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MARY SCHWEIDLER,

THE AMBER WITCH

THE MOST INTERESTING TRIAL FOR WITCHCRAFT EVER KNOWN.
PRINTED FROM AN IMPERFECT MANUSCRIPT BY HER FATHER
ABRAHAM SCHWEIDLER, THE PASTOR OF COSEROW, IN THE ISLAND
OF USEDOM.

EDITED

BY W. MEINHOLD,

DOCTOR OF THEOLOGY, AND PASTOR, &c.

TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN

BY LADY DUFF GORDON.


LONDON:

JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.

1844.

242

denny Leens
und

LONDON:

Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS,
Stamford Street.

8268

112

PREFACE.

IN laying before the public this deeply affecting and romantic trial, which I have not without reason called on the titlepage the most interesting of all trials for witchcraft ever known, I will first give some account of the history of the manuscript.

At Coserow, in the Island of Usedom, my former cure, the same which was held by our worthy author some two hundred years ago, there existed under a seat in the choir of the church a sort of niche, nearly on a level with the floor. I had, indeed, often seen a heap of various writings in this recess; but owing to my short sight, and the darkness of the place, I had taken them for antiquated hymn-books, which were lying about in great numbers. But one day, while I was teaching in the church, I looked for a paper mark in the Catechism of one of the boys, which I could not immediately find; and my old sexton, who was past eighty (and who, although called Appelman, was thoroughly unlike his namesake in our story, being a very worthy, although a most ignorant man), stooped down to the said niche, and took from it a folio volume which I had never before observed, out of which he, without the slightest hesitation, tore a strip of paper suited to my purpose, and reached it to me. I immediately seized upon the book, and, after a few minutes perusal, I know not which was greater, my

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