it. I feel as if
I would almost rather suffer myself, than accuse so fine a young man as
he seemed to be of such wicked conduct."

"But it appears to me that it is your duty to expose him, Mistress
Putnam," said Jethro Sands. "I know the young man whose spectre you saw,
for he and that black witch of a mare seem to be making their nightly
rounds together. They 'afflicted' me the other night the same way. I
flung them off; and I asked him what he meant by acting in that way? And
he said he was a lover of the witch Dulcibel; who was one of the queens
of Hell--I might know that by the snake-mark on her bosom. And she had
told him that he must afflict all those who had testified against her;
and she would lend him her 'familiar,' the black mare, to help him do
it."

By this time, even the dullest of the girls of course saw very plainly
who was being aimed at; but Mistress Putnam added, "upon learning that
Master Jethro had also been afflicted by this person, I had very little
doubt that I should find the guilty young man had been doing the same to
all of you; for we have seen heretofore that when these witches attack
one of us, they attack all, hating all for the same reason, that we
expose and denounce them. I may add that I have also heard that the
young man in question is now in Boston doing all he can in aid of the
snake-witch Dulcibel Burton; and representing all of us to Lady Mary
Phips and other influential persons, as being untruthful and malicious
accusers of innocent people." Here she turned to one who had always been
her right-hand as it were, and said:--"I suppose you have been tormented
in the same way, dear Abigail?"

Ann Putnam, her daughter, however, that precocious and unmanageable girl
of twelve, here broke in: "I think my mother is entirely mistaken. I was
treated just the same way about a week ago; but it was not the spectre
of Master Raymond at all--it was the spectre of another man whom I never
saw before. It was not at all like Master Raymond; and I, for one, will
not join in crying out against him."

In those old times, parents were treated with a much greater show, at
least, of respect and veneration than they are at present; and therefore
Mistress Putnam was greatly shocked at her daughter's language; but her
daughter was well known to all present as an exceptional child, being
very forward and self-willed, and therefore her mother simply said, "I
had not expected such unkind behavior from you