that"The Devil teacheth them to make ointment of the bowels and members of children, whereby they ride in the air and accomplish all their desires. After burial they steal them out of their graves and seeth them in a cauldron, till the flesh be made potable, of which they make an ointment, by which they ride in the air." Wierus exposes the folly of this opinion in his book "De Præstigiis Dæmonum," proving it to be a diabolical illusion, and to be acted only in a dream. And it is exposed as such by Oldham (Works, 6th edit. p. 254):

"As men in sleep, though motionless they lie, Fledg'd by a dream, believe they mount and flye;

So Witches some inchanted wand bestride, And think they through the airy regions ride."

See more authorities in the notes upon "Hudibras," part III. canto i. 1. 411, 412; Grey's Notes on Shakspeare, vol. ii. p. 140.

Lord Verulam tells us that "the ointment that Witches use is reported to be made of the fat of children digged out of their graves; of the juices of smallage, wolfbane, and cinquefoil, mingled with the meal of fine wheat: but I suppose the soporiferous medicines are likest to do it, which are henbane, hemlock, mandrake, moonshade, or rather nightshade, tobacco, opium, saffron, poplarleaves, &c."

There had been about the time of Lord Verulam no small stir concerning Witchcraft. "Ben Jonson," says Dr. Percy, "has left us a Witch song which contains an extract from the various incantations of classic antiquity. Some learned wiseacres had just before busied themselves on this subject, with our British Solomon, James the First, at their head. And these had so ransacked all writers, ancient and modern, and so blended and kneaded together the several superstitions of different times and nations, that those of genuine English growth could no longer be traced out and distinguished."

The Witch Song in "Macbeth" is superior to this of Ben Jonson. The metrical incantations in Middleton's "Witch" are also very curious. As the play is exceedingly rare,

All.

Round, around, around," &c.

The Witches' cauldron is thus described by Olaus Magnus: "Olla autem omnium Maleficarum commune solet esse instrumentum, quo succos, herbas, vermes, et exta decoquant, atque ea venefica dape ignavos ad vota alliciunt, et instar bullientis Ollæ, Navium & Equitum aut Cursorum excitant celeritatem." Olai Magni Gent. Septentr. Hist. Brevis. p. 96.

(10) Butler has an allusion to something of this kind in "Hudibras," part III. canto i. 1. 983:

"And does but tempt them with her riches To use them as the Devil does Witches; Who takes it for a special grace

To be their cully for a space,
That, when the time's expir'd, the drazels
For ever may become his vassals."

The Sabbath of the Witches is supposed to be held on a Saturday; when the Devil is by some said to appear in the shape of a goat, about whom several dances and magic ceremonies are performed. Before the assembly breaks up the Witches are all said to have the honour of saluting Satan's posteriors. See King James's remarks on this subject in his "Dæmonology." Satan is reported to have been so much out of humour at some of these meetings, that, for his diversion, he would beat the Witches black and blue with the spits and brooms, the vehicles of their transportation, and play them divers other unlucky tricks.

There is a Scottish proverb, "Ye breed of the Witches, ye can do nae good to your sel."

(1) King James, in his "Dæmonology," book ii. chap. 5, tells us that the Devil teacheth how to make pictures of wax or clay, that, by roasting thereof, the persons that they bear the name of may be continually melted or dried away by continual sickness."

See Servius on the 8th Eclogue of Virgil; Theocritus, Idyl. ii. 22; Hudibras, part II. canto ii. 1. 351.

Ovid says:

ני

"Devovet absentes, simulachraque cerea figit Et miserum tenues in jecur urget acus. Heroid. Ep. vi. 1. 91.

See also "Grafton's Chronicle," p. 587, where it is laid to the charge (among others) of Roger Bolinbrook, a cunning necromancer, and Margery Jordane, the cunning Witch of Eye, that they, at the request of Eleanor Duchess of Gloucester, had devised an image of wax representing the king (Henry the Sixth), which by their Sorcery a little and little consumed; intending thereby in conclusion to waste and destroy the king's person. Shakspeare mentions this, Henry VI. P. II. act i. Sc. 4.

It appears from Strype's "Annals of the Reformation," vol. i. p. 8, under anno 1558, that Bishop Jewel, preaching before the queen, said, "It may please your Grace to understand that Witches and Sorcerers within these few last years are marvellously increased within your Grace's realm. Your Grace's subjects pine away, even unto the death, their colour fadeth, their flesh rotteth, their speech is benumbed, their senses are bereft. I pray God they never practise further than upon the subject." "This," Strype adds, "I make no doubt was the occasion of bringing in a bill, the next parliament, for making enchantments and Witchcraft felony." One of the bishop's strong expressions is," These eyes have seen most evident and manifest marks of their wickedness." (c)

() It appears from the same work, vol. iv. p. 7, sub anno 1589, that "one Mrs. Dier had practised conjuration against the queen, to work some mischief to her Majesty; for which she was brought into question: and accordingly her words and doings were sent to Popham, the queen's attorney, and Egerton, her solicitor, by Walsingham the secretary, and Sir Thomas Heneage, her vice-chamberlain, for their judgment, whose opinion was that Mrs. Dier was not within the compass of the statute touching Witchcraft, for that she did no act, and

Andrews, in his "Continuation of Henry's History of Great Britain," 4to. p. 93, tells us, speaking of Ferdinand Earl of Derby, who in the reign of Queen Elizabeth died by poison, "The credulity of the age attributed his death to Witchcraft. The disease was odd, and operated as a perpetual emetic; and a waxen image, with hair like that of the unfortunate Earl, found in his chamber, reduced every suspicion to certainty."

The wife of Marshal d'Ancre was apprehended, imprisoned, and beheaded for a Witch, upon a surmise that she had enchanted the queen to dote upon her husband; and they say the young king's picture was found in her closet, in virgin wax, with one leg melted away, When asked by her judges what spells she had made use of to gain so powerful an ascendency over the queen, she replied, that ascendency only which strong minds ever gain over weak ones.' Seward's "Anecdotes of some Distinguished Persons," &c. vol. iii. p. 215.

Blagrave, in his "Astrological Practice of Physick," p. 89, observes that "the way which the Witches usually take for to afflict man or beast in this kind is, as I conceive, done by image or model, made in the likeness of that man or beast they intend to work mischief upon, and by the subtilty of the Devil made at such hours and times when it shall work most powerfully upon them by thorn, pin, or needle, pricked into that limb or member of the body afflicted."

This is farther illustrated by a passage in one of Daniel's Sonnets:

"The slie inchanter, when to work his will

And secret wrong on some forspoken wight, Frames waxe, in forme to represent aright The poore unwitting wretch he meanes to kill,

And prickes the image, fram'd by magick's skill,

Whereby to vex the partie day and night."

Son. 10; from Poems and Sonnets annexed to "Astrophil and Stella," 4to. 1591.

spake certain lewd speeches tending to that purpose, but neither set figure nor made pictures." Ibid. vol. ii. p. 545, sub anno 1578, Strype says: "Whether it were the effect of magic, or proceeded from some natural cause, but the queen was in some

Again, in "Diaria, or the Excellent Conceitful Sonnets of H. C." (Henry Constable), 1594:

"Witches which some murther do intend

Doe make a picture and doe shoote at it;
And in that part where they the picture
hit,

The parties self doth languish to his end."
Decad. II. Son. ii.

Coles, in his "Art of Simpling," &c., p. 66, says that Witches "take likewise the roots of mandrake, according to some, or as I rather suppose the roots of briony, which simple folke take for the true mandrake, and make thereof an ugly image, by which they represent the person on whom they intend to exercise their Witchcraft." He tells us, ibid. p. 26, "Some plants have roots with a number of threads, like beards, as mandrakes, whereof Witches and impostors make an ugly image, giving it the form of the face at the top of the root, and leave those strings to make a broad beard down to the feet."

(12) It was a supposed remedy against Witchcraft to put some of the bewitched person's water, with a quantity of pins, needles, and nails, into a bottle, cork them up and set them before the fire, in order to confine the spirit: but this sometimes did not prove sufficient, as it would often force the cork out with a loud noise, like that of a pistol, and cast the contents of the bottle to a considerable height.

Bewitched persons were said to fall frequently into violent fits and to vomit needles, pins, stones, nails, stubbs, wool, and straw. See Trusler's "Hogarth Moralized;" art. Medley.

It is related in "The Life of Lord Keeper Guildford," p. 131, that, when his lordship was upon the circuit at Taunton Dean, he detected an imposture and conspiracy against an old man charged with having bewitched a girl about thirteen years of age, who, during pretended convulsions, took crooked pins into her mouth, and spit them afterwards into bystanders' hands. (d) " As the judge went down

part of this year under excessive anguish by pains of her teeth, insomuch that she took no rest for divers nights, and endured very great torment night and day."

(d) Jorden, in his curious "Treatise of the Suf

stairs out of the court, an hideous old woman cried God bless your worship!' 'What's the matter, good woman?' said the judge. My Lord,' said she, forty years ago they would have hanged me for a Witch, and they could not; and now they would have hanged my poor son.'

"The first circuit his lordship went westward, Mr. Justice Rainsford, who had gone former circuits there, went with him; and he said that the year before a Witch was brought to Salisbury, and tried before him. Sir James Long came to his chamber and made a heavy complaint of this Witch, and said that if she escaped his estate would not be worth anything, for all the people would go away. It happened that the Witch was acquitted, and the knight continued extremely concerned: therefore the judge, to save the poor gentleman's estate, ordered the woman to be kept in gaol, and that the town should allow her 2s. 6d. a week; for which he was very thankful. The very next assizes he came to the judge to desire his lordship would let her come back to the town. And why? They could keep her for one shilling and sixpence there, and in the gaol she cost them a shilling more." p. 130.

(18) In ancient times even the pleasures of the chace were checked by the superstitions concerning Witchcraft. Thus, in Scot's "Discovery," p. 152, "That never hunters nor their dogs may be bewitched, they cleave an oaken branch, and both they and their dogs pass over it."

Warner, in his "Topographical Remarks relating to the South-western Parts of Hampshire," 8vo. Lond. 1793, vol. i. p. 241, mentioning Mary Dore, the "parochial Witch of Beaulieu," who died about half a century since, says, "Her spells were chiefly used for purposes of self-extrication in situations of danger; and I have conversed with a rustic whose father had seen the old lady convert

focation of the Mother," &c. 4to. Lond. 1603, p. 24, says, "Another policie Marcellus Donatus tells us of, which a physition used towardes the Countesse of Mantua, who, being in that disease which we call Melancholia hypochondriaca, did verily believe that she was bewitched, and was cured by conveying of nayles, needles, feathers, and such-like things into her close-stoole when she took physicke, making her believe that they came out of her bodie,'

herself more than once into the form of a hare, or cat, when likely to be apprehended in wood-stealing, to which she was somewhat addicted."

Butler, in his "Hudibras," part II. canto iii. 1. 149, says, speaking of the Witchfinder, that of Witches some be hanged

"for putting knavish tricks
Upon green geese and turkey-chicks,
Or pigs that suddenly deceas'd
Of griefs unnat'ral, as he guess'd."

Henry, in his "History of Great Britain," 4to. vol. i. p. 99, mentions Pomponius Mela as describing a Druidical nunnery, which, he says, was situated in an island in the British Sea, and contained nine of these venerable Vestals, who pretended that they could raise storms and tempests by their incanta tions; could cure the most incurable diseases; could transform themselves into all kinds of animals; and foresee future events."

For another superstitious notion relating to the enchantment of Witchcraft, see Lupton's "First Book of Notable Things," 8vo. edit. 1660, p. 20, No. 82. See also Guil. Varignana, and Arnoldus de Villa Nova.

(14) It was a part of the system of Witchcraft that drawing blood from a Witch rendered her enchantments ineffectual, as appears from the following authorities: In Glanville's "Account of the Dæmon of Tedworth," speaking of a boy that was bewitched, he "The boy drew towards Jane Brooks, the says, woman who had bewitched him, who was behind her two sisters, and put his hand upon her, which his father perceiving, immediately scratched her face and drew blood from her. The youth then cried out that he was well." "Blow at Modern Sadducism," 12mo. 1668, p. 148.

In the First Part of Shakspeare's "Henry the Sixth," act i. sc. 5, Talbot says to the Pucelle d'Orleans,

"I'll have a bout with thee; Devil, or devil's dam, I'll conjure thee: Blood will I draw on thee, thou art a Witch."

Thus also in Butler's "Hudibras:"

"Till drawing blood o' the dames like Witches, They're forthwith cur'd of their capriches."

So, also, in Cleveland's "Rebel Scot:" "Scots are like Witches; do but whet your pen,

Scratch till the blood come, they'll not hurt you then."

This curious doctrine is very fully investigated in Hathaway's trial, published in the State Trials." The following passage is in "Arise Evans's Echo to the Voice from Heaven," Svo. Lond. 1652, p. 34: "I had heard some say that, when a Witch had power over one to afflict him, if he could but draw one drop of the Witch's blood, the Witch would never after do him hurt."

"The Observer" newspaper, of March 6th, 1831, copies the following from the newspaper called the "Scotsman:"

"WITCHCRAFT.-During a thunder storm last week in Edinburgh, an elderly female who resides near Craigmillar, and who bears the reputation of being uncanny, went to a neighbour's house and asked for a piece of coal; being refused, she said they might repent that." The female to whom this was said instantly concluded that she was bewitched, and was immediately seized with a great tremor. Some days after her husband, while under the influence of liquor, taken we presume to inspire him with sufficient courage for the task, along with another man, went to the house of the old woman, and, with a sharp instrument, inflicted a deep wound across her forehead, under the impression that scoring her above the breath would destroy her evil influence in time coming. The poor woman is so severely injured that the sheriff has deemed it necessary to take a precognition of the facts."

Coles, in his "Art of Simpling," p. 67, observes that, "if one hang misletoe about their neck, the Witches can have no power of him. The roots of Angelica doe likewise availe much in the same case, if a man carry them about him, as Fuchsius saith."

In the song of "The Laidley Worm," in the "Northumb. Garland," p. 63, we read: "The spells were vain; the hag returnes

To the queen in sorrowful mood, Crying that Witches have no power Where there is rown-tree wood!" Butler, in "Hudibras," says of his conjurer that he could

"Chase evil spirits away by dint
Of sickle, horse-shoe, hollow flint."

Part II. canto iii. 1. 291.

Aubrey tells us, in his "Miscellanies," p. 148, that "it is a thing very common to nail horse-shoes on the thresholds of doors; which is to hinder the power of Witches that enter into the house. Most houses of the west end of London have the horse-shoe on the threshold. It should be a horse-shoe that one finds. In the Bermudas they use to put an iron into the fire when a Witch comes in. Mars is enemy to Saturn." He adds, ibid., "Under the porch of Staninfield church in Suffolk, I saw a tile with a horse-shoe upon it, placed there for this purpose, though one would imagine that holy water would alone have been sufficient. I am told there are many other similar instances."

66

Misson, in his "Travels in England," p. 192, on the subject of the horse-shoe nailed on the door, tells us: Ayant souvent remarqué un fer de cheval cloüe au seuils des portes (chez les gens de petite etoffe) j'ai demandè a plusieurs ce que cela vouloit dire? On m'a repondu diverses choses differentes, mais la plus generale reponse a eté, que ce fers se mettoient pour empêcher les Sorciers d'entrer. Ils rient en disant cela, mais ils ne le disent pourtant pas tout-a-fait en riant; car ils croyent qu'il y a là dedans, ou du moins qu'il peut y avoir quelque vertu secrete: et s'ils n'avoient pas cette opinion, ils ne s'amuseroient pas a clouer ce fer à leur porte."

In Gay's Fable of "The Old Woman and her Cats," the supposed Witch complains as follows:

"That the horse-shooe may never be pul'd from your threshold," occurs among the good wishes introduced by Holiday in his comedy of "TEXNOTAMIA, or the Marriage of the Arts," Signat. E b.

Nailing of horse-shoes seems to have been practised as well to keep Witches in as to keep them out. See Ramsey's "Elminthologia, p. 76, who speaks of nailing horse-shoes on the witches' doors and thresholds.

Mr. Douce's manuscript notes say: "The practice of nailing horse-shoes to thresholds resembles that of driving nails into the walls of cottages among the Romans, which they believed to be an antidote against the plague : for this purpose L. Manlius, A. U. C. 390, was named dictator, to drive the nail. Lumisden's "Remarks on the Antiquities of Rome," p. 148.

See

The bawds of Amsterdam believed (in 1687) that a horse-shoe which had either been found or stolen, placed on the chimney-hearth, would bring good luck to their houses. They also believed that horses' dung dropped before the house, and put fresh behind the door, would produce the same effect. See "Putanisme d'Amsterdam," 12mo. pp. 56, 57.

(15) In Beaumont and Fletcher's play of "Women pleased" are the following lines: "The Devil should think of purchasing that egg-shell

To victual out a Witch for the Burmoothes." P. 276, b.

(e) The editor of this work, April 26th, 1813, counted no less than seventeen horse-shoes in Monmouth-street, nailed against the steps of doors. Five or six are all that now remain, 1841. (f) We read in Persius,

"Tunc nigri Lemures, ovoque pericula rupto." Sat. v. 1. 185.

Among the wild Irish, "to eat an odd egg endangered the death of their horse." See "Memorable Things noted in the Description of the World," p. 112. Ibid. p. 113, we read, "The hoofs of dead horses they accounted and held sacred."