Woolf, a
Monkey, a Horse, a Bull, and a Calf." Such a woman as this had no business
here on this solid earth, so she was hanged at Salisbury, 1653, dying very
hard and completely crazed. Before the hour came she wrote a letter to her
husband desiring him never to live in his own house again; and she asked
the woman who was to "shroud" her, to root up all her garden herbs and
flowers when she should be dead; and she clamoured for a knife to stick
into her heart; and she wanted to die drunk, calling for beer on her way
to execution, and giving her gaolers much trouble to hold her in at all;
and she would have no psalm sung, and no prayer read, and would forgive
none of them, but cursed them all fiercely as she stood on the rungs of
the ladder despairing and defying. So miserably she died, poor old wretch!
and Anne Styles never looked up again into the fair face of heaven without
the stain of blood across her hand, and the brand of Cain on her brow.

THE SPRIGHTLY LAD OF SOMERSETSHIRE.[143]

One certain Sunday afternoon, in November 1657, Richard Jones, "a
sprightly youth of twelve," living at Shepton Mallet, in Somersetshire,
being left at home alone, and looking abroad as sprightly youth will, saw
an old woman of the place, by name Jane Brooks, look in at the window. He
went to the door to see what she wanted, when she asked him to give her a
piece of "close bread," and she would give him an apple. He did so, and
she thanked him, stroked him down the right side, shook him by the hand,
and bade him good night. When the father and our coz. Gibson came back,
they found the sprightly youth ill, and complaining of pain in the right
side. He continued in the same state through the night, and on the
following day became much worse, falling into fits of speechlessness, &c.,
immediately after having roasted and eaten the apple which Jane Brooks had
given him. He then told the father that an old woman of the place, name
unknown but person remembered, had stroked his right side, and thus had
caused his illness; whereupon his father decided that all the women of
Shepton Mallet should come to see him, and that in case he was in his fit,
and not able to speak when the true witch came, he should give a "jogg,"
which would be sufficiently expressive. All the women of Shepton Mallet
were brought in by turns; but the boy remained quiet until Jane Brooks
appeared, when he fell into a fit, and was for some time unable to see or
speak. Re