9. With regard to the appearance of the foul fiend on the mountain in the shape of a hairy giant, that indeed was the heaviest _gravamen_, inasmuch as not only old Lizzie, but likewise three trustworthy witnesses, had seen him. But who could tell whether it was not old Lizzie herself who had contrived this devilish apparition in order to ruin her enemy altogether; for that notwithstanding the apparition was not the young nobleman, as _Rea_ had declared it to be, it still was very likely that she had not lied, but had mistaken Satan for the young lord, as he appeared in his shape; _exemplum_, for this was to be found even in Scripture: for that all _Theologi_ of the whole Protestant Church were agreed that the vision which the witch of Endor showed to King Saul was not Samuel himself, but the arch-fiend; nevertheless, Saul had taken it for Samuel. In like manner the old harlot might have conjured up the devil before _Rea_, who did not perceive that it was not the young lord, but Satan, who had put on that shape in order to seduce her; for as _Rea_ was a fair woman, none could wonder that the devil gave himself more trouble for her than for an old withered hag, seeing he has ever sought after fair women to lie with them. Lastly, he argued that _Rea_ was in nowise marked as a witch, for that she neither had bleared and squinting eyes nor a hooked nose, whereas old Lizzie had both, which Theophrastus Paracelsus declares to be an unfailing mark of a witch, saying, "Nature marketh none thus unless by abortion, for these are the chiefest signs whereby witches be known whom the spirit _Asiendens_ hath subdued unto himself." When _Dom. Syndicus_ had read his _defensio_, my daughter was so rejoiced thereat that she would have kissed his hand, but he snatched it from her and breathed upon it thrice, whereby we could easily see that he himself was nowise in earnest with his _defensio_. Soon after he took leave in an ill-humour, after commending her to the care of the Most High, and begged that I would make my farewell as short as might be, seeing that he purposed to return home that very day, the which, alas! I very unwillingly did. _The Twenty-third Chapter_ HOW MY POOR CHILD WAS SENTENCED TO BE PUT TO THE QUESTION