PUBLIC DOCUMENTS. 



595 



IV. 



OF THE ORDER OF PRECEDENCE AND OF THE RIGHTS OF 

 OTHERS TO BE PROTECTED. 



As it is of great importance, for the tranquillity and 

 good accord of minds, that each should preserve 

 scrupulously and with modesty, in all the acts of the 

 Council, the rank which becomes his dignity ; and to 

 cut short, as much as possible, all occasions of giving 

 offence, we decree that all shall conform to the fol- 

 lowing order, according to the various dignities : 



The first rank belongs to our venerable brethren, 

 the cardinals of the holy Eoman Church, bishops, 

 priests, or deacons. The second, to the patriarchs ; 

 the thirdj by a special favor which we confer on them, 

 to the primates, according to the order of their pro- 

 motion. This concession is made only for this once, 

 and will confer no right to the primates, nor preju- 

 dice the rights of others. The fourth rank will be 

 reserved to the archbishops, according to the order 

 of their promotion, to the archiepiscopacy ; the 

 fifth, to the bishops, all according to the order of 

 promotion ; the sixth, to the abbots nullius / the 

 seventh, to the general abbots and other superior- 

 generals of the religious orders where solemn vows 

 are made, even when they have only the title of 

 vicars-general, provided that they exercise really a 

 legitimate authority upon all their order with all the 

 rights and privileges of a superior-general. 



Otherwise, we decide, conformably to the disci- 

 pline and the rules of the preceding Councils, that 

 if it should happen, perchance, that some members 

 should not sit in the place belonging to them, should 

 express their opinion, even by the word placet, should 

 assist at the congregations, or, in a word, should take 

 part in any act of the Council during its sessions, no 

 prejudice to any one, nor any new right, would result 

 therefrom. 



V. 



OF THE JUDGES OF EXCUSES AND CONTESTS. 



In order that the examination of the more serious 

 matters with which the very holy Synod shall be oc- 

 cupied in every manner shoula be as little tram- 

 melled or delayed as possible by the taking up of 

 cases concerning private individuals : "We have re- 

 solved that the Synod should elect, by secret ballot, 

 five of the Fathers of the Council, to judge of the ex- 

 cuses, who will receive and weigh, according to the 

 fule of the discipline of the Councils and or the sa- 

 cred canons, the procurations and excuses of the ab- 

 sent prelates, as well as the petitions of those who, 

 before the closing of the Council, may think they 

 have good reasons to retire. However, these iudges 

 will not decide upon these matters : they will refer 

 them to the general congregation. "We have resolved, 

 moreover, that the same Synod should elect, by se- 

 cret ballot, five other Fathers to judge the contests 

 and difficulties relating to precedence. If these judges 

 should not succeed m ending by a summary and 

 economical judgment, as it is styled, all the contests 

 relating to the order of sitting, the rights of prece- 

 dence or other claims, if there should arise any among 

 the assembled Fathers, they will submit them to the 

 authority of the general congregation. 



VI. 



OF THE OFFICERS OF THE COUNCIL. 



As it is of the highest importance that necessary 

 and apt ministers and officers should be designated, 

 in conformity with custom and the discipline or 

 Councils, as all the acts of this synod should be made 

 according to all the rules, we, keeping account of these 

 sorts of ministers, do select and appoint ; 



1. General custodians of the Council : our beloved 

 sons John Collonna and Dominic Orsini, Eoman 

 princes assisting at our pontifical throne. 



2. Secretary of the Council : our venerable brother 

 Joseph, Bishop of St. Hyppolite, to whom we adjoin, 

 with the office and title of under-secretary, our be- 

 loved ^on Louis Jacobini, prothoaotary apostolic, 



and in the capacity of coadjutors, our beloved sons 

 Canons Camino Santori and Angelo Jacobini. 



3. Notaries of the Council : our beloved sons Luke 

 Pacifici, Louis Colombo. John Simeoni, Louis Peri- 

 coli, and Domini Bartohni to whom wo adjoin our 

 dear sons Salvator Pallotim and Francis Santi, advo- 

 cates, who will assist the said notaries. 



4. Scrutators : Our beloved sons Louis Serafini and 

 Francis Nardi, auditors apostolic: Louis Pellegrini 

 and Leonard Dialti, clerks of the apostolic Chambers ; 

 Charles Cristofori and Alexander Montani, voters at 

 the signatures of Justice; Frederic de Falloux du 

 Coudray, regent of our apostolic chancery, and 

 Lawrence Nina, abbreviator of the major Park. 

 These eight scrutators will collect the votes in the 

 following manner : four will go over the left side of 

 the court of the Council, walking two by two and 

 accompanied by two notaries ; the other four will do 

 the same on the right side. 



5. Promoters of the Council: Our beloved sons 

 John Baptist de Dominicis Tosti, and Philip Eolli, 

 attorney of the Sacred Consistory. 



6. Masters of Ceremonies of the Council : our be- 

 loved sons Louis Ferrari, prefect of our household, 

 and Pius Martinucci, Caniulo Balestra, Eemi Eicci, 

 Joseph Eomagnoli, Peter-Joseph Einaldi Bucci, An- 

 thony Cataldi ; Alexander Tortoli, Augustin Accoram- 

 boni, Louis Smistri, Francis Eiggi, Anthony Gattoni, 

 Balthazar Baccinetti, Cesar Togni, Eoch Mass. 



7. Our officers of ceremonies, charged with desig- 

 nating the seats of the members, our beloved sons 

 Henry Folchi, prefect, and Louis Naselli, Edmund 

 Stonor, Paul Bastide, Louis Pallotti, our secret 

 chamberlains, and our beloved sons Scipio Perilli, 

 Gustavus Gallot, Francis Eeguany, Nicolas Vorsak 

 and Philip Silvestri, our honorary chamberlains. 



VII. 



OF THE GENERAL CONGREGATIONS OF FATHERS. ; 



Arriving now at what concerns the order of the 

 general congregations, we have resolved and decided 

 that five of our venerable brethren, cardinals of the 

 holv Eoman Church, will preside in our name and 

 witn our authority the same congregations of Fathers 

 which precede the public sessions; and, in conse- 

 quence, we select and appoint our venerable brother 

 Charles de Eeisach, Cardinal of the holy Eoman 

 Church, Bishop of Sabine ; our beloved sons the car- 

 dinals of the order of priests, Anthony de Lucca, of 

 the title of the Four-Crowned Saints ; Joseph Andre 

 Bizzarri, of the title of St. Jerome of the Illyrians ; 

 Louis Bilio, of the title of St. Laurence in Pamsperna, 

 and our beloved son, the Cardinal of the order of 

 Deacons, Annibal Capalti. 



These presidents, in addition to what concerns the 

 direction of the congregations, will take care, in mat- 

 ters to be discussed, that the discussion of those re- 

 lating to faith shall be the first to begin with ; they 

 will be at liberty, afterward, when they may deem 

 it opportune, to carry the consultations upon ques- 

 tions of faith or discipline. 



But, as, since the time when we gave our letters 

 apostolic of indiction to this Council, we have taken 

 care to call to Eome from various parts of the Cath- 

 olic universe theologians and ecclesiastical^ juriscon- 

 sults, in order that they should prepare, with others 

 of this city and with men thoroughly versed in the 

 same sciences, that which tends to the object of this 

 general Synod, and thus facilitate the examination of 

 those matters by the Fathers, we desire and order 

 that the projects of decrees and canons drawn up and 

 written by these same men, and by us reserved such 

 as they are, and not invested with our approbation, 

 to the knowledge of the Fathers, be submitted to the 

 examination and judgment of the same Fathers as- 

 sembled in general congregation. 



For this reason, the presidents herein above des- 

 ignated will take care that the propositions of the 

 decrees and canons to be acted upon by the an- 

 nounced congregation, be printed and distributed, 



