Isaac Cummings, Sr.
June 27 1692 disposition of Isaac commins syner aget about sixty years or thare abouts who testyfyeth and saith that about aight yers agou James how iunr of ipswich came to my hous to borow a hors I not being at home my son isaac told him as my son told me whan I cam home i hade no hoes to ride on but my son isaac did tell the said how that he hade no hors to ride on but he hade a mare the whiah he though his father would not be wiling to lend this being upon a thursday the next day being fryday I took the mare and myself and my wife did ride on this maer abute half a mile to an naighbours hous and home again and when we came home I turned the maer out the maer being as well to my thinking as ever she was next morning it being Saturday about sun rising this said maer stood neer my doore and the said maer as i did aperehend did show as if she had bin much abused by riding and here flesh as I thovg mvch wasted and her movth mvch semenly to my aperehantion mvch abused and hurt with ye bridel bits I seing ye maer in svch a sad condition I toke up the said maer and put her into my barn and she wold eate no maner of thing as for provender or any thing we i give her then I sent for my brother Thomas Andros which was living in boxford the said anderos came to my hous I not being at home when I came home a litle afore night my brother anderos told me he head giving the said mear southing for the bots but as he could perseve it did do her no good but said he I cannot tell but she may have the baly ach and said he I wel try one thing more my brother anderos said he would take pipe of tobaco and lite it and put itt into the fondement of the mare I told him that I thought it was not lawfull he said it was lawfull for man or beast then I toke a clen pipe and filled it with tobaco and did lite it and went with the pipe lite to the barn then the said anderos used the pipe as he said before he wold and the pipe of tobaco did blaze and burn blew then I said to my brother Anderos you shall try no more it is not lawful he said I will try again once mor which he did and thar arose a blaze from the pipe of tobaco which seemed to me to cover the butocks of the said mear the blaze went upward towards the roof of the barn and in roof of the barn thar was a grate crackling as if the barn wovld haue falen or bin burnt which semed so to us which ware within and some that ware without and we hade no other fier in the barn bvt only a candil and a pipe of tobaco and then I said I thought my barn or my mear must goe the next being Lord’s day I spoke to my brother anderos at noone to come to see the said mear and said anderos came and what h did I say not the same Lords day at night my naighbours John Haukins came to my hovs and he and I went into my barn to see this mear said houkins said and if I ware as you i wolvd of a pece of this mear and burn it I said no not to-day but if she lived til to morrow morning he might cut of a pece off of her and burn if he wovld presentely as we hade spoken these words we stept out of the barn and imedeiately this said mear fell down dade and never stvred as we covld purseve after she fell down but lay dead
Isac Comings Senr declared to ye Jury of Inquest that ye aboue written evidence is the truth upon oath June 30 1692