Among other persons accused of witchcraft, was Mrs Hale, whose husband, the minister of Beverly, had been very active in these prosecutions; this was a stroke which the good man was not prepared to receive. Being fully satisfied of his wife’s innocence, the question was now suggested and controverted, whether the devil could afflict in a good person’s shape, taking it for granted, that the minister’s wife was a good person. The accusation of Mrs Hale, and some others of respectable character, brought them to believe that the devil could so manage matters as that the afflicted person should think he did. This affair effected a considerable alteration in the sentiments and conduct of Mr Hale. He became much more moderate and rational in his views of witchcraft. In the midst of their distress and confusion, the clergymen of the town and vicinity held a consultation by request of the governor and council, upon the state of things as they stood; particularly, to consider the question, whether Satan may not appear in the shape of an innocent and pious, as well as of a nocent and wicked person, to afflict such as suffer by diabolical molestation? They reported, among other things, as their opinion, ‘That presumptions, whereupon persons may be committed, and much more, convictions, as being guilty of witchcraft, ought certainly to be more considerable than barely the accused person’s being represented by a spectre unto the afflicted; inasmuch as it is an undoubted and notorious thing, that a demon may by God’s permission appear even to ill purposes, in the shape of an innocent, yea, of a virtuous man. Nor can we esteem alterations made in the sufferers by a look or touch of the accused, to be an infallible evidence of guilt, but frequently liable to be abused by the devil’s legerdemain.’
Among the confessing witches were D. Falkner, a child of ten years, A. Falkner, of eight, and S. Carryer, between seven and eight. Sarah Carryer’s confession. It was asked by the magistrates. ‘How long hast thou been a witch?’ ‘Ever since I was six years old.’ ‘How old are you now?’ ‘Near eight years old; brother Richard says I shall be eight years old next November.’ ‘Who made you a witch?’ ‘My mother. She made me set my hand to a book. I touched it with my fingers, and the book was red, the paper was white.’ Being questioned she said she never had seen the black man, the place where she did it was in a pasture, and her aunt T. and her cousins were there. They promised to give her a black dog, but the dog never came to her. ‘But you said you saw a cat once, what did that say to you?’ ‘It said it would tear me in pieces if I would not set my hand to the book.’ She said her mother baptized her, and the devil or black man was not there as she saw. She said she afflicted people by pinching them, she had no puppets, her mother carried her to afflict. ‘How did your mother carry you when she was in prison?’ ‘She came like a black cat.’ ‘How did you know it was your mother?’ ‘The cat told me she was my mother.’ This poor child’s mother was then under sentence of death, and the mother of the other two children was in prison also, and was soon after tried and condemned.
The following is among the affecting instances of confessors retracting their confessions.
The humble declaration of Margaret Jacobs unto the honored court now sitting at Salem, showeth, ‘That whereas your poor and humble declarant, being closely confined in Salem jail, for the crime of witchcraft, which crime, thanks be to the Lord, I am altogether ignorant of, as will appear at the great day of judgment. May it please the honored court, I was cried out upon by some of the possessed persons, as afflicting them; whereupon I was brought to my examination, which persons at the sight of me fell down, which did very much startle and affright me. The Lord above knows I knew nothing in the least degree who afflicted them; they told me without doubt I did, or they would not fall down at seeing me; they told me if I would not confess, I should be put down into the dungeon, and would be hanged; but if I would confess I should have my life spared; the which did so affright me, that to save my life, I did make the confession, which confession, may it please the honored court, is altogether false and untrue. The very first night after, I was in such horror of conscience that I could not sleep, for fear the devil would carry me away for telling such horrid lies. I was, may it please the honored court, sworn to my confession, as I understand since, but at that time I was ignorant of it, not knowing what an oath did mean. The Lord, I hope, in whom I trust, out of the abundance of his mercy, will forgive me my false forswearing myself. What I said was altogether false against my grandfather and Mr Burroughs, which I did to save my life and to have my liberty; but the Lord charging it to my conscience, made me in so much horror, that I could not contain myself before I had denied my confession; choosing rather death with a quiet conscience, than to live in such horror. And now, may it please your honors, I leave it to your pious and judicious discretion, to take pity and compassion on my young and tender years, to act and to do with me as the Lord and your honors shall see good; having no friend but the Lord to plead my cause, not being guilty in the least measure of the crime of witchcraft, nor any other sin that deserves death from the hands of man.’
The horrid scourge of witchcraft was, by means of the imprudence, or rather the folly, of an individual, extended to the town of Andover. One Joseph Ballard, of that town, sent to Salem for some of the accusers who pretended to have the spectral sight to tell him who afflicted his wife, who was then sick of a fever. Soon after this, fifty persons at Andover were accused of witchcraft, many of whom were among the most reputable families. Here the nonsensical stories of riding on poles through the air, were circulated. Many parents believed their children to be witches, and many husbands their wives, &c.
The following is the grand jury’s bill against Mary Osgood.
‘The jurors for our sovereign Lord and Lady the King and Queen present, that Mary Osgood, wife of Captain Joseph Osgood, of Andover, in the county of Essex, about eleven years ago, wickedly, maliciously, and feloniously, a covenant with the devil did make, and signed the devil’s book, and took the devil to be her God, and consented to serve and worship him, and was baptized by the devil, and renounced her former christian baptism, and promised to be the devil’s, both body and soul, forever, and to serve him; by which diabolical covenant by her made with the devil, she, the said Mary Osgood, is become a detestable witch, against the peace of our sovereign Lord and Lady the King and Queen, their crown and dignity, and the laws in that case made and provided.’
The foregoing bill was grounded principally on her own confession, the purport of which is as follows.—That about eleven years ago, when she was in a melancholy state, upon a certain time while walking in her orchard, she saw the appearance of a cat at the end of her house, which she supposed was a real cat, about this time she made a covenant with the devil, &c. She said further, that about two years agone, she was carried through the air in company with three others, whom she named, to five mile pond, where she was baptized by the devil, and was transported back again through the air in the same manner in which she went, and believes they were carried on a pole. She confesses that she had afflicted three persons, and that she did it by pinching her bed clothes, and giving consent the devil should do it in her shape, and that the devil could not do it without her consent. When in court, she afflicted several persons, as they pretended, and they were as usual restored by her touching their hands. It was not long after, that the said Mary Osgood, with five other women, who had, when in danger, confessed themselves guilty, retraced their confessions, stating that ‘they were blind-folded, and their hands were laid on the afflicted persons who fell into fits; others when they felt our hands, said they were well, and that we were guilty of afflicting them, whereupon we were committed to prison. By reason of that sudden surprisal, knowing ourselves perfectly innocent, we were exceedingly astonished and amazed, consternated and afflicted out of our reason. Our nearest and dearest friends and relations, seeing our awful situation, entreated us to make confession, as the only way to save our lives. They, out of tender love and pity, persuaded us to make such confession, telling us we were witches, they knew it, and we knew it, and they knew that we knew it, which made us think it was really so. Our understanding and reasoning faculties almost gone, we were incapable of judging of our condition. Some time after, when we had been better composed, they telling us what we had confessed, we did profess we were innocent, of such things.’ The testimonials to these persons’ characters, says Governor Hutchinson, by the principal inhabitants of Andover, will outweigh the credulity of the justices who committed, or of the grand jury which found bills against them. Fiftythree reputable inhabitants of Andover, addressed the court, held at Salem, stating that ‘they are women of whom we can truly give this character and commendation, that they have not only lived among us so inoffensively as not to give the least occasion to suspect them of witchcraft, but by their sober, godly, and exemplary lives and conversation, have obtained a good report in the place, where they have been well esteemed and approved in the church, of which they are members.’
One Dudley Bradstreet, a justice of peace in Andover, having himself committed thirty or forty persons to prison for supposed witchcraft, himself and wife were both accused, and they were obliged to flee for their lives. The accusers reported, that Mr Bradstreet had killed nine persons, for they saw the ghosts of murdered persons hover over those that had killed them. A dog being afflicted at Salem, those that had the spectral sight said, that J. Bradstreet, brother of the justice, afflicted the dog and then rode upon him. He also was glad to make his escape, and the dog was killed. Another dog was said to afflict others, and they fell into fits when the dog looked on them, and he was killed. At length a worthy gentleman of Boston, being accused by some of those at Andover, sent a writ to arrest the accusers in a thousand pound action, for defamation. From that time the accusations at Andover generally ceased, to the unspeakable joy of the inhabitants.
This tremendous storm continued sixteen months in Salem, in which was displayed a great want of sober wisdom in some, and of moral honesty in others, while a spirit of superstitious persecution, almost without a parallel, generally prevailed. Nineteen innocent persons were hanged, one pressed to death, and eight more condemned; and about fifty confessed themselves witches, of which not one was executed. Above one hundred and fifty were in prison, and above two hundred more, being accused, it was thought proper to put a stop to further prosecutions. The persons in the prisons were set at liberty, and those who had fled returned home in peace. Experience showed that the more were apprehended, the more were afflicted by Satan, and the number of confessors increasing, increased the number of the accused; and the executing of some made way for the apprehension of others, till the numbers became actually alarming to the public, and it was feared that Salem had involved some innocent persons, as all the nineteen denied the crime to their death.