A Short History of the Salem Village Witchcraft Trials

A Short History of the Salem Village Witchcraft Trials - Illustrated by a Verbatim Report of the Trial of Mrs. Elizabeth Howe

The proceedings in witchcraft in 1692 to us who are two hundred and twenty years removed from the scene, seem, at first, impossible, then mortifying, and persuasive of disowning our fathers and forgetting the period of their folly. At best, the occurrence furnishes the wildest and saddest chapter in our New England history. The doctrine of familiar spirits was current in most ancient times. It is possible that immediately after the fall in Adam the imprisoned spirit of man began to assert its former freedom and ability. The old Scriptures depicted the witchs character, gave warning of her blighting influence, and enacted heavy penalties against employing her agency. In Exodus, xxii. 18: Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. In Leviticus, xx. 27: A man also or a woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them. In Deuteronomy, xviii. 9-12: When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, 10or any observer of times, or any enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer; for all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord. The colonial laws to which New England witches were amenable, codified by Rev. Samuel Ward, of Ipswich, who had had extensive legal training and practice before entering the ministry, were published in 1641. Mr. Ward[2] followed Moses, the great Hebrew lawgiver, in great measure, but he distanced England in mildness and was far ahead of his time in scope. With him, however, the witch found no favor. Death was the punishment for witchcraft, first and last, and the Puritan, whose sure palladium of civil and religious freedom was the Bible, obeyed the precept to the letter, his highest knowledge and authority. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 54042
Author: Perley, M. V. B.
Release Date: Jan 22, 2017
Format: eBook
Language: English