Cases of conscience concerning evil spirits personating men, witchcrafts, infallible proofs of guilt in…

4. There are that Question the Lawfulness of the Experiment. For it this healing power in the Witch is not a Divine but a Diabolical Gift, it may be dangerous to meddle too much with it. If the Witch may be ordered to Touch Afflicted Persons in order to their healing or recovery, out of a sick Fit, why may not the Diseased person be as well ordered to Touch the Witch for the same cause? And if to touch him, why not to scratch him and fetch Blood out of him, which is but an harder kind of Touch? But as for this Mr. Perkins doubts not to call it, a Practice of Witchcraft, It is not safe to meddle with any of the Devils Sacraments or Institutions. For My own part, I should be loath ⟨p. 47⟩to say to a man, that I knew or thought was a Witch, do you lock on such a Person, and see if you can Witch them into a Fit. And there is such an Afflicted Person do you take them by the Hand, and see if you can Witch them well again. If it is by virtue of some Contract with the Devil, that Witches have power to do such things it is hard to conceive how they can be bid to do them, without being too much concerned in that Hellish Covenant. I take it to be (as elsewhere ^(w)I have expressed) a solid Principle, which the Learned Sennertus insists on, Viz. That they who force another to do that which be cannot possibly do, but by virtue of a Compact with the Devil, have themselves implicitly Communion, with the Diabolical Covenant. The Devil is pleased and honoured, when any of his Institutions, are made use of. This way of discovering Witches is no better than that of putting the Urine of the Afflicted Person into a Bottle that so the Witch may be Tormented, and Discovered. The Vanity and Superstition of which practice I have formerly showed, and Testified against. There was a Conjurer his Name was Edward Drake ^(x)who taught a man to use that Experiment for the Relief of his Afflicted Daughter, who found benefit thereby. But we ought not to practice Witchcrafts to discover Witches, nor may we make use ⟨p. 48⟩of a White healing Witch (as they call them) to find out a Black and Bloody one. And how did men first come to know that Witches would be discovered in such ways as these, which have been mentioned? If Satan himself were the first discoverer (as there is reason to believe) the experiment must needs have deceit in it. see Dr. Willet on Exod: 7. Quest. 9.