Salem Witch Trials

The children in Salem, Massachusetts 1692 were acting strange. As a person with not that many connections, I didn't know what was going on at first. I had heard the rumors of course, about the girls yelling, screaming and barking like dogs. What I didn't know was the cause. Some of the Puritan  ministers and doctors took a look at the girls and came up with a conclusion. They were under the influence of witchcraft. They came up with this from the Puritan ministers. In Puritanism, they believe that to bewitch someone, they had to put them under a spell. They could also send their souls to people at night and terrorize them. The girls were asked who were the witches and they pointed at Tituba, Sarah Good, and Sarah Osborne. I didn't believe that either of them were witches, but then who could be sure? I had heard from my well-connected neighbors that the poor people in Salem Village didn't like us for not getting them land. The indians were at war with other places and we didn't wish to join them. The poor people were desperate, so why not accuse some of us wealthier folk of witchcraft. I thought this, but did not share my opinions with others. I didn't want to be thought of as a witch too. The servant Tituba had even admitted to being a witch. With this proof, more people were accused. My neighbors were also accused of using witchcraft, but they passed the trials.

For the trials I had to be present. The people wanted to hear my thoughts on the manner because I was their neighbor. I liked them, so I tried to defend them. They were nice people who always went to Church. All of this nonsense about witches will get us nowhere. I bet I wasn't the only one with these thoughts, but everyone believed the Puritan people because they couldn't believe it was anything else, but witchcraft. In the end they stopped the trials, and nothing like what happened to the girls ever happened. But I don't know for certain if there was or wasn't witches present in that winter.

Citations:
Salem Witch Trials. Digital image. Beliefnet Community. N.p., 13 Feb. 2012. Web. 30 Oct. 2014. <http://fast1.onesite.com/community.beliefnet.com/user/dondiegodelavega/dbd5f8363c19ff5694606027f0492830.jpg?v=109560>.
Granger. Salem Witch Trial, 1692. Digital image. Fine Art America. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Oct. 2014. <http://images.fineartamerica.com/images-medium-large/salem-witch-trial-1692-granger.jpg>.