Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
cause_n	witch_n	world_n	writer_n	18	3	10.4121	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B20918	A true narrative of the sufferings and relief of a young girle; strangely molested, by evil spirits and their instruments, in the west collected from authentick testimonies there-anent. With a preface and post-script containing reflections on what is most material or curious; either in the history, or trial of the seven witches who were condemn'd to be execute in that countrey.	Cullen, Francis Grant, Lord, 1658-1726.; MacGilchrist, John.	1698 (1698)	Wing C7475B; ESTC R213564	83,138	72

Q. 58. nocturno tempore comissa quae dificilis dicuntur probationis B●er decis 6● N. 6. Menoch D. Cas 116. N. 14. Ideoquo non solum presumptiva conjecturata probatio sufficit verum etiam in habiles admittuntur sarin l. 2d Tit 6. Q. 55. N. 40. Masc l. 2. Con 112. N. 13. idem in dilictis commissis in Eremo Nemore Moute aliove loco secreto Gomez Var res Tom 3d. C. 12. N. 21. Far D. Tit 6. Q. 62. N. 55. sed occultum non dicitur quod actu non intervenerint at quod de Natura delicti vel ratione loc● temporie ali● testes habitu intervenir● non potuerint ist est Maleficium in quo socius criminis c. admittitur Men l. 2d Cap. 5. Cas 474. N. 33 Campeg te test Reg. 86 Fallen 6. C●otus de Test part 4th N. 97. Oldindorp de Test Til. de personis testtum N 21. In a word all Lawiers who wrot particular Treatises on Witchcraft in Germany Italie Loven France and Spain c. Do conclude that inhabile Witnesses and particularly Socii are to be admitted in Witchcraft only the strictest of them do think that this Admission is to be c●m nota or as Delrio in the place cited for the Pannals expresses it ex his solis the Judge is not to Condemn nor do we require it As to the Third we have the Testimonie of our Famous K. Ja 6th Demon lib. 3. C. ult telling us That it is our Law that Boys Girls infamous Persons c. Are not to be rejected any more in Witchcraft than in human lese Majesty even tho' they assert others to have been present at Imaginary Meetings Because this Supposes their having entred into a Pre-contract He sayes that Satan's Mark and the want of Tears are pregnant Aids to the Discovery Quod Dens prater natura ordinem voluit esse secret a imanitatis judicium ●o non permittenes ut fecissimi criminis pertinatiam dissimulent He gives an instance of a Girle who having named several Witches in her Fitts they were all Condemned upon other concurring Adminicles This is not a common Author but a Man who as Curious was Exact As Prudent did not publish such things without the Approbation of the best Divines and Lawiers as a Prince is to be Credited anent the Law of His own Countrey and as a King has determined any Dubiety that might have remained in this Point also farr as the Law of our Government will permitt But further our Judges and Lawiers have followed His Majesty For in all the Processes in the Journals Fame and Delation and the Mack are still sustained as most pregnant Presumptions whereupon and a very small Probation besides Witches have been frequently Condemned So in the Processes against the Bewitchers of Sir George Maxwel of Pollock and Hamilton of Barns Anno 1677. Socius criminis tho' under Age is sustained to be a Witness And witnesses are adduced before the Inquest for proving that the Mark was found upon some of the VVitches Women and Minors have been received by multitudes of Decisions cited by McKen●ie Tit. prob by Witn●sses and Tit Witchcraft And he also cites Decisions where in paralel Cases Socii Criminis and others inhabile were admitted particularly in Treason and in Falshood And all Lawiers conclude That witchcraft is as much an excepted crime as these As to the 4th VVhat ever inhability these witnesses might be under it is fully made up and they rendred unexceptionably Habile by the Chain of this whole Business It is true one Man throw the concurrence of corrosive Humors may have an insensible Mark another be enviously defamed A Third may through sudden Grief or Melancholy not be able to weep c. A Fourth may be loaded with suspitious Circumstances when extraordinary things fall out in the Countrey And a Fifth may be deponed against by two false witnesses tho' neither of these separatly be truely witches But by the known Observation and Experience of Mankind none except witches have had the unhappie Medley and Concurse of All or Most of these Indicia and ordinarly and for the greater part Witches have them So that since the Rules of Judgment are established upon that Quod plerumque fit which does obtain till an exception be apparent in a special case the Conjunction of these in one person does as plainly give his Character as the most certain symptoms of the plainest Disease being universally concerted in all parts of the World points out to us that the Haver of them is a person truely affected with that Desease whereof he hath the concurrent Diagnosticks In a word one or other of these may concurr in the Innocent but no Writers do Attest that all of them have concentred in any other person in the World but a witch And on the other hand they taking place in Witches through all parts of the World must proceed from a common and not from a peculiar Humor or Cause The specifick Aptitude of some of the nicest of the Indicia which appeared from the Probation already led to discover a Witch do serve to clear the ground of the Worldes Observation anent them Particularly the Devil as Aping GOD imprints a Sacrament of his Covenant Be●●des that commonly this mark being given at the first Meeting does by its intolerable Pain force the Witch to a second Randevouz for curing it at which the poor wretch being under this furious necessity fixes the Paction by renewing it with ●eliberation having been diverted in the mean time from considering the Horridness of the first Engagement by the Pain The inability to shed Tears may be a Charactristick of Hardening tho' not always in the case of Christians yet in these who have ceased to be such left the Devil giving them such words of Scripture and Prayer as many have it should be impossible to discover their Hypocrisy and that is not Satan's own interest since by this Discovery occasion is given to Buffo on the Profession of Holyness A Report often arises without ground but a Constant Ropuce that keeps footing implyes for the most part a surer Cause especially when it is of Persons below Envy and by Persons above Calumny The Girls falling in fitts at approach of the Pannalls might proceed from Antipathie arriseing from the poisonous Steems of the witch accustom'd to produce that Effect through a vertue affixed thereto by the Devil by Conjunction of natural Causes the same way as the invisible Pestilence does operat or his promise of casting the Girl in Fitts at the Witches presence might have been General where by the Witch was eventually befooled and discovered as it often falls out For Satan envies even their temporal Felicity and fears lest by continuing here they should be rest out of his hands by Conversion When they come to perceive the Delusion of his Promises to make them rich and the like c. There was one thing further which was tried before

when none else did hear it The Children were well at Night and found Dead in the Morning with a little Blood on their Noses and Blaes at the roots of their Ears which were obvious Simptoms of Stranglings Besides that it is testified that the Mother of one of them cried out Matthew Matthew the Chi●d is dead And the House of the other was Whitened within with sifting of Meal the Night before Both which Particulars were told and discovered by the Confessants before the Witnesses which now concur with them in it were examined 2do The Second part of the Probation consists of several Adminicles proven by unsuspected Witnesses which lead us to suspect those Pannals to be Witches as so many Lines drawn from a Circumference to a Center and as an Avenue to the positive Probation thereafter adduced And these either strick at the whole Pannals in general or some of them in particular In general we need not enumerat all these Adminicles but remit you to the Probation which is so full thereanent only you will be pleased to notice that it is clearly proven that all the Pannals have insensible Marks and some of them in an extraordinary manner That most of them have been long Reputed Witches and some of them delated in 1687. by a Confessing Witch whose subscribed Confession has been produced You see that none of them do shed Tears nor were they ever discovered to do it since their Imprisonment notwithstanding of their frequent Howlings So that it is not a sudden Grief or Surprise And finally that the Girle fell in Fits of Torment upon the Pannals approaches to her and that she did name them all frequently either out of or in her Fits In particular you see how Katharine Campbell was provoked by this Girl 's discovering her Thift whereupon she has brought in the rest of her Confederets to act the following Mischiefs How thereupon Campbell did Curse and Imprecate in a terrible manner How she stayed out of her Bed at Night and was frequently drousie in the Morning How she was named by the Girle particularly the two Nights that she was out of Prison The Ball of Hair was taken out of her Pocket and burnt whereupon the Girle 's throwing out of Hair did cease She could not express one word even when on her Knees of Prayer for the Girl 's Recovery And the insensible Marks on her were very remarkable Agnas Nasmith did not torment the Girl after she had prayed for her She was repute a Witch and hath the Marks She came early in the Morning to Bargarran's Closs when by her refusing to go in it appeared she had no business Yea it is plain that she had a Resentment for her not getting a greater Alm's the last time she was there The Girl declared ex incotinenti that Nasmith asked her Health and Age which in these Circumstances was a shrewd Presumption of her evil Design And she acknowledged herself to have done this when she asked the Age of another Child wherein by Providence the was befooled since that which she thought would have been an Excuse tended to discover her Gurlt And lastly after this appearance of Agnes Nasmith the Girl did take her first Fit and nominat her amongst the first Tormenters Margaret Laing that great Imposter has been a Master-peice of the Devil She has confessed unnatural Lust which is known to some of your number She sat near the Door where the Charm of Hair was found which the Girle declared did keep up her Tongue and upon burning thereof it was loused The Girle fell in Fits upon her approach She has notable Markes particularly one which the Confessants declare she lately received and by Inspection it appears to be Rec●●t VVhen she came from her private conversation no doubt with the De●●l she Raged as if she had been possest and could not but declare That she expected a violent Death She looked in the face of James Millar's Child and asked her Age whereupon that Child sickned the same Night and named Margaret Laing on her Death-bed It appears she was ready to show to Janet Laird a sight of her Mother who had been three Years Dead And finally She has been taken in several Lyes and gross Prevarications particularly you may remember how six hours ago when the VVitnesses were examined on the Ball of Hair found with Katharin Campbell a Gentleman Mr. Stewart of 〈…〉 heard her say to Katharin in the Ear This is well waird on you because ye would not put it away when I desired you c. VVhich the said Mr. Stewart did openly testifie in Court upon Oath notwithstanding whereof this impudent VVretch had the confidence to deny it the Katharin Campbel also Confest That she had pulled at her and had spoke some what to her to which she did not advert This was no wonder the VVitnesses deponing at the time being closs against Katharin Margaret Fulton was repute a VVitch has the Mark of it and acknowledged in presence of her Husband that she made use of a Charm which appeared full of small Stones and Blood That her Husband had brought her back from the Faries and her Repute of being a VVitch is of an old date besides her being named often by the maleficiat Girl As to the Lindsays they all have the Mark And were all of a long time reputed to be Witches John Lindsay in Barloch was accidentally discovered by the Girles taking a Fit upon his coming to the House John and James Lindsays were dilated by a confessing Witch in Anno 1687 Which Confession is publickly read before you And there was Money given to the Sheriff-depute for delaying of the pursute James Lindsay appeared to William Semple suddendenly and Flew about like a Fowl for an opportunity to strick him in revenge of the quarrel mentioned in the Deposition and at last prevailed to strick him dead over a Dyke And finally which is a remarkable Indication both of Truth and Providence the very Witnesses adduced in the Exculpation for the Lindsays deponed so clearly against them even beyond the Pursuets Witnesses that their Advocate was stunned thereat and thereupon desisted from ●●aving any moe Witnesses to be examined on the Exculpation It is true some of these Indications may be in One and others of them in A●●ther ei●●er from Nature or Accident and yet that person not be a Witch But it was never heard or read that all these indications which are so many discoverys by Frovidence of a crime that might other ways remain in the dark did ever concur in one and the same Indi●●●●●● Person that was innocent Yea on the contrary they by the Wisdom and Experience of all Nations do al 's convincingly discover a Witch as the Symptoms of a ●eptosis confirmed by all Physicians do unfold the Person affected with the same to be Leprous 〈◊〉 Esto They are not sufficient of themselves yet their Tendency and Moanning being cleared and applyed to their proper cause