Dulcibel: A Tale of Old Salem

by Henry Peterson

  CHAPTER XXV.

  Captain Alden before the Magistrates.

  There was an additional magistrate sitting on this occasion, MasterBartholomew Gedney--making three in all.

  Mistress Ann Putnam, the she-wolf, as her young brother-in-law hadcalled her, was not present among the accusers--leaving the part of the"afflicted" to be played by the other and younger members of the circle.

  There was another Captain present, also a stranger, a Captain Hill; andhe being also a tall man, perplexed some of the girls at first. One evenpointed at him, until she was better informed in a whisper by a man whowas holding her up. And then she cried out that it was "Alden! Alden!"who was afflicting her.

  At length one of the magistrates ordering Captain Alden to stand upon achair, there was no further trouble upon that point; and the usualdemonstrations began. As the accused naturally looked upon the"afflicted" girls, they went off into spasms, shrieks and convulsions.This was nearly always the first proceeding, as it created a profoundsympathy for them, and was almost sufficient of itself to condemn theaccused.

  "The tall man is pinching me!"

  "Oh, he is choking me!"

  "He is choking me! do hold his hands!"

  "He stabs me with his sword--oh, take it away from him!"

  Such were the exclamations that came from the writhing and convulsedgirls.

  "Turn away his head! and hold his hands!" cried Squire Hathorne. "Takeaway his sword!" said Squire Gedney while the old Captain grew red andwrathful at the babel around him, and at the indignities to which he wassubject.

  "Captain Alden, why do you torment these poor girls who never injuredyou?"

  "Torment them!--you see I am not touching them. I do not even know them;I never saw them before in my life," growled the indignant old seaman.

  "See! there is the little yellow bird kissing his lips!" cried AbigailWilliams. "Now it is whispering into his ear. It is bringing him amessage from the other witch Dulcibel Burton. See! see! there it goesback again to her--through the window!"

  So well was this done, that probably half of the people present wouldhave been willing to swear the next day, that they actually saw theyellow bird as she described it.

  "Ask him if he did not give her the yellow bird," said Leah Herrick."But probably he will lie about it."

  "Did you not give the witch, Dulcibel Burton, a yellow bird, which isone of her familiars?" said Squire Hathorne sternly.

  "I gave her a canary bird that I brought from the West Indies, if thatis what you mean," replied the Captain. "But what harm was there inthat?"

  "I knew it! The yellow bird told me so, when it came to peck out myeyes," cried Mercy Lewis. "Oh! there it is again!" and she struck wildlyinto the air before her face. "Drive it away! Do drive it away, someone!"

  Here a young man pulled out his rapier, and began thrusting at theinvisible bird in a furious manner.

  "Now it comes to me!" cried Sarah Churchill. And then the other girlsalso cried out, and began striking into the air before their faces, tillthere was anew a perfect babel of cries, shrieks and sympathizingvoices.

  Master Raymond, amid all his indignation at such barefaced and wickedand yet successful imposture, could hardly avoid smiling at theexpression of the old seaman's face as he stood on the chair, andfronted all this tempest of absurd and villainous accusation. At firstthere had been a deep crimson glow of the hottest wrath upon the oldman's cheeks and brow; but now he seemed to have been shocked into akind of stupor, so unexpected and weighty were the charges against him,and made with such vindictive fierceness; and yet so utterly absurd,while at the same time, so impossible of being refuted.

  "He bought the yellow bird from Tituba's mother--her spectre told meso!" cried Abigail Williams.

  "What do you say to that, Master Alden?" said Squire Gedney. "That is aserious charge."

  "I never saw any Tituba or her mother," exclaimed the Captain, againgrowing indignant.

  "Who then did you buy the witch's familiar of?" asked Squire Hathorne.

  "I do not know--some old negro wench!"

  Here the magistrates looked at each other sagely, and nodded theirwooden heads. It was a fatal admission. "You had better confess all,and give glory to God!" said Squire Gedney solemnly.

  "I trust I shall always be ready to give glory to God," answered the oldman stoutly; "but I do not see that it would glorify Him to confess to apack of lies. You have known me for many years, Master Gedney, but didyou ever know me to speak an untruth, or seek to injure any innocentpersons, much less women and children?"

  Squire Gedney said that he had known the accused many years, and hadeven been at sea with him, and had always supposed him to be an honestman; but now he saw good cause to alter that judgment.

  "Turn and look now again upon those afflicted persons," concluded SquireGedney.

  As the accused turned and again looked upon them, all of the "afflicted"fell down on the floor as if he had struck them a heavy blow--moaningand crying out against him.

  "I judge you by your works; and believe you now to be a wicked man and awitch," said Squire Gedney in a very severe tone.

  Captain Alden turned then and looked directly at the magistrate forseveral moments. "Why does not my look knock you down too?" he saidindignantly. "If it hurts them so much, would it not hurt you a little?"

  "He wills it not to hurt you," cried Leah Herrick. "He is looking atyou, but his spectre has its back towards you."

  There was quite a roar of applause through the crowded house at such anexposure of the old Captain's trickery. He was very cunning to be sure;but the "afflicted" girls could see through his knavery.

  "Make him touch the poor girls," said the Reverend Master Noyes. For itwas the accepted theory that by doing this, the witch, in spite ofhimself, reabsorbed into his own body the devilish energy that had goneout of him, and the afflicted were healed. This was repeatedly donethrough the progress of these examinations and the after trials; and wasalways found to be successful, both as a cure of the sufferers, and anundeniable proof that the person accused was really a witch.

  In this case the "afflicted" girls were brought up to Captain Alden, oneafter the other and upon his being made to touch them with his hand,they invariably drew a deep breath of relief, and said they feltentirely well again.

  "You see Captain Alden," said Squire Gedney solemnly, "none of thetests fail in your case. If there were only one proof, we might doubt;but as the Scripture says, by the mouths of two or three witnesses shallthe truth be established. If you were innocent a just God would notallow you to be overcome in this manner."

  "I know that there is a just God, and I know that I am entirelyinnocent" replied the noble old seaman in a firm voice. "But it is notfor an uninspired man like me, to attempt to reconcile the mysteries ofHis providence. Far better men than I am, even prophets and apostles,have been brought before magistrates and judges, and their good nameslied away, and they condemned to the prison and the scaffold and thecross. Why then, should I expect to fare better than they did? All I cando, like Job of old, is to maintain my integrity--even though Satan andall his imps be let loose for a time against me."

  Here the Reverend Master Noyes rose excitedly, and said that thedecisions of heathen courts and judges were one thing; and the decisionsof godly magistrates, who were all members of the church of the trueGod, and therefore inspired by his spirit, was a very different thing.He said it was simply but another proof of the guilt of the accused,that he should compare himself with the apostles and the martyrs; andthese worshipful Christian magistrates with heathen magistrates andjudges. Hearing him talk in this ribald way, he could no longer doubtthe accusation brought against him; for there was no surer proof of aman or woman having dealings with Satan, than to defame and calumniateGod's chosen people.

  As Mr. Noyes took his seat, the magistrates said they had heardsufficient, and ordered the committal of the accused to Boston prison toawait trial.

  "I will give bail for Captain Alden's
appearance, to the whole amount ofmy estate," said Joseph Putnam coming forward. "A man of his age, whohas served the colony in so many important positions, should be treatedwith some leniency."

  "We are very sorry for the Captain," answered Squire Gedney, "but asthis is a capital offence, no bail can be taken."

  "Thank you, Master Putnam, but I want no bail," said the old seamanproudly. "If the colony of Massachusetts Bay, which my father helped tobuild up, and for which I have labored so long and faithfully, choosesto requite my services in this ungrateful fashion, let it be so. Theshame is on Massachusetts not on me!"