In the spring of 1662, the ecclesiastical and civil authorities in Haddington directed their attention toward Thomas Finlason, a married man residing in the village of Over Saltoun. His legal proceedings, catalogued under case reference C/EGD/508, were inextricably linked to the widespread denunciations made by a youth named James Welch. Although Welch was ultimately deemed too young to undergo a formal trial and was committed to prison, the gravity of his confessions was such that the authorities viewed his accusations against local residents, including Thomas, as credible evidence worthy of pursuit.
The subsequent trial (T/LA/1341) formalised the state’s intervention in Thomas’s life, placing him firmly within the climate of judicial scrutiny that characterised the mid-seventeenth century. By taking these testimonies seriously, the court established a legal pathway that transformed the words of a detained boy into the official prosecution of a man from the Saltoun community. The records reflect the mechanics of a judicial system that, while reliant upon the testimony of a minor, nonetheless proceeded with the procedural rigour typical of the era’s witch trials.