[Left margin subscription] Rob: Medley.
In dei nomine Amen coram vobis venerabili viro Henrico Watkinson Legum doctore [Almo?] Curiae [Consistorii?] Ebor[acensis] [abbreviated description of judicial office unread], [deputato?] aut alio [unread] Judici in hac parte competenti quomodolibet. [Opening connecting words unread] discretae mulieris Dorotheae uxoris Georgii Cooke, [unread] et adversus Catherinam uxorem [deleted: Georgii] Roberti Greetham de Whitby diocesis Ebor[acensis], [unread] quemcumque alium pro eadem [unread] in judicio [unread] intervenientem. Et ad omnem tam juris quam facti effectum exinde quobismodo sequi [valentem?], omni meliori via modo et juris forma quibus melius aut efficacius de jure poterit vel potest debuitque debet dicit allegat et in hiis scriptis in jure proponit conjunctim divisim et articulatim prout sequitur.
1. In primis ponit et articulat Quod omnes et singuli qui probiteria [reading uncertain: probably a term for reproaches] vituperia verbaque scandalosa rixosa et diffamatoria ad infamiam seu diminutionem status et bonae famae cujuspiam [unread abbreviated word] [sinistre?] [unread] malitiose ex causa odii et contra bonos mores et regulas charitatis de aliquo proferunt dicunt praedicant seu quoquomodo in lucem edunt, unde ejus bona fama et opinio honesta in aliquo laedatur vel gravetur, fuerunt et sunt juxta juris exigentiam canonice corrigendi et puniendi utque ab ejusmodi verborum injuriosorum prolatione in posterum abstineant per canonicas sanctiones in ea parte salubriter editas et praefatas etiam coercendi et compellendi et ponit conjunctim divisim et de quolibet.
2. Item ponit et articulat Quod dicta Dorothea Cooke fuit et est mulier valde honesta bonae famae vitaeque et conversationis honestae nulloque crimine (saltem notorio) aspersa diffamata seu aliqua illaborans [word requires collation] sinistrae [unread] famae ex tali et ut talis fuit et est prout antea habita vocata et reputata palam publice et notorie in dicta parochia de Whitby aliisque locis vicinis et ponit ut supra.
3. Item ponit et articulat Quod praemissis non obstantibus dicta Catherina Greetham seu adversus eandem in aliquibus Mensibus Novembris Decembris Januarii Februarii et Martii Anno domini 1677; necnon Mensibus Martii et Aprilis Anno domini 1678; cum [quodam?] eorundem Mensium et annorum quolibet uno junctim aliquo intra parochiam de Whitby praedictam aliisque loca vicina malitiose an[imo; continued on image 3].
-imo diffamandi et injuriandi eandem Dorotheam Cooke ipsam diffamavit et injuriis [unread] nonnullaque verba opprobriosa rixosa vituperiosa contumeliosa scandalosa et diffamatoria ejusdem Dorotheae sine [de?] causa [reading uncertain] saepius et iteratis vicibus seu saltem semel emisit dixit asseruit protulit et praedicavit et praecipue haec verba Anglicana sequentia seu alia eis in effectu consimilia vizt:
“The said Katherine Greetham speaking to or of the said Dorothy Cooke said & [deposed?] (licet falso) that the said Dorothy was a witch & had murdered the said Katherine [child?] & bewitched it to death”
Prout tamen de tali modo et forma verborum diffamatoriorum praedictorum ac de tali et tanto tempore quibus et quantum in eventu hujus litis probabitur est conjunctim divisim et de quolibet.
4. Item ponit et articulat Quod post praemissa praefata Catherina Greetham [unread] testibus fidedignis tam in praesentia dictae Dorotheae Cooke inde correptante quam extra se hujusmodi verba odiosa scandalosa et diffamatoria ejusdem Dorotheae Cooke sine [de?] causa emisisse dixisse et tulisse et praedicasse saepius et iteratis vicibus seu saltem semel confessa fuit et est et recognovit et ponit ut supra.
5. Item ponit et articulat Quod praetextu praemissorum hujusmodi verborum odiosorum scandalosorum et diffamatoriorum status bona fama et opinio ipsius Dorotheae Cooke apud bonos et graves plures quos prius extiterat bonae famae et opinionis illicite gravabiliter et enormiter laeduntur et diminuuntur ac de verosimili plus laedi possunt in futurum et ponit ut supra.
6. Item ponit et articulat Quod dicta Catherina Greetham fuit et est parochiae de Whitby diocesis Ebor[acensis] ac sic vobis in hac parte jurisdictioni [subjecta?; contracted] et ponit ut supra.
7. Item ponit et articulat Quod de et super praemissis omnibus et singulis praedictis fuit et est publica vox et fama in dicta parochia de Whitby diocesis Ebor[acensis] aliisque locis vicinis et ponit ut supra.
Unde facta fide de praemissis quantum de jure sufficit petit pars dictae Dorotheae Cooke praefatam Catherinam Greetham pro tanto temeritatis suae excessu in praemissis et ea committendis delictis [cancelled words, approximately four, not securely read] corrigendam et puniendam necnon in expensis ex parte et per partem dictae Dorotheae Cooke in hac causa factis et fiendis condemnari, condemnandamque ad debitam solutionem earundem efficacem coerceri et compellendam per vos et vestram sententiam definitivam domine Judex antedicte. Quo petit et fieri petit pars dictae Dorotheae Cooke conjunctim et divisim non arctans se ad omnia et singula praemissa probanda vel ad onus superfluae probationis de quo protestatur sed quatenus probavit in praemissis tantum obtineat in petit[i]s juris beneficio in omnibus semper salvo, vestrum officium domine Judex antedicte humiliter implorando.
Salvo jure &c.
Et protestatur &c.
Cooke
contra
Greetham
[Personal? contracted] respons[ions].
1678.
30mo Maij 1678.
[repetit... ?] coram me
Hen: Watkinson.
Responsiones personales Catherinae uxoris Roberti Greetham factae positionibus et Articulis Libelli ex parte et pro parte Dorotheae uxoris Georgii Cooke contra eam dati et exhibiti.
Ad primam positionem respondet Credit Eandem esse veram.
Ad secundam positionem respondet refert se ad [Canonicas?] sanctiones [inserted: articulatas] et [cancelled word unread] aliter non Credit eandem esse veram in aliquo.
Ad tertiam positionem Respondet non Credit eandem esse veram in aliquo.
Ad Quartam positionem Respondet non Credit Eandem esse veram in aliquo.
Ad Quintam positionem Respondet non Credit Eandem esse veram in aliquo. [An ordinal letter is inserted above a cancelled or overwritten ordinal.]
Ad sextam positionem respondet Credit eandem esse veram.
Ad septimam positionem respondet Credit Credita et negat Negata.
Signum
Catherinae [mark] Greetham.
[Lower left subscription] Wm [uncertain intervening strokes] Walker.
About this case and its sources
The research database records what this source says. Follow these links to the records in Throwing Bones.
All events citing this source in Throwing Bones
Events
- Dorothy Cooke’s libel alleges that she bewitched Katherine Greetham’s [child?] to death. The affected-person reading remains uncertain. This records alleged supernatural causation, not proof that a child died or that murder or witchcraft occurred.
- Dorothy Cooke’s libel attributes to Katherine Greetham the accusation that Dorothy was a witch and had murdered Katherine’s [child?] by bewitching it to death. This is an alleged utterance; Greetham denies the relevant positions in her answers.
- In her answers dated 30 May 1678, Katherine Greetham rejects articles 3 and 4. Dorothy’s libel alleges that Katherine spoke the defamatory words and subsequently acknowledged them; the answers deny those positions. Neither an established confession nor a retraction follows from these conflicting statements.
- 1678: Dorothy Cooke, wife of George Cooke, sued Katherine Greetham, wife of Robert Greetham, for defamation at York. Her libel alleged that Katherine called her a witch and accused her of murdering a person provisionally read as Katherine’s child by bewitching it to death. It also alleged Katherine had acknowledged the words and that Dorothy’s reputation was harmed.
- 1678-05-30: Katherine Greetham’s personal answers dated 30 May 1678 deny the substantive allegations in Dorothy Cooke’s libel. She accepts the first and sixth answers and concludes by admitting what she has admitted and denying what she has denied. The apparently displaced canonical reference is retained under answer two. The document bears her mark and subscriptions. No final sentence survives in the represented file.