The Witch of Salem; or, Credulity Run Mad Read online

  CHAPTER V.

  A NIGHT WITH WITCHES.[A]

  As bees bizz out wi' angry fyke When plundering herds assail their byke, As open pussies mortal foes, When, pop! she starts before their nose, As eager runs the market crowd, When, "Catch the thief!" resounds aloud, So Maggie runs, the witches follow, Wi' monie an eldritch skreech and hollow. --Burns.

  [Footnote A: The incidents narrated in this chapter were gathered from Cotton Mather's "Invisible World," and legends current at the time. Strange as it may seem, these narratives were believed, and some are from sworn testimony in court.]

  Most people are superstitious. In fact, we might put it stronger andsay, all people are superstitious. Superstition is natural, and so longas there are great mysteries unrevealed to man, there will besuperstition. So long as the great mysteries of life and death and afuture existence are shrouded in the unknown, there will be believers inthe supernatural. So long as there are powers and forces not understood,they will be attributed to unknown or unnatural causes. Most people areunwilling to admit, even to themselves, that they are superstitious, yetsomewhere in their nature will be found a belief in some odd andludicrous superstition. Many have a dread of the unlucky number; somewill not commence a journey on Friday; they feel better when they haveseen the new moon over their right shoulder, and when the matter is wellsifted, we find lurking about all a strange, inexplicable superstition.

  Two hundred years ago, superstition was far more prevalent than atpresent, and some of the wisest and best of that day possessed theoddest and most unreasonable opinions.

  A few evenings after the incidents narrated in the foregoing chapter,Charles Stevens, who had been all day on a hunt, at night found himselfnear an old deserted house, four or five miles from town. The house hadbeen built by some Puritans, years before, and the family which hadlived in it were murdered by Indians. The house was currently reportedat the village to be haunted; but Charles, who was not a believer inghosts, resolved to pass the night there, in preference to braving athreatening thunderstorm.

  His negro man Pete was with him, and when he told Pete to gather up somedry wood, the darkey, with eyes protruding from his head, asked:

  "Massa Charles, am ye gwine to stay heah all night?"

  "Certainly, Pete, why not? A storm is coming, and we could not reachhome in such a tempest."

  "But dis house am haunted."

  "Oh, nonsense, Pete. Get the wood, and don't let such foolish notions asghosts enter your mind."

  Pete reluctantly obeyed, and Charles went into the house where was anold lamp which had been left there by hunters. It was nearly full ofoil, and he lighted it by aid of his flint and steel.

  Some rude benches and three-legged stools constituted the furniture.Pete, finding that nothing could induce his master to go on, gathered aquantity of dry wood before the rain began to fall, and started a fire.

  The single lamp, burning dimly on the mantel, gave a weird ghost-likegleam, and Pete shuddered as he glanced into the dark corners and theblack attic above, from whence his fervid imagination conjured up lostspirits, ghosts and goblins ready to seize him by the hair.

  Just as the first great rain-drops began to fall on the oldweather-beaten roof of the deserted house, they heard the rapid tramp offeet without. Pete uttered a horrified yell and sprang into the chimney,where he was trying to start a fire. Charles told him to refrain fromhis silly conduct and went to the door to see who their visitors were.

  "Charles, Charles, is it you?" cried a voice which he recognized as JohnLouder. "We saw the light within and determined to seek shelter."

  Louder was accompanied by his neighbors Bly and Gray, all carrying gunsand some small game in their hands.

  "You have been in the forest to-day?"

  "Yes, with ill luck, too. Marry! I trow, neighbors, we will have atempest," cried Louder, as he and his companions entered the old house.A burst of thunder shook the earth; the wild winds raged about thehouse, making the rickety old structure creak and groan, while the airabout seemed on fire. For a moment all were awed to silence; thenCharles said:

  "It will soon pass. The rain will soon drown it."

  "Have you but just come?" asked Louder.

  "Just arrived."

  "I would not, under other circumstances, put up in such a place as this;but it is better than the storm raging without."

  The hunters, thankful for even such poor shelter, skinned somesquirrels, and toasted them before the glowing fire, which Pete hadbuilt. Supper over, they drew the benches close about the fire, andwhile they listened to the raging storm without, conversed on themysteries of that invisible world, which has always formed aninteresting theme for the children of Adam.

  "Charles Stevens, only a few years ago, you harbored at your house awizard," said Louder.

  Charles Stevens was half amused and half indignant. He began toexpostulate with Louder, when the latter said:

  "Nay, nay; I charge you not with bartering with the devil; but list tome. On the selfsame day you found the stranger wounded at the road-sidenear the spring, we three had been hunting among the hills for deer.Some one had bewitched my gun. I know it, for when I fired, the bullet,which never failed on other occasions to go straight to the mark, wentastray. All day long that mysterious stranger had followed us,grievously tormenting us and leading astray our shots, until I loaded mypiece with a sixpence and fired at a large fat buck which struttedtemptingly before me. Had you probed his wound I trow you would havefound my sixpence buried in his side."

  At this, the negro, who was crouched in a corner, groaned in agony,while Charles was inclined to treat the matter lightly. Louder relatedhow, while at the lake in the wood, he had been visited by thismysterious apparition, who offered him a book to sign, adding that heknew at once that his tormentor was a wizard or the Devil, that his eyeswere in an instant changed to fire, and sulphurous smoke issued from hisnostrils.

  "Can you ask me if I believe my own eyes and my own ears?" concludedLouder. "Those are truths, and had I signed his book, I would have beentormented by fiends and my soul forever lost."

  "They do say the people are ready to cry out on Goody Nurse," put inBly.

  "Goody Nurse! surely not," answered Charles. "She is one of the bestwomen I know. She is kind, good and gentle with all."

  "Verily, so is Satan, until he has his clutches upon you. Goody Nurse isa witch."

  "Beware, John Louder, how you malign such as she," said Charles, growingserious. "Have the proof before you assert."

  "I know whereof I speak," declared John Louder. "About five or sixmonths ago, one morning about sunrise, I was in my chamber assaulted bythe shape of Goody Nurse, which looked on me, grinned at me, and verymuch hurt me with a blow on the side of my head. That selfsame day,about noon, the same shape walked in the room where I was, and an applestrangely flew out of my hand, into the lap of my wife, six or eightfeet from me. Can you deny such evidences as this?"

  "I have seen her," put in John Bly, "and once when her shape did assailme, I struck at her with my cane, and she cried out that I had torn hercoat."

  Samuel Gray stated that he had been tormented with spectres and spirits.All this was agony to the horrified negro, who, crouching in one corner,shivered with dread, while his eyes wildly rolled in agony.

  "Once a shape appeared to me and did tempt me to sign a book which Irefused to do, and the shape whipped me with iron rods to compel methereunto."

  "Did you know the witch?" asked Charles.

  "Verily, I did."

  "Who was it?"

  "One Bridget Bishop. I afterward saw her at a general meeting of witchesin a field, where they all partook of a diabolical sacrament, not ofbread and wine, but of the flesh and blood of murdered people."

  At this the negro groaned and crouched closer to the chimney jamb. Thestorm roared without, and the rain fell with a steady pouring sound, asthe superstitious hunters filled their pipes and gathered closer aboutthe f
ire.

  "There is no need to deny longer that witches exist," said John Louder."I have seen enough of them to convince me beyond question that thereare witches. Ann Durent one day left her infant, William Durent with AmyDunny, a woman who has since been known to be a witch. Though Dunny wasan old woman, she afterward confessed she had given suck to the child,whereat Durent was displeased and Dunny went away with discontent andmenaces.

  "The night after, the child fell into strange and sad fits, wherein itcontinued for divers weeks. One doctor Jacob, who knew something ofwitches, advised her to hang up the child's blanket in the chimneycorner all day, and at night, when she went to put the child into it, ifshe found anything in it, then to throw it without fear into the fire.Accordingly at night when she took down the blanket, there fell out ofit a great toad, which hopped up and down the hearth, uttering strangecries. A boy caught it, and held it in the fire with the tongs, where itmade a horrible noise, and flashed like gunpowder, with a report likethat of a pistol. Whereupon the toad was seen no more. The next day akinswoman of Dunny said she was grievously scorched with the fire, andon going to the house it was found to be even so. After the burning ofthe toad, the child recovered."

  "I did not believe in witchcraft at first," remarked Samuel Gray, by wayof preface to some weird account of his own; "but I cannot doubt mysenses. I had been to Boston on business for the parson and, beingbelated, was riding along the road homeward. I had just reached the oldPlaistowe field, when I suddenly discovered a long black something, likea monster cat or panther, running along the fence at my side. I wasseized of some strange power and despite my will was forced to wink myeyes. If I closed my eyes but for a second, the black object was back atthe point where it started from and ran along again, until I closed myeyes, when it appeared where I had first seen it. My horse becameaffrighted and ran away with me."

  John Bly knocked the ashes from his pipe and began:

  "I have an uncle in Virginia, who was sorely tried by witches. One witchin the neighborhood, especially, did grievously torment him. He would goto his door and see his field full of cattle; but on entering the fielditself, no cattle were to be seen. Knowing full well that he wasbewitched, he loaded his gun with a silver bullet, and one day fired ata large white cow. Instantly every beast disappeared, and he saw an oldwoman over the hill limping as if in pain. It was the suspected witch,whom he had shot in the leg. She did not bother him any more; butanother witch used to come at night and ride him. She would shake awitch bridle over his head, utter some incantation and my uncle would beturned into a horse, and she would ride him hard until morning. Then shewould bring him home, remove the spell, and he would be asleep in bed atdawn. One night he was thus ridden to a witch ball and tied to a tree.He rubbed his head against the tree until he got the bridle off, thespell was broken and he was once more a man. He took the enchantedbridle and laid in wait for the witch. As she emerged from the door, heseized her, shook the bridle over her head, repeated the words she hadused, and instantly she was changed into a fine gray mare. He mountedher and rode her furiously, out of revenge, for many miles to ablacksmith, where he alighted and, awaking the smith, had him shoe themare at once. Then he rode her nearly home, when he turned her loose.

  "Next morning he went to the home of his neighbor, whose wife hesuspected of being the witch, and inquired after the health of thefamily.

  "'My wife is ill,' answered the head of the house.

  "'What ails her?'

  "'Alas, I know not.'

  "My uncle went into the room where the woman lay in bed sufferinggreatly.

  "'Are you very ill?' my uncle asked.

  "'I am sick almost unto death,' the woman answered.

  "'Let me hold your hand and see if you have a fever.'

  "'No, no, no!' and she sought to hide her hands under the cover; but myuncle was a resolute man, and he seized her hand and drew it frombeneath the cover, and behold, a horseshoe was nailed unto it. On eachhand and each foot there was nailed a shoe which the smith at the trialswore he had put on the gray mare the night before."

  The negro groaned at the conclusion of the narrative, and his face wasso expressive of agony, that it formed a comical picture, exciting thelaughter of Charles Stevens, and Bly supposing that he was skeptical ofthe story he had told said:

  "Do you doubt the truth of my narrative, my merry fellow? Perchance youmay some day feel the clutches of a witch upon you, then, pray God,beware."

  "These are matters of too serious moment to excite one to laughter," putin Mr. Gray, solemnly. "Since the devil is come down in great wrath uponus, let us not in our great wrath against one another provide a lodgingfor him."

  Charles, the reckless, merry youth, treated the matter as it would betreated at the present day.

  "You need not deride the idea of witches changing people to horses,"said John Louder, who, according to accounts given of him, by CottonMather, was either an accomplished liar or a man possessing a vividimagination.

  "Have you ever had any personal experience?" asked Charles.

  "Indeed I have."

  "What was it?"

  "Goody Nurse does such things; but she has ever been too shrewd to becaught as was the witch in Virginia."

  "Goody Nurse! For shame on you, Mr. Louder, to accuse that good,righteous woman with offences as heinous as having familiar spirits."

  With a solemnity so earnest that sincerity could scarcely be doubted,John Louder remarked:

  "Glad should I be, if I had never known the name of this woman, or neverhad this occasion to mention so much as her name. Goody Nurse is themost base of all God's creatures, for she takes unto herself a seemingholiness."

  "What hath she done?"

  "Listen and I will tell you. She hath grievously afflicted my children.At night her shape appears to them accompanied by a black man. She hathpower to change her own form into an animal, a bird or insect at will.Once my little girl was attacked by a large black cat, which sherecognized as Goody Nurse.

  "Not only does she afflict my children; but my cattle, my gun and myselfhave been bewitched by her."

  John Louder here paused and, refilling his pipe, lighted it, took a fewwhiffs to get it going and resumed:

  "If you will listen to what I say, I will tell you of a certain incidentwhich befell me last summer. One night I had retired early to rest, for,having been in the fields all day, I was somewhat weary. I fell asleepand was dreaming of pleasant forests, running brooks, green meadows,thrift and plenty, when suddenly methought I heard a voice calling untome.

  "'John Louder! John Louder!' it seemed to say.

  "I started up from my pillow and sat on the side of my bed. The day hadbeen very hot, the night was still warm, and the window had been leftopen, that the good south breeze might refresh my heated face. Suddenlyin through that window came a great black object. I could see the eyeslike blue flames, the face with a hideous grin, great sharp ears andshort horns on top. He had bat-like wings, a tail, and on one foot was acloven hoof.

  "I was too much affrighted to speak; but the shape motioned me to rise.I did so. An instant later, lo, a second shape appeared, and this wasRebecca Nurse. They did not ask me to sign the book, this time, for Ihad declined so often to do so, that they thought it little need.

  "'Come!' said Goody Nurse. I rose and followed, I own, for I was undersome strange spell.

  "We got out of the house, I know not how, and I saw a great many peoplewaiting. Some were on the ground, and some were in the air. All were onbroomsticks.

  "'Come, John Louder, mount behind me,' said Rebecca Nurse, and I wascompelled to get behind her."

  "What was she riding?" Charles asked.

  "A broomstick."

  Charles, by an effort, restrained the laughter, which the answer had sonearly created, and John Louder resumed:

  "She uttered a strange, terrible cry, and we all rose in the air on thebroomsticks and away we sped like birds. I was in constant fear lest Ishould fall and be dashed to death on the gr
ound. I clung to her, andshe, uttering strange screeches and cries, sped on like a bird throughthe air. Her broomstick rose and fell at her command.

  "At last we descended to a valley, and all the witches save Goody Nursedisappeared. Here I soon learned that, instead of riding, I was to beridden. By a few magic words, my face became elongated, my body grew, myhands and feet became hoofs, my body was covered with hair, I had a maneand tail, and I was a horse, with a saddle on my back, and a bit in mymouth. Mounting me, the old witch cried:

  "'Be going, Johnnie, I will give you sore bones ere the cock crows.'

  "We all rose in the air on broomsticks."]

  "I was goaded to desperation. I ran, I leaped, I sprang from precipicesso high, that, had I not been held up by the spirits of the air, I musthave been dashed to death on the rocks below. I was agonized, and Iwanted to die.

  "At last we came to a valley and a house, which I recognized as the oldAmes Meeting House. Here a number of poor wretches like myself who hadbeen changed to beasts and ridden almost to death, were tied up. Some ofthem were horses, some were bulls, and one had been changed to a ram,another to an ostrich. I was tied to a tree so near to the door of thehouse, that I could see within.

  "Verily, it was such a sight as I pray God I may never witness again.There were the witches at their infernal feast. The liver and lungs,torn warm and bleeding from some helpless wretch, lay on the table. Theypartook of the food, also the diabolical sacrament, and then commencedtheir dance. I saw them dancing with their feet up to the ceiling andtheir heads hanging down.

  "In my agony of spirit, I seized the tree nearest me in my mouth, andbit it so hard that I broke out the tooth," and here the narratorexhibited his teeth, one of the front ones being gone. "You see thetooth is missing. A week later I went to the Ames Meeting House andfound the tooth sticking in the tree.

  "After they had kept up their infernal dance for an hour, Goody Nurseagain appeared and, mounting on my back, did ride me most grievouslyhard over the hills and plains, until we came to my home. Then shesuddenly slipped from my back and hurled me head first through thewindow, where I fell in my own shape by the side of the bed."

  Charles Stevens, feeling assured that he had a solution to themarvellous story, said:

  "It was no doubt a frightful dream, which to you seemed real."

  "Dream, was it?" cried Louder. "I sprang to my feet, ran to the window,and, sure as I am a white man, there was Goody Nurse soaring awaythrough the air on a broomstick."

  When he had finished his story, the horrified group shuddered andgathered closer about the fire which had burned low on the hearth. Petetried to lay on a stick with his trembling hand, but was not equal tothe task. The lamp-wick burned low in its socket, flickered andthreatened to go out, while the storm without howled with increasingfury, the rain beat against the side of the house, and the thundercrashed overhead.

  A shuddering silence seemed to have seized upon the group, and they satwatching the flickering lamp and smouldering fire, when suddenly allwere roused by a loud rapping at the door. The entire group started upin alarm, the negro howled, and Bly gasped:

  "God save us!"

  "The whole armor of God shield us against the witches," groaned JohnLouder.

  "Heaven help us now!" whispered Gray.

  Charles Stevens, though scarcely more than a youth, was the mostself-possessed of all. He rose and opened the door. A blinding flashrevealed a pair of horses with drooping heads in the rain and storm,while a man and young girl, the late riders of the horses, stood at thedoor holding the reins.

  As soon as the door was opened, the man, holding the little maiden'shand in his own, stepped into the house to be out of the gust of windand rain.

  "We are belated travellers, kind sir, and seek shelter from the storm,"the stranger began.

  At sound of his voice, John Louder sprang to his feet, and, seizing thelamp, held it close to the man's face. Starting back with a yell, hecried:

  "Away! wizard, devil, away! You are he who offered the book to me. Away!away! or I will slay you!"

  The startled stranger answered:

  "I never saw you before."

  John Louder insisted that he was the evil one who had met him at thelake while he was stalking the deer, and had offered him the book tosign.

  "I never saw you before in my life," the stranger answered, histheatrical tones making a strange impression on the superstitiousLouder. He read in his face the look of a demon, and continued to cry:

  "You must, you shall go away! Prince of darkness, back into the stormwhich your powers created!"

  Charles Stevens was too much amazed to speak for some moments, for, bythe combined aid of the lamp and firelight, he saw before him the veryfeatures of the man whom he had found wounded and almost dying at thespring. The wanderer turned his sad and handsome face to the youth andasked:

  "Can you take us to shelter?"

  "I did once, and will again."

  "You did once? Truly you mistake, for I never saw you before. My childwill perish in this storm."

  "It is five miles to my house; but if you will come with me I will showyou the way."

  They tried to dissuade Charles from going out into the driving storm;but he was not moved by their entreaties. He only saw the young maiden'spale, sweet face and appealing blue eyes, and he set off with the twothrough the storm, which beat about them so that they were quite wet tothe skin when the house of widow Stevens was reached. The man and themaid were given beds and dry clothing.

  Next morning, Charles asked the stranger:

  "Are you not the man who came here in 1684, wounded?"

  "I am not. I was never here before. What is your name?"

  "Charles Stevens."

  "Have you relatives in Boston?"

  "Yes, my grandfather, Mathew Stevens, who was a Spaniard by birth andcalled Mattheo Estevan, died in Boston twenty years ago, and I haveuncles, aunts and cousins living there."

  "Have you relatives in Virginia?"

  "I have cousins."

  "Is one Robert Stevens?"

  "He is."

  "I know him, he befriended me and sent me here."

  Then the stranger told how he had been an indented slave in Virginia,and escaped from a cruel master through the aid of Robert Stevens.

  The strangers were George Waters and his daughter Cora.