Part 9 (2/2)
”Ah, she forgot to charm it,” said the other constable, as the little feathers blazed up in a blue flame.
”Yes, but note the color,” said Jethro. ”No Christian bird ever blazed in that color.”
”Neither they ever did!” echoed another, and they looked into each other's faces and shook their heads solemnly.
At this moment Antipas Newton was led to the door of the room, in the custody of another officer. The old man seemed to be taking the whole proceeding very quietly and patiently, as the Quakers always did. But the moment he saw Dulcibel weeping, with Herrick's grasp upon her arm, his whole demeanor changed.
”What devil's mischief is this?” cried the demented man; and springing like an enraged lion upon Master Herrick, he dashed him against the opposite wall, tore his constable's staff from his hands and laying the staff around him wildly and ferociously cleared the room of everybody save Dulcibel and himself in less time than I have taken to tell it.
Jethro stepped forward with his drawn rapier to cover the retreat of the constables; but shouting, ”the sword of the Lord and of Gideon!” the deranged man, with the stout oaken staff, dashed the rapier from Jethro's hand, and administered to him a sounding whack over the head, which made the blood come. Then he picked up the rapier and throwing the staff behind him, laughed wildly as he saw the crowd, constable and all, tumbling out of the door of the next room into the front garden of the house as if Satan himself in very deed, were after them.
”I will teach them how they abuse my pretty little Dulcibel,” said the now thoroughly demented man, laughing grimly. ”Come on, ye imps of Satan, and I will toast you at the end of my fork,” he cried, flouris.h.i.+ng Jethro's rapier, whose red point, crimson with the blood of the canary-bird, seemed to act upon the mind of the old man as a spark of fire upon tow.
”Antipas,” said Dulcibel, coming forward and gazing sadly into the eyes of her faithful follower, ”is it not written, 'Put up thy sword; for he that takes the sword shall perish by the sword'? Give me the weapon!”
The old man gazed into her face, at first wonderingly; then, with the instinct of old reverence and obedience, he handed the rapier to her, crossed his muscular arms over his broad breast, bowed his grisly head, and stood submissively before her.
”You can return now safely,” Dulcibel called out to the constables. They came in, at first a little warily. ”He is insane; but the spell is over now for the present. But treat him tenderly, I pray you. When he is in one of these fits, he has the strength of ten men.”
The constables could not help being impressed favorably by the maiden's conduct; and they treated her with a certain respect and tenderness which they had not previously shown, until they had delivered her, and the afterwards entirely humble and peaceful Antipas, to the keeper of Salem prison.
But the crowd said to one another as they sought their houses: ”What a powerful witch she must be, to calm down that maniac with one word.”
While others replied, ”But he is possessed with a devil; and she does it because her power is of the devil.”
They did not remember that this was the very course of reasoning used on a somewhat similar occasion against the Savior himself in Galilee!
CHAPTER XVI.
Dulcibel in Prison.
In the previous cases of alleged witchcraft to which I have alluded, the details given in my ma.n.u.script volume were fully corroborated, even almost to the minutest particulars, by official records now in existence. But in what I have related, and am about to relate, relative to Dulcibel Burton, I shall have to rely entirely upon the ma.n.u.script volume. Still, as there is nothing there averred more unreasonable and absurd than what is found in the existing official records, I see no reason to doubt the entire truthfulness of the story. In fact, it would be difficult to imagine grosser and more ridiculous accusations than were made by Mistress Ann Putnam against that venerable and truly devout and Christian matron, Rebecca Nurse.
When Dulcibel and Antipas, in the custody of four constables, reached the Salem jail, it was about eleven o'clock at night. The jailor, evidently had expected them; for he threw open the door at once. He was a stout, strong-built man, with not a bad countenance for a jailer; but seemed thoroughly imbued with the prevailing superst.i.tion, judging by the harsh manner in which he received the prisoners.
”I've got two strong holes for these imps of Satan; bring 'em along!”
The jail was built of logs, and divided inside into a number of small rooms or cells. In each of these cells was a narrow bedstead and a stone jug and slop bucket. Antipas was hustled into one cell, and, after being chained, the door was bolted upon him. Then Dulcibel was taken into another, though rather larger cell, and the jailor said, ”Now she will not trouble other people for a while, my masters.”
”Are you not going to put irons on her, Master Foster?” said Herrick.
”Of course I am. But I must get heavier chains than those to hold such a powerful witch as she is. Trust her to me, Master Herrick. She'll be too heavy to fly about on her broomsticks by the time I have done with her.”
Then they all went out and Dulcibel heard the heavy bolt shoot into its socket, and the voices dying away as the men went down the stairs.
She groped her way to the bed in the darkness, sat down upon it and burst into tears. It was like a change from Paradise into the infernal regions. A few hours before and she had been musing in an ecstasy of joy over her betrothal, and dreaming bright dreams of the future, such perhaps as only a maiden can dream in the rapture of her first love. Now she was sitting in a prison cell, accused of a deadly crime, and her life and good reputation in the most imminent danger. One thing alone buoyed her up--the knowledge that her lover was fully aware of her innocence; and that he and Joseph Putnam would do all that they could do in her behalf. But then the sad thought came, that to aid her in any way might be only to bring upon themselves a similar accusation. And then, with a n.o.ble woman's spirit of self-sacrifice, she thought: ”No, let them not be brought into danger. Better, far better, that I should suffer alone, than drag down my friends with me.”
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