Darnally the sorcerer, Maude Twogood enchantresse, the ould witch of Ramsbury, several other olde witches, Gregson the north tale teller, who was one of them 3 that stole awaye the Earle of Northumberlande’s head frome one of the turrettes of York &c.’
We can scarcely wonder at the hatred of James I. of England to witches, seeing how he had been pestered with them in his realm of Scotland, two instances of which are recorded in the Calendars of State Papers. ‘1591. 21 May. Witches have been discovered in Scotland, who practised the King’s death, with the privity of Bothwell.’ ‘1600 16⁄20 Ap. The Queen of Scotland is said to be a zealous Catholic, and the King inclined thereto, because an Agnus Dei given him by the Queen had miraculously saved him in a tempest at sea, stirred up by witches, as the Witches themselves confess.’
It is a curious fact, well worthy the thinking over, that England and Europe had a comparative immunity from the assaults of the Devil, until after the Reformation, when for a time he became rampagious, troubling even the arch-Reformer Luther himself.
The earliest English printed book on witchcraft, pure and simple, that I can find is ‘The Examination of John Walsh,’ London, 1566. He confessed to having trafficked with ‘Feries’ and learned much from them respecting stolen goods and bewitched people; but in replying to his eighth interrogatory, ‘He being demaunded whether he had euer any Familiar or no; he sayth that he had one of his sayde mayster. Which Familiar (after his booke of Circles was taken from him by one Robert Baber of Crokehorne, then being Constable, in the yeare 1565) he could neuer do anything touching his Familiar, nor the use thereof, but hys Familiar dyd then depart from him, and wyll neuer come to him agayne, as he sayth. And further, he sayth upon his oth, that his familiar would sometyme come unto hym lyke a gray blackish Culuer,41 and somtyme lyke a brended Dog, and sometimes lyke a man in all proportions, sauinge that he had clouen feete.
‘Ninthly, he being demaunded howe long he had the use of the Familiar; he sayd one yeare by his sayd masters life, and iiii yeres after his death. And when he would call him for a horse stollen, or for any other matter wherein he would use him; he sayth hee must geue hym some lyuing thing, as a Chicken, a Cat, or a Dog. And further he sayth he must geue hym twoo lyuing thynges once a yeare. And at the first time when he had the Spirite, hys sayd maister did cause him to deliuer him one drop of his blud, whych bloud the Spirite did take away upon hys paw.
‘Tenthly, he sayth that when the Familiar should doo anything at his commaundment, in going any arrant; he would not go, except fyrst two wax candels of Virgin Waxe should first haue bene layd a crosse upon the Circle, wyth a little Frankensence, and saynt John’s woorte, and once lighted, and so put out agayne: which Frankensence must be layd then at euery end of the Candel, as he sayth a crosse, and also a litle Frankensence with saynt John’s woort burned upon the grounde, or euen the Familiar would go the message, and returne agayne at the houre appoynted....
‘... He being further demaunded to what end ye Spirits, in the likenes of Todes and the pictures of man or woman made in wax or clay, doo serue? He sayde, that Pictures made in wax wyll cause the partye (for whom it is made) to continue sycke twoo whole yeares ere the wax will be consumed. And, as for the Pictures of Claye, their confection is after this maner. They use to take the earth of a new made graue, the rib bone of a man or woman burned to ashes: if it be for a woman, they take the bone of a woman, if for a man, the bone of a man, and a blacke Spider, with an inner pith of an elder, tempered all in water, in which water the sayd Todes (? Images) must fyrst be washed. And after all ceremonies ended, they put a pricke, that is a pyn or a thorne in any member wher they wold haue the party greued. And if the sayde prycke be put to the harte, the party dieth within nine daies. Which Image they burne in the moste moystest place they can finde. And, as touching the using of the Todes, the which he sayth haue seueral names; soon they cal great Brownyng, or little Brownyng, or Boune, great Tom Twite, or litle Tom Twite, with other like names; Which Todes being called, the Witches strike with II withie sperres on both sydes of ye head, and saieth to the Spirit, their Pater noster backward, beginning at the ende of the Pater noster, but they wyll neuer say their Creede. And when he is stricken, they commaunde the Tode, to hurt such a man or woman as he would haue hurted. Whereto, if he swell, he will goo wher he is apointed, either to the deiry, brewhouse, or to the dry kill of malt, or to the Cattell in the field, to the stable, to the shepefold, or to any other like places, and so returne agayne to his place.
‘The bodies of men or women bee hurt by the Images before named, and mens goods and cattels be hurt by the Todes, in commaunding and using them, as aforesaid as he sayth. And if the Tode Called forth, as afore said, do not swell, then will the Witch that useth them call forth an other to do the act, which, if he do not, then will they spy another tyme when they may cause the partye to be found lacking fayth, or els to bee more voide of grace, whereby he or they may be hurt. Furthermore he saith, that whoso doth, once a day saye the Lorde’s prayer and his Creede in perfite charitie, the Witch shall haue no power on his body or goodes for that day.’
The witchcrafts of Elizabeth Stile42 and her four companions were decidedly malicious according to her printed confession, but according to her own account they did not prosper, and her state before their trial and execution seems to have been most pitiable.
‘Also this is not to be forgotten, that the said Mother Stile, beeyng at the tyme of her apprehension, so well in healthe of bodie and limmes, that she was able, and did goe on foote from Windsor unto Readyng unto the Gaile, which are twelue miles distant. Shortly after that she had made the aforesaid confession, the other Witches were apprehended, and were brought to the said Gaile, the said Mother Deuell did so bewitche her and others, (as she confessed unto the Iailer) with her Enchantments, that the use of all her limmes and senses were taken quite from her, and her Toes did rotte offe her feete, and she was laied uppon a Barrowe, as a moste uglie creature to beholde, and so brought before the Iudges, at such tyme as she was arraigned.’
In the next little book of the same year ‘A Detection of damnable driftes, practized by three Witches arraigned at Chelmissforde in Essex, at the late Assizes there holden, whiche were executed in Aprill 1579.’ In reality there were four witches, but one was not convicted, as no manslaughter could be found about her. I propose to give one little anecdote of each, whereby we shall find out something of the Devil’s appearance to witches, their families, and their extreme malice in petty things.
‘Imprimis, the saied Elizabeth Fraunces confessed that about Lent last, (as she now remembreth) she came to one Poole’s wife, her neighbour, and required some old yest of her, but beyng denied the same, she departed towardes one good wife Osborne’s house, a neighbour dwelling thereby, of whome she had yest; and, in her waie, going towards the saied good wife Osborne’s house, she cursed Poole’s wife, and badde a mischief to light uppon her, for that she would giue her no yest. Whereuppon, sodenly, in the waie, she heard a greate noise; and, presently there appered unto her a Spirite of a white colour, in seemyng like to a little rugged Dogge, standyng neere her uppon the grounde, who asked her whether she went? shee aunswered for such thinges as she wanted, and she tolde him therewith that she could gette no yeest of Poole’s wife, and therefore wished the same Spirite to goe to her and plague her, whiche the Spirite promised to doe; but, first he bad her giue him somewhat; then, she, hauing in her hand a crust of white bread, did bite a peece thereof, and threwe it uppon the grounde, whiche she thinketh he tooke up, and so went his waie: but, before he departed from her, she willed hym to plague Poole’s wife in the head, and since that she neuer sawe him, but she hath hearde by her neighbours that the same Poole’s wife was greuously pained in her head not longe after, and remayneth very sore payned still, for on saterdaie last past this Examinate Talked with her.’
In ‘The euidence giuen against Elleine Smithe of Maldon’ we find: ‘Besides, the sonne of this Mother Smith confessed that his mother did keepe three Spirites, whereof the one called by her great Dicke, was enclosed in a Wicker Bottle; the seconde named little Dicke, was putte into a Leather Bottle; And the third, termed Willet, she kept in a Wollepacke. And thereupon the house was commaunded to be searched. The Bottles and packe were found, but the Spirites were vanished awaie.’ Nevertheless