A Guide to Grand-jury Men, Book 2 · Chapter 11
CHAP. XI. That there are bad Witches; and here of their profession, and practice, and how many things must concurre in bewitching any thing.
ALl Witches, in truth, are bad Witches, and none good; but thus we distingu…sh them, after the vulgar speech: It is needlesse to make particular proofe of this sort: Historie, experience, and confessio… of such Witches are euidence inough.
Of this sort are men, but very many women, yonger, and older, but almost all very miserably poore, the basest sort of people, both in birth and breeding, most incapable of instruction, and cursedly negligent, and prophanely contemners of the sauing knowledge generally, people they are of ill natures, of a wicked disposition, and spitefully malicious against any with whom they are displeased, eagerly pursuing to be reuenged.
The profession of these is, by the Diuels instigation, onelyonly to doe hurt. To doe mischiefe is their common practice: ye… some of them also (as with the white Witch) the Diuell dispenseth with,The tryall of Lancashire Witches. to helpe, as well as to hurt, as the Lancashire Witch Chattox could by he owne confession: and that ol… Mother Witch Dembdike, as o…her Witches at the Barre con…ssed of her.In the arraignment of the W…tche of Warboys In Daemono. l. 3. c. 5. So could Iohn Samuel the Witch of Warboys bewitch and vnbewitch, as his wife confessed: and examples of these Bodinus giueth.
All these Witches hauehave Diuels and familiar spirits, as is …uident by the confession of a multitude of Witches; those in La…cashire, Leicestershire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire; by others in France, Germany and other places; so as this is a truth not to be doubted of.
These spirits appeare in sundry shapes, yea the same spirit to the same party in diuers forms, as Chattox Diuell called Fansie, would be sometimes to her, like a browne Dog, sometimes like a Man, and sometimes like a Beare, as shee confessed.
These spirits are receiued of one from another Witch,Discouery of Leicester Witches. as Ioane Willimot had a spirit by William Berry her Master, who receiued it by his blowing into her mouth. This Ioane afterward helped Ellen Greene to two spirits. Many such instances may be brought.
But the Diuell vncalled commeth and offereth himselfe to most, as hee did to Dembdik…, to Iames Deuice, to Lewis Gaufredy, and infinite others. Some call for one by name, through the perswasion of another, as once a boy at Bradley calling Bun,In Wiltshire Bun, looking vp to the thatch of the house, there leapt a Toade to him, which went vp to his crown, and sucked. Some Witch calleth spiri…s to g…ue them to others, when before they hauehave drawne them to consent to hauehave them, as the forenamed Willimot did, called Pusse and Hiffe, and gaue them to Ellen Greene. Some Witch teacheth another to vse some ceremonie to hauehave a spirit, as to goe to the Sacrament, and bring away the bread, and to giuegive it to the next thing which they should meet, as old Dembdike aduised Iames Deuice to doe:…ancaster Witch. or to goe about the Churchyard, and to kisse whatsoeuer they meete. By these, and many other such like wayes these common Witches come by their spirits: for of other Magicians I speake not heere.
By these damned spirits doe these cursed caytiffes worke all their malice and mischiefe. For these they call, whē they would doe harme, as farre as these spirits hauehave power to doe hurt, and then bid them doe this or that for them. Thus Iames Deuice willed Dandy his spirit to goe and kill Mistresse Townley. Elizabeth Deuice the Mother, called Ball, her browne dogge, to kill Iohn Robinson. Chattox called for Fansy her dogge, to goe and byte one Moores Cow to kill the same.
For these spirits can doe great mischiefe,Delrio, l. 2. q. 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 1…. if God permit, many wayes. They can worke vponupon the minde of men and women to stirre vp lusts and ill passions. Gaufredy had a spirit to st…rre vp lust in any hee breathed vponupon.In his life and death. Philip Flower had a spirit,Leic…s…er Wi…ch. to make one Thomas Simson to louelove her: other instances Master Roberts doth giuegive.In his Treatise of Witchcraft. Roberts pag. 57, 58. They can make men and women madde and frantique, as Mary Smithes spirit did Edmund Newton. They can annoy the body many wayes; the relations of the tryall and arraignment of Witches, are full of variety herein. They can kill both man and beast,Delrio, lib. 4. part 1. q. 3. sect. 2.3, 5. and blast corne, and doe many other euils and harmes: needl…sse it is to take vp time with instancing particulars: they can bespot linnen cloathes with pictures of Toads, Snakes, and other vermine; as the spirit of one Hellen Ienkenson did a Buck of cloathes of Mistresse Moulshow, Northhamptonshire Witch.because she had the day before helped to search the Witch, and found the marke vponupon her. Thus they worke by their spirits, and else by themselues can effectuate nothing: neither can the spirits doe any thing without Gods permissiō.
For this wee must know,Delrio, lib. 3. p. 1. q. 1. pag. 354. that three things must concur in the bewitching of one man, or any other thing whatsoeuer.
1. Before any of Gods creatures can be annoyed, he must giuegive way and permit the same: this all will grant, who acknowledge a diuine power and prouidence of God ruling and disposing of all things.
II. Then the operation of the Deuill, according to the power of God permitting, which hee knoweth either before, as is cleare in the story of Iob, Chap. 1. and 2. also by the relation touching the Witches, which bewitched the E. of Rutlands children; where wee may reade, how Ioane Flower, called for, and willed Rutterkinne her Cat, to goe and mischiefe the Lady Katherine, and the Cat cried Mew, and thereby shewed the Witch, that she could not doe her any hurt. Or the spirit knoweth not before, but when he hath gone and made triall, and then findeth his power limited, as we may reade in the relation of the Warbois Witches: how Mother Samuel sent two of her spirits against Master Throgmorton and his wife, who making triall what they could doe, returned, and told her, That God would not suffer them to preuaile.
III. Before the spirit worke for any Witch (though he will goe for himselfe, and of himselfe, where he hath no league with the Witch) yet to do for her or him, hee will not, without their consent and will, to make them guilty with him. The Witch therefore must doe something to set him on, as to call him, to bid him goe, to giuegive him something before he goe, as an old Witch gaue him a Cocke: of which wee may reade in Master Giffords Dialogue of Witches. So they send, but the Deuill doth the harme, and not they.
Neuerthelesse they are made guilty of these mischiefes. 1. Because they call them and bid these spirits doe such euls. 2. Because they speake, and doe such things as please the Deuils, and which they desire and counsell to hauehave done, while they themselues goe about and doe the mischiefe, (which though the Deuils can doe) yet will they not doe it for them, without these watchwords, and signes. 3. That they thinke verily, that they hauehave giuen them power to do the mischiefes, laid to their charge, and thereupon they confesse, they hurt such and such persons, or killed this or that man or beast. 4. Because they assume to themselues, a kind of glory within themselues, when the people feare them, and they hauehave a ioy in their hearts, that they can awe others so by such thoughts of them. 5. And lastly▪ by the Couenant made with the Deuill, they thinke, that what hee doth, is done by their commanding power ouer them, and that they must so do, because they will hauehave them to doe so.
For these reasons may the Deuils deedes bee imputed to them: and they may be said to doe, what the spirits doe, though their owne words and deedes hauehave no force in them of themselues, to effect their wills; albeit Satan maketh them beleeue otherwise: but herein are they notably deceiued, as also when they thinke themselues to hauehave him at command to doe their pleasures: for,
1. The spirit will do more sometimes, then the VVitch would hauehave him. For Agnes Samuel a VVitch of VVarboys, i…treated the spirit Blue ▪ that Mistresse Ioane Throgmorton might not hauehave any such extreme …its: but shee could not preuaile with him.
2. He will not vndoe that sometimes which the Witch wisheth to be vndone againe,Dod i… l. 3. c. 2. p. 247. as the Witches of VVarboise, all three, endeauoured to vnwitch the Lady Cromwell, but could not.
3. Hee will threa…en the Witch, and offer some violence vntounto her, if shee will not doe what he would hauehave her, as the spirit did old Dembdike, Lanc. Witches.who shoued and pushed her into a ditch, because she would not goe and helpe Chattox the Witch (whome Dembdike could not abide) to make pictures. So Chattox spirit threw her downe, because when hee appeared, shee would not speake vntounto him. Yea,In his booke de Daemon…. Bodinus telleth vsus, that when one called his spirit, and then did not set him on worke, he presently killed him.
4. Hee will annoy them, as he did Mother Samuel, tormenting her in her body grieuously:Warboys Witches. & as he did Chattox, taking her eye-sight from her, yea, and would sometimes come gaping vponupon her in the forme of a Beare, with open mouth, as if he would hauehave worried her, as shee confessed.
5. Hee will discouer the Witches practices, and will endeuour to bring them to their confusion and end: as the spirit told Master Throgmortons children in their fits.
Roberts in his Treat. of Witchcraft, p. 79.6. And lastly, hee will faile them, and breake promise with them, in their greatest neede; as he did a famous Witch in Hungarie, after shee was in prison, where wanting food, did then eate her owne flesh and perished.
Thus wee may see, how little command they hauehave ouer spirits, but as the spirits lift, for their owne aduantage.