did appear to this examinant something like a flash of
gunpowder, although she does own she saw nothing in the child's hand.
Once the child, being speechless, but otherwise very sensible, ran up
and down the house, crying, 'Hush! hush!' as if she had seen poultry;
but this examinant saw nothing. At last the child catched at something,
and threw it into the fire. Afterwards, when the child could speak,
this examinant asked her what she saw at the time? She answered, that
she saw a duck. Another time the youngest child said, after a fit, that
Amy Duny had been with her, and tempted her to drown herself, or cut
her throat, or otherwise destroy herself. Another time they both cried
out upon Amy Duny and Rose Cullender, saying, 'Why don't you come
yourselves? Why do you send your imps to torment us?'"

The celebrated Sir Thomas Brown, the author of "Vulgar Errors," was
also examined as a witness upon the trial. Being desired to give his
opinion of the three persons in court, he said, he was clearly of
opinion that they were bewitched. He said, there had lately been a
discovery of witches in Denmark, who used the same way of tormenting
persons, by conveying crooked pins, needles, and nails into their
bodies. That he thought, in such cases, the devil acted upon human
bodies by natural means, namely, by exciting and stirring up the
superabundant humours, he did afflict them in a more surprising manner
by the same diseases their bodies were usually subject to; that these
fits might be natural, only raised to a great degree by the subtlety of
the devil, co-operating with the malice of these witches.

The evidence being concluded, Sir Matthew Hale addressed the jury. He
said, he would waive repeating the evidence, to prevent any mistake,
and told the jury, there were two things they had to inquire into.
First, Whether or not these children were bewitched; secondly, Whether
these women did bewitch them. He said, he did not in the least doubt
there were witches; first, Because the Scriptures affirmed it;
secondly, Because the wisdom of all nations, particularly our own, had
provided laws against witchcraft, which implied their belief of such a
crime. He desired them strictly to observe the evidence, and begged of
God to direct their hearts in the weighty concern they had in hand,
since, to condemn the innocent and let the guilty go free, are both an
abomination to the Lord.

The jury then retired, and, in about half an hour, retu