We have seen what Lancashire was in sixteen hundred and twelve: it was not
much better twenty-one years later; for in 1633 we find that Pendle Forest
was still of bad repute, and that traditions of old Demdike and her rival
Mother Chattox yet floated round the Malkin Tower, and hid, spectre-like,
in the rough and desert places of the barren waste. Who ever knew of evil
example waiting for its followers? What Mothers Demdike and Chattox had
done in their day, their children and grandchildren were ready to do after
them. The world will never lose its old women, "toothless, blear-eyed,
foul-tongued, malicious," for whom love died out and sin came in long
years ago; and Edmund Robinson, son of Ned of Roughs, was one of those
specially appointed by Providence to bring such evildoers to their reward.
Edmund, then about eleven years of age (how many of these sad stories come
from children and young creatures!), lived with his father in Pendle
Forest; lived poorly enough, but not without some kind of romance and
interest; for on the 10th day of February, 1633, he made the following
deposition:--
"Who upon oath informeth, being examined concerning the great meeting of
the Witches of Pendle, saith that upon All Saints' Day last past, he, this
Informer, being with one Henry Parker, a near-door neighbour to him in
Wheatley-lane, desired the said Parker to give him leave to gather some
Bulloes, which he did. In gathering whereof he saw two Grayhounds, viz., a
black and a brown one, come running over the next field towards him, he
verily thinking the one of them to be Mr. Nutter's, and the other to be
Mr. Robinson's, the said Gentlemen then having such like. And saith, the
said Grayhounds came to him, and fawned on him, they having about their
necks either of them a Collar, unto each of which was tied a String; which
Collars (as this Informer affirmeth) did shine like Gold. And he thinking
that some either of Mr. Nutters or Mr. Robinsons Family should have
followed them; yet seeing no body to follow them, he took the same
Grayhounds, thinking to course with them. And presently a Hare did rise
very near before him. At the sight whereof he cried Loo, Loo, Loo: but the
Doggs would not run. Whereupon he being very angry took them, and with the
strings that were about their Collars, tied them to a little bush at the
next hedge, and with a switch that he had in his hand he beat them. And in
stead of the black Grayhound, one Dickensons Wife stood up, a Neighbour,
whom this Informer knoweth. And in stead of the brown one a little Boy,
whom this Informer knoweth not. At which sight this Informer, being
afraid, endeavoured to run away; but being stayed by the Woman, (viz.) by
Dickensons Wife, she put her hand into her pocket, and pulled forth a
piece of Silver much like to a fair shilling, and offered to give him it
to hold his tongue and not to tell; which he refused, saying, Nay, thou
art a Witch. Whereupon she put her hand into her pocket again, and pulled
out a thing like unto a Bridle that gingled, which she put on the little
Boyes head; which said Boy stood up in the likeness of a white Horse, and
in the brown Grayhounds stead. Then immediately Dickensons wife took this
Informer before her upon the said Horse and carried him to a new house
called Hoarstones, being about a quarter of a mile off. Whither when they
were come, there were divers persons about the door, and he saw divers
others riding on Horses of several colours towards the said House, who
tied their Horses to a hedge near to the said House. Which persons went
into the said House, to the number of three score or thereabouts, as this
Informer thinketh, where they had a fire, and meat roasting in the said
House, whereof a young Woman (whom this Informer knoweth not) gave him
Flesh and Bread upon a Trencher, and Drink in a Glass, which after the
first taste he refused, and would have no more, but said it was nought.
"And presently after, seeing divers of the said company going into a Barn
near adjoining, he followed after them, and there he saw six of them
kneeling, and pulling all six of them six several ropes, which were
fastened or tied to the top of the Barn. Presently after which pulling,
there came into this Informers sight flesh smoaking, butter in lumps, and
milk as it were syleing (straining) from the said ropes. All which fell
into basons which were placed under the said ropes. And after that these
six had done, there came other six which did so likewise. And during all
the time of their several pulling, they made such ugly faces as scared
this Informer, so that he was glad to run out and steal homewards; who
immediately finding they wanted one that was in their company, some of
them ran after him near to a place in a Highway called Boggard-hole, where
he, this Informer, met two Horsemen. At the sight whereof the said persons
left following of him. But the foremost of those persons that followed him
he knew to be one Loinds Wife; which said Wife, together with one
Dickensons Wife, and one Jennet Davies, he hath seen since at several
times in a Croft or Close adjoining to his Fathers house, which put him in
great fear. And further this Informer saith, upon Thursday after New
Years Day last past he saw the said Loinds Wife sitting upon a cross piece
of wood being within the Chimney of his Fathers dwelling-house; and he,
calling to her, said, Come down, thou Loynds Wife. And immediately the
said Loynds Wife went up out of his sight. And further this Informer
saith, that after he was come from the company aforesaid to his Fathers
house, being towards evening, his Father bad him go and fetch home two
kine to seal (tie up). And in the way, in a field called the Ellers, he
chanced to hap upon a Boy, who began to quarrel with him, and they fought
together, till the Informer had his ears and face made up very bloody by
fighting, and looking down he saw the Boy had a cloven foot. At which
sight, he being greatly affrighted, came away from him to seek the kine.
And in the way he saw a light like to a Lanthorn, towards which he made
haste, supposing it to be carried by some of Mr. Robinson's people; but
when he came to the place he only found a Woman standing on a Bridge,
whom, when he saw, he knew her to be Loinds Wife, and knowing her he
turned back again; and immediately he met the aforesaid Boy, from whom he
offered to run, which Boy gave him a blow on the back that made him to
cry. And further this Informer saith, that when he was in the Barn, he saw
three Women take six Pictures from off the beam, in which Pictures were
many Thorns or such like things sticked in them, and that Loynds Wife took
one of the Pictures down, but the other two Women that took down the rest
he knoweth not. And being further asked what persons were at the aforesaid
meeting, he nominated these persons following." Here follows a list of
names of no interest to the modern reader. At the end of this deposition
is one from the Father.
"Edmund Robinson of Pendle, Father of the aforesaid Edmund Robinson,
Mason, informeth,
"That upon All Saints-day last he sent his Son the aforesaid Informer, to
fetch home two kine to seal, and saith that his Son, staying longer than
he thought he should have done, he went to seek him, and in seeking of him
heard him cry pitifully, and found him so affrighted and distracted that
he neither knew his Father nor did know where he was, and so continued
very near a quarter of an hour before he came to himself. And he told this
Informer his Father all the particular passages that are before declared
in the said Robinson his Son's Information.
(Signed) "RICHARD SHUTTLEWORTH.
"JOHN STARKEY."
Who would dare to doubt such testimony as this? Here was another child of
God grievously mishandled; and what might not be done to the servants of
the devil who had so evilly intreated him? And was not Edmund Robinson
evidently raised up and directed by God to be the scourge of all witches,
and the great discoverer of their naughty pranks? So the lad was elevated
to the post of witch-finder, and was taken about from church to
church--accusing any who might strike his fancy or his fears, and sending
them off to prison at the impulse of his childish will. Among other places
he was brought to the parish church of Kildwick, where Webster was then
curate. It was during the afternoon service, and the lad was put upon a
stall to look the better about him, and discern the witches more clearly.
After service Webster went to him and found him with "two very unlikely
persons that did conduct him and manage the business:" the curate of
Kildwick would have drawn him aside, but the men would not suffer this.
Then said Webster, "'Good boy, tell me truly and in earnest, didst thou
hear and see such strange things of the meeting of witches as is reported
by many that thou dost relate, or did some person teach thee to say such
things of thyself?' But the two men, not giving the boy leave to answer,
did pluck him from me, and said he had been examined by two able Justices
of the Peace, and they did never ask him such a question; to whom I
replied, 'The persons accused had therefore the more wrong.'" So Webster
got nothing by this, and the boy was not damaged nor his credit shaken.
Very many persons were arrested on this young imp's accusations, beside
those seventeen whom he had seen "syleing" butter and bacon from
witch-ropes in the magic barn. And among the rest Jennet Device, (was she
our old acquaintance of perjured memory?) who was charged with killing
Isabelle, the wife of William Nutter; and Mary Spencer, who was in
imminent danger for having "caused a pale or cellocke to come to her, full
of water, fourteen yards up a hill from a well;" and Margaret Johnson,
accused of killing Henry Heape, and wasting and impairing the body of
Jennet Shackleton--but there was no proof against her, save certain witch
marks, which, however, were indisputable, and on the finding of which she
was soon brought to confess. She said that, seven or eight years since,
she was in a mighty rage against life and the world in general, when there
appeared to her the devil like a man, dressed all in black tied about with
silk points, who offered her all she might wish or want in return for her
soul; telling her that she might kill man or beast as she should desire,
and take her revenge when she would; and that if she did but call
"Mamillion" when she wanted him, he would come on the instant and do as he
was bid. So "after a sollicitacion or two, she contracted and condicioned
with the said devill or spiritt for her soul," and henceforth became one
of the most notorious of the Lancashire witches. She confessed that she
was at the great witch-meeting held at Harestones, in Pendle, on All
Saints'-day last past, and again at another the Sunday after; and that all
the witches rode there on horses, and went to consult on the killing of
men and beasts; and that "there was one devill or spiritt that was more
greate and grand devill than the rest, and yf anie witch desired to have
such an one, they might have such an one to kill or hurt anie body." She
said, too, which was a new idea on her part, that the sharp-boned witches
were more powerful and malignant than those with "biggs" only; and then
she wandered off, and accused certain of her neighbours, of whom one,
"Pickhamer's wife, was the most greate, grand, and auncyent witch." Then
she told her audience that if any witch desired to be carried to any
place, a cat, or a dog, or a rod would convey them away; but not their
bodies, only their souls in the likeness of their bodies. The judge was
not quite satisfied with either Edmund Robinson's depositions or
Margaret's confessions, and for all that the jury brought in a verdict of
guilty, managed to get a reprieve, and to send up some of the accused to
London. He managed also to interest the king, Charles I., who had not his
father's craze on the subject; and Charles ordered the bishop to make a
special examination of the case, and send in his report. By this time,
too, Edmund and his father were separated, and the boy fully examined;
when at last he confessed to the entire worthlessness and fraud of all he
had said. He had been robbing an orchard of bullees (plums) more than a
mile off the barn at the day and hour named; and, counselled by his
father, had made up those wicked lies to screen himself. And then, finding
the game profitable--for in a short time they made so good a thing by it
that the father bought a couple of cows--he flew further a-field, and
attacked every one within reach. Fortunately for his victims, the judge
was a man of sense and independent judgment; so the judiciary records of
England are stained with one crime the less, and the neighbours lost the
excitement of an execution.