Hot Off the Presses - Witches & Cats Pardoned.

[Steve]

http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=3699154

"A coven of "witches" executed centuries ago were officially pardoned
today in one of the last acts of ancient baronial powers held by a
small community in Scotland."

Based on a documentary I saw a couple nights ago on good old PBS, most
cause of mysterious illnesses, madness, and supposed enchantings both
in Europe and in Salem, Massachusetts were due to Ergot poisoning.
Ergot is a fungus that grows primarily rye, but also other cereal
grains, that produces and toxic alcoloid from which the drug LSD is
derived.

So, instead of being bewitched all those poor victims were really
REALLY Stoned.

Interestingly, the way they determine if someone had truly been
bewitch was to soak bread with the urine of the alledged victim and
feed it to a dog. If the dog also went /mad/ then it was bewitchment
for sure. Of course, the dogs would go mad because of the toxic bread.

Another great test of a witch was the infamous water test. A supposed
witch was tied up and dunked in a river. If she floated, then she was
a witch and was hanged. If she sunk and drown, then she was OK and all
was forgiven. Very convenient way to get rid of people you don't like,
and I suspect is related to the old saying, 'Damned if you do, and
damned if you don't'.

Steve/bboyminn (was bboy_mn)