Calef, who when he wrote was generally supposed to be under
unreasonable prejudice against the country, which lessened the credit
of his narrative, says that at the trial of Sarah Good, one of the
afflicted fell into a fit, and after recovery cried out that the
prisoner had stabbed her and broke the knife in doing it, and a piece
of the knife was found upon the afflicted person; but a young man
declared that the day before he broke that very knife and threw away
a piece of it, this afflicted person being then present; and adds
that the court bid her tell no more lies, but went on notwithstanding
this fraud to improve her as a witness against other prisoners.[65]
This account, if true, would give me a more unfavorable opinion even
of the integrity of the court, if I had not met with something not
unlike to it in the trials before Sir Matthew Hale. The afflicted
children in their fits upon the least touch from Rose Cullender, one
of the supposed witches, would shriek out, which they would not do
when touched by any other person. Lest there should be any fraud, Lord
Cornwallis, Sir Edmund Bacon, Sergeant Keeling and other gentlemen
attended one of the girls whilst she was in her fits at another part of
the hall, and one of the witches was brought, and an apron put before
the girl’s eyes, but instead of the witch’s hand another person’s hand
was taken to touch the girl, who thereupon shrieked out as she used to
do. The gentlemen returned and declared to the court they believed the
whole was an imposture. The witch was found guilty notwithstanding, and
the judge and all the court were fully satisfied with the verdict and
awarded sentence accordingly.
Susannah Martin had been suspected, ever since 1669, so that a great
number of witch stories were told of her, and many of them given in
evidence. One of the other being told by the minister at the place of
execution, that he knew she was a witch, and therefore advised her to
confess, she replied that he lied, and that she was no more a witch
than he was a wizard, and if he took away her life, God would give him
blood to drink.
At one of these trials it is said that one of the accusers charged Mr.
Willard, a minister of Boston, and that she was sent out of court, and
afterwards a report spread that she was mistaken in the person.[66]
It is more probable that she intended [John] Willard, who was then in
prison, and that it was given out that the audience were mistaken.
At the next adjournment, Aug. 5th, George Burroughs, John Proctor and
Elizabeth his wife, John Willard, George Jacobs and Martha Carrier
were all found guilty, condemned, and all executed the 19th of August,
except Elizabeth Proctor, who escaped by pleading her belly.
Burroughs had preached some years before, but it seems not to
acceptance, at Salem village. Afterward he preached at Wells in the
Province of Maine. As a specimen of the proceedings in all the trials
we shall be a little more particular in relating his.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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