grille, with a demand to be informed of the stranger's name and the
precise nature of his business with the Holy Father, to which George
replied that it was useless for him to give his name, since it was quite
unknown to the Father Superior, and that his business was not only most
urgent but was for the Holy Father's ear alone, and that it was
imperative that he should be admitted without an instant's unnecessary
delay. A further and somewhat longer wait then ensued, and Basset was
strongly urging the desirability of an attempt to burst the wicket open
when the friar appeared for the third time and, shooting certain heavy
bolts on the inside of the wicket, flung it open. To push his way in
was for George the work of but a moment, when, to the dismay and
indignation of the gatekeeper, he was instantly followed by eleven
soldiers, armed to the teeth.
"The keys!" exclaimed George, to Basset. "Take his keys from him, lock
the gate, and station two men here as sentries, with orders to allow no
one to leave the building. That is well," as his orders were obeyed.
"Now, the rest of you, follow me. Lead the way, old man, to the
quarters of the Father Superior; I must see him forthwith. Are you the
keeper also of the keys which give access to the cells?" to the friar
who had admitted them.
"No," answered the cowering creature. "The gaoler carries those. But
what would you with them, thou man of violence? No one is permitted to
enter the cells without the permission of the Father Superior."
"Lead me to him, then," repeated George. "Captain Basset," he
continued, "I will take two men with me. Take you the remainder and
secure every door giving access to the exterior of this building. No
man must on any account be allowed to leave it, for if that should
happen, they will raise the inhabitants of the town upon us, and there
will be bloodshed, which I wish to avoid, if possible. Now, sir," to
the friar, "lead the way."
While Basset marched off the remaining half-dozen of his men to execute
George's order, the latter, accompanied by two soldiers, followed his
unwilling guide into the main building and down a long corridor to a
door, at which the friar knocked with a trembling hand.
"Enter!" responded a voice in Spanish, whereupon George, gently pushing
his guide aside and beckoning the two soldiers to follow him, threw open
the door and passed into the apartment. It was a large and very
handsomely furnished room, containing a table, sofa, several lounging
chairs, and a large book-case, full of books, facing the two wide and
lofty windows which lighted the room and which looked out upon a
spacious, beautifully kept garden. On one wall hung a large crucifix,
the cross made of ebony while the exquisitely carved figure of the
crucified Christ was of ivory, fastened to the cross with golden nails,
while the crown of thorns which encircled the drooping head was also
made of gold. Two large pictures, one of which represented the Descent
from the Cross, and the other the Entombment, hung on either side of the
crucifix; and the opposite wall was occupied by a very large and
beautiful painting depicting the Apotheosis of the Virgin Mother.
At the entrance of the three armed men a tall and dignified figure clad
in priestly garments rose from the table and, with a ringer inserted
between the pages of a book which he had been reading, haughtily
demanded, in Spanish:
"Who are you, sir; and what is the meaning of this unseemly--this
audacious--intrusion upon my privacy?"
George replied to this question by asking another. "Am I right," he
demanded, "in supposing you to be the Right Reverend Father Superior of
this institution?"
"And if I am, what then?" demanded the other.
"Only that you are the man I happen to want," replied George. "I am an
Englishman," he continued, "and the captain of a ship which holds this
city at her mercy. I and my companions have come all the way from
England to avenge the most foul and treacherous attack made by your
Viceroy upon a fleet of English ships in this harbour, last year; and,
incidentally, to call you, sir, to account for your treatment of certain
of the prisoners taken upon that occasion, who were delivered into your
hands. I have here--"
"But--but--" interrupted the Father Superior--for such was the
individual upon whose privacy George had so unceremoniously intruded--"I
do not understand. Why have you been permitted to come here? Where are
our soldiers, and what are they doing--?"
"Have I not already explained that the town is at my mercy?" interrupted
George in his turn. "What further enlightenment do you need? As to
your soldiers, they dare not interfere with me, for my ship's guns
command the town, and my crew have orders to destroy the place if any
attempt is made to resist me. Now, I have a list here"--drawing it from
his pocket--"containing the names of sixteen men who, I am told, were
claimed by this Inquisition; and my business with you is to demand an
account of them. Where are they, and what have you done to them?"
"How, in the name of all the saints, can I possibly answer your
question, senor, unless you furnish me with the names of the men you
refer to?" demanded the priest, with a valiant attempt to brazen the
matter out, but there was a quaver in his voice which betrayed that he
was beginning to feel anxious, if not actually apprehensive, concerning
the outcome of this astounding business.
"There is the list, senor," answered George, laying the document on the
table. "Take it, I pray you, and let me have an instant reply to my
demand."
The Father Superior took the list and ran his eye over it, ponderingly.
Then he laid it down again and said:
"Senor Englishman, I cannot possibly answer your question offhand, for I
do not tax my memory to recollect exactly how every person who enters
the walls of this building has been dealt with. But if you will suffer
me to ring for my secretary I have no doubt that, with his assistance, I
can furnish you with the information you require."
"By all means," assented George; and the Father Superior thereupon
turned to the wall and jerked a bell rope. A slight interval followed,
and then a very frightened priest entered.
"Holy Father," he began, "the building is in the possession of armed
men--" and then, catching sight for the first time of George and the two
soldiers, who were standing somewhat in the shadow, he stopped short, at
the same time making the sign of the Cross.
"Yes, proceed, Fray Matthew," exhorted the other. "You were saying that
the building is in the possession of armed men. What else?"
"They have taken the gaoler, your Eminence, locked him in one of his own
cells, and are now liberating the prisoners including one whom they have
taken out of the very torture chamber itself."
"Is this true, senor?" demanded the Father Superior. "And, if so, is
this sacrilege being committed by your orders?"
"I know not whether that man's story is true or not," said George, "but
I think it exceedingly probable; and, if so, it is certainly being done
by my orders. As to the sacrilege of the thing--" the young man
shrugged his shoulders expressively.
The Holy Father also shrugged his shoulders, as though to say--"Well, if
you are struck dead, don't blame me; it will only be what you richly
deserve." Then he turned to Fray Matthew.
"Fray," he said, "bring me hither the book containing the record of
persons admitted to the Inquisition during the past year, with
particulars of the manner in which they have been dealt with."
The priest, with another frightened glance at George and the two stolid-
looking soldiers, hurriedly retired; and as he vanished through the
doorway the Father Superior coolly turned his back upon the Englishman
and, sauntering to the nearest window, stood gazing contemplatively
through it into the garden, which, George observed, was all ablaze with
tropical flora. And there he remained, taking not the slightest notice
of his self-invited visitors until, after an absence of some ten
minutes, the Fray returned, bearing two enormous books under his arm,
the which he laid upon the table. Then, sauntering back to the table as
leisurely as he had left it, the Holy Father took up the list which
George had handed to him, considered it for a moment, opened one of the
two books which had been brought to him, referred to an index, and then
turned over the pages of the book until he found the one which he
wanted. Then he ran his finger down a column, paused, and looked up.
"Here," he said, looking up and addressing George, "is the entry
referring to the first man on your list. It states that, after having
been put to the question in various ways, he died, on--such a date, in
his cell."
"Thank you," said George. "Now, before we go any farther, I must ask
you to kindly explain exactly what you mean when you speak of a man
being `put to the question.'"
For the first time the Father Superior exhibited distinct symptoms of
uneasiness. He hesitated perceptibly, and at length replied:
"The expression refers to certain means which are adopted in extreme
cases when, for instance, the subject displays great obduracy, to
persuade him to renounce his heresy, accept the canons of the true
faith, and humbly sue for admission into the bosom of the Catholic
Church."
"But that only partially answers my question," retorted George. "You
speak of `certain means which are adopted in extreme cases.' What,
precisely, is the nature of those means to which you refer?"
The Holy Father's uneasiness visibly increased, and he began to fence
with the question.
"I take it," he said, after some consideration, "that you, my son, are a
heretic, otherwise you would not be ignorant of the meaning of the
expressions which I have used. That being the case, it seems necessary
for me to explain that the Holy Inquisition is an institution which has
been established for the especial purpose of saving the souls of
heathens and heretics, even at the expense of their bodies, if need be.
The human soul is of infinitely greater value than the human body; and
it has been found that physical pain exerts a most beneficent influence
upon those obdurate ones who evince a disinclination to accept the--
the--"
"Thanks," interrupted George; "I will not trouble you to go on, for I
think I now clearly understand what putting a person to the question
means. It means, does it not--in plain, unvarnished language--the
infliction upon an individual of such excruciating, such diabolical,
torment that in most cases the individual will agree to anything you
choose to suggest, will accept any kind of doctrine you choose to thrust
upon him, rather than submit to further tortures?"
"Well--of course--that is putting the matter very, very crudely,"
admitted the Father Superior; "still, regarding the statement broadly,
it is--well--in the main--very nearly true. But there is this to be
said, this very important--"
"Quite unnecessary, I assure you," interposed George. "The broad fact
is that you convert by means of bodily torment; and in some cases--
where, as you say, `the subject displays great obduracy,' the torment is
so extreme and so protracted that the unhappy wretch dies under it. Is
not that so?"
"Yes--if you choose to so put it," answered the Father Superior, "that
is so. But again I must protest against the extreme crudity, the--"
"And," interrupted George, "this poor unfortunate fellow, the first on
my list, is one of those who so died, is he not?"
"Really, senor," protested the Holy Father--"you--you--are not--are not
giving--this matter--quite--quite fair--"
"Answer me, senor, without equivocation; did, or did not this man, of
whom we are now speaking, die as the result of your hellish torments?"
rapped out George, suddenly becoming exasperated and heavily smiting the
table with his clenched fist.
"Reverend Father," here interposed Fray Matthew, who could scarcely
articulate because of his chattering teeth, "I pray you give me leave to
retire. The violence of this heretic, this man of blood, frightens me."
"No," answered George, before the other could speak. "Being here, you
will remain. It is possible that I may need you to supply me with
information which your superior may be unwilling or unable to give.
Now, senor"--turning to the Father Superior--"answer me."
"Then--since you insist," replied the Father Superior, "I can only reply
that the man certainly did die as the result of being put to the
question."
"Very well," returned George, taking up the list and making a note upon
it. "Now, as to the next one?"
And again the long, tedious process of question and equivocation was
gone through, over and over, until every name upon the list had been
dealt with, when it finally appeared that, of the sixteen unhappy
Englishmen who had become involved in the meshes of that terrible
institution, the Holy Inquisition, no less than six had been burnt alive
at the stake in the last _auto-da-fe_, seven had died miserably as the
result of the torments to which they had been subjected, and a poor
residue of three only still languished in their cells!
"And," demanded George, when he had studied and fully digested the
details of this terrible list--"who is responsible for this tremendous
accumulation of ghastly human suffering and these hellish murders?
You?"
"No, thank God! not I," asserted the Father Superior, now trembling for
his life, and with all his recent arrogance completely evaporated. "I
am merely the Head of the strictly ecclesiastical section of the
institution; I have nothing whatever to do with the proselytising, which
is undertaken by, and is entirely in the hands of, the Grand Inquisitor
and his assistants."
"And where," asked George, "are these people to be found?"
"They are probably in--the--the--room--where--in which--persons are put
to--to--the question," was the stammered reply.
"Ah!" exclaimed George. "I presume you mean the place which the fray,
here, has more briefly designated as the `torture chamber.' Very well;
I must see the place, and also the Grand Inquisitor and his assistants;
I have something very important to say to those--'m--people. Lead the
way, reverend senor, if you please." Then, turning to the two armed men
who guarded the door, he added--"Take charge of these two men. For the
present, they are prisoners."
The Father Superior possessed a certain knowledge of English, for as the
last words passed George's lips the terrified ecclesiastic quavered:
"Prisoners, senor? Prisoners? What--what--do you mean? How dare you
interfere with my liberty? This is downright, rank sacrilege; and if
you dare to treat any of the inmates of this institution--and especially
any members of the Holy Office--otherwise than with the utmost
deference, you will--will--suffer severely for it."
"Pray lead on, senor," retorted George, waving the agitated man toward
the door. "Surely you must realise by this time that the institution
and all within it are in my power. And I am what you please to term a
`heretic'; the thunders of your Church have no terrors for me; I regard
you and your associates merely as men who have been guilty of certain
most atrocious crimes, and I am here for the express purpose of
punishing the guilty ones."
The Father Superior evidently realised that, after this, there was no
more to be said, and, between the two men-at-arms, and closely followed
by the shivering fray, he accordingly passed out of the room and down a
long corridor, into another, until a small door was reached, which, with
evident fear and reluctance, he at length threw open, disclosing a most
remarkable scene.
The chamber thus revealed was a very large and lofty one, lighted by
three large windows set high in the wall and heavily grated outside.
And although the windows were all wide open, the atmosphere was
oppressively close, and it was also charged with a very peculiar odour,
evidently arising in part at least from the fumes of an ignited charcoal
brazier, containing several curious-looking iron instruments thrust deep
into its glowing heart. Immediately under the windows, and running the
entire width of the chamber, was a platform or dais, some three feet
high, the front portion of which was occupied by a long table, behind
which were ranged nine chairs, the middle chair being of a much more
ornate character than the rest, the carving of it being ecclesiastical
in character, and upon the table, before each chair, was a supply of
paper, pens and ink. The dais was a wooden structure, and was carpeted
with black material; the tablecloth also was black, with the sacred
monogram I.H.S. above a cross and surmounted by a crown of thorns
embroidered upon it in silver thread. The floor of the remaining part
of the chamber was flagged with paving slabs, and was bare, while the
walls and ceiling were coloured black. In the centre of the wall behind
the dais, between two of the four windows, hung an enormous crucifix,
the figure of the Redeemer, very finely carved in wood and realistically
painted in the colours of nature, being life-size. At the end of the
room opposite the dais was an engine or machine which even those who had
never seen such a thing before might easily have identified as a rack;
and there were four chairs, two on either side of the room, of such
elaborate and sinister construction that there could be no question as
to their being designed for the purpose of inflicting various kinds of
ingenious and exquisite agony upon the unhappy occupants; while, in
addition to these there was an instrument which clearly betrayed itself
as a specimen of the notorious "boot." Hung here and there upon the
walls were other curious-looking instruments, the uses of which were not
so readily determinable; and there were also a number of suggestive and
sinister-looking ropes and pulleys depending from the ceiling.
Such a room, so furnished, could not possibly fail to fix the attention
of any person entering it for the first time, even in the character of a
mere spectator, and George Saint Leger gazed about him for quite a
minute with a feeling of keen curiosity that rapidly changed to mingled
horror and anger as he began to recognise the character and purpose of
the several objects that met his gaze; and then he turned to its
occupants; for although, in order to present a clear and unconfused
picture of the chamber, only its inanimate contents have thus far been
referred to, the room was by no means empty of human occupants. On the
contrary, in addition to those who had already entered, immediately
inside the door, one on either side of it, stood two of Basset's men-at-
arms, with drawn swords and cocked pistols in their hands, while the
nine chairs on the dais were occupied by nine motionless figures
completely shrouded in garments of black cloth, wearing upon their heads
a curious pointed head-dress, also of black cloth, which completely hid
their heads and faces, but in which two holes were cut for them to see
through. Seated in one of the torture chairs, but with the torturing
apparatus now thrown out of gear, was a most dreadful-looking object
bearing the semblance of a terribly emaciated man, worn to mere skin and
bone by privation and suffering, clad in rags, his hair and beard long
and unkempt, his skin and features white and bloodless, his eyes dim
with anguish, the sweat of keen protracted agony still pouring out of
him, while three ruffianly-looking men clad in scarlet ministered to him
under Basset's supervision. A fourth figure in scarlet lay motionless
upon the nagged floor, his attitude proclaiming that death had suddenly
overtaken him, while a blue-rimmed puncture in the centre of his
forehead, from which blood still trickled, told clearly enough the
manner of his death.
For a long minute young Saint Leger gazed about him with fast increasing
horror as he realised the diabolical purpose of the several engines that
met his eye; then, gaspingly, he spoke.
"So!" he ejaculated. "This is the chamber in which you torture your
fellow creatures until in their agony they are fain to say whatever it
pleases you that they should say, even to denying their faith, is it,
senor?"
"Nay, senor," answered the Father Superior, "say not that it is _I_ who
do these things. I have already repudiated all responsibility for what
happens in this chamber. It is the Grand Inquisitor and his Assistant
Inquisitors who reign supreme here. There they sit; ask them."
George stalked across to the middle of the chamber, and wheeled about,
facing the row of nine motionless figures occupying the chairs.
"I mean to do so," he said, tersely. Then, addressing the nine, he
said:
"Senors, I have somewhat to say to you. But, first of all, be good
enough to remove your hoods, that I may see your faces. I like not to
talk with men whose features are hidden from me."
For a moment there was silence in the room, broken only by the low
murmurings of Basset, who was speaking to the unfortunate "subject" in
the chair. Then the figure occupying the middle chair on the dais rose
to his feet and, stretching forth a long bony arm which projected to
beyond the wrist from the loose sleeve of his black robe, said:
"Depart, presumptuous youth! Go hence quickly, and take those misguided
men, thy minions, with thee, lest I call down the wrath of Holy Mother
Church upon thy sacrilegious head--and theirs. Who art thou, that thou
should'st dare to--"
"Reverend senor," interrupted George, unceremoniously, "a fig for you
and your sacrilege"--and he snapped his fingers contemptuously. "The
wrath of thy Holy Mother Church has no terrors for me, though--
understand me--I can respect any man's religion, so long as he is
sincere, and so long as he is willing to respect that of others and
permit them to worship God in their own way. But, enough of this; I am
not here to discuss theological questions, but to right a great wrong
and to avenge fiendish crime and cruelty perpetrated in the sacred name
of Him whose effigy hangs upon yonder cross behind you. Therefore I say
once more, uncover, and let me see your faces--unless indeed you prefer
that we should lay our sacrilegious hands upon you and remove your head-
coverings ourselves!"
"The Saints forbid!" ejaculated the Grand Inquisitor in horror.
"Anything rather than that!"
Then, turning to his companions, right and left, he added--"Uncover, my
Brothers, since this heretical Englishman will have it so. It is not
meet that we, the pillars of the Holy Catholic Church, unworthy though
we be, should submit to insult and indignity at the hands of a pack of
godless Lutheran dogs." And, so saying, he seated himself and proceeded
to remove his own head-covering, disclosing lean, ascetic features,
cold, cruel, and domineering, crowned by the monk's tonsure. At the
same time the others did the same, and with very similar result, the
dominant expression of the faces thus disclosed being that of cold,
stern ruthlessness, tempered, it must be confessed, in some cases, with
very evident signs of fear.
"So! that is better," commented George. "Now, senors," he continued, "I
am not going to make a long business of my talk with you, for we have
already wasted far too much time in this accursed building. I have but
a few questions to ask; and you will do well to answer them briefly and
to the point. This chamber, I perceive, is what is usually termed in
the outside world, `the torture chamber'; and I gather that it is here
you subject those whom you stigmatise as heretics to unspeakable
torments for the purpose of compelling them to forswear themselves and
embrace your religion against their will. Now, which of you is
responsible for the hellish suffering that goes on from time to time
within these four walls?"