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Meg Bassett was a slight young woman ofsome eighteen years. She was an only child, who since her parents haddied the previous year, had relied on the goodwill of the Withersfamily. Meg, and Peter the Withers only son were engaged to bemarried.
In the summer of 1747 Meg was walkingalone along the bank of the river that bordered Hazeldene. She wasthinking only of her forthcoming marriage to Peter. As she bent topick some wild lavender she heard footsteps behind her. The pain shefelt forced her into unconsciousness. She remembered nothing untilPeter found her, lying half submerged in the water.
Martha Withers was born in the springof 1748, into a poor family. Her father Peter a simple farm laborer,her mother a kitchen maid at the big house. Her entrance into theworld was a foretaste of the rest of her life.
During her confinement Meg sufferedgreatly with sickness and fevers, and claimed to have been visitedseveral times in her dreams by spirits. She tells of them warning herof a great fire that would consume her and her husbandPeter.
When the midwife delivered the baby shelaid it bare on the cold stone slab in the kitchen, thinking it to bestill born. As Meg recovered from the birth some hours later she wastold the tragic news." Its for the best" the midwife told her." Yourchild carried the mark of Satan and the Lord had struck her hand". Itwas believed at that time that children who were born deformed weresomehow being punished for the sins of the parents.
Meg pleaded to be allowed to hold thebody of her dead child. As she clasped the lifeless infant to her,she felt the warm breath of life on her breast. The baby had returnedfrom the dead.
During Martha's early day's she clungto life tenaciously. As soon as she was able Meg and Peter made theshort journey to St Marks Church Hazeldene, to have Marthachristened, lest her slender hold on life slip.
By the time they reached Hazeldene wordhad spread throughout the village, about the child the Lord had takenand the Devil had restored to life. Men barred their doors, and womenfainted at the sight of the child. The priest of St Marks at firstrefused to perform the service. He relented only condition that theynever bring Martha into the church again.
The next six years went by withoutincident. Meg and Peter went about their lives as normal. They wentto church, traded in the market and took part in all the parishactivities. Martha was never spoken of outside their home. It was asif she had never been born.
Martha was a good child; she wasquick-witted, alert and had an uncanny affinity with nature. Everyseed she planted grew, every flower blossomed, and even the mosttimid field mouse would eat from her hand.
As she grew in confidence she took towalking alone in the wood near their home. She became great friendswith Alice, an old hag who lived there. Alice had moved into areasome forty years ago. Some said she had only escaped being burnt as awitch when the witchcraft laws were repealed at the turn of thecentury. Since coming to the wood she had not been known to speak toa living soul. Some said she only spoke to the Devil.
Martha spent most of her spare timewith Alice. One day early in the summer of 1754 whilst she wassheltering from a sudden storm in the wood, the Withers cottage wasstruck by lightening. Meg and Peter Withers died in each other'sarms, consumed by the fire Meg herself had foretold.
It was usually the case at that timethat children orphaned were taken into the care of the church. ButMartha carried "the mark" and had effectively been excommunicatedbefore she had ever become a member of the church. Nobody in theparish would take the child the Devil had restored to life.Eventually the gentleman who owned the house where Meg had workedagreed to allow his stable hand a friend of Peters, to take her in.In exchange she was to work in the stables.
Martha worked hard and set about herduties with good heart. She spent most of her spare time in thecompany of Alice, who taught her all about the ways ofnature.
She soon became renown for herexpertise as an herbalist and healer of animals. Many times localpeople brought their sick pets and livestock for her to treat.Although very few would admit to doing so.
In her thirteenth summer a young mancame to stay at the big house. He was the nephew of the master whoseparents had gone to the Americas. His name was Charles Boler. Charleswas besotted with Martha from the first time he saw her. His uncles'warnings about the strange young girl in the stables only made himmore determined to get to know her.
It was not long before they weremeeting secretly, they spent many hours just walking and talkingtogether. As their relationship grew Martha felt it was time tointroduce Charles to Alice. All that summer they spent their everyspare moment in each other's company. They walked with Alice deep inthe wood where nobody else would go. Sometimes Martha followed him toschool, she would stand by the open door listening intently to theteacher, and occasionally he would let her sit at the back of theclass.
The other children would taunt her,treating her as if she were a leper. They would chant a rhyme as ifto protect them from being infected by her touch. But Charles alwayscame to her rescue.
Through the winter and spring theybecame inseparable and Charles determined to marry her as soon as hewas able. When Martha told Alice of their intention to marry. Alicesaid now Martha had found someone to love her, her work here wasover, and she would soon be able to leave the wood. Martha begged hernot to go and promised to follow her wherever she went. But Alicetold her "where i am going no living soul can follow".
After Martha told Charles what Alicehad said they decided to go to the wood early the next morning. Whenthey arrived at her cottage she was nowhere to be seen, so they wentto look in the clearing where the wild flowers grew. They found herbody lying naked on a bed of wild lavender. She looked no longer thewrinkled, weather beaten old woman with the troubles of the world inher eyes, but a raven-haired beauty who had a face that told of peaceand contentment.
When Charles reached his eighteenthbirthday he told his uncle of his intention to marry Martha, andafter much protest he finally gave his consent. The priest of StMarks at first refused to carry out the service, warning Charles ofall the ills that would befall him if he married Martha. Charles wasadamant. The priest finally relented when Charles said he would takeMartha to Ipswich and marry her in the new Methodist chapel if herefused. They were married at a private service, nobody from thevillage came.
Charles and Martha set up home in thecottage Alice had lived in. In 1745 whilst Martha was expecting theirfirst child, Charles received news that his parents had been killedin a railway accident in New England. His father had made his fortunetrading in spices, the bulk of which he left to his brother,Charles's uncle, with instructions that Charles was to receive alimited income of £50 per annum. Martha gave birth to a stronghealthy son, Matthew. Many said the whole family must be in leaguewith the Devil. For Martha had suffered no sickness during herpregnancy, or pain in labor. The fact that she had used her skill asa herbalist to make her confinement easier had escapedthem.
Martha's fame as an animal healerspread throughout the county, an increasing number of people alsocame to her for treatment. She was often to be found in the homes ofthe poor and destitute tending their ills, and she was never known torefuse help to any poor soul in need.
It was still the case that the folk ofHazeldene would not openly admit to dealing with her. Those who didrisked ridicule. Martha herself did nothing to help. She had taken tomocking then by casting oaths and curses in feigned witchcraft. Thisdid nothing to improve the way the village felt about her. So much sothat it became common practice to blame all their misfortunes on thefact that Martha had cursed them. The first question asked of afarmer those cow had delivered a deformed calf was," what did you doto Martha".
The next twelve years saw the Boler'swith two more sons. They continued to spend their time and limitedresources helping the poorest of the area. Matthew and his brothersgrew into strong kindly young men, getting into mischief just as boyshave done through the ages.
The priest of St Marks now an old manstill believed Martha was somehow possessed, and would still notallow either Matthew or his brothers into church.
As Mathew's awareness of theundercurrent of feeling abut his family grew he took to tormentingthe other children who went into church. One Sunday the boys werehiding in the graveyard the priest caught Matthew. He set aboutbeating him with his stick and cursing his mother, telling Matthewshe would burn in the fires of hell for consorting with theDevil.
Mathew's anger grew, he wrenchedhimself free and ran. Running as hard as he could, his heart poundingin his chest, he tripped on the exposed root of the Yew tree. He fellgrazing knees and elbows, the priest's curses still ringing in hisears.
Matthew found himself lying on a pileof stones, before he could think he was on his feet hurling rocks atthe priest, one struck home knocking him to the ground. He stoodthere as if paralyzed by rage, not seeing the men who were about toapprehend him. Matthew was taken to the Sheriffs and remanded toappear before Carminster assizes the next day.
During the hearing the priest claimedMatthew had defiled the church and spoken Satan's curses over thegraves of the faithful, a crime punishable by death. Martha stood upin the public gallery and warned Justice Petars of the evils thatwould befall him if he harmed Matthew. The Justice replied the Lordwas on his side and would protect him. But just in case, he sparedMathews life and had him flogged the next day July 12th.1778.
The morning of July 14 dawned. Matthewlaid facedown on his bed his mother tending his wounds. Charlesrushed in from Carminster market; he had just heard the news. JusticePetars was dead, taken in the night a fever and fits. The priest atSt Marks petitioned the Bishop of Carminster to have the Boler familybanished from the parish of Hazeldene on the grounds that they wereall evil and somehow responsible for the death of Justice Petars. TheBishop agreed, they were forced to leave their home, and had to moveinto an abandoned cottage on the Carminster road.
The next few years were very hard forthem; they survived by bartering and treating animals. Matthew wouldcollect swans feathers to make pens, and Charles had the knowledge tomake poisons for rats and other vermin. Whenever he could Charleswould exchange some herbs, pens or poisons for a gift for Martha. Hermost treasured possession was the silk shawl he had givenher.
Charles's uncle had been sick for manyyears, and in the harsh winter of 1783 he died. He had always beenkind to them. But he had been afraid of attracting the wrath of thechurch, by being seen to be to close to them. They never held thisagainst him, and were not surprised when the will was read. The bulkof his fortune was left to local charities and the church. There washowever still enough left to make Charles and Martha quite welloff.
Despite the treatment they receivedthey continued to help the poorest of the district. They even usedtheir newfound wealth to set up three almshouses near their home.They took in the sick and destitute from all over the area, with oneexception. Martha would not allow anybody from the parish ofHazeldene into the homes, until the old priest left thechurch.
The winters of the years that followedgrew worse year by year, and every harvest seemed to produce less andless. When the winter of 1777 came it was the deepest and longest inliving memory. When the spring came many were already undernourishedand weakened. Things were so bad even Martha relented and startedhelping the people from Hazeldene. When the priest found out hebanned people from going to them for help, many died.
It was Easter Sunday when the first fewcases of the fever were found in Hazeldene, and within a few days ithad spread through the parish like wild fire. No family wasuntouched, it struck young and old, rich or poor alike, even the oldpriest was struck down.
As soon as Charles and Martha heardwhat had happened they went to Hazeldene. Whilst Martha treated thesick Charles and their sons collected the herbs and roots she needed.She had all the sick brought to the church where she could treat themall at once. For three days and night they worked without rest orsleep. On the third day the fevers began to break. That eveningwhilst she was tending the old priest, the doors of the church burstopen.
Word had reached the Bishop ofCarminster that the evil Martha Boler had taken over St Mark'schurch, and cast a spell on the good people of Hazeldene. Heinstructed his staff to take ten good men to Hazeldene, remindingthem of his sermon that Sunday past.
The men ran into the church, to findMartha stood over the priest. She did not speak. "There she is" criedthe leader "take her". The men dragged her outside, they beat her andbound her arms and legs. The onlookers were too afraid to help; theyremembered what happened to those who helped witches.
The men built a great pile of timberand set Martha on top of it. Just as they were about to light thekindling Charles and her sons returned. When they saw what washappening they set about the men with great violence, beating themoff. They inflicted grievous injury on them.
They took Martha from the pyre anduntied her limbs; Charles carried her body all the long way to theirhome. Martha never recovered from her injuries, only regainingconsciousness long enough to whisper her last wish to Charles. Whenshe finally slipped from this life Charles looked upon her face, hehad seen that same look of peace all those years before when Alicehad died.
She was buried in accordance with herfinal wish, outside the graveyard of St Marks, to be a permanentreminder to the village. That they would not let her in life, so theycould not have her in death.
In the days that followed the people ofHazeldene including the old priest recovered from their fevers.Martha's last good deed was to have saved the very people that wouldhave destroyed her.
The old priest retired soon after andSt Marks was taken over by a younger more tolerant man. Charles andhis sons were encouraged to return to the church, which after a shorttime they did.
In the autumn of 1779 the old priest ofSt Marks was taken ill with pneumonia, from which he never recovered.On his deathbed he asked for the Bishop of Carminster to come andhear his final confession. In the hours before his death he told theBishop of a great sin he had committed over 30 years before, of howhe had deliberately fueled the suspicion and hatred of the Bolerfamily to cover up what he had done. After the Bishop had heard hisstory he told him his sins were too great for any man to forgive, andhe would have to throw himself on the mercy of the Lord forforgiveness.
When the priest had died the Bishopsent for Charles. He told him what the priest had said. That 30 yearsbefore as a young curate he had been walking by the river nearHazeldene, when he came across a beautiful young woman pickingflowers. She did not see him as he watched her, his thoughts of hergrowing ever more powerful, until he could control himself no longer.He rushed forward and leapt upon her, her head striking the bow of atree as they fell to the ground. While she lay there unconscious hetook her.
Afterwards realizing the awfulness ofwhat he had done he tossed her body into the river to be washed away.Running as fast as he could he had not noticed that the woman's bodyhad become fast on a rock.
The woman, Meg Basset lay half in thewater until she was found by her husband to be Peter Withers. Meg andPeter never spoke of that day again, and they married as planned.Peter never told Meg he knew he was not the father of their childMartha
The next spring Charles with thesupport of the Bishop petitioned Carminster council to clear Martha'sname. This they gladly did and all remarks to the ill of Martha Bolerwere struck from the council records.
Charles and his sons carried on theircharitable works; they established a home for orphaned children, aswell as continuing to help the poor and needy.
As a final tribute to Martha there wasa plaque paid for and erected by public subscription, dedicated toher for the great debt the village owed her.
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