Post by Salzmank on May 2, 2018 18:11:59 GMT
Hoping I’m not the only person reading my own thread, but…
Here’s another favorite old tale, this one from Old Salisbury, Mass., and taken mostly verbatim from Lewis A. Taft’s A Profile of Old New England (1965), an excellent book if you can find it.
Here’s another favorite old tale, this one from Old Salisbury, Mass., and taken mostly verbatim from Lewis A. Taft’s A Profile of Old New England (1965), an excellent book if you can find it.
A story of Old Salisbury, Massachusetts, tells of a somewhat disreputable woman who was seen carrying an earthen jug into a barn. Shortly thereafter a tall, dark man was observed entering the same building.
The owner of the barn was delayed in investigating these unusual visitations by a sudden, violent storm which shook the countryside with frequent claps of thunder. When the farmer finally entered his barn, he could find no signs of the dark man. However, he found the woman lying in a coma on the hay.
When revived, the woman said that Old Beelzebub had pursued her into the barn and frightened her out of her wits. He had charmed her into an agreement to sell him her body and soul, binding the bargain with three drops of blood drawn from her forefinger. He then said that she was one of his brides and told her to get ready for a honeymoon. In six days, on the stroke of ten o’clock in the morning, he would come to claim her as his own.
The farmer, one Pettinghill by name, was somewhat skeptical of her tale, especially after finding that her earthen jug smelled strongly of rum. Good Parson Seales of Old Salisbury, however, believed her story and determined to save her from the Devil. He asked twelve brother clergymen from neighboring towns to assist him.
On the day appointed by the Devil, a large crowd assembled in Farmer Pettinghill’s orchard. Many of them were curious to see what the Old Fiend looked like. They gave the woman a good stiff drink of rum [Ed: as if she needed that] and tied her securely in a chair. The clergymen formed a circle around her. Seales strengthened the fortifications by placing deacons and church members three-deep surrounding the men of the pulpit.
As the appointed hour drew near, they began to pray and sing hymns. A black cat leaped down from an apple tree, spitting and squalling, setting everyone’s nerves on edge. A strong odor of brimstone permeated the air. The chair with the trussed-up “Devil’s bride” rocked violently back and forth. Deacon Smith received a sharp blow on the back, and Mother Pettinghill received a hard smack from an unseen hand. Despite these manifestations, the brave clergymen continued to pray—and the violence ceased. The Devil had been overcome.
Parson Seales was right proud of his successful encounter with Old Nick—as he had a right to be. The woman whom he had saved attended services at his meetinghouse for three weeks, speaking often with gratitude of Mr. Seales’ “great faith and courage.”
So, then, it was a great shock to the entire congregation when, one Sunday morning, they found her body in Deacon Smith’s well. The verdict of the town constable, who fished her body from the well, was that she had fallen in by accident in the dark. That earthen jug of rum, now empty, was considered circumstantial evidence.
Ah, but the goodwives of Old Salisbury—well, they knew better: that, despite the parson’s best efforts, the Devil had in fact won out in the end.
The owner of the barn was delayed in investigating these unusual visitations by a sudden, violent storm which shook the countryside with frequent claps of thunder. When the farmer finally entered his barn, he could find no signs of the dark man. However, he found the woman lying in a coma on the hay.
When revived, the woman said that Old Beelzebub had pursued her into the barn and frightened her out of her wits. He had charmed her into an agreement to sell him her body and soul, binding the bargain with three drops of blood drawn from her forefinger. He then said that she was one of his brides and told her to get ready for a honeymoon. In six days, on the stroke of ten o’clock in the morning, he would come to claim her as his own.
The farmer, one Pettinghill by name, was somewhat skeptical of her tale, especially after finding that her earthen jug smelled strongly of rum. Good Parson Seales of Old Salisbury, however, believed her story and determined to save her from the Devil. He asked twelve brother clergymen from neighboring towns to assist him.
On the day appointed by the Devil, a large crowd assembled in Farmer Pettinghill’s orchard. Many of them were curious to see what the Old Fiend looked like. They gave the woman a good stiff drink of rum [Ed: as if she needed that] and tied her securely in a chair. The clergymen formed a circle around her. Seales strengthened the fortifications by placing deacons and church members three-deep surrounding the men of the pulpit.
As the appointed hour drew near, they began to pray and sing hymns. A black cat leaped down from an apple tree, spitting and squalling, setting everyone’s nerves on edge. A strong odor of brimstone permeated the air. The chair with the trussed-up “Devil’s bride” rocked violently back and forth. Deacon Smith received a sharp blow on the back, and Mother Pettinghill received a hard smack from an unseen hand. Despite these manifestations, the brave clergymen continued to pray—and the violence ceased. The Devil had been overcome.
Parson Seales was right proud of his successful encounter with Old Nick—as he had a right to be. The woman whom he had saved attended services at his meetinghouse for three weeks, speaking often with gratitude of Mr. Seales’ “great faith and courage.”
So, then, it was a great shock to the entire congregation when, one Sunday morning, they found her body in Deacon Smith’s well. The verdict of the town constable, who fished her body from the well, was that she had fallen in by accident in the dark. That earthen jug of rum, now empty, was considered circumstantial evidence.
Ah, but the goodwives of Old Salisbury—well, they knew better: that, despite the parson’s best efforts, the Devil had in fact won out in the end.