around the figure of the clergyman to see what was happening inside.
Just then another scream came from inside the house and Anne Putnam, a small twelve-year-old girl, appeared behind Reverend Parris. She had a wild look in her eyes. She looked at Caleb, them being the same age, then grabbed his arm and tried to pull him into the house. Reverend Parris protested, grasping the girl’s wrist and freeing Caleb.
Mr. Putnam, Anne’s father, emerged into the hallway and the two men conferred briefly. Thomas and Caleb watched from the doorway.
“Come, come, you’ve come just in time,” Ann cried to Caleb. “See, see them there? Look how they scream at me. There, there! Up in the rafters!” She pointed toward the ceiling. The boys stepped cautiously into the hallway but when they looked up, they could see nothing unusal.
Another young girl, Prudence, who the boys knew to be Anne’s close friend, emerged from the shadows. She too seemed to be on the verge of hysteria. She cried out and fell on the ground, her body twisting into severe shapes and her tongue rolling out of her mouth.
As if suddenly noticing the boys’ presence, the Reverend pushed them back out of the front door.
“We have no time for you, boys,” he said. “Evil is upon us.” Just as he shut the door they heard Reverend Parris say to Mr. Putnam, “The same affliction has come to my house. My daughter and servant girl too scream out. It’s witches I tell you. Satan has come to Salem.”
As the boys went back down the steps, Thomas turned toward his younger brother.
“I think Anne Putnam has taken a shine to you.”
Caleb smirked at his brother’s sense of humor.
“Are you saying only a girl afflicted by an unseen force would like me?”
“Yes,” Thomas said matter-of-factly. “Let’s go tell Father that it seems these girls are troubled by witches.”
FIFTEEN
Nathaniel Campbell and his family sat around the rough-hewn dinner table in front of the large hearth. The family was in deep discussion about the current events. Rose Mary Campbell filled everyone’s bowls with soup and a large crust of bread.
“I heard they’ve accused Parris’s servant, Tituba, as well as Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne, of witchery,” Hannah said. She was the eldest child, a well-mannered, quick-witted, fearless whip of a girl.
Though she was often left behind by Nathaniel and the boys on some of their more dangerous hunts, Hannah always made herself useful. She was fluent in four languages, including the local Indian dialect, which had helped her learn some of their religious practices. Her father relied on her to figure out many of the spells and books that they referenced.
“So we know that Abigail Faulkner and Reverend Parris’s daughter attend a quilting circle with Anne Putnam and Prudence Lewis,” Hannah continued.
“And all four of those girls are claiming to be afflicted by witches,” Nathaniel said.
“Poor Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba. There will be a trial for those three I’m sure,” Rose Mary said. “Nothing gets Reverend Parris in more of a tizzy than the talk of evil. It is strange though, I’m sure they are just old women.”
“Are they witches, Father?” Thomas asked.
“I can’t be sure. I’ll try a marking spell on them, if I can get close to them at the trial. That should tell us for certain,” Nathaniel replied.
“I can’t imagine that those women are witches,” Hannah said. “Tituba seems like such a simple woman when I see her in the village.”
“Well then, who is afflicting the girls?” Caleb asked.
Hannah shrugged. “If I were a witch I wouldn’t be caught so easily. Don’t you think, Father?”
“The girls claim to be able to see the women afflicting them,” Nathaniel observed.
“Well, I can say a lot of things. I can say I see a horse with a lilac coat on in front of me. That doesn’t mean it’s true,” Hannah countered.
“I’ll try a marking spell on the three women. Then
Just then another scream came from inside the house and Anne Putnam, a small twelve-year-old girl, appeared behind Reverend Parris. She had a wild look in her eyes. She looked at Caleb, them being the same age, then grabbed his arm and tried to pull him into the house. Reverend Parris protested, grasping the girl’s wrist and freeing Caleb.
Mr. Putnam, Anne’s father, emerged into the hallway and the two men conferred briefly. Thomas and Caleb watched from the doorway.
“Come, come, you’ve come just in time,” Ann cried to Caleb. “See, see them there? Look how they scream at me. There, there! Up in the rafters!” She pointed toward the ceiling. The boys stepped cautiously into the hallway but when they looked up, they could see nothing unusal.
Another young girl, Prudence, who the boys knew to be Anne’s close friend, emerged from the shadows. She too seemed to be on the verge of hysteria. She cried out and fell on the ground, her body twisting into severe shapes and her tongue rolling out of her mouth.
As if suddenly noticing the boys’ presence, the Reverend pushed them back out of the front door.
“We have no time for you, boys,” he said. “Evil is upon us.” Just as he shut the door they heard Reverend Parris say to Mr. Putnam, “The same affliction has come to my house. My daughter and servant girl too scream out. It’s witches I tell you. Satan has come to Salem.”
As the boys went back down the steps, Thomas turned toward his younger brother.
“I think Anne Putnam has taken a shine to you.”
Caleb smirked at his brother’s sense of humor.
“Are you saying only a girl afflicted by an unseen force would like me?”
“Yes,” Thomas said matter-of-factly. “Let’s go tell Father that it seems these girls are troubled by witches.”
FIFTEEN
Nathaniel Campbell and his family sat around the rough-hewn dinner table in front of the large hearth. The family was in deep discussion about the current events. Rose Mary Campbell filled everyone’s bowls with soup and a large crust of bread.
“I heard they’ve accused Parris’s servant, Tituba, as well as Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne, of witchery,” Hannah said. She was the eldest child, a well-mannered, quick-witted, fearless whip of a girl.
Though she was often left behind by Nathaniel and the boys on some of their more dangerous hunts, Hannah always made herself useful. She was fluent in four languages, including the local Indian dialect, which had helped her learn some of their religious practices. Her father relied on her to figure out many of the spells and books that they referenced.
“So we know that Abigail Faulkner and Reverend Parris’s daughter attend a quilting circle with Anne Putnam and Prudence Lewis,” Hannah continued.
“And all four of those girls are claiming to be afflicted by witches,” Nathaniel said.
“Poor Sarah Good, Sarah Osborne, and Tituba. There will be a trial for those three I’m sure,” Rose Mary said. “Nothing gets Reverend Parris in more of a tizzy than the talk of evil. It is strange though, I’m sure they are just old women.”
“Are they witches, Father?” Thomas asked.
“I can’t be sure. I’ll try a marking spell on them, if I can get close to them at the trial. That should tell us for certain,” Nathaniel replied.
“I can’t imagine that those women are witches,” Hannah said. “Tituba seems like such a simple woman when I see her in the village.”
“Well then, who is afflicting the girls?” Caleb asked.
Hannah shrugged. “If I were a witch I wouldn’t be caught so easily. Don’t you think, Father?”
“The girls claim to be able to see the women afflicting them,” Nathaniel observed.
“Well, I can say a lot of things. I can say I see a horse with a lilac coat on in front of me. That doesn’t mean it’s true,” Hannah countered.
“I’ll try a marking spell on the three women. Then
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