Mary Dunbar was an eighteen-year-old gentlewoman who came to Knowehead House just after the death of Ann Haltridge. Within about a week she collapsed with sudden pain and began to have convulsions. Witnesses said she brought up large quantities of feathers, cotton, yarn, pins and two large waistcoat buttons. Other accounts list nails, glass and wool. She was said to shout, swear and blaspheme, to throw Bibles, and to go into fits whenever a clergyman came near her.
She described women appearing in her room and forcing objects down her throat to keep her quiet. These were not ordinary visitors but spectral forms, which is what made her accusations a case of witchcraft rather than assault. A local minister concluded she was bewitched, and neighbours and clergy took part in prayers beside her. One account says the 142nd Psalm was sung during her convulsions.
Names given by Mary Dunbar became the eight women who stood trial. She could not give evidence herself at the assizes because she was said to be mute at the time. She died within a few weeks of the trial. Whether she was ill, acting or genuinely afraid has never been settled.
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