ed with her nails from
out her breast.

Alexander Sussums of Melford, Sussex, said he had things which drew his
marks, and that he could not help being a witch, for all his kindred were
naught--his mother and aunt hanged, his grandmother burnt, and ten others
questioned and hanged. At Faversham about this time, three witches were
hanged, one of whom had an imp-dog, Bun; and on the 9th of September[135]
Jane Lakeland was burnt at Ipswich for having bewitched to death her
husband, and Mrs. Jennings' maid, who once refused her a needle and dunned
her for a shilling. Jane Lakeland had contracted with the devil twenty
years ago. He came to her when between sleeping and waking, speaking to
her in a hollow voice, and offering her her will if she would covenant
with him. To which she, assenting, he then stroke his claw into her hand
and with her blood wrote out the covenant. She had bewitched men and women
and cows and corn, and sunk ships, and played all the devilries of her
art, but remained ever unsuspected, holding the character of a pious
woman, and going regularly to church and sacrament. She had three
imps--two little dogs and a mole--and Hopkins burnt her as the best way of
settling the question of her sanity or disease.

It would have been well for all these poor people if their respective
judges--Sir Matthew Hale included--had had only as much liberality and
common sense as Mr. Gaule, the minister of Stoughton in Huntingdonshire;
for though Gaule was no wise minded to give up his belief either in the
devil or in witches, he utterly repudiated Matthew Hopkins and his tribe
and his ways, and condemned his whole manner of proceeding, from first to
last. He preached against him, and when he heard a rumour of his visiting
Stoughton he strongly opposed him, whereupon Matthew wrote this insolent
letter, which Mr. Gaule printed as a kind of preface to his book of
"Select Cases," put out soon after.

"My Service to your Worship presented. I have this Day received a letter,
&c., to come to a Town called Great Stoughton, to search for evil disposed
Persons, called Witches (though I heare your Minister is farre against us
through Ignorance:) I intend to come the sooner to heare his singular
Judgement in the Behalfe of such Parties; I have known a Minister in
Suffolk preach as much against this Discovery in a Pulpit, and forced to
recant it, (by the Committee) in the same place. I much marvaile such evil
Members should have any