Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1868-03-05
ENCOURAGING SUPERSTITION.


of Kings Bench, was very wild in his youthful
days. Being at one time on trip to one Of the
rural districts he found himself out of funds, and
had to use his wits to pay his expenses Arriving
at village inn, he ordered his horse stabbed, and
supper and lodging for himself Having done this
he strolled into the kitchen, where be espied lit
tie girl shivering with the ague. On the inquiry
of the landlady, he learned that the sufferer was
her only child, and that she had been afflicted in
that way for nearly year in spite of various med
icines. The future judge gravely shook his head
at the DOCTORS and bade the despairing mother and
the child to be under no further concern about the
case, for he could prevent the return of the chill
without fail .'"..5'.
He at once wrote few unmeaning words, in a
bold and snowy hand--a ''court hand' the chron-
icler tells us-on scrap of parchment such as was
in use then, (1709), and this he directed to be
rolled up and bound to the girls wrist Holt re-
mained at the tavern week, during which time
there was no return whatever of the disease.
When he called for his bill, the delighted moth
er replied "God bless you, sir, you're not in my
debt at all To the contrary, I wish was able to
pay you for the cure of my daughter. Oh if /
had had the happiness to see you ten months ago,
it would have saved me s4o, at least, paid for
doctors bills and medicines"
Young Holt pretended when he left, to accept
his weeks board, as compensation, with great
reluctance, although he had not shilling in his
pocket. u"
Many years had elapsed since this event, and
the wild rover had become Judge 1t SO hap
pened that the circuit to which he was assigned
embraced the county in which the old landlady
kept her tavern. Among the prisoners brought
before him for trial. was an old woman accused for
witchcraft. In support of this accusation several
witnesses swore that the old woman had spell,
by which she could cure sick cattle or make well
ones sick-they had detected her in doing this,
and were ready to produce the ''spel.
The Judge required the "spell' to be handed
up to him. This having been complied with, he
proceeded to unwrap dirty ball, enveloped with
rags and bound with pack-thread, which resulted
in his finding his own parchment charm, rolled up
precisely as when he handed it to his relying and
grateful hostess in the long past days fhs rakish
boyhood! ........... ..... -.e......'
Thunderstruck, his lordship remained silent for
a moment, as if making an effort of reinsurance,
and then proceeded to charge the jury to the fol-
lowing effect H(4entlen,on, must now rolato on
incident of my own life which will seem to il[be-
fit my present station till shall have fully ex-
planned all the circumstances. But to conceal the
fact would be to aggravate folly of my youth, for
which would fain atone, us well as to endanger
innocence and encourage superstition This bau-
Bile, which the witnesses have testified of as hav-
ing the power of life and DEATH is senseless scroll
which wrote with my own hand and gave to this
woman as cure for disease, and for no other rea-
son than sincere belief in its virtue as such, she
is now accused of the crime of witchcraft p ~.
1t is further related that the Judge, after more
particularly naratng the circumstances Of his cure
of the ague with this ''charm," charged the jury
so effectively in favor of acquittal that not only
was the poor old supposed witch" discharged
without punishment, but an end put to trials for
in his circuit, if not throughout Eng
land.
I think I need add nothing further in order to
claim a verdict from the readers of the Herald of
HeaAh sitting as my jury, deciding that I have
made out my case Of the curative in
auence of the mind. l could add from memory,
we're it in accordance with my present purpose to
do so, more than one recovery from severe and
even dangerous illness, which appeared to me to
be fairly attributable much more to the influence
of the imagination than to the medicines admins
tered, if not in fact wholly attributableto the for
mer agency. And think I might safely appeal
to my medical brethren, irrespectvey of the school
of practice which they have adopted, for their ex-
perience on this point, in the expectation of get
ting their sanction to what have here stated.
But enough for the present. to direct attention to
the inquiry have thus sstarted, as to the extent of
the influence of the mind in the cure of the dis
eases of the body-a theme exceeded by few others
within the entire field of professional thought.