6. That God has ordain'd, that when the Devil is call'd upon by the Witch, tho' he were before restrained by the Almighty, the desired mischiefs ordinarily shall as certainly be performed, as if the Witch had [35] lodged poyson in the Bowels of her Neighbour, or had set Mastiff Dogs on them.
7. That the Witche's Art of applying the Plastic Spirit of the World to unlawful purposes, does Naturally contribute to the mischiefs done by the Devil.
8. That that God which restrain'd an Abimelich and a Laban from hurting, does also restrain the Witch from Calling upon or Improving the Devil, when he will not have his Power so exerted.
9. That to have a Familiar Spirit, is to be able to cause a Devil to take bodily shapes, whereby either to give responses, or to receive orders for doing mischief.
10. That this is the Judgment of most of the Divines in the Countrey, whether English, Dutch or French.[62]
This as I said, I took to be most material in the four sheets sent to me as his belief, and is also all the performance he has yet made of his several promises; which ten Articles being done only by memory, lest thro' mistake or want of the Original, I might have committed any errors, I sent them to him that, if there were any, they might be rectified: But instead of such an Answer, as might be expected from a Minister and a learn'd Gentleman, one Mr. W—— shewed me a Letter writ by Mr. C. M—— to himself, which I might read, but neither borrow nor Copy, and so, if I were minded, could give but a short account of it.
And passing over his hard Language, which, as I am conscious to myself; I never deserv'd, (relating to my writing in the margin of the four sheets; and to these ten Articles) so I hope I understand my Duty, better than to imitate him in retorting the like. Among his many words in his said Letters, I meet with two small Objections; one is against the word (Miracle) in the first Article, the word, I say, not the matter, for the works he attributes to the Devil are the same in their being above or against the Course of Nature and all Natural causes, yet he will not admit of these to be call'd Miracles. And hence he reckon's it the greatest difficulty he meets with in this whole affair, to distinguish the works of the Devil from Miracles. And hence also he concedes to the Devil the Power to make the most Solid things Invisible, and Invisibly to bring Poyson and force it down Peoples Throats, &c. Which I look upon to be as true Miracles as that. 2 Kings vi. 18. and this is the sense I understand the word in, and in this sense, he himself in the four sheets admits it; for he has an objection to this effect, Viz. [If the Devils have such power, &c. then miracles are not ceas'd; and where are we then? (his Answer is) Where! even just where we were before, say I] so that it seems the only offence here is at my using his words. His second objection (for weight) is against the whole ninth Article, and wonders [36] how 'tis possible for one Man so much to misunderstand another; Yet as I remember, he speaking of the Witch of Endor in the said four sheets says, she had a familiar Spirit, and that Saul] &c. and if so 'tis certain he gave responses, he also tells of Balaam, that it was known that he could set Devils on People to destroy them, and therefore how this objection should bear any Force I see not; The rest of the objections are of so small weight that once reading may be sufficient to clear them up, and if this be not so, he can, when he pleases, by making it Publick together with the Margins I writ, Convince all People of the truth of what he asserts; But here 'tis to be noted, that the 2d. 3rd. 4th. and 5th Articles he concedes to, as having nothing to object against them, but that they are his belief; and that the 6th. and 7th. he puts for Answer to an objection which he thus frames, Viz. If the Devil have such powers but cannot exert them but by permission from God, what can the Witch contribute thereto. And thus I have faithfully performed what I undertook, and do solemnly declare, I have not intentionally in the least wronged the Gentleman concern'd, nor design'd the least blemish to his Reputation; but if it stands in competition with the Glory of God, the only Almighty Being, his truths and his Peoples welfare, I suppose these too valuable to be trampled on for his sake, tho' in other things I am ready to my power (tho' with denying some part of my own interest) to serve him. Had this Gentleman declin'd or detracted his four sheets, I see not but he might have done it, and which I think there was cause enough for him to have done, but to own the four sheets, and at the same time to disown the Doctrine contain'd in them, and this knowing that I have no Copy, renders the whole of the worse aspect.
And now I shall give you a further account of my Belief, when I have first premised, that 'tis a prevailing Belief in this Countrey, and elsewhere, that the Scriptures are not full in the Description of, and in the way and means how to detect a Witch, tho' positive in their Punishment to be by Death; and that hence they have thought themselves under a necessity of taking up with the Sentiments of such Men or Places that are thought worthy to give rules to detect them by: And have accordingly practised, viz. In searching for Tets for the Devil to suck; Trying whether the suspected can say the Lords Prayer; And whether the Afflicted falls at the sight, and rises at the touch of the supposed Witch; As also by the Afflicted or Possessed giving account who is the Witch.
Touching these my belief is, that 'tis highly Derogatory to the wisdom of the Wise Lawgiver, to ascert, That he has given a Law by Moses, the Penalty whereof is Death; and yet no direction to his People, whereby to know and detect the culpable, till our Triumvirate Mr. [37] Perkins, Gaul and Bernard, had given us their receits, and that that fourth Head of Mr. Gauls, being so well prov'd by Scripture is a truth, and contains a full and clear Testimony, who are Witches culpable of Death, and that plainly and from Scripture, yet not excluding any other branch, when as well proved by that infallible rule. And that the going to the Afflicted or Possessed, to have them Divine who are Witches by their Specteral sight, is a great wickedness, even the Sin of Saul (for which he also Died) but with this difference, the one did it for Augury, or to know future Events, the other in order to take away Life; and that the searching for Tets, the experiment of their saying the Lords Prayer; the falling at the sight and rising at the touch of the supposed Criminal, being all of them foreign from Scripture, as well as reason, are abominations to be abhor'd and repented of. And that our Salem Witchcraft, either respecting the Judges and Juries, their tenderness of Life, or the Multitude and pertinency of witnesses, both Afflicted and Confessors, or the Integrity of the Historians, are as Authentic, and made as certain as any ever of that kind in the World; and yet who is it that now sees not through it, and that these were the Sentiments that have procured the sorest Affliction, and most lasting infamy that ever befel this Country, and most like so to do again, if the same notions be still entertain'd and finally that these are those last times, of which the Spirit speaks expressly, Tim. iv. 1. And now ye that are Fathers in the Churches, Guides to the People, and the Salt of the Earth.
I beseech you consider these things; and if you find the Glory of God diminisht by ascribing such power to Witches and Devils; His truths oppos'd by these notions; and his People aspersed in their Doctrines and Reputations, and indangered in their Lives; I dare not dictate to you, you know your duty as Watchmen, and the Lord be with you.