were detained hauing once gotten sight of them in their fits the Witches being held by scratching they drew blood of them and were sodainely deliueted of their paine Howbeit they were no sooner out of fight but they fell againe into their old traunces and were more violently tormented then before for when Mischiefe is once a foote she growes in short time so heaostâ—…ong that she is hardly curbed Not long after Maister Auery and his Sister hauing beene both in Northampton and hauing drawne blood of the Witches Ryding both homewards in one Coach there appeared to their view a man and a woman ryding both vpon a blacke horse M. Auery hauing spyed them a farre off and noting many strange gestures from them sodainely spake to them that were by and as it were Prophetically cryed but in these words That either they or their Horses should presently miscarcy And imediately the horâ—…s fell downe dead Wherevpon Maister Auery rose vp praysing y â— grace and mercies of God that he had so powerfully deliuered them and had not suffered the foule spirits to worke the vttermost of their mischiefe vpon men made after his image but had turned their fury against Beasts Upon this they both hyed them home still praysing God for their escape and were neuer troubled after I had almost forgotten to tell you before that M. Auery was by the Iudges themselues in y â— Castle yard of Northampton séene in the middest of his fits and that he strangely continued in them vntill this Ioane Vaughan was brought vnto him But now to draw néere vnto their ends this Agnes Browne and her daughter Ioane Vaughan or Varneham béeing brought to their Arraignement were there indighted for that they had bewitched the bodies of Maister Auery and his sister Mistris Belcher in manner and forme aforesayd Together with the body of a young Child to the death the true relation whereof came not to my hands To all which they pleaded not guilty and putting themselues vpon the couutrey were found guilty And when they were asked what they could say for themselues why y â— sentence of death should not be pronounced against them they stood stiffely vpon their Innocence Wherevpon Iudgement béeing giuen they were carried backe vnto the Gaole where they were neuer heard to pray or to call vppon God but with bitter curses and execrations spent that little time they had to liue vntill the day of their Execution when neuer asking pardon for their offences either of God or the world in this their daungerous and desperate resolution dyed It was credthly reported that some fort-night before their apprehension this Agnes Browne one Ratherine Gardiner and one Ioane Lucas all birds of a winge and all abyding in the Towne of Gilsborough did ride one night to a place not aboue a mile off called Rauenstrop all vpon a Sowes backe to sée one mother Rhoades an old Witch that dwelt there but before they came to her house the old Witch died and in her last cast cried out that there were three of her old friends comming to sée her but they came too late Howbeit shee would méete with them in another place within a month after And thus much concerning Agnes Browne and her daughter Ioane Varnham The Arraignement Conuiction and Execution of one Arthur Bill of Raundes in the County of Northampton THis Arthur Bill a wretched poore Man both in state and mind remained in a towne called Raunds in the County aforesayd begotten and borne of parents that were both Witches and he like a gratious Child would not degenerate nor suffer himselfe to stray from his fathers wicked Counsels but carefully trode the steps that hée had diuillishly taught him This Arthur Bill was accused that he should bewitch the body of one Martha Aspine alias Ieames the daughter of one Edward Aspine of the same towne to death But this matter remaining doubtfull that it could not be cléerely tryed vpon him hée béeing strongly suspected before by bewitching of Diuers kinds of cattle to be guilty of that crime And béeing also publiquely knowne to bée of an euill life and reputation together with his father and mother The Iustices and other officers thereby purposing to trie the said Arthur by an experiment that many thinke neuer failes caused them all to bee bound and their Thumbes and great Toes to bée tied acrosse and so threw the father mother and sonne and none of them sunke but all floated vpon the water And hereby the way it is a speciall thing worthy generall noting and obseruation that there are two signes or tokens which are tokens as more certaine then others to detect and find out Witches by The one is the marke where the Spirits sucke and the trying of the insensiblenesse thereof The other is their fléeting on the water Concerning which though I dare affirme nothing for certainty there béeing for ought I know neither euident proofe in nature nor reuelation from heauen to assure vs thereof yet mée thinkes I may say the like of this as is held of the bléeding of a slaine body in presence of the mutherer For as in a secret murther if the dead Carkase bée at any time either seene or handled by the murtherer it doth streitway gush out of blood as if the blood should by issuing foorth in such strange manner cry vnto heauen for reuenge of the murtherer God hauing as may séeme appointed that secret supernaturall signe for triall of that secret vnnaturall crime that the blood left in the body should thus appéere and as it were challenge the murtherer for that blood whiâ—…h hée before had felloniously stollen from the body so it may bee that God hath appointed for a supernaturall signe of the monstrous impiety of Witches that the Element of water should refuse to receiue them in her bosome that haue shaken from them the sacred water of Baptisme and wilfully refused the benefit thereof by making that breach and fall from God in participating thus vildly with the Spirits of Beliall By whom and in the exercise of which sinne their hearts are so hardened that not so much as their eyes are able to shead teares threaten or torture them as you please God not permitting them as may bee thought to dissemble their obstinacy in so horrible a crime No not the women though that sex bee ready to shead â—…eares vpon euery light occasion But to returne to our matter These thrée the Father Mother and Sonne beeing thus séene floating vpon the water the suspition that was before not well grounded was now confirmed Whereupon the said Arthur Bill beeing the principall or I thinke the onely Actor in this Tragedy was apprehended and sent to Northampton gaole the nine and twentith day of May last by Siâ—… Gilbert Pickering of Tichmasâ—… alias Tichmase in the same County Knight and presently after his commitment â—…earing that his old father would relent and so happily confesse that which might bee preiudiciall vnto him sent for his mother
ended his course in this world with little hope or respect as it séemd of the world to come The Arraignement and Execution of Hellen Ienkenson THis Helen Ienkenson dwelling at a Towne called Thrapston in the County of Northampton was noted a long time to be of an euill life and much suspected of this crime before her apprehension for bewitching of Cattle and other mischiefes which before time she had done This Helen was apprehended for bewitching of a Child to death and committed to Northampton Gaole the 11 of May last by Sir Thomas Brooke of Okeiy Knight A little before whose apprehension one Mistris Moulsho of the same Towne after she was so strongly suspected getting her by a wyle into a place conuenient would néeds haue her searched to sée if they could find that insencible marke which commonly all Witches haue in some priuy place or other of their bodies And this Mistâ—…is Moulsho was one of the chiefe that did search her and found at the last that which they sought for to their great amazement at that time this Mistris Moulsho had a Bucke of clothes to be washt out The next morning the Mayd when shée came to hang them forth to dry spyed the Cloathes but especially Mistris Moulshoes Smocke to be all bespotted with the pictures of Toades Snakes and other ougly Creatures which making her agast she went presently and told her Mistris who looking on them smild saying nothing else but this Heere are fine Hobgoblins indéed And béeing a Gentlwoman of a stout courage went immediately to the house of the sayd Helen Ienkenson and with an angry countenance told her of this matter threatning her that if her Linnen were not shortly cléered from those foule spots she would scratch out both her eyes and so not staying for any answere went home and found her linnen as white as it was at first This Helen being brought to the barre and béeing indicted of the murther of the Child pleaded thereunto not guilty but the verdict béeing giuen vp against her shée cryed out woe is mee I now cast away But like the rest did stoutly deny the accusations and sayd that she was to die an Innocent I thinke as Innocent as the rest And at the place of Execution made no other confession but this That she was guiltlesse and neuer shewd signe of Contrition for what was past nor any sorrow at all more then did accompany the feare of death Thus ended this woman her miserable life after she had liued many yeares poore wretched scorned and forsaken of the world The Arraignement and Execution of Mary Barber THis Mary Barber of Stanâ—â—â—â— in the said County of Nâ—…rthampton was one in whom the licentiousnesse of her passions grew to bee the Master of her Reason and did so conquer in her strength and power of all vertue that shee feâ—…l in the Apostacy of goodnesse and became diuerted and abused vnto most â—â—de actions cloathing her desperate soule in the most vgly habiliments that either Malice Enuy or Cruelty could produce from the â—â—ndnesse of her degenerate and deuillish desires As shee was of meane Parents so was she monstrous and hideous both in her life and 〈◊〉 Her education and barbarous nature neuer promising to the world any thing but what was rude violent and without any hope of pâ—â—portion more then only in the square of â—â—â—iousnesse For out of the 〈◊〉 and blindnesse of her seduced sences shee gaue 〈◊〉 to all the passionate and earthly fâ—â—â—ies of the flesh and followed all the 〈◊〉 vanities and Câ—â—meras of her polluted and vnreasonable dâ—â—ghts forsaking the Society of Grace and growing enamored vpon all the euil that 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 minister to her â—…icious desires 〈◊〉 As appeared by her bewitching a man to death and doing much other hurt and harme to diuers sorts of cattle in the Country For which shee was committed to Northampton gaole the 6 day of May last by Sir Thomas Tâ—â—ham and the same and many other matters beeing plainely and euidently manifest and proued against her by good euidence shee had the sentence of death worthily pronounced against her In the time of her imprisonment she was not noted to haue any remembrance or feeling of the haynousnesse of her offences or any remorcefull tongue of the dissolute and deuillish course of her life The prison which makes men bee fellowes and chambermates with theeues and murtherers the common guests of such despised Innes and should cause the imâ—â—â—oned party like a Christian Arithmetician â—…o number and cast vp the account of his whole life neuer put her in minde of the hatefull transgressions she had committed or to consider the fâ—â—th and leprosie of her soule or intreat heauens mercy for the reâ—…eaâ—…e thereof Prison put her not in minde of her graue nor the grates and lockes put her in remembrance of hell which depriued her of the ioy of liberty which she saw others possesse The iangling of irons did not put her in minde of the chaines where with she should bee bound in eternall torments vnlesse heauens mercy vnloosed them nor of the howâ—…ing terrors and gnashing of teeth which in hel euery soule shal receiue for the particular offences committed in this life without vnfained hearty conâ—…râ—â—ion She neuer remembred or thought she must â—…ie or trembled for feare of what should come to her after death But as her life was alwaies known to be deuillish so her death was at last fouÌ„d to be desperate For she the rest before named beeing brought from the common gaole of Northampton to Northampton Castle where the Assises are vsually held were seuerally arraigned and indited for the offences they had formerly committed but to the inditements they pleaded not guilty Putting therefore their causes to the triall of the Country they were found guilty and deserued death by the verdit of a credible Iury returned So without any confession or contrition like birds of a feather they all held and hanged together for company at Abington gallowes hard by Northampton the two and twintith day of Iuly last past Leauing behinde them in prison many others tainted with the same corruption who without much mercy and repentance are like to follow them in the same tract of Precedencie FINIS
THE WITCHES OF NORTHAMPTON-SHIRE Witches Agnes Browne Ioane Vaughan Arthur Bill Hellen Ienkenson Mary Barber Who were all executed at Northampton the 22. of Iuly last 1612. LONDON Printed by Tho Purfoot for Arthur Iohnson 1612. THE ARRAIGNment Conuiction and execution of certaine Witches at Northampton the 22. of Iuly last past AMongest the rest of sinnes where-with the perfection of God is most of all displeased in the corruption of man There is none I suppose more distastfull or detestable to his Purity then this damnable and Deuillish sinne of Witchcraft For that it seemes to make an eternall seperation and an irreconciliable diuorce betwixt the pure Mercies of God and the tainted soules of such miserable people Who for the most part as they are of the meanest and the basest sort both in birth and bréeding so are they the most vncapeable of any instruction to the contrary and of all good meanes to reclaime them But as there are many that remaine yet in doubt whether there be any Witches or no or any such spirits who offer their seruice vnto them or rather who by fained seruice doe tyrannize ouer them So to answere their doubts would aske a greater labour and perhaps more art and better experience then I intend or happily can shew Onely this that if neither those confutations that are already learnedly set forth Nor ancient records of the Witches called Druides in old time confinde into the Isle of Man nor the ordinary reportes of the strange mischiefes done by the Witches of Norway might séeme sufficient proofes of this matter Yet mee thinkes that the common experience which our learned and Reuerend Iudges of the Land finde daily in their yéerely Circuites by the conuictions of suth offendors and the plaine and manifest Euidences brought in against them who being in this this kinde dangerously infected haue from time to time stood foorth vpon their Arraignement and as their â—…ues haue béene held to bée the most detestable so their deathes haue béene obserued to proue the most desperate might put it out of question that some such there be abroad in the world who by the damnable practise of Witch-craft haue sold themselues to the Deuils seruies In regard whereof I may conclude that either it must be granted that there are Witches both in name and nature or else the Oppositors that being I suppose more precise then wise standing rather vpon the singularity of their owne opinions then the certainty of Reason or Iudgement must needs doe palpable wrong and open Iniury to the discretions or consciences of our learned Iudges and the power and vertue of our Lawes in the excecution of Iustice making that hated and vnheard off Tyranny which is done by the lawfull power and vertue both of the Soueraigne and Subordinate authority Some doe maintaine but how wisely let the wiser iudge that all Witchcraft spoken of either by holy writers or testified by other writers to haue béene among the heathen or in later daies hath béene and is no more but either méere Cousinage or Collusion so that in the opinion of those men the Deuill hath neuer done nor can do any thing by Witches It may be some will say what hurt can grow from this opinion The hurt that may ensue and grow thereof none can tell that hath not first séene somewhat by experience Wée all sée that one kernell of Wheat béeing sowne a whole eare growes vp and sometimes brings forth an hundreth kernils in it If an error be planted who can tell what increase it may yeild in time The ground doth not bring forth the corne with such increase as the heart of Man doth errors If we draw in one linke of a Chaine anether followes and is by and by in sight which draweth wée knowe not how many after it vntill we sée the last There is no Error that goeth alone or that is not linked vnto another That holy Wrytte therefore which makes the Man of God perfect and perfectly instructed vnto euery good worke must iudge and decide the controuersie in this case Let vs then sticke vnto the same for testimony and proofe What a Witch is and the Antiquity of Witchcraft TO know things aright and perfectly is to know the causes thereof A Definition doth consist of those causes which giue the whole Essence and containe the perfect nature of the thing defined where that is therefore found out there appeares the very cléere light If it be perfect it is much the greater though it be not fully perfect yet it giueth some good light For which respect though I dare not say I can giue a perfect Definition in this matter which is hard to doe euen in knowne things because the Essentiall forme is hard to be found yet I doe giue a Definition which may at the least giue notice and make knowne what manner of Persons they be of whom I am to speake A Witch is one that worketh by the Deuill or by same Deuillish or Curious Art either hurting or healing reuealing things secret or foretelling things to come which the Deuill hath deuised to entangle and snare mens soules withall vnto damnation The Coniurer the Enchaunter the Sorcerer the Deuiner and whatsoeuer other sort there is are indéed compassed within this circle The Deuill doth no doubt after diuers sorts and diuers formes deale in these But no man is able to shew an Essentiall difference in each of them from the rest I hold it no wisedome or labour well spent to trauell much therein One Artificer hath deuised them all They are all to one end and purpose howsoeuer they much differ in outward Rules for practise of them that is little or nothing besides meere delusion Euery Man will confesse that the father of lies is not to be trusted Euery man knowes that all his dooings are hidden vnder coulorable shewss Shall wée then seeke for stedfastnes in his wayes Shall wée be so foolish as to imagine that things are effected by the vertue of words gestures figures or such like All those are doubtlesse but to deceiue and draw men forward and so plung them more déepely into sinnes and errors Touching the Antiquity of Witchcraft wée must néeds confesse that it hath béene of very ancient time because the Scriptures doe testifie so much for in the time of Moses it was very rife in Egipt Neither was it then newly sprong vp beeing common and growne vnto such ripenes among the Nations that the Lord reckoning vp diuers kinds saith that the Gentiles did commit such abhominations for which hée would cast them out before the Children of Israel How long it was before that time cannot for certainty be discussed Sauing that as is sayd it was not young in those daies when Moses wrote If wée mainetaine that it was before the flood there is great reason to iustify the Assertion Wée know that the Deuill was excéeding crafty from the beginning alwaies laboring to seduce and deceiue after the worst manner If