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![]() Posted: Post subject: Witches of Salem |
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Sometime toward the end of January, 1692, Betty Parris, nine year-old daughter of the Reverend Samuel Parris, became ill. She suffered from convulsions that contorted her body. At times she would cry out and cower under chairs as if frightened of something. Soon her thirteen-year-old orphaned cousin, Abigail, who also lived in the Parris household, showed the same symptoms. Reverend Parris and his wife did not recognize the malady and had the girls examined by several doctors. The physicians could find nothing wrong with the girls and by mid-February Dr. William Griggs declared that he thought "the evil hand is upon them." After that the word spread quickly through the tiny community of Salem Village: "There are witches among us."
The events that took place in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692 are still shocking and controversial even today. Before they were over, 19 people would be ----, four would die in jail, and one would be tortured to death. In its wake the proceedings would leave shattered families, suspicious neighbors and an embarrassment to Massachusetts that the state government would still be apologizing for three hundred years later. While the "why" of what happened at Salem is still up for debate even today, the "what" is fairly clear. In 1692 Salem was a small, somewhat poor, village with a population of around 550 people. It lay just inland from the much larger port of Salem Town and the residents were mostly of the Puritan sect. These Protestants had left Europe and settled in the new world hoping to be able to worship God as they pleased. Ironically, even though they'd been forced to leave their homes for religious reasons themselves, the Puritans tended to be very intolerant of anybody else who broke their strict moral and legal codes.
On June 2, 1692, Bridget Bishop became the first person to be tried and convicted of witchcraft. Eight days later she was ---- on Gallows Hill. By July 19 there was a second round of trials and convictions and five more women thought to be witches were ----. More trials followed. August 19 saw five more hanged, mostly men. John Proctor was among the group. His wife Elizabeth only escaped the noose because she was pregnant.
A statue of a Puritan stands in front of the Witch Museum in modern Salem town.
Before the trials were over, 141 people were arrested for witchcraft. Ironically, only the honest people died. If one was willing to confess to witchcraft they were forgiven. In fact, not one person who actually confessed to witchcraft was hanged or even brought to trial . This forgiveness came with a price, however, as the accused were pressed to name other witches in the community. While some people did this reluctantly, others probably found it an excellent opportunity to settle old scores.
Sometimes this backfired, however. Giles Cory, who earlier had refused to defend his wife when she was accused of witchcraft, found himself under arrest as family members of witches were looked at with considerable suspicion. Through a quirk of law, a person could not be tried unless they submitted a plea to the court. Giles Cory refused to do this, and to make him cooperate sheriff's officers administered the Peine Forte Et Dure to him. This torture consisted of putting the person under a large wooden board and piling rocks on top of them until they said what you wanted them to say. Giles Clory did not cooperate, however, and after two days of being crushed, died.
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