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[00:36.05]CHAPTER 1 THE PEDLAR
[00:39.78]The spring of 1634 arrives，
[00:44.23]but in the prison of Lancaster Castle it stays cold．
[00:49.87]The twenty women in the prison are dirty，
[00:52.98]hungry and cold．
[00:56.01]There are no beds or chairs and so they sleep on the cold floor．
[01:02.14]There are no windows，
[01:04.01]so it is always dark．
[01:07.55]The women want to get out of the prison；
[01:10.38]they want to go home．
[01:13.44]Sometimes the guards open the big，
[01:16.96]old door and put some bread and water on the floor．
[01:22.61]Then they close the door again．
[01:26.66]My name is Jennet Device，
[01:29.97]and I am one of the twenty women in prison．
[01:33.78]Day after day，
[01:36.19]I sit on the cold floor and wait．
[01:41.24]I want to feel warm again；
[01:44.26]I want to see the sky again，
[01:47.78]and Pendle Hill，
[01:50.04]the beautiful hill near my home．
[01:54.19]But I am in the dark prison of Lancaster Castle，
[01:58.37]and I sit on the cold floor and wait．
[02:04.70]One day， something happens．
[02:08.50]The guards open the big， old door．
[02:12.47]'Jennet Device！'a guard calls．
[02:17.13]'Come here at once，witch！Somebody wants to see you．'
[02:24.77]I get up slowly
[02:27.30]because I'm very cold
[02:29.54]and I walk across the dark room to the door．
[02:33.95]Perhaps it' s someone from Read Hall！
[02:36.86]Perhaps I'm going home！
[02:39.95]'Jennet Device，be quick！'the guard calls again．
[02:46.69]Someone is standing at the door with the guard．
[02:51.04]'Jennet，'he says quietly．
[02:55.80]I see him then：
[02:57.94]a tall man with brown hair and tired blue eyes．
[03:05.01]He is not from Read Hall．
[03:08.66]It is Mr Webster，from the church at Kild wick．
[03:14.54]My legs stop moving and suddenly I want to sit down．
[03:21.41]'Come on， come on，' the guard says angrily．
[03:27.13]He begins to close the door．
[03:30.75]'Come out here for a minute，
[03:33.37]Jennet，' Mr Webster says quietly．
[03:36.71]'Sit down and eat something．'
[03:40.79]I sit down at a little table near the door．
[03:46.49]Mr Webster gives me some bread
[03:49.41]and some meat and I begin to eat hungrily．
[03:55.94]'Ten minutes，'the guard says．
[03:59.60]'After ten minutes，she goes in again．
[04:04.42]'Thank you，'Mr Webster says．
[04:09.63]'How is everyone at Read Hall？'
[04:13.44]I ask at last．
[04:15.77]Mr Webster smiles．
[04:18.71]'Everyone is well．
[04:20.80]I was there yesterday．'
[04:24.57]I close my eyes for a minute．
[04:28.09]' Mr Webster， it' s not true．
[04:32.73]I'm not a witch， you know．'
[04:36.21]'I know，Jennet，'Mr Webster says．
[04:40.27]'Last week， I brought Edmund Robinson
[04:43.38]and his father into my church，
[04:45.77]and asked them about the boy's story．
[04:50.35]Many people believed Edmund' s story，
[04:52.60]but some people didn' t．
[04:55.81]Edmund Robinson is going to London tomorrow with his father，
[05:00.24]and a judge is going to question them．'
[05:05.24]The guard comes back and begins to open the door．
[05:10.11]' Time！' he says．
[05:14.55]Mr Webster stands up．
[05:17.54]'God is here with you，Jennet．
[05:20.35]Never forget that．
[05:22.49]You can be happy，when God is with you．'
[05:26.87]I stand up too， and take the bread from the table．
[05:32.53]' Yes， Mr Webster． God is with me；
[05:37.07]I believe that．' But happy？How can I be happy？
[05:45.57]I go back into the dark prison，
[05:48.76]and the guard closes the door behind me．
[05:52.62]The women run to me．
[05:54.72]'Bread！Give us bread！'they cry．
[05:58.96]Quickly， I put the bread in my shirt．
[06:03.71]I don't want to lose it．
[06:07.57]I walk across the room and sit down on the floor．
[06:14.78]I am crying，but I feel a little better．
[06:21.12]Edmund Robinson， of Newchurch，
[06:23.60]is only ten years old．
[06:26.80]Edmund told lies about me and about many women：
[06:32.47]he saw us at a witches' meeting at a house called Hoarstones．
[06:38.54]It's not true，but many people believed him．
[06:44.29]What is he going to say in London？
[06:47.69]The truth？ Or more lies．
[06:54.02]But now， in the prison of Lancaster Castle，
[06:59.19]I want to tell my story．
[07:03.29]It is a story about rich men and angry villagers；
[07:08.47]about old women and hungry children．
[07:14.37]It is a true story， and it happened to me．
[07:22.52]I was born in 1603．
[07:27.00]My family was always very poor，
[07:30.66]and after my father died， we were poorer．
[07:36.17]In winter， I was often ill and I was always cold and hungry．
[07:43.27]In summer，
[07:44.66]I was sometimes ill and I was often cold and hungry．
[07:51.45]We lived some miles from the village of New church，
[07:57.44]in an old house called Malkin Tower．
[07:59.98]It was dirty and cold．
[08:04.26]The rain came in through the windows and there were no doors．
[08:10.95]To the west， was the big hill called Pendle．
[08:17.01]Pendle Hill was beautiful．
[08:21.47]I loved Pendle Hill because it sat quietly all year and watched me．
[08:30.74]My story begins on the eighteenth day of March in the year 1612．
[08:39.58]I was nine years old，
[08:42.58]and my life began to change on that day．
[08:48.16]My mother and my grandmother were ill and they sat on the floor，
[08:53.81]with their dogs，near the little fire．
[08:59.90]My sister Alizon wanted to go out．
[09:05.03]'I'm going to look for bread，'she said．
[09:10.02]My brother James sat near the fire，
[09:13.18]his mouth open．'Go and look for bread，
[09:17.90]'he said．'Go and look for bread．
[09:21.34]'James often said things again and again．
[09:27.30]Alizon ran out of the house and I followed her．
[09:33.97]'Go and look for bread！'James called．
[09:39.60]Alizon began to go east，
[09:41.85]up the hill and past the big trees behind Malkin Tower．
[09:47.65]Alizon walked fast．
[09:51.10]She was eighteen years old and she was tall with long，
[09:57.01]dirty brown hair and a white，hungry face．
[10:03.80]It was cold， but there was no rain.
[10:09.52]Alizon wore a coat and some shoes，
[10:14.18]but I had no coat and no shoes．
[10:19.10]' Please wait a minute！' I called to.
[10:23.64]my sister．' I want to come with you．'
[10:28.32]'No！'Alizon cried．
[10:34.06]'Go back， I don't want you．'
[10:40.29]Suddenly， a dog ran in front of Alizon．
[10:45.55]' Good dog， good dog！' Alizon called．
[10:50.94]The dog ran to her and she put her hand on its head．
[10:56.43]It was my sister' s dog and it liked her．
[11:01.92]It was a big dog with big teeth
[11:05.48]and I didn' t like it because it was always hungry．
[11:13.39]I followed Alizon and her dog along the river to Colne．
[11:20.42]But before we arrived at Colne， we met John Law．
[11:26.83]John Law was a big fat man， about fifty years old．
[11:35.56]'Can I have some money， please？
[11:37.92]'Alizon called．'I'm hungry·
[11:43.56]John Law didn' t answer．
[11:47.57]He walked slowly because he was fat
[11:51.36]and because he carried a big bag on his back．
[11:57.38]In his bag were a lot of beautiful things．
[12:02.67]He was a pedlar and he walked across the hills and visited all the villages．
[12:11.42]'Can I have some money？'
[12:13.92]Alizon called again．'I'm very hungry！'
[12:19.84]John Law stopped．' Stop following me，'
[12:24.18]he said．' I'm not going to give you money．'
[12:30.00]'Give me money！'Alizon said．
[12:35.07]'I don' t want to give you money，'
[12:38.49]the pedlar said． He took his hat off．
[12:43.78]There was not much hair on his head．
[12:47.64]'I don't like you and I don' t like your family．
[12:53.15]A lot of bad women， you are，
[12:56.81]and your father was a bad man， too．'
[13:02.36]Alizon was angry．
[13:04.77]'Don't talk about my father-he' s dead now！
[13:09.15]Give me some money， old man！'
[13:13.24]John Law' s face was red．' No！' he cried．
[13:20.57]He began to walk up the hill to the village．
[13:24.54]'Go back to your dirty family！'
[13:30.41]Alizon began to laugh angrily．
[13:36.04]'A dead man！A dead man！'she called．
[13:42.02]'Dead before dark，John Law！'
[13:45.41]She looked down at her dog and put her hand on its head．
[13:51.08]'Go after him，dog，'she said．
[13:54.78]'Go after him and get him！'
[14:00.93]The big dog began to run after the pedlar．
[14:05.75]John Law stopped．
[14:09.01]He looked afraid and his face was very red．
[14:15.07]'Call your dog back，you bad girl！'he shouted．
[14:21.08]Suddenly，his mouth opened and his face went white．
[14:29.12]Slowly，he began to fall，
[14:33.38]and his big body hit the road．
[14:39.37]The dog came up to him，
[14:42.94]but the pedlar did not move．
[14:47.62]Alizon watched John Law for a minute．
[14:51.98]Then she said to me，
[14:54.03]'Go and call someone from the village．'
[14:57.74]I felt afraid，but I ran alog the road very quickly．
[15:03.01]'Help！Help！'I called to the villagers．
[15:06.96]'The pedlar is ill'
[15:11.29]The villagers came out of their houses
[15:14.27]and followed me down the hill．
[15:17.68]A young man looked at John Law carefully．
[15:22.26]'He's not dead，'he said，
[15:25.24]'but he' s very ill．
[15:28.08]Let' s move him to the nearest house．
[15:31.57]Someone must go and call his son．'
[15:36.72]Just then， John Law began to talk very slowly．
[15:43.52]'I can' t move！' he said．
[15:48.96]' I 'm alive， but I can' t move！'
[15:57.09]I went back to stand near Alizon．
[16:01.73]The dog sat at her feet．
[16:05.84]'That Device girl…'
[16:10.90]John Law said slowly，'she-she cursed me！
[16:18.30]She wanted me to die！
[16:22.00]And her dog came to get me．
[16:27.52]All the villagers looked at Alizon．
[16:31.34]'I 'm sorry，'Alizon said quickly．
[16:34.23]'I'm very hungry and I wanted some money，that's all．'
[16:40.67]'Go away！' the villagers cried．
[16:44.13]'You' re a witch，
[16:45.45]and we don' t want you in our village．'
[16:49.97]Alizon began to run away down the hill and her dog followed．
[16:56.03]I watched the villagers．
[16:59.22]They carried John Law slowly up the hill to the nearest house．
[17:06.03]And then I followed my sister down the hill．
[17:11.52]I was hungry and tired
[17:15.26]and Malkin Tower was many miles away．
[17:20.42]I was nine years old and I was angry．
[17:27.06]I was angry because the pedlar was ill．
[17:31.33]I was angry because the villagers didn' t like me ．
[17:37.18]And I was angry because my sister was a witch．