Page:Letters of John Huss Written During His Exile and Imprisonment.djvu/48

the believers of his church. They are not distinguished either for the great diversity of incidents, or the dramatic interest of those in the second series, but they clearly evidence the great intrepidity, Christian piety, love for his brethren, and true greatness, that pervaded the mind of Huss. The writer already felt a presentiment of his martyrdom; and it is easy to perceive in reading them, that he would not give way when his time was come.^[1]

 

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LETTER I.

 

TO THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS.^[2]

 

[In this letter, John Huss complains of having been falsely denounced, and humbly demands to be dispensed from being obliged to appear in person. For the same purpose, John Huss makes an appeal to John XXIII.,^[3] which has been in-

 

1. For historical details relative to this period of the life of John Huss, see The Reformers before the Reformation, vol. i., book i.
2. Of all the letters that have been saved of John Huss, this is the only one addressed to his ecclesiastical superiors, the dignitaries of the Church. It is valuable, inasmuch that it shews the respect with which he addressed them, his ardent desire to convince them of the purity of his doctrines, and the fear which he felt of a rupture, without any mixture of weakness.
3. It is in the text, Scripsit ejus totam; but this pretended letter is the act of appeal drawn up at Prague before a notary, June 23. 1410.—(Hist, et Monum. Johan. Hus. vol. i., p. 112–116.)