Читать книгу Discover the Truth Behind Witchcraft Stories - William Godwin - Страница 47
Chapter XXI.
ОглавлениеScotch Witches—Bessie Dunlop—Alesoun Peirson—Dr. John Fian—The Devil a Preacher—Examination of Agnes Sampson—Confession of Issobel Gowdie.
But Scotland was the real home of the witch. Comparatively speaking, the English hardly knew what a witch was, and the reports of trials are so numerous that space prohibits my making more than a selection of them. Witches were important personages—at least, in the sixteenth century—for we read in the trial of Bessie Dunlop, 1576, how many noble ladies consulted her. ‘And demandit,—To quhom sche applyit the powder in drink? Declarit,—That the Lady Johnstoune the elder, send to hir ane servand of the said ladies, &c. ... Interrogat—Quhair sche gaif the gentile woman the drink? Answerit—In hir awin sisteris hous, the young Ladye Blakhallis.... Demandit—Gif ony uther personnes had bene at hir for the lyke caus? Declarit—That the Lady Kilbowye elder, send for hir &c.... Demandit—Quhat personnes thar wer? Answerit—The Ladye Thridpairt in the barronye of Renfrew, send to hir, and sperit at her, Quha was it that had stollin from hir twa hornis of gold, and are croune of the sone, out of hir pyrse?... The Ladye Blaire sundrie times had spokin with hir, about sum claise that was stollin fra hir.’
Again, in the trial of Alesoun Peirson, May 28, 1588: ‘And in speciall, scho said, that he tauld hir that the Bischop of Sanct Androus56 had mony seiknessis, as the trimbling fewer,57 the palp,58 the rippilis,59 and the flexus;60 and baid hir mak ane faw,61 and rub it on his cheikis, his craig, his breist, stommak and sydis.’
A favourite place of meeting, where they held their Sabbat, was at North Berwick-Kirk. In the trial of Johnne Feane, alias Cwninghame, December 26, 1590, we find: ‘Item. Fylit, ffor being in cumpany with Satan in the Kirk of North Berwick, quhair he apperit to him in the forme of ane blak maun within the pulpett thairof; and efter his out-cuminge of the Kirk, poyntit the graues and stwid aboue thame; quhilkis wer opnit in thre sindrie pairtis, twa within and ane without; quhilk the wemen demembrit the deid corps and bodeis being thairin, with thair galleis;62 and in contment wes transportit, without wordis.... Item. Fylit. for being in North Berwick Kirk, at ane conventioune with Sathan and utheris witches; quhair Sathan maid ane dewelisch sermon, quhair the said Johnne satt uponne the left syde of the pulppett, narrest him; And the sermon being endit, he came doune and tuke the said Johnne be the hand; and led him widderschinnis63 about.’
In ‘A True Discourse of the apprehension of Sundrie Witches lately taken in Scotland,’ etc., 1591, is the following ‘Item. The said Agnis Tompson (Sampson) was after brought againe before the Kinges Majestie and his Councell, and beeing examined of the meetings and detestable dealings of those witches, she confessed, that upon the night of Allhollow Even last, shee was accompanied, as well with the persons aforesaide, as also with a great many other witches, to the number of two hundreth, and that all they together went to Sea, each one in a riddle or cive, and went into the same very substantially, with flaggons of wine, making merrie and drinking by the way, in the same riddles or cives, to the Kirk of North Barrick in Lowthian; and that after they had landed, tooke handes on the lande, and daunced this reill or short daunce, singing all with one voice,
‘“Commer goe ye before, commer goe ye,
Gif ye will not goe before, commer let me.”
‘At which time shee confessed, that this Geillis Duncane did goe before them, playing this reill or daunce, uppon a small trumpe, called a Jewe’s trump, untill they entred into the Kirk of North Barrick.’
This Agnes Sampson was tried on January 27, 1591, for conspiring the King’s death, witchcraft, sorcery, incantation, etc., and her ultimate fate was ‘to be tane to the Castle (hill) of Edinburgh, and thair bund to ane staik and werreit (strangled), quhill sche wes deid; and thairefter her body to be brunt in assis.’
‘Item, fylit and convict, ffor as mekle as sche confest before his Maiestie, That the Dewill, in mannis liknes, mett hir going out in the fieldis frome hir awin hous att Keyth, betwix fyve and sax at ewin, being hir allane; and commandit hir to be at North Bervick Kirk the nixt nycht: And she passit thair on horsbak, and lychtit at the Kirk yaird. Or a lytill before sche come to itt, about ellewin houris att ewin, they danceit alangis the Kirk yaird, Gelie Duncan playit to thame one a trump.’
She then gives the names of many who were present. ‘Quhairof thair wes sax men, and all the rest wemen. The wemen maid fyrst thair homage, and nixt the men. The men wer turnit nyne tymes widderschinnes about, and the wemen sax tymes. Johnne Fien blew up the duris, and blew in the lychtis, quhilkis wer lyke mekle blak candillis, stiking round about the pulpett. The Devill start up himselff in the pulpett, lyke are mekle blak man, and callit ewerie man be his name, and ewerie ane ansuerit: “Heir, Mr.” The fyrst thing he demandit, was “Gif thay kepit all promeis, and bene guid servandis?” and “Quhat thay had done since the last tyme thay had convenit?”—One his command, thay opnit up the graves, twa within and ane without the kirk, and tuik of the jountis of thair fingaris, tais and neife,64 and partit thame amangis thame: and the said Agnes Sampsoune gatt for hir pairt, ane windene scheit and twa jountis, quhilk sche tint negligentlie. The Devill commandit thame to keip the jountis upoun thame, quhill thay wer dry, and thane to mak ane powder of thame, to do ewill withall. Then he commandit thame to keip his commandmentis, quhilkis war, to do all the ewill they could.’
Their initiation was similar to their English sisters’, as the aforesaid Agnes Sampson affirms. ‘The fyrst tyme sche begane to serue the Dewill, was eftir the death of hir husband; and that he apperit to hir, in liknes of ane man, quha commandit hir to acknowledge him as hir maister, and to renunce Chryste; quhairunto sche grant it, being movit be pouertie and his promesis, that sche and hir bairnis sould be maid ritch, and sould gif hir power to be revangeit of hir inimeis; and eftir that, he appointit tyme and place for thair nycht meting; and that tyme, in signe that sche wes becum his seruand, he markit hir in the rycht kne, quhilk mark sche belevit to haif bene ane hurt ressavit be hir fra ane of hir bairnies that wes lyand in the bed with hir; quhilk hurt wes nocht haill for half ane yeir.’
Before finishing with this lady, I must give another portion of her most extraordinary confession. ‘Moreover she confessed, that, at the time when his Majestie was in Denmarke, shee being accompanied by the parties before speciallie named, took a cat, and christened it, and afterwards bounde to each part of that cat, the cheefest part of a dead man, and severall joyntis of his bodie: And that, in the night following, the saide cat was convayed into the middest of the sea by all these witches, sayling in their riddles or cives, and so left the saide cat right before the towne of Leith in Scotland. This doone, there did arise such a tempest in the sea, as a greater hath not beene seene.’
This was the way they baptized the cat: ‘In the wobstaris65 hous, in maner following: Fyrst, twa of thame held ane fingar,66 in the ane syd of the chimnay cruik, and ane uther held ane uther fingar in the uther syd, the twa nebbis67 of the fingaris meeting togidder; than thay patt the catt thryis throw the linkis of the cruik, and passit itt thryis under the chimnay.’
The confession of Issobell Gowdie, May 3, 1662, although it is somewhat mutilated, gives us a good insight into the manners and customs of Scotch witches:
‘Efter that tym ther vold meit bot sometymes a Coven, somtymes mor, somtymes les; bot a Grand Meitting vold be about the end of ilk Quarter. Ther is threttein persones in ilk Coven; and ilk on of us has a Spirit to wait wpon us, quhan ve pleas to call wpon him. I remember not all the Spritis names; bot thair is on called Swein, quhilk waitis wpon the said Margaret Wilson in Aulderne; he is still68 clothed in grass grein; and the said Margret Wilson hes an niknam called Pikle neirest the Wind. The nixt Sprit is called Rorie who waitis wpon Bessie Wilsone, in Aulderne; he is still clothed in yallow; and hir nikname is Throw the Corne yaird. The third Sprit is called The Roring Lyon, who waitis wpon Issobell Nicoll in Locklow; and [he is still clothed] in sea grein; her niknam is Bessie Rule. The fowrth Sprit is called Mak Hector, qwho waitis wpon Jean Martein, dawghter to the said Margaret Wilson; he is a yowng-lik Devill, clothed still in grass [green. Jean Martein is] Maiden to the Coven that I am of; and hir nikname is Over the Dyke with it, becaws the Divill [alwayis takis the] Maiden in his hand nix him, quhan ve daunce Gillatrypes, and quhan he vold lowp from ...69 he and she will say, “Ower the dyk with it.” The name of the fyft Sprit is Robert the [Rule and he is still clothed in] sadd dun, and seimis to be a Comander of the rest of the Spiritis; and he waittis wpon Margret Brodie, in Aulderne. [The name of the saxt Spirit] is called Thieff of Hell wait upon hir selfe, and he waitis also on the said Bessie Wilson. The name of the sevinth [Sprit is called] The Read Reiver, and he is my owin Spirit, that waittis on my selfe, and is still clothed in blak. The aught Spirit [is called] Robert the Jackis, still clothed in dune, and seimes to be aiged. He is ane glaiked gowked Spirit! The woman’s [nikname] that he waitis on, is Able and Stowt! The nynth Spirit is called Laing, and the womans nikname that he vaitis wpon is Bessie Bauld. The Tenth Spirit is named Thomas a Fearie, &c.—Ther wil be many uther Divellis, waiting wpon [our] Maister Divell; bot he is bigger and mor awfull than the rest of the Divellis, and they all reverence him. I will ken them all, on by on, from utheris, quhan they appeir lyk a man.
‘Quhan we rease the wind, we tak a rag of cloth, and weitts70 it in water; and we take a beetle71 and knokis the rage on a stone, and we say thryse ower:
‘“I knok this ragg wpon this stane, To raise the wind, in the Divellis name; It sall not lye,72 untill I please againe!”
‘[Whan] we wold lay the wind, we dry the ragg, and say [thryse ower]:
‘“We lay the wind in the Divellis name, [It sall not] ryse quhill we lyk to rease it again!”
‘And if the wind will not lye instantlie [after we say this] we call wpon owr Spirit, and say to him:
‘“Thieffe! Thieffe! conjure the wind, and caws it to [lye ...]”
‘We haw no power of rain, bot ve will rease the wind quhan ve pleas.—He maid us beliew [...] that ther wes no God besyd him.
‘As for Elf-arrow-heidis, the Diuell shapes them with his awin hand, and syne deliueris thame to Elf-boyes, who whyttis and dightis73 them with a sharp thing lyk a paking neidle; bot [quhan I was in Elfland?] I saw them whytting and dighting them. Quhan I wes in the Elfes howssis, they will haw werie ... them whytting and dighting: and the Diwell giwes them to ws, each of ws so many, quhen.... Thes that dightis thaim ar litle ones, holow, and boss baked!74 They speak gowstie75 lyk. Quhen the Divell giwes them to ws, he sayes:
‘“Shoot thes in my name,
And they sall not goe heall hame!”
‘And quhan we shoot these arrowes we say:
‘“I shoot yon man in the Divellis name, He sall not win heall hame! And this sal be alswa trw; Thair sall not be an bit of him on lieiw.”76
‘We haw no bow to shoot with, but spang77 them from the naillis of our thowmbes. Som tymes we will misse, bot if thay twitch78 be it beast, or man, or woman, it will kill, tho’ they haid an jack79 wpon them. Qwhen we goe in the shape of an haire, we say thryse owr:
‘“I sall goe intill ane haire,
With sorrow, and sych, and meikle caire;
And I sall goe in the Divellis nam, Ay whill I com hom [againe]!”
‘And instantlie we start in an hair, And when we wold be owt of that shape, we vill say:
‘“Haire [haire, God send the caire!]
I am in an hairis liknes just now,
But I sal be in a womanis liknes ewin [now]!”
‘When we vold goe in the liknes of an Cat, we say thryse ower:
‘“I sall go [intill ane catt,]
[With sorrow, and sych, and a blak] shot!
And I sall goe in the Divellis nam, Ay quhill I com hom again!”
‘And if ve [wold goe in ane Craw,80 then] we say thryse ower:
‘“I sall goe intill a craw,
With sorrow and sych, and a blak [thraw!
And I sall goe in the Divellis nam,] Ay quhill I com hom again!”
‘And quhen ve vold be owt of thes shapes, we say:
“Catt, catt, (or craw, craw,) [God] send the a blak shott! (or thraw)
I wes a catt (or craw) just now,
Bot I sal be [in a woman’s liknes evin now.]
Catt, catt, (or craw, craw,) God send the a blak shot! (or thraw).”
‘Giff we in the [shape of an catt, an craw, an] haire, or ony uther liknes, &c., go to any of our neighbouris howssis, being Witches, we will [say]:
“[I (or we) conjure] the Goe with ws (or me)!”
‘And presentlie they becom as we ar, either cats, hearis, crowes, &c., and goe [with ws whither we wold. Quhan] we wold ryd, we tak windlestrawes, or bean stakes,81 and put them betwixt owr foot, and say thryse:
‘“[Horse] and hattok, horse and goe,
Horse and pellatis, ho! ho!”
‘And immediatlie we flie away whair [evir we wold]; and least our husbandis sould miss vs owt of owr beddis, we put in a boosom,82 or a thrie [leggit stoole besyde thame] and say thryse ower:
“I lay down this boosom (or stooll) in the Devillis name Let it not steir ... [Quhill I] com again!”
‘And immediatlie it seimis a voman, besyd our husbandis.
‘Ve can not turn in the lik[nes of ...] Quhen my husband sold beeff, I used to put a swellowes feather in the hyd of the beast, and [say thryse]:
“[I] putt out this beeff in the Divellis nam, That meikle silver and good pryce com hame!”
‘I did ewin so [quhenevir I putt] furth either horse, noat,83 vebs,84 or any uther thing to be sold, and still put in this feather, and said the [samin wordis thryse] ower, to caws the comodities sell weill.
“Our Lord to hunting he [is gone]
... marble stone,
He sent vord to Saint Knitt....”
Quhan we vold heall ony sor or brokin limb, we say thryse ower
“He pat the blood to the blood, Till all up stood!
The lith to the lith, Till all look with;
Owr Ladie charmed her deirlie Sone, with hir tooth and her townge,
And her ten fingeris——
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Halie Ghaist!”
‘And this we say thryse ower, straiking85 the sor, and it becomes heall.
‘2dli For the Bean-straw,86 or pain in the heaunce,87 Wee ar heir thrie Maidens charming for the bean-straw; ye man of the Midle-earth, blew beaver, land-feaver, maneris of stooris, The Lord fleigged88 the Feind with his holy candles and yeird foot stone!—Thair she sittis, and heir she is gon!—Let hir nevir com heir again!
3dli For the Feaveris, we say thrise ower, I forbid the qwaking-feavers, the sea-feaveris, the land-feaveris, and all the feaveris that ewir God ordained, owt of the head, owt of the heart, owt of the bak, owt of the sydis, owt of the kneyis, owt of the thieghes, fra the pointis of the fingeris, to the nebes89 of the toes; owt fall the feaveris goe, [som] to the hill, som to the hap, som to the stone, som to the stok. In Saint Peiteris nam, Saint Paullis nam, and all the Saintis of Hevin: In the nam of The Father, the Sone, and The Halie Gost!
‘And when we took the frwit of the fishes from [the] fisheris, we went to the shore, before the boat wold com to it; and we wold say, on the shore syd, thrie seuerall tymes ower,
‘“The fisheris ar gon to the sea,
And they vill bring hom fishe to me;
They will bring them hom intill the boat,
Bot they sall get of thaim bot the smaller sort!”
So we either steall a fish, or buy a fish, or get a fish from them [for nowght] an or ma.90 And with that we haw all the fruit of the heall fishes in the boat; and the fishes that the fishermen thamselues will haw, will be bot froath &c.
‘The first woyag that ewer I went with the rest of owr Covens wes to Plewghlandis; and thair we shot an man betwixt the plewgh-stiltis, and he presentlie fell to the ground, wpon his neise and his mowth; and then the Divell gaw me an arrow, and cawsed me shoot an voman in that fieldis; quhilk I did, and she fell down dead. In Winter 1660, quhen Mr. Harie Forbes, Minister at Aulderne, was seik, we maid an bagg of the gallis, flesh, and guttis of toadis, pickles of bear,91 pairingis of the nailis of fingeris and toes, the liewer of ane hair, and bittis of clowtis. We steipit this all together, all night among watter, all haked92 throw uther. And whan we did put it among the water, Satan wes with ws, and learned ws the wordis following, to say thryse ower. They ar thus.
‘“He is lying in his bed,—he is lyeing seik and sair; Let him lye intill his bed two monethes and [thrie] dayes mair! 2li. Let him lye intill his bed—let him lye intill it seik and sore; Let him lye intill his bed, monthis two and thrie dayes mor! 3li. He sall lye intill his bed, he sall lye in it seik and sore; He sall lye intill his bed, two monethis and thrie dayes mor!”
‘Quhan we haid learned all these wordis from the Devill, as said is, we all fell down [wpon owr] kneis, with owr hear down ower owr showlderis and eyes, and owr handis lifted wp, and owr eyes [stedfastlie fixed wpon] the Divell; and said the forsaidis wordis thryse ower to the Divell, striktlie, against Maister Harie Forbes [his recowering from the said seiknes]. In the night tym we cam into Mr. Harie Forbes chalmer, quhair he lay, with owr handis all smeared [... out] of the bagg to swing it upon Mr. Harie, quhair he wes seik in his bed; and, in the day tyme [... ane of owr] nwmber, quho wes most familiar and intimat with him, to wring or swing the bagg wpon the said Mr. Harie, as we could not prevaill in the night tym against him; quhilk wes accordinglie done.’
‘Johne Taylor and his wyff, Bessie, and Margret Wilsones, and I, maid a pictur for the Laird of Parkis maill children. Johnne Taylor brought hom the clay in his plaid newk;93 his wyff sifted it; we poured in water in a cowg94 amongst it, and wrought it sor,95 and maid a pictor of it, lyk a child, als big as a pow. It vanted no mark of the imag of a bairn, eyes, nose, mouth, little lippies, and the hands of it folded down by its sydis. The vordis, quhan we maid it, ver thes:
‘“We put this water among this meall,
For long divining,96 and ill heall; We put it intill the fyr, To burn them up both stik and stour, That be burnt with our will, As any stikill97 on a kill!”
The Divell sitton on an blak kist. Ve wer al on owr kneyis, and owr hair about our eyes, looking on the Divell stedfastlie, and our handis lifted up to him, saying the vordes ower. And by this the bairnis died.’
