Bunyan uses a dialogue between a "Mr. Wiseman" and an attentive hearer to tell the sad fate of a woman notorious for her bad language. Bunyan's story reminds us once again of God's unfailing providence, and our need to pray for those who revile and despitefully use us.

Mr. Wiseman: "This evil of cursing arises, in general, from the desperate wickedness of the heart, but particularly, from 1. Envy and 2. Cursing also arises from pride, which was the sin of the fallen angels. 3. It arises also from scorn and contempt of others. 4. But for a man to curse himself arises from desperate madness."

"Cursing dishonors God in the following way: It takes away His authority, for only God has the power to bless or curse; not to curse wickedly, but justly and righteously, giving by His curse the due reward to those who are wicked. Besides, these wicked men, when they curse their neighbor, curse God in His handiwork.  Man is God's image, and to wickedly curse the image of God is to curse God Himself."

Mr. Attentive:  "But I wonder, if cursing and swearing are such evils in the eyes of God, does He make examples out of those who commit such wickedness?"

Mr. Wiseman: "Alas, He has, more than a thousand times twice told, as anyone can easily see by watching people in every age and in every country. I could give you several examples myself, but instead let me give you just one."

"It is the dreadful story of Dorothy Mately, who lived in the town of Ashover in Derby County. Dorothy Mately was known in the town for being a great swearer and curser, and liar, and thief just like Mr. Badman. Her job was usually to wash the rubbish which came out of the lead mines in order to get some tiny bit of lead ore. Her usual way of saying something was with this kind of curse: 'If it isn't true, I wish I would sink into the ground!' or 'If it isn't true, I wish God would make the earth open and swallow me up!'

"Now on March 23rd of 1660, Dorothy was washing ore on the top of a steep hill, a quarter of a mile from Ashover, and was accused by a boy of stealing two quarters out of his pocket. She violently denied it, and said she wished the ground would swallow her up if she had taken the money. She also used the same wicked words on several other occasions that day."

"Now a man named George Hodgkinson from Ashover happened by where Dorothy was, and talked with her a while. There was a little girl by Dorothy's side, and another child some distance off.  The other child called for the girl to come away, and George took the girl by the hand to take her to the child who called her. But what do you know! they had not gone ten yards from Dorothy when they heard her crying out for help. Looking back, George saw the woman and her tub and sieve twirling round and sinking into the ground."

"Then George said, 'Pray that God will forgive your sins, for it's not likely you will live much longer.' So she and her tub twirled round and round, till they sunk about three yards into the earth, and stopped there. Then Dorothy called for help again, thinking, as she said, that she was going no farther."

"Now George, completely astounded, started to think how to help her; but a great stone appeared out of the ground and fell on her head, breaking her skull, then the earth fell in and covered her up. Afterwards, they dug her out from where they found her, about four yards into the ground, with the boy's two quarters in her pocket. But they never found her tub and sieve."