Although Mather was not involved directly in the hearing of the witch trials, he wrote a letter to the magistrate of the trials John Richards, implying caution for the use of spectral evidence within the trial.% Cotton Mather was also the writer of the book "Return of the Several Ministers," a report sent to the judges in the Salem court. This document advised caution in the use of spectral evidence during the trial, saying that Satan could take the shape of an innocent person, and advising the use of this evidence in the trials, so to compensate for not using this evidence they used the utilization of tests such as the recitation of the Lord's Prayer.% The final paragraph of this document appears to weaken this statement in recommending the discovery of witchcrafts.% In Bernard Rosenthal and Perry Miller's opinions, the courts assumed the letter as Mather's seal of approval for the trials to go on.% …show more content…
The audience was so spoken to that some wanted to prevent the execution. Cotton Mather, mounted on his horse, said that Burroughs was no intended minister, and that the "Devil has often been transformed into an Angel of Light." With these words, under the gaze of an undecided crowd, George Burroughs was hanged for being the vessel of the