Gospel of Luke, Chapter 10, Verse 2, once said that the seventy disciples sent out should be "workers in the harvest, not masters of the harvest." They were sent to proclaim that "The Paradise is near."
Though there were few travelers on the rugged roads, one profession still wandered the wilderness in horse-drawn carriages: missionaries.
Not only Puritans, Quakers, and clergy of the Anglican Communion were active in this virgin land, but not all of them had come to preach.
Some simply used their status as ministers to trade furs. Others were not ministers at all; they could sell a few things to country folk who had no contact with outsiders.
No one bought indulgences anymore, but scriptures that could cast out demons and holy water that cured every illness still had buyers. Increase Mather, meanwhile, was selling charters. At first, people bought them, but fewer and fewer did later on. The buyers were not blind—just look at the state Massachusetts was in.
As parishes and families fell into disorder and people fled, churches began to empty. Outside the churches, more and more people questioned the trials. Though they too hoped the witches would be eliminated as quickly as possible, those frenzied people were wantonly twisting the words of their innocent friends and neighbors.
They knew the accused, because this was the countryside. In cities, people did not know one another. Perhaps they had only just become acquainted when the neighbor moved away for some reason, replaced by another stranger.
Perhaps one day, a policewoman exhausted by overwhelming work pressure would return home after her shift. Tired, she pushed open the door to what she thought was her apartment, only to find a stranger sitting on the sofa, grinning foolishly as he ate ice cream. Without hesitation, she drew her