Bound Submersion

There was no favorable result in this test; essentially the alleged witch would be bound at the hands and feet – with heavy rocked attached – and thrown into a body of water. If the body floated to the surface, that was proof, along some kind of whimsical lines, that the accused was indeed a witch (at which point they’d execute her by some other means). If she sank to the bottom – and inevitably drowned – she was innocent. Given that none of these girls had received any proper Navy Seals training – inhale, hold your breath, don’t panic – about 100% of them drowned, with apathetic standers-by shrugging it off, thinking ‘Oh well. Now we know.”