100 



Witchcraft in Wiltshire. 



towards her house, and being to pass thorow a large plat of ground, which is 

 within the walls of the Towne, where much timber was lay'd and sawyed out, 

 hee asked the sawyers if they sawe Goody Orchard goe homewards ? They say'd 

 they did, that shee was gone to her house a little while before. H^ee cominge to 

 her house, and finding the door shut, and the window-boards down, knocked at 

 the door and the windows, but nobody answered ; although hee told her hee had 

 six pence for her. A neybour's wife opened the door of her house, and seeing 

 Mr. Bartholomew knocking at the doore, and calling Goody Orchard by her name, 

 asked laughing, whether her neybour Orchard had used or played any of her 

 frolliques with him ? Hee answered she had, and that because she was refused 

 barme at his house, she caused her Spirits to breake his great Cyprus chest, and 

 for ought he knew, to throwe about or carry away his money. 



" Goody Orchard, who it seems was harkening, hearing what hee say'd, speake 

 as near as I can remember, for some are alive heard them, these words : ' You 

 lie, you old Eogue ; your Chest is not broken, the nayles are only drawn, and 

 there is never a penny of your Money gone.' He being well pleased to heare 

 it was no worse, went home, and taking company with him, went into the roome, 

 where he found the pinns or nayles of the Chest onely drawn, the money out of 

 the bags, but none missing ; but the lock so filled with it, and some of the money 

 in the lock so bent, that he was forced to cause a smith to take it off, and to pull 

 it to peeces, to get out the money, and to fit it up for use. Immediately after 

 Mr. Bartholomew was gone from Orchard's house, shee packed upp what shee 

 thought fit to carry with her, and left the house and towne, and was not heard 

 of in 3 or 4 months ; and then that shee was in Salisbury Gaole, committed 

 thither for bewitching a young Mayde, a gardiner's daughter of Burbage, about 

 4 miles south or south-east of Marleboro' ; the manner of it was thus : Early in 

 the morning this goody Orchard came to the gardiner's house ; hee was one of 

 those who kept great grounds of early pease, carotts, and turnips, for to serve 

 mercats, and pra} r ed his daughter, a young mayd of 17 or 18 years, then coming 

 from fetching carrots to bee carried out to mercat, to give her some victuals. 

 Shee, whose hands were sandy, answered ' by her troth shee would wash her 

 hands, and cut something to eat herselfe, for shee was ready to faynting, having 

 been from the first daylight working hard, filting up and cleansing carrots, and 

 that shee had done more than that idle Old Woman had done in a twelvemonth ; 

 and after she had eated a bit or two, shee would give her some victuals.' 



" The Mayd's Father hearing her answere the Woman as above, sayd to her, 

 cut the poore woman some bread and cheese, and let her goe about her business. 

 The Mayd answered, let her staye ; ' I am so faynt, I can scarce stand on my 

 leggs ; I will eat a bit or two, and give her some.' There was a garden by the 

 doore near the path to it, where were walks round a grasse plot, into which 

 garden the woman stepped, and neyther walking or running, she trotted about 

 the garden in the walk ; and when she came round it, she trotted into the middle 

 of the grass plot, and squatted down there. This she did three times, muttering 

 some words not understood by those present, and then trudged away as fast as 

 shee could. The young Mayd having water brought her, put her hands into it to 

 wash them, which she had no sooner done, but her fingers were distorted in theyr 

 joynts, one this way, another that way, and with such extreame torment, that 

 shee cryed out as if one had been about to kill her, or shee had been killing, and 



