Curious Cases And Amusing Actions At Law

Fascinating and entertaining tales of cases and trials from the Birmingham Court of Requests (such as "The meek husband and the bouncing wife," "The servant and his two masters"); a witchcraft trial held before Sir Matthew Hale, 1664, taken down by an attendant at the proceedings; and six New England Salem witchcraft trials from 1692.

CONTENTS

PART I.

CASES IN THE BIRMINGHAM COURT OF REQUESTS

Introduction

I. The Pleasures of Matrimony

II. The Sturdy Club

III. The Carrier

IV. The Executor

V. A Judge may Quit the Line of Justice

VI. Match a Knave

VII. The Second-hand Wife

VIII. Defective Powers

IX. ABC

X. The Servant and his Two Masters

XI. Warning

XII. The Meek Husband and the Bouncing Wife

XIII. The Lovers

XIV. Landlord and Tenant

XV. Queer Aspects

XVI. The Privilege of a Cockade

XVII. The Power of Beauty

XVIII. The Hundred-Pound Note

XIX. The Merchant and the Button-Maker

XX. The Fee

XXI. The Reckoning

XXII. A Quarter too Late

XXIII. The Bastard

XXIV. "TheTempest," as it was acted by their Majesties' Servants at the Theatre in Birmingham

XXV. The Female Contest

XXVI. The Hundred-Tongue Club

XXVII. Character

XXVIII. The Name Unknown

XXIX. The Female Note

XXX. The Widowed Wife

XXXI. The Bench Stormed

XXXII. The Coat and many Owners

XXXIII. The Cloud of Witnesses

XXXIV. A Club Conducted without a Man

XXXV. The Stamp

XXXVI. The Stumbling Wife

XXXVII. The Collector

XXXVIII. The Hunted Jew

XXXIX. A Picture of Man from the Life

XL. The Necessity of Marrying

XLI. The Necessity of Unmarrying

XLII. The Forsaken Fair

XLIII. Betty John

PART II. WITCH TRIALS

Introduction

An Abstract of Mr. Perkins's Way for the Discovery of Witches

The Sum of Mr. Gaule's Judgment about the Detection of Witches

Bernard of Batcomb's "Guide to Grand Jurymen"

TRIALS OF THE NEW ENGLAND WITCHES

I. The Trial of G. B. at a Court of Oyer and Terminer, held in Salem, 1692

II. The Trial of Bridget Bishop, alias Oliver, at the Court of Oyer and Terminer, held at Salem, June 2, 1692

III. The Trial of Susanna Martin, at the Court of Oyer and Terminer, held by Adjournment at Salem, Jane 29, 1692

IV. The Trial of Elizabeth How, at the Court of Oyer and Terminer, held by Adjournment at Salem, June 30, 1692

V. The Trial of Martha Carrier, at the Court of Oyer and Terminer, held by Adjournment at Salem, August 2, 162

A FURTHER ACCOUNT OF THE TRIALS OF THE NEW ENGLAND WITCHES

A True Narrative, collected by Deodat Lawson, relating to Sundry Persons afflicted by

Witchcraft at Salem Village in New England, from the 19th of March to the 5th of April,

1692

Remarks of Things more than Ordinary about the Afflicted Persons

Remarks concerning the Accused

A Further Account of the Trials of the New England Witches, sent in a Letter from thence to a

Gentleman in London

A TRIAL OF WITCHES BEFORE SIR MATTHEW HALE AT BURY ST. EDMUNDS, 1664

PART III. AMUSING ACTIONS AT LAW