An extract from “Sadducismus Trimphatus: or a full and plain evidence concerning witches and appartions” by Joseph Glanvill, pg. 372.
Transcribed by Luke Mouland
The Relation of James SHERRING, taken concerning the matter at old Gaft’s House of Little-Burton, June 23, 1677, as follows:
The first night that I was there with Hugh MELLMORE and Edward SMITH, they heard as it were, the washing in water over their heads. Then taking a candle and going up the stairs, there was a wet cloth thrown at them, but it fell on the stairs. They going up father, there was another thrown as before. And when they were come up into the chamber, there stood a bowl of water, some of it sprinkled over, and the water looked white, as if there had been soap used in it. The bowl just before was in the kitchen, and could not be carried up but through the room where they were.
The next thing that they heard the same night was a terrible noise as if it had been a clap of thunder, and shortly after they heard great scratching about the bedstead, and after that, great knocking with a hammer against the bed’s-head, so that the two maids that were in bed cried out for help. Then they ran up the stairs, and there lay the hammer on the bed, and on the bed’s-head there were near a thousand prints of the hammer, which the violent strokes had made.
The two maids said, that they had been scratched and pinched with a hand that was put into the bed, which had exceeding long nails. They said that the hammer was locked up fast in the cupboard when they went to bed. This was that which was done the first night, with many other things of the like nature.
The second night that James SHERRING and Thomas HILLARY was there, James SHERRING sat down in the chimney to fill a pipe of tobacco; he made use of the firetongs to take up a coal to light his pipe, and by and by the tongs were drawn up the stairs, and after they were up in the chamber, they were played withal (as many times men do) and then thrown down upon the bed. Although the tongs were so near him, he never perceived the going of them away.
The same night, one of the maids left her shoes by the fire, and they were carried up into the chamber, and the old man’s brought down and set in their places. The same night there was a knife carried up into the chamber, and it did scratch and scrape the bed’s-head all night, but when they went up into the chamber, the knife was thrown into the loft. As they were going up the stairs, there were many things thrown at them, which were just before in the low room, and when they went down the stairs, the old man’s breeches were thrown after them. These were the most remarkable things done that night, only there was continual knocking and pinching the maids, which was usually done every night.
The third night, when James SHERRING and Thomas HILLARY were there, as soon as the people were gone to bed, their clothes were taken and thrown at the candle and put out, and immediately after they cried out with a very hideous cry and said, ‘they should be all choked if they were not presently helped’. Then they ran up the stairs and there was an abundance of feathers plucked out of the bolster that they lay their heads, and some thrust in their mouths, that they were almost choked. The feathers were thrown all about the bed and the room. They were plucked out a hole no bigger than one’s little finger.
Some time after, they were vexed with a very hideous knocking at their heads as they lay in bed. Then James SHERRING and Thomas HILLARY took the candle and went upstairs and stood at the bed’s-feet, and the knocking continued. Then they saw a hand with an arm-wrist hold the hammer which kept on knocking against the bedstead. Then James SHERRING going towards the bed’s-head , the hand and hammer fell down behind the bolster and could not be found. For they turned up the bed-clothes to search for the hammer. But as soon as they went downstairs, the hammer was thrown out into the middle of the chamber. These were the most remarkable things that were done that night.
The fourth and fifth nights there was but little done more than knocking and scratching as usually. The sixth and seventh nights there was nothing at all, but as quiet as at other houses. These were all the nights that they were there. The things that follow are what James SHERRING heard the people of the house report.
There was a saddle in the house of their Uncle WARREN’s of Leigh, (which it should seem they detained wrongfully from the right owner) that as it did hang upon a pin in the entry would come off and come into the house, as they termed it, hop about the house from one place to another, and upon the table, and so to another, which stood on the other side of the house. Jane GAFT and her kinswoman took this saddle and carried it to Leigh, and as they were going along in the broad common, there would be sticks and stones thrown at them, which made them very much afraid, and going near together, their whittles which were on their shoulders, were knit together.
They carried the saddle to the house which was WARREN’s, and there lift it, and returned home very quiet. But being gone to bed at night, the saddle was brought back from Leigh, (which is a mile and a half at least from old GAFT’s house) and thrown upon the bed where the maids lay. After that, the saddle was very troublesome to them, until they broke it in small pieces and threw out into the highway.
There was a coat of the same party’s, who was the owner of this saddle, which did hang on the door in the hall, and it came off from the place and flew in to the fire and lay for some considerable time, before they could get it out. For it was as much as three of them could do to pluck it out of the fire, because of the ponderous weight that lay on it, as they thought. Nevertheless, there was no impression on it of the fire.
Old GAFT sat at dinner with a hat of this old WARREN’s on his head, and there was something came and struck it off into the dish where his meat was. There was a pole which stood in the backside about fourteen or fifteen foot in length, which was brought into the house, and carried up into the chamber, and thrown on the bed; but all the wit they had could not get it out of the chamber, because of it’s length, until they took down a light of the window. They report that the things in the house were thrown about and broken to their great damage.
One night there were two of this old GAFT’s grand-daughters in bed together, they were aged, one of them about twelve or thirteen years, and the other about sixteen or seventeen. They said that they felt a hand in bed with them, which they bound up in the sheet, and took bedstaves and beat it until it was as soft as wool, then they took a stone which lay in the chamber, about a quarter of a hundred weight, and put on it, and were quiet all night. In the morning, they found it as they left it. Then, the eldest of the maids swore that she would burn the Devil, and goes and fetches a fuz of faggots to burn it, but when she came again, the stone was thrown away and the cloth was found wet.
Note from OPC: In the same year as these events (1677), there is a record of a ‘John Gas’ being buried at Longburton; could this be ‘Old Gaft’ from the tale? What seems to be a matching probate record - held at the WSHC - describes him as ‘John Gast Snr.’ of Littleburton, a yeoman. Also featuring in the WSHC probate index is the probate of a ‘Jane Gast’ of Littleburton, dated 1692; it seems likely that this is the ‘Jane ‘Gaft’ mentioned in the account.