live, at whofe House there was on certain Days of the Year a great Concourfe of Women, who pretended to be bewitched. Ever fince he died, the Number of bewitched Women is much less than it

was.

I fhall conclude this Letter with a pleafant Story about Witchcraft. A Man, hated by his Neighbours, was accused of being a great Sorcerer. His Accufers pretended to prove the Charge by undeni able Arguments. They had feen a Broom, and some Grease, in the Corner of his Chimney, and some Wafers upon the Mantle-tree. The Broom, faid they, ferved him to go to the Devil's Meeting ; which is called, Riding upon the Broom (Chevaucher le Balai, ou l' Efcouette,). As for the Greafe, They pretended that he rubbed himself with it, as all Sorcerers do. The Wafers, faid they, are used by him for fome impious Thing. But that Man came off very cleverly. The Broom (faid he, in Anfwer to his Accufers,) ferves me to fweep my Chimney. I have got the Itch; and therefore I rub my Skin with that Grease. As for the Wafers, I make use of them to feal my Letters. Moft Trials about Witchcraft, in the District of your Parliament, are not better grounded than this. Can any one believe, that as foon as it comes into a Shepherd's Head to put a Broom between his Legs, the Devil is obliged to fetch him away, or to fend one of his Agents to carry him to his Meeting? Believe me, Sir; If the Devil had a mind to make an Apology for himself, he would eafily fhew, that Men afcribe to him a Thousand Things, of which he is not the Author.

PARIS 1672.

The Readers will find a curious Piece concerning Witchcraft, extracted from the Archives of Geneva, in the firft Volume, Art. XLVII.

ARTICLE

ARTICLE X.

AN HISTORICAL ACCOUNT, never before publish'd, of the Life

and

Trial of MICHAEL SERVETUS. In Several Letters to ****. By the Author of thefe Memoirs.;

Letter I.

SIR

N order to fatisfy your Curiofity, I fhall freely communicate to you all the Discoveries that I have made concerning the Famous Heretick, Michael Servetus, befides what I have inferted in my Account of the Bibliotheque Critique: And tho' it be a a Subject that will afford Matter for feveral Reflections, yet I fhall hardly make any, being contented to relate Hiftorical Facts, and leaving it to you to make your Obfervations upon them.

MICHAEL SERVETUS was born in the Year 1509. at Villanueva † in Arragon. His Father, who was a Notary, fent him to the University of Toulouse, to study the Civil Law. Servetus began

to

+ See Servetus in the Index.

He faid during his Trial, the 28th of August 1553, that he was then 44 Years of Age.

+ Thuanus and feveral other Authors fay, He was born at Tarragona; which is a Mistake.

1

to read the Bible then, which he had never done before. It does not appear that there were any Antitrinitarians in France, or any where elfe at that Time; and therefore it is not improbable that he himself broached the new Doctrine, for which he was put to Death afterwards. Perhaps he applied himfelf to read the Holy Scripture, because the Reformation made a great Noife in France; and being fenfible that the Church wanted to be reformed, 'tis not unlikely that he went fo far, of his own Head, as to fancy that the Trinity was one of those Doctrines that were to be rejected. However it be, he grew very fond of his Opinions; and after he had been Two or Three Years at Tou'oufe, he refolved to retire into Germany, and to fet up for a Reformer. He went to Bafil by the way of Lyons and Geneva; and having had fome Conferences at Bafil with Oecolampadius, he fet out for Strasburg, being extremely defirous to difcourfe with Bucer and Capito, two celebrated Reformers of that City. At his Departure from Bafil, he left a Manufcript, which he had written against the Trinity, in the Hands of Conrad Roufs a Bookfe, who fent it af terwards to Haguenau. Servetusent thither from Strasburg, to get it Printed, in the Year 1531. The Title of that Book, and a fhort Account of the Author's Doctrine, may be seen in my Account of the Bib. liotheque Critique t. That Piece was published at Strasburg and Francfort before the Month of August, When it was brought into Switzerland, feveral Protestant Divines were very much displeased with it, as it appears from a Letter of Oecolampadius to Bu"I faw this Week, fays he *, our Friends of "Berne,

.cer.

† See Servetus in the Index.

*Invifi hac hebdomada Bernates, qui te & Capitonem falutant plurimum. Libellus de Trinitatis Erroribus à quibufdam ex illis vifus duntaxat, fupramodum offendit. Vellem te fcribere Luthero, quod nobis infciis liber alibi excufus fit. Impudentia enim erat

adfcribere

46

66

Berne, who make their Compliments to you and to Capito. They are very much offended with "the Book entitled, De Trinitatis Erroribus, which "fome of them have seen. I defire you would acquaint Luther, that this Book was printed out "of this Country, and without our Knowledge. "For, (to mention but One Article,) it is an impudent Thing to affirm, as the Author does, That "the Lutherans do not underftand the Doctrine of Juftification. But that Man, whether he be a Photinian, or of any other Sect, thinks he knows more than every Body elfe. Our Church will be very ill fpoken of, unless our Divines make it "their Bufinefs to cry him down. I befeech you "in particular to keep a watchful Eye over it, and to make an Apology for our Church, at least in your Confutation infcribed to the Emperor. We know not how that Beast came to creep in among us. He wrefts all the Paffages of the Scripture, to prove that the Son is not Coeternal and Con"fubftantial with the Father, and that the Man 66 Chrift is the Son of God ". This Letter is dated August 5. 1531.

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46

66

46

The Magiftrates of Bafil defiring to know Oecolampadius's Opinion concerning the Book of Servetus; that Reformer made a fhort Discourse in their Prefence, wherein he fhew'd that it was a pernicious Book; but he express'd himself with great Moration.

adfcribere Lutheranis, juftificationis rationem eos ignorare, ut de reliquis taceam. Sed Photinianus ille, vel nefcio cujus fecte homo, folus fapere fibi videtur. Nifi ab Ecclefiæ noftræ do&toribus explodetur, peffimè auditura eft. Tu præ aliis, oro, vigiles: Et fi non alibi, certè in confutatione tua ad Imperatorem Ecclefias noftras excufa, utcumque hæc beftia irrepferit. Abutitur omnibus in fuum fenfum, tantum ne confiteatur Filium coæternum Patri & Confubftantialem. Atque hic eft, qui fufcipit probandum hominem Chriftum effe Filium Dei. Oecolampadii & Zuinglii Epiftole. Lib. IV. Pag. 801, Bafil 1592. in Quarto.

deration. That Difcourfe tranflated into Latin, may be feen in the first Book of Oecolampadius's and Zuinglius's Epiftles, p. 83. Oecolampadius writ alfo Two

Letters to Servetus about his Book, wherein he confured him in a very civil manner, and intreated him to renounce his Errors. He blames Servetus for expreffing a greater Efteem for Tertullian, than for all the other Fathers of the Church.

The next Year, (1532) Servetus published another Book against the Trinity at Haguenau. I refer you, Sir, to the fame Part of my Memoirs, where you will find the Title of that Book, and a fhort Account of it.

Servetus having published thofe Two Books, refolved to return into France, because he was poor, and did not understand the German Language. He 'himself alledged thofe Two Reafons for it at his Tryal. He returned to Bafil, and from thence went to Lyons, where he lived about Two or Three Years. Whilft he was there, Melanchthon writ a Letter to Joachim Camerarius, wherein he told him what he thought of Servetus, and his Books. He fays, That Servetus appears to him a fubtil and cunning Man; but that he wants Gravity; that his Thoughts are confused; that he has not fufficiently meditated upon the Things he treats of; and that his Notion of Juftification is very extravagant. Melanchthon adds, That he has been always afraid, that Difputes about the Trinity would break out fome Time or other. The Paffage is very curious; and therefore I fhall fet down Melanchthon's own Words.

"De Serveto rogas quid fentiam: (Says † that ex “cellent Man). Ego vero video fatis acutum ac vafrum

The ift and 2d of the First Book.

t Melanchthon Epiftole. Lib. IV. Ep. 149. Edit. Lond. That Letter is dated in the Year 1533.