LICENTIOUSNESS OF THE INQUISITORS.
Corruptions predicted--Licentiousness of celibate
Priests--Splendour of the Chief-inquisitor at Madrid--Inquisitors’
seraglios at Saragossa--Case of a Victim--Number of the Ladies of
three Inquisitors.
Divine Inspiration, describing the papal apostacy, gives various
striking particulars, illustrations of which are given variously in the
foregoing history. Among those shocking practices, the Holy Spirit
declares that its ministers “speak lies in hypocrisy; having their
conscience seared with a hot iron; forbidding to marry.”--1 Tim. iv. 2,
3.
Every one acquainted with the manners of the people in popish countries
is aware of the prevalence of impurity, even among the priests. It is
too notorious to be denied. All classes, from the popes downward, are
known to be guilty. Many papal bulls have condemned unchastity, with
characteristic hypocrisy, which may be illustrated by a single fact.
Pope Pius IV., A.D. 1561, issued a bull, directed to the Inquisition,
the commencement of which is as follows:--“Whereas certain ecclesiastics
in the kingdom of Spain, and in the cities and dioceses thereof, having
the cure of souls, or exercising such cure for others, or otherwise
deputed to hear the confessions of penitents, have broken out into such
heinous acts of iniquity as to abuse the sacrament of penance in the
very act of hearing the confessions, nor fearing to injure the same
sacrament, and Him who instituted it, our Lord God and Saviour Jesus
Christ, by _enticing and provoking, or trying to entice and provoke
females to lewd actions, at the very time when they were making their
confessions_,” &c., &c.
Upon the publication of this bull in Spain, the Inquisition issued an
edict requiring all females, who had been thus abused by the priests at
the confessional, and all who were privy to such acts, to give
information, within thirty days, to the holy tribunal; and very heavy
censures were attached to those who should neglect or despise this
injunction. When this edict was first published, as Catholic authors of
credit state, such a considerable number of females went to the palace
of the Inquisition, in the single city of Seville, to reveal the conduct
of their base confessors, that twenty notaries, and as many inquisitors,
were appointed to minute down their several informations against them;
but these being found insufficient to receive the depositions of so many
witnesses, and the inquisitors being thus overwhelmed, as it were, with
the pressure of such affairs, thirty days more were allowed for taking
the accusations; and this lapse of time also proving inadequate for the
intended purpose, a similar period was granted for a _third_ and a
_fourth_ time. Maids and matrons of every rank and station, dreading the
excommunication, crowded to the Inquisition. Modesty, shame, and the
desire of concealing the facts from their husbands, induced many to go
veiled. But the multitudes of depositions, and the odium which the
discovery drew on auricular confession and on the priesthood, caused the
Inquisition to quash the prosecutions, and to consign the depositions to
oblivion!
From the enormous hypocrisy and unparalleled cruelty that we have seen
recorded of the inquisitors, every one will be prepared to believe that
they must have been guilty of the most atrocious personal immoralities.
Many of them were priests; and the celibacy of the clergy, as enjoined
by the Romish religion, was the occasion of the most shocking
violations of the laws of God. These crimes are testified by papal
historians of the highest character, and proved by laws of the popes
made against them; but the records of the lives of the priests exhibit
the most disgusting and dreadful crimes.
Elevation in office generally rendered the inquisitors above all law;
and the peculiarity of their stations shielded them from accusation,
rendering it dangerous in the extreme for any one to breathe a whisper
against them. They, therefore, commonly rolled in luxury, and indulged
in licentiousness that would appear incredible, were it not for their
other enormities and abominations recorded on the faithful pages of
history.
The translator of Limborch’s history remarks, therefore:--“The
licentious character so largely applied to the Romish clergy has not
been wanting in those deputed to the office of inquisitors. Whilst by
the very constitution of their authority they are placed in a great
degree above the laws, they possess, in addition to their ecclesiastical
revenues, opportunities of amassing enormous wealth from the wreck of
those whom they condemn; and, besides, such unbounded power as to
command any object of desire, or to gratify any purpose of revenge. With
such temptations, therefore, it is no wonder if the inquisitor should
become voluptuous, and that, possessing the authority, he should assume
the vices of the oriental monarchs.” M. Lavallée, in his “Histoire des
Inquisitions Religieuses,” relates the following circumstance:--
“A gentleman, who was then (1809) residing at Paris, having business in
Lisbon some years before the French revolution, and being about to go
thither, took with him, from a nobleman at Versailles, a letter to the
chief-inquisitor at Madrid, through which he passed. On his arrival in
that city, being fatigued, and at the same time unwilling to impede his
journey, he fulfilled the ceremony of delivering the letter to the
inquisitor by the hands of his servant, excusing himself, on those
grounds, from doing himself the honour of a personal attendance. The
grand-inquisitor, however, came himself to his hotel, and, with great
politeness, prevailed on him to spend the evening at his residence. The
gentleman repaired to his apartment, and was lost in astonishment at the
splendour of the saloons, furniture, and attendants. After some noblemen
who were present had withdrawn, the inquisitor offered his guest a sight
of his bed-chamber; this surpassed anything that he had ever seen for
sumptuous elegance. The walls were hung with most exquisite paintings,
from the heathen mythology; the floor of the finest marble, and so
constructed as to admit the growth of orange trees, and a crystal
stream, which, imparting a delicious coolness, rolled off through basons
of porphyry, in subterranean channels, whilst the bed was adorned with
such tasteful drapery as to give to the whole the air of royalty. As
soon as the visitor had inspected with admiration the various
embellishments of this splendid retreat, which he was the more
surprised to find where he had rather expected to have seen the rigid
tokens of inquisitorial devotion, he prepared to withdraw. But the
inquisitor prevented him, expressing surprise that he should so soon
appear fatigued; then making a signal, a Dominican appeared (his
confidential minister), who conducted the traveller into a splendid
saloon, lighted by a profusion of wax candles; here a magnificent supper
was prepared, to which sat down the grand-inquisitor, his visitor, _six
ladies_ of great beauty and accomplishments, and some monks, who were
peculiar favourites. The evening was spent with the greatest gaiety,
whilst music, poetry, singing, and agreeable conversation protracted the
stay of the company until sunrise. At length the traveller took his
leave, greatly pleased with the courtesy of his highness, and admiring
the method of relaxation he had chosen, after the studies and fatigue
devolving on him from the Holy Office!”
Rev. D. A. Gavin, a Spanish priest, but, since 1715, a clergyman in the
Church of England, in his “Master-Key to Popery,” vol. i., p. 192-205,
gives the following account by a lady, daughter of Counsellor Balabriga,
of Saragossa. She had been seized by the familiars of the Holy Office,
and confined there, with others, as a victim of the abominable
licentiousness of the inquisitors; but delivered from her degradation by
the French army, when part of the troops were quartered at Saragossa,
after the great battle of Almanza, in 1706. M. de Legal, the
lieutenant-general, having been excommunicated by the inquisitors, on
account of his making an assessment upon them for the support of his
troops, sent four regiments of soldiers to eject the inquisitors, and
release the prisoners. Among these, amounting to about _four hundred_,
he found _sixty_ young women, who had formed the seraglios of the three
inquisitors. On learning this event, the Archbishop of Saragossa,
fearing the disgrace that would arise from the discovery of such
atrocious wickedness, desired the general to send the young women to his
palace, that he might take care of them. But M. de Legal replied, that
he would gladly oblige his grace, but that it was not in his power, for
the ladies were taken care of by the French officers. One of these
ladies, whose family was known to Gavin, being married by a French
officer, her deliverer, gave her history to her friend, some time after,
when he met her in his travels in France.
“I went one day,” said this lady, “with my mother, to visit the Countess
of Attaress, and I met there Don Francisco Torrejon, her confessor, and
second inquisitor of the Holy Office. After we had drunk chocolate he
asked me my age, and my confessor’s name, and so many intricate
questions about religion that I could not answer him. His serious
countenance did frighten me; and, as he perceived my fear, he desired
the countess to tell me that he was not so severe as I took him to be;
after which he caressed me in the most obliging manner in the world,
gave me his hand, which I kissed with great respect and modesty; and
when he went away, he told me, ‘My dear child, I shall remember you till
the next time.’ I did not mind the sense of the words, for I was
inexperienced in matters of gallantry, being only fifteen years old at
that time. Indeed, he did remember me; for the very night following,
when we were in bed, hearing a hard knocking at the door, the maid that
lay in the same room where my bed was, went to the window, and asking,
‘Who is there?’ I heard say, ‘The Holy Inquisition!’
“I could not forbear crying out, ‘Father! father! I am ruined for ever!’
My dear father got up, and inquiring what the matter was, I answered
him, with tears, ‘The Inquisition!’ and he, for fear that the maid
should not open the door so quick as such a case required, went himself,
as another Abraham, to open the door, and to offer his dear daughter to
the fire of the inquisitors; and as I did not cease to cry out, as if I
was a mad girl, my dear father, all in tears, did put in my mouth a
bridle, to show his obedience to the Holy Office, and his zeal for the
Catholic faith; for he thought I had committed some crime against
religion. So the officers, giving me but time to put on my petticoat and
a mantle, took me down into a coach, and, without giving me the
satisfaction of embracing my dear father and mother, they carried me
into the Inquisition. I did expect to die that very night; but when they
carried me into a noble room, well furnished, and an excellent bed in
it, I was quite surprised. The officers left me there, and immediately
a maid came with a silver salver of sweetmeats and cinnamon-water,
desiring me to take some refreshment before I went to bed. I told her I
could not, but that I should be obliged to her if she would tell me
whether I was to die that night or not? ‘Die!’ said she, ‘you did not
come here to die, but to live like a princess; and you shall want
nothing in the world but the liberty of going out. And now, pray mind
nothing, but go to bed and sleep easy, for to-morrow you shall see
wonders in this house; and, as I am chosen to be your waiting-maid, I
hope you will be very kind to me. I have not leave to tell you anything
else till to-morrow, only that nobody shall come to disturb you, for my
bed is in the closet near your bed.’
“The great amazement that I was in took away all my senses, or the free
exercise of them; for I had not liberty to think of my parents, nor of
my grief, nor of the danger that was so near me. So, in this suspension
of thought, the waiting-maid came, and locked the chamber-door after
her, and told me, ‘Madam, let us go to bed, and only tell me at what
time in the morning will you have the chocolate ready?’ ‘Mary! for
heaven’s sake,’ said I, as she had told me her name, ‘tell me whether I
am to die or not.’ ‘I told you, madam, that you come,’ said she, ‘to
live as one of the happiest creatures in the world.’ And as I observed
her reservedness, I did not ask her any more questions; so recommending
myself to God Almighty, and to our Lady of the Pillar, and preparing
myself to die, I went to bed, but could not sleep. I was up with the
day, but Mary slept till six of the clock. She left me half an hour
alone, and came back with a silver plate, with two cups of chocolate and
some biscuits. I drank one cup and desired her to drink the other.
‘Well, Mary,’ said I, ‘can you give me any account of the reason of my
being here?’ ‘Not yet, madam,’ said she, ‘but only have patience for a
little while.’ With this answer she left me, and an hour after came
again with two baskets, with a fine Holland shift, a Holland
under-petticoat, with fine lace round about it; two silk petticoats, and
a little Spanish waistcoat with a gold fringe all over it; with combs
and ribbons, and everything suitable to a lady of higher quality than I.
But my greatest surprise was to see a gold snuff-box, with the picture
of Don Francisco Torrejon on it. Then I soon understood the meaning of
my confinement. So I considered with myself that to refuse the present
would be the occasion of my immediate death, and to accept of it was to
give him, even on the first day, too great encouragement against my
honour. But I found, as I thought then, a medium in the case; so I said,
‘Mary, pray give my service to Don Francisco Torrejon, and tell him
that, as I could not bring my clothes with me last night, honesty
permits me to accept of these clothes, which are necessary to keep me
decent; but, since I take no snuff, I beg his lordship to excuse me if I
do not accept this box.’ Mary went to him with this answer, and came
again with a picture nicely set in gold, with four diamonds at the four
corners of it, and told me that his lordship was mistaken, and that he
desired me to accept that picture, which would be a great favour to him;
and while I was thinking with myself what to do, Mary said to me, ‘Pray,
madam, take my poor advice; accept the picture, and everything that he
sends to you; for consider, that if you do not consent and comply with
everything he has a mind for, you will soon be put to death, and nobody
will defend you; but if you are obliging and kind to him, he is a very
complaisant and agreeable gentleman, and will be a charming lover; and
you will be here like a queen, and he will give you another apartment
with a fine garden, and many young ladies shall come to visit you. So I
advise you to send a civil answer to him, and desire a visit from him,
or else you will soon begin to repent yourself.’ ‘O dear me!’ said I,
‘must I abandon my honour without any remedy? If I oppose his desire, he
will obtain it by force;’ and, full of confusion, I bid Mary to give him
what answer she thought fit. She was very glad of my humble submission,
and went to give Don Francisco my answer. She came back, in a few
minutes after, all overjoyed to tell me that his lordship would honour
me with his company at supper, and that he could not come sooner on
account of business that called him abroad; but, in the meantime, he
desired me to divert myself, and to give Mary my measure for a suit of
new clothes, and order her to bring me everything that I could wish for.
Mary added to this, ‘Madam, I may now call you _my mistress_; and must
tell you, that I have been in the Holy Office these fourteen years, and
I know the customs of it very well; but because silence is imposed upon
me under pain of death, I cannot tell you anything but what concerns
your person. So, in the _first_ place, do not oppose the holy father’s
will and pleasure; _secondly_, if you see some young ladies here, never
ask them the occasion of their being here, nor anything of their
business; neither will they ask you anything of this nature; and take
care not to tell them anything of your being here. You may come and
divert yourself with them, at such hours as are appointed; you shall
have music and all sorts of recreations. Three days hence you shall dine
with them; they are all ladies of quality, young and merry, and this is
the best of lives. You will not long for going abroad, you will be so
well diverted at home; and when your time is expired, then the holy
fathers will marry you to some nobleman. Never mention the name of Don
Francisco, nor your name, to any one. If you see here some young ladies
of your acquaintance in the city, they will never take notice of your
formerly knowing each other, though they will talk with you of
indifferent matters; so take care not to speak anything of your family.’
“All these things together stupified me, and the whole seemed to me a
piece of enchantment; so that I could not imagine what to think of it.
With this lesson she left me, telling me she was going to order my
dinner; and every time she went out she locked the door after her. There
were but two high windows in my chamber, and I could see nothing
through them; but, examining the room all over, I found a closet with
all sorts of historical and profane books. So I spent my time till the
dinner came in, reading some diverting amorous stories, which was a
great satisfaction to me. Mary came with the things for the table, but I
was inclined to sleep; so she asked me when she should wake me, and I
proposed two hours. My sleep was a great refreshment to me; and at the
time fixed she waked me to dinner, which consisted of every thing that
could satisfy the nicest appetite. After dinner she left me alone,
directing me to ring the bell to call her, if I needed anything; so I
went again to my closet, and spent three hours in reading. I really
think I was under some enchantment; for I was in a perfect suspension of
thought, so as to remember neither father nor mother; and what was most
in my mind I do not know. Mary, at length, came and told me that Don
Francisco was come home, and she thought he would come to see me very
soon; and begged of me to prepare myself to receive him with all manner
of kindness. At seven in the evening Don Francisco came in his
night-gown and night-cap, not with the gravity of an inquisitor, but
with the gaiety of an officer. He saluted me with great respect and
civility, and told me he had designed to keep me company at supper, but
could not that night, having some business of consequence to finish in
his closet; and that his coming to see me was only out of the respect he
had for my family, and to tell me, at the same time, that some of my
lovers had procured my ruin for me, accusing me in matters of religion;
that the informations were taken, and the sentence pronounced against me
was, to be burnt alive in the dry-pan with a gradual fire; but that he,
out of pity and love to my family, had stopped the execution of it. Each
of these words was a mortal stroke on my heart, and knowing not what I
was doing, I threw myself at his feet, and said, ‘Seignior, have you
stopped the execution for ever?’ ‘That belongs only to you to stop it or
not,’ said he; and with this he wished me a good night. As soon as he
went away, I fell a crying; but Mary came and asked me what could oblige
me to cry so bitterly. ‘Ah! good Mary,’ said I, ‘pray tell me what is
the meaning of the dry-pan, and gradual fire? for I am in expectation of
nothing but death, and that by it.’ ‘O! madam, never fear, you will see
the dry-pan and gradual fire another day; but they are made for those
that oppose the holy fathers’ will, but not for you that are so ready to
obey them. But pray, was Don Francisco very civil and obliging?’ ‘I do
not know,’ said I, ‘for his discourse has put me out of my wits; this I
know, that he saluted me with respect and civility, but he left me very
abruptly.’ ‘Well,’ said Mary, ‘you do not know his temper; he is the
most obliging man in the world, if people are civil with him; and if
not, he is as unmerciful as Nero. And so, for your preservation, take
care to oblige him in all respects. Now pray go to supper, and be easy.’
“I was so much troubled in mind with the thoughts of the dry-pan and
gradual fire, that I could neither eat nor sleep that night. Early in
the morning, Mary got up, and told me that nobody was yet up in the
house, and that she would show me the dry-pan and gradual fire, on
condition that I should keep it a secret for her sake, and my own too,
which I having promised her, she took me along with her, and showed me a
dark room with a thick iron door, and within it an oven and a large
brass pan upon it, with a cover of the same, and a lock on it--the oven
was burning at that time, and I asked Mary for what use that pan was
there? And she, without giving me any answer, took me by the hand out of
that place, and carried me into a large room, where she showed me a
thick wheel, covered on both sides with thick boards, and opening a
little window in the centre of it, desired me to look with a candle on
the inside of it, where I saw all the circumference of the wheel set
with sharp razors. After that, she showed me a pit full of serpents and
toads. Then she said to me, ‘Now, my good mistress, I will tell you the
use of these three things. The dry-pan and gradual fire are for
heretics, and those that oppose the holy fathers’ will and pleasure; for
they are put all naked and alive into the pan, and the cover of it being
locked up, the executioner begins to put in the oven a small fire, and
by degrees he augments it, till the body is reduced to ashes! The second
is designed for those who speak against the pope and the holy fathers;
for they are put within the wheel, and the little door being locked, the
executioner turns the wheel till the person is dead. And the third is
for those who condemn the images, and refuse to give the due respect and
veneration to ecclesiastical persons; for they are thrown into the pit,
and they at once become the food of serpents and toads!’
“Then Mary said to me that another day she would show me the torments
for public sinners and transgressors of the five commandments of our
holy mother the church; so I, in deep amazement, desired her to show me
no more places; for the very thoughts of those three which I had seen
were enough to terrify me to the heart. So we went to my room, and she
charged me again to be very obedient to all the commands Don Francisco
should give me, or to be assured, if I did not, that I was to undergo
the torment of the dry-pan. Indeed, I conceived such a horror of the
gradual fire, that I was not mistress of my senses, nay, nor of my
thoughts. So I told Mary that I would follow her advice, and grant Don
Francisco everything he would desire of me. ‘If you are in that
disposition,’ said she, ‘leave off all your fears and apprehensions, and
expect nothing but pleasure and satisfaction, and all manner of
recreation; and you shall begin to experience some of these things this
very day. Now let me dress you, for you must go and wish a good-morrow
to Don Francisco, and breakfast with him.’ I really thought this was a
great honour to me, and some comfort to my troubled mind; so I made all
the haste I could, and Mary conveyed me through a gallery into Don
Francisco’s apartment. He was still in bed, however, and desiring me to
sit down by him, told Mary to bring the chocolate two hours after; and
with this she left me alone with Don Francisco, who immediately ardently
declaring his inclinations, I had not the liberty to make any excuse,
and so, by extinguishing the fire of his passion, I was freed from the
gradual fire and dry-pan, which was all that then troubled my mind. When
Mary came with the chocolate, kneeling by the bed, she paid me homage as
if I had been a queen, and served me first with a cup of chocolate,
still on her knees, and bade me to give another cup to Don Francisco
myself, which he received mighty graciously. Having drunk up the
chocolate, she went out, and we discoursed for a while of various
things, but I never spoke a word except when he desired me to answer
him. So, at ten of the clock, Mary came again, and dressing me, she
desired me to go along with her; and leaving Don Francisco in bed, she
carried me into another chamber, very delightful, and better furnished
than the first, for the windows of it were lower, and I had the pleasure
of seeing the river and gardens on the other side out of it. Then Mary
told me, ‘Madam, the young ladies of this house will come before dinner
to welcome you, and make themselves happy in the honour of your company,
and will take you to dine with them. Pray remember the advice I have
given you already, and do not make yourself unhappy by asking useless
questions.’ She had not finished these words, when I saw entering my
apartments--which consisted of a large anti-chamber, and a bed-chamber
with two large closets--a troop of young, beautiful ladies, finely
dressed, who all, one after another, came to embrace me, and to wish me
joy. My senses were in a perfect suspension, and I could not speak a
word, nor answer to their kind compliments. But one of them, seeing me
so silent, said to me, ‘Madam, the solitude of this place will affect
you in the beginning; but when you are sometime in our company, and feel
the pleasures of our amusements and recreations, you will quit your
pensive thoughts. Now we beg of you the honour to come and dine with us
to-day, and henceforth three days in a week.’ I thanked them, and we
went to dinner. That day we had all sorts of exquisite meats, and were
served with delicate fruits and sweetmeats. The room was very long, with
two tables on each side, and another at the front of it, and I reckoned
in it, on that day, _fifty-two_ young ladies, the oldest of them not
exceeding _twenty-four_ years of age. Six maids did serve the whole
number of us; but my Mary waited on me alone that day. After dinner, we
went up stairs into a long gallery, all round about with lattice
windows, where some of us playing on instruments of music, others
playing at cards, and some walking about, we spent three hours together.
At last, Mary came up ringing a small bell, which was the signal to
retire into our rooms, as they told me: but Mary said to the whole
company,--‘Ladies, this is a day of recreation; so you may go into what
room you please till eight of the clock, and then you are to go into
your own chambers.’ So they all desired leave to go with me to my
apartment to spend the time there; and I was very glad that they
preferred my chamber to another. All going down together, we met in my
anti-chamber, where we found a large table with all sorts of sweetmeats
upon it, iced cinnamon-water, almond-milk, and the like. Every one did
eat and drink, but nobody spoke a word touching the sumptuousness of the
table, nor mentioned anything concerning the inquisition of the holy
fathers. So we spent our time in merry, indifferent conversation till
eight of the clock. Then every one retired to her own room, and Mary
told me that Don Francisco did wait for me; so we went to his apartment,
and supper being ready, we both alone sat to table, attended by my maid
only.
“After supper Mary went away, and we to bed; and next morning she did
serve us with chocolate, which we drank in bed, and then slept till ten
of the clock. Then we got up, and my waiting-maid carried me into my
chamber, where I found ready two suits of clothes of a rich brocade, and
every thing else suitable to a lady of the first rank. I put on one, and
when I was quite dressed, the young ladies came to wish me a
good-morrow, all dressed in different clothes, and better than the day
before; and we spent the second and third days in the same recreation,
Don Francisco continuing also with me in the same manner. But the fourth
morning, after drinking chocolate in bed, as the custom was for Don
Francisco and me, Mary told me that a lady was waiting for me, in her
own room, and desired me to get up, with an air of command; and Don
Francisco saying nothing against it, I got up and left him in bed. I
thought really that this was to give me some new comfort and diversion;
but I was very much mistaken; for Mary conveyed me into a young lady’s
room, not eight feet long, which was a perfect prison, and there, before
the lady, told me, ‘Madam, this is your room, and this young lady your
bed-fellow and comrade;’ and left me there with this unkind command.
“I was in a most desperate condition; but my new sister, Leonora,--this
was her name,--prevailed so much upon me, that I overcame my vexation
before Mary came again to bring our dinner. Then she began to say, ‘My
dear sister, you think it a hard case that has happened to you; I assure
you, all the ladies here in this house have already gone through the
same, and in time you shall know all their stories, as they hope to know
yours. I suppose that Mary has been the chief instrument of your fright,
as she has been of ours; and I warrant she has shown to you some
horrible places, though not all, and that, at the very thought of them,
you were so much troubled in your mind, that you have chosen the same
way that we did, to get some ease in our hearts. By what has happened to
us, we know that Don Francisco has been your Nero; for the three colours
of our clothes are the distinguishing tokens of the three holy fathers:
the _red_ silk belongs to Don Francisco, the _blue_ to Guerrero, and the
_green_ to Aliaga. For they give, for the first three days, these
colours to those ladies that they bring for their use. We are strictly
commanded to make all demonstrations of joy, and to be very merry three
days, when a young lady comes here, as we did with you, and you must do
with others. But, after it, we live like prisoners, without seeing any
living soul but the six maids and Mary, who is the housekeeper. We dine
all of us in the hall three days a week, and three days in our rooms.
When any of the holy fathers has a mind for one of his slaves, Mary
comes for her at nine of the clock, and conveys her to his apartment. If
one of us happens to be with child, she is removed into a better
chamber, and she sees nobody but the maid, till she is delivered. The
child is taken away, and we do not know where it is carried. We are at
present fifty-two young ladies, and we lose every year six or eight; but
we do not know where they are sent. At the same time we get new ones;
and I have sometimes seen here _seventy-three_ ladies. All our continual
torment is to think, and with great reason, that when the holy fathers
are tired of one, they put her to death; for they never will run the
hazard of being discovered in these misdemeanours, by sending out of the
house any of our companions.’
“We lived together eighteen months, in which time we lost eleven ladies,
and got nineteen new ones. After the eighteen months, one night Mary
came and ordered us to follow her. On our going down stairs, she bade us
go into a coach, and this we thought the last day of our lives. We went
out of the house, but where we did not know, till we were put in
another house and room, worse than the first, where we were confined
above two months, without seeing any of the holy fathers, or Mary, or
any of our companions. And in the same manner we were removed from that
house to another, where we continued till we were miraculously delivered
by the French officers. Mr. Faulcaut, happily for me, did open the door
of my room; and, as soon as he saw me, he began to show me very much
civility, and took me and Leonora along with him into his lodgings; and
after he heard my whole story, and fearing that things would turn to our
disadvantage, he ordered the next day to send us to his father. We were
dressed in men’s clothes, to go the more safely; and so we came to this
house, where I was kept for two years as the daughter of the old man,
till Mr. Faulcaut’s regiment being broken, he came home, and in two
months after married me. Another officer married Leonora.”