PART I.
within its precincts. The last, and not the least odious feature of the whole, was the connexion established between the condemnation of the accused and the interests of his judges; since the confiscations, which were the uniform penalties of heresy,[1] were not permitted to flow into the royal exchequer, until they had first discharged the expenses, whether in the shape of salaries or otherwise, incident to the Holy Office.[2]
Autos de fe. The last scene in this dismal tragedy was the act of faith, (auto da fe,) the most imposing spectacle probably, which has been witnessed since the ancient Roman triumph, and which, as intimated by a Spanish writer, was intended, somewhat profanely, to represent the terrors of the Day of Judgment.[3] The proudest grandees of the land, on
- ↑ Confiscation had long been decreed as the punishntient of convicted heretics by the statutes of Castile. (Ordenangas Reales, lib. 8, tit. 4.) The avarice of the present system, however, is exemplified by the fact, that those, who confessed and sought absolution within the brief term of grace allowed by the inquisitors from the publication of their edict, were liable to arbitrary fines; and those who confessed after that period, escaped with nothing short of confiscation. Llorente, Hist, de l'Inquisition, torn. i. pp. 176, 177.
- ↑ Ibid., tom. i. p. 216.—Zurita, Anales, tom. iv. fol. 324.—Salazar de Mendoza, Monarquia, tom. i. fol. 337.—It is easy to discern in every part of the odious scheme of the Inquisition, the contrivance of the monks, a class of men, cut off by their profession from the usual sympathies of social life, and who, accustomed to the tyranny of the confessional, aimed at establishing the same jurisdiction over thoughts, which secular tribunals have wisely confined to actions. Time, instead of softening, gave increased harshness to the features of the new system. The most humane provisions were constantly evaded in practice; and the toils for ensnaring the victim were so ingeniously multiplied, that few, very few, were permitted to escape without some censure. Not more than one person, says Llorente, in one or perhaps two thousand processes, previous to the time of Philip III., received entire absolution. So that it came to be proverbial that all who were not roasted, were at
least singed.
"Devant l'Inquisition, quand on vient à jubé,
Si l'on ne sort rôti, l'on sort au moins flambé." - ↑ Montanus, Inquisition of
