Salem, Massechusets
If ever there was a town that looked like a place where witches once roamed, this was it. Salem Willows Park is sure to be one of the creepiest places to walk through at midnight on a full moon. Salem was the site of the infamous witch trials of 1692 in which an entire town was possessed by paranoia, anxiety, and mass-hysteria. The witch trials saw 19 innocent people killed after being found guilty of witchcraft. But, just how does one find someone guilty of something so…fictional? Here are 10 ways that the people of Salem tested to see who was a witch and who wasn’t.
Witch Cake
A test that was often used to see if a woman was indeed actively partaking in witchcraft was the ‘Witch Cake.’ What was said cake made out of? It contained rye meal and the urine of the women that were supposedly cursed by the witch. The cake would then be fed to dogs, and if the accused witch would scream out in pain, her ass was guilty. The people conducting the test believed that when a witch would curse someone, they would send a small piece of themselves along with the curse. That would then show up in the urine of the ‘cursed’ girl, which in a sense, turned the ‘witch cake’ into a form of voodoo doll of the accused witch.
Spectral Evidence
Spectral evidence was evidence that came to the accuser in the form of a vision or dream. So, if I accuse you of witchcraft, and proceed to say that I’ve had dreams and visions of you doing the devil’s bidding, that is sufficient enough evidence to convict you of witchcraft. The argument against spectral evidence was that the devil could take any shape, so even if someone claims to have had a vision of a particular person performing witchcraft, it could’ve just been the devil pretending to be said person. There was, however, a counter-argument that argued that the devil couldn’t inhabit somebodies body without their permission. Several accused women were in fact convicted of witchcraft by way of spectral evidence.
Eye-witness testimonials
The charge of “affliction with witchcraft” or “entering a covenant with the devil” was a very real thing back in 1692. If someone had claimed to have witnessed a woman practicing black magic, and the accuser was deemed credible, that could very well be enough to lead to an arrest. The scary thing is that people could’ve accused someone just based on the fact that they didn’t like them or wanted them gone from their town. This wasn’t even a test of witchcraft, it was just a matter or trusting someone’s word.
Teat Test
The word ‘teat’ described any blemish, mole, or scar that a witch had on their body. The reality is that almost everybody had a mole or a blemish in one form or another at the time, so a test was created in order to differentiate just who was a witch and who wasn’t. The test consisted of a needle with was used to prick the teat of the accused. If she didn’t bleed or feel it, that was evidence that she was a witch. It wasn’t uncommon to have needles blunted on purpose to favour the accuser. It is also where the phrase ‘cold as a witches teat’ comes from.
Artifacts
Much like today where homes would be searched for evidence of a crime, the homes of accused witches were also checked for artifacts that could be used in witchcraft. Cauldrons, odd books, unfamiliar oils and spices, and things that even remotely resembled a doll were huge red flags.
The Lord’s Prayer
This test was one of faith. It was as simple as ‘Good vs Evil’ as far as they were concerned. An accused witch was given the lord’s prayer and was made to recite it with absolute ease and perfection. Even the slightest pause or stutter was an indication of witchcraft. This test was incredibly hard, considering someone who is being accused of something they didn’t do was forced to read aloud in front of people who were all against her.
Touch Test
The touch test required the accused and someone who was having a fit (and was said to be having the fit as a result of a curse or hex.) The accused was told to place her hand on the afflicted person and if they were to ‘relax’ upon her touch, she was certainly a witch. The accusers believed that the evil energy that had left the witch in order to attack the victim would return to the witch when she touched him or her. Furthermore, these ‘fits’ were later found to be the result of LSD-fungus covered bread.
Confession by dunking
People who were under heavy suspicion of witchcraft and have yet to be convicted were often given the dunk test. This involved them being strapped to a chair and forced underwater repeatedly until they confessed to their ‘crimes.’ This form of torture essentially broke them down until they either gave up and confessed to stop the pain, or they themselves started to believe the lie that was forced upon them.
Pressing
Pressing was another cruel form of torture designed to force a confession out of the accused. Essentially, the accused would be placed beneath a board that was then slowly covered in heavy stones. It was designed to crush you into a confession. The problem was, it was impossible to speak, and more often than not you would die before even getting the chance to confess.
Bound Submersion
This test is one that virtually ensured death to the accused regardless of the outcome. They would be bound by their hands and feet by rope, and tied to a big rock before being thrown into a river. The idea was that if the accused floated up to the surface, he or she was definitely a witch. If they sank to the bottom, well, they were innocent. The death rate was nearly 100%, and the mentality of the accusers was typically ‘oh well, now we know’ when someone drowned.
