It was Edward and Jonathan Putnam who signed the first complaint against Rebecca; and Thomas Putnam’s little daughter was the one who fell into a fit at the hearing and pointed to Rebecca as her attacker. To top it all, Mrs. Putnam – who is now staring at the bewitched child on the bed – soon accused Rebecca’s spirit of "tempting her to iniquity," a charge that had more truth in it than Mrs. Putnam could know.
– Arthur Miller
The Crucible, Act 1. The author tells us something of the history of the Nurses and Putnams. Rebecca Nurse became the target of vengeful neighbors, the Putnams, because they harbored a dislike for her and her husband. It was the Putnams’ daughter Ruth who pointed out Rebecca in the courtroom as her attacker. It becomes clear in the play that Rebecca, a virtuous and respected elderly woman, is accused of being a witch not because of the need to save Salem from the Devil, but to satisfy a desire for personal vengeance.