In the May of 1692, Increase Mather returned to New England with Sir William Phipps. By the time of their arrival, the witch trials were already taking place, having started a few months prior in February. As the witch hunt in Salem escalated, the prison cells started to fill up with individuals accused of witchcraft. The confusing political situation following the ascension on William and Mary and the new charter allowed for a court Oyer and Terminer to be put in place on the 27th of May 1692. The lieutenant governor, William Stoughton, became the chief magistrate for this newly appointed court. With Thomas Newton acting as the crown’s attorney, the court went into order. The first individual executed by the court was Bridget Bishop on the …show more content…
Spectral evidence mainly relies upon dreams and visons as sources of proof. The letter, however, did very little to prevent the increasing number of executions. Mather had difficulties recruiting help from the governor of the colony, Sir William Phipps, since he was occupied in Maine battling native Americans. As the of 1992 summer went by, the witch trials would only escalate in their lethality. After the execution of five women on the 19th of July, Mather gave a sermon at Simon Willard's Third Church in Boston, where he further condemned the witch hunt. Increase Mather only attended the trial of George Burroughs, Jr. where he agreed with the verdict. It was not the case that Mathers opposed the prosecuting of individuals for the crime of witchcraft, rather, he opposed the use of spectral evidence in the trials. In September of 1992, Increase Mather published a work known as "Cases of conscience concerning evil spirits". Within the books, he famously proclaims "It were better that Ten Suspected Witches should escape, than that one Innocent Person should be