The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1880-06-19
A STORY OF WITCHCRAFT.

Not long since, at Il banquet of legal
gentlemen, the post-prandial conversation
turned upon the subject of witchcraft
and the aforetime trials therefor, both in
this country and in England, when one
of the party-a Judge of the Supreme
CONTRIBUTED the following. | have
never seen it in PRINT, and deem it worth
giving to our readers.
When Lcrd Chief Justice Holt presided
in the Court of Kings Bench poor, de-
crcpit, broken old woman, almost ready,
from sheer limitation, to shuttle off the
mortal coil, was brought before him
charged with a degree of criminality
which mcrited the utmost rigor of the
law.
"What is her crime - asked his lord
ship, with look and tone which plainly
indicated that the forlorn and hapless
creature had enlisted his warmest SYM
pathies.
"Witchcraft' said one. shes q
witch, if ever there was one" chimed in
another.
"What is the proof against hero
"She has Il charm, your lordship, given
her by the Evil One HIMSELF
Let me see it.
The red nosed, pimple faced sheriff
placed upon the bar before the court the
charm, which. upon cXamination-his
lordship slowly and methodically un-
doing it with his own hands-provcd to
be 4 small ball formed of bits of silk
and linen, of various colors, compactly
wound with threads of as many different
hueS, and in the center of the mass was
found a slip of parchment on which was
writing, of strange language, which
had become very nearly worn away by
much handling.
And this is the charm. is it - said
Holt, when he had seen its every part
The prosecutors answered that it was.
What other proof have you?''
That is all, your lordShip."
The Lord Chief Justice then turned to
the terrified prisoner and asked her how
she came by that ball.
Il can swear, my lord she answered.
THAT a young gentleman gave it to me,
to cure my child's ague.'
"And did it affect cure -
''Yes, my lord. 1t cured my poor
child: and has cured many others; and |
have blessed the good youth in my heart
many time"
: Upon this the prosecutors laughed and
declared that the prisoner had no child
"Ah, your lordslip," she cried, g it
was tive-and- thirty years agone that the
charm was given me. | had children
then
The judge held the charm in his hand.
and then regarded it for time i'll silence.
and then turned to the jury, saying:
"Gentlemcn of the jury, look ye:-
and look and hcarken, all-Five-and-
thirty years ago, |, with number of
companions as giddy and thoughtless as
myself went to this womans house,
where she provided for us literally, and
when we found that we had not with us
sufficient money for the payment of the
reckoning, | had recourse to what then
thought an innocent stratagem. OBJ
serving a sick child bundled up in the
chimney corner which the woman told
us was suffering with ague, | pretended
that ! could fix Il charm that would cure
her. | wrote Il line of Latin upon slip
Of parchment. and wound it up in scraps
of silk and linen which found i'll u bas-
ket on the table and gave it to her as a
sure curative agent. She was deeply
grateful, and checrlully gave us receipt
in full. and we went our way, little
dreaming that we had left with the hon
est dame thing which might in after
years, put Ter very life in jeopardy
That woman now stands before me.
charged with witcllcratt, and this ball
which is the alleged charm and evidence
against her, is the Self-Same charm which
| made with my own hands and gave to
her.
1t is needless to add that the poor old
woman was discharged and went hel
way homeward with Il lighter heart
Further, we will say, the story of Chief
Justice Holt threw an eflcctual dampel
upon the eagerness Of the public prose
cutors of that region for arrestng witches
| from that time forth.