_The order of the witches homage done (as it is written by lewd inquisitors and peevish witchmoongers) to the divell in person; of their songs and danses, and namelie of La volta, and of other ceremonies, also of their excourses._
Sometimes their homage with their oth and bargaine is received for a certeine terme of yeares; sometimes for ever. Sometimes it consisteth in the deniall of the whole faith, sometimes in part. The first is, when the soule is absolutelie yeelded to the divell and hell fier: the other is, when they have but bargained [not] to observe certeine ceremonies and statutes of the church; as to conceale faults at shrift, to fast on sundaies, &c. And this is doone either by oth, protestation of words, or by obligation in writing, sometimes sealed with wax, sometimes signed with bloud, sometimes by kissing the divels bare buttocks; as did a Doctor called _Edlin_, who as (_Bodin_ saith) was burned for witchcraft.
You must also understand, that after they have delicatlie banketted with the divell and the ladie of the fairies; and have eaten up a fat oxe, and emptied a butt of malmesie, and a binne of bread at some noble mans house, in the dead of the night, nothing is missed of all this in the morning. For the ladie _Sibylla_, _Minerva_, or _Diana_ with a golden rod striketh the vessell & the binne, and they are fullie replenished againe. Yea, she causeth the bullocks bones to be brought and laid togither upon the hide, and lappeth the foure ends thereof togither, laieng her golden rod thereon; and then riseth up the bullocke againe in his former estate and condition: and yet at their returne home they are like to starve for hunger; as _Spineus_ saith. And this must be an infallible rule, that everie fortnight, or at the least everie moneth, each witch must kill one child at the least for hir part.
♦_Bar. Spineus, cap. 1. in novo Mal. malef._♦
And here some of _Monsieur Bodins_ lies may be inserted, who saith that at these magicall assemblies, the witches never faile to danse; and in their danse they sing these words; Har har, divell divell, danse here, danse here, plaie here, plaie here, _Sabbath_, _sabbath_. And whiles they sing and danse, everie one hath a broome in hir hand, and holdeth it up aloft. Item he saith, that these night-walking or rather night-dansing witches, brought out of _Italie_ into _France_, that danse, which is called _La volta_.