The prompt for the Chatham Writers Group this past Monday was the image displayed above, titled “The Denouncement of Captain John Alden”. My initial thought was the Pilgrim John Alden, but upon researching the print, I discovered it involved his son, Captain John Alden, Jr. As I dug deeper, I learned things I didn’t have prior knowledge of. For instance, the younger Alden was accused and convicted of witchcraft in the notorious Salem Witchcraft Trials of 1692. Alden’s association with the Village of Salem (now Danvers, MA), was his stopping there briefly on his return from Quebec after conducted hostage release negotiations with the French and Abanaki tribesmen. There was speculation that Alden played both sides of the equation, on one side profiting from selling gunpowder, weapons and ammunition to the French and Native Americans, and on the other profiting from hostage negotiations. One of the young girls claiming to be possessed by evil sprits, Mercy Lewis, was orphaned after French and Abanaki warriors massacred her family in York, Maine. She had heard the rumors of Alden’s dealing with the French, and it is thought that was why she accused him. My research of the Salem Witch Trials proved to be fascinating and I learned more than I ever knew. The University of Virginia has a large cache of original documents relating to these trials and they are available in digital format. In my following story, the actual comments made by the parties involved appear in italics. This story is historical fiction.

The transcribed version of the warrant pictured above reads as follows:

(Warrant for the Apprehension of John Alden & Officer’s Return)

[May 31, 1692]

To the Constable of Salem 

Essex Ss Whereas Complaint hath been made unto us John Hathorne & Jonathan Corwin Esq’rs by severall persons of Salem Village that Cap’t John Alden of Boston Marrin’r # [that he] is guilty of witchcraft in cruelly tortureing & afflicting several of their Children & others these are therefore in their Maj’ties King William & Queen Maryes name to Authorize & Comand you forthwith to Apprehend the body of the said John Alden and Imediately bring him before us to Answer what shall be objected ag’t him in that behalfe and this shall be yo’r sufficient warrant Given under our hands the 31st day of May 1692 And in the fourth year of the Reigne of our Sovereigne Lord and Lady William & Mary now King and Queen over England &c

Per us * John Hathorne
* Jonathan. Corwin { Assis’ts 

Persons Complaining viz’t  
Mary Walcott 
Mercy Lewis 
Abigail Williams
Ann putnam
Elizabeth Booth
Mary Warren

(Reverse) In obediance to the within written warant I have Apprehended the Body of Cap’t John Alden accordeing to tener of this warant
(In right margin) John Alden

My story follows:

Descent Into Madness

Captain John Alden, Jr. entered the parlor of his Boston home, an opened scroll in one hand, the other hand rubbing the back of his neck. His wife, Elizabeth, asked, “Who was at the door John?  And what is the nature of the scroll you are reading?”

Looking perplexed, he answered, “I have been accused of witchcraft.  Two constables have been sent to escort me to Salem, where I am to be examined and questioned by magistrates in three days hence!”  

The letter Elizabeth was reading fell from her hand and fluttered to the floor.  “Witchcraft? But that is preposterous!”, she exclaimed.

John had been at the Fort of Quebec in New France since February, negotiating a prisoner exchange with French authorities and members of the Wabanaki tribe.  He first learned of the witchcraft accusations and arrests when he passed through Salem on his return to Boston a few days ago.  He thought it all hysteria and madness, but he complied with the summons and prepared to accompany the constables.  He felt he had nothing to worry about, almost all of his business was conducted in Boston, so he knew no one in Salem.  Additionally, one of the magistrates who would be examining his statement, Bartholomew Gedney, was a friend and business associates.  They also had been shipmates at one time.

The descent into madness for John Alden began on the day established for his examination, May 31^st, 1692.  As a test of the veracity of the girls claiming to be victims of witchcraft, he was allowed to join the court proceedings unescorted by constables and be situated amongst the members of the public viewing the trial.  He was allowed to wear his normal clothing as well as his sword.  Alden was appalled by what he saw.  The girls behaved in all manners of bizarre behavior.  Those accused of witchcraft had no legal representation, no witnesses to cast doubt on the accusers’ stories.  When the magistrates asked one of the possessed girls named Mercy Lewis to identify the person in the gallery who caused her suffering, she pointed to another man, several times.  Alden’s relief was brief however when he observed an unknown man lean close and whisper something to the girl while nodding in his direction.  Mercy blurted out, “It is Alden that caused me harm, yes Alden.”  

The magistrates demanded everyone in the makeshift courtroom go outside where, in better light, a more positive identification could be made.  The supposedly bewitched girls circled Alden, accusing him of pinching and biting them, causing great pain.  Mercy Lewis pointed at him and began to yell, “there stands Alden, a bold fellow with his hat on before the judges, he sells powder and shot to the Indians and French, and lies with the Indian squaws, and has Indian papooses.”  

“What does this have to do with witchcraft,” he wondered.  The girls also claimed he was able to bewitch them with his sword.  Before returning to the courtroom to continue proceedings, Alden had his sword taken away and his hands tied.  Once inside, he was made to stand on a chair and keeps his hands open in plain view so as not to pinch the girls.  He was forced to look them in the eye which caused them to begin their hysterical mannerisms, and then to perform a touch test.  When he touched the women, their bizarre behavior ceased, and they returned to normal.  

Alden’s humiliation was further deepened when his friend, Judge Gedney, denounced him and said the bewitched girls had changed his opinion of him, he no longer felt he was trustworthy.  

“These wenches, playing their juggling tricks, falling down, crying and staring dumbly in your faces have completely beguiled you.  Why would I come to this village to afflict people I have never seen before?”, Alden challenged.

“Confess Alden,” demanded Gedney, “to give glory to God.”

“I hope I should give glory to God,” Alden fired back, “and I hope to never gratify the devil!”

He began to question why the girls would would go so far to harm innocent people, but the magistrates cut him off.  He was found guilty of witchcraft.  Because the jails in Salem were full of the accused and convicted witches, Alden was sent to a prison in Boston to await his fate.  

The executions of the convicted witches began that July, further adding to Alden’s gloom.  On a night in mid-September, he was jolted awake by the sound of footsteps approach his cell.  The door was unlocked and opened; guards ordered him out.  As they marched him to the gates of the prison, Alden thought, “Is this it?  Is my life to end in my 66^th year?”

He was ushered through the gates and was astonished when the guards went back into the prison, slamming the the gates behind him. Alden stood alone on the street.  Men appeared out of the shadows, leading a riderless horse.  He knew these men!  They were his friends!  

“Climb on this horse and ride fast and far!  As far you can go Captain Alden!”, they urged.

He first rode to his home in Boston to gather up some things.  His clattering about woke his family.  With his voice shaking in terror, he told his wife, “I am flying from the Devil!  And the Devil is following me!”  He fled off into the night.

Some accounts claim he escaped to New York City, some have him hiding out at his family’s home in Duxbury.  In April of 1693, Captain John Alden returned to Boston and appeared in court to answer the warrant for his escape, and his pending witchcraft sentence.  The hangings had stopped, the hysteria disappeared.  None came forward to accuse or denounce.  He was acquitted of all charges.

Notes: The details of exactly how Alden escaped from prison are not recorded anywhere, the only references are he was “friends assisted in his escape”, so the description of his escape in my story is completely fictional. In my research before writing this story, it is clear the citizens of Salem Village, largely a farming community, were contemptuous of the “merchant class” of Salem Town. Additionally, there was much animosity among the residents of the Village, they were fond of suing each other over a variety of issues. It also appears the different religions in the village did not get along. A number of these factors contributed to the a number of people accused of witchcraft on the trials. If someone didn’t like you, or disagreed with you, then they would seek allies to their cause and accuse you of being a witch. Very fascinating, very horrific.

Ernie Stricsek

The Chatham Writers Group

June 4, 2023