Christening the Cat

The pamphlet Newes from Scotland, printed in 1591, gives the confessions of the Scottish witches of that time. One confessed that she had christened a cat, and that in the night the witches, sailing in their riddles or sieves, carried it into the middle of the sea and left it before the town of Leith, whereupon a tempest arose greater than had ever been seen. The christened cat was also blamed for the contrary wind that met the king’s ship as he came from Denmark, while the rest of the ships in his company had fair weather.