Witchcraft or Mycotoxin? The Salem Witch Trials

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Journal of Toxicology: Clinical Toxicology

June 1, 2000

Witchcraft or Mycotoxin? The Salem Witch Trials.

By Alan Woolf

Background: The Salem witchcraft trials of 1692 have been studied by many

historians looking for the complex social, political, and psychological

determinants behind the community-wide hysteria that led to a travesty of

justice and the deaths of 20 innocent Puritans. Recently, ergot poisoning

has been put forth by some as a previously unsuspected cause of the bizarre

behaviors of the young adolescent girls who accused the townsfolk of

witchcraft. In this essay the circumstances behind the ergot poisoning

theory for this historical event are described. When the evidence is weighed

carefully both pro and con, it seems unlikely that ergotism explains much of

what went on in colonial Salem.

INTRODUCTION

The New England Puritans formed an insular society and intensively enforced

their theocratic way of life. The autumn of 1691 was not a good harvest year

for them. The previous winter had been cold. Then a wet, warm planting

season was followed by a hot, stormy summer. A failed harvest had forced

Salem villagers to turn to rye grain to make their bread. Putnam, a

well-regarded and prosperous Salem farmer whose swampy land supplied much of

the colony's rye flour, donated grain regularly to the Reverend

Parris's household. By October after the poor harvest, 11-year-old Abigail

, the Reverend's niece, was spending time with their 2 Caribbean

servants, Tituba and Indian, who told hair-raising, yet seductive,

voodoo stories to Abigail and 3 or 4 other 9-17-year-old girls. The girls

were soon talking magic; they started writhing in pain, insensate with

convulsive twitching, occasionally accusing fellow townsfolk of being

witches who tormented them.

In his play The Crucible, Arthur delivers a masterful portrayal of

the Salem witch hunt in the context of societal intolerance, cruel

vengeance, and ethical paradoxes. In the 2nd Act, Proctor, wife of

the existential hero of the play, Proctor, delivers a stinging summary

of the fearful turn of events:

The Deputy Governor promise hangin' if they'll not confess, . The town's

gone wild, I think. She speak of Abigail, and I thought she were a saint, to

hear her. Abigail brings the other girls into the court, and where she walks

the crowd will part like sea for Israel. And folks are brought before them,

and if they scream and howl and fall to the floor, the person's clapped in

the jail for bewitchin' them.[1]

The Puritans lived in an era of belief in the devil as a physical being who

was incarnate, there to seduce them from the path of righteousness.

Bewitching was a generally recognized phenomenon in the 1600s, both in

Europe as well as in Puritan New England. The devil was an invisible but

very real being, whose constant tests and temptations were to be rebuffed by

strict adherence to a set of laws describing behavior and societal order.

The diagnosis of bewitching was both clinical and analytical. Clinically,

stages of bewitching could be described. The " preliminaries " involved

intense spirituality, leading to the onset of fainting and disordered

speech. Intensification of symptoms was associated with visual delusions and

hallucinatory confrontation with spectral witches or " familiars " (the devil

presenting himself in animal forms). Occasionally, the symptoms would wax

and wane, interspersed with quiet days of boredom mixed with depression.

Behaviors of a bewitched person frequently included sensations of pricking,

pinching, or burning of the skin; fornication; animal imitation; odd

contortions; simulated flying or diving; paralysis and rigidity; anorexia;

the forced consumption of invisible fluids; and physical assaults or verbal

insults.

By late December, 1691, 8 girls, including the niece and daughter of

Parris, were afflicted with " unknown distempers " of disorderly speech, odd

postures and gestures, and convulsive fits. One doctor suggested that the

girls might be bewitched. The minister resorted to fasting and prayer. But a

neighbor suggested that Tituba bake a " witch cake " made of rye grain and dog

urine. Soon the village was awash with rumors of witchcraft; the girls

accused Tituba and 2 other women in Salem, Good and Osgood, of

witchcraft, that is, directing their spirits to visit and torture them by

pinching and burning their skin. The 3 women were taken into custody on

February 29, 1692. The Court of Oyer and Terminer was empowered and, after

the consultation of Cotton Mather and other clergy, determined that the

critical tests of witchery would be both " spectral evidence " (the victim

would see a ghost of the accused pinching or otherwise harming them) and

" critical touch " (the spasms of the victims would end only if they were

touched by the accused). Court-approved spectral evidence provided by the

girls of visions of witchcraft-practicing townsfolk defined the " proof " of

such preternatural mischief. The girls readily complied with the 2 tests,

often creating such pandemonium in the courtroom that the proceedings had to

be halted.

In March of 1692 the girls accused Martha Corey and Nurse of

bewitching them and actively practicing witchcraft in collusion with the

devil. Both of these women were previously well respected in Salem. The

march to the gallows on Witches' Hill in Salem began later in the spring.

The court heard its first case on June 2nd, and convicted and hung its first

witch, Sibley, at Gallows' Hill on June 10th. The travesty did not end

until September 1692, with 20 " witches " convicted, sentenced, and executed,

19 by hanging and one, Giles Corey, by being crushed with stones. When

asked, while his chest was being compressed with massive rocks, whether or

not he would confess to being a wizard and bewitching the girls, Giles Corey

refused the life-saving confession (those who confessed would be pardoned if

they implicated other " witches " ) by simply answering " more weight, " and then

died. The colony had sown distrust, jealousy, superstition, and moldy grain;

it reaped death and despair. The nightmare did not cease until the Court of

Oyer and Terminer adjourned in September 1692, and the new Governor, Phipps,

of the Massachusetts Bay Colony suspended all indictments for witchcraft and

issued a general reprieve for the 150 innocents imprisoned in the spring of

1693.

What caused this tragedy in the Salem village? It probably was not mass

hysteria, which would have to have been repetitive and lasting for months.

It surely wasn't fraud, given the gravity of the charge and the youth of the

girls. Mental illness has been cited, but that would have to be contextual

and involve the entire community.[2,3]

Some historians[2,4] have postulated that the girls responsible for the

travesty suffered from ergotism. The Claviceps purpurea grows on a wide

variety of cereals: rye, corn, wheat, rice, sorghum, barley, oats, and

millet. The word ergot comes from the French name for a rooster's spur,

which the sclerotia of the Claviceps resembles as the mass of mycelia grow

to a length of 2-3 centimeters.[5] The sclerotia of the fungus grow on the

rye flower, replacing the grain with a hard, purplish bundle of mycelia that

may contain as much as 1% ergot alkaloids.[5] Favorable growing conditions

for ergot include a cold preceding winter and cloudy, wet spring, with fog

and high humidity. Newly farmed low-lying marshland containing

ergot-infested wild grasses is more susceptible to ergot, with winter rye a

better host than spring rye.[4]

Ergot alkaloids are potent 3,4-indole-substituted mycotoxins: ergoline (I),

lysergic acid derivatives (II) such as isoergine (lysergic acid amide)

similar to LSD, and clavine alkaloids (III).[5] More than 40 different

alkaloids have been isolated from Claviceps; although some are derived from

lysergic acid, most are proline-containing peptides, with an ergoline ring

structure derived from tryptophan.[6] Besides the ergot alkaloids, the

fungus also contains histamine, tyramine, acetaldehyde, acetylcholine, and

isoamylamine, all of which may contribute directly to the patient's toxic

profile. Tall fescue grass, which causes gangrenous " fescue foot " and

" summer syndrome " of weight loss and systemic symptoms among livestock, has

been linked to a nonclaviceps but ergot alkaloid-producing endophyte.[7]

Ergot poisoning of grazing animals is a serious concern; it can cause

retarded growth, abortion, stillbirth, lameness, gangrene, and death among

cattle and other species.[5]

Ergot alkaloids can act peripherally as alpha-adrenergic agonists to cause

vasospasm.[8] Ergotamine also directly stimulates the chemoreceptor trigger

zone in the medulla oblongata, accounting for the frequently observed

symptoms of nausea and vomiting.[9] Serotonergic actions also are seen with

some of the alkaloids, causing uterine contraction and vascular response.

Serotonergic and dopaminergic actions may be responsible for delusions and

hallucinations and other neurological signs of poisoning. Ergotamine

tartrate is used therapeutically to treat migraine headaches; ergonovine has

obstetric uses to contract the uterus and stem bleeding after birth.[10]

Gangrenous ergot poisoning is characterized by vasoconstriction, weak

peripheral pulses, sensations of coldness or numbness, and dry gangrenous

injury to the extremities; painless autoamputation eventually occurs. The

paresthesias, burning and pain of the extremities, including formication,

are toxic signs of ergotism described in the Middle Ages as " St. 's

Fire " or " Holy Fire. " These symptoms also resembled Raynaud's Syndrome, so

much so that it has been suggested that at least 3 patients originally

described in Raynaud's case series probably had ergotism, rather than an

autoimmune condition.

The vasoconstriction is capable of producing other ischemic complications,

including myocardial infarction.[11,12] Treatment of these vasoconstrictive

phenomena with peripheral vasodilators such as nitroprusside and

anticoagulants such as heparin has been suggested.[8]

Convulsive ergotism is associated with vertigo, headaches, painful muscular

contractions, mania, delirium, and visual and auditory hallucinations.

Chronic ergotism has been associated with progression of seizures and

dementia.

Ergot poisoning can be diagnosed by a simple bedside chemical test of urine.

Ergot alkaloids all react with sulfuric acid containing p-dimethyl

aminobenzaldehyde to yield a solution which, when mixed with ferric

chloride, produces an intense blue reaction known as the Van Urk test.[5-7]

Epidemics of ergot poisoning have been recorded throughout history.

[13] investigated an outbreak of ergot poisoning in Manchester,

England, in 1927 which involved over 200 patients, most of whom had

gangrenous signs, but also had headache, nervousness, and intense itching

with the sensation of insects crawling along their backs. All ate rye bread,

as much as half a loaf per day. measured ergotamines in the rye flour

and showed that a contaminated loaf contained up to 9 grains of ergot. He

was able to demonstrate a relationship between the rapidity of onset of

ergot symptoms and the quantity of mycotoxin eaten. A more recent epidemic

in Ethiopia in 1978 followed the contamination of barley with ergot-infested

wild oats. There were more than 47 deaths and another 93 patients aflicted

with symptoms such as weakness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, gangrene, and

the loss of extremities (21.5% of cases). Another 50-60 infants died because

their mothers, victims of both famine and ergot poisoning, did not produce

enough milk to prevent their infants' starvation.[5]

The arguments for ergotism as the cause of the Salem affair include[2,4]:

* 1691 was a cold winter; the following spring and summer were humid. These

are conditions ripe for ergot contamination of rye grain.[4]

* A crop failure forced the Puritans to eat freshly harvested, infested

rye.[4]

* The afflicted were nonrandom and lived along rye supply routes in the

town.[2]

* Three of the afflicted girls lived on the Putnam farm, where ergoty rye

may have thrived.[2]

* The age and sex of those afflicted resemble other ergot poisoning

epidemics.

* Animals were also affected; several cows died during the trials. Ergotism

is a recognized veterinary problem among grazing animals.[2]

* Symptoms (seeing apparitions, feeling pinpricks and pinches, burning

sensations, " urinary stoppage " ) of the afflicted resemble convulsive

ergotism.[2]

* Witchcraft trials were in decline elsewhere, demanding a special

explanation as to why they occurred here.

Skeptics of this toxicological explanation abound. The arguments against

ergotism as the cause of Salem tragedy include[3,14]:

* There are no data to suggest Salem had a cold winter. Tree rings relied

upon to reach this conclusion by ergot proponents were located in New

Hampshire.[3]

* Likewise, there is no verification of a crop failure in the Massachusetts

Bay Colony.[3]

* The afflicted and accused in Salem were nonrandom because of

sociopolitical and economic divisions within the village, not because of who

bought Putnam's rye.[14]

* The ages of the afflicted were older than other ergot epidemics.

* A few cows died; so what?

* Symptoms of the afflicted could be turned on and off, depending on the

audience, unlike the toxidrome of convulsive ergotism.[3]

* Symptoms were disparate and singular; none of the afflicted had the full

constellation of symptoms and signs typical of an ergot syndrome.[3]

* There were none of the constitutional, residual effects typical of

ergotism, such as weakness, strictures, or dementia. The afflicted were hale

and hearty.

* Other witchcraft trials besides Salem in New England brought 141 persons

to trial between 1638-1699. Were they all suffering ergotism?[13]

Although we are left with many questions surrounding the bizarre events in

Salem, it seems very unlikely that the convenient theory of ergot poisoning

is an adequate explanation. At the time, the Reverend Parris was a

controversial minister in the village and was the pivotal figure in a swirl

of political, economic, and social divisions and jealousies in the town.

Although he had the support of politically powerful proponents, others, like

Proctor, disapproved of his preaching and occasionally skipped Sunday

meetings in defiance of his authority. His ministry divided the colony and

resulted in sociopolitical jealousy and neighborly vindictiveness, which

perhaps played itself out in the victimization of those accused of

witchcraft. Clearly, giving such credence to the words of young adolescent

girls, who held a mesmerizing and irrational power over the community, was a

bad idea. This led to the tragic events that eventually found their

conclusions on " Gallow's Hill, " as well as in the hearts and minds of the

survivors.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Presented at the Toxicological Historical Society's session at the 1999

North American Academy of Clinical Toxicology Meeting in La Jolla,

California.

REFERENCES

[1.] A. The Crucible. New York: The Viking Critical Library, Penguin

Books, 1977.

[2.] Caporael LR. Ergotism: The satan loosed in Salem? Science

1976;192:21-26.

[3.] Spanos NP. Ergotism and the Salem witch panic: A critical analysis and

an alternative conceptualization. J History Behav Sci 1983;19:358-369.

[4.] Matossian MK. Ergot and the Salem witchcraft affair. In: Poisons of the

Past. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1989.

[5.] World Health Organization. Selected Mycotoxins: Ochratoxins,

Trichothecenes, Ergot. Environmental Health Criteria 105. Geneva,

Switzerland, 1990.

[6.] Newberne PM. Mycotoxins: Toxicity, carcinogenicity, and the influence

of various nutritional conditions. Environ Health Perspect 1974;9:1-32.

[7.] Lyons PC, Plattner RD, Bacon CW. Occurrence of peptide and clavine

ergot alkaloids in tall fescue grass. Science 1986;232:487-488.

[8.] Hoffman RS. Ergots and ergotism. Emerg Med 1993:99.

[9.] Orton DA, RJ. Ergotamine absorption and toxicity. Postgrad

Med J 1982;58:6-11.

[10.] Kunkel DB, Carlton MW. Ergot. In: Toxicology. Haddad, MW,

eds., Winchester, 1997:1087-1091.

[11.] Goldfischer JD. Acute myocardial infarction secondary to ergot

therapy. N Engl J Med 1960;262:860-863.

[12.] Paz I, Carmeli Y. Ergot induced myocardial ischaemia in a patient

without vasospastic disorder. J Roy Soc Med 1994;87:44.

[13.] MT. Report on an outbreak of alleged ergot poisoning by rye

bread in Manchester. J Hygiene 1929-30; 29:51-61.

[14.]Spanos NP, Gottlieb J. Ergotism and the Salem village witch trials.

Science 1976;914:1390-1394.

Correspondence: Dr. Alan Woolf, Massachusetts Poison Control System, IC

Building, Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115.

Tel: 617/355-6609; Fax: 617/738-0032; E-mail: Woolf@...