Every town and county had its witch-finder, whose duty it was
to detect and bring to trial all those tainted with witchcraft or
sorcery. Considering that almost every accident which happened
was attributed to sorcery, the duties of the witch-finder were
most important. According to his diligence so was the safety of
persons and property. Hail-storms, destructive floods, dangerous
fires, disease among cattle, and domestic afflictions were all
ascribed to witchcraft. A mole or wart discovered on any part of
an old woman's body was thought to be a witch-mark. If a
suspected witch did not shed tears, it was presumptive evidence
of guilt; if she kept a black cat, it was taken for a familiar;
and all these circumstances together were regarded as infallible
signs of her evil nature. An expert witch-finder knew all the
wiles and arts of his profession. To prepare the suspected witch
for judicial examination, a particular diet was sometimes given
her, to counteract the unguents she had anointed herself with, to
make non-effective the preparations of belladonna, aconite,
parsley, and other ingredients she had swallowed, and to
render[Pg
494] of no effect the charmed cocks' combs and rams'
kidneys partaken of by her.
John Kinnaird, a witch-finder, some hundreds of years past,
brought many witches to justice in his time. In 1649 he pricked
Patrick Watson, of West Fenton, and Minie Haliburton his wife,
and found the devil's mark on the husband's back, and the same
evil one's impress on the wife's neck. Though the operator thrust
his sharp instrument deep into the spots, no pain was felt, nor
did blood flow. These results proved that the accused husband and
wife were in league with Satan; and Minie, seeing it was useless
to deny her guilt, admitted the crime.
Under judicial examination, witches have confessed to having
met the devil at his Sabbaths, the meetings always taking place
near a cross road, upon a dreary moor, or beside a lake or
stagnant pool, on Wednesday and Friday nights. At the meetings
children were presented, so they said, to Satan. At these
gatherings sorcerers were supplied with exquisite meat and drink,
served in vessels of gold and silver; and at other times with
cooked toads, unbaptised children, and the flesh of malefactors
cut down from gibbets. Toads, having the rank of witches'
familiars, appeared at the meetings, dressed in gay attire, and
wearing small silver bells round their necks, or attached to
their feet. At cock-crow Satan disappeared under the earth, and
the witches flew through the air to their respective homes. That
witches could transform themselves into hares, wolves, and other
animals, nearly all the accused women readily admitted.
In the year 1728 a witch-finder discovered that a stout tall
woman, suspected of sorcery, did not weigh more than four ounces.
This was enough to make out a case against her; and not only
against her, but against several confederates, and they were all
burned in terms of law.
On account of a petition presented by the inhabitants of
Newcastle to the authorities, in the year 1649,[Pg 495]
concerning the evil consequences of witchcraft, the magistrates
sent two of their officers to Scotland to secure the services of
a celebrated witch-finder, famous for detecting witches by means
of pricking them with sharp instruments. The cunning man agreed
to go with them to Newcastle to try such suspected persons as
might be brought to him, at the rate of twenty shillings for
every woman found guilty. When the officers brought the
witch-finder to town, the magistrates sent their bellman through
the streets to invite the inhabitants who had complaints to make
against witches to make them without delay, that they (the
witches) might be tried by the person appointed. Thirty women
were brought to the town hall, and had pins thrust into their
flesh, and most of them were found guilty. The witch-finder
informed Lieutenant-Colonel Hobson that he knew whether women
were witches or no by their looks. On a good-looking woman being
brought to the finder, the gallant colonel thought it was
unnecessary to try her, but the canny Scotchman knew better, and
therefore submitted her to his infallible test. Having put a pin
into her side, he marked her down a witch of the devil. The
colonel, not satisfied that the woman was guilty, remonstrated,
and then the witch-finder confessed he was in error. The
highly-favoured damsel was therefore liberated; but as no
champion appeared for the poor old withered hags, they suffered
the pains of law.
Having rid Newcastle of witches, the witch-finder was summoned
to Northumberland county to try women there for sixty shillings
each. For some fault or crime connected with the discharge of his
official duties, he was apprehended, and put under bond to appear
at the sessions to answer such charges as might be brought
against him. He escaped to Scotland, where he was made prisoner,
indicted, and condemned for villany, exercised on the north side
of the Tweed, in connection with[Pg 496] witch-finding. He
confessed that he had been instrumental in bringing to an
untimely end above two hundred and twenty women in England and
Scotland.
Matthew Hopkins, who regularly went on circuit in England to
detect witches for a long period subsequent to the year 1644,
applied the usual tests, such as finding witch-marks, thrusting
sharp instruments into the bodies of suspected persons, dragging
them through deep water while they were wrapped in sheets, with
their great toes and thumbs tied together, keeping his victims
awake sometimes as long as forty-eight hours to make them
confess, ascertaining whether they could repeat the Lord's
Prayer, or shed tears.
The clergy of Scotland lent themselves to witch-finding with a
zeal truly marvellous. They, in General Assembly, passed five
condemnatory acts against witchcraft between the years 1640 and
1649. Kirk-sessions throughout the land outvied each other in
their efforts to bring suspected witches to trial, and to
counteract the dark deeds of Satan.
The Rev. John Scott, one of the Established Church ministers
of Perth from 1762 to 1806, author of the History of the Earls
of Gowrie and other works, left several folio manuscript
volumes of extracts from the kirk-session records of Perth; and
from these we make the following abbreviated selections in
support of what is here stated:—
"On 16th April 1582 the kirk-session (which for some
time was designated the 'Assembly') ordained their box-master to
give the witch in the Tolbooth eight doits (eight twelfths of a
penny sterling) in the day."
"In November 1589 a day was assigned to certain honest
neighbours of Tirseppie to be present and to declare whether it
was true that Guddal, spouse to Richard Watson, was a witch, as
John Watson alleged, or what evil likelihood they saw in her.
Walter Watson, John Watson, George Scott, and James Scott, on
being severally examined by the kirk-session, declared that they
never saw such things of her whereby they might suspect her of
witchcraft, but that she was an honest poor woman, who wrought
honestly for her living, without whose help her
husband,[Pg 497] Richard Watson, would have been
dead, as he was an aged man. Therefore the minister and elders
ordained the act of slander to be put in execution against John
Watson, and Helen Watson his daughter."
"In November 1597 the kirk-session ordained the magistrates of
Perth to travel with his Majesty to obtain a commission to
execute Janet Robertson, sorceress, who had long been detained in
ward."
"The kirk-session, on 30th May 1615, requested the bailies to
ward Marion Murdoch, complained upon for witchcraft, ay and until
she was tried thereanent."
"On the 4th day of May 1618, conform to citation, Isabella
Garry, servitrix, and Margaret Lamb, daughter-in-law to George
Thompson, appeared before the session, and were asked if they had
been at the well in the bank of Huntingtower the previous
Sabbath, and if they drank thereof, and if they had left anything
at it. They answered that they had been at it and drank thereof,
and that each of them had left a pin thereat. This was found to
be a point of idolatry. Their case was continued until some other
young women, who were with them, should be summoned to appear
before the church court." [Though it does not clearly appear what
object the young women had in view in drinking the Huntingtower
well water, and putting pins therein, we presume they simply did
what maidens of the present time do, namely, go to a spring
supposed to possess peculiar charms (as the Ruthven or
Huntingtower well was believed to have), drink of its water, and
each throw a pin into the well, under the conviction that every
one would get the wish uppermost in her heart
fulfilled—generally the securing of a husband before the
year was ended.]
"On the 3rd August 1619, Alexander Peebles, a burgess of
Perth, appeared before the session, and took exception to the
doctrine delivered by Mr. John Guthrie, minister, on the previous
Sabbath afternoon; and alleged that the minister had slandered
him and his house by accusing him of sorcery, and turning the
riddle. The minister and session certified in one voice that the
doctrine was general, and necessarily followed on the text from
which Mr. Guthrie was preaching. Peebles would have been censured
had not Mr. Guthrie interceded for him. Mr. Guthrie, however,
brought upon himself further annoyance, in consequence of
accusing other members of his congregation of witchcraft and
sorcery. On the 13th of the next month Mr. Guthrie complained to
his session, of Thomas Young uttering speeches against him and
his ministry, and of refusing to discharge the civil duty of
saluting him when they met on the causeway. The members of
session were highly offended that any member of the church should
have so far misregarded his pastor and provoked him to ire, and
therefore ordered him to be cited to appear before them the
following day. Conform to citation,[Pg 498] Thomas Young
appeared, who being accused of uttering speeches against and
misbehaving himself towards Mr. Guthrie, the delinquent boldly
answered that it was not the duty of the pastor to charge his
people with witchcraft, sorcery, and turning of the riddle.
Witnesses were examined against Thomas, who, before the court
rose, confessed his error, and said he was extremely sorry for
offending his minister in word or deed. Mr. Guthrie then
admonished Thomas, and craved the magistrates (who were present)
and the session to inflict no punishment on the said Thomas, but
to pass over his offences—a request that was granted."
"On 10th May 1626 Bessie Wright was accused before the
presbytery of Perth of witchcraft, curing sick folks, and
frequenting the town of Perth after having been banished from the
burgh, and forbidden to exercise her healing art. The moderator
and brethren ordained that she should be prohibited from
performing any cure, under pain of incarceration. It was likewise
ordained that the minister of Perth should make intimation on the
following Sabbath, that because the said Bessie was under
suspicion of witchcraft in curing diseased persons by unlawful
means, none would resort to her for advice, under pain of the
kirk's censures."
"Conform to citation, Robert Thomson, maltman, compeared
before the kirk-session on 30th December 1634, for causing a
bairn of his to be taken to the mill of Balhousie and put into
the flappers thereof, when the mill was going, to be charmed,
which, it was alleged, was a lesson of Satan. He answered that he
knew not of the circumstance until the child was brought home."
[The offence being considered an odious one, the session resolved
to take the advice of the presbytery how to proceed, but we are
not informed how the matter terminated.]
Lilias Adie, a Fife witch, obtained power from Satan to assist
her and her friends, and to ruin her enemies. Like many other
witches, she regularly attended the witch Sabbaths. How long she
might have remained alive to strike terror into the hearts of the
Torryburn people, none can tell, had not their worthy pastor, the
Rev. Allan Logan, come to the rescue. Mr. Logan, report says,
knew as well as any living man how to detect a witch. When
"fencing" the sacramental table, he would look around him with
his keen piercing eye, and call aloud, "You witch, begone from
the holy communion table." The searching look and commanding
voice made more than one woman retire from among the worthy
communicants. Mr. Logan was[Pg 499] well supported by a
zealous kirk-session. This being so, Lilias Adie had little
chance of escape. She and other suspected witches were submitted
to a series of examinations and tests, which ended in her being
burned within the sea-mark on the Fife coast.
From the ancient records of the kirk-session of Kirkcaldy, it
seems that numerous reputed witches were burned in that town in
the seventeenth century. In the year 1633 two witches were
burned; the cost of their execution, including the price of tar
barrels, and tow for tying the unfortunate beings at the stake,
amounted to £2, 17s. 6d. Scots. One half of the sum was
borne by the kirk-session, and the other half by the town. In the
year 1649 a woman was burned on the estate of Burncastle, and the
cost of watching her thirty days and of supplying fuel amounted
to £92, 14s. Scots, a goodly sum in those days; but as
£27, found in the possession of the reputed witch, was
taken to assist in defraying the expenses of her judicial murder,
the burden did not fall very heavy, after all, on the public.
Index | Next
