It is also noteworthy that some families were on both sides of the fence when it came to accusations. The most obvious example of such would be the Putnam family with individuals such as young Joseph Putnam and old Nathaniel Putnam (who signed the petition attesting the Rebecca Nurse's good character) on the side of defenders and Thomas and Edward Putnam who topped the list in number of complaints sworn. There were other families on both sides as well. Mercy Lewis, for example, was the niece of Thomas and Susanna (Lewis) Cloyes. Thomas' brother, Peter Cloyes was married to Sarah (Towne) (Bridges) Cloyes whose chief accuser was none other than Mercy Lewis. Though Mercy and Sarah would have been "related" only by marriage, the association would have been known to both but made little difference in the hysteria of 1692. Elizabeth (Hathorne) Porter, the wife of that greatest defender of the accused, Israel Porter, was the sister of John Hathorne, the merciless magistrate who examined the accused before they were sent to trial. Thomas Preston, son-in-law of Rebecca Nurse, was among the first to swear out warrants against poor Sarah Good. His name becomes silent on the record after Rebecca Nurse was accused. Some families, such as the Hobbes and Eames, even accused close family members, it would seem in order to get themselves off the hook and shift the eye of the court onto another family member. It is difficult to draw distinct factions between families because many of them were on differing sides of the affair. Eleanor Watson Descended from Rebecca (Towne) Nurse & Abigail (Dane) Faulkner __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes http://finance.yahoo.com