The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1867-11-08

IclMt. Ehgllsh ieHal y ocl slonS anu learned
treatises on thesnhiect we're IN the hands
of te hdges, ahd were quotedat the trials
at Salem. How happens il that 40 much
has been said Of the Salem trials, aud 40
little has been known of the Engl pre-
cedentsi
I One explanation is found in tha fact that,
witclItrialswere so nirequenf IN the New
| England colonies, aud were unccnSenal to
The character aud general intelligence of
the people.
| Proceedings which in England produced
little impttssion. wlicu enacted on New
| England soil filled the popular mind with
hoJTor, and caused health(ul reaction,
| Other reasohs were the social respectability
AVID unquostioned mora, character of the
persons accused, and of their Judges. and
The entire publicity of the proceedings.
The trials were attended by the whole
community, the testimony was committed
to writing, aud the Investigations were con
Quoted with deoorum and deliheration.
| The most dramatic feature was that the
theory, of wioheralt itself was ON trial,
and That here il revealed its ghastly De.
formities. The vefdicts which consigned
twenty innocent victims to the roll OF
| martyrology were the death-knell oil de.
lnsion which had cursed humanity in all
]
therefore, not been overrated, as they pos
scss psychological as well as historical
interest.
Witch trials in the American colonies
! did not commences at Salem village. WI.
liam Penn presided at tho trial of two NJ
legged witches in his colony, who escaped
conviction By a flaw in the indictment
The first witch executed IN the MaSsaclu.
setls colony was Margaret Jones, of Chatles-
town, in the year 64S. The substance OF
the charges against her seemed to be that
she had will and tongue Of her own, and
undertook to practice ~ female physician.
Governor Winthrop, who presided at her
trial, comrorted himself in his journal that
the matter was all risht, Tor the'same day
and hour she was executed, there was a
very great tempest at Connecticut. which
blew down many trees, eto.4- Ia lG5l there
was a stir on the subject at Spring field, but
there were no convictions. In 1886 Mrs.
llibbips, the widow off prominent Boston
merchant, and sister Of Governor Bellng'
ham, was hung as a witch. The woman
was turbulent and troublesome person,
aud in these days would be regarded as i'm
sane. belief in witches at this tune was
universal the world over. A witch was a
person who had made deliberate aud
!nl subject, and to aid him in his warfare
against all that was good, against Christ
- t'and His church. In consideration of this
service Satan agreed to communicate to
this person his supernatural powers TO
such asdegree as the party proved himself
or herself an efficient and devoted ally
The General Court about this time ap.
pointednS day Of humiliation, in view of
the fact that Satan. prevails amongst us
in respect to witchcraits."
Il sNNow opens the scene at Salem village.
THIS locality was not the village of Salem
but was q suhtlrb of the same about three
mil les distant, and is now the town of Dam
> ve's. Perhaps no spot in New England
was more favored in the quality, wealth
and character of its original settlers than
Salem village. Here Governor Endcott
Elrded, with hisretnue in 1923, when there
was no English settlement north of,VTginia
except the Smuggling colony of Plymouth
He cleared large tract of land, bull roads
and prepared it for cultivation, His re-
i taiuels aud many persons OF quality gath
cred about him. and Salem village was the
metropolis 0f Massachusetts Bay till Win
throp and his company arrived at Boston
; in 1920. Here was the estate of Emanue
Il Downing, one of the wealthiers planters
to England, became Chancellor Of Ex
I6hequer, an unrivaled diplolnatist, and gayf
the pame of Downing street to a, famous
locality in London. bns isT. lua enc sei2e,
]. 1t is . mistake TO suppose that the witch
!, l,erait delusion IN SALON. village grew out o
any lack of Intelligence or want Of educN
ton in this people compared with other
( Commodities. The first generation, who
were chiefly educated men, had passed
away in 1852 and their descendants, if no
so highly educated, were shrewd. practica
, peoplc, rather above than below the com
mon standard. Here was the homo of th,
Putnam family, who gave General lsrae
Putnam to the war Of the Revolution, Gen
lera Rnfus Putnam to the war of 1912, and
William Lowell Putnam to the war Of
the rebellion. Every person Of that name
/ in New England has sprung from thai
stock (; taiFty have grad duoted at Harvard
q College, and every sixteenth man in. Dan
vers to dayis a Putnam
One ofthe approximate causes Of the sad
events of 1892 was a parish quarrel which
had been raging for twenty years. If any
person is anxious to ascertain how much
pickering and belligerent acthn il is posi-
Lle for a church parish to develop in Q
score of years, he will not fail to read Mr.
Upham's graphic account Of the parish 6ghi
at Salem village from 67l to 1851 (yGl. i
PIP. 242 320). Mr. James Baylay, young
graduate of Harvard College, came Il
preach al the village in l67l. He was ey
IDENTIFY an amiabe man and an eloquent
preacher. His wife brought with her a
sp,ightly, unmarried sister, Ann, who be.
came the wife Of Thomas Putnam, prom
inent citizen, and was the mother of Ann
Putnam, who. a mere child, was the most
conspicuous. character in the witch trials.
This marriage was a Pandora's box of ills
to the villagers. A wealthy and infuen-
tial minority took offense at the manner III
which Mr.. Baylay was broght forward, and
refused 10 pay their portion to the minis
ter's salary. The parish appealed to the
General Court for redress and ol tained
Judgment. The minority, however, kept
up their opposition, and Mr.. Baylay al
length retired in disgust from the field
Mr.. John Burroughs was the next candi
date, and tho party who had been the es
I lpeciai friends of Mr.. Baylay became his
! successors bitter opponents. Among these
was ine Putnam family. So the war wen
on. Mr., Burroughs after stemming the
, tide for four Yeas, and suffering every
species Of wrong and outrage, went bach
|, To his duties as missionary 10 the Indians
, at Casco Bay, whose charity he preferTed
!. 70 the beliigtrents al Salem village. While
fppTsuing his hnmble calling among the ln
/ dams, he was, eight years later, accused. o.
+ Witcheraft, arrested, brougTt back TO Sa
Hem village, tried convicted and hung as I