is the
ordeal by water. In the Laws of Athelstan the full detail of this ordeal is
given: after the person who was to undergo the ordeal had been prepared by
prayer and fasting, he was tied, the right thumb to the right big toe, the
left thumb to the left big toe, and was then cast into the water with
suitable prayers to the Almighty to declare the right; if he sank he was
considered innocent, if he floated he was guilty. The witch was 'tried' in
the same way, except that she was tied 'crossways', i.e. the right thumb to
the left big toe, and the left thumb to the right big toe. So great was the
belief in this test that many women accused of witchcraft insisted on
undergoing this ordeal, which was often conducted with solemnity and
decency under the auspices of the minister of the parish and other grave
persons. Unless there was strong feeling against the woman for other
reasons, the mere fact of her floating did not rouse the populace against
her, and she merely returned home; Widow Coman, for instance, was 'ducked'
on three separate occasions at her own request.

The theologians of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries were greatly
exercised by the conclusive evidence which proved that people known to be
devout and professing Christians had been present at the Sabbath, joined in
the ceremonies, and worshipped the witches' god. The Inquisitors recognized
the fact, and devote many pages of their books to the discussion of the
course to be followed in the case of Christian priests, coming finally to
the conclusion that if a priest merely went to the Sabbath but was not in
any way in an official position there his sacred character preserved him
from evil. The theologians of the Reformed Churches, who could not accept
the sanctity of the priesthood with the same ease and were also desirous of
finding some means of accounting for the presence of the devout laity,
boldly evolved the theory that the Devil could for his own purposes assume
the shape of good Christians in order to mislead the witches. By this plea
the accused often succeeded in escaping when the examiners were religious
ministers, but it was of no value to them when the trial was in a court of
law, and the fact of their presence at an illegal assembly was proved. Lord
Coke's definition of a witch summed up the law on the subject: 'A witch is
a person who hath conference with the Devil, to consult with him or to do
some act', and any person proved to have had su