The Psychology of the Salem Witchcraft Excitement of 1692
by George Miller Beard
1882

Salem, in company with a friend who showed me the relics of witchcraft days in 1692, and pointed out the spot where as is believed the innocent victims were executed in the name of religion and under the forms of law for the protection of society. It was while studying these bloody object lessons of history that I formed a resolution to search out and solve, if might be, the psychological problems that were the basis of that delusion ;and to present the solution in such a way that it should be at once an original contribution to science and a practical guide for the present and the future.
(Typographical errors above are due to OCR software and don't occur in the book.)