A Salem Awakening

Chapter 5

The schoolhouse was less than a mile away from the Sampson home – about a ten-minute walk on most days. That convenience meant Willa could help at school as often as the teacher, William Putnam, wanted or needed. Some days she would help grade the assignments, other days she would help tutor students who fell behind in their studies. She was one of the few educated women in the village, and Mr. Putnam appreciated of all her help. "It's just like a Sampson to go above and beyond when helping others," he once told an assembly of parents at a school meeting. It was a compliment which deepened the scowl on Samuel's face.

Willa's favorite days volunteering at the schoolhouse were when Mr. Putnam was performing a science experiment with the children. She loved learning along with them, but she mostly enjoyed watching Abigail become thoroughly enthralled with the projects. The only experiment Abigail did not enjoy was when they dissected a frog. She didn't realize they first had to catch a frog, one large enough to dissect, and then kill it. "Had I known prior, I would have been sick that day," she told her mother. The comment was even more ridiculous because Abigail never once missed a day of school because of illness, or for any other reason.

William Putnam was the teacher at Salem Schoolhouse for six years. He moved to Salem just after graduating from Harvard College – about a day's carriage ride from Salem. He did well for himself in school and came to Salem highly recommended by Increase Mather, a leading Puritan minister in Boston, who just last year became President of Harvard College. William was childhood friends with Increase's son, Cotton Mather, who was now also a leading minister in Boston. The two remained close through the years, but recently drifted apart. Cotton published several pamphlets that claimed witchcraft was real, and his recent book, Memorable Providences Relating to Witchcrafts and Possessions, was the primary fuel igniting the current spate of accusations and trials in Salem. William was both surprised and dismayed an intellectual of Cotton's stature could be a proponent of both Newtonian science and witchcraft. Though the two were always cordial with each other, Cotton's book created a chasm between them comparable to the schism within the Protestant Church itself.

For the entirety of his time in Salem, William was well-respected. As a member of the Town Council, he was often called on to provide reports which needed specificity and detailed analysis. His advice, though not always followed, always found an attentive audience. Even the ministers from other nearby villages would consult William on matters which fell beyond the realm of religion. William loved Salem and its people, but he despised what they became, thanks in large part to his old friend, Cotton.

William taught all the subjects at the schoolhouse, but science was the closest to his heart. He idolized Isaac Newton, as most educated people of the time did, and hoped one day he'd be able to meet Newton in person. "Perhaps we could have tea together and I could engage him in my theories," William dreamed to himself, knowing full well Newton would never agree to such a consult.

When he was alone, William often tried an exercise to expand his brain he learned from a classmate at Harvard College. A larger brain would obviously lead to more knowledge, and he would try anything to reach that goal. He would take three large breaths, in and out in quick and full repetition. He held the last breath in his mouth and imagined forcing the pressurized air into his head to expand his brain and skull outward. His classmate told him repeating this exercise three times each day would cause an incremental, but measurable, increase in his skull's diameter, thus allowing the brain more room for growth. He tried this exercise every day for three months, and the only measurable difference he found was because of the growth of his hair. While he decided this was a failed experiment, and quite possibly a prank by his classmate, he still tried the exercise every few months... just in case.

Recess was always a suspenseful time for Abigail. Most days, Mr. Putnam would sit at a table outside and grade papers or read a book, but on some days, exciting days for Abigail, he would remove his coat and play with the children. He was fit and good looking, with deep brown eyes. The boys enjoyed racing with him and the girls enjoyed watching him race. Generally a serious man, when he was playing, he was smiling. He knew how to balance both of the great joys in his life – the pursuit of knowledge and the pursuit of fun.

He never married, but not because he didn't want a wife. He filled his home with books and papers, and against one wall was a long table filled with half-built machines and random contraptions. No woman would appreciate his life's goals, nor be able to live in a home cluttered with such a mess. Only a true seeker of knowledge would understand – only someone who revered science as much as he. So instead of wasting time looking for a woman he knew didn't exist, at least not in Salem, he more thoroughly devoted himself to his work. And between his students, the Town Council and his own curiosity, there was no time for anyone else anyway.