The earliest English printed book on witchcraft, pure and simple, that I can find is ‘The Examination of John Walsh,’ London, 1566. He confessed to having trafficked with ‘Feries’ and learned much from them respecting stolen goods and bewitched people; but in replying to his eighth interrogatory, ‘He being demaunded whether he had euer any Familiar or no; he sayth that he had one of his sayde mayster. Which Familiar (after his booke of Circles was taken from him by one Robert Baber of Crokehorne, then being Constable, in the yeare 1565) he could neuer do anything touching his Familiar, nor the use thereof, but hys Familiar dyd then depart from him, and wyll neuer come to him agayne, as he sayth. And further, he sayth upon his oth, that his familiar would sometyme come unto hym lyke a gray blackish Culuer,[41] and somtyme lyke a brended Dog, and sometimes lyke a man in all proportions, sauinge that he had clouen feete. ‘Ninthly, he being demaunded howe long he had the use of the Familiar; he sayd one yeare by his sayd masters life, and iiii yeres after his death. And when he would call him for a horse stollen, or for any other matter wherein he would use him; he sayth hee must geue hym some lyuing thing, as a Chicken, a Cat, or a Dog. And further he sayth he must geue hym twoo lyuing thynges once a yeare. And at the first time when he had the Spirite, hys sayd maister did cause him to deliuer him one drop of his blud, whych bloud the Spirite did take away upon hys paw. ‘Tenthly, he sayth that when the Familiar should doo anything at his commaundment, in going any arrant; he would not go, except fyrst two wax candels of Virgin Waxe should first haue bene layd a crosse upon the Circle, wyth a little Frankensence, and saynt John’s woorte, and once lighted, and so put out agayne: which Frankensence must be layd then at euery end of the Candel, as he sayth a crosse, and also a litle Frankensence with saynt John’s woort burned upon the grounde, or euen the Familiar would go the message, and returne agayne at the houre appoynted....