There was an Old Woman Tossed Up in a Basket There was an old woman Tossed up in a basket. Seventeen times as high as the moon. And where she was going I could not help ask it, For under her arm she carried a broom. "Old woman, old woman, old woman," said I, "Wither, oh wither, oh wither so high?" "To sweep the cobwebs from the sky" "Can I come with you?" "Aye, by and by."

This rhyme is said to refer to the events of the Inquisition. Most of those tried for witchcraft were old women. The old woman carries a broom. This common household item was often used as evidence against those accused of witchcraft. The old woman is going seventeen times as high as the moon. This line could refer either to the belief that witches could fly or to the ashes rising from the witch burnings. The last two lines refer to the sad truth that anyone could be accused of witchcraft and tried by the Inquisition.