Part 12 (1/2)
APPENDIX III
INQUISITION OF GOA--IMPRISONMENT OF M DELLON, 1673
”M Dellon a French traveller, spending some time at Damaun, on the north-western coast of Hindostan, incurred the jealousy of the governor and a black priest, in regard to a lady, as he is pleased to call her, whom they both ad sorosser superstitions of Romanism, and thus afforded the priest, as also secretary of the Inquisition, an occasion of proceeding against hiovernor united in a representation to the chief inquisitor at Goa, which procured an order for his arrest Like all other persons whom it pleased the inquisitors or their servants to arrest, in any part of the Portuguese dominions beyond the Cape of Good Hope, he was thrown into prison with a pro of the worst kind, even according to the colonial barbariss there, is not to our purpose, inas froainst the Inquisition were there at the saanism--in which sorcery and witchcraft were included--and others of immorality In a field so wide and so fruitful, the ”scrutators” of the faith could not fail to gather abundantly After an incarceration of at least four months, he and his fellow-sufferers were shi+pped off for the ecclesiasticalin irons The vessel put into Bacaim, and the prisoners were transferred, for soe nue of the commissary of the holy office, until a vessel should arrive to carry theain at sea, and a fair afted their fleet into that port after a voyage of seven days Until they could be deposited in the cells of the Inquisition with the accustomed formalities, the Archbishop of Goa threw open HIS prison for their reception, which prison, being ecclesiastical, may be deemed worthy of description
”The most filthy,” says Dellon, ”the most dark, and the most horrible that I ever saw; and I doubt whether aand horrible prison can be found anywhere It is a kind of cave wherein there is no day seen but by a very little hole; the most subtle rays of the sun cannot enter into it, and there is never any true light in it The stench is extreht o'clock in the , an officer came with orders to take the prisoners to ”the holy house” With considerable difficulty M Dellon dragged his iron-loaded limbs thither
They helped hireat entrance, and in the hall, s to take off the irons from all the prisoners
One by one, they were summoned to audience Dellon, as called the first, crossed the hall, passed through an ante-chauese ”board of the holy office,” where the grand inquisitor of the Indies sat at one end of a very large table, on an elevated floor in the middle of the chae, in full vigor--a y At one end of the roo fro, and near it, sat a notary on a folding stool At the opposite end, and near the inquisitor, Dellon was placed, and, hoping to soften his judge, fell on his knees before him But the inquisitor commanded him to rise, asked whether he knew the reason of his arrest, and advised hie, as that was the only way to obtain a speedy release Dellon caught at the hope of release, began to tell his tale, ain fell at the feet of Don Francisco Delgado Ematos, the inquisitor, and implored his favorable attention Don Francisco told him, very coolly, that he had other business on hand, and, nothinga silver bell The alcayde entered, led the prisoner out into a gallery, opened, and searched his trunk, stripped him of every valuable, wrote an inventory, assured him that all should be safely kept, and then led him to a cell about ten feet square, and left hiht him his first ht following Nexthe learnt that he could have no part of his property, not even a breviary was, in that place, allowed to a priest, for they had no forion there, and for that reason he could not have a book His hair was cropped close; and therefore ”he did not need a coan his acquaintance with the holy house, which he describes as ”great and reat space before the church of St Catharine There were three gates in front; and, it was by the central, or largest, that the prisoners entered, and reat hall The side gates provided entrance to spacious ranges of apart to the inquisitors Behind the principal building, was another, very spacious, two stories high, and consisting of double rows of cells, opening into galleries that ran froround-floor were very sht or air Those of the upper story were vaulted, white-washed, had a sher than the tallest allery every cell was shut with two doors, one on the inside, the other one outside of the wall The inner door folded, was grated at the bottom, opened towards the top for the ad bolts The outer door was not so thick, had no , but was left open froement in that climate, unless it were intended to destroy life by suffocation
”To each prisoner was given as earthen pot ater ith to wash, another full of water to drink, with a cup; a brooed every fourth day The prisoners had three meals a day; and their health so far as food could contribute to it in such a place, was cared for in the provision of a wholesome, but spare diet Physicians were at hand to render all necessary assistance to the sick, as were confessors, ready to wait upon the dying; but they gave no viaticum, performed no unction, said no mass The place was under an impenetrable interdict If any died, and that many did die is beyond question, his death was unknown to all without; he was buried within the walls without any sacred ceremony; and if, after death, he was found to have died in heresy, his bones were taken up at the next Auto, to be burned Unless there happened to be an unusual nuht not speak, nor groan, nor sob aloud, nor sigh [Footnote: Limborch relates that on one occasion, a poor prisoner was heard to cough; the jailer of the Inquisition instantly repaired to hihtest noise was not tolerated in that house The poor man replied that it was not in his power to forbear; a second tiain, unable to do otherwise, he repeated the offence, they stripped hih, for which they beat hiuish of the stripes he had received] His breathing , but nothing allery, open, indeed, at each end, but awfully silent, as if it were the passage of a catacoht tap at the inner door, when a jailer would come to hear the request, and would report to the alcayde, but was not permitted to answer If one of the victims, in despair, or pain, or delirium, attempted to pronounce a prayer, even to God, or dared to utter a cry, the jailers would run to the cell, rush in, and beat him cruelly, for terror to the rest Once in two months the inquisitor, with a secretary and an interpreter, visited the prisons, and asked each prisoner if he wanted anything, if his ainst the jailers His want after all lay at thedown vengeance, rather than gain redress But in this visitation the holy office professed mercy with much formality, and the inquisitorial secretary collected notes which aided in the crimination, or in the murder of their victirand inquisitor, as always a secular priest; the second inquisitor, Dominican friar; several deputies, who came, when called for, to assist the inquisitors at trials, but never entered without such a sus, but never to witness an exa, or be present at any act of the kind; a fiscal; a procurator; advocates, so called, for the accused; notaries and familiars The authority of this tribunal was absolute in Goa
There does not appear to have been anything peculiar in theat Goa where the practice coincided with that of Portugal and Spain
”The personal narrative of Dellon affords a distinct exes of the prisoners He had been told that, when he desired an audience, he had only to call a jailer, and ask it, when it would be allowed hi many tears and entreaties, he could not obtain one until fifteen days had passed away Then cauards This alcayde walked first out of the cell; Dellon uncovered and shorn, and with legs and feet bare, followed hiuard walked behind The alcayde just entered the place of audience, e to enter
The door closed, and Dellon remained alone with the inquisitor and secretary He knelt; but Don Fernando sternly bade him to sit on a bench, placed there for the use of the culprits Near him, on a table, lay a missal, on which they made him lay his hand, and swear to keep secrecy, and tell them the truth They asked if he knew the cause of his imprisonment, and whether he was resolved to confess it He told thes at Daument or conversation, without ever, that he knew, contradicting, directly or indirectly, any article of faith He had, at so the Inquisition, but so light a word, that it did not occur to his remembrance Don Fernando told hily, and exhorted him in the name of Jesus Christ, to coht experience the goodness and mercy which were used in that tribunal towards those who showed true repentance by a sincere and UNFORCED confession The secretary read aloud the confession and exhortation, Dellon signed it, Don Fernando rang a silver bell, the alcayde walked in, and, in a few eon
”At the end of another fortnight, and without having asked for it, he was again taken to audience After a repetition of the former questions, he was asked his name, surname, baptism, confirmation, place of abode, in what parish? in what diocess? under what bishop? They n of the cross, repeat the Pater Noster, Hail Mary, creed, coins He did it all very cleverly, and even to their satisfaction; but the grand inquisitor exhorted him, by the tender mercies of our Lord Jesus Christ, to confess without delay, and sent hiain
His heart sickened They required him to do as ied ALL In despair, he tried to starve himself to death; 'but they coth betook hiin,' whos, the ive him help
”At the end of aanother audience, and added to his former confessions what he had re the Inquisition But they told hiain This was intolerable In a frenzy of despair he deter sickness, be obtained a physician who treated him for a fever, and ordered him to be bled Never cal was repeated often, and each ti to die from loss of blood, but death fled fro his tale of e his attempt at self-destruction to the inquisitor, procured hiation of solitude by the presence of a fellow-prisoner, a negro, accused of ro was reer bear up under the aggravated load By an effort of desperate ingenuity he al suicide, and a jailer found hi restored him by cordials, and bound up his wounds, they carried him into the presence of the inquisitor onceunable to sit, heard bitter reproaches, had his limbs confined in irons, and was thus carried back to a punishment that seemed more terrible than death In fetters he became so furious, that they found it necessary to take them off, and, from that time, his examinations assumed another character, as he defended his positions with citations froes of scripture, which he explained in the norance in Don Fernando that was truly surprising That 'grand Inquisitor,' had never heard the passage which Dellon quoted to prove the doctrine of baptiseneration, 'Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdo of that fae in the twenty-fifth session of the Council of Trent, which declares that ies are only to be reverenced on account of the persons whom they represent He called for a Bible, and for the acts of the council, and was evidently surprised when he found theht be seen
”The ti thethe cries of persons under torture, and afterwards saw many of them, both men and women, lame and distorted by the rack On Sunday January 11th, 1676, he was surprised by the jailer refusing to receive his linen to be washed--Sunday being washi+ng-day in the 'holy house' While perplexing hi for vespers, and then, contrary to custoain for matins He could only account for that second novelty by supposing that an auto would be celebrated the next day They brought him supper, which he refused, and, contrary to their wont at all other ti it, but carried it away assured that those were all portents of the horrible catastrophe, and reflecting on often-repeated threats in the audience chaave himself up to death, and overwhelht
”Scarcely had he fallen asleep when the alcayde and guards entered the cell, with great noise, bringing a lamp, for the first time since his imprisonment that they had allowed a la down a suit of clothes, bade hiain At two o'clock in thethey returned, and he issued from the cell, clad in a black vest and trowsers, striped hite, and his feet bare About two hundred prisoners, of who the sides of a spacious gallery, all in the sa of a few lahboring gallery in like manner But they were all motionless, and no one knew his doom Every eye was fixed, and each one seemed benumbed with misery
”A third company Dellon perceived in a roo about, and so habits Those were persons conde habits distinguished confessors busily collecting confessions in order to commute that penalty for some other scarcely less dreadful At four o'clock, servants of the house cas to those ould accept the refreshave Dellon so him to take as offered, which he had refused to do 'Take your bread,' said the man, 'and if you cannot eat it now, put it in your pocket; you will be certainly hungry before you return' This gave hope, that he should not end the day at the stake, but coo penance
”A little before sunrise, the great bell of the cathedral tolled, and its sound soon aroused the city of Goa The people ran into the streets, lining the chief thoroughfares, and crowding every place whence a view could be had of the procession Day broke, and Dellon saw the faces of his fellow-prisoners, uish, by their complexion, about twelve Europeans Every countenance exhibited sha blackness of apathy, AS IF DIRE SUFFERING IN THE LIGHTLESS DUNGEONS UNDERNEATH HAD BEREFT THEM OF INTELLECT The coan to move, but slowly, as one by one the alcayde led therand inquisitor sat, and his secretary called the name of each as he came, and the na a crowd of the bettermost inhabitants of Goa, asseuese shi+ps in the Indies'
had the honor of placing himself beside our Frenchman As soon as the procession was formed, it marched off in the usual order
”First, the Do precedence on all such occasions, led the way Singing-boys also preceded, chanting a litany
The banner of the Inquisition was intrusted to their hands After the banner walked the penitents--a penitent and a sponsor, two and two A cross bearer brought up the train, carrying a crucifix aloft, turned towards theht have seen another priest going before the penitents with a crucifix turned backwards, inviting their devotions They to whoer afforded mercy, walked behind the penitents, and could only see an averted crucifix These were condemned to be burnt alive at the stake! On this occasion there were but two of this class, but soe number were sentenced to this horrible death, and presented to the spectator a most pitiable spectacle Many of them bore upon their persons the rief Some faces were bathed in tears, while others came forth with a smile of conquest on the countenance and words of triu fro filled with a piece of wood kept in by a strong leather band fastened behind the head, and the arether behind the back Two armed familiars walked or rode beside each of these, and two ecclesiastics, or soulars, also attended After these, the ies of heretics who had escaped were carried aloft, to be thrown into the flaht of boxes containing the disinterred bodies on which the execution of the church had fallen, and which were also to be burnt
”Poor Dellon went barefoot, like the rest, through the streets of Goa, rough with little flint stones scattered about, and sorely were his feet wounded during an hour's march up and down the principal streets Weary, covered with sha train of culprits entered the church of St Francis, where preparation wasa celebration of that sole sky They sat with their sponsors, in the galleries prepared, sarey zamarras with painted flames and devils, corozas, tapers, and all the other paraphernalia of an auto, es having taken their seats of state, the provincial of the Augustinians mounted the pulpit and delivered the sermon Dellon preserved but one note of it The preacher compared the Inquisition to Noah's ark, which received all sorts of beasts WILD, but sent them out TAME The appearance of hundreds who had been inure
”After the sermon, two readers went up, one after the other, into the same pulpit, and, between them, they read the processes and pronounced the sentences, the person standing before thehted taper in his hand Dellon, in turn, heard the cause of his long-suffering He had maintained the invalidity of baptismus flaminis, or desire to be baptised, when there is no one to ades ought not to be adored, and that an ivory crucifix was a piece of ivory He had spoken contemptuously of the Inquisition And, above all, he had an ill intention His punishment was to be confiscation of his property, banishalleys in Portugal, with penance, as the inquisitors ht enjoin As all the prisoners were excommunicate, the inquisitor, after the sentence had been pronounced, put on his alb and stole, walked into the middle of the church, and absolved them all at once Dellon's sponsor, ould not even answer him before, when he spoke, now eave him a pinch of snuff, in token of reconciliation
”But there were two persons, a man and a woman, for whom the church had no more that they could do; and these, with four dead bodies, and the effigies of the dead, were taken to be burnt on the Campo Santo Lazaro, on the river side, the place appointed for that purpose, that the viceroy ht see justice done on the heretics, as he surveyed the execution from his palace-s”