of the confessions of all the persons
implicated in these proceedings has often been remarked. It would
appear that they actually endeavoured to cause the King's death by
their spells and sorceries. Fian, who was acquainted with all the usual
tricks of his profession, deceived them with pretended apparitions, so
that many of them were really convinced that they had seen the devil.
The sum of their confessions was to the following effect:--

Satan, who was, of course, a great foe of the reformed religion, was
alarmed that King James should marry a Protestant princess. To avert
the consequences to the realms of evil, he had determined to put an end
to the King and his bride by raising a storm on their voyage home.
Satan, first of all, sent a thick mist over the waters, in the hope
that the King's vessel might be stranded on the coast amid the
darkness. This failing, Dr. Fian, who, from his superior scholarship,
was advanced to the dignity of the devil's secretary, was commanded to
summon all the witches to meet their master, each one sailing on a
sieve on the high seas.

On All-hallowmas Eve, they assembled to the number of upwards of two
hundred, including Gellie Duncan, Agnes Sampson, Euphemia Macalzean,
one Barbara Napier, and several warlocks; and each embarking in a
riddle, or sieve, they sailed "over the ocean very substantially."
After cruising about for some time, they met with the fiend, bearing in
his claws a cat, which had been previously drawn nine times through the
fire. This he delivered to one of the warlocks, telling him to cast it
into the sea, and cry "Hola!" This was done with all solemnity, and
immediately the ocean became convulsed--the waters hissed loudly, and
the waves rose mountains high,

"Twisting their arms to the dun-coloured heaven."

The witches sailed gallantly through the tempest they had raised, and
landing on the coast of Scotland, took their sieves in their hands, and
marched on in procession to the haunted kirk of North Berwick, where
the devil had resolved to hold a preaching. Gellie Duncan, the musician
of the party, tripped on before, playing on her Jew's harp, and singing,

"Cummer, go ye before, Cummer, go ye;
Gif ye will not go before, Cummer, let me!"

Arrived at the kirk, they paced around it withershins, that is, in
reverse of the apparent motion of the sun. Dr. Fian then blew into the
key-hole of the door, which opened immediately, and all the witches
entered. A