Whereupon the most honourable central court cited about 20 _auctores_,
whereof, howbeit, we remember but little. When _Dom. Consul_ had read out
this to my child, he once more lift up his voice and admonished her with
many words to confess of her own free-will, for that the truth must now
come to light.
Hereupon she steadfastly replied, that after the _defensio_ of _Dom.
Syndicus_ she had indeed hoped for a better sentence; but that, as it was
the will of God to try her yet more hardly, she resigned herself
altogether into His gracious hands, and could not confess aught save what
she had said before, namely, that she was innocent, and that evil men had
brought this misery upon her. Hereupon _Dom. Consul_ motioned the
constable, who straightway opened the door of the next room, and admitted
_Pastor Benzensis_ in his surplice, who had been sent for by the court to
admonish her still better out of the word of God. He heaved a deep sigh,
and said, "Mary, Mary, is it thus I must meet thee again?" Whereupon she
began to weep bitterly, and to protest her innocence afresh. But he heeded
not her distress, and as soon as he had heard her pray, "Our Father," "The
eyes of all wait upon thee," and "God the Father dwell with us," he lift
up his voice and declared to her the hatred of the living God to all
witches and warlocks, seeing that not only is the punishment of fire
awarded to them in the Old Testament, but that the Holy Ghost expressly
saith in the New Testament (Gal. v.), "That they which do such things
shall not inherit the kingdom of God"; but "shall have their part in the
lake which burneth with fire and brimstone, which is the second death"
(Apocal. xxi.). Wherefore she must not be stubborn nor murmur against the
court when she was tormented, seeing that it was all done out of Christian
love, and to save her poor soul. That, for the sake of God and her
salvation, she should no longer delay repentance, and thereby cause her
body to be tormented, and give over her wretched soul to Satan, who
certainly would not fulfil those promises in hell which he had made her
here upon earth; seeing that "He was a murderer from the beginning--a liar
and the father of it" (John viii.). "Oh!" cried he, "Mary, my child, who
so oft hast sat upon my knees, and for whom I now cry every morning and
every night unto my God, if thou wilt have no pity upon thee and me, have
pity at least upon thy worthy father, whom I cannot look upon without
tears, seeing that his hairs have turned snow-white within a few days, and
save thy soul, my child, and confess! Behold, thy Heavenly Father grieveth
over thee no less than thy fleshly father, and the holy angels veil their
faces for sorrow that thou, who wert once their darling sister, art now
become the sister and bride of the devil. Return therefore, and repent!
This day thy Saviour calleth thee, poor stray lamb, back into His flock,
'And ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath
bound ... be loosed from this bond?' Such are His merciful words (Luke
xiii.); _item_, 'Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord, and I
will not cause mine anger to fall upon you, for I am merciful' (Jer.
iii.). Return then, thou back-sliding soul, unto the Lord thy God! He who
heard the prayer of the idolatrous Manasseh when 'he besought the Lord his
God and humbled himself' (2 Chron. xxxiii.); who, through Paul, accepted
the repentance of the sorcerers at Ephesus (Acts xix.), the same merciful
God now crieth unto thee as unto the angel of the church of Ephesus,
'Remember, therefore, from whence thou art fallen, and repent' (Apocal.
ii.). Oh, Mary, Mary, remember, my child, from whence thou art fallen, and
repent!"
Hereupon he held his peace, and it was some time before she could say a
word for tears and sobs; but at last she answered, "If lies are no less
hateful to God than witchcraft, I may not lie, but must rather declare, to
the glory of God, as I have ever declared, that I am innocent."
Hereupon _Dom. Consul_ was exceeding wroth, and frowned and asked the tall
constable if all was ready, _item_, whether the women were at hand to
undress _Rea_; whereupon he answered with a grin, as he was wont, "Ho, ho,
I have never been wanting in my duty, nor will I be wanting to-day; I will
tickle her in such wise that she shall soon confess."
When he had said this, _Dom. Consul_ turned to my daughter, and said,
"Thou art a foolish thing, and knowest not the torment which awaits thee,
and therefore is it that thou still art stubborn. Now, then, follow me to
the torture-chamber, where the executioner shall show thee the
_instrumenta_; and thou mayest yet think better of it when thou hast seen
what the question is like."
Hereupon he went into another room, and the constable followed him with my
child. And when I would have gone after them, _Pastor Benzensis_ held me
back, with many tears, and conjured me not to do so, but to tarry where I
was. But I hearkened not unto him, and tore myself from him, and swore
that so long as a single vein should beat in my wretched body I would
never forsake my child. I therefore went into the next room, and from
thence down into a vault, where was the torture-chamber, wherein were no
windows, so that those without might not hear the cries of the tormented.
Two torches were already burning there when I went in, and although _Dom.
Consul_ would at first have sent me away, after a while he had pity upon
me, so that he suffered me to stay.
And now that hell-hound the constable stepped forward, and first showed my
poor child the ladder, saying with savage glee, "See here! first of all
thou wilt be laid on that, and thy hands and feet will be tied. Next, the
thumb-screw here will be put upon thee, which straightway will make the
blood to spirt out at the tips of thy fingers; thou mayest see that they
are still red with the blood of old Gussy Biehlke, who was burnt last
year, and who, like thee, would not confess at first. If thou still wilt
not confess, I shall next put these Spanish boots on thee, and should they
be too large, I shall just drive in a wedge, so that the calf, which is
now at the back of thy leg, will be driven to the front, and the blood
will shoot out of thy feet, as when thou squeezest blackberries in a bag.
"Again, if thou wilt not yet confess--holla!" shouted he, and kicked open
a door behind him, so that the whole vault shook, and my poor child fell
upon her knees for fright. Before long two women brought in a bubbling
caldron, full of boiling pitch and brimstone. This caldron the hell-hound
ordered them to set down on the ground, and drew forth, from under the red
cloak he wore, a goose's wing, wherefrom he plucked five or six quills,
which he dipped into the boiling brimstone. After he had held them a while
in the caldron he threw them upon the earth, where they twisted about and
spirted the brimstone on all sides. And then he called to my poor child
again, "See! these quills I shall throw upon thy white loins, and the
burning brimstone will presently eat into thy flesh down to the very
bones, so that thou wilt thereby have a foretaste of the joys which await
thee in hell."
[Illustration: The Torture Chamber]
When he had spoken thus far, amid sneers and laughter, I was so overcome
with rage that I sprang forth out of the corner where I stood leaning my
trembling joints against an old barrel, and cried, "O, thou hellish dog!
sayest thou this of thyself, or have others bidden thee?" Whereupon,
however, the fellow gave me such a blow upon the breast that I fell
backwards against the wall, and _Dom. Consul_ called out in great wrath,
"You old fool, if you needs must stay here, at any rate leave the
constable in peace, for if not I will have you thrust out of the chamber
forthwith. The constable has said no more than is his duty; and it will
thus happen to thy child if she confess not, and if it appear that the
foul fiend have given her some charm against the torture." Hereupon this
hell-hound went on to speak to my poor child, without heeding me, save
that he laughed in my face: "Look here! when thou hast thus been well
shorn, ho, ho, ho! I shall pull thee up by means of these two rings in the
floor and the roof, stretch thy arms above thy head, and bind them fast to
the ceiling; whereupon I shall take these two torches, and hold them under
thy shoulders, till thy skin will presently become like the rind of a
smoked ham. Then thy hellish paramour will help thee no longer, and thou
wilt confess the truth. And now thou hast seen and heard all that I shall
do to thee, in the name of God, and by order of the magistrates."
And now _Dom. Consul_ once more came forward and admonished her to confess
the truth. But she abode by what she had said from the first; whereupon he
delivered her over to the two women who had brought in the caldron, to
strip her naked as she was born, and to clothe her in the black
torture-shift; after which they were once more to lead her barefooted up
the steps before the worshipful court. But one of these women was the
Sheriff his housekeeper (the other was the impudent constable his wife),
and my daughter said that she would not suffer herself to be touched save
by honest women, and assuredly not by the housekeeper, and begged _Dom.
Consul_ to send for her maid, who was sitting in her prison reading the
Bible, if he knew of no other decent woman at hand. Hereupon the
housekeeper began to pour forth a wondrous deal of railing and ill words,
but _Dom. Consul_ rebuked her, and answered my daughter that he would let
her have her wish in this matter too, and bade the impudent constable his
wife call the maid hither from out of the prison. After he had said this,
he took me by the arm, and prayed me so long to go up with him, for that
no harm would happen to my daughter as yet, that I did as he would have
me.
Before long she herself came up, led between the two women, barefooted,
and in the black torture-shift, but so pale that I myself should scarce
have known her. The hateful constable, who followed close behind, seized
her by the hand, and led her before the worshipful court.
Hereupon the admonitions began all over again, and _Dom. Consul_ bade her
look upon the brown spots that were upon the black shift, for that they
were the blood of old wife Bichlke, and to consider that within a few
minutes it would in like manner be stained with her own blood. Hereupon
she answered, "I have considered that right well, but I hope that my
faithful Saviour, who hath laid this torment upon me, being innocent, will
likewise help me to bear it, as he helped the holy martyrs of old; for if
these, through God's help, overcame by faith the torments inflicted on
them by blind heathens, I also can overcome the torture inflicted on me by
blind heathens, who, indeed, call themselves Christians, but who are more
cruel than those of yore; for the old heathens only caused the holy
virgins to be torn of savage beasts, but ye which have received the new
commandment, 'That ye love one another; as your Saviour hath loved you,
that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are his
disciples' (St. John xiii.); yourselves will act the part of savage
beasts, and tear with your own hands the body of an innocent maiden, your
sister, who has never done aught to harm you. Do, then, as ye list, but
have a care how ye will answer it to the highest Judge of all. Again, I
say, the lamb feareth nought, for it is in the hand of the good Shepherd."
When my matchless child had thus spoken, _Dom. Consul_ rose, pulled off
the black skull-cap which he ever wore, because the top of his head was
already bald, bowed to the court, and said, "We hereby make known to the
worshipful court that the question ordinary and extraordinary of the
stubborn and blaspheming witch, Mary Schweidler, is about to begin, in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen."
Hereupon all the court rose save the Sheriff, who had got up before, and
was walking uneasily up and down in the room. But of all that now follows,
and of what I myself did, I remember not one word, but will relate it all
as I have received it from my daughter and other _testes_, and they have
told me as follows:--
That when _Dom. Consul_ after these words had taken up the hour-glass
which stood upon the table, and walked on before, I would go with him,
whereupon _Pastor Benzensis_ first prayed me with many words and tears to
desist from my purpose, and when that was of no avail my child herself
stroked my cheeks, saying, "Father, have you ever read that the Blessed
Virgin stood by when her guileless Son was scourged? Depart, therefore,
from me. You shall stand by the pile whereon I am burned, that I promise
you; for in like manner did the Blessed Virgin stand at the foot of the
cross. But, now, go; go, I pray you, for you will not be able to bear it,
neither shall I."
And when this also failed, _Dom. Consul_ bade the constable seize me, and
by main force lock me into another room; whereupon, however, I tore myself
away, and fell at his feet, conjuring him by the wounds of Christ not to
tear me from my child; that I would never forget his kindness and mercy,
but pray for him day and night; nay, that at the day of judgment I would
be his intercessor with God and the holy angels if that he would but let
me go with my child; that I would be quite quiet, and not speak one single
word, but that I must go with my child, etc.
This so moved the worthy man that he burst into tears, and so trembled
with pity for me that the hour-glass fell from his hands and rolled right
before the feet of the Sheriff, as though God himself would signify to him
that his glass was soon to run out; and, indeed, he understood it right
well, for he grew white as any chalk when he picked it up and gave it back
to _Dom. Consul_. The latter at last gave way, saying that this day would
make him ten years older; but he bade the impudent constable (who also
went with us) lead me away if I made any _rumor_ during the torture. And
hereupon the whole court went below, save the Sheriff, who said his head
ached, and that he believed his old _malum_, the gout, was coming upon him
again, wherefore he went into another chamber; _item, Pastor Benzensis_
likewise departed.
Down in the vault the constable first brought in tables and chairs,
whereon the court sat, and _Dom. Consul_ also pushed a chair toward me,
but I sat not thereon, but threw myself upon my knees in a corner. When
this was done they began again with their vile admonitions, and as my
child, like her guileless Saviour before His unrighteous judges, answered
not a word, _Dom. Consul_ rose up and bade the tall constable lay her on
the torture-bench.
She shook like an aspen leaf when he bound her hands and feet; and when he
was about to bind over her sweet eyes a nasty old filthy clout wherein my
maid had seen him carry fish but the day before, and which was still all
over shining scales, I perceived it, and pulled off my silken neckerchief,
begging him to use that instead, which he did. Hereupon the thumb-screw
was put on her, and she was once more asked whether she would confess
freely, but she only shook her poor blinded head and sighed with her dying
Saviour, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" and then in Greek, "Thee mou, Thee
mou, iuati me egkatelipes"; Whereat _Dom. Consul_ started back, and made
the sign of the cross (for inasmuch as he knew no Greek, he believed, as
he afterwards said himself, that she was calling upon the devil to help
her), and then called to the constable with a loud voice, "Screw!"
But when I heard this I gave such a cry that the whole vault shook; and
when my poor child, who was dying of terror and despair, had heard my
voice she first struggled with her bound hands and feet like a lamb that
lies dying in the slaughter-house, and then cried out, "Loose me, and I
will confess whatsoe'er you will." Hereat _Dom. Consul_ so greatly
rejoiced, that while the constable unbound her, he fell on his knees, and
thanked God for having spared him this anguish. But no sooner was my poor
desperate child unbound, and had laid aside her crown of thorns (I mean my
silken neckerchief), than she jumped off the ladder, and flung herself
upon me, who lay for dead in a corner in a deep swound.
This greatly angered the worshipful court, and when the constable had
borne me away, _Rea_ was admonished to make her confession according to
promise. But seeing she was too weak to stand upon her feet, _Dom. Consul_
gave her a chair to sit upon, although _Dom. Camerarius_ grumbled thereat,
and these were the chief questions which were put to her by order of the
most honourable high central court, as _Dom. Consul_ said, and which were
registered _ad protocollum_.
_Q_. Whether she could bewitch?
_R_. Yes, she could bewitch.
_Q_. Who taught her to do so?
_R_. Satan himself.
_Q_. How many devils had she?
_R_. One devil was enough for her.
_Q_. What was this devil called?
_Illa_ (considering). His name was _Disidaemonia_.
Hereat _Dom. Consul_ shuddered, and said that that must be a very terrible
devil indeed, for that he had never heard such a name before, and that she
must spell it, so that _Scriba_ might make no _error_; which she did, and
he then went on as follows:--
_Q_. In what shape had he appeared to her?
_R_. In the shape of the Sheriff, and sometimes as a goat with terrible
horns.
_Q_. Whether Satan had re-baptized her, and where?
_R_. In the sea.
_Q_. What name had he given her?
_R_.--.
_Q_. Whether any of the neighbors had been by when she was re-baptized,
and which of them?
_R_. Hereupon my matchless child cast up her eyes towards heaven, as
though doubting whether she should file old Lizzie or not, but at last she
said, "No."
_Q_. She must have had sponsors; who were they? and what gift had they
given her as christening money?
_R_. There were none there save spirits; wherefore old Lizzie could see no
one when she came and looked on at her re-baptism.
_Q_. Whether she had ever lived with the devil?
_R_. She never had lived anywhere save in her father's house.
She did not choose to understand. He meant whether she had ever played the
wanton with Satan, and known him carnally? Hereupon she blushed, and was
so ashamed that she covered her face with her hands, and presently began
to weep and to sob: and as, after many questions, she gave no answer, she
was again admonished to speak the truth, or that the executioner should
lift her up on the ladder again. At last she said, "No!" which, howbeit,
the worshipful court would not believe, and bade the executioner seize her
again, whereupon she answered, "Yes!"
_Q_. Whether she had found the devil hot or cold?
_R_. She did not remember which.
_Q_. Whether she had ever conceived by Satan, and given birth to a
changeling, and of what shape?
_R_. No, never.
_Q_. Whether the foul fiend had given her any sign or mark about her body,
and in what part thereof?
_R_. That the mark had already been seen by the worshipful court.
She was next charged with all the witchcraft done in the village, and
owned to it all, save that she still said that she knew nought of old
Seden his death, _item_, of little Paasch her sickness, nor, lastly, would
she confess that she had, by the help of the foul fiend, raked up my crop
or conjured the caterpillars into my orchard. And albeit they again
threatened her with the question, and even ordered the executioner to lay
her on the bench and put on the thumb-screw to frighten her, she remained
firm and said, "Why should you torture me, seeing that I have confessed
far heavier crimes than these, which it will not save my life to deny?"
Hereupon the worshipful court at last were satisfied, and suffered her to
be lifted off the torture-bench, especially as she confessed the
_articulus principals_; to wit, that Satan had really appeared to her on
the mountain in the shape of a hairy giant. Of the storm and the frog,
_item_, of the hedgehog, nothing was said, inasmuch as the worshipful
court had by this time seen the folly of supposing that she could have
brewed a storm while she quietly sat in the coach. Lastly, she prayed that
it might be granted to her to suffer death clothed in the garments which
she had worn when she went to greet the King of Sweden; _item_, that they
would suffer her wretched father to be driven with her to the stake, and
to stand by while she was burned, seeing that she had promised him this in
the presence of the worshipful court.
Hereupon she was once more given into the charge of the tall constable,
who was ordered to put her into a stronger and severer prison. But he had
not led her out of the chamber before the Sheriff his bastard, whom he had
had by the housekeeper, came into the vault with a drum, and kept drumming
and crying out, "Come to the roast goose! come to the roast goose!"
whereat _Dom. Consul_ was exceeding wroth, and ran after him, but he could
not catch him, seeing that the young varlet knew all the ins and outs of
the vault. Without doubt it was the Lord who sent me the swound, so that I
should be spared this fresh grief; wherefore to Him alone be honour and
glory. Amen.
_The Twenty-fourth Chapter_