336 Manuferipts in the Library of the late King of France. [May }, 
exhortation from the Inquifition to the 
fecular Judge, to treat with mildnefs 
thofe who have been condemned in matters 
of faith, would be truly ridiculous. Ac- 
cording, then, to the practice of this dange- 
rous Inftitution, the fecular Judges have 
nothing more to do than to deliver over 
the accufed to the executioner; and this 
mode of procedure does feem to have 
been adopted in Spain, in Portugal, and 
ja Goa. By thefe means the Inguifition, 
in fome degree, ufurps the power of the 
Church itfelf, in each particular affair, 
affuming that. infallibility which is pro- 
mifed to the Univerfal Church alone, and 
not to any diftiné tribunal, compofed 
of divines and doétors chofen by .itfelf, 
either for the purpofe of advice, or fitting 
in judgment. The importance of this 
obfervation may be traced in the courfe of 
all the proceedings againft Joan of Arc. 
- On the other hand, the accufation con- 
fits of nothing more than a continued 
charge againft Joan of having been the 
object of frequent vifits from the Angel 
St. Michael and the Angel Gabriel, and 
of having had daily intercourfe with St. 
Catherine and St. Margaret. In fhort, 
never to haveacted, fpoken, or anfwered, 
in the whole courfe of her life, not even 
during the trial, but by their orders, and 
under the guidance of their revelations. 
The Inquifition, therefore, in this cafe, 
were proceeding againft a woman who 
declared and believed herfelf to be ating 
under fupernatural influence; who, upon 
the faith of thefe revelations, had foretold 
the fuccefs which aétually happened to 
Charles VII.; who forefaw the refult 
of the proceedings againit her ; and who 
died maintaining the truth of what fhe 
averred both to have feen and heard, in 
fpite of the retraétation the made on one of 
the days of trial, and which fhe entirely 
recalled. 
This fecond point of view, although 
very extraordinary, is one, neverthelefs, 
which muft be kept conftantly in fight, on 
examining cafes of this nature, which, at 
the prefent time, appear new and furpriz- 
ing, but which were not really fo at that 
period ; for it was a common thing, when 
a man had, by a compaét with the Devil, 
yielded to him his right hand, that, before 
being executed, he defired it might be cut 
off, that the Devil, in taking his hand, 
might have no further claim upon the 
other parts of his body*. 
Thefe preliminary. obfervations will ap- 
pear neceffary, trom the nature of the cafe, 
. & Vide Villaret, volxve ps 12. 
previous to entering on the detail of the 
matter. | ‘ ‘ 
On the 2oth of February, after having 
deliberated with the affeflors whether 
there were fufficient grounds to inftitute 
proceedings iz caufa fider, the Bifhop and 
the Vicar of the Inquifition ordered Joan 
to be fummoned to appear before them 
on the following day. To this citation 
fhe anfwered, that fhe would willingly at- 
tend,and would fpeak the truth in an{wer 
to the queltions which might be put to 
her; but the intreated the Bifhop to per- 
mit her te hear mafs before being examin- 
ed, and alfo that fhe might be attended by 
divines, as well of the French, as the 
Englith party. 
On the following day, the Bifhop, ac- 
companied by thirty-nine affeflors, abbés, 
doétors, licentiates, and bachelors im. 
divinity, canon-law, civillaw, and 
medicine, mafter of arts, canons, ecle- 
fiaftical as well as temporal, whom he 
had fummoned, opened the meeting, by 
giving an account of what had been done 
in the bufinefs. He added, that Joan had 
demanded to hear mafs before being ex- 
amined, which he had not thought proper 
to grant, confidering the crimes of which 
fhe was accufed, and the impropriety of 
the drefs which fhe ftill perfifted to wear. 
While he was fpeaking, Joan was 
brought in: he took no notice of her re- 
queft, to have eclefiaftical Judges ap- 
pointed on the part of Charles VII. 
and fhe herfelf forgot to mention it; fo 
that it is not improbable that the afleffors — 
knew nothing of it ; at leaft, it is certain; 
that they neither deliberated, or made any 
order upon the fubjeét. 
They made her fit down: the Bifhop 
then exhorted her to fpeak the truth, and 
to take the accuftomed oath. She anfwer- 
ed, that fhe was ignorant on what they 
might interrogate her: that they might 
examine her upon points on which fhe 
could not communicate, and that therefore 
fie could not take the oath. The Bifhop 
replied, that fhe was required to {wear to 
{peak the truth upon matters concerning 
faith, and others, on which they might 
queftion her. She then faid, that fhe was 
ready to take the oath, to fpeak the truth 
concerning her father and mother, and as 
to what fhe had done in France; but that 
with refpect to the revelations which had 
been made to her from God, fhe would 
fay nothing for the prefent, although they 
might cut off her head: that fhe had, by. 
means of her vifions, fecret countfel to re- 
veal nothing; but that in eight days the 
would know what fhe could fay, 
The. 
