“ The clergy were generally in the front rank of witch-hunters, and through their influence, the most of them were put to death. In places where the minister was inflamed with a holy zeal against the devil and his emissaries, such as Pittenweem and Torryburn, the parish became a perfect hot-bed for the rearing of witches; and so plentiful a crop did it produce, that it appeared nothing else could thrive. But in places where the minister had some portion of humanity, [12] and a little common sense, the devil very rarely set foot on his territories, and witchcraft was not to be found. ”

“ Since the repeal of the statutes against witchcraft, several prosecutions have been instituted against witches, who were convicted and punished; but it was bewitching silly ignorant people out of their money, goods, and common sense, by pretending a knowledge of futurity—a power of relieving maladies in man or beast—or procuring the affection of some favourite swain to a love-sick maiden. The dupes of these impostors do not altogether escape, as they are made the laughing stock of their neighbours ”

“ Lillias Adie confessed, that after she entered into compact with Satan, he appeared to her some hundred of times, and that the devil himself summoned her to that meeting which was on the glebe, he coming into her house like a shadow, and went away like a shadow; and added, that she saw Elspeth Williamson and Agnes Currie both there, only Agnes was nearer the meeting than Elspeth, who was leaning on the church-yard dike with her elbow. She added, that the devil bade her attend many meetings that she could not attend, for age and sickness ”

“ Pleasure and pain are the two great principles of human action which has given rise to the good and evil principle common to all nations. Those who held communication and commerce with the evil principle, are witches, wizzards, sorcerers, &c. Although we have various laws and injunctions against witchcraft in scripture, yet we are still as much in the dark as ever, as no definition is given of it, nor is the particular actions which constitute witchcraft enumerated, so as we can say wherein it consists. ”

“ The pretended meeting, about which those who believe they have been at it, relate so many extravagant things, is only in their imagination. I own, that some country people, especially shepherds, do now and then rub their skin with some narcotick grease or ointments, which cast them into a sound sleep, and fill their imagination with a thousand visions. When they are thus asleep, they fancy they see every thing that was told them concerning the devil's meeting, by their fathers, who were also shepherds, or wizards, if you will have me to call them so. ”

“ Thus the terrific claws of the devil, when seen by the distempered eyes of ignorant bigotry, appear to us truly horrible, but when viewed through philosophical spectacles, look as harmless as the lamb-skin gloves of a fine lady. ”

“ Quaeritur, then, what connexion can this representation have with an effect or contingent event not yet existant? For answer to this, God, who knoweth all things, no doubt imparteth much of the foreknowledge of things, not only to good angels, but also evil angels, for reasons well known to himself, particularly that they might give some true signs, and so have way to deceive in many things besides; and though the signs foretold should surely come to pass, it does not infer that the doctrine of evil angels, and their lies that they would suggest to mankind, should be credited. ”

“ But I would advise all of them that have the second sight, to examine themselves, and to pray earnestly to God that no evil angel should have power to abuse their senses, because the devil still strives to imitate what God, or his good angels, communicates to his own children. ”

“ It is to be minded, that Lillias Adie appeared before the congregation on the Lord's day, and being called up by the minister and asked if she was guilty of witchcraft, she confessed freely that she was, and had entered expressly into covenant with Satan, and renounced her baptism, the devil putting one hand on the crown of her head, and the other under the soles of her feet, and she gave over all to the devil that was betwixt his two hands, and she was come hither to confess her sins, and to get her renounced baptism back again. ”

“ And because an old silly poor ploughman, called Gray Meilt, chanced to say, that nothing ailed the King yet, God be thanked, the devil gave him a great blow. Thus divers among them entred in reasoning, marvelling that all their devilry could do no harm to the King, as it had done to divers others. The devil answered, il est un homme de Dieu, certainly he is a man of God, and does no wrong wittingly, but he is inclined to all Godliness, justice, and vertue, therefore God hath preserved him in the midst of many dangers. ”

“ Mark, finally, if it were within the sphere of angelical power to take bodies of condense air, what needed them assume such material and earthly bodies as these angels that came to Abraham and Lot assumed? whose bodies could be touched and handled, and whose bodies were not found to yield to the touch, as the most condensed air must do; and it is very consisting with reason, that the angels, good or bad, should rather assume bodies of the element of the earth, which is a great deal more easily brought to the figure and fashion of a body, than the air. ”

“ Happily for our times, the refulgent brightness of philosophy and science, hath dispelled these dark clouds of benighted superstition, and left us in possession only of our natural powers and faculties, which are quite enough. ”

“ Here ariseth a question from what has just been said, whether it be more probable that good angels make this representation (because men having this second sight are found to tell truth, and to be innocent in their lives, and free of any paction, either implicit or explicit, likewise free of any fraudulent design, and sound enough in the necessary articles of their salvation) , or that it be done by evil angels for the trial of men and women, juggling with their fancy and external organs, and so have a patent way to tell lies among some truths. ”

“ What sort of Folkes are least or most subject to receive harm by Witchcraft—What power they have to harme the Magistrate, and upon what respects they have any power in prison—And to what end may or will the Devill appeare to them therein—Upon what respects the Devill appeares in sundry shapes to sundry of them at any time. ”

“ I cannot be so uncharitable to several men that I have known to be of considerable sense, and pious and good conversation, as to conclude them to be given over to be deluded continually by an evil angel: Moreover, I conceive that there are many good Christians, if they would advert well, that have some secret tokens and signs of notable alterations to come, suggested to them before hand ”

“ It is not for nought that we are commanded to try the spirits, and that rather by their doctrines, than their signs and wonders, or fair and smooth pretences. Therefore, suppose these evil angels to know a contingent future event, either by a revelation, or natural or moral causes, they may, in the method foresaid make the representation of them to the eyes or ears; as for example, an angel, good or bad, finds that either the lungs, heart, stomach, liver, or brain, are under such a consumption, as may against such a time kill a man ”

“ Epi.—Only by earnest prayer unto God, by amendment of their lives, and by sharpe pursuing every one, according to his calling of these instruments of Satan, whose punishment to the death will be a salutarie sacrifice for the patient. And this is not onely the lawfull way, but likewise the most sure; for by the devil's meanes can never the devill be casten out, as Christ sayth; and when such a cure is used, it may well serve for a short time, but at the last it will doubtlesly tend to the utter perdition of the patient, both in body and soule. ”

“ In our day, it is almost impossible to believe, that human beings could give credit to such gross absurdities as we have laid before the public in this little work, were the evidence not indubitable. Far less, that judges, lawyers, and divines, should unite in murdering such numbers of poor ignorant helpless creatures, [9] for such mad chimeras, when it is hard to say, whether the poor victim, or the insane judges, were under the greater delusion. ”

“ The Reverend Allan Logan, the minister, is still famous all over the country for his skill in discovering witches; and used, when administering the Sacrament, to say, "You witch wife get up from the table of the Lord," when some unhappy old woman would have risen, imagining she was pointed at, and it was well if it did not afterwards cost her her life. ”

“ The story of the witch of Endor, is a case that throws more light on the subject than any other. But she appears to have acted more in the character of one of our second sighted seers, than one of our modern witches. According to our notions and ideas of witchcraft (as laid [7] down by that sapient monarch James VI.) , it is a poor ignorant old woman, who, through misery or malice, gives herself to the devil, soul and body, and renounces her baptism; for which considerations Satan engages to assist her with his power to work a number of petty mischiefs on such as she has a spite at ”

“ For as an old practitian, hee knowes well enough what humour domines most in any of us, and as a spirit he can subtillie waken up the same, making it peccant, or to abound, as hee thinkes meet, for troubling of us, when God will so permit him. And for the taking off of it, no doubt he will be glad to relieve such of present paine as he may thinke by these meanes to perswade to be catched in his everlasting snares and fetters. They can bewitch and take the life of men or women, by roasting of the pictures, as I spake of before, which likewise is verie possible to their master to performe ”

“ As the minister sent by God teacheth plainely at the time of their publike conventions, how to serve him in spirit and trewth, so that unclean spirit, in his owne person, teacheth his disciples at the time of their conveening, how to worke all kind of mischiefe, and craves coumpt of all their horrible and detestable proceedings passed for advancement of his service: Yea, that hee may the more vilely counterfeit and scorne God, he oft times makes his slaves to conveene in these very places which are destinate and ordained for the conveening of the servants of God, (I meane by churches.) ”

“ What he says about Thomas Brown is also false, he was accused by the lad, and delated by three confessing witches, as being accessory to the attempt on M'Grigor. It is false he was starved, for his daughter brought him his diets punctually. Our author's fears of more murders are altogether groundless, and we appeal to all men of candour, whether this author's impudent and unjust accusation against magistrates and minister of murdering Thomas Brown, deserves not severer punishment than any thing he can charge them with. ”

“ I have observed a sick person, that complained of great pain and molestation in his head, and particularly of piping and sweating in his ears, which seems to have been caused by the species of piping and singing which he had formerly heard, but were now, through the plethory of his head, forced out of the brain to the organ of the ear, through the same nerves by which they were received formerly; and why may not the same befall the visible species as well as the audible? ”

“ The woman brought from Anstruther was a Mrs White, an inhabitant of Pittenweem, who, through fear of being apprehended, fled thither to her daughter's house. This woman, whose cause is now warmly espoused by some, with no advantage to their reputation, and who is now insisting against the magistrates in a process for wrongous imprisonment, has been for many years a person of very bad fame. Some eighteen years ago, she pursued a woman before the session, in Mr Bruce the late Episcopal incumbents time, for calling her a witch, and succumbing in the probation. ”

“ Seldom it is, that a man passes any great and turbulent fever, without the trouble of some such representations. It is memorable, that a gentleman, that had been a great proficient in physic himself, imagined at length that there was a quick frog in his belly ”

“ From the Daemonologie we have made copious extracts, that our readers may have an idea of the days of 'langsyne,' when there was plenty of diels, witches, fairies, and water kelpies, all over the country. Those, therefore, who are anxious to know how affairs are managed in the 'kingdom of darkness,' and can rely on the word of a king for the truth of it, will be here amply gratified. ”

“ One Peter Morton, a blacksmith in that town, after a long sickness, pretended that witches were tormenting him—that he did see them and know them—and, from time to time, as he declared such and such women to be witches, they were by order of the magistrates and minister of Pittenweem, apprehended as such, to a very considerable number, and put into prison. ”

“ The third thing proposed was, the connexion of [176] these representations with the future contingent events that are observed to follow them, as for example, a second sighted man sees a winding sheet upon his neighbour, or blood running down his face, shoulders, or arms, he concludes that he must die, or be wounded in the face, shoulders, or arms. If you will ask what warrant he has for this, he will tell, he has found by experience, that whenever he saw the like of this, that he found death or wounds to follow. ”