Man, and in
great Repute elfewhere as well as in the Community in which he then was. He is faid to
have acknowledged his Error refpeting the
Witchcraft Profecutions; but whether he made
any Atonement by affifting thofe he had helped
to ruin, we have no Evidence. His Eledtion
Sermon of I698 fhows a great Amount "of
Heathen Learning," and by fome Paffages in it
he evidently had the Horrors of I692 before the
Eye of his Imagination.  "With Grief and
Shame we read over and meditate upon fome
Texts fpoke of Ifrael:'as they were increafed fo
they finned,' &c. So hath it been with us. As
for our Degeneracy, it is too palpable to be denied, and too grofs to be excufed." Again, "God
is a very great Stranger to the Affairs of New
England. Inftead of Plenty we have had Scarcity;
inftead of Health, Sicknefs; inftead of Peace,




196       Annals of Wfitchcraft       x692
War; impoverifhed and brought low. We have
had remarkable Trouble from Heaven and Hell."
7. Sarah Good, of Salem Village, was one of
the firit of the Vicdims of the Delufion. Being
poor and friendlefs, and of general bad Repute,
her Perfecution was not regarded as fuch, and
thus a Beginning of the nefarious Work was
eafily accomplifhed.  Although defpifed and
treated with all Manner of Indignities, her Spirit
was not broken, as appears from her Anfwer to
Mr. Noyes at the Place of Execution. He infultingly told her {he was a Witch, and that ihe
knew it. She indignantly replied, "You are a
Liar. I am no more a Witch than you are a
Wizzard, and if you take away my Life, God will
give you Blood to drink." She was hanged July
I9th, i692.
8. Elizabeth, Wife of James How of Ipfwich,
was arraigned on the 3oth of June, I692. The
Teftimony againft her was very voluminous, but
was abfurd and childifh as on all fimilar Occafions.
She was a pious and amiable Woman, but Nothing could fave her, and on the  9th of July fhe
was hanged.
9. George Jacobs, Sen., of Salem, was executed
at the fame Time with the laft mentioned. His
Grand-daughter, Margaret Jacobs, teftified againft
him at his Trial, but when it was too late, acknowledged her Perfidy, in a piteous Letter, ftill
extant.
I o. Sufanna Martin had long been under the
Imputation of being a Witch, and has been




1692        in New England.            197
noticed in the Events of I669. She was one of
thofe executed on the i 9th of July. She belonged
to Ameibury, and appears to have been a Woman
of great Spirit and bufinefs Capacity, and perhaps
fomewhat prone to wordy Contefis, by which fhe
had excited the Jealoufy of envious Neighbours.
Her Trial took place on the 29th of June, in
which fhe was found Guilty, and was hanged on
the Ig9th of July following. At her Examination her Replies to the Judge's Queitions fhow a
Mind far fuperior to that of the Court; and for
Diredtnefs, Concifenefs, and common Senfe, has
commended itfelf to all Readers from that Day
to this, and has thoufands of Times been quoted.
i i. Rebecca Nurfe, of Salem Village, a Lady
of great Worth, but aged and in poor Health,
was drawn into the awful Vortex in what would
appear at this Time, but from a Knowledge of
the Exiftence of Feuds which arofe from various
Caufes, as a very ftrange Occurrence. She was
facrificed in a Manner too cruel for Belief. The
Jury returned a Verdicd of Not Guilty, but the
Court, by the moft barefaced Perverfion of her
Anfwers, and being determined on her Deflruction, fent the Jury out again and forced a Verdia
of Guilty from them! There is Nothing more
memorable, or lamentable, in all the Trials and
Convidtions, than the Cafe of this Poor Woman.
She was hanged with the five that fuffered on the
g9th of July.
I 2. Alice Parker, with eight more, received
Sentence of Death on the I7th of September,




198       Annals of Jfitchcraft       I692
and was executed five Days after. She belonged
to Salem, the Wife of John Parker, Mariner.
As Nothing is heard of her Hufband in connedtion with the Profecutions, he was perhaps
away at Sea.
13. Mary Parker was alfo hanged at the fame
Time, protefting her Innocence, as did the others,
to the Laft. She belonged to Topsfield, and may
have been no Connedtion of Alice. Their Trials
do not appear among the Records.
I4. John Procter, with fix others, was tried on
Auguf 5Sth, condemned, and executed Auguft
I 9th following. He was committed to the
Prifon in Bofton on the IIth of April preceding.
His Refidence was at Salem Farms, but had lived
in Ipfwich. He was not fent to the Jail there,
doubtlefs becaufe he had many Friends; of there,
thirty-two figned a Petition for his Reprieve, who
gave him a good Charader.
I5. Ann Pudeaterwas of Salem. Mr. Upham
thinks her Name was originally or really Poindexter, the Widow of Jacob Pudeater, fuppofed to
have been about feventy Years old at the Time
of her Profecution, and was poffeffed of confiderable real Eftate in Salem, where fhe refided
She was brought up for Examination on the I 2th
of May, and again on the 2d of July, and then
fent to Jail, where fhe doubtlefs lay till the 22d
of September, when fhe made one of the eight
"Firebrands of Hell" upon the Gallows, as the
unfeeling and inhuman Noyes expreffed himfelf.
I6. Willmet Redd (fo written in the Records)




I692        in New England.            199
or Wilmot Reed or Read, belonged to Marblehead. Nothing has reached us concerning this
Perfon, but as being one of the Firebrands that
perifhed protefting Innocence to the laft. There
was a Read Family at this Period in Marblehead, but no Chriftian Name appears among
them of Willmet or Wilmot.
17. Margaret Scott was of Rowley, Widow,
and one of the eight Firebrands who fuffered protefting Innocence. Of her Family and Conneetions we have met with Nothing, beyond
what is found in Gage's HiJ/ory of Rowley, from
which it feems the was poor and old, two important Conditions in the early Profecutions.
i8. Samuel Wardwell was of Andover, was
hanged on the 22d of September alfo. He confeffed himfelf Guilty, and on this and fpeder
Teftimony he was condemned. Before he was
fwung off he fpoke to the Multitude of Speftators, declaring his Innocence.
I9. Sarah, wife of John Wildes, of Topsfield
was executed on the Ig9th of July, having, with
four others, been condemned on the 3oth of June
preceding. She was arrefted about the 22d of
April, and imprifoned till her Execution. The
gruff Denunciations and Demand to confefs of
the Court, did not move her, and fhe died firmly
denying all Knowledge of the Crime for which
fhe fuffered.
20. John Willard, of Salem Village, had been
a Deputy in making Arrefts for Witchcraft, until
he became fatisfied that the Perfons accufed were




200oo     Annals of WYitchcraft       I692
above any fuch Sufpicion. As foon as his Decifion was known to the mifcreant Profecutors
they "cried out on him."  And though he
attempted to fave himfelf by Flight, he was purfued, brought back, tried, and executed on the
I9th of Auguit.
Thus have been briefly noticed thofe that were
executed. But thofe who fuffered Everything but
Death, and fome even Death itfelf, in difmal Jails
throughout a New England Winter, cannot be
noticed here, but the Reader will find all he can
defire, probably, in the three Volumes of The
Witchcraft Delufion, &c., publifhed by Mr. W.
E. Woodward, in I866, and in the Rev. Mr. Upham's Salem Witchcraft, published in i 867, both
already mentioned.
Of many of the Sufferers very little is known.
Some, and perhaps a very confiderable Number,
fled to other Parts. At Ipfwich, Rachel Clinton
or Clenton, Wife of Lawrence Clinton, was before the Court there, and there is a Charge for
Fetters (Irons) having been made for her. Alfo
Mehitable, wife of John Downing, was arrefted
on the 23d of September, but was releafed on
her Hufband giving Security. Profecutions had
begun to relax, and on the Day following, Mary,
Wife of Hugh Row, Phebe, Wife of Timothy
Day, and Widow Rachel Dinfon, all of Gloucefter, were let out of Ipfwich Jail on Bail. The
following named Perfons, all of Gloucefter, alfo,
were brought to Ipfwich Court for Examination,
on the 3oth of Odober; namely, Efther, Wife




1692        in New England.            201
of Samuel Elwell, Rebeckah, Wife of Richard
Dike, and Abigail, daughter of Hugh Row.
They were held till the 7th of November, and
then fet at Liberty.
Some Others of Gloucefter met with Trouble
befides thofe mentioned in the laft Paragraph.
One Abigail Soames of that Town was taken on
a Charge of Witchcraft, fent to the Jail in Bofton,
and there incarcerated from the 23d of May,
i692, to January 3d, I693. Nothing is found
refpefting whom the was accufed of bewitching,
or her Examination.  She was, no doubt, among
the one hundred and fifty difcharged, before
mentioned.
As Dr. Cotton Mather has been more feverely
denounced than any other Perfon conneted with
the Delufion of that Period, the Reader may
wifh, in this Connection, to fee how he fhuffled
out of it after the Tempeft had fubfided. To
fay the leaf of it, the Author has fhown a
Dexterity not furpaffed in any other Cafe with
which we are acquainted, "of calking a Mift"
before his Readers' Eyes, by which he hoped to
efcape their Animadverfions, and thus to pafs on
to Futurity, maintaining a Pofition in the firft
Rank of great Men, as he hitherto feems to have
done, efpecially in his own Eftimation.
He wrote in i698: "As to our Cafe at Salem, I conceive it proceeded from fome mirtaken
Principles; as that Satan cannot affume the Shape
of an innocent Perfon, and in that Shape do mifchief to the Bodies and Eftates of Mankind;
Aa




202       Annals of WYitchcraft       I692
and that the Devil when he doth Harm to Perfons in their Body or Eitate, it is (at leaft, molt
commonly, generally and frequently) by the help
of our Neighbour, fome Witch in Covenant with
the Devil; and that when the Party fufpeded
looks on the Parties fuppofed to be bewitched,
and they are thereupon ftruck down into a Fit,
as if ftruck with a Cudgel, it is a Proof of fuch
a Covenant. -Cum multis al/is."
And again:  "When this Profecution ceafed,
the Lord fo chained up Satan, that the Afflided
grew prefently well. The Accufed are generally
quiet; and for five Years fince, we have no fuch
Moleftation by them."  He had previoufly remarked, that "this Matter was carried on chiefly
by the Complaints and Accufations of the
Afflicted (bewitched ones, as it was fuppofed) and
then by the Confeffions of the Accufed condemning themfelves and others. Yet Experience
fhewed, that the more there were apprehended,
the more were frill afflided by Satan; and the
Number of Confeffors increafing, did but increafe
the Number of the Accufed; and the executing
of fome made way for the apprehending of
others; for flill the Afflided complained of being
tormented by new Objeds, as the Former were
removed. So thofe that were concerned grew
amazed at the Number and Quality of the Perfons accufed, and feared that Satan by his Wiles
had enwrapped innocent Perfons under the Imputation of that Crime. And at laft it was evidently feen that there muft be a Stop put, or the




1692           in New England.                203
Generation of the Children of God would fall
under that Condemnation. Henceforth, therefore, the Juries generally acquitted fuch as were
tried, fearing they had gone too far before."'
A difinterefted Spedator could hardly have
written thus, at that Day, unlefs he had really
been but a SpeCator, and had never encouraged
the abominable Proceedings. Now, when it is
known that the Author was a confiderable Promoter of them, his "Miff" becomes too tranfparent for Concealment, and the third Perfon can
by no Ambidexterity be palmed off for another.
The Account of the Delufion of I692 will be
clofed with the following Inditments and Proceedings againft Mr. Philip Englifh, of Salem:
"Effex in the Prouince of the Maffachufetts
Bay in New England. Ss.
"Anno R Rs and Regino Gulielmi and Maria
Anglia, &c. Quarto: Annoq. Domini, I692.
"The Jurors for or Sour Lord and Lady the
King and Queen, doe prefent, that Phillip Englifh
of Salem, in the County of Effex Mrchant vpon
the 3Ift Day of May, in the year aforefaid, and
diuers other dayes and times as well before as
after, certaine Deteftable arts called Witchcraft
and forceries, wickedly, Malliftioufly and fellonioufly hath vfed, prafticed and Exercifed, at and in
]- Michael Wigglefworth "feared Mather's Letter to John Richards,
that innocent Blood had been fhed," dated May 3I, 1692, ihould be
and thus wrote to Tncreafe Mather, read in this Conne&ion, in which
in I705, the fame Year in which he makes out a better Cafe than in
he died, and makes a very fair our Extrad. It is in Co/ir. Ms.
Apology for the Judges. Cotton Hiz2. Soc., XXXVIII, 39I-7.




20o       Annals of Witchcraft         x692
the Towne of Salem in the County of Effex
aforefaid, in, upon, and againft one Mary Wallcott of Salem aforesaid, fingle Woman, by faid
wicked Ads the faid Mary Wallcott, ye Day and
Yeare aforefaid, and diuers other dayes and Times,
boath before and after, was and is Tortured,
afflided, Confumed, Pined, wafted and Tormented; againft the Peace of Or Sour Lord and
Lady, the King and Queen, their Crowne and
dignity, and the Lawes in that Cafe made and Prouided."
Of the fame Tenor and Date there is another
Draft of an Indidment againft Mr. Englifh for
bewitching "one Elizabeth Booth of Salem."
Both of thefe are endorfed, "Ignoramus," and
figned,'"ROBERT  PAYNE, Foreman."   Hence
there Bills were thrown out, or paffed as not
true Bills, although Mr. Englifh was arrefted on
the fame 3Ift of May, and fent to Bofton and
caft into Jail, where he, with his Wife, lay fome
fix Weeks or more.  In the Meantime, while
other Evidence was being colledted, and other
Preparations for his Trial were being made, he
was able, through the Advice and Aid of Friends,
to efcape from Prifon. He fled to New York,
and there found an Afylum till the Folly and
Madnefs of Profecutions were at an End.
Thofe Profecutions did not ceafe until near the
End of April, 1693. Among our original Papers we find the following, in a remarkably neat
Hand, but the Writer of it is not deteted.




t692         in NVew England.            205
Robert Payne, the Foreman wrote a ftrange Hand,
judging from his Signature.
"The Depofition of mercy Lewis, aged 8tene,
this Deponent Teftifieth and faith that Laft night
Philip Englifh and his Wife came to rnee, alfo
Goodwife Daften, Eliz Johnfon and old pharoI
of Linn: faid Mrs. Englith vrged mee to fet my
Hand to-a Booke, and told mee ihe would Afliit
mee Dreadfully, and kill mee if I did not; fo
alfo if I would but touch the Booke I ihould bee
well, or elfe I fhould never, sd mrs. Englifh sd
ihe might bring the Book now fhe thought ever
one of them would bee cleared, and now at this
prefent time before  the Grandiury sd Philip
Englifh, his Wife, and old Pharoh, came into the
Roome, or their ifape, and ftroke mee on the
Breft; and almolft Choaked mee, and sd they
would ftrangle mee if they could.
"owned before the Grandiury vpon the oath
fhe had taken Janre 12th I6923
Attefts    ROBERT PAYNE
foreman."
The fame Day William Beale gave his Depofition againft Mr. Englifh.  He had on the preceding Auguft made another, both of which will
be found in The Witchcraft Delufion, &c., Vol.
III, 18i-5, preceded by an Account of that
Gentleman, to which the Reader is referred.
1 This " Old Pharo " was a Ne- Names were Effex, Prince and Cagro, Slave of Zaccheus Collins, of to.-Lewis, HiJf. Lynn, Ed. 1865,
Lynn. Befides Pharoah, Collins Page 344.
owned three other Slaves, whofe




206       Annals of I itchcraft       1692
Refpeding thofe who faved their Lives by
confeffing themfelves Witches, it may be proper
to remark that fuch Confeffions were wrung
from  them  under Circumftances calculated to
excite the greateft Pity and Commiferation for
thofe who made fuch Confeffions; for it muft be
borne in Mind that all Parties believed in Witchcraft, and that fome Perfons muff be Witches,
and that the Troubles complained of were caufed
by them. Imagine feeble Women forced from
their Families and catll into cold and damp Prifons with heavy Irons upon them! Six Females
of Andover were thus cruelly incarcerated. It
came about in this Wife. The Wife of one
Jofeph Ballard was taken fick, and it was at once
furmifed that fhe was bewitched. To find out
who were the Witches, two of the "Afflikted"
at Salem were brought to Andover to make the
Difcovery, and thus commenced the "direful
Calamity" which befel that Town. At what
Time the fix Females were firft fuipeded does
not appear; but thofe in Authority ordered them
to come together at the Meeting houfe, where,
after a Prayer was had by the Minifter, the
Accufed were blindfolded and led up to the
"Aflidted" already in their Fits. The fufpedted
Females being thus led up to them and their
Hands placed upon them by their Condudors,
the Afflided were at once free from  their
Fits, "and faid they were well."  Whereupon,
fay the blindfolded, "we were all feized upon as
Prifoners, by a Warrant from the Jutfice of the




1692        in New England.           207
Peace," hurried off to Salem, utterly amazed and
aftonifhed, and "affrighted even out of their
Reafon." Such was their Introdudtion to Irons
upon their Limbs, and a near Profped of an
ignominious Death upon the Gallows. This was
their Condition when Friends beret them  on
every Side to confefs themfelves Witches, as the
only Means of faving their Lives. Hour after
Hour, and Day after Day, they were befought by
dear and near Kindred and Friends to confefs,
until they were worn out for want of Reit
and Sleep. It is not ifrange that their Minds
wandered until they imagined they experienced
what they confeffed; as that they rode through
the Air on Poles to certain Rivers or Ponds,
where they were baptized by the Devil; that
they had figned his Book, and given themfelves
to him Soul and Body, and thus bound themfelves to worfhip him; that in return they could
command him to affli~t whomfoever they ihould
defignate. Thefe Things being embodied in the
Indi6tments were a Guide to Confeflions, and
were forced from them by leading Queftions. A
Cotemporary' fays he is fure that moft of the
Charges in thofe IndiCtments "would be better
laid againft the Judges in the Oyer and Terminer," for that thofe Judges "ferved, if they did
not worfhip the Devil, and took him to be their
God, whether they figned his Book or not. Had
that Book been brought into Court, as it ought
1 Savage.




208       Annals of W itchcraft       I692
to have been, or the Government called on to
fhow, at leaft, what Means they had ufed to get
the precious Record to the open View of the
Jury, the Name of William Stoughton, and more
than one of his affociate Judges, I doubt not, as
clearly as that of any of the Accufed, would have
flared in the fapphire Blaze."  Such an Idea
would naturally occur to any ordinary Lawyer of
our Times, but the Accufed of thofe Days had
no Counfel to demand in their Behalf that the
Book be produced in Court. Had fuch a Demand been made it would doubtlefs have been
fcouted by the Judges. Befides, we are told by
an able Lawyer' of that Time that "the Devil
could not be lawfully fummoned" to bring his
Book into Court.
I700.
An Execution for Witchcraft took place in
Albany, in the Year I700, related in a Communication of the Earl of Bellomont to the Lords of
Trade and Plantations. As it is fufficiently Concife for our Purpofe, and graphically fketched, it
follows in his own Words:
"Aquendero, the chief Sachem of the Onondage Nation, who was Prolocutor for all the Five
Nations at the Conference I had two Years ago
at Albany, has been forced to fly from thence,
and come and live on Coll. Schuyler's Land near
Albany.  Aquendero's Son is poyfoned, and
1 Sir Robert Filmer.




1700          in New rork.             209
languifhes, and there is a Sore broke out on one
of his Sides, out of which there comes Handfulls
of Hair, fo that they recon he has been bewitched,
as well as poifoned.
"I met with an old Story from the Gentlemen
of Albany, which I think worth relating. Decanniffore, one of the Sachems of the Onondages,
married one of the Praying Indians in Canada
(by Praying Indians is meant fuch as are inftrudted
by the Jefuits). This Woman was taught to
poifon, as well as to pray. The Jefuits had
furniihed her with fo fubtill a Poifon, and taught
her a Legerdemain in ufing it, fo that whoever
fhe had a Mind to poifon, fhe would drink to'em
a Cup of Water, and let drop the Poifon from
under her Nail (which are always very long, for
the Indians never pare'em) into the Cup. This
Woman was fo true a Difciple to the Jefuits, that
fhe has poifoned a Multitude of our Five Nations
that were bellt affected to us. She lately coming
from Canada in Company of fome of our Indians, who went to vifit their Relations in that
Country who have taken Sides with the French;
and, there being among others a Proteftant Mohack (a proper goodly young Man), him  this
Woman poifoned fo that he died two Days
Journey fhort of Albany, and the Magiftrates of
that Town fent for his Body and gave it a
Chriftian Burial. The Woman comes to Albany,
where fome of the Mohacks happening to be,
and among'em a young Man nearly related to
the Man that had been poifoned, who efpying
Bb




21o        Annals of ffitchcraft       1706
the Woman, cries out with great Horror, that
there was that beafily Woman that had poifoned
fo many of their Friends, and it was not fit ihe
fhould live any longer in this World to do more
Mifchief; and fo made up to her, and with a Clubb
beat out her Brains."'
Although Lord Bellomont does not expreffiy
fay he was himfelf a Believer in the Exiftence of
Witches, it is not probable that he would have
taken fo much Pains to detail this Story had he
not imagined that thofe to whom  he was communicating it were Believers.
I706.
Few more disgraceful Scenes were ever enaded
in the Profecutions for Witchcraft, either in Connedticut or Maffachufetts, than this which took
place in Virginia, next to be related.2
There lived in Princefs Anne County, in that
Province, a Female named Grace Sherwood.
The Court of that County fat on the third of
January, I706; prefent as Juftices, Beno. Burroughs, Col. Mofely, John Cornick, Capt. Hancock and Capt. Chapman. On Complaint of
Luke Hill and his Wife, a Warrant was iffued
Summoning the Woman to appear at the next
Court. As fhe did not appear an Attachment was
iffued to the Sheriff to arreft and bring her there.
According to the Writ the Accufed was arraigned
1 New rork Colonial Documents,' See Barber. -Virginia HifIV, 689.               torical Colls., and Foreft's Norfolk.




1706           in  zrginila.           211 I
on the 7th of February following, "and ye Matter being after a long Time debated, and ordered
yt ye faid Hill pay all Fees of this Complaint,
and yt ye faid Grace be here next Court to be
fearched according to ye Complaint, by a Jury of
Women to decide ye faid difference, and ye Sheriff
is likewife ordered to fummon an able Jury
accordingly."
Nothing further feems to have been done in
this fingular Specimen of a back-woods Court till
the 7th of March following. The Juftices then
prefent were Col. Edward Mofely, Lieut. Adam
Thorrowgood, Maj. Henry Sprat, Capt. Horatio
Woodhoufe, Mr. John Cornick, Capt. Henry
Chapman, Mr. Wmin. Smith, Mr. John Richefon,
and Capt. Geo. Hancock. The Jury of Women
reported that they had fearched Grace Sherwood
and found two Things like "Titts," with feveral
other Spots. The names of the Women are
given in the Records. Here the Court found
itfelf in deep Water, and adjourned over without
coming to any Decifion; but on the 2d of May,
the Record ftates, that "whereas a former Complaint was brought againft Grace Sherwood for
Sufpicion of Witchcraft, which by ye Attorney
Generall Tornfon's Report to his Excellency in
Council was too generall and not charging her
with any peticular Ad; therefore reprefented to
them, yt Princefs Ann Court, might, if they
thought fitt, have her examined de novo; and ye
Court being of Opinion yt there is great Caufe of
Sufpicion, doe therefore order yt ye Sheriff take




2I2       Annals of lWitchcraft            706
ye faid Grace into his fafe Cuftody, until Ihe ihall
give Bond and Security for her Appearance to ye
next Court to be examined de novo, and yt ye
Conftable of yt Precinct goe with ye Sheriff and
fearch ye faid Grace's Houfe and all fufpicious
Places carefully for all Images and fuch like
Things."
The Examination and Search by the Jury of
Women feems not to have been fatisfadory, and
the fame Jury were ordered to make a new examination and to report at the next Court.  But
they declined the Service, and a new Jury of
Women was empannelled.
On the 5th of July (I706) we find this Record
of Proceedings:  "Whereas for this [thefe]
feverall Courts ye Bufinefs between Luke Hill
and Grace Sherwood on Sufpicion of Witchcraft,
have been for feverall Things omitted, particularly for want of a Jury to fearch her, and ye
Court being doubtfull that they fhould not get
one yS Court, and being willing to have all means
poffible tryed, either to acquit her or to give more
Strenth to ye Sufpicion, yt fhe might be dealt with
as deferved."
It was finally decided that the old Englifhl Teft
ihould be put in Pra6tice, namely, of calting the
Accufed into the Water.  "The Sheriff to take
all fuch convenient Affilfance of Boats and Men,
as fhall be by him thought fitt, to meet at Jno.
Harper's Plantacon, in order to take ye faid Grace
forthwith, and put her into the Water above
Mans Depth, and try her how ihe fwims therein."




1706           in Virginia.            213
The Executioners were ordered, that if it was
found that the would fwim to be careful not to
drown her, and as foon as the came out, "to requeft as many antient and knowing Women as
pofflible to examine her carefully for Teats, Spots
and Marks about her Body not ufuall on others."
The Court ordered further, "that fome Women
be requefled to ihift and fearch her before fhe goe
into ye Water, yt the carry Nothing about her to
caufe any further Serfpicion. She was accordingly
bound and cait in, and being found to fwim was
taken out again.
There feems to have been much halting in the
Cafe of the poor doomed Woman, this laft Record being under the ioth of July. Mention is
made of many Witneffes that teftified againft her,
but what they tertified to, excepting that the was
a Witch, Nothing appears. If the Teftimony
was written down it was not probably preserved;
and we find no mention of the Cafe until the
Isth of September (I706) when "having had
fundry Evidences fworne, proving many Cercumftances againft her which The could not make
any Excufe, or little or nothing to fay in her own
Behalf, only feemed to rely on what ye Court
fhould doe; and thereupon confented to be tryed
in ye Water, and likewife to be fearched againe,
with Experiments: being tryed, and the fwiming
when therein," as before mentioned, was fearched
again "by five antient Weamen, who all declared
on Oath, yt ihe is not like them, nor no other
Woman yt they knew of; having two Things




2I4       Annals of Jlitchcraft        1706
like Titts on her private Parts, of a black coller,
being blacker than ye Reft of her Body. All
which Cercumfiances the Court weighing in
their Confideracon, doe therefore order that ye
Sheriff take ye faid Grace into his Cuftody, and
to commit her Body to ye common Joal of this
County, their to fecure her by Irons or otherwife, there to remain till fuch Time as he fhall
be otherwife direded, in order for her coming to
ye common Goal of ye Countey to be brought to
a future Tryall there."
What became of Grace Sherwood does not
appear to be known to the People of the Region
where ihe was experimented upon. A Hiftorian
of an adjacent Part of the Old Domain has a
very brief Notice of the Trial, which he fays was
a very Grace-lefs Affair!  And we muff be
allowed to fay that it is our deliberate Opinion
that he has not detailed the Subjet with any
Grace at all.
Owing to the fhockingly bungling and illiterate Manner in which the Records of this Affair
appear, it is not eafy to conftrud an intelligent
Narrative out of them. But one Thing is very
evident, namely, that the Accufed was as favagely
and perfiftently purfued as any one could have
been fimilarly circumstanced. Amidft it all there
mull have been Scenes both comical and highly
ludicrous; imagine a Perfon to be thrown into a
Lake, to meet a watery Grave, provided the
Party did not float upon its Surface, and at the
fame Time the Court "ordering the Sheriff not




1712        in South Carolina.         21 5
to expofe her to the Rain, as fhe might take
Cold, ye Weather being very rainy and bad"!
The Trial of finking or fwimming was ordered
on the Sth of July, but it did not then take
place, probably by Reafon of the Inability of the
Sheriff to get a Jury of Women to attend to the
delicate Duties affigned them.
The Place where Trial by Water was made is
an Inlet of Lynnhaven Bay, in Princefs Anne
County, and known to this Day as Witch Duck.
I7I2.
In South Carolina, as late as I712, the Law
"'againft Conjuration, Witchcraft, and dealing
with evil and wicked Spirits," was declared to be
in force. It is quite probable that fome Cafes of
Witchcraft had occurred among fome of the
South Carolinians, which caufed the Revival of
the Adt of James the Firft; but what they were,
and how extenfive, we have no Means at Hand
to determine, as their Chroniclers are filent upon
the Subjed. But one Thing is very certain, and
that is, if they did not raife Witches down there,
they raifed the Devil very early.
About this Period fome fufpeded of Witchcraft were feized upon by a fort of ruffianly
Vigilance Committee, and condemned to be
burnt; and were adually roaited by Fire, although
we do not learn that the Injuries thus inflided
proved fatal. The Parties fo tortured, or their
Friends, brought an Adtion in the regular Courts




216       Annals of [Jitchcraft        1 720
for the Recovery of Damages, but the Jury gave
them Nothing!
I720.
There was a Cafe of Witchcraft (as fuppofed)
in the then fparfely fettled and out of the way
Town of Littleton, in Middlefex County, Maffachufetts, in I720, which was quite as formidable
in its firit Stages as that was in Salem Village, but
it was too late in the Century for it to make
much Headway, and the Inhabitants were too
few to allow it to fpread over any confiderable
Territory.  The Names of thofe who were
A&ors in it are fuppreffed in the Materials ufed,
and not much Pains have been taken to recover
them. The principal Impoftor having removed
to Medford in the fame County, a few Years
after the Affair had blown over, offered herfelf as
a Candidate to the Rev. Mr. Ebenezer Turell's
Church there.  Her "Experience" was confidered fatisfadory, and fhe was about to take her
Place among the Members, when, in the Meantime, the reverend Minifter preached a Sermon,
the Burthen of which was, that Liars would go
ftraight to Hell, be caft into a Lake of Fire and
Brimftone, and there to feethe for ever and ever,
and fo forth. Happening to hear this Difcourfe
fhe was overcome with Remorfe, fuppofing the
Preacher had her Cafe in his Mind. So, in great
Tribulation {he went to him, deeply bewailing
her Deception, made a new Confeffion, and in




1728        in New England.             217
due Time was admitted into the Church, and for
aught that has appeared to the Contrary, lived a
confiftent Chriftian Life ever after.
As in the Cafes of the Goodwin Children of
Bofton, and thofe of the Paris Family at Salem,
thofe of Littleton were the three Daughters of
"one J. B.," whofe Ages ranged five, nine and
eleven Years. One of thefe (probably the oldeft)
went to refide at Medford, as juft mentioned.
She told all the Circumftances to Mr. Turell,
who wrote them down. The Paper thus drawn
up was in the Hands of Governor Hutchinfon
when he was preparing his Hailory of Majfachufetts, who has given a Synopfis of it in that
Work.'
1728.
There were doubtlefs fome unaccountable
Tranfations in the Colony of Rhode Ifland
which caufed the Authorities there to enad or
reenad the Law "againft Conjuration, Witchcraft, and dealing with evil and wicked Spirits;
that Witchcraft is and fhall be Felony; and
whofoever fhall be lawfully convided thereof
fhall fuffer the Pains of Death."
It is here propofed to fufpend thefe Refearches.
They might eafily be carried to a much later
Period, and pretty ferious Cafes too might be de1 See Vol. II, Pages 20 and z21, Edition, Bofton, 1767.
Cc




218       Annals of iflitchcraft.   x1728
tailed, but what has been done will probably be
as much as will ever be read. The Intereft of
the Publick will decide that Queftion. If more
is wanted, it may be forthcoming in future Editions.




No. I.
XAMINAdTION of Hugh Parfons, of Springfield, on a Charge of Witchcraft, and the
Tefiimonies given  againfi  him, before Mr.
William  Pynchon, at Springfield, I65I.
[NOTE.-The Figures in Brackets denote the Paging of the original Manufcript,
which having been put together wrong, was paged before the mifplacing was detected.]
[21] Hugh Parfons Examinations. All there Teftimonies now taken vpon Oath
Before me, WILLIAM  PYNCHON.
[23] The Examination of Hugh Parfons. I. d. of
[March?] and his 2d Exam. ye [obliterated].
UGH PARSONS you are attached upon Sufpition of Witchcraft.
George Lankton' and Hannah his Wife do ioyntly
teftifie vpon Oath: that on ffriday laft, being the 2I
ffebruary, they had a Pudding in ye fame Bagg, and
that as foone as it was flipped out of the Bag, it was
cut lengthwife like the former Pudding,a and like
1 Langton, or perhaps Langdon  was a Widow of Edmund Haynes.
was the original family Name, but    2 The whole Story about the
they have long been diftinEt. This  cutting of Puddings is fet in the
George was an Emigrant. His Wife  laft Leaf.-Note by Mr. Pynchon.




220                  Appendix.
another on ye 23 ffeb. as fmooth as any Knife could
cut it, namely, one Slice al alonge, wantinge but very
litle, from End to End.
Alfo Hannah the Wife of George  Lanton faith
vppon Oath, that a Neighbor came in, and fhe thowed
it to kim, and that Neighbor took a Peece of it and
threw into the Fier: and fhe faith that about an H ower
after, phapps a little more, fhe herd one mutter and
mumble at the Dore; then fle afked Goody Sewell
who was then at her Houfe (and neere ye Dore) who
it was, fhe faid it was Hugh  Parfons, and that he
afked whether Goodman Lankton were at Home or
no.  I faid no, and fo he went away, but left not his
Arrand, neather did he euer fince come to fignifie his
Arrand.
Depofed in Corte by Hanna [Lankton].
Hugh Parfons being alked what his Anfwer was:
he fpake to other Thinges and not to the Queflion,'
being aiked the 2d Tyme what his Arrand was, he
fpake againe of other by  Matters, and not to the
Queftion: being afked the 3d Tyme what his Arrand
was, and charged to make a diret Anfwer, then he
faid it was to gett fome Hay of him.  Being afked
againe whether he had ppounded his Arrand fince to
Goodman Lankton; he faid he never faw him fince.
Then one or two that were prefent teftified that they
fee him meete Goodman Landton next Day below.2
Symon Bemon3 and Rice Bodorthe4 fay vppon Oath,
1 Pity we are deprived of know-   4 Savage did not find the Name
ing thofe " other Things."  thus fpelled, but over Rice he raifes
2 At fome Point down the River. confiderable Mift. Judd (no Doubt)
told him that Rice was the Father
3 A Name fince written Beaman. of John, who "was drowned, I8
Savage has "ftrangely" mixed the Mar. I683, with his f. and Lydia,
Families of "Beamond, Beamon, w. of his br. Jofeph, and Mercy,
and Beainan.                 d. of his br. Samuel."




Appendix.                   221 
that the next Day but one they faw Hugh Parfons
meete Goodman Lankin accompanied wth Thomas
SewellI in the Streete, and that they faw him fpeak to
Goodman Lanketon.
George Landton faith on Oath that he neuer to this
Day afked him for any Hay.
When Hugh Parfons faw himfelf taken tardy [24]
in this put of, then he faid that he did not aik him
becaufe John Lumbard had tould him that Goodman
Lankton had fould more Hay to Goodman Herman
than he could fpare.  But after inquiry
John Lumbard2 faith vppon oath, March I7, I65o,
That the Wednefday before that Hugh Parfons came
to Goodman Lanktons Houfe for Hay, that he had
fpeoken to buy fome Hay of Goodman Lankton,
namly as he paffd by where he and Hugh Parfons
were at Worke together, and had a Deniall; and then
he tould Hugh Parfons that Goodman Lankton could
not fpare him any Hay, for he had already fould more
to Goodm  Herman3 than he could fpare, and faid he
fhould now want himfelf.
John  Lumbard alfo faith on Oath, that ye ffriday
after, when the faid Pudding was fo ftrangely cut, he
tould Hugh Parfons that Landon had no Hay to fell.
Hugh Parfons not being able to replie any further, it
is evident that his coming to ye Dore of Goodman
Lankton prfently after the burning of the Pudding,
wch was the next Day after Jo. Lumnbard had tould
1 To what Family of Sewell or found at Springfield, i646; the
Sewall he belonged has not been next Year, Sept. i, he was at New
found.  Savage gueffes he left Haven, where he married Joanna
Springfield foon after the Birth of Pritchard.- Savage.
a Dau. (Abigail) 14 March, i65o,
but where he went, or " whence he  A Family named Harman came
came is wholly uncertain."  to N. England in i635, in the Ship
Love. This was probably 7obn
2 Since fpelt Lombard. John is Herman.




222                  Alppendix.
him  that he had no Hay to fpare, that his Arrand to
gett Hay was no true Caufe of his coming Thither
but rather that ye Spirit that bewitched the Pudding
brought him thither.:
Mary Parfons being pfent at ye 2d Examination,
faith, one Reafon why I have fufpe&ed my Hufband
to be a Witch is becaufe all that he fells to Anybody
doth not profper.  I an forry faid fhe for that pore
Man, Tho. Millar,2 for two Dayes after my Hufband and he had bargained for a Peec of Ground
Thomas Millar had that Mifchance of that Cutt in
his Legg.
[25] Thomas Millar being psent, faith vppon Oath,
that he being in Company with feuerall other
Workemen about Tymber Trees in the Woods, as we
were at Dinner, and merry together, Hugh Parfons
fatt on a Bow fomewhat higher then the Reft. Then
one of the Company Ifarted this Queefion: I wonder
why he fitts there: Thomas Millar faith he anfwered,
To fee what we have: and then I began to fpeak of
the cuttinge of the Puddinge in Towne.
Thomas Cooper3 being pfent wth the faid Workmen, faith, that he was much troubled in his Minde
becaufe Thomas Millar fpake fo plainely to  Hugh
Parfons leaft fome ill Euent ihould follow.
And both Tho. Cooper and Thomas Millar fay
vppon Oath, that Hugh Parfons was as merry and as
pleafant before this Speeche about the Pudding as any
1 As though the Devil could not the Indians, O&ober 5th, 1675.bewitch a Pudding without being  Springfield Records.
on the Spot!
2 He was probably an Emigrant,   3 The fame afterwards (5 Ot.,
although at what Time he came  1675) killed by the Indians, as he
over is not known. His Wife was was palling from one Garrifon to
Sarah, Daughterof Thomas Marfh- another.-See I. Mather, Brief
field, of Springfield, whom he mar- His., p. 98, Note; and Hubbard,
ried in 1649. He was killed by  I, 107, Iz2; II, 44.




Appendix.                    223
in the Company, but after this he was wholly filent,
and fpake not a Word in replie about ye Pudding:
but fatt dumb: and Tho. Millar faith that about half
a Quarter of an Hower after, at his firf: fettinge to
Worke, his Legg was cutt.
April 3. I65i. Thomas  BurnehamI faith vppon
Oath that he faid to Hugh Parfons a Little before his
Apprhenfion: here is ftrange Doings in Towne about
cutting of Puddings, and whetting of Sawes in ye
Night Tyme: Hugh Parfons herd thefe Thinges much
agitated among diuers then p'fent, and was wholly
filent, but at laft he faid, I never herd of this Thinge
before this Night.  Thomas Burneham faith he faid to
him, that is ftrange, that you fhould not here of thes
Thinges: and I being but a Stranger in Towne, doe
here of it in all Places whereuer I come: Att this
Hugh Parfons held down his Head and was wholly
filent, but he tooke Occafion to fpeak of other by
Matters, as pleafantly as Anybody elfe, but to the
Matter of the Pudding he would fay Nothing: and yet
faith Thomas Burneham, I fpake to him of it feuerall
Tymes, and of ye whettinge of Sawes on purpofe to
fee what Hugh Parfons would fay to it, but frill he
continued fylent,z and would not fpeak any Thinge
about there Thinges. Then Goodman Mun beinge
p'ent faid I would yt thofe that whet Sawes in the
night Tyme, and on ye Lordes Dayes, were found out:
Then faith Thomas Burnham, I faid, you Sawyers
you had need to look to it: Hugh Parfons being alfo
a Sawyer, never returned any Anfwer, but frill con1 HIe happened to be at Spring- tures may not be very fatisfadory.
field at this Time, but probably did
not remain long. Where he came   2 That any fenfible Man fhould
from, or where he went to, is alike have been filent at the Repetition
unknown. He may have been of of fuch childifh and contemptible
the Ipfwich Family, but Conjec- Nonfenfe is not at all ftrange.




224,                Appendix.
tinued filent: This Matter about the Puddinge and
whetting of Sawes was often toffed vp and downe betweene feuerall Psons, and many faid they neuer herd
ye like: and Hugh  Parfons was often fpoken to, in
pticular, and aiked if he euer herd ye like, but flill he
continued wholly filent.
Joane, the Wife of William Warrener,' and Abigall
ye Wife of Goodman Munn,z being psnt when the faid
fpeeches were vfed, do acknowledg that they rember
all Thinges that haue bin related by Thomas Burnham, and that Hugh Parfons was wholly fylent, and
do teftifie the fame vppon Oath, the Day and Yere
aboue faid.
[27] 2dly Blanche  Bodorthe3 faith  on Oath, ffeb.
27, and  March  Itl. and  March  I8, I649.   That
about two Yeeres fince, Hugh Parfons being at ower
Houfe, we had fome Speeches about a Bargaine wth
my Hufband about fome Brickes: and then Blanch
Bodorthe faith that fhe fpake Somethinge about the
faid Bricks that did much difpleafe Hugh Parfons:
Therevppon he faid vnto me, Gammer, you neded
not haue faid Anythinge, I fpake not to you, but I
ihall remember you when you little think on it.
Alfo Rice Bodorthe faith vppon Oath, that he
took Notice of the faid Threatninge, and was much
offended at it, and tould Hugh Parfons that it was no
good Speech; but I haue often herd him vfe fuch
1 Suppofed to be the Freeman  ferved in the Pequot War; reof 1638.  His Wife's maiden  moved to Springfield, where he
Name was Searl, or Somethinglike married Abigail (Ball) Burt. See
it, as Genealogifts cannot agree Savage, III, 254. The Name is
about it, and their great Arbiter lefs common than many others.
does not obtrude a Decifion. They
call her Yoanrna.               Her maiden Name was Lewis,
married Rice Bodortha, I646. It
2 Doubtlefs Benjamin  Munn, will be remembered that Parfons's
previoufly of Hartford, who had  Wife was a Lewis.




4ppendix.                   225
Threatninge, both againft myfelf and others when he
hath bin difpleafed.
Blanch Bodorthe tooke Oath in Corte to all ihe
witneffeth.
[28] Samuell Marffihfeild being alfo psent at ye fame
Tyme, teftifies vppon  Oath, that he herd  Hugh
Parfons vfe the faid threatninge Speech to Blanche
Bodorthe.
At this Hugh Parfons was wholy filent and anfwered
not.
- Then I tould him of fome euill Euents that did
follow not longe after this Threatninge.
Samuell Marfhfeild teflifieth in Cort.
Blanch Bodorthe doth teftifie vppon Oath, that
foone after this threatninge Speech, as fhe was going
to Bedd, and had put of her Waftcote made of red
ihag Cotten, and as fhe was going to hang it vp on a
pin, the held it vp betweene her Hands, and then the
faw a Light as it had bin the Light of a Candle,
croffing the back of her Waficote, on the Infide, three
Tymes, one after another, at wch fhe was amazed: and
therefore fhe faith, that after the had laid it downe,
the tooke it vp againe to try if ye Fierlight might not
be the Caufe of it, but fhe faith that the Fierlight
being all one as it was before, fhe could not prciue
any fuch Light by it, and befides fhe faith it could not
be the Fierlight, becaufe there was a double Indian
Matt compaffing the Bedd and the Place where /he
was, fo that it could not be the Fierlight, for this
double Matt was betwixt her and the Fier: and the
faith moreouer that becaufe this Light was fo ftrange
to her, fhe took her Waftcote feuerall other Nights to
1 He married Efther, Daughter who was fuppofed to have been loft
of Samuel Wright, 18 Feb., I652; at Sea. The Name is uniformly
was Son of Thomas Marfhfield, Marfhfeild in the Manufcript.
Dd




2 26               Appendix,.
try if ye Fierlight would not giue fuch a Light as fhe
faw at firfi, and held it vp ye fame Way that fhe did at
firft but fhe faith fhe could not prciue any fuch Light
afterwarde.
[29] 2dlY. About a Month after this, fie faith that when
fhe was in Child Bed: and as well as moft Women
vfe to be, and better then fhe vfed to be: yet at the
Weeks end being defirous to fleepe, fhe lay flill, that
fhe might fleepe, and fhe did fleepe: and yet about an
H ower or more after, fhe awaked, and felt a Soreneffe
about her Hart, and this Soreneffe increafed more and
more in three Places, namely vnder her left Breft, and
on her left Shoulder, and in her Necke: and in there
three Places, the Paine was fo tedious, that it was like
the pricking of Knifes, fo that I durft not lie downe,
but was faint to be thored vp wth a Bagg of Cotten
Wool, and with other Thinges: and this Extremity
continued from Friday in the Forenoone till Monday
about Noone, and then the Extremity of the Paine
began a little to abate, and by Tufday it was pritty
well gon: and fuddenly after, my Thoughtes were,
that this Euill might come vppon me from the faid
threatning Speech of Hugh Parfons.
I do not apprhend that I was fick in any other pt
of my Body, but in the faid three Places only, and by
the Extremity of thefe Prickinges only.
The Widdow  MarihfeildI tefrifies vppon Oath,
March 22, i650, that when fhe kept (?) in Rice Bodorthes Wife, fhe was not there in ye Night, but in the
Daytyme only: when I went Home at Night I left her
well, as could be expeded of a Woman in Child Bed,
but in the Morning when I came the was in lamentable Torment; fhe grew worfe and worfe for two or
three Dayes, and ihe cryed out as if fhe had bin
I Perhaps the Widow of Thomas Marflhfield, See Note, ante.




Aqppendix.               2 7
pricked with Knifes in fuch a lamentable Manner that
I did much feare her Life: I neuer faw a Woman in
fuch a Condition in Child Bed, for fhe could not lie
downe in her Bed, neather doe I aperhend that fihe
had any other Kind of Sickneffe, but that pricking
Paine only in her Side and Shoulder.
3'y. Blanch Bodorthe faith vppon Oath, that my
Child being about two Yeeres ould, as he was ftanding
neere to his Father, did haftily run to him, and ftriued
to gett vp vppon his Knees, and cryed I am afraide
of the Dogg, and yet there was no Dogg there: his
fifather afked him where the Dogg was, he faid it was
goun vnder the Bedd: his ffather afked him whofe
Dogg it was: [3o] he faid it was Lumbardes Dogg:
his fiather faid that Lumbard had no Dogg: yn
he faid again it was Parfons Dogg: but ye Child's
Meaning was at firft that it was Parfons Dogg: I
know it by this becaufe when Parfons did after vfe to
come to ower Howfe he did often cale him Lumbard:
and euer and anon he is much affrited with this Dogg,
and doth often fpeak of it: and yet Parfons hath no
Dogg, neather was there any Dogg in the Howfe:
but the Earneftneffe of ye Child, both then and fince,
doth make me conceiue it might be fome euill Thing
from Hugh Parfons.
Hugh Parfons hauing herd all thes Teftimonies
alledgd, ftood fill at his 2d Examination, as at ye firft,
and made no Anfwer.
Rice Bodorthee faith vppon Oath, that euer fince ye
firft Tyme the Child was afraid of this Dogg he will
often fpeak of it and point at it wth fuch Earneftneffe
that he hath often made me afraid wth his earnefi
pointing at it; fometymes he faith it is there vunder
the Stoole, and fometymes it is there vnder the Cradle,
and fo vnder other Places.
[31] 31Yo Your Wife faith that lhe fufpeas you may




228                Appendix.
be ye Caufe of all the Euill that is befallen to Mr.
Moxons Childerne, becaufe when the hath fpoken to
you about the Bargaine of Bricks that you vendertook
to make for Mr. Moxons Chimnies, and that fhe
thought Mr. Moxon-would expe& the pformance of
the faid Bargaine: therevppon you faid, if Mr. Moxon
do force me to make Brickes according to Bargaine,
I will be euen with him, or he fhall get Nothinge by
it, for fhe faith that thes two Speeches are very vfuall
with you when you are difpleafed wth any Body.
Anfr. Hugh Parfons faith, I faid not that I would
be euen wth him, but this I faid, if he would hould me
to my Bargaine, I could puffle him in the Bargaine.
John  MathewesI being psent, faith vppon Oath,
that when he went with Hugh Parfons to fetch fome
of his fannell (?) Brickes, he faid to Hugh Parfons, doe not you make more Brickes for Mr. Moxons Chimnies, he will flay with vs now, and then I
beleue he will haue vp his Chimnies: Hugh Parfons
faid, no, that I know of, then faid I, Mr. Moxon will
hould you to your Bargane about the faid Brickes;
then faid he, if he doe, I will be euen with him: And
when Hugh Parfons made my Chimnies he did often
vfe the fame Speech: and when he is difpleafed Wth
any Body it is his vufuall Speech.
At yS Teflimony of Jo: Mathewes Hugh Parfons
was filent and made no Replie.
Mr Moxon being psent, faith the fame Week that
I fpake to Hugh Parfons about the Brickes, and to his
Wife about another Bufineffe, my Daughter Martha
was taken ill wth her Fittes.  I confefs alfo that when I
fpake to him of the faid Bargaine, that Hugh faid I
1 He was previoufly at Reho- the Indians at the farnte Time Lieut.
both.  His Wife was Penticoft Cooper and Thomas Miller were
Bond, but who her Father was is killed, 0t. 5th, i675. Springfield
unknown. She was maffacred by Records, and Hubbard's Narrative.




Appendix.                  229
could not, in Stri&nefs, hould him  to ye Bargaine:
But this laft Anfwere doth not take of the ill Purpofe
of his former Threatning.
[32] 4th Sarah the Wife of Alexander Edwardes 
teftifies vppon Oath, ffeb. 27, I65o, that about
two Years agoe, more or leffe, Hugh Parfons being
then at the Long Meddow, came to her Howfe to buy
fome Milke: fhe faid I will giue you a Halfpenny
worth, but I cannot let you haue any more at this
Tyme: This was at that Tyme when my Cow gave
three Quartes at a Meale; but the next Meale after
fhe gave not aboue a Quart, and it was as yellow as
Saffron, and yet ye Cow ayld Nothing that I could
difcerne: the next Meale it altred to another ftrange
odd Cullor, and fo it did euery Meale for a Week
together it frill altred to fome od Cullor or other and
alfo it grew leffe and leffe: and yet all the While ye
Cow was as well as at any Tyme before, as far as I
could difcerne: and about a Weeke after fhe began to
mend her Milk againe wthout any Meanes vfed: vppon
this I had Thoughts that Hugh Parfons might be the
Caufe of it.
Alexander Edwards fwore that George Coulton2
faw ye Milke in ftrang Colors.
Ans. Hugh Parfons faith that he did not lie one
Night at ye Long Meddow  that Somer, but only in
the Spring of the Yeere, eather in March or in the Beginning of Aprill, when he fet vp Fencinge there, and
that he neuer had Milk of her but that one Tyme;
and at that Tyme of the Yeere he thinks her Cow
could not giue three Quarts at a Meale.
But now, at his 2d Examination, May the i8, I650,
1 He came from Wales, by way   2 George Colton died at Springof Briftol. His Wife was Sarah, field, December 17th, I699. He
Widow of John Searl, whom he was recorded as Quartermafter.married April 28, I642.-Savage. Springfield Records.




230                Alppendix.
he feeing Alexander Edwardes about to teflifie ye Contrary, he confeffeth that he lay a Night there in plants
inge Tyme, about the End of May. I remember yt
Alexander Edwards came to me to tell me of this Accident, and faid that he was pswaded the Cow was bewitched by Hugh Parfons: but I did not beleue him
at that Tyme, I rather conceiued that the Cow was
falling into fome dangerous Sickneffe; for fuch a fudden Abatement I tould him was a Sign of fome dangerous Sicknefs at Hand: but feeing no Sickneffe
followed, I told Hugh Parfons that fuch a fudden
Change could not come from a naturall Caufe.
[33] 51y Anthony DorchefterI faith vppon Oath ffeb.
25, I65o, the I. Day of the I. Month and the i8
Day, that about September was twelve Monthes, four
Men had equall Shares in a Cow: each had a Quarter,
and ye Offall was to be diuided alfo: and Hugh Parfons defyred to haue the Roote of the Tounge: but
he had it not: it fell to my Share: and a certaine
Tyme after I had falted it, I tooke the faid Roote and
another Peece of Meate, and put it into the Kettle as
it was boylinge ouer the Fier at Hugh Parfons Howfe
where I liued at yt psfent: and there was no Body
there but he and his Wife, and I and my Wife who
was tick of a Confumption, fittinge on her Bedd, and
not able to gett of without Help: neather were any
of my Children able to take fuch a Thinge out of a
boyling Kettle: this being the Sabbath Day, Hugh
Parfons and his Wife went to the Church before me,
then I made myfelfe ready and went prfently after
them, and came Home before them: and tooke vp my
Meate before they came Home, but the Roote of the
Tounge wh Hugh Parfons formerly defyred was gonn:
1 He died at Springfield, Auguft died Aug. sIth, 1649. A Wife
28th, I683.  His Wife, Sarah, Martha, died 17 Dec., I662.




4ppendix.                 23 1
his Wife came Home prfently after me (but he came
not with her.)  Then I tould her, and fhe wondred
how it could be gonn: and (he went to ye Tubb where
it was falted to fee if it might not be forgotten, and it
was not there: Then faid I to her, I am fure I put it
into the boyling Kettle, and fhe confeffed that fhe faw
me pick it and wafh it, and being prfent did much
wonder ye ifrange going of it away; and faid that ihe
feared her Hufband might convey it away: fhe tould
me that her Hufband went along with her till we came
neere to Goodman Merickes, and was very pleafing to
her, more then vfually he had bin a great while before:
but there he laid the Child downe and went no further
with her: and (he faw him  no more till ve Meeting
was almoft donn: (all this, Mary Parfons being prfent
doth acknowledge.) prfently after this he came home:
Then I fpake of it to him, and all that he faid
was, that he thought I [34] did not put it in: but I
tould him that I was fure I put it into the boyling Kettle: And I haue euer fince belieued that no
Hand of Man did take it away: but that it was taken
away by Witchcraft.
Ans. Hugh Parfons confeffeth that he defyred the
Roote of ye Toung, but withall faith he is ignorant
as ye Child vnborne wch way it went.
Some by Standard obje6ted it might be taken away
by his Wife as well as by him; But that is not fo
likely becaufe Hugh Parfons went not with her to ye
Meeting, but laid down her Child and went from her,
and fhe faw him no more till Meeting was almofr don.
Ans. Hugh Parfons faith, that he doth not remember that he went any whither, unleffe he might go
into Goodman Merikes I Howfe to take a Pipe of To1 Thomas Merrick was among His Wife was Sarah, Daughter of
the early Settlers of Springfield. Rowland Stebbins.




232                 Appendix.
bacco, and though his Wife faw him  no more till the
Meeting was almofi donn, yet he faith he might be
ftanding wthout the Dore, though fie faw him  not;
And, at his 2d Examination, he aiked how it did appeere that he came not to the Meeting till it was
almofi don.
Abigall Mun being prfent doth teflifie vppon Oath,
that Ihe knew by the Talk about the firange going
away of this Roote of the Tounge, what Sab. was
ment, and fhe faith that fhe faw him come that Sabbath
to ye Meeting, when ye Sermon was well onward.
Jonathan Taylor depofed in open Courte: faith that
he heard the faid Parfons fay (notwithftanding the
Roote of the Toung was defired by Anthony Dorchefter, for his Wife, being ficke) yett he faid I will
haue it.                   EDWD: RAwsoNfecry.I
[35] 6'Y Griffin Jonesz doth fufpe& you for Witchcraft about Knife.  Griffin Jones faith vppon Oath,
ffeb 25, i65o, March  I. and  I8 Day that when
he liued at his Howfe neere Hugh Parfons Howfe,
about 2 y. agoe: on a Lordes Day, I went Home to
Dinner, but my Wife fraid behind at a Neighbors
Howfe to Dinner.  I took vp my Dinner, and laid
it on a little Table made on ye Cradle Head.  I fought
for a Knife, but I-could not find any. I cleered the
Table where I dined to fee if any were there, and I
ferched euery where about ye Howfe, and I could find
none, yet I knew I had more than two, and when I
could find none I went to an ould Bafket where I had
Things to mend Shoes wthall, and there was a rufty
Knife, and with that I was faine to eate my Dinner.
1 Only this Teftimony of Taylor who died a few Weeks before him.
is in the Hand of Rawfon, all the   2 Tn other Records his Name
other in that of Pynchon except flands Grifith Jones. He had a
otherwife noted. Taylor died at large Family of Children, and died
Suffield, I683. Had Wife Mary, in 1677.




Appeendix.                   233
After I had dined I took away ye Viaualls that were
left, and laid it vp; and then I laid the rufty Knife
on the Corner of the Table to cutt a Pip of Tobacco
wthall.  But before I cut my Tobacco I firit went out
of Dore to ferue a Pigg that was but a very little of
the Dore, and no Man could come in but I muft fee
them, and as foone as I came in to cutt mv Tobacco
wth the faid rufty Knife, there lay three Knifes together on ye Table, wch made me blufh: I wondering
how they came there feeing no Body was in ye Howfe
but myfelf: and as I was going to cut ye Tobacco,
Hugh Parfons came in, and faid, where is the Man.
Are you ready to go to ye Meetinge: I faid by and by;
as foone as I haue taken a Pipe of Tobacco. So he
Rtaid and took fome wth me.
A ns. H ugh Parfons faith he is ignorant of any fuch
Thing, and in the Sight of God can cleare his Confience.
It was tould him that fuch a ftrange Thinge fallinge
out iuft at his coming in, did minifter iuft Occafion of
Sufpition of Witchcraft: he replyed that one Witnefs
was not fufficient.2
[36] 71Y. Mary  Parfons  his Wife faith  that one
Reafon why fhe doth fufpe& you to be a Witch, is
becaufe you cannot abide that any Thing fhould be
fpoken againft Witches. She faith that you tould her
that you were at a Neighbors Howfe a little before
Leture, when they were fpeaking of Carrington3 and
his Wife, that were now  apprhended for Witches, fhe
1 The Fellow was doubtlefs too  Contempt to fpeak of them comdrunk to know very precifely what placently.
he was about.
3 Perhaps John Carrington, of
2 Here was common Senfe againft Wethersfield, in Conne7ticut.  I
Nonfenfe.  He doubtlefs viewed have found no Record of the Cafe.
thefe Accufations with too much See Public Records of ConnefTicut.
Ee




234                Appendix.
faith that when you came Home and fpake thes
Speeches to her, fhe faid to you, I hope that God will
find out all fuch wicked Pfons and purge New England
of all Witches ere it be long: to this fhe faith you
gaue her a naughty Looke, but neuer a Word; but
psently after, on a leight Occafion, you took vp a
Block, and made as if you would throw it at her
Head, but yet, in ye End, you did not, but threw it
downe on ye Hearth of the Chimney. This Expreffion of yr Anger was becaufe fhe wifhed the Ruine of
all Witches.
Mary AfhleyI tertifies this fubftance, vppon Oath.
Ans. Hugh Parfons faith he does not rember that
euer he took vp a Block to throw at her, but vppon
further Debate he faid at laft that he tooke vp a Block
but remembered not the Occafion: at his 2d Anfwer
he faith that he took vp no Block on that Occafion.
Replie: it might well be on that Occafion, for not
long fince fhe faith that you faid to her, if euer any
Trouble doe come vnto you, it will be by her Meanes,
and that ihe would be the Meanes to hang you.
Ans. Hugh Parfons faith that he might fay fo, becaufe, in his Anger he is impatient, and doth fpeak
what he fhould not: At his 2d Examination, he fd he
might fay fo, becaufe fhe is the worif Enimy that I
haue, confidering the Relation that is betweene vs: [371
and if any Body befpeake Euill of me fhe will fpeake
as ill, and as much as any Body elfe.
Mary Parfons replied, I haue often intreated him
to confeffe whether he were a Witch or no, I tould
him that if he would acknowledge it I would begg
the Prayers of Gods People on my Knees for him,
and that we are not our owne, we are bought with a
1 Probably the Wife of Robert Springfield. The Afhleys were an
Afhley, one of the firif Settlers of early Family there.




Appendix.                 235
Price, and that God would redeeme from the Power
of Sathan, &c.
Hugh Parfons was aiked if his Wife had fpoken
Anything to him at any Tyme to confers Witchcraft.
Ans. Not Anything to me about Witchcraft that I
rember.
8'Y. Mary Parfons faith, did not I fpeak of it to
you vppon the death of my Child: did not I tell you
then that I had iealoufies that you had bewitched yr
owne Child to Death.
To this he was fylent and made no Anfwer.
Then fhe defyred Antony Dorchefter that liued then
in their Howfe whether he could not remember that
fhe had charged her Hufband wth the bewitching of his
Child.
Anthony Dorchefter faid that he did not rember
that euer fhe fpake dire6ly to him of bewitching his
Child, but that finhe had leloufies that he had bewitched his Child to Death.
Mary Parfons faid, that when her laft Child was ill
ihe tould him that fhe fufpe&ed he had bewitched that,
as he had done his other Child, and faid, I haue fpoken
of it to him, and to other Folkes, together aboue forty
Tymes.
It was alledged that he might well be fufpe&ted to
haue bewitched his former Child to Death, becaufe he
expreffed no Kind of Sorrow at the Death of it.
[38] Ans. Hugh Parfons faith that he was loath
to expreffe any Sorrow before his Wife, becaufe of the
weak Condition that fhe was in at that Tyme.
Mr. Moxon defyred to aik him a Queftion wch was
this: It feemes he had Conference with his Wife
about his fick Child, and about her Greefe for it, or
elfe why (hould he forbeare to expreffe the Affeftion
of Sorrow before her, that he might not grieue her.




236               Appendix.
Hugh Parfons faith that his Wife might wonder at
it, but yet that was the true Reafon of it.
It was aiked him why he did not fhow more Refpedl
to his Wife and Child, but went into the long Meddow and lay there all Night when his Child lay at the
Point of Death, and when he herd of the Death of it
he next Morning neuer fhewed any Sorrow for it.
George Coalton fltood forth to teflifie on Oath, that
coming to Hugh Parfons Houfe where his Wife was
fitting by the Fier wth the Child in her Lapp, and fhe
fhewed to me the ftrange Condition of the Child, and
I was amazed at it, for ye Childs Secretts did rott, or
were confuminge: and the faid; though my Child be
fo ill, and I haue much to do with it, yet my Huiband
keepes adoe at me to help him about his Come: I
faid to her, yO Hufband had more need to get you
fome Help then to keepe adoe at you to help him:
and the fpake very harfh Things againft him before
his Face; and if he had bin inocent he would haue
blamed her for her Speeches, for fhe fpake fuch Things
againfi him as are not ordinary for Pfons to fpeak one
of another, and yet he beinge psent faid Nothing for
himfelf in way of blaminge any Thing that ihe had
fpoken againft him.
Sworne in Corte.
It was alfo objeded to Hugh Parfons, that if he
had bin inocent about the Death of his Child, he
would haue reproued her Speeches.
[39] Ans. Hugh Parfons faith that he had fuch
Speeches from her dayly, and therefore he made the
beft of it now, and he alfo faith, I fett her not about
Bufinefs, I required none at her Hands, except it were
to throw in fome Indian Corn from ye Dore. I haue
often blamed her for doinge Worke, and bidd her do
leffe.
Anthony Dorchefter, who liued in their Howfe,




A4ppendix.               237
flood forth to teftifie that he neuer knew him blame
her for doinge to much Worke, except (faith he) that
fihe helped my Wife at any Tyme, wch Worke did not
bring in any pffit to him. But, faith Anthony Dorchefter, he need not fay that he forebore Greefe for his
fick Child before his Wife, for feare it fhould trouble
her in her weak Condition, for he neuer feared eather
to greeue or difpleafe his Wife any Tyme.
Being afked whether he did euer do any Thinge to
comfort his Wife in her Sorrow for ye Death of her
Child, he anfwered not.
Mary Parfons faid no, he did Nothing to comfort
me, but till, when he came Home he kept adoe at
me to throw in the Come from the Dore, and when I
faw my Hufband in this Frame, it added more Greefe
to my Sorrow.
Anthony Dorchefter faith, I faw Nothing he did to
comfort his Wife, but he did often blame her that the
did not throw in the Corne from the Dore.
It was euidenced by George Coulton vppon Oath,
that he fhewed no naturall Sorrow for ye Death of his
Child when he firft herd of it in ye longe Meddow.
Jonathans Burtes Teffimony vppon Oath was for
the Tyme of the Morning when he brought Word to
Hugh Parfons of the Death of his Child: Jonathan
faith it was as he thought, about eight or nine a Clock
in the Morning; and the Place where he was firft
tould of ye Death of it was at a great Oake [40]
about I6 or 20 Poles from George Coulton's Howfe.
George Coulton tefrifies vppon Oath, March. I. and
March i8, i65o, that Hugh Parfons came into ye
long Meddow when his Child lay at ye Point of Death;
and that hauing Word of ye Death of it the next
Morning, by Jonathan Burt, he was not affe6ted wth
it, but he came, after a light Manner, rufhing into my
Howfe, and faid, I here my Child is dead: but I will




238               Appendix.
cutt a Pipe of Tobacco firif before I goe Home: and
after he was goun my Wife and myfelf did mch
wonder at ye lightneffe of his Carriage, becaufe he
fhewed no Affe&ion of Sorrow for ye Death of his
Child.
Sworne in Corte.
Ans. Hugh Parfons faith that he was very full of
Sorrow for the Death of it in Private, though not in
Publik; he faith that he was much troubled for the
Death of it when he firir herd of it before he came
into Goodm Coultons Howfe:
George Coulton being psent doth teftifie, that Hugh
Parfons came to his Howfe, he thinks, about 8 a Clock
in the Morning, and therefore he is very fure of it,
that he herd of it but a litle While before he came to
his Howfe; for Jonathan Burt, that brought the
Newes of it, fpake of it to Hugh Parfons, but about
12 or 20 Poles from George Coultons Howfe, and he
came psently thither: and therefore if he had had any
Sorrow for the Death of his Child he could not but
haue fhewed fome Signe of it when he came to his
Howfe; but he faith that both he and his Wife difcerned no Signe of Sorrow at all.
Sworne in Corte.
Hugh Parfons defyred that Goodman Cooly would
teftifie whether he was not affe6ted wth the Death of
his Child when he came to fpeak to him to go to the
Buriall of it, he faith he could not fpeak to him for
weeping.
[41. Beniamin Cooly faith that when he fpake to him
to go to the Buriall of his Child he cannot rember
any Sorrow that he fhewed, for he came to him taking
a Pipe of Tobacco.
Anthony Dorchefter teftifies vppon Oath, March
I and i8, I65o, that when Hugh Parfons Child was
dead, wch was laft Indian Harueft was I2 Monthes, he




Appendix.                 239
then liuing at the Howfe of Hugh Parfons, did much
wonder that when the faid Hugh Parfons came Home
from the long Meddow, he expreffed no Kind of Sorrow for his Child after he came Home; but carried
himfelf as at other Tymes without any regard of it,
that eather I or my Wife could difcouer.
Alfo, Blanch Bodorthe faith, on oath, that {he was
at Hugh Parfons Howfe when he came from ye long
Meddow and he fhewed no kind of Sorrow for ye
Death of his Child.
Hugh Parfons faith, that when his Child was fick
and like to dye, he run barefoote and barelegged, and
with Teares to- defyre Goody Cooly to come to his
Wife, becaufe his Child was fo ill.
Mary Parfons faith, that this was out of a fudden
Feare, at the very firfi Tyme that ye Child was taken,
for it was fuddenly and firangely taken with a Trembling, beginning at the Toes, and coming vpwardes,
and fo it flopped the Childes Breath.
Goody Cooly alfo teftifies, that this was at the firit
Tyme that the Child was taken. There was fome
Speeches vfed, that it might be bewitched, for thefe
that are now bewitched haue often Tymes Something
rife up into their Throates that doth ftopp their
Breath: and it feemes by George Coultons Teftimony,
that the Child was itrangely taken.
Mary Afhly and Sara Leonard ftood vp to giue
Teftimony, that they faw the Child in ye Tyme of its
Sickneffe, and that they apprhended the Secrets of the
Child to confume and waft away.
[42] Mary Parfons being afked what Reafons fhe had
to fufpe& her Hufband for a Witch, gaue thefe Reafons:I. Becaufe when I fay Anything to any Body, neuer
fo fecretly, to fuch ffreinde as I am fure would not
fpeak of it, yet he would come to know it; by what




240               Appendix.
Meanes I cannot tell: I haue fpoken fome Thinges
to Mrs. Smith, that goes litle Abroad, and I am fure
would not fpeak of it, yet he hath knowen it, and
would fpeak of it to me as foone as I came Home.
21y. Becaufe he vfeth to be out a Nights till Midnight (till of Late), and about half an Hower before
he comes Home, I ihall here fome Noyfe or other
about the Dore, or about the Howfe.
31y. Becaufe he vfeth to come Home in a diftempered
Frame, fo that I could not tell how to pleafe him;
fometymes he hath puld of the Bed Clothes and left
me naked a Bed, and hath quenched the Fier; fometymes he hath thrown Peafe about ye Howfe and
made me pick them vp.
4. Becaufe oftentymes in his Sleepe he makes a
gablinge Noyfe, but I cannot vnderftand one Word
that he fays, and when I did afke what it was that he
talked in his Sleepe, he would fay that he had ftrange
D.reames; and one Tyme he faid that the Diuell and
he were fighting, and that the Diuill had almoft ouercome him, but at laft he got the Maftery of the Diuill.
Being afked if euer fhe knew her Hufband doe any
Thing beyond the Power of Nature: fhe faid on a
Tyme her Hufband fent her to Jonathan Taylor to
get him to worke on the Morrow, and as I returned
Home in ye Twilight, I faw a Thing like a great nafty
Dogg by the Path Side.  I fufpeaed  it was donn by
Witchcraft from my Hufband he fent me out [worn
from the Margin] but vfually he doth fuch Thinges
himfelf.
[43] ffeb. 27, I65o.  Beniamin Coly faith vppon
Oath that Mary Parfons tould him' aboue a Yeere
fince, that fhe feared her Huiband was a Witch, and
that fhe fo far fufpeded him that fhe hath ferched him
when he hath bin afleepe in Bedd, and could not find
Anythin about him vnleffe it be in his fecret Ptes.




Appendix.                241
ffeb. 27, I65o. Anthony Dorchefter faith vppon
Oath, that about a Yeere and a Quarter fince, I and
my Wife liued for a Tyme at Hugh Parfons Howfe,
and that I haue feuerall Tymes herd Mary Parfons
fay that fhe fufpeded, and greately fufpected, her Hufband to be a Witch, and that her Hufband once in 24
Howers would be from Home, if not in the Day
Tyme then in the Night Tyme, what euer Weather it
was: and that in his Abfence fhe hath herd a rumbling
Noyfe in the Howfe, fometymes in one Place and
fometymes in another; and that fhe did much fufpe&t
him to be a Witch, becaufe if fhe had any priuate Talk
wth any he would come to know it, by what Meanes
fhe could not tell, being confident that thofe fhe reuealed herfelf vnto would neuer tell it.
Beniamin Cooly and Anthony Dorchefter fay vppon
Oath, that being charged by ye Conflable to Watch
Mary Parfons this lafi Night, fhe tould them that if
her Hufband had fallen out with any Body he would
fay that he would be euen w'h them, and then fhe found
he did bewitch his owne Child that fhe might be at
Liberty to help him in his Indian Harueft; for he
expefted help from her, and becaufe her Tyme was
taken vp about her Child, he being egar after the
World, feemed to-be troubled at it, and the fufpeEted
that he was a Meanes to make an End of his Child
quickly, that fhe might be at Liberty to help him:
another Thing fhe faid made her to fufpe2 her Hufband to be a Witch was, becaufe moft Things he fould
to Others did not profper: another Ground of fufpition was, becaufe he was fo backward to go to the
Ordenances, eather to the Leeture or to any other
[44] Meetinge, and the hath bin faint to threaten
him that the would complaine to the Magiftrate, or
elfe fhe thought he would not let her go once in the
Yeere: another Thinge made her fufped him to be a
Ff




242                Appendix.
Witch was becaufe of the great Noyfe that the fhould
here in the Howfe when he was abroad; and the faid,
that laft Tufday at Night, when he was abroad ihe
herd a Noyfe in the Howfe as if 40o Horfes had bin
there, and after he was come to Bedd he kept a Noyfe
and a galling in his Sleepe but the could not vnderftand one Word and fo he hath done many Tymes
formerly and when the aiked him what he ayled, he
would fay he had ftrange Dreames, and one Tyme he
faid that the Diuill and he were a fighting, and once
he had almoft ouercome him, but at laft he ouercome
the Diuill.
francis Pepper faith vppon Oath: when I came to
fee Mary Parfons that Sabbath that the kept at Robert
Affihlies Howfe, as foone as fhe faw me fhe faid vnto
me, ye Heffer was bewitched. I afked her how fhe
could tell, fhe faid her Hufband had bewitched it, and
now he had bewitched me, and he knows now what I
fay, and he now terrifies me in this Place, ftriking her
Hand vppon her Thigh.
ffeb. 27, I650o. Mary the Wife of Robert Afhly
faith vppon Oath, that Mary Parfons was at her
Howfe, laft Ledture Day was Sen'ight, before Meeting, and among other Speeches ihe faid, as for the
Death of Mr. Smithes Children,I it lay very fad vppon
her, very, fhe faid becaufe my Hufband would haue
had me to haue nurfed his Children: but, faid the,
doth Any one think me a fitt Nurfe for them: I aiked
her why he would haue her to nurfe them: the faid for
Luker and Gaine; one may well know his Reafon:
after this the fetched a great Sigh and faid, litle doth
Any one think how the Death of thofe Children lies
1 Mary, Dau. of Mr. Henry HenrySmith, died z4thJune, 1648;
Smith, buried at Springfield, Nov. Sarah, died 30 June, 1648. —
9th, i64+; Margaret, Dau. of Mr. Springfield Records.




Appendix.                243
vppon me: and ihe faid it was her neere Relation;
but, faid ihe, it is better for others to bring him out
then for me, but I can fpeak a great Deale of him if
others bring him out.
Mary Parfons was afked what Grounde fhe had to
think that her Hufband bewitched Mr. Smithes Children: becaufe, my Hufband would often fay that he
would be euen wth Mr. Smith if he denied to let him
haue any Peafe, or to plow his Ground or to do any
other Thing for him that he defyred: he would often
fay I would be euen wth him.
[45] John Lumbard faith vppon Oath, March 17,
i65o, that one Day the laft fummer he fett a Trowell
and a ftick, wch he vfed to hould to his Clay when he
dawbed, on ye Ground iuft without his Dore: after
this two Indians came in, and alfo pSently went away
againe; then I alfo went out to look for my Trowell:
and there was my faid Stick but my Trowell was
gonne: I and my Wife fought for it very narrowly,
both in that Place and alfo within the Howfe, and
could not find it: But about two Dayes after, as
Hugh Parfons was at the Dore of my Howfe I faw
the faid two Indians, and I called them to afk them
for my Trowell: faid Hugh Parfons what do you
want, I faid they haue ftolen my Trowell: faid Hugh
Parfons look, here it is, and there it was in the very
Place where I laid it. I did not fee him lay it there,
but I do really think it came there by Witchcraft.
Hugh Parfons anfwered, that he cannot remember
that he laid it there. John Lumbard faith that the
Reafon why he did not afk him how it came there was
becaufe he had bin at Hugh Parfons but the Day before to borrow a Trowell, to make an end of his
Daugbing, for that Trowell he had left was Goodman
Lanktons. Hugh Parfons at this flood dumb and
anfwered no more.




244               iAppendix.
John Mathewes faith vppon Oath, ffeb. 27, I65o,
that a little before the Tryall wth ye Widdow Marfihfeild, wch was about May, I649, being in Talk with
Mary Parfons about Witches, fhe faid to me that her
Hufband was a Witch: I afked her how fhe [46] knew
it, fhe faid the Diuill came to him in ye Night, at the
Bed, and fuckt him one Night and made him cry out
one Tyme, ihe could not tell what it fhould be elfe
but the Diuill.  She faid alfo that her Hufband was
often tormented in his Bowells, and cryed out as
though he were pricked with Pins and Daggers, and I
know not what elfe it fhould be, vnleffe it were the
Diuill that ihould torment him fo.
March 3, I65o. Thomas Merick, the Conflable
faith vppon Oath, that this laft Night, towards Morning, Hugh Parfons lyenge by the Fier Side faid to
him two feuerall Tymes Good[Man?] now come and
lance my Belly, for I am in lamentable Paine or Torment. I faid to him, if you will goe forth to eafe
yslfe Ile take of yO Chaines and let you goe: he faid,
no, I haue no need that way.
Hugh Parfons anfwer March i8, that he had a
Paine in his Belly, but did not fpeak of lancinge it.I
Sarah, the Wife of Thomas Merick flood forth,
and teftified that all her Hufband had teftified was
true.
[47] April 3d, i65i. Thomas Cooper faith vppon
Oath that being appointed to watch Mary Parfons,
about mid March laft, among other Things ihe tould
me that fhe was now hampered for relatinge fo much
as fhe had don againft her Huiband at Mr. Pynchons.
But, faid ihe, if that dumb Dogg could but haue
fpoken it would haue bin better wth me then it is: but
1 The "lancing it " was unquef- ble to give his Teftimony more
tionably thrown in by the Confta- importance.




Appendix.                  245
faid {he if I might but fpeak wth him  before Mr.
Pynchon, Face to Face, I would make that dumb
Dogg to fpeak. I faid to her why do you fpeak fo of
y~ Hufband; me thinkes, if he were a Witch there
would fome apparant Signe or Mark of it appere vppon his Body, for they fay Witches haue Teates
vppon fome pt or other of their Body, but as far as I
heere there is not any fuch apparant Thinge vppon his
Body.  She anfwered, it is not alwayes fo: but, faid
the, why do I fay fo, I haue no Skill in Witchery:
but, faid fhe, why may it not be with him as it was
with me; that Night that I was at Goodman Afhlies:
the Diuill may come into his Body only like a Wind,
and fo goe forth againe, for fo the Diuill tould me
that Night, (for I think I fhould haue bin a Witch
afore now but that I was afraid to fee the Diuill, left
he fhould fright me.) But the Diuill tould me that
I Ihould not Feare that, (I will not come in any Apparition, but only come into thy Body like a Wind, and
trouble thee a litle While, and psntly go forth againe:)
and fo I contented; and that Night I was with my
Hufband and Goodwife Mericke and Beffe Sewell, in
Goodman Stebinges his Lott: and we were fometymes
like Catts and fometymes in our owne thape, and we
were a plodding for fome good Cheere; and they made
me to go barefoote and mak the Fiers, becaufe I had
declared fo much at Mr. Pynchons.'
[48] April 7, I65I. Jonathan Taylar faith vppon
Oath, that in ye Day that Mary Parfons was firif examined, Hugh Parfons came to me to Merickes Barne,
and defyred to afke me a Queftion, and to tell him who
were his Accufers: I faid I cannot tell: faid he, why
1 Had not the Brains of Magif- thofe of the Accufed, {he would
trate and People been turning have been treated as one entirely
Somerfets, nearly as much fo as bereft of Reafon.




246                Appendix.
do you fay fo, you can tell, I know you can tell. Was
it euer known, faid he, that a Man fhould be accufed
and not know his Accufers: Tell me who they are,
for what euer you tell me {hall be as in yO owne Breft.
I faid I wonder you are fo earneft wth me to tell you;
you-will know foone enough; I will not tell you any
Thinge; but, faid I, I beleeue yO Wife will be yo
biggeft Accufar: at this Speech he faw his Wife goe
by to be examined, then faid he, it is like I (hall be examined now.
At Night, when I was ready to goe Home, I afked
Goody Meerik for fome Beere; fhe faid go down into
the Sellar and draw it, fo I did, but could not wringe
out ye Tapp wth all ye Strength I had; then I tooke
a Peece of an Inch Board and knocked the Tapp on
each Side to loofen it, and then I tryed to wringe it
out againe wth my Hand, till the Blood ftarted in my
Hand wth wringinge at it, and yet I could not get it
out: I came vp and tould Goody Merik, and fhe
laughed at me, and faid, I am pfuaded I will fetch it
out with my litle Finger: I tould her it was impoffible,
then ihe faid light a Candle and go fee: fo I lighted a
Candle, and fhe and Hugh Parfons went with me, and
as foone as euer (he touched it, the Tapp came out.'
I faid to her what, are you a Witch (though I did not
think fo) but I do verily beleeue it could not haue
bin fo except it were bewitched. After we were come
vp fhe faid let me, fee yo Hand; then, faid (he, I confeffe yo Hand is very tender, and the faid to Hugh
Parfons, the Blood ifands in his Hand: but I would
not haue you think it was by Witchery, for I think
the leaft Child in the Howfe might haue gott it
out.
1 There can be no Queftion in Goody Myrick, but poor Hugh
this Cafe but that the Witch was Parfons was predoomed.




Appendix.                 247
Affore I came Home, and when I was a Bedd, there
was a Light in ye Rome, as if it had bin Day-Light: I
was amazed to fee fuch a Light: I thought it could
not be Day: I fatt vp in the [49] Bed to fee if it
were Day or no: and as I looked ouer the Bed I faw
three Snakes on the Floore, and I was in a Maze to
fee themn: I ftranged that Snakes ihould be abroad at
this Tyme of the Yeere: two of them were great
ones, the other was a litle one, wth blackifh and yellow
Streaks: and the little one came to ye Bedd Side and
gott vp vppon ye Bedd; wth that I firok it downe with
my Hand: it came vp againe and I ftruck it downe
againe: then I began to feare that if my Wife fhould
fee them, being then very neere her Tyme, it would
half vndoe her wth Feare: therefore I did not wake
her, but lay downe againe: and then I thought thus;
lett God doe what he will: and as foone as I was laid
downe, ye faid Snake ranne vp a 3d Tyme, and hitt
me on ye Forehead, wch pricked like a Needle; then I
herd a Voice that faid, Death, and that Voice was like
Hugh Parfons Voice to my.beft Apprhenfion-; and
now I was a little reuiued in Spirit, and I faid Death:
that is a Lye, it was neuer knowen that fuch a Snake
kild a Man: then it was darke againe: and I was
taken with fuch a ftrange Shakinge, as if euery Limb
had bin puld in Peeces: then my Wife awaked, and
ihe faid Hufband, what ayle you that you fhake fo,
are you could: no, faid I, am hot enough, but I am
very ill, fhe faid fhall I rife and warm you fome
Cloathes, I faid no: but this Extremity continued all
Night as if one Limb had bin rent from an other, and
in the Morninge fhe arofe, and called in fome neigh



248                 Appendix.
bors:I this was on ffriday Night, and I was held io
till Tuefday Morning, as if I had bin rent in Peeces;
one Fitt began at my Forehead, where the Snake bitt
me, and ended at my Knees, and then the next Tyme
it began at my Knees and ended at my Forehead, and
in this Order it continued all ye forefaid Tyme.
Tuefday being a Day of Humiliation, I faid to my
Wife, though I be ill, yet I will go thither; I am
pfwaded I fhall be better, and fo I was; but yet I
haue bin troubled wth griping Paines euer fince, and
am not after my former vfuall Manner.
[50] April 7, I65i. Jonathan  Tayler faith vppon
Oath, that two Nights before Mary Parfons was carried into the Bay, I watched her: ihe faid I haue two
Things to fay to you: one is I forgiue you the Wrong
you haue done me: the other is about the three Snakes
that you faw: they were three Witches fd fhe: I afked
who they were; ihe faid one was my Hufband. I
afked her who were the others, {he faid I haue pointed
at them already: but you will not beleeve me; I am
counted but as a Dreamer: but when this Dreamer is
hanged, then remember what I faid to you: yo Towne
will not be cleere yet: then faid fhe if you had beleeued ye Voice that fpake to you, you had dyed: but
feeinge you fpake to it, and refiffed it, it had not
Power to kill you: for you doe not know how my
Hufband hath threatned you.
All fworn in Cort 13, 3.
[5I] ffeb. 25, I65o. Georg Lankton faith on Oath,
that his Wife made a Pudding in a Bagg, and becaufe
my Wife had the Child, I took it and put it out of
the Bagg at Dinner this Day Fortnight (wch was the
1 That one attacked with a raging lifhed his Dream afterwards is probaFever fhould dream of feeing Snakes bly quite as certain as that any fuch
or Anything elfe, is common Expe- Dreams may be and ufually are
rience. That this Fellow embel- embellikhed.




AppeinJix.                249
I. of ffeb.) and as it flipt out of the Bagg it fell into
two Pieces, length wife, and in Apperance it was cutt
ftrait along as fmooth as if it had bin cutt with a
Knife.  It was cutt firait along almoft the whole
length: it lacked but very little.
Hannah the Wife of George LanEon doth vppon
Oath concurr with her Hufband in the faid Teftimonv.
Febb 2I, I65o, George Landon and Hannah his
Wife doe ioyntly teftifie vppon Oath, that they had
another Pudding in the fame Bagg, that was cutt
lengthwife like vnto ye former, as fmooth in Appearance as any could cutt it with a Knife, namely one
Slice all alonge the Side of the Puddinge wantinge but
a very litle, from End to End.
Alfo Hannah the Wife of George Lankton faith
on Oath; a neighbor came in and ihe fhewed to him
how the Puddinge was cutt: and that Neighbor tooke
a Peece of it and threw it into the Fier: and fhe faith,
that about an Hower after, phapps a little more, fhe
herd one mutter and mumble at the Dore; then fhe
aiked Goody Sewell, who was then at her Howfe (and
neerer the Dore) who it was; fhe faid it was Hugh
Parfons, and that he afked whether Goodman Lankton
were at Home or no, I faid no, and fo he went away,
but left not his Arrand, neather did he euer fince come
to fignifie his Arrand.
Hannah Landon fworne in Corte I3. 3 m~.
ffeb. 23, I65o, George Lankton and Hannah his
Wife joyntly teflifie vppon Oath that they had another
Pudding in the former Bagg, that was cut lengthwife,
and as it was flipped out of the Bagg, it fell into three
Pts: one Peece being cutt all along on the one Side,
and two [531 Peeces all alonge on the other Side:
then they fent for fome Neighbors to fee it: Roger
Pritchard teftified vppon Oath, that he faw the faid
Pudding and it feemed to him to be cutt all the three
Gg




250                4ppen dix.
Peeces as euident and as plaine to him as that wch
George Lankton cut wth his Knife.
Thes Teftimonies were all taken vppon Oath before
me                          WILLIAM PYNCHON.
[3] March I2, I8, 22, I65o.  Samuell Marfhfeild
faith, vppon Oath, that when Hugh Parfons came to
pay the 24 Bufhels of Indian to my Mother for the
difcharge of ye A&ion of Slander againft Mary Parfons, that he defyred my Mother to abate 20os, but
my Mother faid fhe would not abate, becaufe' {he herd
that he had faid the Witneffes gaue in a falfe Teftimony. Hugh Parfons replied, well, if you will not
it had bin as good you had-it will be but as wild
Fier in yS Howfe, and as a Moth in yO Garment, and
it will doe you no Good, Ile warnt it, and make Account it is but lent you: this Corne was paid in Winter was i2 Months, and the Spring after my Sifter
Sara was taken with firange Fitts, at Tymes, but neuer
fo bad as when Mr Moxon's Children were taken.
Sworne in Corte.
March 22, I65o.  The Widdow  Marfhfeld tefIifies
vppon Oath, that when Hugh came to tender the faid
Come, he faid, I here that you will abate 205 of the
Money. I told him I would not abate any Thing,
becaufe I herd that his Wife had faid the Witneffes
had taken a falfe Oath: then faid he, if you will not
abate, it fhall be but as lent it fhall doe you no Good,
it fhall be but as Wildfier in yo Howfe, and as a Moth
in yO Clothes, and there threatning Speeches he uttered
with much Anger: and fhortly after, in the Spring,
about May, my Daughter began to be taken with her
Fitts of Witchcraft.
John Lumbard faith vppon Oath, March 17 and
22. I65o. that I haue herd Hugh Parfons and his Wife
1 This word is abbreviated hecS throughout the MS. and never fpelt out.




Appeindix.                251
alfo fay that the Corne wch they paid to ye Widdow
Marfhfeld for the Slander, would do her no Good,
and that it had bin better fhe had never taken it.  I
haue herd both her and him fay fo feuerall Tymes, and
I haue often herd him fay, when he hath been difpleafed wth any Body, that he would be euen with them
for it.
[4] Hugh Parfons being prefent anfwered not, but at
lafi he afked, when did I giue fuch threatening Wordes.
It was told him, when his Corn was paid in.
Hugh Parfons faid he did not rember that he gaue
fuch threateing Word: he faid that in iuftice the Come
was due to her: but becaufe we apprhended my Wife
was falfley accufed.  That was the Reafon of my
Speeches.
Mary Parfons alfo faid, that when her Hufband
came Home, he tould her what Speeches he had vfed
to the Widdow Marfhfeild, namely, according to ye
Teftimonies ihe faid it might well be fo, for fhe was
falfely accufed.
[5] March i8. I65o.  Thomas Miller tefrifies
vppon Oath (Hugh Parfons being prefent) that my
Wife being in one of her Fitts, March 17, I65o, fhe
faid thus: get thee gon Hugh Parfons, get thee gonn,
if thow wilt not goe, I will goe to Mr. Pynchon, and
he fhall haue thee away.
Miles Morgan, and Prudence his Wife, and Griffin
Jones, being all psent, do teftifie the faid Speech vppon
their Oathes.
Then all the aforefaid pfons, and ffrances Pepper do
teffifie vppon Oath, that it is an vfuall Thinge w'h
Goody Millar, in her Fitts, to vfe the Word Sirra and
thow Witch.
Prudence Morgan faith vppon Oath, that the 27 of
March, I65i, Sara Millar was at her Howfe, and then
betweene her Fitts fhe faid, look you, there is a Man,




2 52                  Appendix.
at Goodman Coopers Barne, I faid no there is no Man
there that I can fee, fhe faid you might fee him  if you
would.  But now he is gone laid fhe: then fhe fell into
a Fitt: and after fhe came to herfelf, fhe faid, look
you, there he is.  I faid to her who is it, the faid it is
one in a redd Waftcote and a lynd Capp. It is like
Hugh Parfons; then faid fhe he points his Finger at
me; he would haue me come to him: but Hugh Parfons was gone into the Bay the Monday before: but
he vfed to weare a red Waftcote, and a lynd Capp.
Samuell Marfhfeild faith vppon Oath, that he came
into Goody Morgans Howfe the Day aforefaid; and
as foone as Sara Millar came to herfelfe out of her
Fitt, fhe faid look you, there he is: Goody Morgan
aiked her who it was, fhe faid, one in a red Waftcote
and a lynd Capp: it is like Hugh Parfons: and faid
the, he pointed his Finger at me, he would haue me
come to him. [6] I faid to her there is no Body
there that I can fee: fhe faid yes, there he is, two or
three times ouer, but there was Nobody there that we
could difcouer, though fthe did often affirme it.
Sworne in Courte.
[7] March I8 I65o.  John  StebbingeI tefrifies vppon  Oath (Hugh Parfons being prfent): that as my
Wifez was entring into one of her Fitts, ihe looked
vp the Chimney. I adled her what fhe looked at, and
obferuing her Ey fixed on Something, afked her againe
(for the did not anfwer at firit) what the looked on,
and ihe faid, with a Gefture of iftrange Wonderment,
O deere! there hangs Hugh Parfons vppon ye Pole (for
I There is an intererfing Memoir for the Genealogy of the Stebbins
of the Stebbinge Family, but the  Family, Vol. V, Pages 71 and 35'.
Writer had no Knowledge that
Members participated in Witch    2 I find on the Springfield ReTranfaftions. Savage is equally in  cords-" 3: 14: I646, John Stebthe Dark. See the Newr England  lins and Mary [worn off] were
Hif/orical and Genealogical RegftIer married,




App~e'di~x.                2 5 3
there flood a fmale Pole vppright in ye Chimy Corner)
and then fhe gave a Start backward, and faid, Oh! he
will fall vppon me: and at that Infrant She fell downe
into her Fitt.
Rowland Stebbing being psfent, doth alfo teffifie the
fame vppon Oath.
William Brooks tefRifies vppon Oath, March I8,
I65o, that the fame Day that Hugh Parfons was apprhended, and about the fame Tyme of the Day that
the ConefRable brought him alonge by the Dore of
Goody Stebbing, fhe was firif taken wth her Fitts, and
cryed, Ah! Witch! Ah! Witch! iuft as he was paffing by the Gate.
[9]g Hugh Parfons at his Examination, March I,
ir6o, being afkted whether he thought there was not
fome Witchcraft in the Diffemper of Mr. Moxons
Children, faid, I queftion not but there is Witchcraft
in it: but I wifh the Sadle may be fett vppon the right
Horfe, being demanded who was the right H orfe,
and whether he knew of Anybody elfe, he faid
no, I am  cleare for myfelf, neather do I fufpe& any
other. Being afked whether he had any Grounds to
fufped his Wife, he anfwered no, I do not know that
euer I had any fuch Thought of her.
March 22, I65o. Jonathan Taylor2 faith vppon
Oath, that the fame Day that Mary Parfons went to
be examined to Mr. Pynchons: Hugh Parfons came
to me to Mericks Barne, and faid that he had often
bin afraid that his Wife was a Witch: and her Examination was the Day before his. Jonathan Taylor
alfo faith vppon Oath, that Hugh Parfons tould him
that he hath fo farr fufpedted his Wife to be a Witch,
1 Page 8 of the original MS. is Daughter, born I: 6: I649, which
blank.                     was named Mary. He was doubtlefs
2 There is a Record that Jona- married elfewhere, as no Record of
than Taylor had by Wife Mary, a his Marriage appears at Springfield.




254                 Appendix.
that he would haue ferched her, and fhe refifted for fhe
tould him it was an imodeft Thinge.
[IO] March I3, i65o.  William  BranchI faith vppon Oath, that he hath often herd Hugh Parfons fay,
when he is difpleafed wth Anybody, I do not queftion
but I fhall be euen with him at one Tyme or other:
I rember he faid fo of Goodman Bridgman, vppon
the Difference that was between them abt a Tree: and
I herd him fay he would fitt Jo Mathewes, fpeaking
about the Bargaine of Brickes.
[II] Jonathan Taylor faith vppon Oath, March 2I,
650o. That when I was at the Howfe of Hugh Parfons this Winter, and he tould me that he had bin at
Mr. Pynchons to gett as much Whitleather as to
make a Cappe for a Flayle, and he was willinge. But
Symonz would not let him haue any: it had been as
good faid he, he had, he fhall get Nothing by it. I
will be euen wth him.  Mary Parfons faid, Huiband
why do you threaten the fellow fo, it is like he was
bufy: he anfwered againe, if Goodman Cooly or any
One elfe that he had liked had come he fhould haue
had it. But Ile rember him.
Depofed before ye Court 17': 40: 65.
EDWARD RAWSON, Secret.
All the Teftimonies thus far taken vppon Oath before me                        WILLIAM  PYNCHON.
Maij 20oth, i651.3 The Depofition of Symon Bemon on Oath.   This Deponent fayth, that about
1 The fame probably who was appear. He was a Servant to Mr.
made a Freeman, 1648; married, Pynchon.
according to Springfield Records,
7: 7: 1643, Joanna Farnam, at   3 The two following Teftimonies
"Winfore."  He died 16 Sep- are inferted in the original MS. thus
tember, 1683. - Ibid.       out of their Order, becaufe there
happened to be blank Leaves, as it
2 Simon Beamon, as will prefently would feem.




Appendix.                 255
ffebrY laft, Hugh Parfons came to him, in his Mafters
[Mr. Pynchon's] Name, for a Peice of Whitleather,
to make a Cap for a Flayle, and that he having his
Horfes then in the Cart, and going out with them
into the Woods, told him he could not now ifay to
giue it him, but another Tyme he would. Now the
fame day after, he beinge loaden wth a Peice of Tymber vnder ye Cart, and cominge Home the Horfes fet
a runninge fodainly, as if they were ikared, and yet he
faw Nothing yt fhould fkare them. And as he held
back the Thilhorfe to flay them, he was beaten down
wth the Cart, and if in his Fall he had not put off the
Thilhorfe with a Kick of his Foote, the Cart Wheele
had run over him; it went over Part of his Jackett,
and clofe to his Body, and one of the Wheels ran
over a greate Stubb of Pine, 2 Foote and halfe high
at leaf, and yet ye Cart did not overturne.  I thought
there was fome Mifcheife in it from  Hugh Parfons,
for my Horfes had often gon that Rode, and never did
ye like before, nor ever fince.
Depofed before the Court 17 40 I65I.
EDW: RAwsoN, SecretY.
[21] This Deponent alfoe fayth vpon Oath, that
about the End of lafi Sumer, he beinge at the Mill to
fetch Home Meale, Hugh Parfons being there, defired
him to carry Home a Bag of Meale for him; but he
refufinge to do it, Hugh Parfons was offended at his
Refufall: and when he was gon about fix Rod from
the Mill, his Horfe beinge a gentle quiet Horfe, he
fell downe from the Horfe and the Meale vpon him.
He layd his Meale on the Horfe agayne, got v.p and
was well fetled, and beinge gon about 2 or 3 Rod
further, he fell downe agayne, and the Meale vpon
him, and yet the Horfe never ifarted to occafion it.
He layd vp his Sack agayne, the 3 Tyme, and got vp,




256                   Appe Jaix.
and when he was well fetled, and gon a Rod or two
further, he fell doune agayne, and the fack vpon him,
and yet ye Horfe Pfoode quietly in his Place.  And
the 4th Tyme he laid it vp and came away.,
Tefefyed vpon Oath befo. me,  HENRY SMITH.2
Depofed before the Courte, I7 40, i65I.
EDWARD RAWSON, Secrety.
[What is on Pages I I and I2, is in the Handwriting of Henry Smith, before whom  the Depofition
was given.  The two laft Lines are Rawfon's.]
[I3] William  Branch faith vppon Oath, March I3,
i65o. That about 2. y. fince when I liued in Towne,
and when  I went to  Bed about two  Howers wthin
Night, and before I was a fleepe, there was a Light all
ouer the Chamber, like Fier, and there came a Thing
vppon me like a little Boy, wt" a Face as red as Fyer,
and put his Hand vnder my Chin, as I apprhended:
and I felt fome Thinge like fcaldinge Water on my
Back, and then  I herd a Voice fayinge, it is done, it
is done; then I waked my Wife and told her of it,
and I haue been ill euer fince.  I haue thought Hugh
Parfons to be naught and haue bin troubled that he
hath made fo many [  ] Arrandes to my Howfe for
feueral Thinges, and yet I could not tell how to denie
him what he defyred.
William  Branch faith vppon Oath, that at Summer
was twelve Monthes, I went to the long Meddow, and
1 If the Fellow told the Truth    2 Mr. Smith was then in Bolton,
about falling fiom his Horfe, he a Member of the General Court.
was doubtlefs too drunk to keep on. He was Mr. Pynchon's Son-in-Jaw,
The feveral Falls mulf have fobered  having married his Daughter Anne.
him in fome Degree.  He was This Record by Smith was entered
careful not to tell how long he laid  in Mr. Pynchon's MS. out of chroon the Ground before he finally  nological Order, becaufe there hapfucceeded in " coming away."  pened to be a Blank fufficiently large.




Appendix.                 257
as I was going before Hugh Parfons dore, I was
taken with a ftrange Stiffneffe in my two Thighes, as
if two Stakes had bin bound to my two Thighes: fo
that I was faint to thruf: myfelfe forwarde with great
Difficulty: and this Stiffneffe continued all that Day:
after this I fell into fuch a Diftemper as burninge
Heat in the Bottoms of my Feet that I neuer had
the like before, and this Heat in ye Bottoms of my
Feete continued neere I2 Monthes er I was well. I
thought then it was fome Worke of Witch Craft
(from him) and fo I think to this Day.
Theis laft two Teftimonies were taken vppon Oath
before me                   WILLIAM PYNCHON.
[I4] Blank.
[Is] I
[I6 to 22] Blank.
[i] Teftimonies about Sara Millar and An Stebbings
againir Hugh Parfons.  Taken vppon Oath before
me                          WVVILLIAM PYNCHON.
[21 Jonathan Taylor on Oath faith fometime this Winter, on a Night, a Paire of good Mr. Mathews Pajles
fell doune wth a Noyfe, and going out prfently to fee
the Occafion thereof, could not pceaue any Thing;
but going into his Howfe againe, it being very darke.
Hugh Parfons was at his Backe, his Hand on his
Doore affoone as his was of. he bidding him fitt
doune which he did. Parfons faying Goodman Collys
Boy Nothing but beat my Calfe. his Mafter will take
no Order with him  but I will: anon after Goody
Coolly came and inquired after her Boy whether this
Deponent had feen him he telling her no: ihe replyed
I fent him to Goodman Mathue a good Whiles fince
1 On Page 15 of the original which has been given in a previous
MS. was inferted the Indi6tment, Page.
Hh




258               tAppendix.
and cannot tell what is become of him, and defired
him this Deponent to help her looke him which he
did in all the Hay Mowes and out Howfes wth hooping and hallouing for him but could not find him nor
heare of him: at laft they gaue ouer looking him, and
yS Deponent enquired of ye fajd Goody Cooly whether
Hugh Parfons had not met him and tooke Order wth
him, as he thretned him for beating his Calfe: and
after they were parted a While the Boy came Home,
and his Dame alking him where *ihe had bin, he fajd
in a great Cellar and was carried headlong into it,
Hugh Parfons going before him, and fell down [with
mee] there, and afterwards he [willed] into it.*
[The above is all in the Hand of Secretary Rawfon,
and was taken at Boflon after the Cafe was fent here.
It ends abruptly, and no Ufe was probably made of
it.]
No. 2.
Y-EPOSIIIONS and other Papers connected with
]LIP  the Proceedings againfl Mrs. Elizabeth Morfe of
Newbury, under the Charge of Witchcraft.
Elizabeth Titcomb, aged about fifty.z  After ye
Burning of Apples at Enfigne Greenleaf, I was foone
troubled at my Houfe with a Noyes knocking at ye
Dore which did awake mee out of a found Sleepe: ye
firft knocking I lay ftill harkening for to hear a Voice,
and none I heard: I thought Somebody did want my
1 The Words between there *' am unable to make them all out.
are written on the outer Margin of   2 William  Titcomb  married
the Paper and then erafed (but Elizabeth Stevens, March 3d, i654.
wherefore does not appear), and I She was his fecond Wife.




Appendix.                      259
help knocking a fecond Time; but I heard no Voyce:
a third Time I heard knocking; then I went forth,
and called to my Daughter Lydia: afked her if fhee
did heare ye Noyes.  Shee faid, Yes.  Then I opened
my Chamber Dore, and faide, Who are you?   What
is your bufines? But no Voyce. So I confidered yt
I had no Call to goe to ye Dore, and begg'd of God
to give mee Reft: but I was much difturbed by the
vyoulent Motion of a Creature which I did never
know before nor fince.
Lydia Titcomb affirmeth the fame about the Noyes.
The fame Peniel Titcomex affirmes.
[-Ihe laft Paragraph is in the Autograph of Mr. 7ohn
Woodbridge, the Commifioner.]
The  Depofetion  of Jonathan  Woodman,2  aged
aboute thirty fiue Yeres, who teftifieth and faith, that,
aboute feuen Yers agoe, beeing going Home in a darke
Night from   Infine  Grenleffe  apon  the  Grene  at
Wolchis3 Seler, I met with a white Thing like a Cat,
which did playe at my Legs, and I did offen cicke at
it, haueng no Wepon in my Hand; at laft ftrocke it
with my fut againft the Fenfe nerre Ifrall Webftars
Houfe, and there it ftopt with a loud cry aftar the
Manar of a Cat and I fee it no more. I furdar teftifie,
that William  Morfe of Neubury did owne that hee did
fend for a Docktar for his Wife the fame Night and
1 Son of William, mentioned in  earlieft Mention of the Name which
the laft Note, by Joanna Bartlet. I have met with. There is no
He was 29 Years old. Lydia Tit- Name of W6a/h in Coffin's Lift of
come was his Sifter. Her Age was i6. the early Inhabitants of Newbury,
nor has Savage the Name at all.
2 The fixth Child of Mr. Ed- The Name probably exifted there
ward and Joanna Woodman of till I800, at leaft. Michael Walch
Newbury, born November 8, i648, there compiled and publilhed the
m. Hannah Hilton.             Mercantile Arithmetic, firft in I 8 o,
a Work of great Popularity for
3 Walih, no doubt. This is the more than a Quarter of a Century.




260                 Appendix.
fame Time of Night that I wafe troubled with that
Cat abouefe mentioned, whitch wafe fom  Grounds of
Sefpition, but there wafe Nothing in it, bee cafe har
Hort in har Hed wafe don to or three Dayes before
theye fent for the Docktar by Somthing falling out of
the Chimly. He fordar fayd that fhee feme to macke
letell of it tell that Night abouefe mentioned and then
greue uery bad that hee wafe forif to fend for the
Docktar.
Taken on Oath [by Mr. Woodbridge] Jan. 7th,
I679.
[To this ridiculous Teftimony Mr. Morfe faid, in
his Petition of May I4th, I68I: "Jonathan Woodman feeing a Cat, and ftriking at it, and its vanifhing
away; and I fending for Dodtor Dole' to fee a Bruife
my Wife had by the Fall of a Peece [Gun?] reaching
downe fome Bacan in our Chimly, which was many
Days before this Time, as Do&or Dole affirms it was
no green Wound, though [I] negledted to fend for
faid Dole till then."
The moft that can be faid in defence of that Teftimony is, that Woodman probably flumbled upon a
Skunk as he was croffing the Evening Ramble of that
well known Animal.  That an Attack was made on
him by the Animal, whatever it was, was doubtlefs an
Embellifhment of his Imagination.]
The Teftimony [of] Benniamin Richardfon aged
a bought twenty on Yeares, tefrifieth and faith, that as
I came in the Morning from Cofon Tuckkers, a
I John Dole of Newbury, Son John Dole was the Father. of Dr.
of Richard, who came to Newbury  Benjamin Dole of Hampton, who
from Briftol, England, in 1639. married Frances, Daughter of Capt.
John was born Auguft ioth, I648, Samuel Sherburne of that Town.
and hence was but about twenty- Dr. Benjamin died at Hampton,
four Years of Age in I672, when  May 8th, I707, and was buried in
the Cat attacked Woodman. Dr. the old Burying-ground there.




Apepeendix.                26 
bought three Wekes or a Month a goe, by the Cornor
of good Man Moffes Houfe, I heard the Boy, John
Stiles, cry out, and faid, the Houfe is a Fire, the
Houfe is a Fire.  Then Goodman Mos fee mee, made
Sines and winckt to mee to comrn to fe where I could
fpy any Thing. Then I went in and went up the
Stairs, and then he barckt lick a Dog and yould lick
[a] Cat; and then he grouled, and his Heare ftood
up on End; and than he gumpt out of that Bed and
went into a nother Bed, and ther was a Bord that
leand againft the Cheft and flue from the Cheft and
ifruck the Boy; and furdor I fee a fheap a friueled
Hand to ftrik the Boy.'
Taken on Oath, Jan. 7: I679.
The Teflemona of David Willer [Wheeler]  aged
abovt 54 Yeres or therabovt: teftefieth yt I took Notis
of feeverrall Paffagys: as forif of her akhenf~on yt fhe
woold vihally be diging and crobbing ye Ground with
ye Eand of a Staff wich I never took Notis of anny
Parfon yt ackted in ye lieak Manner: forther, ye fayed
David Willir heaving a Heeffer abovt 3 or 4 Yeer
ovld, yt came Home ovt of ye Woods on Day, was
chawed vppon ye Back abovt ye Breath of a Hand;
and abovt a Fortneatt after was chaw ont ye other Siead
by yt abovt as mech moor: and ye rayed Heffer grew
ill and wold fvmtims go into ye Riveer fo deep, vntill
ye Watter tovch her Noos, and Ihe ftvd ther vntill
fvm of ovr Fammelee weer forfed to vaed to facht her
ovt to fave her from  dronding: and ye fame Heffer
yt is above menfhened, beeing miffing we covld nott
fiend her fvm confeederabell Tieme: after wards wee
1 This Benjamin Richardfon was   2 David Wheeler was born in
Son of William by his Wife Eliza- Salifbury, England, 6z25; went
beth Wifeman, whom he married from Hampton to Newbury, 1645;
23 Auguft, 1654. He was born married Sarah Wife, II May,
I3 March, I657. See Coffin.    I65o. —Coffin.




262                Appendix.
fovnd her in a ovt Hovfe yt had no other Paffege anny
other Way bvt a fmall Gap we had cvtt for fmall
Caves: and I was verely perfwaded that the Heifer was
bewitched, and Goodwife Morfe was the Occafion of it.
5'aken on Oath, fan. 7th, I679.
[The Addition in Italics is in the Hand of Mr. Woodbridge.]
The Depofition of Johua Richardfon,I aged a
bought thirty Years: teftifieth and faith, that a bought
fiue Years a goe, then I had three Sheep to driue to
Hamton: and when I came doune the Street I thought
it beRf to cech my Sheep at good Man Morffes Barne,
becafe it was neare my Canue that was to carry them
our the riuer; and good Man Mors Cow Houfe Dore
food open next the Hie Way, and I loock in and I
faw Nothing there: fo I droue my Sheep into the
Cowhoufe, and as I was a ceching the Sheep, Gooddi
Morfe came out, and was mighty with mee: and faid
I had better afke Leaue, and I went away with my
Sheap: and when I came to Hamton, abought to
Ours after, the Sheep weare all tick, and did fome at
the Mouths, and one of them died prefently; and
they aikt mee where I cecht the Sheep? and I tould
them in Mors Cow Hous; and they faid they did
beleue they wer bewicht, and fo do I to.
Taken on Oath, san. 7th, I679.
[In the Autograph of the Deponent. The laJt Line by
Woodbridge.]
[To the Teftimony of Joihua Richardfon, Mr.
Morfe replies (in his Petition before mentioned), as
to his "loofing a Shepe, and his taking it forth off
our Yeard, and my Wife ihould fay you might have
aiked Leave, and whether overdriving it or what, now
to bring it in 1 hope will be confidered."
1 A Jofhua Richardfon of New- January, 1679. She died 7 March,
bury married Mary Parker, 3 I 1685.-Cogin.




Appendix.                    263
That Richardfon caufed the death of his Sheep by
overdriving them on a hot Day, might have been a
common-fenfe Explanation, if Witchcraft had not
taken the Place of common Senfe in the bewildered
Brains of the People.]
The Teftemony of Caleb Moody,' aged 42 Yearfe,
tefphieth  and fayeth, that I having  lived nere to
Elizabeth Mors about twenty Yeers, I haue loft
feurall Catell in a ufiall [tic] maner.  About   6
Years a goe I had fume difrans with the feyd Mofe;
the next Morning one of my beft Hogs lay deed in the
Yrd, and no natrial Cafe, that I know of: at another
Time the fayd Elifebeth Mors came to me leat of a
Satrdye Nite and defird me to goe to Mr. Wodbg his
Store to fe after her Hufbnd.  I tould her I did not
aprhd any Denger of hime. The next Morning I
fent my eldeft Sone to the Houfe to inquier whether
her Hufbnd was come Home.  The Lad came home
and tould me that he was come Home, and that fhe
the rayed Elizabeth Morfe tould hime that I had bell
as good I had gone to loke after her Hufband.  That
uery Morning, as I was afterwards informed by John
Ordwaye,2 that as he was driuing out the Flock of
Shep, that he then cept, one of my Sheepe laye done
and  dyed.   At another Time I had a Cowe ware
fudenly tacken in a uery itronge Maner, and tumled
ovr Logs that layd in the Yord, and ftrived to turne
reerd upon her Heade, and fo continued a while, and
1 He was fon of William Moody,   2 The Father of this John Ordwho came from Ipfwich old Eng- way, named James, came. from
land, to Newbury, in i635. See Wales it is faid, but at what Time
Founders of New  England, 70. he arrived in New England is not
His fecond Wife was Judith Brad- known. John married Mary Godbury, whom he married 9 Nov., frey, December 5th, I68 i1, and had
I665. He died 25 Auguft, I698, a large Family of Children. —
aged 6. On the Lift of Paffen- Cofin. The Name may originally
gers his Name Ilands Moudy.  have been Hardway.




264                Appendix.
rofe vp agayne, and went awaye. After this I fawe
the fame Cowe coming doune the Hill by Wmin.
Morfes Houfe, and I fawe the feyed Elizabeth Morfe
ftand without the Doare, and my Cowe fall in to the
like firange Condifion, as fhe did before, and tumbled
into a Guter or Guly that was worne with the Runing
of the Water: after ihe recoured and went awaye
Home. At another Time, of a Sabath Daye Morning, one of my Cous, great with Calfe, was turnd in to
the Stale with her Head under her, Lone dead; in
fuch a Maner that I could not thinke it pofable for a
Cow to pute herfelf in to fuch a Place, but conclud the
Diuell by fume Inufrement did it; and feurall that faw
it did faye they were of the fame Minde, or Wrds to
that Porpofe.  At an other Time, about thre or four
Yers a goe, in the Sumer Time, I had a fouryeareold
Hefer that was brout out of the Woods with a Calf
about thre Wecks old, and I [put] theme into my
Paftir, neere to the rayed Morfes Houfe, and let her
goe there 2 or 3 Dayes with her Calf, to ufer to the
Plaefe.  Then I went to teacke awaye the Calf to kill
it, the Heifer femned to tacke no Notis of the Calf
when I fetchd it a waye, whitch maed me to maruill,
ceafe the was uery fond of her Calf; after the Calf was
kild I went to fe what wafe the Mater with the Heifer,
and fhe was leyed doune in a ihedy Plafe among
Thorne Buhkes, and would nether eat nor chew her
Coad for fevrall Dayfe; and as I was trying to get er
HEed vp I fiw the feyed Elifbeth Mors within about
5 or 6 Rods of; fo I drove the Heifer a waye, but
fhe would not feed; after words I went agyne to fee
what would become of her, and ihe wafe layd doune
agayne in the fame Plafe and I loked vp and faw the
rayed Elizabeth Morfe nere the fame Plafe wher I had
fene her before, and this I did, to the belt of my
lMemery three or four Times; the Heifer lay ner the




Appendix.                265
fame Plafe, and the fayed Elizabeth Mors was with in
Sight. I do not rememer that I did fe her come or
goe a waye, but faw her at onfe whitch did meack me
uery mutch fufpet flhe had bewitched my Heifer;
farther I do tefliphie that about a Munth or flue
Wecks a goe, Wm. Foning boroued my Meore to goe
to Mill and being in my Pafter neere to the feyd
Morfes Houfe, after Sonefeat, I herd Wm. Foning
[Faning] at the feyed Mofes Barne talking with him
about John Stiles, and I herd the fayd Foning threten
to breack his Bonfe. The next Morning John Hall
came over to my Houfe and tould me that Wm. Foning had cald at his Houfe before Daye and tould him
that he was muth frited with a Cat in Capt. Peerfes
P aftur.
riaken on Oath yan. 7th, I679.  [By Mr. Woodbridge.]
[In the Handwriting of the Deponent.]
[To the fhocking Nonfenfe of Caleb Moody,
brought up after a Lapfe of fome ten Years, Mr. Morfe
makes the following mild Reply (in the before-mentioned Petition): "As to what befel him in and
about his not feeing my Wife: that his Cow making no
Hafte to hir Calfe, which wee are ignorant of, it being
fo long fince; and [he] being in Church Communion
with us, fhould have fpoken of it like a Chriftian and
yn proceeded fo as wee might have given an Anfwer in
lefs Time yf tenn Yeares. Wee are ignorant yt he had
a Shepe fo dyed. And his Wife, known to be a Pretious Godly Woman, yt hath oftne fpoken to hir Hufband not to be fo uncharitable, and have and doe carry
it like a Chriftian with a due Refpe6d in her Carridge
towards my Wife all along."]
The Teftemony of Wm. Faning, aged about 36
Yeers, teftiphieth and fayeth, that about a Month or five
Weeks agoe, liuing neere to Wiliam  Morfes, in the
I~




266                Appendix.
Euning, quickly after Sone feat, I faw John Stiles
ftanding by Mr. Denifons Couehous and I afked him
what was the beft News att their Houfe, and he tould
mee that there was feuerall Hundreds of Diuels in
the Eyer,. and they would be att their Houfe by and
by, and they would be att my Hous a non: and that
very Night ey [I] went to Sargent Moodeys Hous,
which is my Neighbor, and borrowed his Mare to go
to Mill; and I went to Mill with two Bufhels of
Corn and got it ground; and when I came back
againe, in John Hals Pafture, the Mare began to
flartell and fnort, and rared vp on End, fo that I could
not gett her forward; and I loocked downe vpon the
Mars Head I fpied a great whit Cat without a Tayl
vpon my Breft and fhe had fart hold of my Neckcloth
and Coat. I haueing a good Stick in my Hand, I
ifroock her off. And againe the Cat was a coming
up vpon my left Side, I toock my Stick in my left
Hand and ifroock her down againe; then I alighted,
and as foon as I alighted the Catt came between my
Legs, fo that I could not well go forward; and watching my Opportunity I ftroock her a uery great Blow
up againft a Tree, and after that I ftroock her another
Blow which made her lay for dead, and I went prefently to John Hals Houfe, and he was abed. I caled
to him and defiered him that he would go to futch a
Tree and there I thought he would find a dead Catt,
and I went firaight way Home and told my Wife, and
tould her what I had met with all.
tiaken on Oath 7an. 7th, I679.  [By Mr. Woodbridge.]
[the above, as far as the Mention of " Mr. Deni/on
Couehoufe," is in the Hand of Caleb Moody.]
1 Perhaps now eyre; if fo, the the Devils were on their way. But
Meaning of the Word is plain, viz: poffibly he meant ill the air.




Appendix.                  267
[Morfe's Anfwer to Fanning's Teftimony could not
have been very fatisfatory to himfelf.  It feems to
have been didtated with as little Senfe as the Teftimony.  It is thus reported in the Petition:  " To
William  Fanning fhould fay my Boy faid the Devill
was at his Howfe.  Upon  Fannings faying to the
Boy ye Devill was at their Howfe, and he would have
me chid ye Boy, which I tould faid Fanning ye Boy
might be infirudted to know ye Devill was every where,
though not at our Howfe, and fhould not in Time of
Afflidtion upbraid him to our Griefe."
Perhaps Whiikey may not have been in Ufe in thofe
Days, but Something quite as Jeledrifying no doubt
had affeded the Imagination of Fanning.  He had a
Wife and feveral Children.  His Wife was Elizabeth
Allen, whom he married 24th of March, I668.]
John Mighell,  aged about 44 Yeares, teflifieth, that
about ten Years fince, I wente to William  Moffes
Houfe to worke, by the order of Jonathan Mofe, the
Sone of William Mors. I went to hew Shingell, and
at Night when I was going Home Gooddi Mors did
ueri much urge me to flay all Night, and help hir
Sone the next Day; in fomutch that I was glad to
aney Scufe; that I had tied a young Mare up in the
Houfe and muft go Home to water hir. Then fhe
faid, be fure to cume a gaine to Morow. So I went
Home; but came thair no more, and Ihe fent to me
fauarall Times to cum to Work, and at the laff thaire
was Word came to me, that fhe was ueri angeri with
me, and fuddenly, after thair was a great Allteration
in my Cattell; thair was one of my Coues that had a
Calfe a bout a Fortnit ould, and at Night he was wet
1 He is not mentioned by Coffin Brother of Samuel, who married
among the early Inhabitants of Elizabeth, Daughter of Abraham
Newbury. He may have been a Tappan of Newbury. The Name
Son of Thomas of Rowley, and is often found fpelt Mibil.




268                Appendix.
when I put him up, and in the Morning I went to
fetch him -out to fuck, and the Haire and Skin was
gone of his Back; and it was reed like a Burne, and
would neuer heale but grue wors and worfe. At the
Laft his Eyes came out of his Head, and then I thout
it was Time to cnok him on the Head; and another
of my Coues got a littel Pufh with an other Beaft,
and the Dung rane out of hir Side; and a nother of
my Coues ftud in the Medell of the Yard, when I
went to ti them up anight, and fhe courd not go of
the Place wheare fhe ftud, but I wafe glad to let hir
Rtand in the Middel of the Yard all Night, and my
Mare was dround, and thus my Creatures were, that
I had fcarfe ani Creature tha[t] was well; and Gooddi
Mors being anggeri with me, and haueing bene talk
of for a Wich, I was afeard that mhe had fum Hand in
this.
taken on Oath, ian. 7th. I679, [by Mr. Woodbridge.]
[To this Story of John Mighill, Mr. Morfe fays
(in his Petition):  "About ye Lofs of his Catle, was
yt he came one Day to Worke and [I] would have had
him  come another Day to finifh it, becaufe ye Raine
came in fo upon us, and his not coming, [he] judges
my Wife was angry and yrfore had fuch Lofs, which
wee neuer knew of. This being twelve Yeares agoe
did amaze us now to here of it."]
The Depofition of Robert Earle,' aged 45 Yeeres,
or thereabouts, fayth that on Twefday Night laft,
about to of the Cloke at Night goeing into the
Camber where Elizabeth Morfe was ihut in, finding'
her fetting vpright in her Bed, ihe rayed to mne that
1 He was the Officer having died in I698, if Savage is right, at
Mrs. Morfe in Charge. At Bofton the Age of 64. There is extant a
he was Jailor, or Prifonkeeper. He Genealogy of the Earl Family.




Appendix.                 269
fhe was very glad that I was come in, for fhe was in
great Troable, and that ihe thought fhe fhould dye for
it now, for they were goeing to find out another Way
for Blafphemye. And I went neere her Bedfide, and
I heard a Pfrainge Kind of Noyfe, which was like a
Wheelpe fucking of the Dam, or, Kettins fucking,
which made me to thinke whether any of the Catts
had layd any of there Kittins vpon the Syde of the
Bed, or wheather it might be fome ftrainge Kind of
Hiffing within her. Further, I teftifye, that Yeiferday, when I went to fech her to ye Court, fhe fayd that
now they fay abroad I thall dye. I afking of her why
fhe fayd foe, and whoe it was that fayd foe, fhe fayd,
my Hufiband, and I haue beene talking to geither of
it. And fhe fayed that I did know what they did fay,
if I would fpeake, and fuch as I that doe know fuch
Things fpoke of abroad. Then I remembering there
was fome did aik me what I thought would be don
with her. I fayd I did not know but yt fhe might
dye for it, which made me have the more Sufpition of
her calling to mind wt I had fayd abroad.
He further adds yt on Wednefday Night laft going
into the Roome where ye fd Elifabeth Morfe was alike
fetting vp as before fd, heard the like Noyes tho not
fo loud and yS was neere about the fame Time of
Night.
['[he Zaft Paragraph by Rawf/on. The other in a Hand
much like that of Addington.]
To Jofeph Pyke Conftable of Newbery.
In his Maj'tyes Name you are requered to feaze on
the Perfon of Elizabeth Morfe, the Wife of Willjam
Morfe, and hir forthwith fafely convey and deliuer hir
to the Keeper of the Prifon at Ipfwich, by him fafely
to be kept till the Court of Affiftants on its Adjourn



270                      Appendix.
ment to  the 20oth of May next who  will give further
Order: She being prefented and left by the Grand Jury
for Tryall, as to Witchcraft: and hereof you are not
to faile.   Dated in  Bofton: from   the  6th of March,
I679.
By the Court EDWARD RAWSON, Secrety... lfent one Wrt of this Tenor.........vndrfttand came not.
[The above all in Secretary Rawfon's Hand. Part
of the Minute in the Margin torn off. The following Indorfement is on the Back of the above:-]
This Warrant receiued  in  Bofton Aprill Ith, i68o,
and the Perfon within fpeffefied was deliuered to the
Prifon Kepar in Ipfwich Aperill 2": I68o.
pr me JOSEPH PIKE'
Con jable of Newbery.
To the Conliable of Newery, Jofeph Pyke.
In his Majefties Name you are requered, feafonably
to fumon, and alike Require, Caleb Moody, William
1 He was, according to Coffin,  James Bowdoin.  It went through
Grandfon of John Pike, who came  feveral Editions, under the Hands of
to Newbury in I635, and on Sept.  different Editors, but there is no
4th, 1691, was killed by the In-  Edition fo good as the firll.  Jodians at Haverhill.  The diftin-  feph, the Conftable, married Suguifled Maj. Robert Pike of Salif-  fanna Kingsbury, 29 Jan., i662,
bury was Son of that John.  Coffin  and among other Children had Johas very culpably negleted to tell  feph, who married Hannah Smith,
us what Pike was the Ancefor of  who, among other Children, had
Nicholas Pike of Newbury, who  James, born March  lit, I703.
compiled the moft extenfive Ameri-  Thefe were the Parents of the great
can Arithmetick ever publifhed in  Mathematician, who died in I8I9,
this Country, rivalling Malcolm (the aged 76. He was a Graduate of
Scotch Author) himfelf; a ftout  Harvard College, 1766, with feveral
Oatavo, dedicated  to  the  Hon.  others afterwards diftinguiihed.




Appendix.                    271
Chandler,' John Glading,z James Broune, Joanna
Broune, Benjamin Richardfon, Wm. Card,3 Jofeph
Bayly, Zackery Dauis, Jonathan Hajnes, John Mihil,
Jofhua Richardfon, Sufanna Gooduin, John Chafe,
John Ordeway, William Fanning, Jonathan Woodman, Benjamin Lowle,4 Elifabeth Titcomb, Peniel
Tytcome, Lyddia Tytcom, Dauid Wheeler, Wm.
Morfe wth John Styles, to make their and euery of
their feuerall Appearances before the Court of Affiftants on their Adjournment on the twentyeth Day
of this Inifant, May, at eight of the Clocke in the
Morning, in Bofton; then and there to give in their
Euidence againit  Elifabeth  Morfe, Wife  to  Wm.
Morfe; fhe being then to be on hir Trjall for Witchcraft, hauing ben prefented and indicted by the laft
Grand Jury in March laft at the Court of Affiflants:
making your Returne to the Secretary at or before
that Time, wthout Fayle, at yor Perrill.  Dated in
Bofton the 4th Day of Inflant, May, I68o.
By the Court EDWARD RAWSON Sefly.
[A11 in the Hand of the Secretary.]
Theas are to certefie the honored Court of Affirfants fitting in Bofton on ad journment, Maye 2oth
I68o0:  that Calleb  Moody, Wm. Chandlar, Jno.
Gladin, James Browne, Hanah Browne, Beniamin
1 Probably the Emigrant, he died the Inhabitants of Newbury, and
March 5th, 1701, in his 85th Year. Savage knows no more.  Francis
He was thrice married, and the Card the Indian Captive may have
Father of many Children. - See been of the fame Family.
Coffin.
4 The Name was changed to
2 John Gladding married Eliza- Lowe/I. The Brothers John and
beth Rogers, July i7th, 1666.  Richard Lowle came from Briftol,
England, and fettled in Newbury,
3 Not found in Coffin's Lift of 1639.




272                 Appendix.
Richardfon, Will. Card, Jofeph  Bayle, Zachariah
Dauis, Jonathan Haynes, Jn~. Mighell, Joffiua Richardfon, Sufana Goodwin, John Chafe, An Ordway,
Will Fanning, Johnathan Woodman, Beniamen Lowle,
Elifabeth Titcomb, Penuell Titcomb, Liddea Titcomb, Daued Wheelar, Wm. Morfe with Jng. Stiles,
wear all fumoned to appear att ye fd honoured Court
of Affifants on ye 20th of Inflant, May, att eight of
the Clock in ye Morning, according to this Warrant,
dat: I7th May, I68o.  By me
of Newbery.                JOSEPH PIKE, Conflable.
For ye Secretary.
[I'he above Return is on the Back of the Secretary's
Warrant.]
To the Conflable of Charleftoune.
In his Maj'tYs Name you are hereby requered to
affemble the Freemen of yor Toune together, and fignify to them that they are alike required to choofe and
fend two able and difcreet Perfons to ferve on a Jury
of Trjall at the Court of Affiftants in Boflon on adjournment 20th Inflant at eight of the Clocke in the
Morning of a capitall Offendor, making yor Returne
hereof to the Secretary at or before the Time: hereof
not to faile.  Dated in Bofton 13 of fajd May, I66o.
By the Court EDWARD RAWSON, Secret.
[,11 in the Secretary's Hand.]
[Endorfement.]
At a legall meeting of Fremen of Charleftown, ther
is chofen Mr. Nathan Heyman, and Mr. John Knite
to ferue on the Jury acording to Warent: Pr
by mee JOSEPH RYALL' Conflabel.
1 Savage has confounded the Ry- think. If it flid that way after the
alls with the Royals. The Name Time of Yofeph Ryall, it is no Exof this Family was never Royal we cufe for making a Royalif of him.




Appendix.                273
To the Conifable of Boifon:In his Maj'tyes Name yow are required forthwith to
affemble the Freemen of your Toune together and fignify to them that they are hereby alike required to
choofe and fend flue able and defcreet Perfons to the
Court of Affiftants on their Adjournment on the 20th
of this Inftant May, at eight of the Clock in the
Morning to ferue on a Jury for the Trjall of a capital
Offendor: making yr Returne to the Secretary at or
before that Time. Dated in Boifon the I3th Inffant,
May, I68o.  Hereof not to faile.
By the Court. EDWARD RAWSON, Secrety.
[Endorfed.]
Bofton this I8th of May, I68o. Then ware the
free Men of this Town affembled, in obedians to
yowr Warrant, and did accordingly chufe Mr. Richard Middlecott, Mr. Jeremiah Cuihin, Mr. John Wait,
Leftenant Richard Waye, and Mr. Thomas Harrod,
for to ferue as Jurimen. Thay are alfo warned for to
attend ye Servis upon the 20th of May at eight of ye
Clock in ye Morning.
By me BozouN ALLEN,
Conjiable of Bojion.
To the Conifable of Watertoune.
In his Maj'tyes Name you are required to affemble
the Freemen of ye Toune together and fignify to them
that they are alike required to chufe and fend two able
and difcreete Perfons to Boifon on the 2oth of this
Inftant May, at eight of the Clock in the Morning
to ferue on a Jury of Triall at the Court of Afliftants
on their Adjornment of a capitall Offender: making
ye Returne hereof to the,Secretary at or before that
Time: hereofyow are not to faile. Dated in Bofton,
I3th Of fajd May, I68o.
By ye Court. EDWARD RAWSON, Secrety.
Kk




274+              Apendix.
[Endorfement, or Return.]
The Freemen haue chofen John Stone and Rechard
Child to farue upon the Ieury of Trials.
By me.                  JOHN MOSE, Confiable.
I7' 3: I68o.
To the Conftable of Cambridge.
In his MajtJes Name yow are hereby required forthwith to affemble the Freemen of yor Toune together
and fignifie to them that they are alike required to
choofe and fend two able and defcreet Perfons to
Bofton, then and there, on the 20th Inifant, May, at
eight of the Clocke in the Morning to ferve on a Jury
at the Trjall of a capitall Offendor: making your
Returne to the Secretary at or before that Time:
hereof yow are not to faile. Dated in Bofon, the
I3t Of faid May, I68o.
By the Court. EDWARD RAWSON, Secret.
[The Return thereon.]
Bro. John Green of Cambridge, and Richard Robins are chofen to ferue one the Jury of Trialls, according to the Warrant.
By the Cunflabell, JONAS CLARKE.
One May the 20o, i68o.
To the Conifable of Dorchefter.
In his Majties Name you are required forthwith to
affemble the Freemen of faid Toune together and fignify to them that they are alike required to choofe and
fend two able and difcreete Perfons to ferue on a Jury
of Trialls in Boflon at the Court of Affiftants on their
Adjournment, 20 Inflant at eight of the Clocke in
the Morning for the Triall of a capital Offendor:
making yor Returne to the Secretary at or before that




A2ppendix.                        275
Time: heereof yow are not to faile. Dated in Boflon,
I3th fajd May, i68o.
By the Court, EDWARD RAWSON, Secrety.
[The Return: —]
Dor Chefter, 17: 3: 80.   The  free  Men  of the
Tovne wear a fembled, and mad Choys of Jacob
Hven and John Capen for this Cort for the Jvri of
Trial.
As a teft  JAMES FOSTER, Conft.
The Teftimony of Efther WillfonI aged about 28.
That fhe living with her Mother, Goodwife Chandler when fhe was ill, ihe would often cry out and complaine that G. Morfe was a Witch, and had bewitched
her, and euery Time fhe came to fee her fhe was the
Worfe for her. Though too meete were often forbidden, yett thay would not refraine coming. One
coming to  the  Houfe aiked  why we did  not nayle a
Horfefhoe on the Threfhold, (for that was an Experiment to try Witches.) My Mother the next Morning, with her Staffe made a Shift to gett to the Doore,
and nayled on a Horfefhooe, as well as fhe could. G.
Morfe, while the  Horfefhoe was on, would  neuer be
1 Coffin  finds no Willfons at was'probably corroborative of the
Newbury at this Time.  Either  other.  Morfe fays: "As for Wilprobably belonged to a neighboring  liam Chandler's Teftimony aboute
Town.  It is inferred that Wm.  his Wife's long Sicknefs, and my
Chandler's firft Wife was Mary  Wifes vifiting hir, fhe through hir
Wilfon or Willfon, who died, ac-  Weaknefs aAed uncivilly, and yt
cording to Coffin, in I666. Hence  now to bring it againft my Wif,
Efther's Depofition relates to an  when, for fo many Yeares being in
Affair of at leaft fourteen Years' full Communion with us [&] never
Standing.  Morfe (in his Petition)  dealt with us aboute any fuch Thing,
refers to a Teftimony given by  but had as loving Converfe with
Wm. Chandler, but does not men-  him as Chriftians ought, and knew
tion this of Efther Willfon. One  no otherwife till now."




276              Appendix.
perfwaded to come into the Houfe; and though ihe
were perfwaded by the Deponent, and Daniel Rolfe,
to goe in, fhe would not; and being demanded the
Reafon fhe would not tell me now, and fayd it was not
her Mind to come in; but fhe would kneele downe
by the Doore and talke and difcourfe, but not goe in,
though fhe would come often Times in a Day, yett
that was her praftife. Wm. Moody coming to the the
Houfe, and vnderftanding that there was a Horfefhoe
nailed on the Doore, fayd a Piece of Witchery, and
knockt it off and layd it by. Very thortly after, the
fame Day G. Morfe came in, and thruft into the
Palovr where my Mother lay before fhe was vp; and
my Mother complained of her, and I earneftly defired
her that fhe would be gon, and I could very hardly
with my Importunity intreat her to do it.  The
Horfeffiooe was off about a Weeke and ihe would
very often come in that Time. About a Weeke after,
my Mother, to keep her out of the Houfe, gott
Daniel Rolfe to naile on the Shooe againe, wch continued fo about 7 or 8 Dayes, and at that Time the
would not come ouer the Threfhold to come in,
though often importuned to do it. Then Wm. Moody
coming againe, tooke off the Horfefhooe, and putt it
in his Pockett, and carryed it away: then the fayd
Goodwife Morfe came as before, and would goe in as
before. In a fhort Time after, I being at Home on a
Sabbath Day, alone with my Mother, I had bin dreffing her Head, and fhe cryed out on a Sudden, G.
Morfe, G. Morfe is coming into the Houfe. I fayd
I could not fee her, my Mother fayd I fee her, there
the is. Then I run to the Doore twice, but I could
not fee her; but my Mother cryed out, that wicked
Woman would kill her, be the Death of her, the could
not beare it, and fell into a grieuous Fitt, and I tooke
her and carryed her in and layd her on a Bed: and




Appendix.                277
hauing fo done I went out to fee if any Body were
coming from Meeting, and ther (though I faw her not
before) fhe ruffed in, and went into the Parlour to
my Mother, and I flepping out and feeing my Father
coming lift vp my Hand to him to come and he made
great Haft, and I called in fome of the Neighbours,
and fo my Mother continued a confiderable Time before fhe recouered. In this Fitt, my Mother's Mouth
was drawne awry, and fhe foamed at Mouth, and I
wiped it of, but I was very much frighted to fee her
fo till the Neighbours came in. This is all that at
prefent fhe remembreth.
Taken on Oath, May I7th, I68o, before me
Jo: WOODBRIDGE, Commffr.
Read in Court, 20o May, i68o. E. Rawfon, Secr.
[Aill the above in the Hand of Mr. Woodbridge, excepting the laJZ Line.]
The Teftimony of Elizabeth Titicomb, aged about
5o Years.
That fhee being lately with Sufanna Tappin, aged
about 74 Years, the fd Tappin related to her, that when
Elizabeth Mors was in Examination for Witchcraft,
and fhe being fummoned gaue in her Teftimony
among others. When fhe went away ihe fayd Elizabeth Morfe came after her and tooke her about the
Wrift, as if fhe would enquire what was the Euidence
{he gaue in agt her: who anfwered Nothing but what
you fpake your felfe. The fayd Topan went Home,
and in the Night fhe felt a cold Damp Hand clafping
her about her Wrift, wch affrighted her very much, and
putt her into a very great and dropping Sweat: and
from that Time ihe continued ill, and an itching
and pricking rofe vpon her Body, wch afterwards came
to fuch a dry Scurfe, that fhe could fcrape it off as it




278               Appendix.
were Scales from an Allewife; and that Side wch ihe
was touched in was moif: out of Frame; and ihe is
fmitten in the lower Parts of her Body after the fame
Manner that fhe had teflifyed agt the fayd Morfe what
fhe heard her fpeake: and from that Time fhe hath
continued very ill, but little from her Bed, and hath
not bin able to goe abroad euer fince to the publike
Meeting. Who alfo fayth that the very Night when
fhe being defined to goe and enquire of the fayd
Topan, what her Euidence was, fhe had a Beaft
ftrangely hanged in a harrow and dead.
Taken on Oath, May 14th, i68o.
Jo: WOODBRIDGE, Commi/r.
Sworn in Court the 20th May, I68o. E. R. Sec.
[All in Woodbridge's Hand except the laJZ Line.]
Elizabeth Titcomb, formerly ferioufly telling G.
Morfe of the Report that went of her as touching her
Name for Witchcraft, and endeauouring to convince
her of the Wickedneffe for it, fhe feemed to be much
affedted with it, and fell on weeping, and fayd ihe was
as innocent as herfelfe, or the Child now unborn, or
as God in Heaven.
Sworn, E. R., S.
Lydia Titcomb, aged about 17 Yeares, teflifyeth,
that fhe heard the Difcourfe betweene her Mother and
the fayd G. Morfe, and the Words wch her Mother
hath expreffed; and alfo, that a little While after fhe
and her Brother and Sifter, going home from the Pond
where they fetcht water, there flew fomewhat out of
the Buffies, in her opinion like an Owle, and it came
vp prefently to her, and was turned into the Shape of
a Catt; and quickly after turned into the Shape of a
Dog: Sometimes would be all black, then haue a white




Appendix.                 279
Ring about the Neck: Sometimes would haue long
Eares, Sometimes fcarce any to be discerned; fometimes a very long Taile, Sometimes a very fhort one,
fcarce difcernable, and in fuch Manner it followed vs
fome Time, as if it would leap vpon our Backs, and
frighted vs very much, and accompanyed vs till they
came neere the Houfe: and the laft Time we faw it
we left it playing about a Tree, and we went in and
left it.
Taken on Oath, May I4th, I68o, before me
Jo: WOODBRIDGE, Commiffr.
Sworn in Court, 20 May, I68o.  E. R., S.
Sufan Topan I being examined about the Teftimony
of Elizabeth Titcomb, before written, teftifyeth, that,
for the Subftance, it is true; onely, there is a Miftake that G. Morfe tooke her by the Wrift, not at
that Time, when ihe came Home from that Meeting,
when the fayd Morfe was examined, but on a Sabbath
Day after, when the came from the publike Meeting,
wch fhe might eafily miftake her: and the fayth that
the fayd Morfe came very haftily after her, as if fhe
runne. And fhe cannot direftly tell the Night when
the cold Hand clafped her Wrift, but it was not the
Night that ihe came Home from the Examination.
In euery Thing elfe the Relation is exadly true.
Taken on Oath, May 17th, I68o, before me
Jo: WOODBRIDGE, Cons.
[A11 in Mr. Woodbridge's' Hand, except the Lines
figned E. R., S.]
1 Probably Daughter of the firit Abraham Toppan. - Coffn.




280                Appendix.
Thomas Nolton  fayth that when he brought down
the Prifoner, Elizabeth Morfe, from Ipfwich, (he faid
he was accufed about Witchcraft, (he faid ihe was as
cleare of the Accufation as God in Heaven.
Sworn in Court pr Thomas Nolton, May 20o, i68o.
EDWD RAWSON, Secry.
[XAI in Rawfon's Hand.]
Thomas Knolten further teftifys, that as I brought
Goody Moffe downe, (he owned to me, that fhe ftroakt
Goodwife Ordway Child over the Head, when it was
fick, and the Child dyed.
Sworn in Court, 20oth May, i68o.
E. RAWSON, Secr.
[TIhe Words, "and the Child dyed," in the above
appear to have been partially obliterated by the Paffage of the Finger on it before the Ink was dry.]
John Chafe. And as an Addition to my former
Teftimony, I teffify and fay, that yt very Day, to the
belt of my Knowledge, yt Kaleb Powell came to take
my Teftimony againft Goodwife Moffe yt I was taken
with ye bloody Flux, and foe it held mee till I came to
ye Court and charged her with itt, yt at ye very Inifant
of Time itt left me, and I have not been troubled
with it fince, and that my Wife has been forely
troubled with fore Breafts, that (he have loft them
both, and one of them rotted away from her.
Sworn to in Court, 2oth May, I68o.
EDw. RAWSON, Secty.
1 This Surname is now more the Documents with his Name in
commonly written Know/ton. This them, it is not certain whether he
Man was Jailor at Ipfwich, and died fpelt his Name beginning with an N
there (according to Savage) April or K. We find one of the fame
3d, 1692. As he did not write Name at Fort Maffachufetts in 1 746.




Appendix.                 28 I
[What the "former Teftimony" of John Chafe
was does not appear, as it is not amongft our Witch
Papers.  But in Morfe's Petition of May I4th, I68I,
he thus anfwers or explains that Teftimony; as "to
John Chafe faying yt he faw my Wife in the Night
coming in at a little Hole, and ye Like, when he himfelfe hath faid he did not know but he was in a dreame,
and yt unto feveral Perfons he hath fo faid, though
now as he teftifies, when my Wife difowns any fuch
Thing."]
The Teftimony of Mrs. Jane Sewall,' aged about
54 Yeares. Who fayth that fome Yeares fince Wm.
Morfe being at my Houfe, began of his owne Accord
to fay that his Wife was accounted a Witch, but he
did wonder that fhe fhould be both a healing and a
deftroying Witch, and gaue this Inftance. Thomas
Wells, his Wife being come to the Time of her Delivery, was not willing (by the Motion of his Sifter in
whofe Houfe fhe was) to fend for Goodwife Morfe,
though fhe were the next Neighbour, and continued a
long Seafon in Pfrong Labour and could not be delivered; but when they faw the Woman in fuch a Condition, and without any hopefull Appearance of Delivery, determined to fend for the fayd G. Morfe, and
fo Tho. Wells went to her and defired her to come;
who, at firfi, made a Difficulty of it, as being unwilling, not being fent for fooner. Tho. Wells fayd he
would have come fooner, but [his Wife's] Sifter would
not let him; fo at lafi fhe went, and quickly after her
coming the Woman was delivered. This, as fhe remembreth, was the Subifance [of the] Difcourfe,
though fhe doth not remember his very Words: and
fhe fuppofeth, [that] Thomas Wells and his Wife
1 Mrs. Sewall was Daughter of Stephen Dummer of Newbury.
L1




282                     Appendix.
living both  at Bofton  can  giue more full Teftimony
concerning this Thing.
Taken on Oath, May I8th, I68o.   Before me,
Jo: WOODBRIDGE, Comfr.
Read in Court, 20 May, I68o.
E. RAWSON, Secrety.
Elizabeth Titcombe faith as to yt Pt of this Teftimony relating  to  ye fending for Elizabeth Morfe, fhe
was prefent, and was one of thofe fecond fending for,
and faw Goody Morfe when ihe came there, and fee a
prefent fpeedy deliuery of the Woman.
Sworn in Court 20oth May, i68o.
E. RAWSON, SecY.
[In  Woodbridge's  Hand, excepting the Parts figned
by Rawlfon.]
[On the Back of the above Original is this Endorfement:   "This for the honoured Gouernour."]
The Teftimony of Jno. March,' aged 22 Years.
Teftifieth tha bout 6 Years fince I lived with Jno.
Wells, he working then at Bofton, and with him
1 John was a Son of Hugh March  is called Colonel in all the Hiftories.
the Emigrant, and born at Newbury,  He was often upon Expeditions
June loth, 1658.  He was after-  againft the Indians; had a Comwards known as Major March. His  mand in Sir William  Phipf's difWife was Jemima True, whom he  aftrous Canada Invafion, but the
married March I, i679.  Hugh  Time of his Death is not found.
emigrated in 1638, at the Age of He was living in I707, as on the
20, as given in the Lift of Paffen-  18th of May of that Year he failed
gers in  the Ship Confidence of with a large Armament of 23 TranfLondon.  See Founders of New  ports and Iooo Men to reduce Port
England, 58.  Coffin (Hift. New-  Royal.  The Attempt was a failure.
bury, 309) does not raife John  Penhailow, Belknap, and Book of
above the Rank of Major, but he  the Indians.




Appendix.                 283
there. Hee fent me Home to Newbury about fome
Bufines, and when I came Home the Wife of Jno.
Wels tolde mee that Ihee did not queflion but that
as I fhould fee Something in the Chamber at Night
and at Night I went to Bed and Daniell Greenleafe
with mee; and after wee had beene at Bed a little
While, and wee hearde agreat Noife in the Chamber.
I looked up and faw feuerall Cats and Rats at Play
together in the Chamber, running one after another;
the Rats after the Cats, and I was very much amazed
at it; and a little while after I flung feueral Things at
them but could not ftrik them. The next Morning,
before wee came out of the Chamber I heard Goody
Mors and my Dame Wells a talking together without
the Dore feuerall Words they had which was uery
loude and 1 hearde my Dame Wels call Goody Mors
Wich, and feuerall fuch Words, which I could not tell
the Meaning of, before I came downe, and I came
down my Dame Wels came in againe. She aiked me
if I faw fuch Things as are before expreffid. I afked
her why ihee afked mee? fhe told mee that Goody
Mors told her that I had feene Cats and Rats that
Night. Then Goody Wels told me that fihee afked
her how fhe knew it? She told her that thee heard
fo,I though neither I nor Daniel Greenleaf who
only knew it, had not bin out of the Chamber to tell
Anybody of it, nor feene any Body but onely ouerheard them talking.
The fayd Goodwife Wells hath profeffed before me
feverall Times, that often going to G. Morfe her
Houfe to fetch Water, ffiee hath feene fome fmall
Creatures, like Mice or Ratts run into the Houfe
after her, and runn under her Coats.
Taken on Oath, May I2th i68o.
1 From this Point to the End of of Woodbridge. The previous Part
the Depofition, is in the Autograph is in a Hand not recognized.




28+                Appendix.
This laff, Daniel Thurfton, and Rich. Woollworth
haue heard the fayd Goodwife Wells affirme, as they
teftify.
Sworn in Court May 20th i68o for John March.
The Teftimony of John March is thus fummarily
difpatched: —"He heard John Wells his Wife fay
fhe faw Imp o' God into laid Morfs Howfe.  She being prosecuted would not owne it, and was adjudged
to pay Damages, and now this is brought in."
The Depofisfhon of James Browne,I aged about 32
Years, teftyfyeth. yt about I5 Years agoe, I goein
from my Fathers to Mr. Woodmans of an Arent, met
with Goody Mofe and Gorge Whelere was under
faille; Goody Mofe afckt me what uefals it was?  I
fayd Gorge Whellors. She replyed he goes out
brafely; but Words to this Effe&t, that he thoud not
returne, for a Trick, fhe knewe: farder teftyfyeth that
I was one Night at Salfbery, and the next Day was at
Goody Mofes. She tould me of feferal of my miftcdemeners; among the Reft of what I did the Nyght
before, and I afckt her how fhe coulld tell of um? fhe
faide eferey Body fed it was true.  I replyed to her
efery Body fes you arr a Wich: fhe faid to me again,
our Safor Chrift was be lyed and foe is you and I.
John Myrch teftyfyeth that he heard Goody Mofe
owne before Mr. Woudbidg that the met with James
Broune when Gorge Whellr was gone out. Johnathan Haines teftyphyeth yt he heard Goody Mofe
owne yt fhe did reproue James Browne for his Mefdemeners. re Addition of yames Broune and yonathan
1 Coffin does not tell us what married Hannah —. His PaJames Browne this was, though he rentage is about as eafily traced as
has feveral among his Newbury that of 7ohn Smith. See Savage's
Lift. He is probably the one who N. E. Gen. Diet., Article SMITH.




Appendix.                 285
Heynes with former Oaths was by ym fworne vnto in
Court, 20 May, i68o.
E. RAWSON, Secy.
[The Part of the above in italic 5type is in the Hand
of Secretary Rawfion. 5ihe previous Part is in a moJl
difficult Chirography, and apparently by one of rare Ignorance of all Notions of Compofition. Probably in the Autograph of the Deponent.]
[More Importance feems to have been given to this
Teffimony than to any of the other, judging from the
Length of the Reply to it in the Petition: — " To
James Browne, yt one Day George Wheeler going
forth, my Wife fhould fay for a Trifle the knew he
thould not come in againe, which my Wife knowes not
of it, nor doth fome of ye Owners ever remember fuch
a Thing as to judge or charge it on hir, but now, but
now is brought forth fixteen Yeares after when his
Wife faid to Goody Hale yt faid Browne was miftaken.
Hir Hufband did come Home well that Voyage; and
that James Browne fhould fay to Robert Bedell, yt
Powell, whom we fued, did put in thefe Words, and
not himfelf in the Teftimony, and yt faid Browne did
oune to his Unkle, Mr. Nicholas Noyes yt he could
not fware to fuch a Teffimony; and did refufe to doe
it before Mr. John Woodbridge, and Mr. Woodbridge did admire he had fworn to it. And for his
feeing my Wife amongft Troopers. What Condition
he might be in wee leave it to Confideration. Wee
are Ignorant of fuch a Thing till now brought in fo
many Yeares agoe as he faith."]




286                 Appendix.
The Teftimony of Dauid Wheeler, of Newberry,
aged fifty flue Yeares or there abouts, teftifieth and
faith, that haueinge liued next Neighbour to Elizabeth
Mofs the Wife of Wm. Mofs of Newberry aforefd.
He tooke Nottice of many itrange Adions of her ye
faid Eliz: Mofs, more then euer hee fawe in any other
Woman; Part whereof I haue giuen in my Euedence
vnder Oath before Mr. Woodbridge, concerneing an
Heifer whereunto I would farther add that all the Reft
of yt Breed of Cattle haue gennerally mifcarrjed by
firange Accedents euer fince, till this prefent Time wch
is the Space of fifteene Yeares or thereabouts; as alfoe,
that ye fd Eliz: Mofs defired mee one Time to doe a
finale Peece of Worke for her, wch I negleded to doe
foe foone as fhee defired; and I goeinge many Dayes
on fowleinge, att yt Time, alwayes as to ye Gennerality,
came  Home wth loft Labour, wch my  Neighbour
Moody tooke Notice of as well as my felfe, and hee
told mee I would gett noe Geefe vntill I had finifhed
her Worke, wch accordingly I fpeedily did; and afterwards I had Succefs as I vfed to haue formerly.
Moreouer, feuerall other Accedents haue befallen mee
wch I belieue yt fhee, the faid Mofs, through the Malice and Enuy of her Heart againit mee might bee ye
Author of by Witchcraft, and farther faith not.
This Addition to his former Oath fworn to in Court
21 May, I68o.
E. RAWSON, Sec.
[In the Hand of Ifaac Addington, or one fimilar, except
the laft Paragraph, which is in Rawfon's Hand.]
1 This Teftimony of David bury in I645. He married Sarah
Wheeler is not noticed by Morfe. Wife, May 11th, i65o, by whom
According to Coffin, he was born he had feveral Children, whole
in Salifbury, England, in I625, Names and Dates of Birth may be
came to Hampton, thence to New- found in the Hifi. of Newbury, 32 I.




A4ppendix.               287
The Depoficon of Margett Mirack, aged about 56.
This Deponent teftifieth yt about a Letter yt came
from PufcattaqY, by Mr. Tho: Wiggens. Wee gott
Mr. Wiggens to reade ye Letter, and he went his Way;
and I prmifed to conceale ye Letter after it was read to
my Hufband and myfelfe, and wee both did conceale
it; neverthelefs, in few Daijes after Goode Mofs mett
mee and clapt mee on ye Back, and fed, I comend you
for fending fuch an Anfwerr to ye Letter. I prfently
alkt her wt Letter? Why, fd thee, hadif not thee fuch
a Letter from fuch a Man at fuch a Time, and fent
fuch and fuch an Anfwerr at fuch a Time?  I came
Home prfently and examined my Hufband about it.
My Hufband fd prfently, What? Is ihee a Witch, or
a cunning Wooman? Wherevppon we examined our
Family, and they fd they knew Nothing of ye Letter.
Afterwds I mett wth Goode Mofs and afkt her how
thee came to know it? and defired her to tell mee any
one pfon yt tould her, and I fhould be fatisfied. Shee
afkt mee why I was foe inquifitiue, and told mee fhee
could not tell.  My Hufband teftifieth that I prfently
tould him ye fame.
Sworne to in Court, 2i May, I68o.
EDw. RAWSON, Sec.
["To Goodwife Miricke about a Letter. My
Wife telling her fomewhat of ye Letter, which the
judges could not be and my Wife hearing of it, there
was a Difcourfe, &c. aboute this love Letter, might
fpeake Something about it by Guefs, and not by any
fuch Way as the judged, and many haue fpoken,
geffing at Things which might be." Morfe's Petition
&c.]
James Ordwaijes Bill of Coft, from Munday Morning to Thurfday Night; my Wife being fuiond by ye




288                      Appendix.
honnored Court to Bofton, and not being able of
Body to goe nor ride of herfelfe, I was bound to affift  my Wife  and  bring  her to  ye Court, which  hath
bin verry chargeable to mee; befides my Time to
carry her Home againe; therfore I leaue it to ye
Iudgement of ye honnored Court to giue mee wt they
fee good.
And my Wife, Attendance one day att Newbury
before Mr. Woodbridge, and refeued Nothing but Is
at Mr. Turners for my felf and my Wife.I
Benia Lowles2 Bill of Coft. 2 Days coming, and
on Days Atendans of ye Cort. 2 Days going Hom,
1 James Ordway's Wife's Tefti-  the Emigration, and appears to
mony is only to be inferred from   have been the  original Spelling.
Morfe's  Petition: — "Hir  Child  Benjamin was Son of John Lowle
being long ill, my Wife coming in  who came to Newbury in 1639,
and looking on it, pitting of it, did  with his Brother Richard.   He
feare it would dy; and when it  married Ruth, Daughter of the firft
dyed  Ifrael Webflter, our  next  Edward Woodman of Newbury,
Neighbour heard not a Word of it,  O&t., 1666. His Teftimony againft
nor fpoken of by others, nor any  Mrs. Morfe has not been preferved,
of yt Family but hir Conceite, and  but from the Notice taken of it by
now brought in."                   Morfe it was doubtlefs as childifh as
A  fimilar Cafe  was that of  any of the Reft.  Mr. Morfe re"Widow  Goodwin," who having  marks: -"To  Benjamin  Lowle
a fick Child "gave forth yt it was  about my Boy's [John Stiles] ketchbewitched by my Wife, as ihe  ing a Pidgin; my Boy defired of
thought: wee hearing of it, dealt  me to fee to ketch a Pidgin by
with hir about it, and fthe brake  throwing a Stone, or ye like, and he
forth in Teares, craving Forgiv-  brought a Pidgin, which I affirm
nefs, and faid it was others put hir  was wounded, though alive."  All
upon it, to fay as The did, but now   we can gather from  this is, that the
urged by Powell to fay as -he now   young  Rafcal  Stiles  fuccefsfully
faith."- MorJe's Petition.         played off one of his Tricks upon
Lowle, in which a Pigeon was con2 The Lowles of Newbury were  cerned, and which went to fwell
the Anceftors of the Lowells of  the Lift of fupernatural performBofton.  The Name was written  ances of Mrs. Morfe.  See ante,
Lowle for feveral Generations after  Pages I4i-2z, 26i.




Appendix.                          289
on Day at Neuberey: and two and Threpens charg
coming down. My Expences coming down. At Mr.
Perkins fix Pens: and at Capt. Martialls,I fix Pence:
and 2 Shilings 8 Pens of Mr. Turnor.
William Fannings Bill of Coflt.
For Attendance at Newbury before Mr.
Woodbridge..o-2-i6
1 His given Name faid to be  hardly Anything that was confiderThomas.  Long a noted Ordinary  able without his Affiflance; for his
or Tavern  Keeper.   Whatever  good Service at the fatal Battel of
may have been his given Name, he  Nafeby (which gave fuch a Turn
was, according to the Account given  to the King's Affairs, that he could
of him by John Dunton, an Officer  never after come to a pitched Batin the Parliamentary Army in the  tel,) he was made a Captain; from
Time of Charles I, and Cromwell.  thence he went to Leicefter, and
Dunton  may  have  exaggerated  befieged that, then went to York,
fomewhat in his Notice of the Cap-  and afterwards to Marfton-Moor;
tain, a Failing from which he was  and in fhort, rambled fo far in his
not entirely free.  But with a large  Difcourfe, that if I would have
Allowance for John's Propenfity in  flayed as long as he would have
that DireCtion, enough is left to  talked, he would have quite fpoiled
warrant the  Belief of the  main  my Ramble  to  Plymouth; and
Fa&s of his Statement, which I  therefore the Captain was forced to
extraft entire from his famous Life  leave a great Part of his noble Exand Errors:                       ploits unrelated."
"This  Captain  Marfhal is a    Some of our Cotemporaries, perhearty old Gentleman, formerly one  haps to appear wirer than others,
of Oliver's Souldiers, upon which  fuggeft that Capt. Marfhall may
he very much values himfelf:  He  have invented a Tale to amufe his
keeps an Inn upon the Road be-  Guefis.  The Suggeftion appears to
tween  Bofton  and  Marblehead:  us very weak.  Had Dunton been
His Houfe was well furniflhed, and  an American, born in New Engwe had very good Accommodation.  land, the Doubt might have fome
I inquired of the Captain  what  Weight; whereas Duntonwasmore
memorable Adions he had been in  than an ordinary intelligent Englifihunder Oliver, and I found I could not man jufi from the Theatre of the
have pleafed him  better; he was  Civil War, who would at once
not long in refolving me of the Civil have deteted any Attempt at an
War at his Finger's Ends; and if Abufe of that Sort.  His Inn was
we may believe him, Oliver did  probably in the Town of Reading.
Mm




290               Appendix.
For two Daijes coming...~o-4-0
Attending at ye Court one Day. oz2-o
For two Daies going Home...              -4-0o
James Brownes Expenfes for him felf and his Wife:For hiring a Horfe to bring downe his Wife ~o —5 —o
Expenfes at Rowley, my felfe, my Wife and
my Horfe.                             o —o
Expences at Wennham, myfelfe, my Wife
and Horfe.o —o 6
At Capt. Marfhalls..                     o-I —o
My Ferridge at Wemifett.                o-o-6
Pruiffion and Lodging fince we came to
Bofton.0-2-0
Ferridge backe againe and Horfe Meate 3
Nights o.-2My felfe and my Wife fumoned at Newbury...........-3-.   -30
For Attendance vppon ye Service in toe
Dayes comin, 2 Dayes Attendin in ye Corte
toe Dayes goin Hom..                4 —0
This is for comin from Nubery to wittnes a
giniJ Goody Mofe.
~I-I9 —-o0
[The part in italic Type is in the Hand of the Witnels.]
[Endorfe (by Rawfon)] Bills of Cofis for and againif
Elis. Morfe.  Keepr of Ipfwich Bill, Dauis, Fanning,
Knowlton and their Expenfe.
Dauid Whellors Bill of Coft.  On Days Atendans
at Neuburey, and two Dayes coming down, and two




Appendix.                  29 
Days goeing Hom, and on Days Atendans hear at
Bofton: I Spent on the Contreys Acoumpt, at Mr.
Turnors, fix Pens.
The Bill of Cofl for Zacaryah Dauis.
For two Days attending before Mr. John
Woodbridg....o-2 — 6
For two Days coming down.                 0-4-0
For one Days Atendane att Bofton. o-2-o
For two Dayes going Home...        -4 —o
For John Chafe Bill of Coit.
Two Dayes before Mr. John Woodbridge ~o-2-6
For two Dayes coming down...              -4-o
For one Dayes atending att Bofton.. o2 —o
For two Dayes going Home.. 0-4 —0
Wm. Chandlers Bill of Coft.
In prmis: for Attendance at Newbury before Mr. John Woodbridge two Daijes  o —2-6
For two Daijes coming, a Day Attendance
at Boflon..                            o-6-o
For two Daijes going Whome..              4- 
I haue pd moft of my Expences by ye Way, in Mony
out of my Pockett: I am aged, and came on Foot,
wch is verry hard for my aged Body to beare, therfore
I hope this honnored Court will confider me for my
Paines and hard Trauell.
1 " Turners" was a popular Inn John Turner (Father and Son) and
at that Time, and was known as by George Monck. It was in what
the Blue Anchor Tavern. Within is now Wafihington Street, and on
a Space of a few Years previous to what is now Number 92, or on the
168I it was kept by Robert and Lot next foutherly of it.




292                  Appendix.
Jofeph Bayles Bill of Coft.'
In prmis. 2 Daijes before Mr. Woodbridge ~o-2-6
For two Daijes coming, I Day attending,
and 2 Daijes going Home.                    o-0o —o
For my Expences coming, and att Bofton,
Mony,...... 0-6 —0
Which  I hope ye honnored Court will confider of
that I may haue thee Mony againe wch I haue layd
out of my owne Pockett.
Bofcon, I68o. This is to certify that by Order of
Or Honrd Gouernour vnto Andrew Neale for the Entertainmt and Dyet of fix of us that dwel at Nubury,
as Teftimonys agfl Elizabeth  Mofs, fhe being aprhended vpon Sufpicion of Witch Craft, and being
upon the Countryes Account, the faid Andrew  Neale
hath entertayned us with Dyet and Lodging, from the
i9th of May to the 2i1t Day: our Names being
John Glading,
William Fanin,
John Chafe,
Zachary Davis,
Benjamin Richardfon and
William Card.
Each of us 6 Meals, is 36 Meales, and our Lodging, and amounts to twenty Shillings as Money.
[Endorfed by SecY. Rawf on,] —" Andrew Neales Account. A Warrant."
1 Whatever Baylef's Teftimony  Jofeph fettled in Arundel, Maine,
was, it does not appear to have about 1700; being driven thence
been preferved, and Morfe does not in I 703 by the Indians, returned
notice it. According to Coffin this there in 1714. In Otober, 1723,
Jofeph Bailey was Grandfon of the he was killed by them, being then
Emigrant John Bailey, who came 75 Years old. He had a large
from  Chippenham, in Wiltihire, Family of Children, a Record of
England, to New England in 1635. which is given by Coffin.




Appendix.                293
We only know what John Glading fwore to by the
Anfwer of Mr. Morfe in his Petition:-"To John
Glading yt faw Halfe of my Wife, about two a Clocke
in the Daye Time; if fo, might [not he] then have
fpoken, and not referved for fo long a Time; which
fhe utterly denies it, nor know of any fuch Thing,
where fhe fhould be at yt Time as to clere her felf."
Although a Dweller at Nubury, and mentioned by
Coffin among the Witneffes, his Name is not found
in the Lift of the Inhabitants by that Author.
Zachary Davif's Teftimony is given in Coffin's
Newbury.  It amounts to this.  When faid Davis
lived at Salifbury, he promifed from Time to Time
to bring "a fmall Paffell of Winges" to Mrs. Morfe.
He came over three or four Times without bringing
the Wings, through Forgetfulnefs; and was yet reminded of his Promife by Mrs. Morfe every Time.
"Soe the tel me the wonder my Memory fhould be
foe bad; but when I came Home I went to the Barne,
and there was three Cafes in a Pen. One of them fell
a danceing and roreing, and was in fuch a Condition
as I neuer faw on Cafe in before. But [it] being
almoft Night the Cattle came Home and we put him
to his Dam and he fucke and was well three or four
Dayes. On of them was my Brothers. Then [he]
came over to Nubery, but we did not think to fend
the Winges. When he came Home I went to the
Barne, this Cafe fel a danceing and roreing. So wee
put him to the Cowe, but he would not fucke, but
rane a roreing away, foe wee gate him againe with
much Adoe, and put him into the Barne; and we
heard him roer feuerall Times in the Night; and in
the Morning I went to the Barne, and there he was
feting upon his Taile like a Doge, and I neuer fee no
Cafe fet after that Manner before; and fo he remained
in thefe Fits while he died."




294.              Appendix.
Morfe's Explanation is quite fatisfactory and to the
Point:- "To Zachariah Davis. To cenfure my Wife
now for not bringing Quills about I6 Years agoe; yt his
Lofs of Calfes was for that, when his Father being in
Communion with us, did profefs it to us, yt, he
judged it a Hand of God, and was farr from blaming
us, but rather troubled [that]- his Sonn fhould fo
judge."
Beniamanrichifin Bill of Cofc.
For Attendance at Neubry, before Mr.
Woodbridge,.........~o —— 6
For too Dayes coming.                  0-4-o
Attending at ye Court one Day.      o-2-o
For two Daies goin Home...           o-4 —
Caleb Moodys Bill of Coft for atending at
Nubery, my felf and Mrs. Gordinge, 2
Dayfe before Mr. Wodbridge,..;o —3 —o
For Hofs Hier in Monye..              o-5Expenfes at Rowly for Mrs. Gording
My felf and Horfe...  o-I-0
At Wenhome..                           o-o-6
At Capt. Morfhels..      o-o-6
Ferige at Winafimet...    o —o-6
For Expenfes at Boftone 3 Nits...    0-3-0
For Time coming dovne, atending and going Home, 5 Dayfe..    -0-0
For my Hors at Winefemet..        o- I-6
For Expenfes to carye ufe Whome... 0-2 —0
0-7 7 — 0




Appendix,                295
The Bill of Cofl of Peniwell Titcumbs Euedens'
againil Elizebeth Morfe.
For atending at Nubery before Mr. Wodbridge, I Daye..o —I —6
For 2 Dayfe coming doune.            0-4 —0
For I Daye tending the Cort.          o —2 —
For 2 Days to goe Home.0- o4 —o
Refeued of the Contrys Acovnt
At Quarter Mafler Perkenfes. ~o-o —6
At Capt. Marihals....  o-o-6
Expenfes at Mr. Lorens?... o-2-8
The Bill of Coft of John Mortch, Witnefs againit
Elizebth Morfe:On Daye at Nubery befor Mr. Wodbredge.o —-6
For fiue Dayfe coming doune and atending one to goe Home.-... o-Io —o
21st 3mO I680.
The Bill of John Glading.
A Day for atending before Mr. Woodbridge.. ~o —2-o
For to Days couming downe.0-4-0
A Day at Bofton.0-2- o20
To Days to goe Whom.0-4-0
Jofhua Richardfon Bill of Cofl.
For Attendance at Home before Mr. Jno.
Woodbridge to Dayes..o....o-2-6
1 As no feparate Evidence is Doubt for that of his Mother and
found of Penuel Titcomb, it was no Sifter that thefe Charges were made.




296               Appendix,.
For 2 Daijes coming, a Day attending ye
Court, and 2 Daijes going.            o-o-0o
For Expences vppon ye Rode and my
Ferridge.0 o2-10
A1l that IfSpent on ye Countys a Count as I cam doun wos
fix Pens, at quar Mr Pirkins. At Capt. Maffhalsfix Pens.
[The part in Italics in the Hand of the Witnefs,
probably.]
William Card Bill of Cofi.
For Attendance at Nebury, before Mr.
Woodbridge...o —2-6
For two Dayes comming.                  o-4-o
Attending at ye Court one Day.....    o-2For two Daies goin Home..                 -4 —o
[No Intimation of what William Card's Teftimony
was is found.]
Thus is concluded all the Documents concerning
the Trial of Mrs. Elizabeth Morfe in the Editor's
Poffeffion; Tfhowing the Origin  of the lamentable
Affair from its Commencement to the Bills of Cofts
of the Witneffes. To charaterize the Proceedings,
further than has been done in the Progrefs of printing
the Documents occafioned by them, would be a fuperfluous Labor, and they are therefore Submitted without further Remark.
FINIS.
ERRATA.- Page 65, Note, make I66i, i651. Page 95, line 12,
for Godwin, read Godman.




Names are fpelt according to their prefent Manner, generally, in this Index. To
Names are fpelt according to their prefent Manner, generally, in this Index. To
have followed that of the Documents ufed in the Work would have much increased
it, as the Names of the fame Perfon are often fpelt feveral Ways i often beginning
with a different Letter.
A  DAMS, N., Annals of Portf-  Bailey, Jofeph, 27I-2; Family of,
mouth, I o6.                     292.
Addifon, Jofeph, xxviii.             Baldwin, Goodwife, 82.
Addington, Ifaac, 148, 286.          Ballard, Jofeph, 206.
Age of Reafon, alas for the, xlviii.  Banks, John, an early Lawyer, 78.
Albany, Witchcraft in, 208.          Bard of Lynn (Lewis) xliii-vi.
Allen, Bouzoun, Conitable, 273.    Barlow, Goodwife, 83.
Andover, Witchcraft in, 87, 113,  Bartholomew, William, 75.
20o6.                             Bartlett, Jofeph, 139; Mary, I34;
Antagonifm, a  Warfare  between         Samuel, I40.
Reafon and Superftition, xviii;  Barton,  Bernard,  Extra&   from,
what it is, xix.                     xxiii; Eliza, Io6;  Elizabeth,
Apparitions, xxiv, xlii, 132.           133.
Aquendero, Indian Chief, 208.        Baffet, Goodwife, Trial of, 73-4,
Afhcom, Charles, 172.                   85.
Afhley, Mary,  234, 239, 242;  Baxter, Richard, on  Witchcraft,
Robert, ib.                          xi, xii.
Afhwood, John, Captain, 89.          Beale, William, bewitched, 205.
Atheifcs, Unbelievers in Witchcraft,  Beaman, Robert, 174; Simon, zzo,
xxix.                                254-5.
Atherton, Humphrey, 98.              Bedell, Robert, 285.
Atwater, Mrs., 89, 90o, 95; Mr.  Bellamont, Richard, (Earl) zo208David, 92.                           IO.
Bellingham, Richard, 98, I07.
BACK-BAY,  Bofton  Churches  Bentley, William, on Witchcraft,
in, xiv.                          98.
Bacon, Francis, believed in Witch-  Benton, Andrew, 123; G., ib.
craft, xxviii.                    Belfe,  Jofeph,  Sufferings  of the
Bacon, Leonard,  Difcourfes  of,        Quakers, 107, 119.
xxxii.                             Bible, Witches explained out of, xl.
Nn




298                         Index.
Bilhop, Bridget, executed, I9I;  Butler, S., References to and ExGeorge, Io07, Io8, I I9; Mrs.,   traes from his Hudibras, xxxvii,
89.                                68, I 23-4, I60.
Blacke, John, Juror, I39.
Blackftone, William (Sir), xxviii.    CABEL, Sarah, 83.
Blue Anchor Tavern, Bofton, 29I.        Calef, Robert, xv, I81.
Bodorthe, Blanche, 224-7, 239;  Capen, John, Juror, 145, 275.
Rice, 220.                      Card, William, 271, 292, 296.
Body of Liberties, 56.             Carrier, Martha, executed, 192.
Booth, Elizabeth, 1 89, 204; James,  Carrington, John, 233.
5 1.                            Cafe, Thomas, bewitches Quakers,
Bofton, Churches in a Quagmire,    I58.
xiv; Witchcraft in, 58-6I, 98,  Chandler,  William,  271,  275,
107, I80-5; bloody Town of,    291.
I 19; an Army of Devils in, 61.  Chapman, Henry, z I0-I.
Boutle, Henry, a Witnefs, 93.      Charles Seccnd, xxxi.
Bradbury, Judith, 263.             Chafe, John, 271-2, 280-1, 29I-2.
Bradihaw, Sarah, I25.              Chauncy, C., his Enthufiafticus,
Bradftreet, John, a Magician, 74-5.    159.
Bradftreet, Simon, 87, 98, II113-I4,  Child, Richard, Juror, 145, 274.
140, 145, I47, 170.             Chriftefon, Wenlock,  19.
Branch, William, 254, 256-7.       Churchill, Sarah, in a Witch CirBrafbridge, Rachel, I55.             cle, I89.
Brewfter, Eliz., 80; Mary, 81, 85,  Clarke,  John,  Conflable, 274;
95.                                William, Juror, 169.
Bridges, Robert, of Bofton, 98.    Claufen, Elizabeth, immerfed, 187.
Bridgman, Goodman, 254.            Clinton, Lawrence, zoo00; Rachel,
Brinley, John, on Witchcraft, xv.    ib.
Brooks, William, a Witnefs, 253.   Cloyfe, Sarah, I94.
Broughton, Brian (Sir), xv.        Coffin, J., cited, 143, 145, I48-9.
Browne, William, Affiftant, 145;  Cole, Ann, I20-2; Eunice, 100-3;
James, 271, 284-5, 290o.           William, I00.
Brundifh, Bethia, a Witnefs, 83.    Collins, Zacheus, of Lynn, 205.
Bryan, Alexr., a Lawyer, 78.       Colman, Thomas, molefted, 102.
Buckley, Gerflhom, 86; Peter, I45.  Colton, George, a Witnefs, 2z9,
Buff -- (Barefoote W.?), I 53.      236-9.
Burnham, Thomas, a Witnefs, 223.  Colve, Anthony, Captain, 134.
Burnings for WATitchcraft, I24-5,  Cooke, Aaron, a Juror, I69.
2 I 5.                          Coolin, Annakey, 172.
Burroughs, B., 210; George, ex-  Cooly, Benj,, a Witnefs, 238-41,
ecuted, I91.                       254; Mrs., 257.
Burt, Abigail,  224;  Jonathan,  Cooper, Thomas, 222-3, 244;
237-8.                             Goodman, 252.
Burton, Robert, on  Witchcraft,  Cornith, John, 2I0-II.
xxviii.                         Corwin, Jonathan (Judge), I90.




Index.                          299
Cory, Giles, prefied  to Death,    with, limited, li; Converfe with,
192-4; Martha, hanged, 194.       forbid by Law, 56; an Army of
Cotton, John, Laws of, 97.          Devils in Boiton, 6I; he perCoulter, Goodwife, I52.             forms  menial  Service  for a
Coutch, Robert, 107.                 Woman, 62; fcares Hogs, 63;
Cranch, Andrew, John, &c., I5I.    appears at Springfield, 67; one
Cudworth, Ralph, a Believer, xxviii.   fined and whipt for having FaCullender, Rofe, executed, 124.      miliarity with, 74; among the
Cullick, John, 63.                   Women at New  Haven, 75;
Cufhin, Jeremiah, Juror, I45, 273.    hovering in the Air, 88; SubjeEts for, ib.; of the Indians,
DALTON, SAMUEL, Coun-    go; at Hampton, loo; an Atcillor, I51-2.                tempt to cheat him, io8; in C.
Dane, Francis, II5-I 6; John, ib.;    Southwick, log; makes a WoNathan, I 1.                     man fpeak Dutch, 120; HudiDanforth, Mrs., a Witch, lii;    bras on, 123; gives a Woman
Thomas, I45, I70.                 ten Shillings, for which fihe is
Daften, Goodwife, accufed, 205.      burnt to Death, 124.; at Groton,
Davenport, John, 77, 78, 89.         131-2; Blafphemes, 132; InDavis, Zacheriah, 27I-2, 291-2.      dians forbid to worfhip, I 37; at
Davy, Humphrey, Councillor, I45.     Newbury, 143; infRigates ArguDay, Phebe, 200; Timothy, ib.        ments, 148; Contrats with a
Dean, John Ward, cited, iI5.         Hampton  Man,  I56;  fadly
Deane, S., Hirl. Scituate, 117.     fwindled, I57; vifits Plymouth,
Decanniffora, Onondaga Chief, 209.    158; bites a Woman, I60-1;
Defoe, Daniel, cited, xxvi,  80o.    throws down Log Fence, I62;
Demagogue, a contemptible one,    throws Stones, 163; fteals Axes,
XXv.                              i64;  at Hartford  throwing
Demoniacs, tortured by the Devil,    Stones and Corn Cobs, 166; on
xli.                              the Side of Juftice, I67; in
Denham, Elizabeth, a Witnefs, 15 1.    Mary Webfter, I68; triumphs
Denifon, Daniel, 98, I36, 145.       with C. Mather, 179; deferts a
Derbond, Henry, Juror, 15I.          Woman, 184; cannot affume
Defborough, Mercy, tried, I86;    the Shape of an innocent Perfon,
Nicholas, molefted, I66; Thom-    201-2; performs Baptifm, 207;
as, I86.                          cannot be fummoned, 2o8; in
Devil, may do Mifchief without a    South Carolina, zI5; at SpringWitch or Wizard, xvi; Origin    field, 244; meets his Witches,
of the, xxi; caufes Earthquakes,    245; in the Hogs, 263; at
Thunder and  Lightning, &c.,    Newbury, 266-7.
xxii; his Agency overlooked by  Difionaries, none early, xxvii.
Writers, xxxii; explained out of Dike, Richard, 201; Rebeckah,
the New Teftament, xxxvi, xl;    ib.
appears to M. Luther, xxxvii;  Dinfon, Rachel, Widow, zoo.
tortures Demoniacs, xli; Leagues  Dole, John, 26o; Benjamin, ib.




300                         Index.
Dorchefter, Anthony, 230-2, 236-  Fenn, Benjamin, Magiitrate, 95.
8, 241.                         Fernald, Renald, Magiftrate, Io4.
Downing, Mehitable, releafed, 2oo.  Filmer, Robert, Sir, on Witchcraft,
Drake, Abraham, Io02; Juror, 15I.    XV, 208.
Drake, Robert, of Hampton, Io2.  Fortune-telling, Witchcraft, xlii.
Drake, S. G., Witchcraft Delufion,  Fofter, John, Juror, I39; James,
xii, xxvi, lii; Founders of New    Confrable, 275.
England, 6I, 116, 282; Hifory  Fowler, William, Magiftrate, 83.
of Bofton, 61, 98, 131.         Fuller, John, Wife accufed, 50o-6.
Dryftreet, Henry, I71.
Ducking to determine Witchcraft, -   ARLCKE   Mrs.  accufed
122, I80, i86, 21 I-15.'Jp  
Dudley, Jofeph, Councillor, 145.    Gardner0 Lion f e -ii
Dummer, Stephen, 281.              Gardner, Lion, 111Dunen, Jonathan,.58.              Gedney, Bartholomew, 145.
Dunton, John, ExtraE from, 289.  George the Firf (King), I25
h    Ghofts, akin  to Witches, xxiv
Duny, Ann, burnt for a Witch,  Gho'ts, akin  to Witches, xxiv
Progenitors of, xlii; feen near the
I 24   *.         Metropolis, xlii; in the MeDwight, Timothy, cited, xxxi.        tropolis, xiii; at Fort Warren,
EARLE, ROBERT, Depofition,               xliv.
268-9.                        Glading, John, z7I, 292-3 295.
Earthquakes, caufed by the Devil,  Glover, Mrs., executed at Bofton,
xxii.                              181-5.
XXi1impton., Witchcraft in, 1I    Godfrey, John, 87; Children beEafthampton, Witchcraft in, 110.        d              
Eaity, Mary, executed, I94.          wiched,  04  13Eaton, Theophilus, 95.        Godman, Elizabeth, 88, 9o-5.
Edwards,  Alexander, 229-3t.       Good, Sarah, accufed, I9oj; exeEdwards, Alexander, 229-30.''
Elkins, Gerfhom, Juror, 15           cuted,   96.
Elwell, Samuel, Wife imprifoned,  Gookin, Daniel, 98, 136, 
201.                            Goodwin, John, Cafe of his Children, I80-5; Sufanna, 271-2,
Endicott, John, 98, 109-10.            88.
Englifh, Philip, Indictment of, 203  2
imprifoned, 204.                Goodyear, Stephen, 89, 9I, 97.
Erafmus, Defiderius, cited, xxxvi.   Goodinge, Mrs., a Witnefs, 294
Gould, Mrs., an Accufer, 82-3 
Evans, Mrs., lo6; Benjamin, 152.    Hannah F. cited, 49-50 
Evil, Origin of, xxiv.'
Evils, when not Evils, xxi.        Green, John, Juror, 45, 274.
Greenleafe, Daniel, 259, 283.'AIRFIELD, Witchcraft in, 79,  Greenfith  Mrs., executed, 21
F    83-4.'     hatn79           Nathaniel, I I9, 121, 123.
Fanning, William, 265-7, 271-2,
289, 292.                       HADLEY, Witchcraft in, I74Felt, Jofeph B., Hill. of Ipfwich,       8.
74.                             Haines, Jonathan, 271-2, 285.




Index.                          301
Hale,  Matthew   (Sir),  xi-xiii,  IGNORANCE,  the  Parent of
xxviii, 124.                        Superftition, xvi, xxx.
Hall, Cornelius, 82; Mary, I26-  Indians, God of the, 79, 80, 82;
7; Ralph, 126; Rebeckah, 82.    Devil of the, go; a Child of,
Hall, John, 265-6.                   I I; Witchcraft, 136, 2o8-Io;
Ham, old, Negro, 107.                none at the Vineyard, I39; in
Hampton, Witchcraft in, 99, 103,    Advance of the Englifh,  40o;
I 50.                             fome at Albany, 209; forbid to
Hancock, George, zIo-I I.            powow, I37.
Harper, John, 212.                Ingham, Mary, accufed, 137.
Harrifon, Katherine, a Witch, I 29.  Innocent, viii, Pope, xxix.
Harrod, Thomas, Juror, 273.
Harwood, Thomas, Juror, 145.       JACKSON, A., on counterfeit
Hafkins, Thomas, Juror, 138.      J   Money, xviii; Abraham, I39.
Haftings, Thomas, Juror, 140.     Jacobs, George, 189; executed,
Hathorne, John, Judge, 19o.          I96; Margaret, ib.
Haunted Houfe, one vifited, xlii.   James the Firft, his Demonology,
Hayman, Nathan,  Juror,  I45,    xxvi; recommended  throwing
272.                              accufed Perfons into the Water,
Haynes, Edmund, 219; John, 73;    123.
Jofeph, 12 I.                   Johnfon, Elizabeth, accufed, 205;
Herman, Goodman, 221I.               Mary, confefted Familiarity with
Hibbins, Anne, 98; executed, 99.    the Devil, 62; executed, ib.;
Hill, Luke, molefted, z I o- II.     Samuel, a believer in Witchcraft,
Hilton, Hannah, 259.                 xxviii; Thomas, 89, 97.
Hinman, R. R., cited, 74.         Jones, Griffin, 232, 251; MarHollifter, Geo. H., cited, 86.       garet, executed, 58-61; Miftres,
Holmes, William, Juror, 117.         79, 80, 85; Mary, iz8; Mr.,
Hooke, William, 89, 9I-3, 96.        6o-I, 82.
Hooker, Samuel, Magiftrate, 12I.  Judd, Sylvefter, cited, 65, I 27,
Hooper, Madam, Fortune-teller,    I29-30, 134, 136.
xlix-lii.
Hopkins, Matthew, 60, I23-4.    K1INGSBURY, SUSANNA,
Hortado, Antonio, 159-60.               marriage of, 270.
Howe, Elizabeth, executed, I96.    Knap, Elizabeth, bewitched, I31.
Howland, John, Juror, I39.        Knapp, Mrs., Trial and Execution,
Hudibras, extraEted.  See BUTLER,    77-86; SamuelL., Extradt from,
S.                                xlviii.
Hudfon, Alice, burnt for a Witch,  Knight, John, Juror, 145, 272.
124.                           Knowlton, Thomas, Jailor, 144,
Huen, Jacob, Juror, 145, 275.        280, 290.
Hull, John, Affiftant, I45.
Hutchinfon, Edward, 69; Francis,  L ACY, EDWARD, Accufation
123-4; Thomas, xxxiii, 99,           againft, I65.
II9, I33, I90.                 Lamberton, Elizabeth, 89, 91.




302                         Index.
Lankton, George, 219; Hannah,    led, I43; "Triumph with the
220-I, 248-9.                      Devil," 179; Difcovers the Devil
Lardner, Nathaniel, xxxvi, xl.       in an old Woman, 184; fhuflfes
Larremore, Goodwife, 89, go.         out in a Mift, 201.
Laws againft  Witchcraft,  xxvi,  Mather, Increafe, on Witchcraft,
55-7, 97; againft Powowing,    xi; Extraits from, xxxvii, 76,
I37.                      _        122, 132, I65-6, I86.
Leet, William, 89, 95.             Mathews, John, a Witnefs, 228,
Leonard, Sarah, a Witnefs, 239.      244, 254; Pentcoft, killed, 228.
Leverett, John, Governor, 136.     Matfon, Margaret, a Witch, 171Levet, Aratus, 151; Thomas, ib.      2; Neels, I73.
Levit, Hazen, a Witnefs, 155.      Merrick,  231;  Thomas, 244;
Lewis, Alonzo, Extraft from, xliii-    Mrs., 245-6.
vi; Mercy, 189, 205.            Middlecott, Richard, a Juror, 145,
Littleton, Witchcraft in, 216.       273.
Lockwood, Deborah, 82; Mrs.,  Mighell, John, Evidence, 267-8,
80o; Sufan, 82.                   27 I-2.
Lowle, Benjamin, 27I-2; Family,  Miles, Mary, 89, 95.
ib., 288.                       Millennium, Calculators  of, eftiLudlow, Roger, 77, 82, 86.           mated, xxxv; Humbug, xxxvi.
Lumbard, John, 221, 243, 250.    Miller, Thomas, a Witnefs, 222,
Luther, Martin, Encounter with the   251; Sarah, bewitched, z252;
Devil, xxxvii.                     William, xxxv.
Lux, Chriftopher, 15I.             Mirack, Margaret, a Witnefs, 287.
Lyon, Richard, 84.                 Miracles, diminifh  in  Number,
Lynn, Witchcraft in, 205,            xxiii; all things Miracles, xxiv.
Moody, Caleb, 263, 265, 271,
N%/AGIC, Book of, 75.                294; Jolhua, a Witnefs, I65;
March, John, 282; Family,    William, 276.
ib., 284, 295.                  Morgan, Miles, 251; Prudence,
Marthall, AbiIhag, 151; Thomas,    25I-2.
289-go, 295-9.                  Morfe, Abner, reference to, I48;
Marlhfield, Mrs., 71, 226, 244;    Elizabeth, profecuted, i44; imSamuel, 225, 250-2; Sarah,    prifoned  and  fentenced to be
250-I; Thomas, 222.-.             hung, I45; John, 274; WilMarfton, Thomas, Juror, I51;    liam, mole-ted, i4I; a ProfecuWilliam, ib.                       tor, I43; Petition of, I47; his
Martin, Sufannah, profecuted, 128-    Refidence, 149; Trial, &c., 25 89; executed, 196.                  296.
Mafon, John, at Saybrook, 112.    Mofely, Edward, Col.,  IO-I 1.
Mather, Cotton, on Witchcraft, xi,  Moulton, Jonathan, Gen., makes a
xiii, xxii; on Witchcraft in Eu-    League with the Devil, 156;
rope, xxxiii; Extra& from, 57,    fwindles him out of a vaft Sum
61; on "an Army of Devils,"    of Money, 156-7.
ib.; on Moleftations, 75-6; equal-  Moxon, George, Rev., Children




Index.                          303
bewitched, 65, 7I, z28; a Wit-   tion of, I 9; bewitched a Pudnefs, 228, 235, 250, 253.         ding, ib., 222; whets Saws in the
Mun, Abigail, a Witnefs, zz4,    Night, 223; threatening SpeechZ32; Goodman, 223.                es, 224; makes aLightin a WoMyftery, how folved, xxii; Love    man's Chamber, 225; tortures
of, xxiii; all things Myfteries,    her in Bed, 226; appears as a
xxiv, xxxix.                      Dog, 2z7; bewitched Moxon's
Children, z28; a Brick-maker,
NEALE, ANDREW, Innkeep-    ib.; caufes a Girl to have Fits,
er, 29z.                      ib.; dries up a Cow, 229-30;
Necromancers, contra&  with the    fpirits away a Neat's Tongue,
Devil, xvi.                        230-32; abduats a Knife withNeelfon, Anthony, 173.               out Hands, 233; bewitched his
Newhall and Lewis, Hiftory of    Child, 235; dreamed of a Fight
Lynn, xlvii.                      with the Devil, 240; accufed by
New Haven, Witchcraft in, xxvi,    his Wife, 239-43; bewitched a
75, 77.                           Trowel, 243; a Beer Barrel,
Newman, Francis, 89, 95.             z46; fends Snakes to one, 247;
Newton, Ifaac (Sir), fuperffitious,    another Pudding bewitched, 249;
xxviii.                           bewitched Sarah Miller, 252;
Nicolls, Richard (Governor), I25.    Goody Stebbing, 253;  frightNolton. - See KNOWLTON.              ens Horfes, 255; bewitches
Northampton, Witchcraft in, 134.    Bags of Meal, 255; alfo WilNourfe, Rebecca, 194; executed,    liam Branch, 256.
197.                            Parfons, John, accufed, I36, 140.
Noyes, Nicholas, I95; "Fire-  Parfons, Jofeph, I34; Mary his
brands of Hell," 196; Eleation    Wife profecuted, 134; pleads
Sermon, 198, 285.                 her own Caufe, I35-6.
Parfons, Mary, Wife  of Hugh
ODEL, Goodwife, 80o, 81, 84.    Parfons, 66-68;  accufes  her
Oliver, Mary, executed, 64.    Hufband of Witchcraft, 222;
Ordway, Ann, 27z; James, ib.,    Reafon  why, 233-5, 239-40,
263, 287; John, 263, 271.        243, 251.
Original Sin, xxiv.               Partrigg, Samuel, Clerk, 169.
Ofborn, Ruth, 18o; Sarah, 190.   Payne, George, of Great Ifland,
Oyfter Bay, Witchcraft in, I 17.     I5I; Robert, Juror, 204.
Pearfon, George, 15I.
pANTON, RICHARD, I3I.    Pell, Thomas, 79, 80, 84, 85.
Parat, Francis, a Witnefs, 75.  Pendleton, Bryan, 1o4.
Paris, Samuel, Rev., I9o0.        Penn, William, Judge, 17I, 17z.
Parker,  Alice, hanged, 197-8;  Pepper, Francis, a Witneis, 242,
John, 198; Mary, hanged, ib.     251.
Parfons, Hugh, accufed of Witch-  Perkins,  Abraham, Juror, I5I;
craft, 66; indided, 68; profe-    John, 289, z95-6;  William,
cuted for Libel, 71-2; Examina-    Authority on Witchcraft, xi.




304                          Index,
Pharao, old, Negro Slave, 205.      Reed, Doftor, 15z; Willmot, exPhips, William, Sir, discharges Pri-    ecuted, I98-9.
foners, 191.                     Rhode Ifland, Witchcraft in, 217.
Philadelphia, Witchcraft in, I73.    Richards, John, 145, 203, zII.
Philip, King, his War, I37.         Richardfon, Benjamin, Teftimony,
Pike, Jofeph, Confrable, 269-70;       z6, 271-2, z9z, 2z94; Jofhua,
Family, ib., 272.                   262, 271-2.
Pitcher, Mary, Hiftory of, xlv-viii.  Richmond, John, a Juror, 139.
Plymouth Colony, infefted, 56, 15 8.  Robins, Richard, Juror, I45, 274.
Pope, Alexander, Extraft, xxiii.    Roby, Goodman, 103; Henry,
Pope, Seth, Juror, 139.               Juror, 151-2.
Portfmouth, Witchcraft in, 103.     Rogers, Ann, died of Witchcraft,
Powell, Caleb, 142, I43, 280, 285.     I26.
Powowing, Law made againit,1I37.  Rolfe, Daniel, 278.
Pratt, Benijah, Juror, 139.         Rofs, David, Judge, I25; Mary,
Prefcott, Mrs., a Witch, 152.         poffeffed, 158.
Pritchard, Joanna, 221; Roger,  Rowe, Elizabeth, io6; Nicholas,
249.                                1o6; Phebe, zoo; Hugh, 20I.
Prime's Hitll. Long Ifland, I Io-lz.  Rowley, Witchcraft in, 74.
Pro&er, John, I89; executed, 198.  Ruffell, James, a Juror, 145.
Prophets in all Periods, xxxv.      Ryall, Jofeph, Conftable, 272.
Pudeater, Ann, executed, I98.
Pudding, one bewitched, zI9-z22z   SAINT Dunfian Church, xiv.
another, 248-9.                       Salem, unduly reproached, ix,
Puddington, Agnes, John, Wit-    xxx; Witchcraft in, 187-208.
neffes, 1 o6.                    Salter, William, Prifon-keeper, I 0 1.
Puritans, much abufed, xxxi; un-  Saltonflall, Nathaniel, 145; Richjufily  reproached, ib.;  by  a     ard, ib.
Wefiern Bifhop, xxxiv.           Sanborn, John, Juror, 151.
Putnam, Ann, Thomas, 189.           Saunderling, James, I72.
Pynchon, John, 70, 145, I69.        Savage, James,  Perverfity,  76;
Pynchon, William, 65, 76; his    cited, I II, I 51, 167; "the
Record  of Proceedings againft    Devil and Cotton Mather," 179;
Hugh Parfons, Z19-258.              Opinion of the  Judges, 208,
272, 285.
(1 UAKER  POET, in  Error,  Savage, Thomas, Councillor, I45.
xlii, xliii.                      Saybrook, Witchcraft in, II2.
Quakers  accufed  of  Witchcraft,  Scituate, Witchcraft in, I16, 137.
I07- 0; a Crime to be a Quaker,  Scott, Margaret, executed, 199.
118, 158.                        Searl, Joanna, 224; John, 229.
Seger, Elizabeth, Trial, 127.
RAWSON, Edward, 88, 98,  Sewell, Beffe, 245, 249; Jane,
io3, I09, 146, 232, 254-56.    281; Thomas, 221.
Randall, Mary, 185; William, I86.  Sewall's Hiftory of the Quakers,
Redman, John, a Witnefs, 103.          1I 8.




Index.                          305
Sheldon, Sufannah, 189.           TABLE  TURNING, a branch
Sherburn, Henry, I04; Samuel,           of Witchcraft, xlii.
26o.                            Talbot, Gerud, I39.
Sherwood, Mrs., 79, 84-; Grace,  Talcott, Captain, I23.
Proceedings againft for Witch-  Tappin, Sufanna, 277.
craft, 21 0-i 5.                Taylor, Anthony,  5i; Jonathan,
Simcook, John, 172.                  70, 232, 240, 245, 248, 253-4,
Smith, Henry, 242, 243, 256.         257.
Smith, John, a Juror,  I 5; Mrs.,  Thompfon, B. F., Hiftory of Long
240.                              Ifland, I I I, 117; John, 84.
Smith, Nathaniel, a Witnefs, 152.  Thorrowgood, Major, z2lI.
Smith, Philip,  bewitched,  169,  Thorpe, Goodman, 89.
I74, 176-7; William, 21I.       Thurfton, Daniel, a Witnefs, 284.
Snow, Mark, a Juror, I39.         Titcomb, Elizabeth, 271, 277-9;
Soames, Abigail, imprifoned, 201.    Lydia, 278; Penuil, 272, 292.
Southampton, Witchcraft in, I65.   Towle, Mrs., 151; ifabella, I56.
South Carolina, Witchcraftin, 215.  Tilton, Peter, 169, 170.
Southwick, CafIandra, Io8-Io.     Time, Indian Squaw Servant, 92.
Spafford, H. G., Gazetteer, cited,  Titcomb, Elizabeth, Witnefs, 258;
127.                              Peniel, 259.
Spencer, Edmund, extra&t, lii.    Tituba, Indian Servant imprifoned,
Spirit Rappings, xxxviii; a Co-    190.
lony of S. Rappers, xxxix, xlii,  Tomfon, Attorney General, 21 I.
xlviii.                         Travelly, Thomas, I65.
Spiritualifm, Divination, xli.    Trimmings, Oliver, 105; SufanSprat, Henry, a Juror, 21 1.         nah, 104.
Springfield, Witchcraft in, 64-72,  Trumbull's  Col. Records,  1 I,
I85.                              112.
Squire, Goodwife, a Witnefs, 84.   Turpin, Thomas, I07.
Staplies, Thomas, his Wife accufed,  Turell, Ebenezer, 216-17.
77-85.                          Turnor, John, Innkeeper, 288-9.
Stebbings, John, I40, 245, 252-3.  Tyler, Job, 87-8, 113-I4:
Stiles, John, I41; Mifcreant, 142,  Tyng, Edward, 145.
261, 27I, 288.
Stone, John, Juror, 145; Samuel,  UPHAM, C. W., cited, 74, I98,
63, I 20.                             200.
Stoughton, William, I145, 208.
Stratford, Witchcraft in, 72, 74.    XQJADSWORTH,JOHN, 138.
Superftition, debating, ix;  Em-          Wait, John, Juror, 145,
blems of, xv, xvii; at War    273.
with Reafon, xviii; Fetters to  Walford, Thomas, 103; Mrs.,
Mankind, xxiii; a Millennium      103-7.
Humbug, xxxvi.                  Walch, Machael, 259.
Sylvefter, Dinah,  117.           Walcut, John, 189; Mary, I82,
Symonds, Samuel, 98.                 204.
Oo




306                         Index.
Waldron, Richard, i o1.           Winthrop, John, 57, 59Walton, George, I62-5.            Wife, Sarah, marriage of, 286.
Ward, Andrew, 79, 85.             Wifeman, Elizabeth, 26i.
Wardwell, Samuel, executed, 199.  Witch Books, xi-xvi, 174, 189.
Warren, Mary, afflifted, 189.     Witch Circles, 189.
Warrener, William, 224.           Witchcraft, Cafes of, in N. Eng.,
Watfon's Annals of New  York,    fimilar to thofe in Old Eng., vi,
126-7.                           viii; the World never free from,
Waye, Richard, Juror, 145, 273.     xxx; among  Indians, I36-7,
Webfter, Ifrael, 288.               208.
Webiter, Mary, 168-71, 174.       Witch-finders, 60.
Wells, John, 282-4;  Thomas,  Witch Teats difcovered, 80, 214.
28I.                           Wonders of the Invifible World,
Weftchefter; Witchcraft in, I33.    I 8.
Weftern Biihop, Sneers of one,  Wood, George, bewitched, 126;
xxxiv.                            Silas, Hift. of L. I., I Io.
Wheeler, David, Teftimony, 261,  Woodbridge, John, Commiffioner,
272, 286; George, 284.           144, 259.
Whiting, John,  12, 122.          Woodhoufe, Horatio, 21I.
Whitlocke, Goodwife, 83.          Woodman, Edward, 288; JonaWhitnels, Jeremy, 89, go.           than, Depofition, 259-60, 27I-2.
Whittier, John G., 107-Io, 118,  Woodworth, Mehittable, 137-8.
158.                           Woolworth, Richard, a Witnefs,
Wiggin, Thomas, 98, 287.            284.
Wigglefworth, Michael, 203.       Wright, Hannah, I I9; Mary, I I7Willard, John, executed,  I99;    I9t Samuel, 225.
Samuel, 13I-2; Simon, 98.      Wyllys, George, II2-I3; Samuel,
Wildes, Sarah, executed, I99.       I 12, I23.
Williams, Abigail, 189.
Willis.  See WYLLYs.              XyANKEES, flurred by a WeftWillfon, Efther, a Witnefs, 275.       ern Bilhop, xxxiv.
Winflow, Jofiah, 137; Nathaniel,  Yatef's Smith's New York, I27.
129.