(1819) an account of the inquisition in goa in india

8/9/2019 (1819) An Account of the Inquisition in Goa in India

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UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH

Darlington M.emorial Litrary


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AN

TiMnslatcd from the FrenchOP

M. DELLON,VuO WAS rOXFI>fED TWO TEAHS IN ITS CEXtS.

with

^.Y APPEJVDIXfCoutaining an Account of the

ESCAPE OF ARCHIBALD BOWER,TUOM THE INaUISITION OF ITALT.

I've passed here many a lonely year.' And never human voice liave heard ;' I've passed here man) a lonely year," A solitary man !"

PITTSBURGH.-published by R. Patterson & Lambdin.Buller & Lambdin, printer?.

"18I9.


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INTRODUCTION.

INQUISITION, in the church of Rome, is a tri=bunal, in several Roman Catholic countries, erect-(&d by the popes for the examination and punish-ment of heretics. This court was founded in thetwelfth century, under the patronage of pope Inno-cent, who issued out orders to exeite the Catholicprinces and people to extirpate heretics, to searchinto their number and quality, and to transmit afaithful account thereof to Rome. Hence they werecalled nquisitors, and gave birth to this formidabletribunal called the Inquisition. That nothing mightbe wanting to render this spiritual court formidableand tremendous, the Roman pontiffs persuaded theEuropean princes, and more especialiy the empe-^'or Frederick II,' and Lewis IX, king of France,not only to enact the most barbarous 'laws againstheretics, and to commit to the flames, by the min-istry of public justice, those who were pronouncedsuch by the Inpuisitors, but also to maintain the In-quisitors in their office, and grant them their pro-jection in the most open and solemn manner. Theedicts to this purpose issued out by Frederick ILUtre well known ; edicts sufficient to have e;Kcite4^:' A 3


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the greatest hon-or, and which rendered the mostillustrious piety and vircue incapable of saving f'ronithe cruellest death such as had the misfrTtune to bedisagreeable to the Inquisitors. These abominablelaws were not, however, sufficient to restrain the"just indignation of the people against those inhumani^udges, whose barljarity was accoinpanied with su-perstition and arrogiince, with a spirit of suspicionand perfidy; nay even with temerity and impru-dence. '..Accordingly, they were insulted by themultitud^- in many places, were driven in an igno-minious manner Qut of some cities, and were pu!, todeath in others ; and Conrad of Marpurg, .the firstGerman Inquisitor who derived his commissionfrom G'-egory IX, was one of the many victimsthat were sacrificed on this occasicn to the ven-geance of the public, which his incredible barbari-ties had raised to a dreadful degree of vehemenceand fury.This diabolical ti-ibunal takes cognizance of here-sy, Judaism, mahometanijm, sodomy, arid poligamy;andthe people stand in so much fear of it, that pa-rents dehver up their children, husbands their wivesand masters their servants to it'' officers, without da-ring in the least to murmur The prisoners are keptfor a long time, till they themseh cs turn their ownaccusei-s, and declare tlie cause of their impa-isoii-^nient, for which they are neither told their crime,nor confronted with witnesses. As soon as they areimprisoned, their friends go into mourning,' andspeak of them as dead, not daring to solicit theirpardon, lest they should be brought hi as accom-plices. When there is no shadow of proof againstthe pretended criminal, he is discharged, after suf-%i*3ngthe most cruel tortures, a tedious and dread-ful imprisonment, and the loss of the greatest partof his effects. Flie sentence against prisoners is pro-liguRced pubhcly and with exU'aordinary sQleiVJiity.


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AUTO A FE,. TIn Foi'tugal they erect a theatre capable of Ixoldingthi-ee thousand persons, in which they place a richaltar, and raise seats on each side, in the form ofan amphitheatre. There the prisoners are placed,and over against them is a high chair, wliither theyare called one by one to hear their doom from oneof their Inquisitors. These unhappy persons knowwhat they are to suffer by the clothes they wearthat day : those who appear in their own clothes aredischarged on paying a fine; those who have a son-to beniro, or straight yellow coat without sleeves,charged with St. Andrew's cross, have then- lives,but forfeit all their effects ; those who have the re-semblance of flames made of red serge sewed upontheir santo benito, without any cross, are pardoned,but threatened to be burnt if ever they relapse ibut those, who, besides these flames, have on thcii'.saiito benito,. their own picture surrouiKled with de-vils, are condemned to expire m the flames. TheInquisitors, who are ecclesiastics, do not pronouncethe sentence of death, but form and, read an act, inwhich they say, that the criminal, being convictedof snch a crime by his own confession, is, with muchreluctance, delivered to the secular power, to bepimished according to his demerits ; and this wri-ting they give to the seven judges, who attend atthe I'iglit side of the altar, and immediately passi,sentence. We rejoice however, to hear, tiiat in ma-ny Roman Catholic countries, the Inquisition is no'vshut. May the God. of mercy and love prevent its-

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ever being employed again !Act of faith CJuto da Fe,) in tjie Romisli

church, is a solemn day held Ijy the Inquisition forthe punishment of heretics, and the absolution ofthe innocent accused. They usually contrive theAuto to fall on some gi-eat tfstival, that the execu-tion fl;\ay pas with the more awe ; and it iis aisA 3


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iSS ATO DA Ffv.ways on a Sunday. The Auto da Fe may be call-ed the last act of the Inquisitorial tragedy : it is aS:ind of jail- delivery, appointed as often as a com-petent number of prisoners in the Inquisition areponvicted of heresy, either by their own voluntaryor extorted confession, or in the evidence of certainwitnesses. The process is thus :In the morningthey are brought into a great hall, where they havecertain habits put on, wWch they are to wear in theprocession, and by which they know their doom.The procession is led up by Dominicaa friars; af-ter which come the penitents, being all in blackcoats without sleeves, and barefooted with a waxcandle in their hands. These are followed by thepenitents who have narrowly escaped being burnt,who over their black coats have flames painted,with their points turned downwards. Next comethe negative and relapsed, who are to be burnt, hav-ing flames on their liabits pointing upwards. Af-ter these come such as profess doctrines contraryto the faith of Rome, who, besides flames pointingupwards, have their picture painted on theirbreasts, with dogs, serpents, and devils, all openmouthed, about it. Each prisoner is attended witha familiar of the Inquisition ; and those to be burnthave also a Jesuit on each hand, who are continual-ly preaching to them to abjure. After the prison-ers, come a troop of familiars on horseback ; andafter them the Inquisitoi s, and other officers of the90urt, on mules: last of all the Inquisitor- generalon a white horse, led by two men with black hatsand green hatbands. A scaffold is erected bigenough for two or three thousand people ; at one endof which are the prisoners, at the other the Inqui-sitors. After a sermon made up of encomiums ofthe Inquisition, and invtctives against heretics, apriest ascends a desk near the scaffold, and, havingtaken the abjuration of the penitents, I'ccites the.


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AUTO EA IK. vufinal sentence of those who are to be put to death,and dt'li\ers them to the secxilar arm, earnestly be-seeching at the same time the secular power not totouch t/it ir blood, or /nit their lives in danger I .' !The prisoners, being thus in the hands of the civrlmagistrate, are presently lotided with chains, andcarried first to the secular jail, and from thence, inan hour or two, brought l>efore the cix'il judge : who,after asking in what religion they intend to die,pronounct's sentence on such as declare they die inthe cornvtiunion of tlie churcli of Rome, that theyshall b.^ first strangled, and then burnt to ashes; onsuch as die in any other faith, that they be burntalii e. Both are immediately carried to the Ribera,thf place of execution, wl;ere there are as manystrikes set up as there are prisoners to be buriit,with a quantity of di-y furze about them. The stakesoi the professed, tiiatis, such as persist in the here-sy, arc; about four vards high, having a small boardtowards the top for the prisoner to be seated on.The negative and relapsed being first strangled andburnt, t!ie professed mount their stakes by a lad-der ; and the Jesuits, after se\eral repeated exhor-tatioi s to be reconciled to the church, part withtheiu; teUing tiiem that they leave them to the de-A'il, who is stand, iig at their elbow, to receive theirsouls, and cariy them with him to the flames ofheii. On tliis a i^ixat shout is raised ; ^nd the cryis, " Let the dogs^ b.uirds be iilade I" which is donebythruptnir; fl arr. in p,- furzes fastened to long' polesagahist tiieir laces, till tlieir faces are burnt to a coal,svhich is accompanied with the loudest acclam; tionsof joy. At last, fire is set to the furze at the bottomof tlic stake, o\ er wjiich tlie professed are chaineds(> hit^h, tliat the top of the flame seldom reacheshigher tliau the seat tluy sit on; so that tliey ratherseem roasted than burnt. There cannot be a morelumentabie spectacle ; the sufferers continually ciy


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VIU AtTO DA FE.out, while they are able. " Pity, foi' the love ofGod !" Yet it is beheld, by all sexes and ages, withtransports ofjoy and satisfaction.O, merciful God!is this the benign, humane religion thou hast givento men ? Surely not. If such '.vere the genius ofChristianity, then it would be no honour to be achristian. Let us, however, rejoice that the time iscoming when the demon of Persecution sliall bebanished out of this our world, and the ti-ue spirit ofbenevolence and candour pervade the universe ;when none shall hui't or destroy, but the earth be fil-led with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters"Vover the sea^^


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ADVERTISEMENT.BY THE TRANSLATOR.

The translator, haviag been forciblyimpressed by the interesting narrative inDr. Buchanan's < Christian llesparch-es in Asia,' of his intrepid attempt toexplore the secrets of the Prison houseof the Inquisition at Groa, was inducedto make some inquiry for the work ofthe Sieur Dellon, so frequently referredto in that relation. He was so fortu^nate as to procure a copy by the inter-vention of a friend.The recent evidence given to theworld upon the subject of the Inquisi-

tion ;* the providential train of events,which appears to have placed the pow-er of its extinction in the hands of a.

* See * The Narrative of the persecution of H. J. DaCosta, imprisoned and tried in Lisbon by the Inquisition,for the pretended crime of Free Masonry/ i/i July,1802;and ' A letter upon the mischievous influenceof the Spanish Inquisition, as it actualhi exists in the pro-vinces under the Spanish G vernmevit,' translated from' El Espartol,' a periodical journal lately published ijiLondon.. Also see ' Buchanan's Memojir?,'


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ADVERTISEMENT.Protestajit iiation ; and the collateralconnexion of the subject with some ofthe most important questions now inagitation ;all seem to unite in render-,ing a translation of M. Dellon's worklikely to prove acceptable to the public.The tribunal of the Inquisition stillexists with dormant but not stifled ener-

gies ; and continues to act with undi-minished hostility to literature, reason^and liberty, even in modern Europe jthough with less ostentatious publicity,than in Bellon's time in Asia. The:same spirit evidently pervades the sys-tem ; the same taws and maxims regu-late its action.

It is surely with reluctance that thepeople of the 19th century must admitthe fact, that the illumination and liber-ality of the christian world have notlong since devoted the Inquisition andits practices to the page of history alone!But whM will future ages say, when itis recorded in the annals of imperialBritain, that even at this period, thetower of JUGGERNAUT, and thedens of the INQUISITION, were sup-ported by her protection,?


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AnVKRTlEKMEXl'. XIThe .translator is sensible of the de-

fects of his performance; but he may bepermitted to palliate the objection, ifnot excuse the fault, by observing thatit was executed amidst vei'j' differentavocations; and with more anxiety,perhaps, for its completion, than its ex-cellence. He pretends to no other meritthan i\ii\i of fidelity. In no instance, totise best of his judgment, has he devia-ted from, or altered, tl?e meaning of theauthor: but he h;is sometimes found itTieress'iry to divide one sentence into?ovei-.'il; and he thoiiglit it would tendonly to increase the size and expense ofthe book, if he retained the account oftlie different places visited by M. Bel-Ion.*-That the task had fallen intoabler hands he sincerely wishes ; but hej)roferred to incur tlie charge of impru-dence on Ins own account, rather thanrisk ihr non nppearancc of a Mork,Aviiich he believes capable of subserv-ing the best interests of humanity.

Pains have been taken to obtain in-formation respecting the author; but

* The chapters omitted are the 3d, 4tli, 5th, 6th, T'thSth, 42d ami 4M.


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X!i ADVERTISEMENT.without being able to collect more tImYihas been furnished by Dr. Bucliauan.*The work is dedicated to a lady of theFrench Court, but with such excess ofthe characteristic adulation of that coun-try, that the translator conceives it mightdisgust the blunt frankness of an A.me-rican reader. Who, after perusing tljefollowing pages, could suppose that allthe author's sufferings were richly re-paid by ^he opportunity afforded to laythe relation at the feet of the beanlifiilMademoiselle Du Gambout de Coislm!(whose portrait is judiciously prefixe'd:)or that its circulation was less to be de-sired for the sake of the inforiuatioJi itconveyed, than to preserve her illus-trious naniej and remain a proof of hiseternal respect ?

It remains only to add, that the copyfrom which iliis transiatioii is made wasprinted at Paris in 1687, and is, as isalso a translation jniblishcd in the fol-lowing yetir, exdemely scarce.The "Account of BoVer's esc;}]);'.from the Inquisition at Mace rata,-'

* See Christian Researches; Armstrong'^ cnlt-.jc^'^editioiij r>:tge 200.


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ADVERTISEMENT. Xl%which is annexed, came into the handsof the translator several years ago. Topretend to vouch for the veracity of therelation woulJ be too perilous an un-dertaking in defiance of the generallyreceived opinion of the narrator's cha-racter ; but of its authenticity, as rela-ted by himself to a lady, (from a copyof whose minutes the translator's wasmade,) there is little room for doubt.He believes that the story, in sub-stance at least, has" been already pub-

lished ; but as it possesses much inter-est, and;, in many points, corroboratesDellon's account of the principles andpractice of the Inquisition, it is presu-med that it may be thought no ^usuita-ble companion to it.

Sept. 181^.


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ABVERTISEMElNiT.BY THE AUTHOR.

It is but too common to find book-swhose pompous titles promise a greatdeal, but which, deceiving the reader'sexpectation, contain any thing but whatthey profess. A different method hasbeen adopted in the present work ; andthose who will take the trouble to pe-ruse it will confess that th? title inade-quately describes the contents.I have confined myself to giving afaithful relation of what I have observ-ed in the Inquisition, without interrupt-ing it by many remarks. ; leaving myreaders ?it liberty to make them forthemselves. Those who have someslight knowledge ofthe Holy OflBce willhave no he^ation to believe all that Irelate, and that I have not exaggeratedany thing ; and however extraordinarythe proceedings and foimalities of tUe


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ADVERTISEMENT. XVInquisition may appear, the reader maybe assured that I have stared nothingImt what is strictly true.I do not pretend to censure the In-

quisition itself; I am even willing toaufliit that the institution may be good;and it is certain that in those placeswhere it originated, so much severityhas not been exercised as in Spain andPortugal, and in the countries depen-dent on those crowns where it has beenplanted ; but, like all human establish-ments, which, though pure in design,are subject to relaxation and abuse, itis not surprising that these have alsofoun


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VIX ADVERTISEMENT,tion which must be of the highest utilvty to it : ia fact, it is important tha^those, who, from curiosity or their avo-'cations reside in places where the HolyOflBce exercises its jurisdiction, shouldbe informed what they ought to avoidor to do, in order to elude its power,and to prevent the experience of a mis-fortune li^e that, which is the subject ofthis narrftivCo


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18 INQUISITION

cations ; but I know of no one who hasdared to speak of what passes underthe secrecy of the tribunal, Its officersare too deeply interested in maintainingits jurisdiction, to withdraw the veiland as to those who having had trans-aqtions with tiiem are acquainted withtheir practices, and may have reason tobe dissatisfied vvi^ them, the dread ofthe horrid tortures inflicted on thoseconvicted of breal ing the oath of secre-cy imposed before their liberty is resto-red, renders thie mysteries of the Inqui-sition so impenetrable that it is almostimpossible ever to learn the truth, with-out being so unfortunate as to be con-ducted into its prisons, and thus acquir-ing experimental knowledge ; or fromthe information of one wlio has happilynot sunk under that misfortune, andwho when enclosed in the frightful sol-itudes of the Holy Office has carefullynoted all that occurred during his de-tention, and after his liberation can re-late in safety what he has seen aiwl suf-fered.These various reasons operate to pre-

vent many persons from being acquaiftt-


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AT GOA. 16ecj with the transactions of this formid-able tribunal. And as, next to theduty we owe to God, we have nonemore incumbent than that of serving ourneigiibour, and more especially the pub-lic^ I conceive myself bound to presentit with a recital of my sufferings and,observations in the prisons of the In-quisition ; to wi)i( Is I shall subjoin whatI have been told by persons worthy ofcredit, whom I have known intimately,both during the period of ray incarcera-tion fmd since my release.

I have long hesitated as to the publi-cation of tliis account ; for eight yearshave elapsed since ray return to France,and upwards of four since the accountwas written. I was afraid to offendthe Holy Office and to break my oathand my apprehension was increased bysome i)ious but timid people who enter-tained similar sentiments. Others,equally religious, but whom I thoughtmore enlightened, afterwards convincedme that it was important to the publicin many respects to be thoroughly in*structed as to this tribunal, and thatjfche relation might even be serviceableB


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M^ lN(iLlSIT10\to the gentlemen of the Holy Office, ifthey knew how to profit by it, and sfiWmore so to those who have the power toregulate its proceedings and restrain itsjurisdiction : and that with regard to anoath so unjustifiably extorted as thatexacted by the Inquisition under t|iedread of being burnt, general utilitywas a sufficient dispensation to the con-science of the party taking it and con-sequently imposed a sort of obligationUpon him to communicate what heknew.

Such are the motives w hich have in-duced nie to withhold, and at length topublish, tliis account ; aud if the reten-tion has deprived the world of a parti-cle of useful information, it will at leastexcu e me from the charge of precipita-ti. n, and prove that the recital is not in-fluenced by the ill usage I have sus-tained.

It remains only to observe, that whatI have to say of the Inquisition of Goaou2;ht to be understood of those of Por-tugal and Spain ; fjr though the latter isless cruel than the two others, inasmuchas the public execution?, called Acts of


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AT GOA. 21Faith, are less frequent in that country;and though ignorance is more prevalentin the Indies than in Portugal ; yet itmay he inferred from a narrative whichappeared in tlic Gazette of France ofthe ;32d of August, l6S0, that the samespirit, the same rules, and the samerigor, direct all the executions of the In-quisition in each of those countries ;since there are circumstances there stat-ed even more horrible than those ofthe Act of Faith in which I bore a part.

Chap. ILOstensible Causes ofmy Imprisonment.

I WAS staying at Damaun, a town inthe East Indies, in possession of thePortuguese, to rest from the fatigues Ihad endured in various voyages, and torecruit myself for the more ample grati-fication of ray passion for travelling ;but where T liad hoped to find repose, Iencountered the commencement of trou-bles infinitely greater than those which.I had previously borne.An unfounded jealousy imbibedagainst me by the governor of Damaun


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22 1NQU1SITI6^!'was the true cause of the persecutionsI have suflered from tlie ministers ofthe Inquisition. It may easily be sup-poser! that this was not alleged in theaccusation brought against me ; but, toserve the revenge of the Governor, oth-f r pretexts were used, and the means atlength contrived to banish me from theIndies, in which I might else have pas-sed the remainder of my life.

It must be allowed that though theavowed grounds might be unsatisfacto-ry to persons instructed in the faith andthefacts, tr ey were quite sufficient witha people actuated by such prejudicesand principleis as the Portiiguese : iuwhich light they appeared to be soplaumble, that it was not until the con-clusion of the aifair that I discoveredthe real motives of my arrest.The first opi>ortuiiity which I gaveto my enemies to resort to the Inquisi-

tion for mv^ruin, was a conversationwith an Indian priest, a Theologian ofthe order of St. Domiiiie:But, beforeI proceed, I ought to say, that, thoughmy conduct might not he entirely cou-fwmable to the sancliry of the religion


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AT GOA. J23iti wliich I was baptised, 1 have everbeen attached to the faith of my ances-tors, that is, to the Catholic, Apostolic,and Roman Chnrch ; and that God hathendowed me vvit'i more respect for itsdoctrines, than the generality of Chris-tians seem to feel towards them. 1 haveRlvvays delighted in hearing and read-ing, and never read any thing withmore entimsiasm than the Holy Scrip-tures, as well the Old as the New Tes-tament, which I usually carried aboutmy person. I had taken pains to ac-quire a knowledge of scholastic theolo-gy, because in extensive travels all de-scriptions of men, of every religion andsect, are to be met with ; and I disputedfreely with Hereiics and Sclii^imatics.1 possessed several books upon the sub-ject, and had received much informa-tion both from discourse and study, du-ring the leisure afforded by my voyages,and my residence in various parts ofIndia. I therefore conceived that I wasable to enter tlie lists with even profes-sed Theologians, and innocently fellinto the snare with this priest. I lod-ged with the Dominicans at tbeir pres-


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2% iNQUISITIOISsing iuvitalioii, and we lived together iigreat kindness and familiarity. I hasome urgent business, and, as it appears, v/ent to denounce me to the Commissary of the Holy Office. I was often afterwards in his company, and a*he showed no coolness towards me, JMas far from thinking him unfriendly.


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AT GOA. 2'5

I have frequently been where littleeabiuets, on which are painted the figureof the Holy Virgin, or some other saint,have been carried round. The Portu-guese are accustomed to salute the im-age^ and those who are devoted to thefraternity, place their alms in the box.Every person is at liberty to give ornot ; but the kiss cannot be dispensedwith, without offending the assistants.I was then only twenty-four years ofage, and had not all the prudence whicha person ought to have who lives amongstrangers, to whose customs he shouldconform as much as possible ; and as Ihfid not witnessed these ceremonies be-foie, I sometimes refused to receive andkiss the cabinet,whence it was con-cluded (surely tooraslily !) that I des-pised the image, and was consequentlyheretical.

I once happened to be at the houseof a Portuguese gentleman, whose sonwas to be bled for some indisposition ;^nd I observed that the youth had inivory image of the Holy Virgin in hisbed, which he reverenced much, and oftea kissed and addressed liimsjplf to it.


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26 INQUISITIONThis mode of worshipping images isusual amongst the Portuguese, and gaveme some disturbance; because beingmisinterpreted by the heretics, they arethereby more than by any other reasonprevented from returning to the church.I told the youth that if he did not takecare, his blood would spirt upon theimage ; and, on his replying that hecould not part with it, I intimated thatit would embarrass the operation. Hethen reproached nie by saying that the,French were heretics, and did not wor-ship images. To which I answered^that we ought to honour them ; and thatif we might be allowed to use the word^' tvorship,^' it could be with referenceto those of our Saviour alone, and eventhen the adoration related to the personrepresented by them ; and I quoted theCouncil of Trent, session 25.About the same time, it chanced thatone of my neighbours came to me, andseeing a crucifix at the head of my bed,said, * If you should happen to bringany female home with you. Sir, do notfori^et to cover this image !" ^*How!"said I, ^^ do you tbiiik it is possi])le so to


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AT GO A- ^7hide ourselves from God ; and, like yourdissolute women after locking up theirrosaries and relics, believe you ma^abandon yourself without delrnqueucyto all sorts of excess ? Pray, Sir, enter-tain more elevated sentiments of theDeity, and do not fancy that a slenderveil can conceal our sins from the eyesof Grod, who clearly penetrates everysecret of our hearts. Is this crucifixmore than a piece of ivory ?^'

Here wc endod ; and my neigh!)our^in retiring, acquitted himself of his sup-posed duty, by de;iouncing me to theCommissary of the Inquisition ; for it isproper to state, that every person resi-dent in places subject to the Holy Officeis obliged, under })ain of tlie greater ex-communication, reserved to Llie grandInquisitor, to denounce, within thirtydays, whatever he has'ieard or witnes-sed on matters within tiie cognizanceof the tribunal:and because many donot fear the penalty, or doubt whetheriliey have incurred it, in order to obligethe people to pay implicit obedience totills command, the Inquisitors have de-chired, that those who fail in making


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28 IiNQUifelTIOX

this denunciation within the time pre-scribed shall be reputed guiltj, andpunished as if they had themselvescommitted the crime they have not re-vealed. The consequence of which is,that friends betray their friends, fath-ers their children, tliriough zeal withoutdiscretion, forget the duty which Godand nature impress upon them towardsthose from whom they derive existence.The obstinacy with w hich I objected

to wear a rosary contributed to confirmthe belief of ray heresy, no less thanmy refusal to salute the images. Butwhat tended more than any thing to rayimprisonment and condemnation wasthat, being in a company where moraljustice was treated of, I said, '* that it


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AT GOA. 39for if true justice was not to be foundin France, they had the advantage af aTribunal whose decrees were not lessjust, nor less infalliable than those ofJesus Christ." Well knowing that healluded to the Inquisitors, I asked, ^* ifhe thought the Inquisition less human,or less subject to their passions, thanother judges ?" " Do not answer me inthat manner," replied the defender ofthe Holy Office ; " if the Inquisitorscomposing the Tribunal are infalliable,-it is because the Holy Grhost perpetual-ly dictates their decisions." I couldnot long endure a discourse which ap-peared to be so irrational ; and to prove19 him by example that the Inquisitorswere any thing but what he representedthem to be, I related to him the adven-tures of Father Ephraim de N evers, aCiipuchiu, and Apostolic Missionaryin the Indies, who, as M. de la Boulayeie Gou informs us in his Travels, hadbet in arrested by the Inquisition frompuire malice about seventeen years be-fore, and had been confined and ill treat-ed for a length of time; andlconcludc'J by telling him, that I did not doubt


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30 IlN QUI SIT IONthat this priest was more virtuous andmore enlightened tlian those who hadcaused him to be immured iu a prison,without permission even to repeat hisbreviary. I concluded by saying, thatI thought it was fortunate for Francetliat this severe Tribunal had not bee^introduced there, and most happy formyself that 1 was not subject to itsju-risdiction. This conversation was ex-aptly reported [o the Father Commissa-ry ; and, added to what I had broach-ed before, ultimately occasioned theprocess against me.

.VThe foUowing ar.> tiic titles of Chnptcrs lll,^VIll, of the original ; not conlaiiiiriE^ anv thia^relative t) tiie iNf^iisrrioN, it was thought bsstnot to tj-aiishite tUein, as it would add to the ex-pense, but not to the usefulness of the work.]III. A concise Description of


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AT GO A. 3iMosahibique, the Isle of Socotora, aii


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82 IXQUfSITIONI related to him ingeniously, and i

step by step, what had occurred ; andthen requested he would instruct mehow I should behave myself in future :assuring birn that I had no bad inten-tion, that 1 was ready to correct myself,and to retract whatever I might liaveadvanced w hich he deeiiled to be im-proper.The good father confessed that myjH'oceedings had oifended m:iny, thathe was convinced that my intention hadnot been bad, and that there was noteven in what 1 had said any thing pos-itively criminal ; but he advised me.nevertheless, to accommodaie myself alittle ti)thc habits of the people, and tospea'^ less iVeely of such subjects ; andparticularly respecting images, which Ihad repeatedly declared, and had at-tempted to prove bv reference to thescriptures, and the fathers, ougiit not tobe worshipped : that the people, it wastrue, were led away by some light er-rors, which pas^ed for genuine religion,but that it did not beco ne e to under-ta.ve to corrfcct aod reform them.


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33

1 thanked the commissary for hisgood advice, and left him with muchsatisfaction ; because I knew that, be-ing my own accuser befire I was ai res-led, 1 could not, by tise laws of the In-quisition, be further charged. I wasalso extremely delis^hted with the jus-tice and integrity of this good fatSter,who, not thinking me culpable, hadfreely given me directions how to con-duct myself with such caution for thefuture, as not to give occasion for thefelightest shadow^ of suspicion.

Chap. X.Containing the real Causes of my De-

tention, and the Munner of my JLr-rest.

Althgugh what I have stated in thepreceding chapters was more than suf-ficient f(u- my destruction, according tothe maxims of the Inquisition, and thecustoms of the country; matters wouldnot have proceeded either so far, or s ohastily, if the governour of Damaun,IManuel Furtado de Mendoza^ had not


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34 INQUISITIONbeen instigated by thejealousy to whicliI have alluded. His dissimulation wassuch, that he appeared to be one of mybest friends, though secretly pressingthe commissary of the Holy Office towrite to the Inquisition at Groa, to com-municate to it the expressions I hadused ; being determined not to sulferthe opportunity to escape, which I hadinadvertently afforded him, of makingsure of me, and driving me from Da-maun for ever. The cause of the gov-ernor's jealoiisy was the frequent butinnocent visits which I paid to a ladywhom he admired, (and by whom hewas truly beloved, which 1 then knewnot,) and, as he judged from appearan-ces only, he imagined I was more favor-ably received than himself.A black priest, secretary to the HolyOffice who lived opposite the lady'shouse, was as much eaarmored as thegovernor ; and had repeatedly solicitedher to gratify his infamous passion, e-ven when at confession as the lady her-self informed me.On noticing my attentions, he becameasjealous as the governor ; and altho*


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Al' GOA. 35he had hitherto been on friendly terraswith iiie, and I had even done him someimportant services, he eagerly joinedwith Don Manuel Furtado in oppressing me.The rivals, thus united, urged thecommissary so unremittingly, that up-

on the information, which, at their en-treaty, he sent to Go, he received anorder from the Inquisitors for my ar-rest ; which was executed in the even-ing of the 24th of August, 16/3, on myreturn from the house of a lady of greatrespectability, called Signora DonnaFrancisca Pereira, the wife of one of theprincipal gentlemen of the town, Man-uel Peixotte da Gama. This lady, whowas about sixty years of age, consider-ed herself indebted to me for the livesof her eldest daugliter, and her grand-daughter ; and indeed I was so fortu-nate as to be of service. The daugh-ter fell sick when the mother was fromhome, and the unskilfulneof a Pun-dit, or Indian physician, h||d reducedher to the last extremity, when I wasailed in. I treated the disorder as Ithought proper, and she recovered.


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SG INQUISITION'Oil the mother's return, (overjoved athe restoration of her beloved daughterher grand-child, who "was, if possiblemore endeared to her, became indisposed, and was in greater danger than heiaunt had been ; but, as before, I wajnot sent for to the little invalid at firstbut delayed until her case was desperate. I found her in a high fever, andalthough on the point of delirium, theIndian physician, instead of letting heiblood, had covered her head with pep-per, which 1 immediately caused to beremoved. My applications were sue-cessful, and in a few days she was per-fectly convalescent. From that timethe lady, impressed with gratitude, o-vervvhelmed me with presents, and,wishing that I should reside near her,had allotted me a house opposite to herown. It was on the very day on whichshe presented me with this house, andas I was emitting the mansion of thisgenerous Wy, in order to return to myresidence, Ifc^hen the criminal judge ofthe town accosted me, and commandedme to follow him to the prison ; whitherhe conducted me without deigniug to


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AT COA. Syacquaint mc liy what aiitliority, until af-ter 1 entered it.

Great as was my surprise when thisofficer arrested mc, yet, as I felt consci-.ous of no crime, and believed that atthe most I had been apprehended forsome slight matter, I imasjined (withSufficient reason) that Manuel Furtado,Avho had always professed much regardfor me wonld not suffer me to remainall night in prison; but when my con-ductor told me that it was by order ofthe Inquisition, my astonishment was soextreme that I was for some time mo-tionliess. On recollecting myself a little,I requested to speak to the coramissa^ry, but to complete my distress, theytold me he had set off that day for Gra.So that no comfort was left me but thehope which every one encouraged, thatI should be soon discharged ; becausethe Holy Office was not only just in itsdecisions, but it was infinitely moredisposed to mercy, and especially to-wards those who confessed their faultswith a good grace, without long solici-tation.

All these fine speeches did not pre-ventmy feeling my present misfortutie


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irery sensibly, and the company of toyfriends, who failed not to visit me, sOiar from consoling, afflicted me themore, by the comparisons I drew be-tween their condition and my own.As I had no enemies but concealedones, they easily intermixed with mybest friends. The governor and theblack priest, who wished fur nothingso much as my being taken away, wellknew hovv to dissemble their jealousyand malice ; the former, by seudingsome officers of his household to assureme that he participated in my distress,iand to offer me any thing that was inhis power : and the other by coming tothe gate to shed a few false tears, whiclijoy rather thaii condolence caused toflow*

tiixv. XLJDescription of the Pnsdn of Damauii.

I write to the liquisitors ivithoutSiiccf^ss. '^Ilie extreme misery of thePrisoners.The prison of Daraaun is adjaceut^

to, but below the level of the river, andis couse^uently damp and unheaithyo


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AT GOA. ^^ ft\^ years since it was inundated,by a hole which had been made in thewall by some prisoners for the purposeof escaping.The walls are very thick. The prisron consists of two large halls on th^ground floor, apd one ^.bove ; the menbeing confined in the lower, and th^women in the higher story. The lar-gest of the lowest halls is about forty|iet in length, by fifteen |n breadth, andthe lesser one is about two-thirds ofthose dimensions, About forty personswere confined in thisi ^paipe, \^ ithout a*ny Qther place of answering the ordi-nary demands of nature ; and where thecollected water formed a pool in thept ntre of the apartment. The womenhad no other convenience on their floorbut with this advantage, that the waterran offfrom their hall and filtered thro'the boards into ours, which thus be-came the reservoir of both. The onlyreceptacle for our other excrements wasa large tub, emptied but once a week,and engendering an immense quantitypf worins. which crawled over the floo^^ftvon Mlp^n our beds.


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^O JXQUISITION.Whilst I continued in this prison;

the pains which I too ^ to have it cleaii-sed. rendered it rather less disgusting ;but thougi. I often obliged them to throwon even fifty hue ets of water in a day,the stench was intolerable.So soon as I v* as immured in thismelancholy abode, and seriously con-templated my mischance, 1 readily dis-covered its occasion, and resolved toomit nothing which was likely to bringit to a termination.My friends perpetually inculcated,that fhe best and surest mode of regain-ing my liberty was to ma e a voluntaryconfession of what I might even con-jecture only to be the ground of accu-sation agaiiist me. Willing therefore,to avail myself of their counsel, I wroteto (he Grand Inquisitor at Goa ; I toldliim caadidly every thing of which Isupposed I might be accused, and be-seeched him to believe that if I had^rred, it was rather from levity and im-prudence, than from any ill intention.My letter was faithfully delivered ; but,contrary to my wishes, and the hoi)e ofmy friends, I received no answer, anil


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AT GOA. 41was allowed to languish in tins noisomeand dark dungeon, along with severalblacks, who as well as myself, had beenarrested by order of the Holy Office.The considerate benevolence of thegenerous Donna Francisca, which wasundiminished during the whole periodof niyimjn-isonment at Damaun, madeit rather more supportable. That no-ble lady was not content with sendingme mere necessaries only, but I dailyreceived from her suffi,cient to maintainfour persons, both plentifully and lux-uriously. She herself took the troubleto prepare my victuals, and the slavewho brought them was regularly ac-companied by one of her grandsons, towitness the delivery, lest any of her do-mestics, or the gaoler might be suborn-ed to poison me : and, as she couldnot personally visit me, she caused herhusband, her childred, or her sou-in-law, to come to me every day.The otlier prisoners were not so for-tunate. As there is no appointed sub-sistence for them, the magistrates referthe charge of the charity of those wHq


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4^ INQUISITIONmay be disposed to bestow it ; andthere being but two persons in the townwho distributed food to them regularlytwice a week, (the greater part havingnothing during the remainder,) theywere reduced to so pitiful a conditionâs to contribute, in no small degree, toincrea-ê my own affliction.

1 gave them all I could spare frommy allowance ; but some of tliese poorwretches, who were not confined in thesame apartment, were so pressed byhunger as to be compelled to devourtheir own excrements. Upon this oc-casion I learnt that, some years before,about fifty Malabar pirates having beentaKcn and thrown into this prison, thehorrible famine which they suffered,induced forty of them to strangle them-selves with the linen of their turbans.The distress I vritnessed, induced meto write to the governor and the princi-ple people in the town, who at lengthhad the kindness to send some relief toth^ wretched victims of the Holy OflSê.


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AT GO A. 4,3Chap. XII.

ne return of the Father Commissary >My removal to Goa.The Father Commissary, as I have

already stated saw nothiug criminal inthe confession 1 had voluntarily madeto him ; and though it had been other-wise, I ought, according to the laws of-the Inquisition, to have remained atlarge ; but as that was not tiie intentionof the governor or the black priest, thegood father, superseding the laws intheir f^ivour, had accused me as a dog-matizing heretic. He miglit have sentnie to ther Inquisition at Goa, immedi-ately upon my imprisonment, and hadlie so done I should have been liberatedthree months afterwards, at the Act ofFaith in December ; but it not accord-ing with the views of my rivals that Ishould be free so soon, the Commissaryso far from transporting me to Groa,went thither himself, to avoid my re-monstrances and petitions, and did notfeturn until after the celebration of thAct of Faith, that is tovvarxls the latter

G 4


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"MJ IN(iUISIT10N

end of December. Whether lie mightnot employ the four moths of his ab*sence in representing me to the Inquis-*itor as a very bad and dangerous nian^whom it was necessary to remove outof the Indies, 1 am ignorant ; but Ibave reason to suspect he did so, fromthe aifected severity of my sentence,which was considered to be extraordi-nary, even in Portugal.The Commissary returned oh theSOth of December with the flotilla,which, at that season, usually escortsmerchant ships from Goa to Cambay.The Father, who had an order tocause all the prisoners of the IncjuiHi-

tion to embark in the galliots, gave m^notice to be ready to depart when thefleet returned from Cambay,M. I'Abbe Carre passing through Da-maun, on his return from St. Thomas',where M. de la Haye then was, withmuch difficulty obtained pernnssion tosee me ; and had the goodness to cometo me on Christmas eve, and also thenext day, when hcdep-aied forSurat.

I wrote again to the Commissary,and entreated him, by different persons.


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AT iOA. 'that he would per .,it me to speak tobim ; but neither my letters nor the so-licitations of those wlio inierested them-selves for me, could prevail upon him :so justly apprehensive was he of bein^reproached for insincerity.About this time, a Portuguese cal-led Manuel Vas, with vvliom 1 was in-timately acquainted, being accused ofliaving a wife in Portugal, was arrested][)y an order of the Holy Office for hav-ing married a second at Damaun, andwas lodged in the same prison with me.My benevolent protectress being in-formed that 1 was to be transferred toGoa, was not neglectful to furnish mewith provisi .us sufficient for a muchlonger voyage than that I w as about totake. Part (if the fleet returning fromCambay on the last day of Dccemlier,the Commissary sent chains and fettersfor the prisoners who were to- departwith it. The i>lack*s were chained to-gether two and two, hut some of themwere so debilit^Ued by hunger, thatther feet, which they had no power touse. were unloosed on their embarking.The Portuguese and myself wer& hou-


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46 INQUISITIOJ^ored with separate irons ; and the Oom-missary had tlie politeness to intimatethat I might have the choice of thosedestined for his countrymen and myself.To profit by this civility, I chose themost commodious, though the heaviest;and was conveyed with my feet in fet-ters, in a palanquin to the banks of theriver, whcie 1 met several of my frinds,whom I was allowed to embrace on ex-changing our adieus. The governor,who was there also omitted nothingthat might persuade me t!iat he wasconcerned at my misfortune, and ex-pressed a thofisand hypocritical wishesfor my speedy release and happy re-turn. The sight of my friends, andfheir tears, augmented my affliction;

,

but no circumstance gave nie greaterpain than being refu=;ed the privilege oftaking leave of my benefactress, whomI was-ardently desirous to thank for allher kindiu'ss. At last, after many sor-rowful compliments, I was forced intoa boat, and put on board of one of thegalliots of the little fleet, which waiteflonly for the orders o^ the genera^.


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AT GOA. 47

Chap. XIII.Departure from Damaun. Arrival at

Basseen, and abode there. Arrivalat Goa.Although several of the galliots and

Vessels had not yet arrived from Diutind Camhay, the general, Louis deMello, made the signal fyr those whichwere at Damaun to sail on the first dayof the year lfi74, for Kasseeu, to waitiintil the remainder of the fleet shouldjoin. As the wind was fair, and wehad only twenty leagues to traverse,we reached Basseen the day following;and, immediately after the anchorswere dcopt, the prisoners were landed^^nd conducted to the prison for securi-ty whilst the fleet continued in the port,I was taken there with the rest : and afriend of mine, who had recently set-tled at Basseen, having unsuccessfullyattempted to obtain permission to visitme, expressed in a letter, which he hadconsiderable trouble to get conveyed tbme, how much he commiserated myfate.


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M INQUISITIOXThe prison of Basseen is more spa-cious and less filthy than that of Da-maim. We found there many compan-ions in misery, whom the commissaryof the Inquisition at that town liad de-

tained for some time, in expectation ofan opportunity to send them to (&oa.They were all chained as we were.We re embarked on the seventh, andal the fleet being assembled, and pro-vided with necessaries, we weighedanchor and sailed the next day.Nothing remarkable occurred duringthe lest of the voyage ; we were alwayswithin sight of land', and with a favour-able breeze arrived on the fourteeuikon the bar of Goa.Our captains having previously ap-prised the Inquisitor, we v. ere landedthe next day and led by his order tothe Inquisition ; but this not being anaudience day, one of the officers con-ducted us to the prison of the Ordinary,that is of the Archbishop of Goa, cal-led by the Portuguese Jl Jouvar. Iwas one of the first who entered it, andfilter wards saw all our unfortunate


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AT GOA. *9fpompany, which had been dispersedduring the voyage come in by degrees.

This prison was iiure foul, dark, aadhorrible than any one I had seen, andI duubt whether there can l)e on? "u;>renauseous and appa'Ung. It is a sort ofcavern, where the day is but jus dis-tinguishable through an exireuie nar-row aperture, where the most subiilesunbeam can scarcely penetrite, andwhere the clear light is never beheld.The sieacii was excessive ; for therewas no other place for the necessitiesof the prisoners than a well sunk i i thefloor, in the midst of the cavern, whichit required some resolution to approach;from which cnuse part of the ordure re-mained upon the brink, ad the great-est part of the prisoners did not evengo so far, but made their evacuations allar.)und. \heu nig!jt approached, Idurst not lie down for fear of theswarms of vermin, and the filth whichevery where abounded, but I was con-strained to recline against ihi^ -vail.

Yet, siiockiiig as is tiie M Joiivar, Iwould have [H-erencd it to the neat an


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50 iKQUisrnoxcaupe here T had the hlessings of socUe y and conversation, hnt in the prisonsof e Holy Office I was informed thoseenjoyments were debarred.

Chap. XIV.The manner in which I was conductedto the Inqmsition, and the observan-ces used there toivards prisoners ontheir entrance.

^'"S> ''"5?' Despair !Repeat the sounds, and celebrate his power :Unite shouts, screams, and agonizing shrieks,Till the loud pajan ring through heJl's high vault,And the remotest spirits of the deep.Leap from the Lake, and join the dreadful song.

1 had begun to flatteir myself that Ishould be permitted to remain in theM Jouvar^ until my business was set-tled, as I was not removed during thatday and the ensuing night ; but all myhopes vanished, when an officer cameabout eight o'clock in the morning ofthe 16th of January, with an order totake us to the Santa Casa, which wasimmediately executed. On account ofmy fetters, it was with great difficultyJhgit I reached the place to which I wa^


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AT GOA. 3tconclucteJ, yet with these sad appen-dages we were obliged to walk fromthe Al Jouvar to the Inquisitioa ; and,having been assisted in ascending thesteps, I entered, along with my com-panionsj into the great hall, where somesmiths attended to knock off onr irons.I was the first person summoned to theaudience.

After crossing the hall I was usher-ed into an anticharaber, and thence in-to the apartment wheve my judge wasseated. This place which is? called bythe Portuguese, /Jfescf?o Sjnta (^fficia,which signifies ^' the JRoard of tht- HolyOffice/' was adorned with tape^-iry,composed of taffety in stripes (


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US INQUISITIONchair, was the Grand Inquisitor of the,Indies, Francisco Delgado Ematos, asecular priest, about forty years ofage,Ke was alone, because the ^econd ofthe two Inquisitors usually resident at

iGoa ; and who is always a religious ofthe Dominician order, had recentlygO' e to Portugal, and his successor hadnot been appointed.

Immediately upon entering the audi-ence chamber, I cast myself at the feetof my Judge, with the design of affect-ing his feelings by my suppliant attirtude ; he would not suffer it, and com-manded me to rise. Having asked rayname and profession, he interrogatedme if I knew the occasion of my arrest,exhorting me to confess it freely, asthe only means of obtaining a promptdischarge. After satisfying him as tothe two first inquiries, 1 told him thatI believed I did know the cause of mydetention, and that if he would havathe goodness to hear me, I was readyinstantly to become my own accuser. Ijadded tears to y entreaties, and agaiaprostrated myself before him ; but myJudge, without the slightest emotioi]^


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AT GOA. 3Ssaid, that there was no haste ; that hehad other matters more important thanmine to attend to, and that he jvouldlet me know when he should have lei-sure for it ; and taking up a little sil-ver bell, which was laid before him,i*ang for the Alcaide or goaler of theHoly olfice, who came in and led meinto a long gallery, not far distant, intowhich the secretary almost directly foL^lowed us. My trunk was brought inand opened in my presence. I wasthoroughly searched, and every thingabout me was taken away, even to somebuttons, and a ring which I wore on myiinger without leaving me any thing butmy rosary, my handkercliief, and somepieces of gold which I had sewn intoone of my garters, and which they ne-glected to examine. An exact inven-tory was immediately taken of the restof my property, but which has sinceproved to have been wholly useless, asnothing of value vvas ever restored tolue, although the Secretary then declar-ed that every thing should be givenback upon my release ; and the Inqui-sitor himself often afterwards reiterat-ed the same promise.


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Sii INQUISITION

The inventory being finislied, theAlcaide took me by the hand, and ledme bare headed, to a little cell, aboutten feet square, in which 1 was lockedup alone, and saw no one until mysupper was brought in theevening. AsI had eaten nothing either that day orthe preceding, 1 gladly took what wasgiven to me, which enabled me to takesome rest during the night. AVhen mybreakfast was brought the next morning,I requested to be allowed some books,and my combs ; but I found that bookswere not permitted to any person, noteven the Breviary to priests ; and that1 should have no use for combs, as theycut off my hair without delay, whichis the practice with ail prisoners ofwhatever rank or sex, so soon as theyenter the prisons of the Holy Office, oi'the next day after at the latest.

I shall here break off the recital ofwhat relates to myself, for the purposeof briefly describing the house itself,and the regulations' and formalities ob-served in it.


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AT eoA. 35

CHAP. XV.SDescription of the Inquisition at Goa,The palace of the Inquisition, called

]l)j the Portugnese Santa Casa, or theHoly House, is situate on one side ofthe great square, opposite the cathedraldedicated to Saint Catherine. It is ex-tensive and magnificent ; in the frontp.re three entrances, of which the centreis the largest, and opens upon the grancjstaircase ascending to the h^ll which Iluave mentioned. The two other portalsseverally lead to the apartments of theInqilisitors, which are sufficiently com-modious for considerable establish-ments. Within, are various apartmentsfor the officers of the house ; and, pas-sing through th^ interior, there is a vastedifice divided into distinct masses orsquares of buildings of two stories each,separated hy small courts. In eachstory is a gallery, resembling a dormi-tory, containing seven or eight smallchambers, ten feet square ; the whol^number of which is about two hundred,B


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00 INQUISITIONIn one of these dormitories, the cellsare dark, being without windows, andsmaller and lower than the rest ; as Ihad occasion to know from the circum-stance of having been taken to see them,on complaining that I was too rigorous-ly treated, in order to satisfy me that Imight fare worse. The rest of the cellsare square, vaulted, whitewashed, cleanand lighted by a small grated and openwindow, placed at a height above thereach of the tallest man. All the wallsare five feet thick. Every chamber issecured by two doors, one opening in-wards, and the other without ; the innerdoor is made in two divisions, is strong,well-fitted, and opened by the lowerhalf in the manner of a grate; in the up-per part is a little window, throughwhich the prisoners receive their food,linen, and such other necessary articlesas can be so conveyed. There is a doorto this opening, guarded by strongbolts.The outer door is neither so thicknor so strong as the other, but it is en-

tire and without any aperture. It is


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4T GOA. 57

usually left open from six o'clock in themorning until eleven, in order to venti-late the ciiamber through the crevicesof tlie inner door.

CHAP. XVI.TfeatMent of ike Prisoners,TO each person whom misfortune

brings into these Holy prisons, is givenan earthen pot filled with water towash in 5 another of a better kind, alsofilled w ith water to drink ; with a Pn^caro, or vessel made of a sort of sigil-laceons earth, common in the Indies,and which keeps the water fresh, if re-tained in it for some time ; a brush tosweep the chamber; a mat to spread onthe platform for sleeping ; a large close-stool pan witli a pot cover, which ischanged every fourth day, and servesalso for receiving the filth collected bythe broom.

The? prisoners are tolerably wellkept. They have three meals daily.Breakfast is brouglit at six, dinner atten, and supper at four in the afternoon.The breakfast for blacks is generally

9 2


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58 INULilSITIUNean^e, or water thickened wilh ftccsaud their other meals always consist oflice and iish.The whites are treated more deli*cately. In the morning, a soft roll,weighing about three ounces, with friedfish and fruits ; or on Sundays, andsometimes on Thursdays, a sausage.On the latter days, also, they have Meatto dinner, with a roll as in the morn-ing ; a dish of rice and some ragout,ivith abundance of sauce to mix with therice, which is prepared with water andsalt only. On other days, they havenothing but fish for dinner. The sup-pers chiefly consist of bread, fried fish,a dish of rice, and a ragout of fish oreggs, the sauce of which may be eatenwith the rice; but not any flesh, not evenon Easter-day. I imagine that this re-gimen is used as much for the sake ofecont)my, (iish being very cheap in theIndies,) as to mortify those who haveincurred the pain of the greater exconi-iiumicaliou ; and at the same time, itpreserves them from the cruel disorderwhich the Iiidims call Mordechi, pro-^ediiKg from indigestion, tind which i*?


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AT GOA. 59tVequeiit and fatal in tliesu climates, es-pecially in a place vvhtiiecxci-cise can-not be taken.The sick receive every necessary at-tention with the greatest care. Physi-cians and surgeons visit them when ve-quiied, and if the disease becomes dan-gerous, confessors are introduced ; butthe Viatecum and extreme Unction arenever administered in this house, nor iseither Sermou or Mass ever heardthere.Those who die in prison are interred

within the house without any ceremo-ny ; and if, according to the maxims ofthe tribunal, they are deemed to haveincurred capital punishment, their bo-dies are taken up, and their remainspreserved to be burnt at the next Act ofFaith.As it is always hot in the Indies, andno books are allowed to any person inthe Inquisition, the prisoners never be-hold fire or any other light than that ofday. In each cell there are two plat-forms for the purpose of reposing upon,as it sometimes happens that two per-sons ar* confiaed together. In addi-

D 3


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60 IKQtJISITIONiionto the mat whicli is given to everyprisoner, Europeans have a checkedcounterpane, which serves fov a mat-tress; I here being no need of a covering,except to avoid the persecution of thepiosqaitos, which a;re in such numbersas to occasion one of the greatest incon-vcnieaces endured in this melancholyabode.

CHAP. XVII.QJ the different Officers of the Inquisi-

tion.

THEUE aretwolnqnisitorsat Goa.The chief, called the grand Inquisitor,is aUvays a secular priest ; and the se-cond, a religious of the order of St. Do-miuic. The Holy 031ce has also offi-cers denominated Deputies of the HolyOlfice, who are very numfirous, and ofall orders of religions. They assist atthe final decision of the cases of crimi-nals, and in preparing the accusationsagainst them; but do not attend the tri-bunalj unless summoned by the Inquisi-tors. There are others called Qimlifi-


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Ar GOA. 61cadovs of the Holy Office, to whom isco'nmitted tlie cliarge of examining thepropositions in sucb works as are sus-pected to contain any tiling contrary tothe purity of the Holy Faith ; but whodo not assist at the judgments, andcome to the tribunal only to make theirreports.There are besides, a Proctor and So-

licitor ; and Advocates for such prison-ers as wish to have them ; but whose as-sistance is better adapted to extracttheir private opinions, and to deceiverather than to defend thfe n ; and even iftheir fidelity was unsuspicious, theirprotection would be useless to the accu-sed, to whom they are not permitted tospeak, except in the presence of theirJudges, or of persons who are sent tomake a report of the conference.The Inquisition has other officerscalled FainiJiars of the Holy Office,who are properly speaking, the Tip-stairs of the tribunal. Persons of allranks, even dukes and princes, areproud of be*ng ndmitted to this noblei'unction. 'Chey are employed to arrest(hose who ar^5 accused, and it is cnstom-

1) -i'


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(33 INQUISITIONary to depute a Familiar of equal rankwith .the party to he apprehended.Tlfese officers have no wages, and theydeem llieniselves sufficiently rewardedby the honour conferred upon them inserving so holy a tribunal. They wearthe Iionourable distinction of a goldmedal, engraved with the arms of theHoly Office. When one of them is or-dered to make an arrest, he goes alone ;and having declared to the party, thathe is summoned by the Inquisitors, thelatter is obliged to follow him withoutreply ; for, on the slightest resistance,every body would assist the executionof the warrants of the Holy Office.There are also attached to the insti-

tution, several Secretaries, and Maren-tios^ properly called Inspectors; an Al-caide, or Gaoler, and Guards, to watchthe prisoners, and carry tliem their foodand other necessaries.

CHAP. XVIII.The Deportment oj the Officers of theInquisition towards the F^iHsonei's.A.S all the prisoners are separated ;^nd it rarely kap^eas that two are con-


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AT g6a. 63ilrjed ill the same cell, four persons aremore than sufficient to guard two hun-dred. A perpetual and rigid silence ispreserved in tlie Inquisition, and thos6%vho venture to utter their complaints, toSveep, or even to pray to God too loud-ly, are liable to be beaten by the guards ;Hvho, on hearing the slightest noise,liasten to the spot from whence it pro-ceeds, to requite silence ; and if a rep^^tition of the order be not obeyed, theyopentiie doors, and strike without mer-cy. This serves, not only to correctthe party who receives the chastisement,Ibut also to intimidate the rest ; who,from the profound stillness which reignsaround, all hear his cries ajid the soundof the blows. The Alcaide and theguards are always in the galleries andsleep there during the night. -

Tiie Inquisitor, attended by a secre-tary aiid inierpretor, visits every pris-oner about once in two months, to in-quire if any thing is wanted, if the victuals are brought at the appointed tim^s,and if there are any complaints to bepreferred against the officers ; and assoon as answers are returned; to these


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u INQUISITIONt-liree questions, the door is instantlyclosed. In effect, these visits are madefor no other purpose than to display-that justice and goodness, of whichthere is so much parade in this tribu-nal : but they produce neither comfortnor advantage to the prisoners who maybe disposed to complain, nor are theyever ti'jeated with more humanity in con-,sequence.Such of the prisoners as are wealthyhave no better allowance than thosdwho are poor, the latter being provided

for by the confiscations levied fro a theformer; for the Holy Office seldom failsto seize all the property, real and per-sonal, of those who are so unfortunateas to fall into its hands.

CHAP. XIX.Formalities obser-ved in the Inquisition.WHEN a person is arrested by theInquisition, he is first asked his name,and profession or quality, and is ^henrequired to render an accurate statementof all his effects. To induce him to li -


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AT GOA. 65this the more readily, lie is assured^ inthe name of Jesus Christ, that if he isinnocent all that he shall so declare willbe faithfully returned to him; but other-wise, even though he should be acquit-ted, such articles as may be discoveredto bel:i>ng to him, and not included inthe list, will be confiscated. From theuniversal prepossession entertained ofthe sanctity and integrity of this tribu-nal, it frequently happens, that a personwhose conscience reproaches him withno crime, and gives him no reason todoubt that his innocence will be ac-knowledged, and his liberty conse-quently restored, without hesitation eX"poses his most private and important,concerns.

It is not, however, without someplausibility, that the public mind is pre-judiced in favour of this tribunal, whichconsidered externally only, dispensesfiistice with more lenity and charity,than any other known jurisdiction.Those who voluntarily become their^)wn accusers : and testify their repen-tance before they are apprehehded,areallowed to he at large, v\ ithout fear of


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66 iNUuisinoNim^risoumeut. It is true, that those who-do not accuse themselves until aftertheir arrest, are deemed guilty and arecondemned as such ; but no one is sem-'tenced to any temporal punishment ex-tending to death, who is not clearly con-victed. Two or tliree witnesses only,as in lay jurisdictions, are here consid-ered too few for conviction ; arfd, thoughtwo witnesses are sufficient to obtain anorder for a person's apprehension, se-ven, at least, are necessary for his con-demnation. However palpable his guilt,or enormous the offence, the Holy Of-fice is satisfied with the ecclesiasticalpenalty of excommunication, and theconfiscation of property ; and should thecriminal be amenable to the civil courts,if he confesses his crime, he is, for thefirst time, exempt fronl all temporal andcorporal punishment. The Holy Of-fice intercedes for him, suspends tlie se-cular arm, and obtains his pardon,if to be procured by interest or entrea-

It is true, that should he repeat hisoffence, the Inquisition cannot againsave him ; but it abandons him with re-

4HM m .


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AT GOA, 67luctance, and only delivers liim to thecivii Judge, upon his promising that ifthe relapsed criminal should receivesentence of death, it shall be executedwithout effusion of blood. Here is ten-derness!

Hut after snyins all that can be al-leged in favour of tho ;loly OMce, somepaiiiculars mnst be added, which willexplaiuthe nature and extent of this ap-parent lenity and kindness. The wit-nesses are never confronted,^ all descri[>-tions of people are receiv ed as witness-es, even such as are interested in thedeath and condemnation of the accusedhe is not suffered to make any remarkupon the evidence of persons the mostnotoriously undeserving of credit, and"die most defective in their testimony.The number of the witnesses is ofieaTed need to five ; in which are compre-hended supposed accomplices, whosedepositions are extracted by torture :and who, to save their own lives, avowwhat they have not done ; and the ac-cused himself, who, confessing on therack the crime of whicli he is guiltless,iis also reputed as a witness. The num*


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68 INQtJISlTION.ber of seven is often substantially redu-ced to none, from being composed ofconvicts, who are really innocent of theoffences imputed to them, but whom theInquisition renders effectually criminal,by compelling them, either from dreadof the stake, or by torture, to accuse thegiiiltless in order to save tliemselves.To make this mystery intelligible, itshould be noticed that, amongst thecrimes cognizable in the Inquisition^,there are sonfe v, hich may be commit-ted by one persoA alone, as blasphemy,impiety, kc. there are others which(iannot be committed without one accom-plice at tiie least, as sodomy ; and otli-ers again, which require several, as as-sisting at the Jewish Sabbath ; partici-pating in those superstitious assemblieswhich the converted idolaters so reluc-tantly, relinquish, and which are deno-minated magic and witchcraft, becausethey are held in order to discover se-cret matters, and penetrate into futuri-ty by means which cannot naturallylead to such results.

It is in regard to such crimes as can-not be perpetrated without one or more


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At GOA. dJilcconiplites, that the proceedings of theHoly Office are the most extraordinary.The Jevvs> having heen expelledfrom Spain by Ferdinand, King of Ar-l-agun, and Isabella of Castille, hisQaeen, sought refuge in Portugal,^Viiere they were Jillowed to settle outhe condition of embracing Christianity,at least in outward profession. As theJewish name is every where odious, theChristian families are distinguished,froni the converted Jews, whose des-cendants, however remote, are termed,even to this day, JVew Christians) andas, in course of time, some of them haveformed matrimonial connexions with theold Christians, their issue are daily re-proached with being in part new, whichthe Portuguese express by saying, Ternparte dp Cristam novo; so that, thoughtheir grand-fathers and great grand fa-thers may have been Christians, theselinfortuniites are unable to procure ad^mission into the number of Cristamvelhos, or Old Christians. The familieswhich are thus directly or partially des-cended from Jews, being well knownin Portugal, and the objects of hatred


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70 INQUISITIONand malevolence to some, are obligedto associate together, for the inter-change of mutual services which theyCftiiRot receive from others ; and this ve-ry union increases the conte'npt andaversion which are entertained towardsthem, and is the general occasion oftheir troubles.

CHAP. XX.The injustice committed in the Inqui-

sition towards those accused of Ju-*daism.TO elucidate this matter, I will sup-

pose that a neu) Christian indeed, batwho is nevertheless most sincerely andtruly a Christian, though descendedfrom one at those unfortunate families,should be arrested by order of the In-quisition, and accused not by seven wit-nesses only, but by fifty. Such a man,convinced of his own innocence, whichhe trusts will be indubitably acknon-ledged, will have no hesitation in pre-senting an exact inventory of all hisproperty, relying upon its being faith-fully restored to him. Yet the d(or


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AT GOA. 71of liis pi'isoii will be scarcely closed,before every tbing that he has is soldby auction ; for, assuredly, restitutionwill never be made.

After some months have elapsed, heis sent for to the Audience, where he isasked if he knows the cause of his im-prisonment. To this, of course, he an-swers in the negative. He is then ex-horted to consider seriously, and con-fe-s, as his only chance offreedom ; andis tlien remanded to his confinement.Some time afterwards, he is againbrought in, and many times interroga-ted to the same purport, without pro-ducing any other answer than before.But when the period of the Auto da Feapproaches, the Proctor waits upon him,and declares that he is charged by agreat number of witnesses, of havingJudaized ; whicli means, having con-formed to the ceremonies of the Mosaiclaw; such as not eating pork, hare, fishwithout scales, &c. of having attendedthe solemnization of the sabbath, havingeaten the Pascal Lamb, &c. He i^*^then conjured ^' by the bowels of themercy of our Lord Jesus Christ," (for


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7^ INQUISITIONsuch are the, terras affected to be usedin this Holy Hotise,) voluntarily to cQn-fess his crimes, as the sole means tqsave his life ; and the Holy Office de-sires, if possible, to prevent his losingit. rhe innocent man persists in deny-ing what he is urged to confess ; he is,in consq^ence, condemned as convictanegativQ, (convicted, but confessingnot,) to be delivered over to the secularpower, to be punished according to law,that is, to be burnt.

Notwithstanding this, he is continu-ally exhorted to accuse himself, andprovided he does so before the eve ofthe Act, he may escape death. But if hepersists in asserting his innocence indespite of ^11 exhortation and solicita-tion, and even the torture to which he iis subjected to compel him to be hisown accuser ; the order for his death isdelivered to him on the Friday imme-diately preceding the Sqnday of the ce-lebration. The decree is signified in thepresence of a Tipstaff of the Lay courts,who casts a cord round the hands ofthe pretended culprit, to testify that helias taken possession of him, on his


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AT GOA. 73abandouraent by ecclesiastical justice.A Confessor is then introduced u ho re-mains with him day and night, and per-severes in pressing him most urgentlyto confess the charges against hiai, inorder to save his life. Should he con-tinue in his denial until Sunday, he iscruelly executed ; and should he accusehi aself, he is rendered infamous andwretched for his whole life. If the ad-vice of his Confessor and the fear ofpunishment induce him to acknowledgecrimes which he has not committed,he must demand to be conducted to theaudience, which is instantly granted,peing brought before his Judges, heis first required to confej^s his guilt,and theii to intreatfor mercy, as well forhis crimes as his obstinate denial ofthem ; and, as they assume the suppo-sition that his avowal is sincere, he isobliged to detail all his faults and allhis errors ; and the testimony which hasbeen deposed against him being com-municated t ' him, in order to complywith the requisition to the utmost; herepeats all that he hears,E


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f4i tNQUISITIoS

He, perhaps, then concludes that lieslhill be discharged ; but he has otherthings to perform, which are infinitelyless easy than what he has hithertod.; ic; for the Inquisitors, by degrees,bc^'U to urge hira in this way ' If thouha^t oliserved the iaw^ of Moses, audasnembled on the Sabbath-day as tiiouSfive^t, and thy accusers have seen theethere, as ajipears to have been the caseto convince us of the sincerity of thy re-pentance, tell us who are thine accusers,and ihose who have been with thee atthese assemblies.'

It is not easy to assign the motivewhy ihe gentlemen of the Holy Officeoblige these pretended Jews to conjec-tureWiio are tue witnesses against them,unless it is that the witnesses of the sab-bath are considered as accomplices ; buthow is the por wretch that is innocentto divine who they are ? and, though hewere guilty, what is the use of namingthem to the Holy Office, which knowsthem already, because it has re eivedtheir depositions, npun which alone heis treated as such? In all other cases,the names of the witnesses are coaceai-


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A"P GO A. 75cl from the crim'uial, to screen themfrom liis reproaches; but here he ismade to guess them. xVdmitting tiiatthey are accomplices, the Inquisitionkn^)ws them no better by their hein^ na-med. If they have been forced to avowtheir offefice in the prisons of the Inqui-sition, they either remain there still, orhave been in them ; and tiie Holy Of-fice can have no interest in making theaccused name them, which cannot ren-der him more innocent, nor them lessculpable. The oifender and the witnessare equally in the power of the Inquisi-tion ;what then is the object of thesejudges? If it is only to compel him toimpeach all his accomplices, by his at-tempts to name all liis witnesses, thatmight be of service if he were real iyguilty ; but, if he is no^, this impositionis of no other use than to harass the in-nocent:and so it is, for the poor newChristian being obliged to mention peo-p e whom he does not know, to the In-quisitor who does, (for other .vise theavowal of a crime of which he is not guil-ty would avail him nothing.) reasonsmuch in this manner :Those who


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7& ' INQISITIONhave accused me must necessarily bemj relations, my friends, and my neigh-bours ; and in fine, s6me of the New-Christians with whom I have associa-ted, for the Ancient Christians are ne-ver apprehended or suspected of Juda-ism ; and probably these very personsare placed in the same situation withmyself; I will, therefore, accuse themin return." Hence, as it is impossiblethat he should exactly guess those whohave deposed against him, in order tomake u[) the number of his six or sevenaccusers, he names a great many inno-cent persons who have never thought ofhim(against whom, how ever, he him-self becomes a witness by this decla-ration ;)upon which they are arrest-ed, and kept in the prisons of the HolyOSice until, in course of Time, sevenwitnesses (like the one 1 have descri-bed) are mustered against them, andensure their condemnation.


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AT GOA. *^*/CHAP. XXI.

The Practices of the Inquisition.,Tis for powersOf darkest hue to inspire a tale like mine,

Tis work for wizards, sorcerers, aijd fiends!

IT may be inferred from what hasbeen said in the preceding chapter^ thatthe miserable victims of the Inquisitionreciprocally impeach each other ; andthat, consequently, a man may be per-fectly innocent, although there are fiftywitnesses against him ; and yet. inno-cent as he is, if he should not accusehimself, or guess freely, he is deliveredup to the executioner as fully convict-ed ; which would happen less frequent-ly if the accuser, witnesses, and accu-sed, were confronted.The practice observed towards per-sons suspected of Judaism, a id whathas been said in respect to them, is tobe understood of persons charged withSorcery, from having attended the su-perstitious assemblies I have mention-ed ; and here the difficulty of namingthe witnesses is increased^ because theye3


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1^8 INQUISITIONhave not, like the new Christians, iolook for their accusers and accomplicesin a certain class ; but must find tlieinindiscriminately and fortuitously a-raougst their acquaintance, friends, kin-dred, enemies, and persons connectedwith no sect whatever; which is tliemore embarrassing to the innocent inthese casual and extorted accusations,as he must denounce a greater number,to recognize in such a crowd of inno-cent persons the witnesses respectingwhom he is interrogated.The effects of those who are execu-ted and those who confess are alikeconfiscated, because they are equally,reputed guilty. The Inquisitors do notso much desire the death as the pro-perty of their victims ; and as, accord-ing to the laws of the tribunal, apos-tates, and such as persevere in denyingtheir accusations, are alone deliveredto the secular arm, the Judges do everything in their power (not omitting tor-ture, which they have the goodness toinflict to the extresne, in order to savetheir lives) to induce them to confess.But the true reason, whicli makes them


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so anxious that a man should be his ownaccuser, i^ that, having declared hiia-Siif t(. be guilty, the vvorkl lias norigitto daubt tiiat \iU proper'^y is justly fo'-fei ed. The reuussion of the penalty )fdeath to these pretended criminals coi-founds we :k minds by an ostentation (fmercy and apparent justice, and tenchnot a little to maintain the opinion of tb^sarjctity and lenity of this tribuna,^A hich could not long exist without thivartifice.

It may be proper to observe here, thaithose wlio have thus escaped death b'"their ext rted confessions are strictl/^enjoined, when they h ave tlie prisons ifthe Holy Office, to declare that thyhave been treated witii great tendernessand clemency, in as much as their livs,which they justly merited to lose, hai'ibeen spared. Should any ne, whohffiacknowledged that he is guilty, aUemftto vindicate himself on his release. \v,would be immediately denounced anlarrested, and burnt at the next Act (fFaith, without hope of pardon.

E 4


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CHAP. XXII.tther acts of ivjustice commonly com-

mitted by the Inquisitiun,

/the Judges of the Holy Officefflight readily ascertain the truth or^Isehood of the charge of Judaism,yould they take the trouble to investi-Me the matter without prejudice ; sindp consider that, of an hundred person^iondemned to be hurnt as Jews, there[re scarcely four who profess that faithit their death; the rest exclaimiiig andprotesting to their last gasp tjiat theyae Christians, and have been so du-rng their whole lives ; that they wor-s ip our Saviour as their only true Godalid that on his mercy, and the merits ofis adorable sacrifice, alone, they re-ose their hope ; but the cries and de-larations of these unfortunates (if onelay so call those who suffer for not a-owing a falsehood) fail to touch thes6entlemei);, who imagine that this au-iientic confession of their faith, which!) many make at the very moment of


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AT 60A. 81sideiatioii ; and who believe that a cer-tain nupiber of witnesses, when the fearf being burnt only obliges them to ac-cuse the iniuicent, are sufficient to screentheai from the vengeance of God. But ifso many C-hristians dee >ied to be Jewsare uiijustly delivered to the execution-er in all ItKjuisitions, neither less great,nor less frequent injustice is committedin tlie Indies, towards those accused ofmagic or sorcery, and condemned to beburnt for those crimes.To place this in a proper light, itshould be pre ised that the fleathens,whose religi)n abounds with supersti-tious rites,(as for instance, to divinethe issue of an undertaking or diseasewhether one is beloved by a certain per-sonthe thief who has stolen what islostand other things of the like na-ture,)cannot so readily nor so entire-ly forget these things, but they oftenrecur to them after they are baptized.This will be thought the less extraordi-nary, if we recollect that in France,where the Christian religion has beenestablished for so many ages, persrmslire yet to be found who believe in;, and


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8S INQUISITIONpractise, many of fchcfse impertinent ceremonies, which even time lias notcaas-ed io be for^otton ; that the Heathens,so receutly converted, have passed thegreatest part of their existence in Pa-ganism ; and that those who live in tiiestares of the king of Portugal are sub-jects or slaves, who change their reli-gion in the ex|)ectation of better treat-ment from their lords or masters. Yetthese faults, which in rude and ignorantpe ple appear rather to deserve stripesthan the stake, are expiate'd with thatcruel punishment, by all those who areconvicted thereof according to the max-ims of this tribunal,for the secondtime, if they have confessed the first,or for the first, if they persist in deny-ing. The Inquisitiim also punislies, notonly Christians who fall, or are accusedof falling, wiihin the cases u der itscognizance, but Mahometans, licath-ens, or other strani;^er*, of whatever per-suasion, who commit any of the prohi-bited oiTences, or who publicly exercisetheir religion in the countries subjectto the kins; of P -rtugal ; for though thatprince tolerates liberty of conscience.


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AT GOA. 83the Holy Office interprets the permis-sion, that strangers may live in theirown faith, but are liable to be punishedas criminals if they practice its cere^monies.And as, in the territories ofthe Portuguese in India, there are moreMahometans and HeAthens than Chris-tians ; and the Inquisition, which pun-ishes apostate Christians with death,never sentences to that penalty thosewho have not been baptized, thoughthey should relapse a hundred times in-to the same errors, but generally com-mutes it for banishment, corporal cor-rection, or the gallies ; the dread of be-ing liable to be sentenced to the flameshinders many from embracing Christi-anity : and the Holy Office, in

(1819) an account of the inquisition in goa in india

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