Witchcraft -- England; Witchcraft -- Great Britain; Witchcraft -- Scotland
In 1596 Mr. Darrel had more work. Thomas Darling, "the Boy of Burton," had
offended old Alice Goodridge; so Alice possessed him, and Mr. Darrel was
sent for the undoing. His chief weapon in this case was a ranting tract
called "The Enemie of Securitie," which the devil could not abide any how,
and during the reading of which he would cry out--through the earthly
medium of the Boy of Burton--"Radulphus, Belzebub can doe no good, his
head is stricken off with a word."--"We cannot prevaile (against the
church and Mr. Darrel), for they will not be holpen by witches. Brother
Radulphus, we cannot prevaile; let us go to our mistress and torment her;
I have had a draught of her blood to-day." "Againe--'There is a woman
earnest at prayer, get her away.' 'Nay,' quoth John Alsop (a man that was
present), with a loude voice, 'we cannot spare her.' Thus the Boy graced
Mistress Wightman, his aunt. And againe, 'Brother Glassop (another devil),
we cannot prevaile, his faith is soe strong. And they fast and pray, and a
preacher prayeth as fast as they.'" And "I bayted my hooke often, and at
last I catcht him. Heere I was before, and heere I am againe, and heere I
must stay, though it be but for a short tyme. I leade them to drink,
carouse, and quaffe. I make them to sweare. I have leave given mee to doe
what I will for a time. What is wightier than a Kinge in his owne lande? A
King I am, in whome I raigne, heere I am King for a time." With much more
of the same kind. In the mean time old Alice Goodridge, who had wrought
all this mischief, died in prison, while her devilish spirit or imp,
Minnie, whom she had sent into the boy, racketed and rioted in his soul
and body, and Mr. Darrel wrestled against him with prayer and "the Enemie
of Securitie." He finally prevailed, and after Thomas Darling had been
possessed and dispossessed and repossessed again, delivered him from
Radulphus and Minnie and Glassop and Beelzebub, and so had leisure to turn
to some one else when needed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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