The People of Salem Village are said to have been very nervous and suspicious. Recently, there had been a small pox epidemic, and their religion blamed anything that went worng on the devil. The people of Salem Village thought that the devil was always against them.
The girls involved in the accusations yelled out names of people in the village. Whatever caused them to do this is still not known to us today. Maybe it was jealousy, fear, or a combination of factors, but whatever the cause, the prisons were soon filled with over 150 men and women from towns surrounding Salem.
In June of 1692, the court, or known at that time as the sepecial Court of Oyer (to hear) and Terminer (to decide), began the trials. Chief Justice William Stoughton ruled.
Bridget Bishop would be the first to be tried and hanged, but definately not the last. Thirteen women and five men would follow in her footsteps.
In October of that year, the trials ended as fast as they started when Governor William Phipps disbanded the court, ruling that spectral evidence was not allowed. The court released those who had not been tried, and pardoned those who were on death role.
As years passed, apologies were offered, but nothing can make us forget what one society, torn by the harsh realitys of religion, life, and change, can do to itself. The Salem Witch Trials stand as an example of what suspisions and rumors can do to the people you care about the most.
