The first Chapter.
Of the Hebrue word Ob, what it signifieth where it is found, of Pythonisses called Ventriloquæ, who they be, and what their practises are, experience and examples thereof shewed.
HIS word Ob, is translated Pytho, or Pythonicus spiritus: Deutre. 18. Isaie. 19. 1. Sam. 28. 2. Reg. 23. &c: somtime, though unproperlie, Magus as 2. Sam. 33. But Ob signifieth most properlie a bottle, and is used in this place, bicause the Pythonists spake hollowe; as in the bottome of their bellies, whereby they are aptlie in Latine called Ventriloqui: of which sort was Elizabeth Barton, the holie maid of Kent,The holie maid of Kent a ventriloqua. &c. These are such as take upon them to give oracles, to tell where things lost are become, and finallie to appeach others of mischeefs, which they themselves most commonlie have brought to passe: whereby many times they overthrowe the good fame of honest women, and of such others of their neighbors, with whome they are displeased. For triall hereof, letting passe a hundred cousenages that I could recite at this time, I will begin with a true storie of a wench, practising hir diabolicall witchcraft, and ventriloquie An. 1574. at Westwell in Kent, within six miles where I dwell, taken and noted by twoo ministers and preachers of Gods word, foure substantiall yeomen, and three women of good fame & reputation, whose names are after written./
127.Mildred,An. Domi. 1574. Octob. 13. the base daughter of Alice Norrington, and now servant to William Sponer of Westwell in the countie of Kent, being of the age of seventeene yeares, was possessed with sathan in the night and daie aforesaid. Confer this storie with the woman of Endor, 1. Sam. 28. and see whether the same might not be accomplished by this devise.About two of the clocke in the afternoone of the same day, there came to the same Sponers house Roger Newman minister of Westwell, John Brainford minister of Kenington, with others, whose names are underwritten, who made their praiers unto God, to assist them in that needfull case; and then commanded sathan in the name of the eternall God, and of his sonne Jesus Christ, to speake with such a voice as they might understand, and to declare from whence he came. But he would not speake, but rored and cried mightilie. And though we did command him manie times, in the name of God, and of his sonne Jesus Christ, and in his mightie power to speake; yet he would not: untill he had gon through all his delaies, as roring, crieng, striving, and gnashing of teeth; and otherwhile with mowing, and other terrible countenances, and was so strong in the maid, that foure men could scarse hold hir downe. And this continued by the space almost of two houres. So sometimes we charged him earnestlie to speake; and againe praieng unto GOD that he would assist us, at the last he spake, but verie strangelie; and that was thus; He comes, he comes: and that oftentimes he repeated; and He goes, he goes. And then we/95. charged him to tell us who sent him. And he said; I laie in her waie like a log, and I made hir runne like fier, but I could not hurt hir. And whie so, said we? Bicause God kept hir, said he. When camest thou to her, said we? To night in her bed, said he. Then we charged him as before, to tell what he was, and who sent him, and what his name was. At the first he said, The divell, the divell. Then we charged him as before. Then he rored and cried as before, and spake terrible words; I will kill hir, I will kill hir; I will teare hir in peeces, I will teare hir in peeces. We said, Thou shalt not hurt hir. He said, I will kill you all. We said, Thou shalt hurt none of us all. Then we charged him as before. Then he said, You will give me no rest. Wee said, Thou shalt have none here, for thou must have no rest within the servants of God: but tell us in the name of God what thou art, and who sent thee. Then he said he would teare hir in peeces. We said, Thou shalt not hurt hir. Then/128. he said againe he would kill us all. We said againe, Thou shalt hurt none of us all, for we are the servants of God. And we charged him as before. And he said againe, Will you give me no rest? We said, Thou shalt have none here, neither shalt thou rest in hir, for thou hast no right in hir, sith Jesus Christ hath redeemed hir with his bloud, and she belongeth to him; and therefore tell us thy name, and who sent thee? He said his name was sathan. We said, Who sent thee? He said, Old Alice, old Alice. Which old Alice, said we? Old Alice, said he. Where dwelleth she, said we? In Westwell streete, said he. We said, How long hast thou beene with hir? These twentie yeares, said he. We asked him where she did keepe him? In two bottels, said he. Where be they, said we? In the backside of hir house, said he. In what place, said we? Under the wall, said he. Where is the other? In Kenington. In what place, said we? In the ground, said he. Then we asked him, what she did give him. He said, hir will, hir will. What did shee bid thee doo, said we? He said, Kill hir maid. Wherefore did she bid thee kill hir, said we? Bicause she did not love hir, said he. We said; How long is it ago, since she sent thee to hir? More than a yeare, said he. Where was that, said we? At hir masters, said he. Which masters, said we? At hir master Brainfords at Kenington, said he. How oft wert thou there, said we? Manie times, said he. Where first, said we? In the garden, said he: Where the second time? In the hall: Where the third time? In hir bed: Where the fourth time? In the field: Where the fift time? In the court: Where the sixt time? In the water, where I cast hir into the mote: Where the seventh time. In hir bed. We asked him againe, where else? He said, in Westwell. Where there, said we? In the vicarige, said he. Where there? In the loft. How camest thou to hir, said we? In the likenesse of two birds, said he. Who sent thee to that place, said we? Old Alice, said he. What other spirits were with thee there, said we? My servant, said he. What is his name, said we? He said, little divell. What is thy name, said we? Sathan, said he. What dooth old Alice call thee, said we? Partener, said he. What dooth she give thee, said we? Hir will, said he. How manie hast thou killed for hir, said we? Three, said he. Who are they, said we? A man and his child, said/96.[Mispr. 99] he. What were their names, said we? The childs name was/129. Edward, said he: what more than Edward, said we? Edward Ager, said he. What was the mans name, said we? Richard, said he. What more, said we? Richard Ager, said he. Where dwelt the man and the child, said we? At Dig at Dig, said he. This Richard Ager of Dig, was a Gentleman of xl. pounds land by the yeare, a verie honest man, but would often saie he was bewitched, and languished long before he died. Whom else hast thou killed for hir, said we? Woltons wife said he. Where did she dwell? In Westwell said he. What else hast thou doone for hir said we? What she would have me, said he. What is that said we? To fetch hir meat, drinke, and corne, said he. Where hadst thou it, said we? In everie house, said he. Name the houses, said we? At Petmans, at Farmes, at Millens, at Fullers, and in everie house. After this we commanded sathan in the name of Jesus Christ to depart from hir, and never to trouble hir anie more, nor anie man else. Then he said he would go, he would go: but he went not. Then we commanded him as before with some more words. Then he said, I go, I go; and so he departed. Then said the maid, He is gone, Lord have mercie upon me, for he would have killed me. And then we kneeled downe and gave God thanks with the maiden; praieng that God would keepe hir from sathans power, and assist hir with his grace. And noting this in a peece of paper, we departed. Sathans voice did differ much from the maids voice, and all that he spake, was in his owne name. Subscribed thus:
Witnesses to this, that heard and*[* Rom.]
sawe this whole matter, as followeth:
{
Roger Newman, vicar of Westwell.
John Brainford, vicar of Kennington.
Thomas Tailor.
Henrie Tailors wife.
}
{
John Tailor.
Thomas Frenchborns wife.
William Spooner.
John Frenchborne, and his wife./
}
The second Chapter.130.
How the lewd practise of the Pythonist of Westwell came to light, and by whome she was examined; and that all hir diabolicall speach was but ventriloquie and plaine cousenage, which is prooved by hir owne confession.
T is written, that in the latter daies there shalbe shewed strange illusions, &c:Matt. 24, 44. 2.
Thes. 2, 9. in so much as (if it were possible) the verie elect shal/be97. deceived: howbeit, S. Paule saith, they shalbe lieng and false woonders. Neverthelesse, this sentence, and such like, have beene often laid in my dish, and are urged by diverse writers, to approve the miraculous working of witches, whereof I will treat more largelie in another place. Howbeit, by the waie I must confesse, that I take that sentence to be spoken of Antichrist, to wit: the pope, who miraculouslie, contrarie to nature, philosophie, and all divinitie, being of birth and calling base, in learning grosse; in valure, beautie, or activitie most commonlie a verie lubber, hath placed himselfe in the most loftie and delicate seate, putting almost all christian princes heads, not onelie under his girdle, but under his foote, &c.
Surelie, the tragedie of this Pythonist is not inferior to a thousand stories, which will hardlie be blotted out of the memorie and credit either of the common people, or else of the learned. How hardlie will this storie suffer discredit, having testimonie of such authoritie? How could mother Alice escape condemnation and hanging, being arreigned upon this evidence; when a poore woman hath beene cast away, upon a cousening oracle, or rather a false lie, devised by Feats the juggler, through the malicious instigation of some of hir adversaries?
But how cunninglieThe ventriloqua of Westwell discovered. soever this last cited certificat be penned, or what shew soever it carrieth of truth and plaine dealing, there may be found conteined therein matter enough to detect the cousening knaverie therof. And yet diverse have been deepelie deceived there with, and can hardlie be removed from the cre/dit131. thereof, and without great disdaine cannot endure to heare the reproofe thereof. And know you this by the waie, that heretofore Robin goodfellow, and Hob gobblin were as terrible, and also as credible to the people, as hags and witches be now: and in time to come, a witch will be as much derided and contemned, and as plainlie perceived, as the illusion and knaverie of Robin goodfellow. And in truth, they that mainteine walking spirits, with their transformation, &c: have no reason to denie Robin goodfellow, upon whom there hath gone as manie and as credible tales, as upon witches; saving that it hath not pleased the translators of the Bible, to call spirits by the name of Robin goodfellow, as they have termed divinors, soothsaiers, poisoners, and couseners by the name of witches.
But to make short worke with the confutation of this bastardlie queanes enterprise, & cousenage; you shall understand, that upon the brute of hir divinitie and miraculous transes, she was convented before M. Thomas Wotton of Bocton Malherbe, a man of great worship and wisedome, and for deciding and ordering of matters in this commonwealth, of rare and singular dexteritie; through whose discreet handling of the matter, with the assistance & aid of M. George DarrellThe Pythonist of west-well convicted by hir owne confession. esquire, being also a right good and discreet Justice of the same limit, the fraud was found, the coosenage confessed, and she received condigne punishment. Neither was hir confession woone, according to the forme of the Spanish inquisition; to wit, through extremitie of tortures, nor yet by guile or flatterie, nor by presumptions; but through wise and perfect triall of everie circumstance the illusion was manifestlie disclosed: not so (I say) as/98. witches are commonlie convinced and condemned; to wit, through malicious accusations, by ghesses, presumptions, and extorted confessions, contrarie to sense and possibilitie, and for such actions as they can shew no triall nor example before the wise, either by direct or indirect meanes; but after due triall she shewed hir feats, illusions, and transes, with the residue of all hir miraculous works, in the presence of divers gentlemen and gentlewomen of great worship and credit, at Bocton Malherbe, in the house of the aforesaid M. Wotton. Now compare this wench with the witch of Endor, & you shall see that both the cousenages may be doone by one art./
The third Chapter.132.
Bodins stuffe concerning the Pythonist of Endor, with a true storie of a counterfeit Dutchman.
PON the like tales dooth BodinJ. Bodin. lib. de dæmon. 3. cap. 2. build his doctrine, calling them Atheists that will not beleeve him, adding to this kind of witchcraft, the miraculous works of diverse maidens, that would spue pins, clowts, &c: as one Agnes Brigs, and Rachell Pinder of London did, till the miracles were detected, and they set to open penance. Others he citeth of that sort, the which were bound by divels with garters, or some such like stuffe to posts, &c: with knots that could not be undone, which is an Aegyptians juggling or cousening feat. And of such foolish lies joined with bawdie tales, his whole booke consisteth: wherein I warrant you there are no fewer than twoo hundreth fables, and as manie impossibilities. And as these two wenches, with the maiden of Westwell, were detected of cousenage; so likewise a Dutchman at Maidstone long after he had accomplished such knaveries, to the astonishment of a great number of good men, was revealed to be a cousening knave; although his miracles were imprinted and published at London: anno 1572. with this title before the booke, as followeth.
¶ A verie wonderfull and strange mi-
racle of God, shewed upon a Dutchman of the age of
23. yeares, which was possessed of ten di-
vels, and was by Gods mightie providence dis-
possessed of them againe, the 27.
of Januarie last past, 1572.
UNTO this the Maior of Maidstone, with diverse of his brethren subscribed, chieflie by the persuasion/133. of Nicasius Vander Schuere, the mi/nister99. of the Dutch church there, John Stikelbow, whome (as it is there said) God made the instrument to cast out the divels, and foure other credible persons of the Dutch church. The historie is so strange, & so cunninglie performed, that had not his knaverie afterwards brought him into suspicion, he should have gone awaie unsuspected of this fraud. A great manie other such miracles have beene latelie printed, whereof diverse have beene bewraied: all the residue doubtles, if triall had beene made, would have beene found like unto these. But some are more finelie handled than othersome. Some have more advantage by the simplicitie of the audience, some by the majestie and countenance of the confederates; as namelie, that cousening of the holie maid of Kent. Some escape utterlie unsuspected, some are prevented by death; so as that waie their examination is untaken. Some are weakelie examined: but the most part are so reverenced, as they which suspect them, are rather called to their answers, than the others.