Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1859-06-23
WilehcFaft and SpirituaIiSm.

crait, o. dealings with the evil OF
which prevailed in the sixteenth al
seventeenth centuries, were qui
as mysterious in their nature, thong
not so universal, as the modern b
t, lief in spiritualism, and afford an il
terosting field Of inquiry to thos
fond Of metaphy ysical speculation
Witehoraft, however, is as little sus
; eeptible of soluiion as its moder
successor, spiritualism; and wha
could iadaoe people to swear ava,
he lives of their honest and iaoi
iensive seighbors. and even kindred
agsinst the evidences Of eommor
sense, will doubtless ever remain 4,
my stery. 1t is fortunate for Ia;
lproseiytes Of spiritunlism that they
live in more enlightened age. or
they might lose their lives as a
penalty for some of the strange
pranks they perform.
Touching The matter Of witehcraft,
DR. L. r Stone Of SIem recently
read before the Essex Institute an
Interesting sketch Of lis ri5e and
fall, with an account Of Il e trial OF
Ione George Jacobs, at Salem, in
1902. a report of which is given In
the Saiem Gazette. We select the
chief facts Of interest In the six
teeuth and seventeenth centuries
trials fer wiicheraft were frequent
in England. Scotland, Ireland, aud
France, and many suif,red 10 those
countries. In Scotland as late as
1929, al idiotic old woman @as hung
for witch. Hundreds Of both sex
es, young and old, are said to have
been burnt at the stake. In England
no less than thirty Thousand people
suffered death for reputed witcheraft
The last execution in England was
in l7l9, but it VAS not until 1854
about century ago that the
witch laws were abolished. Tn France
The same horrible ba!barity was
shown, and it is estimated that nine
hundred were put to death.
The FIRST execution for wiichcraft |
in New England took place at Charles /
ton in 1G47 or '48, the victim being
a woman, who protested ber inno-
cence to the last. Notwithstanding
great pains we're taken to bring her
to repentaace ard confession. Some |
time after this, woman Of Dorches- I
ter suffered, aud another in Cam
bridge and one in Boston in 1866: /
aud about sixteen years before the 1
panic in Salem, woman in Newbury I
was tried and fonnd guilty., but she
Was repriesed by Gov. Bradstreet.
The next that suffered WAS IN Irish I
woman OF Boston, SUSPECTED to have
John Goodwin S children,
who. upon her tlial. (as WIS testified
by the iuterpreters) dil, in Irish.
''confess herself and was condemned
out Of her own mouth" In the last
of February. 1892, in the family of
Rev. Mr.. Paris in Salem, commenced |
''tha great and awful tragedy which
spread terror over all New England.
The persons afflicted wers
daughter niue years of age, and a
niece of Mr.. Paris, and young f.
male of the neighborhood. They
at first complained Of an Indian wo-
man in the family Of Mr. Paris, and
she WAS committed to prison.and was
sold for fees. Upon her re-
lease. she declared that her mister
bad beat her aud otherwise abused
her to make her confess and accuse
(such as be cailed) her sister witches,
and whatever she had said by way Of
coafrssing Of accusing others, was
the effect of such usage. On the
ID Of March woman samed Corey
was examined al the meeting house,
by the magistrates, being the first
examination held in public. The
31st day OF March was set apart as
4 ..day of solemn humiliation" at
Salem. But the delusion spread aud
The number Of the accused was very
large, and a commission Of seven Of
The principal citizens and jurists of
TIE colony Were appointed to try
them. They assembled At The court 4
house on the "a of June, 1902
The first victim, Bridget Bishop, alias
Oliver, was executed or the 10Th Of
June; on the l9Sh of july Eve more
were hung; August l9, four
men and one wonlan were hung; and
on the 22l Of September, two men