In the era of the Salem witch trials, large numbers of people believed in the possibility of witchcraft. The legitimacy of such questions had been recently restored by the success of Newtonian gravitational theory, which showed that action at a distance, depreciated by Cartesians, could be an important component of a working scientific theory and thus be said to "exist." [1] The accusations of witchcraft were valid according to the best understanding of the times. The accused were _still_ due, and denied, due process (at least, according to juridical theories under which they were supposedly living). Once due process was applied to their cases, that is, once consistent, material evidence of wrong-doing was demanded, the hunt was over. A demand that the rights of the accused be respected was, therefore, a more effective defense than a scientific attack on the idea of witchcraft, which in a sense has still not gotten (if one may say so) a stake driven through its heart -- a few years ago I read of a murder trial of someone in Brazil who was accused of having (effectively) practiced witchcraft. -- [1] http://www.skeptic.com/01.4.olson-witches.html --
Gordon