upon his enemies. And what was the tendency of their principles? To ruin our mysteries, and overturn religion.* Who then was the real instigator of the reformation, and whose work must we all call it? I leave you to answer. The Inquisition. LIV. I know nothing worse than a man of genius without good faith: he poisons what he touches at pleasure, and presents to his readers, under the attractive air of truth, what he knows himself to be false. How often has it pained me to apply this reflection to the Rector of Long From thy doctrine and that of all thy accomplices and "followers, all the condemned heresies revive, and the whole "service of God is repudiated. At what period were there 66 ever more sacrileges of men consecrated to God, than under "thy gospel? When was rebellion against the magistracy. "more frequent than during thy gospel? When have there "been seen more pillage of churches, more larceny and robbery? "At what time had Wittemberg more unfrocked monks than "at present? When were wives taken from their husbands to "be given to others, as under thy gospel? When did men "commit inore adulteries, than since thou wrotest that if a man 66 can hope for no issue by his wife, he may take another, "and that her husband is obliged to support the offspring which "may follow; and that a woman may act the same in the like "case, &c. &c." Reply of Prince George of Saxony to Luther in 1526. 66 Newton? He undertakes at p. 372, No. II. to represent me to his countrymen as a friend and partisan of the inquisition; and that they may not doubt his sincerity, he appears to translate a note which I beseech you to read in my 2d vol. p. p. 416, 417. He suppresses and adds, as he pleases, so that the words which he attributes to me express sufficiently well the very opposite to what I declared. "I do not undertake," said I at the beginning, "to justify the tribunals of the inquisition in theory and principle." He certainly read this first sentence carefully, because he has taken good care to suppress it; and although I there give notice that I am not going to defend the inquisition, he represents me as its defender. "They are accused (and would to "God it were with less reason!) of having "carried severity to injustice and cruelty." Is this the exclamation of a man applauding the severities, the injustice and cruelty of those tribunals, or of one deeply lamenting them? Is it taking up their defence to consider them in such a light? Or is it not rather condemning them with feelings of pain and disapprobation? "Why did they not imitate those of Italy?— "Without defiling, themselves with innocent blood, 66 they would have obtained the success which sove reigns expected from their vigilance." The Rector read this sentence, and suppresses it! But is it defending the Spanish inquisition, to reproach it as I have done above? Could Mr. Faber have expressed his disapprobation more forcibly than I have done by those words which he has purposely suppressed; "without defiling "themselves with innocent blood?" After observing with writers worthy of credit that the number of innocent victims had been much exaggerated, I add: "had this not been the case, Spain, while she reproached herself with all 66 these cruel and unjust executions, would not "have to regret the lot of other states, where 66 66 66 66 religious wars have shed a deluge of human blood, &c." The Rector makes me say: "But Spain, blessed with the inquisition, has been happily exempt." This little interpolation is very ingeniously put in, to keep in countenance the accusation which the Bachelor wishes to bring against me, and at the same time to stand as evidence of his own candour. He would have me clearly point out what I mean by innocent and guilty victims. But surely I was nowise obliged to do this. He may divide them as he pleases; I have no objection. The discrimination is no part of my concern: I am not writing the history of the inquisition. I gave notice that I should defend neither its tribunals, nor its unjust and cruel executions; that I confined myself to the consideration of its general consequences relative to the condition of Spain, as the English author whom I quoted had done before me. During my long residence in England, I never met with any man of information and good faith, who would undertake to justify the revolution of 1688 in its principles and the means by which it was effected; but I met many who rejoiced at its results, on account of the actual prosperity of the country. While they considered it unjust in its origin, they held it to be advantageous in its effects. This is very much the view which I have taken of the inquisition, which by preserving Spain in unity of faith, has saved it in our days from certain and total ruin. "I may be mistaken;" says Mr. Faber, p. 374, "but I have always understood, that the special "object of the inquisition was to take cognizance "of what the Latin church (he means no doubt "the Catholic church) pronounces to be heresy." He will be very glad, I imagine, to learn what we are informed on this subject by a man to whom we may all refer, the Abbé Fleury, (Instit. au droit Can. v. 2, 12mo. p. 86, and 90 Paris 1763.) "The origin of the inquisition is traced up to "Theodosius the Great, against the Manicheans. "His law of the year 382 is addressed to the pre"fect of the East. In 1224, the emperor Frede"rick 2nd issued four edicts with orders to the "secular judges to pursue and punish by fire "obstinate heretics condemned by the church ".... In France, it began against the Albigenses "at Toulouse in 1229; in Arragon, in 1233, but 66 66 very feebly, until Ferdinand, having expelled "the Moors, and wishing to confirm the pre"tended conversions of the Moors and Jews, who "obtained leave to remain in Spain by becom"ing Christians, solicited of Pope Sixtus IV in "1483 a bull to nominate Cardinal Turre-cre"mata grand inquisitor and president of the “council of the inquisition .... It is this coun"cil which makes regulations, decides differences |