96 



OLAFSEN AND POVELSEN'ff 



were considered as culpable as those who exercised the black art,- 

 or that whose object was the raising of ghosts and phantoms. 

 In the times of paganism, when there was no code of law, the 

 proceedings against such as practised the black art were very 

 short : they were punished with all possible rigour, but the 

 other magicians were not molested. After the introduction of 

 Christianity, a scrupulous difference was made between the dif- 

 ferent kinds of magic ; and the punishment was more or less se- 

 vere, according to the extent of the offence. It appears that 

 they knew little in Denmark of either magic or witchcraft ; 

 though in Sweden both were prevalent, and the laws against them 

 were summary and rigid. The code of laws of the North, and 

 of Iceland, prove that magic was generally practised throughout 

 those countries, and that a number of malevolent persons exer- 

 cised it notwithstanding the existing penalties. It was not till 

 towards the middle age that sorcerers and magicians were burnt. 

 It will scarcely be credited, that at the period in question many 

 women were accustomed to bite or cut off one of the fingers of 

 their children from a persuasion that they would thus obtain a 

 long life : for this conduct they were punished by a simple fine. 



The punishment of burning was inflicted on those who sacri- 

 ficed to or worshipped idols, and on those who pretended to tell 

 fortunes, or perform other species of witchcraft; while suck 

 as gave them residence, or took their part, suffered the same 

 fate. They were also placed out of the protection of the laws, 

 by a declaration directing them to be considered as assassins 

 who merited death. Any person who exercised magic in the 

 way of imprecation or other sorcery, with a view of injuring 

 men or cattle, was punished with death; and whoever sus- 

 pended certain stones about himself or his animals to operate 

 as amulets for the purpose of preventing or curing diseases by 

 supernatural effects, was placed beyond the protection of the laws^ 

 It was also believed that such a man could not fail to become 

 mad by the operation of the evil spirit ; and those who happened 

 to be present during similar acts of sorcery, and did not prevent 

 them, were subjected to a like punishment. 



In the early ages of Christianity, the law continued equally ri- 

 gorous against those who made use of amulets from an opi- 

 nion that such charms received supernatural virtues from the 

 idols ; but this rigour ceased when the christians themselves 

 began to use various stones and plants in their religious cere- 

 monies. 



OF THE MAGIC IN MODERN TIMES. 



In the later ages, after the reformation, magic and witchcraft 

 seemed to revive, with the superstitious ceremonies which ill- 



