The Black Death

Chapter four

Salem witches

Sarah Good was one of the first three women to be accused of witchcraft in the Salem witch trials, which occurred in 1692 in colonial Massachusetts.
Sarah Good
Good was accused of witchcraft on March 6, 1692 [O.S.February 25, 1691],when Abigail Williams and Elizabeth Parris, related to the Reverend Samuel Parris, claimed to be bewitched under her hand. The young girls asserted they had been bitten, pinched, and otherwise abused. They would have fits in which their bodies would appear to involuntarily convulse, their eyes rolling into the back of their heads and their mouths hanging open. When the Rev. Samuel Parris asked "Who torments you?" the girls eventually shouted out the names of three townspeople:Tituba, Sarah Osborne, and Sarah Good.

Good was of a lower economic status, reduced to poverty due to the debt of her first husband, Daniel Poole. Accusers at the trials, especially in the trial of Sarah Good, often cited jealousy and envy as explanations for witches' discontent and anger. Her dependency on neighbors and others perpetuated suspicions of Good, and that other dependent women like her were practicing witchcraft. Another theory behind the accusations was explained by her relationship with her husband and her neighbors. William Good claimed he feared that his wife was a witch due to "her bad carriage to him". She was accused by her neighbors because she challenged Puritan values, and she was accused of possessing two women; the afflictions were often sporadic and inexplicable.On March 25, 1692 [O.S. March 15, 1691],Good was tried for witchcraft. She was accused of rejecting the puritanical expectations of self-control and discipline when she chose to torment and "scorn [children] instead of leading them towards the path of salvation".When she was brought in, the accusers immediately began to rock back and forth and moan, seemingly in response to Good's presence. Later in the trial, one of the accusers fell into a fit. When it had stopped, she claimed Good had attacked her with a knife; she even produced a portion of it, stating the weapon had been broken during the alleged assault. However, upon hearing this statement, a young townsman stood and told the court the piece had broken off his own knife the day before, and that the girl had witnessed it. He then revealed the other half, proving his story. After hearing this, Judge William Stoughton simply scolded the girl for exaggerating what he believed to be the truth.
Although both Good and Sarah Osborne denied the allegations against them, Tituba admitted to being the "Devil's servant". She stated that a tall man dressed all in black came to them, demanding they sign their names in a great book. Although initially refusing, Tituba said, she eventually wrote her name, after Good and Osborne forced her to. There were six other names in the book as well but were not visible to her. She also said that Good had ordered her cat to attack Elizabeth Hubbard, causing the scratches and bite marks on the girl's body. She spoke of seeing Good with black and yellow birds surrounding her, and that Good had also sent these animals to harm the girls. When the girls began to have another fit, Tituba claimed she could see a yellow bird in Good's right hand. The young accusers agreed.
When Good was allowed the chance to defend herself in front of the twelve jurors in the Salem Village meeting house, she argued her innocence, proclaiming Tituba and Osborne as the real witches. In the end, however, Good was convicted of witchcraft and sentenced to death. On July 29 [O.S.July 19], 1692,
Sarah Good was hanged along with four other women convicted of witchcraft.While the other four quietly awaited execution, Good firmly proclaimed her innocence. The Rev. Nicholas Noyes was persistent, but unsuccessful, in his attempts to force Good to confess. When she was found guilty by the judges, including Noyes, she yelled to him: "I'm no more a witch than you are a wizard, and if you take away my life God will give you blood to drink". Twenty-five years later, Noyes died from choking on his own blood.
Good was pregnant at the time of her arrest and gave birth to an infant in her cell in the jail in Ipswich. The infant died before her mother was hanged.
In 1710, William Good successfully sued the Great and General Court for health and mental damages done to Sarah and Dorcas, ultimately receiving thirty pounds sterling, one of the largest sums granted to the families of the witchcraft victims.

"Why am i getting a history lesson Miss. Marshal?" The doctor asked

"That's an article by an unknown author/ editor got everything right but one" I said

"And that is?" The doctor asked

"Sara good changed her name when she got older and married" I said

"To what Miss. Marshal" he asked

"Sara marshal doctor, in fact Sara was a witch but didn't know at the time cause she was only a child but her mother knew and her mother was also a witch the name kept getting changed threw out the years until it hit Christie, but I prefer Marshal" I said

"So your birth name is Christie?" He asked

"Yes, but it got changed marshal couple years back" I replied

Most of my family now doesn't even know about it the few of us that do learned it on our own, but there on my family is just my family some good some bad, and it all ends with me.

"Ever heard of the devils emerald?" I asked

"No I don't think I have" he said

"But the emerald did not follow its first master. As Satan was hurled into the burning pit, the stone slipped out of his now-tattered crown, and tumbled to Earth—from which it was born anew. Wise emerald. For this great stone knows it belongs neither to Heaven nor to Hell." I said

In Medieval times, Christians connected the beautiful emerald to Lucifer, the devil. It was a stone, so they said, from his crown. Although it was now perhaps a devil stone, people did connect it in a more positive way. It was believed that it helped you to stay honest and well-behaved.
The very first emerald in the universe belonged to Lucifer. According to legend, it was the chief jewel of his heavenly crown, glowing brilliantly in the light of the Lord. But then the Troubles came, and Lucifer the Shining became Satan the Adversary, the prideful Fallen Angel, disgraced in the eyes of God, and cast into Hell. But the emerald did not follow its first master. As Satan was hurled into the burning pit, the stone slipped out of his now-tattered crown, and tumbled to Earth—from which it was born anew.
Wise emerald. For this great stone knows it belongs neither to Heaven nor to Hell. It is an earthly creation, sister to the verdant land and green-shining sea. It's here on Earth that it began its history, a history of grails, goddesses, and conquistadors, a history that is both true and mythical, sometimes both at once. It has the longest history of any major gemstone. From the very beginning it was clear that the emerald, above all other gems, had a significance that surpassed even its surpassing loveliness. It is of course the symbol of spring, love, youth, and rebirth. But it is so much more ...

"Why are you telling me this Miss.Marshal?" He asked

"It was written in my cousins book, the real one that killed my friends and family not I but it was still pinned on me cause my name was in it" I said "doctor can you do me a favor cause I know you believe I did not commit those crimes"
"What is it?" He asked
"When I am done telling my story share it to the world" I say
"Why?" He asked
"Cause the world needs to know not everyone is guilty" I say
"I can not promise but I will do my best" he says