Book 16, Chapter 3: Reasons to proove that words and characters are but bables, & that witches cannot doo such things as the multitude supposeth they can, their greatest woonders prooved trifles, of a yoong gentleman cousened
1 That words, characters, images, and such other trinkets, which are thought so necessarie instruments for witchcraft (as without the which no such thing can be accomplished) are but bables, devised by couseners, to abuse the people withall; I trust I have sufficientlie prooved. And the same maie be further and more plainelie perceived by these short and compendious reasons following.
2 First, in that the Turkes and infidels, in their witchcraft, use both other words, and other characters than our witches doo, and also such as are most contrarie. In so much as, if ours be bad, in reason theirs should be good. If their witches can doo anie thing, ours can doo nothing. For as our witches are said to renounce Christ, and despise his sacraments: so doo the other forsake Mahomet, and his lawes, which is one large step to christianitie.
3 It is also to be thought, that all witches are couseners; when mother Bungie, a principall witch, so reputed, tried, and condemned of all men, and continuing in that exercise and estimation manie yeares (having cousened & abused the whole realme, in so much as there came to hir, witchmongers from all the furthest parts of the land, she being in diverse bookes set out with authoritie, registred and chronicled by the name of the great witch of Rochester, and reputed among all men for the cheefe ringleader of all other witches) by good proofe is found to be a meere cousener; confessing in hir death bed freelie, without compulsion or inforcement, that hir cunning consisted onlie in deluding and deceiving the people: saving that she had (towards the maintenance of hir credit in that cousening trade) some sight in physicke and surgerie, and the assistance of a freend of hirs, called Heron, a professor thereof. And this I know, partlie of mine owne knowledge, and partlie by the testimonie of hir husband, and others of credit, to whome (I saie) in hir death bed, and at sundrie other times she protested these things; and also that she never had indeed anie materiall spirit or divell (as the voice went) nor yet knew how to worke anie supernaturall matter, as she in hir life time made men beleeve she had and could doo.
4 The like may be said of one T. of Canturburie, whose name I will not litterallie discover, who wonderfullie abused manie in these parts, making them thinke he could tell where anie thing lost became: with diverse other such practises, whereby his fame was farre beyond the others. And yet on his death bed he confessed, that he knew nothing more than anie other, but by slight and devises, without the assistance of anie divell or spirit, saving the spirit of cousenage: and this did he (I saie) protest before manie of great honestie, credit, & wisedome, who can witnesse the same, and also gave him good commendations for his godlie and honest end.
5 Againe, who will mainteine, that common witchcrafts are not cousenages, when the great and famous witchcrafts, which had stolne credit not onlie from all the common people, but from men of great wisdome and authoritie, are discovered to be beggerlie slights of cousening varlots? Which otherwise might and would have remained a perpetuall objection against me. Were there not three images of late yeeres found in a doonghill, to the terror & astonishment of manie thousands? In so much as great matters were thought to have beene pretended to be doone by witchcraft. But if the Lord preserve those persons (whose destruction was doubted to have beene intended therby) from all other the lewd practises and attempts of their enimies; I feare not, but they shall easilie withstand these and such like devises, although they should indeed be practised against them. But no doubt, if such bables could have brought those matters of mischeefe to passe, by the hands of traitors, witches, or papists; we should long since have beene deprived of the most excellent jewell and comfort that we enjoy in this world. Howbeit, I confesse, that the feare, conceipt, and doubt of such mischeefous pretenses may breed inconvenience to them that stand in awe of the same.
6 And I wish, that even for such practises, though they never can or doo take effect, the practisers be punished with all extremitie: bicause therein is manifested a traiterous heart to the Queene, and a presumption against God.
7 reporteth this by a conjuring preest late Curat of Islington: hee also
8 But to returne to the discoverie of the aforesaid knaverie and witchcraft. So it was that one old cousener, wanting monie, devised or rather practised (for it is a stale devise) to supplie his want, by promising a yoong Gentleman, whose humor he thought would that waie be well served, that for the summe of fourtie pounds, he would not faile by his cunning in that art of witchcraft, to procure unto him the love of anie three women whome he would name, and of whome he should make choise at his pleasure. The yoong Gentleman being abused with his cunning devises, and too hastilie yeelding to that motion, satisfied this cunning mans demand of monie. Which, bicause he had it not presentlie to disbursse, provided it for him at the hands of a freend of his. Finallie, this cunning man made the three puppets of wax, &c: leaving nothing undone that appertained to the cousenage, untill he had buried them, as you have heard. But I omit to tell what a doo was made herof, and also what reports and lies were bruted; as what white dogs and blacke dogs there were seene in the night season passing through the watch, mawgre all their force and preparation against them, &c. But the yoong Gentleman, who for a litle space remained in hope mixed with joy and love, now through tract of time hath those his felicities powdered with doubt and despaire.
9 For in steed of atchieving his love, he would gladlie have obteined his monie. But bicause he could by no meanes get either the one or the other (his monie being in hucksters handling, and his sute in no better forwardnes) he revealed the whole matter, hoping by that meanes to recover his monie; which he neither can yet get againe, nor hath paied it where he borrowed. But till triall was had of his simplicitie or rather follie herein, he received some trouble himselfe hereabouts, though now dismissed.
1 Psellus being of authoritie in the church of Rome, and not impugnable by anie catholike, being also instructed in these supernaturall or rather diabolicall matters by a monke called Marcus, who had beene familiarlie conversant a long time, as he said, with a certeine divell, reporteth upon the same divels owne word, which must needs understand best the state of this question, that the bodies of angels and divels consist not now of all one element, though perhaps it were otherwise before the fall of Lucifer; and that the bodies of spirits and divels can feele and be felt, doo hurt and be hurt: in so much as they lament when they are stricken; and being put to the fier are burnt, and yet that they themselves burne continuallie, in such sort as they leave ashes behind them in places where they have beene; as manifest triall thereof hath beene (if he saie truelie) in the borders of Italie. He also saith upon like credit and assurance, that divels and spirits doo avoid and shed from out of their bodies, such seed or nature, as whereby certeine vermine are ingendered; and that they are nourished with food, as we are, saving that they receive it not into their mouthes, but sucke it up into their bodies, in such sort as sponges soke up water.
2 Also he saith they have names, shapes, and dwelling places, as indeed they have, though not in temporall and corporall sort.
3 Furthermore, he saith, that there are six principall kind of divels, which are not onelie corporall, but temporall and worldlie. The first sort consist of fier, wandering in the region neere to the moone, but have no power to go into the moone. The second sort consisting of aire, have their habitation more lowe and neere unto us: these (saith he) are proud and great boasters, verie wise and deceitfull, and when they come downe are seene shining with streames of fier at their taile. He saith that these are commonlie conjured up to make images laugh, and lamps burne of their owne accord; and that in Assyria they use much to prophesie in a bason of water. Which kind of incantation is usuall among our conjurors: but it is here commonlie performed in a pitcher or pot of water; or else in a violl of glasse filled with water, wherin they say at the first a litle sound is heard without a voice, which is a token of the divels comming. Anon the water seemeth to be troubled, and then there are heard small voices, wherewith they give their answers, speaking so softlie as no man can well heare them: bicause (saith Cardane) they would not be argued or rebuked of lies. But this I have else-where more largelie described and confuted. The third sort of divels Psellus saith are earthlie; the fourth waterie, or of the sea;
4 the fift under the earth; the sixt sort are Lucifugi, that is, such as delight in darkenes, & are scant indued with sense, and so dull, as they can scarse be mooved with charmes or conjurations.
5 The same man saith, that some divels are woorse than other, but yet that they all hate God, and are enimies to man. But the woorser moitie of divels are Aquei, Subterranei, and Lucifugi; that is, waterie, under the earth, and shunners of light: bicause (saith he) these hurt not the soules of men, but destroie mens bodies like mad and ravening beasts, molesting both the inward and outward parts thereof. Aquei are they that raise tempests, and drowne seafaring men, and doo all other mischeefes on the water. Subterranei and Lucifugi enter into the bowels of men, and torment them that they possesse with the phrensie, and the falling evill. They also assault them that are miners or pioners, which use to worke in deepe and darke holes under the earth. Such divels as are earthie and aierie, he saith enter by subtiltie into the minds of men, to deceive them, provoking men to absurd and unlawfull affections.
6 But herein his philosophie is verie unprobable, for if the divell be earthie, he must needs be palpable; if he be palpable, he must needs kill them into whose bodies he entereth. Item, if he be of earth created, then must he also be visible and untransformable in that point: for Gods creation cannot be annihilated by the creature. So as, though it were granted, that they might adde to their substance matter and forme, &c: yet is it most certeine, that they cannot diminish or alter the substance whereof they consist, as not to be (when they list) spirituall, or to relinquish and leave earth, water, fier, aier, or this and that element whereof they are created. But howsoever they imagine of water, aier, or fier, I am sure earth must alwaies be visible and palpable; yea, and aier must alwaies be invisible, and fier must be hot, and water must be moist. And of these three latter bodies, speciallie of water and aier, no forme nor shape can be exhibited to mortall eies naturallie, or by the power of anie creature.
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