CELEBRATED CRIMES, COMPLETE

BY ALEXANDRE DUMAS, PERE

IN EIGHT VOLUMES

URBAIN GRANDIER--1634

CHAPTER I

On Sunday, the 26th of November, 1631, there was great excitement in thelittle town of Loudun, especially in the narrow streets which led to thechurch of Saint-Pierre in the marketplace, from the gate of which thetown was entered by anyone coming from the direction of the abbey ofSaint-Jouin-les-Marmes. This excitement was caused by the expectedarrival of a personage who had been much in people's mouths latterlyin Loudun, and about whom there was such difference of opinion thatdiscussion on the subject between those who were on his side and thosewho were against him was carried on with true provincial acrimony. Itwas easy to see, by the varied expressions on the faces of those whoturned the doorsteps into improvised debating clubs, how varied were thefeelings with which the man would be welcomed who had himself formallyannounced to friends and enemies alike the exact date of his return. 

About nine o'clock a kind of sympathetic vibration ran through thecrowd, and with the rapidity of a flash of lightning the words, "Therehe is! there he is!" passed from group to group. At this cry somewithdrew into their houses and shut their doors and darkened theirwindows, as if it were a day of public mourning, while others openedthem wide, as if to let joy enter. In a few moments the uproar andconfusion evoked by the news was succeeded by the deep silence ofbreathless curiosity. 

Then, through the silence, a figure advanced, carrying a branch oflaurel in one hand as a token of triumph. It was that of a young manof from thirty-two to thirty-four years of age, with a graceful andwell-knit frame, an aristocratic air and faultlessly beautiful featuresof a somewhat haughty expression. Although he had walked three leaguesto reach the town, the ecclesiastical garb which he wore was not onlyelegant but of dainty freshness. His eyes turned to heaven, and singingin a sweet voice praise to the Lord, he passed through the streetsleading to the church in the market-place with a slow and solemn gait, without vouchsafing a look, a word, or a gesture to anyone. The entirecrowd, falling into step, marched behind him as he advanced, singinglike him, the singers being the prettiest girls in Loudun, for we haveforgotten to say that the crowd consisted almost entirely of women. 

Meanwhile the object of all this commotion arrived at length at theporch of the church of Saint-Pierre. Ascending the steps, he knelt atthe top and prayed in a low voice, then rising he touched the churchdoors with his laurel branch, and they opened wide as if by magic, revealing the choir decorated and illuminated as if for one of thefour great feasts of the year, and with all its scholars, choir boys, singers, beadles, and vergers in their places. Glancing around, he forwhom they were waiting came up the nave, passed through the choir, knelt for a second time at the foot of the altar, upon which he laid thebranch of laurel, then putting on a robe as white as snow and passingthe stole around his neck, he began the celebration of the mass beforea congregation composed of all those who had followed him. At the end ofthe mass a Te Deum was sung. 

He who had just rendered thanks to God for his own victory with all thesolemn ceremonial usually reserved for the triumphs of kings was thepriest Urbain Grandier. Two days before, he had been acquitted, in virtue of a decision pronounced by M. D'Escoubleau de Sourdis, Archbishop of Bordeaux, of an accusation brought against him of which hehad been declared guilty by a magistrate, and in punishment of whichhe had been condemned to fast on bread and water every Friday for threemonths, and forbidden to exercise his priestly functions in the dioceseof Poitiers for five years and in the town of Loudun for ever. 

These are the circumstances under which the sentence had been passed andthe judgment reversed. 

Urbain Grandier was born at Rovere, a village near Sable, a little townof Bas-Maine. Having studied the sciences with his father Pierre and hisuncle Claude Grandier, who were learned astrologers and alchemists, heentered, at the age of twelve, the Jesuit college at Bordeaux, havingalready received the ordinary education of a young man. The professorssoon found that besides his considerable attainments he had greatnatural gifts for languages and oratory; they therefore made of hima thorough classical scholar, and in order to develop his oratoricaltalent encouraged him to practise preaching. They soon grew very fond ofa pupil who was likely to bring them so much credit, and as soon as hewas old enough to take holy orders they gave him the cure of soulsin the parish of Saint-Pierre in Loudun, which was in the gift ofthe college. When he had been some months installed there as apriest-in-charge, he received a prebendal stall, thanks to the samepatrons, in the collegiate church of Sainte-Croix. 

It is easy to understand that the bestowal of these two positions on soyoung a man, who did not even belong to the province, made him seem insome sort a usurper of rights and privileges belonging to the people ofthe country, and drew upon him the envy of his brother-ecclesiastics. There were, in fact, many other reasons why Urbain should be an objectof jealousy to these: first, as we have already said, he was veryhandsome, then the instruction which he had received from his father hadopened the world of science to him and given him the key to a thousandthings which were mysteries to the ignorant, but which he fathomed withthe greatest ease. Furthermore, the comprehensive course of study whichhe had followed at the Jesuit college had raised him above a crowd ofprejudices, which are sacred to the vulgar, but for which he made nosecret of his contempt; and lastly, the eloquence of his sermons haddrawn to his church the greater part of the regular congregations of theother religious communities, especially of the mendicant orders, who hadtill then, in what concerned preaching, borne away the palm at Loudun. As we have said, all this was more than enough to excite, firstjealousy, and then hatred. And both were excited in no ordinary degree. 

We all know how easily the ill-natured gossip of a small town can rousethe angry contempt of the masses for everything which is beyond or abovethem. In a wider sphere Urbain would have shone by his many gifts, but, cooped up as he was within the walls of a little town and deprived ofair and space, all that might have conduced to his success in Paris ledto his destruction at Loudun. 

It was also unfortunate for Urbain that his character, far from winningpardon for his genius, augmented the hatred which the latter inspired. Urbain, who in his intercourse with his friends was cordial andagreeable, was sarcastic, cold, and haughty to his enemies. When he hadonce resolved on a course, he pursued it unflinchingly; he jealouslyexacted all the honour due to the rank at which he had arrived, defending it as though it were a conquest; he also insisted on enforcingall his legal rights, and he resented the opposition and angry words ofcasual opponents with a harshness which made them his lifelong enemies. 

The first example which Urbain gave of this inflexibility was in 1620, when he gained a lawsuit against a priest named Meunier. He causedthe sentence to be carried out with such rigour that he awoke aninextinguishable hatred in Meunier's mind, which ever after burst forthon the slightest provocation. 

A second lawsuit, which he likewise gained; was one which he undertookagainst the chapter of Sainte-Croix with regard to a house, his claimto which the chapter, disputed. Here again he displayed the samedetermination to exact his strict legal rights to the last iota, andunfortunately Mignon, the attorney of the unsuccessful chapter, wasa revengeful, vindictive, and ambitious man; too commonplace ever toarrive at a high position, and yet too much above his surroundings to becontent with the secondary position which he occupied. This man, whowas a canon of the collegiate church of Sainte-Croix and director of theUrsuline convent, will have an important part to play in the followingnarrative. Being as hypocritical as Urbain was straightforward, hisambition was to gain wherever his name was known a reputation forexalted piety; he therefore affected in his life the asceticism of ananchorite and the self-denial of a saint. As he had much experience inecclesiastical lawsuits, he looked on the chapter's loss of this one, of which he had in some sort guaranteed the success, as a personalhumiliation, so that when Urbain gave himself airs of triumph andexacted the last letter of his bond, as in the case of Meunier, heturned Mignon into an enemy who was not only more relentless but moredangerous than the former. 

In the meantime, and in consequence of this lawsuit, a certain Barot, anuncle of Mignon and his partner as well, got up a dispute with Urbain, but as he was a man below mediocrity, Urbain required in order to crushhim only to let fall from the height of his superiority a few of thosedisdainful words which brand as deeply as a red-hot iron. This man, though totally wanting in parts, was very rich, and having no childrenwas always surrounded by a horde of relatives, every one of whom wasabsorbed in the attempt to make himself so agreeable that his name wouldappear in Barot's will. This being so, the mocking words which wererained down on Barot spattered not only himself but also all those whohad sided with him in the quarrel, and thus added considerably to thetale of Urbain's enemies. 

About this epoch a still graver event took place. Amongst the mostassiduous frequenters of the confessional in his church was a youngand pretty girl, Julie by name, the daughter of the king's attorney, Trinquant--Trinquant being, as well as Barot, an uncle of Mignon. Nowit happened that this young girl fell into such a state of debilitythat she was obliged to keep her room. One of her friends, named MarthePelletier, giving up society, of which she was very fond, undertook tonurse the patient, and carried her devotion so far as to shut herselfup in the same room with her. When Julie Trinquant had recovered andwas able again to take her place in the world, it came out that MarthePelletier, during her weeks of retirement, had given birth to a child, which had been baptized and then put out to nurse. Now, by one of thoseodd whims which so often take possession of the public mind, everyone inLoudun persisted in asserting that the real mother of the infant wasnot she who had acknowledged herself as such--that, in short, MarthePelletier had sold her good name to her friend Julie for a sum of money;and of course it followed as a matter about which there could be nopossible doubt, that Urbain was the father. 

Trinquant hearing of the reports about his daughter, took upon himselfas king's attorney to have Marthe Pelletier arrested and imprisoned. Being questioned about the child, she insisted that she was its mother, and would take its maintenance upon herself. To have brought a childinto the world under such circumstances was a sin, but not a crime;Trinquant was therefore obliged to set Marthe at liberty, and the abuseof justice of which he was guilty served only to spread the scandalfarther and to strengthen the public in the belief it had taken up. 

Hitherto, whether through the intervention of the heavenly powers, orby means of his own cleverness, Urbain Grandier had come out victor inevery struggle in which he had engaged, but each victor had added tothe number of his enemies, and these were now so numerous that any otherthan he would have been alarmed, and have tried either to conciliatethem or to take precautions against their malice; but Urbain, wrapped inhis pride, and perhaps conscious of his innocence, paid no attentionto the counsels of his most faithful followers, but went on his wayunheeding. 

All the opponents whom till now Urbain had encountered had beenentirely unconnected with each other, and had each struggled for hisown individual ends. Urbain's enemies, believing that the cause of hissuccess was to be found in the want of cooperation among themselves, nowdetermined to unite in order to crush him. In consequence, a conferencewas held at Barot's, at which, besides Barot himself, Meunier, Trinquant, and Mignon took part, and the latter had also brought withhim one Menuau, a king's counsel and his own most intimate friend, whowas, however, influenced by other motives than friendship in joining theconspiracy. The fact was, that Menuau was in love with a woman who hadsteadfastly refused to show him any favour, and he had got firmly fixedin his head that the reason for her else inexplicable indifferenceand disdain was that Urbain had been beforehand with him in finding anentrance to her heart. The object of the meeting was to agree as tothe best means of driving the common enemy out of Loudon and itsneighbourhood. 

Urbain's life was so well ordered that it presented little which hisenemies could use as a handle for their purpose. His only foible seemedto be a predilection for female society; while in return all the wivesand daughters of the place, with the unerring instinct of their sex, seeing, that the new priest was young, handsome, and eloquent, chosehim, whenever it was possible, as their spiritual director. As thispreference had already offended many husbands and fathers, the decisionthe conspirators arrived at was that on this side alone was Grandiervulnerable, and that their only chance of success was to attack himwhere he was weakest. Almost at once, therefore, the vague reports whichhad been floating about began to attain a certain definiteness: therewere allusions made, though no name was mentioned, to a young girl inLoudun; who in spite of Grandier's frequent unfaithfulness yet remainedhis mistress-in-chief; then it began to be whispered that the younggirl, having had conscientious scruples about her love for Urbain, hehad allayed them by an act of sacrilege--that is to say, he had, aspriest, in the middle of the night, performed the service of marriagebetween himself and his mistress. The more absurd the reports, the morecredence did they gain, and it was not long till everyone in Loudunbelieved them true, although no one was able to name the mysteriousheroine of the tale who had had the courage to contract a marriagewith a priest; and considering how small Loudun was, this was mostextraordinary. 

Resolute and full of courage as was Grandier, at length he could notconceal from himself that his path lay over quicksands: he felt thatslander was secretly closing him round, and that as soon as he was wellentangled in her shiny folds, she would reveal herself by raising herabhorred head, and that then a mortal combat between them would begin. But it was one of his convictions that to draw back was to acknowledgeone's guilt; besides, as far as he was concerned, it was probably toolate for him to retrace his steps. He therefore went on his way, asunyielding, as scornful, and as haughty as ever. 

Among those who were supposed to be most active in spreading theslanders relative to Urbain was a man called Duthibaut, a person ofimportance in the province, who was supposed by the townspeople to holdvery advanced views, and who was a "Sir Oracle" to whom the commonplaceand vulgar turned for enlightenment. Some of this man's strictures onGrandier were reported to the latter, especially some calumnies towhich Duthibaut had given vent at the Marquis de Bellay's; and one day, Grandier, arrayed in priestly garments, was about to enter the church ofSainte-Croix to assist in the service, he encountered Duthibaut at theentrance, and with his usual haughty disdain accused him of slander. Duthibaut, who had got into the habit of saying and doing whatever cameinto his head without fear of being called to account, partly becauseof his wealth and partly because of the influence he had gained over thenarrow-minded, who are so numerous in a small provincial town, and whoregarded him as being much above them, was so furious at this publicreprimand, that he raised his cane and struck Urbain. 

The opportunity which this affront afforded Grandier of being revengedon all his enemies was too precious to be neglected, but, convinced, with too much reason, that he would never obtain justice from the localauthorities, although the respect due to the Church had been infringed, in his person he decided to appeal to King Louis XIII, who deigned toreceive him, and deciding that the insult offered to a priest robedin the sacred vestments should be expiated, sent the cause to the highcourt of Parliament, with instructions that the case against Duthibautshould be tried and decided there. 

Hereupon Urbain's enemies saw they had no time to lose, and tookadvantage of his absence to make counter accusations against him. Two worthies beings, named Cherbonneau and Bugrau, agreed to becomeinformers, and were brought before the ecclesiastical magistrate atPoitiers. They accused Grandier of having corrupted women and girls, ofindulging in blasphemy and profanity, of neglecting to read his breviarydaily, and of turning God's sanctuary into a place of debauchery andprostitution. The information was taken down, and Louis Chauvet, thecivil lieutenant, and the archpriest of Saint-Marcel and the Loudenois, were appointed to investigate the matter, so that, while Urbain wasinstituting proceedings against Duthibaut in Paris, information was laidagainst himself in Loudun. This matter thus set going was pushed forwardwith all the acrimony so common in religious prosecutions; Trinquantappeared as a witness, and drew many others after him, and whateveromissions were found in the depositions were interpolated according tothe needs of the prosecution. The result was that the case when fullygot up appeared to be so serious that it was sent to the Bishop ofPoitiers for trial. Now the bishop was not only surrounded by thefriends of those who were bringing the accusations against Grandier, buthad himself a grudge against him. It had happened some time before thatUrbain, the case being urgent, had dispensed with the usual notice of amarriage, and the bishop, knowing this, found in the papers laid beforehim, superficial as they were, sufficient evidence against Urbain tojustify him in issuing a warrant for his apprehension, which was drawnup in the following words:

"Henri-Louis, Chataignier de la Rochepezai, by divine mercy Bishop ofPoitiers, in view of the charges and informations conveyed to us by thearchpriest of Loudun against Urbain Grandier, priest-in-charge of theChurch of Saint-Pierre in the Market-Place at Loudun, in virtue of acommission appointed by us directed to the said archpriest, or in hisabsence to the Prior of Chassaignes, in view also of the opinion givenby our attorney upon the said charges, have ordered and do hereby orderthat Urbain Grandier, the accused, be quietly taken to the prison in ourpalace in Poitiers, if it so be that he be taken and apprehended, and ifnot, that he be summoned to appear at his domicile within three days, by the first apparitor-priest, or tonsured clerk, and also by the firstroyal sergeant, upon this warrant, and we request the aid of the secularauthorities, and to them, or to any one of them, we hereby give powerand authority to carry out this decree notwithstanding any opposition orappeal, and the said Grandier having been heard, such a decision will begiven by our attorney as the facts may seem to warrant. 

"Given at Dissay the 22nd day of October 1629, and signed in theoriginal as follows:

"HENRI-LOUIS, Bishop of Poitiers. "

Grandier was, as we have said, at Paris when these proceedings weretaken against him, conducting before the Parliament his case againstDuthibaut. The latter received a copy of the decision arrived at by thebishop, before Grandier knew of the charges that had been formulatedagainst him, and having in the course of his defence drawn a terriblepicture of the immorality of Grandier's life, he produced as a proof ofthe truth of his assertions the damning document which had been put intohis hands. The court, not knowing what to think of the turn affairshad taken, decided that before considering the accusations broughtby Grandier, he must appear before his bishop to clear himself of thecharges, brought against himself. Consequently he left Paris at once, and arrived at Loudun, where he only stayed long enough to learn whathad happened in his absence, and then went on to Poitiers in order todraw up his defence. He had, however, no sooner set foot in the placethan he was arrested by a sheriff's officer named Chatry, and confinedin the prison of the episcopal palace. 

It was the middle of November, and the prison was at all times cold anddamp, yet no attention was paid to Grandier's request that he should betransferred to some other place of confinement. Convinced by this thathis enemies had more influence than he had supposed, he resolved topossess his soul in patience, and remained a prisoner for two months, during which even his warmest friends believed him lost, while Duthibautopenly laughed at the proceedings instituted against himself, which henow believed would never go any farther, and Barot had already selectedone of his heirs, a certain Ismael Boulieau, as successor to Urbain aspriest and prebendary. 

It was arranged that the costs of the lawsuit should be defrayed out ofa fund raised by the prosecutors, the rich paying for the poor; for asall the witnesses lived at Loudun and the trial was to take place atPoitiers, considerable expense would be incurred by the necessity ofbringing so many people such a distance; but the lust of vengeanceproved stronger than the lust of gold; the subscription expected fromeach being estimated according to his fortune, each paid without amurmur, and at the end of two months the case was concluded. 

In spite of the evident pains taken by the prosecution to strain theevidence against the defendant, the principal charge could not besustained, which was that he had led astray many wives and daughters inLoudun. No one woman came forward to complain of her ruin by Grandier;the name of no single victim of his alleged immorality was given. Theconduct of the case was the most extraordinary ever seen; it was evidentthat the accusations were founded on hearsay and not on fact, and yet adecision and sentence against Grandier were pronounced on January 3rd, 1630. The sentence was as follows: For three months to fast eachFriday on bread and water by way of penance; to be inhibited from theperformance of clerical functions in the diocese of Poitiers for fiveyears, and in the town of Loudun for ever. 

Both parties appealed from this decision: Grandier to the Archbishopof Bordeaux, and his adversaries, on the advice of the attorney to thediocese, pleading a miscarriage of justice, to the Parliament of Paris;this last appeal being made in order to overwhelm Grandier and breakhis spirit. But Grandier's resolution enabled him to face this attackboldly: he engaged counsel to defend his case before the Parliament, while he himself conducted his appeal to the Archbishop of Bordeaux. Butas there were many necessary witnesses, and it was almost impossible tobring them all such a great distance, the archiepiscopal court sentthe appeal to the presidial court of Poitiers. The public prosecutorof Poitiers began a fresh investigation, which being conducted withimpartiality was not encouraging to Grandier's accusers. There had beenmany conflicting statements made by the witnesses, and these were nowrepeated: other witnesses had declared quite openly that they had beenbribed; others again stated that their depositions had been tamperedwith; and amongst these latter was a certain priest named Mechin, andalso that Ishmael Boulieau whom Barot had been in such a hurry to selectas candidate for the reversion of Grandier's preferments. Boulieau'sdeposition has been lost, but we can lay Mechin's before the reader, forthe original has been preserved, just as it issued from his pen:

"I, Gervais Mechin, curate-in-charge of the Church of Saint-Pierre inthe Market Place at Loudun, certify by these presents, signed by myhand, to relieve my conscience as to a certain report which is beingspread abroad, that I had said in support of an accusation brought byGilles Robert, archpriest, against Urbain Grandier, priest-in-charge ofSaint-Pierre, that I had found the said Grandier lying with women andgirls in the church of Saint Pierre, the doors being closed. 

"ITEM, that on several different occasions, at unsuitable hours both dayand night, I had seen women and girls disturb the said Grandier by goinginto his bedroom, and that some of the said women remained with him fromone o'clock in the after noon till three o'clock the next morning, theirmaids bringing them their suppers and going away again at once. 

"ITEM, that I had seen the said Grandier in the church, the doors beingopen, but that as soon as some women entered he closed them. 

"As I earnestly desire that such reports should cease, I declare bythese presents that I have never seen the said Grandier with women orgirls in the church, the doors being closed; that I have never found himthere alone with women or girls; that when he spoke to either someoneelse was always present, and the doors were open; and as to theirposture, I think I made it sufficiently clear when in the witness-boxthat Grandier was seated and the women scattered over the church;furthermore, I have never seen either women or girls enter Grandier'sbedroom either by day or night, although it is true that I have heardpeople in the corridor coming and going late in the evening, who theywere I cannot say, but a brother of the said Grandier sleeps closeby; neither have I any knowledge that either women or girls, hadtheir suppers brought to the said room. I have also never said that heneglected the reading of his breviary, because that would be contraryto the truth, seeing that on several occasions he borrowed mine and readhis hours in it. I also declare that I have never seen him close thedoors of the church, and that whenever I have seen him speaking to womenI have never noticed any impropriety; I have not ever seen him touchthem in any way, they have only spoken together; and if anythingis found in my deposition contrary to the above, it is without myknowledge, and was never read to me, for I would not have signed it, andI say and affirm all this in homage to the truth. 

"Done the last day of October 1630, "(Signed) G. MECHIN. "

In the face of such proofs of innocence none of the accusations couldbe considered as established and so, according to the decision of thepresidial court of Poitiers, dated the 25th of May 1634, the decisionof the bishop's court was reversed, and Grandier was acquitted of thecharges brought against him. However, he had still to appear before theArchbishop of Bordeaux, that his acquittal might be ratified. Grandiertook advantage of a visit which the archbishop paid to his abbey atSaint-Jouin-les-Marmes, which was only three leagues from Loudun, tomake this appearance; his adversaries, who were discouraged by theresult of the proceedings at Poitiers, scarcely made any defence, andthe archbishop, after an examination which brought clearly to light theinnocence of the accused, acquitted and absolved him. 

The rehabilitation of Grandier before his bishop had two importantresults: the first was that it clearly established his innocence, andthe second that it brought into prominence his high attainments andeminent qualities. The archbishop seeing the persecutions to whichhe was subjected, felt a kindly interest in him, and advised himto exchange into some other diocese, leaving a town the principalinhabitants of which appeared to have vowed him a relentless hate. But such an abandonment of his rights was foreign to the character ofUrbain, and he declared to his superior that, strong in His Grace'sapprobation and the testimony of his own conscience, he would remain inthe place to which God had called him. Monseigneur de Sourdis did notfeel it his duty to urge Urbain any further, but he had enough insightinto his character to perceive that if Urbain should one day fall, itwould be, like Satan, through pride; for he added another sentence tohis decision, recommending him to fulfil the duties of his office withdiscretion and modesty, according to the decrees of the Fathers and thecanonical constitutions. The triumphal entry of Urbain into Loudunwith which we began our narrative shows the spirit in which he took hisrecommendation. 

CHAPTER II

Urbain Granadier was not satisfied with the arrogant demonstration bywhich he signalised his return, which even his friends had felt to beill advised; instead of allowing the hate he had aroused to die away orat least to fall asleep by letting the past be past, he continued withmore zeal than ever his proceedings against Duthibaut, and succeededin obtaining a decree from the Parliament of La Tournelle, by whichDuthibaut was summoned before it, and obliged to listen bareheaded to areprimand, to offer apologies, and to pay damages and costs. 

Having thus got the better of one enemy, Urbain turned on the others, and showed himself more indefatigable in the pursuit of justicethan they had been in the pursuit of vengeance. The decision of thearchbishop had given him a right to a sum of money for compensation, andinterest thereon, as well as to the restitution of the revenues of hislivings, and there being some demur made, he announced publicly thathe intended to exact this reparation to the uttermost farthing, and setabout collecting all the evidence which was necessary for the success ofa new lawsuit for libel and forgery which he intended to begin. Itwas in vain that his friends assured him that the vindication of hisinnocence had been complete and brilliant, it was in vain that theytried to convince him of the danger of driving the vanquished todespair, Urbain replied that he was ready to endure all the persecutionswhich his enemies might succeed in inflicting on him, but as long as hefelt that he had right upon his side he was incapable of drawing back. 

Grandier's adversaries soon became conscious of the storm which wasgathering above their heads, and feeling that the struggle betweenthemselves and this man would be one of life or death, Mignon, Barot, Meunier, Duthibaut, and Menuau met Trinquant at the village ofPindadane, in a house belonging to the latter, in order to consult aboutthe dangers which threatened them. Mignon had, however, already begun toweave the threads of a new intrigue, which he explained in full to theothers; they lent a favourable ear, and his plan was adopted. We shallsee it unfold itself by degrees, for it is the basis of our narrative. 

We have already said that Mignon was the director of the convent ofUrsulines at Loudun: Now the Ursuline order was quite modern, for thehistoric controversies to which the slightest mention of the martyrdomof St. Ursula and her eleven thousand virgins gave rise, had longhindered the foundation of an order in the saint's honour. However, in1560 Madame Angele de Bresse established such an order in Italy, withthe same rules as the Augustinian order. This gained the approbationof Pope Gregory XIII in 1572. In 1614, Madeleine Lhuillier, with theapproval of Pope Paul V, introduced this order into France, by foundinga convent at Paris, whence it rapidly spread over the whole kingdom, so-that in 1626, only six years before the time when the events justrelated took place, a sisterhood was founded in the little town ofLoudun. 

Although this community at first consisted entirely of ladies of goodfamily, daughters of nobles, officers, judges, and the better class ofcitizens, and numbered amongst its founders Jeanne de Belfield, daughterof the late Marquis of Cose, and relative of M. De Laubardemont, Mademoiselle de Fazili, cousin of the cardinal-duke, two ladies of thehouse of Barbenis de Nogaret, Madame de Lamothe, daughter of the MarquisLamothe-Barace of Anjou, and Madame d'Escoubleau de Sourdis, of the samefamily as the Archbishop of Bordeaux, yet as these nuns had almost allentered the convent because of their want of fortune, the communityfound itself at the time of its establishment richer in blood than inmoney, and was obliged instead of building to purchase a private house. The owner of this house was a certain Moussaut du Frene, whose brotherwas a priest. This brother, therefore, naturally became the firstdirector of these godly women. Less than a year after his appointment hedied, and the directorship became vacant. 

The Ursulines had bought the house in which they lived much below itsnormal value, for it was regarded as a haunted house by all the town. The landlord had rightly thought that there was no better way of gettingrid of the ghosts than to confront them with a religious sisterhood, the members of which, passing their days in fasting and prayer, wouldbe hardly likely to have their nights disturbed by bad spirits; and intruth, during the year which they had already passed in the house, noghost had ever put in an appearance--a fact which had greatly increasedthe reputation of the nuns for sanctity. 

When their director died, it so happened that the boarders tookadvantage of the occasion to indulge in some diversion at the expense ofthe older nuns, who were held in general detestation by the youth ofthe establishment on account of the rigour with which they enforcedthe rules of the order. Their plan was to raise once more those spiritswhich had been, as everyone supposed, permanently relegated to outerdarkness. So noises began to be heard on the roof of the house, whichresolved themselves into cries and groans; then growing bolder, thespirits entered the attics and garrets, announcing their presence byclanking of chains; at last they became so familiar that they invadedthe dormitories, where they dragged the sheets off the sisters andabstracted their clothes. 

Great was the terror in the convent, and great the talk in the town, sothat the mother superior called her wisest, nuns around her and askedthem what, in their opinion, would be the best course to take inthe delicate circumstances in which they found themselves. Without adissentient voice, the conclusion arrived at was, that the late directorshould be immediately replaced by a man still holier than he, if sucha man could be found, and whether because he possessed a reputationfor sanctity, or for some other reason, their choice fell on UrbainGrandier. When the offer of the post was brought to him, he answeredthat he was already responsible for two important charges, and that hetherefore had not enough time to watch over the snow-white flockwhich they wished to entrust to him, as a good shepherd should, and herecommended the lady superior to seek out another more worthy and lessoccupied than himself. 

This answer, as may be supposed, wounded the self-esteem of the sisters:they next turned their eyes towards Mignon, priest and canon of thecollegiate church of Sainte-Croix, and he, although he felt deeply hurtthat they had not thought first of him, accepted the position eagerly;but the recollection that Grandier had been preferred before himselfkept awake in, him one of those bitter hatreds which time, instead ofsoothing, intensifies. From the foregoing narrative the reader can seeto what this hate led. 

As soon as the new director was appointed, the mother superior confidedto him the kind of foes which he would be expected to vanquish. Insteadof comforting her by the assurance that no ghosts existing, it could notbe ghosts who ran riot in the house, Mignon saw that by pretending tolay these phantoms he could acquire the reputation for holiness he somuch desired. So he answered that the Holy Scriptures recognised theexistence of ghosts by relating how the witch of Endor had made theshade of Samuel appear to Saul. He went on to say that the ritual of theChurch possessed means of driving away all evil spirits, no matter howpersistent they were, provided that he who undertook the task were purein thought and deed, and that he hoped soon, by the help of God, to ridthe convent of its nocturnal visitants, whereupon as a preparationfor their expulsion he ordered a three days' fast, to be followed by ageneral confession. 

It does not require any great cleverness to understand how easily Mignonarrived at the truth by questioning the young penitents as they camebefore him. The boarders who had played at being ghosts confessed theirfolly, saying that they had been helped by a young novice of sixteenyears of age, named Marie Aubin. She acknowledged that this was true;it was she who used to get up in the middle of the night, and open thedormitory door, which her more timid room-mates locked most carefullyfrom within every night, before going to bed--a fact which greatlyincreased their terror when, despite their precautions, the ghosts stillgot in. Under pretext of not exposing them to the anger of the superior, whose suspicions would be sure to be awakened if the apparitions were todisappear immediately after the general confession, Mignon directedthem to renew their nightly frolics from time to time, but at longerand longer intervals. He then sought an interview with the superior, andassured her that he had found the minds of all those under her charge sochaste and pure that he felt sure through his earnest prayers he wouldsoon clear the convent of the spirits which now pervaded it. 

Everything happened as the director had foretold, and the reputation forsanctity of the holy man, who by watching and praying had delivered theworthy Ursulines from their ghostly assailants, increased enormously inthe town of Loudun. 

CHAPTER III

Hardly had tranquillity been restored when Mignon, Duthibaut, Menuau, Meunier, and Barot, having lost their cause before the Archbishopof Bordeaux, and finding themselves threatened by Grandier with aprosecution for libel and forgery, met together to consult as to thebest means of defending themselves before the unbending severity of thisman, who would, they felt, destroy them if they did not destroy him. 

The result of this consultation was that very shortly afterwards queerreports began to fly about; it was whispered that the ghosts whom thepious director had expelled had again invaded the convent, under aninvisible and impalpable form, and that several of the nuns had given, by their words and acts, incontrovertible proofs of being possessed. 

When these reports were mentioned to Mignon, he, instead of denyingtheir truth, cast up his eyes to heaven and said that God was certainlya great and merciful God, but it was also certain that Satan was veryclever, especially when he was barked by that false human science calledmagic. However, as to the reports, though they were not entirely withoutfoundation, he would not go so far as to say that any of the sisterswere really possessed by devils, that being a question which time alonecould decide. 

The effect of such an answer on minds already prepared to listen to themost impossible things, may easily be guessed. Mignon let the gossip goits rounds for several months without giving it any fresh food, but atlength, when the time was ripe, he called on the priest of Saint-Jacquesat Chinon, and told him that matters had now come to such a pass in theUrsuline convent that he felt it impossible to bear up alone under theresponsibility of caring for the salvation of the afflicted nuns, and hebegged him to accompany him to the convent. This priest, whose name wasPierre Barre, was exactly the man whom Mignon needed in such a crisis. He was of melancholy temperament, and dreamed dreams and saw visions;his one ambition was to gain a reputation for asceticism and holiness. Desiring to surround his visit with the solemnity befitting suchan important event, he set out for Loudun at the head of all hisparishioners, the whole procession going on foot, in order to arouseinterest and curiosity; but this measure was quite needless it took lessthan that to set the town agog. 

While the faithful filled the churches offering up prayers for thesuccess of the exorcisms, Mignon and Barre entered upon their task atthe convent, where they remained shut up with the nuns for six hours. At the end of this time Barre appeared and announced to his parishionersthat they might go back to Chinon without him, for he had made up hismind to remain for the present at Loudun, in order to aid the venerabledirector of the Ursuline convent in the holy work he had undertaken; heenjoined on them to pray morning and evening, with all possible fervour, that, in spite of the serious dangers by which it was surrounded, thegood cause might finally triumph. This advice, unaccompanied as itwas by any explanation, redoubled the curiosity of the people, and thebelief gained ground that it was not merely one or two nuns who werepossessed of devils, but the whole sisterhood. It was not very longbefore the name of the magician who had worked this wonder began to bementioned quite openly: Satan, it was said, had drawn Urbain Grandierinto his power, through his pride. Urbain had entered into a pact withthe Evil Spirit by which he had sold him his soul in return for beingmade the most learned man on earth. Now, as Urbain's knowledge wasmuch greater than that of the inhabitants of Loudun, this story gainedgeneral credence in the town, although here and there was to be founda man sufficiently enlightened to shrug his shoulders at theseabsurdities, and to laugh at the mummeries, of which as yet he saw onlythe ridiculous side. 

For the next ten or twelve days Mignon and Barre spent the greater partof their time at the convent; sometimes remaining there for six hours ata stretch, sometimes the entire day. At length, on Monday, the 11th ofOctober, 1632, they wrote to the priest of Venier, to Messire GuillaumeCerisay de la Gueriniere, bailiff of the Loudenois, and to Messire LouisChauvet, civil lieutenant, begging them to visit the Ursuline convent, in order to examine two nuns who were possessed by evil spirits, andto verify the strange and almost incredible manifestations of thispossession. Being thus formally appealed to, the two magistrates couldnot avoid compliance with the request. It must be confessed that theywere not free from curiosity, and felt far from sorry at being able toget to the bottom of the mystery of which for some time the whole townwas talking. They repaired, therefore, to the convent, intending to makea thorough investigation as to the reality of the possession and as tothe efficacy of the exorcisms employed. Should they judge that the nunswere really possessed, and that those who tried to deliver them werein earnest, they would authorise the continuation of the efforts atexorcism; but if they were not satisfied on these two points, they wouldsoon put an end to the whole thing as a comedy. When they reached thedoor, Mignon, wearing alb and stole, came to meet them. He told themthat the feelings of the nuns had for more than two weeks been harrowedby the apparition of spectres and other blood-curdling visions, thatthe mother superior and two nuns had evidently been possessed by evilspirits for over a week; that owing to the efforts of Barre and sameCarmelite friars who were good enough to assist him against their commonenemies, the devils had been temporarily driven out, but on the previousSunday night, the 10th of October, the mother superior, Jeanne deBelfield, whose conventual name was Jeanne des Anges, and a lay sistercalled Jeanne Dumagnoux, had again been entered into by the samespirits. It had, however, been discovered by means of exorcisms thata new compact, of which the symbol and token was a bunch of roses, hadbeen concluded, the symbol and token of the first having been threeblack thorns. He added that during the time of the first possessionthe demons had refused to give their names, but by the power of hisexorcisms this reluctance had been overcome, the spirit which hadresumed possession of the mother superior having at length revealed thatits name was Ashtaroth, one of the greatest enemies of God, while thedevil which had entered into the lay sister was of a lower order, andwas called Sabulon. Unfortunately, continued Mignon, just now the twoafflicted nuns were resting, and he requested the bailiff and the civillieutenant to put off their inspection till a little later. The twomagistrates were just about to go away, when a nun appeared, saying thatthe devils were again doing their worst with the two into whom theyhad entered. Consequently, they accompanied Mignon and the priest fromVenier to an upper room, in which were seven narrow beds, of which twoonly were occupied, one by the mother superior and the other by the laysister. The superior, who was the more thoroughly possessed of the two, was surrounded by the Carmelite monks, the sisters belonging to theconvent, Mathurin Rousseau, priest and canon of Sainte-Croix, andMannouri, a surgeon from the town. 

No sooner did the two magistrates join the others than the superior wasseized with violent convulsions, writhing and uttering squeals in exactimitation of a sucking pig. The two magistrates looked on in profoundastonishment, which was greatly increased when they saw the patientnow bury herself in her bed, now spring right out of it, the wholeperformance being accompanied by such diabolical gestures and grimacesthat, if they were not quite convinced that the possession was genuine, they were at least filled with admiration of the manner in which it wassimulated. Mignon next informed the bailiff and the civil lieutenant, that although the superior had never learned Latin she would reply inthat language to all the questions addressed to her, if such were theirdesire. The magistrates answered that as they were there in order toexamine thoroughly into the facts of the case, they begged the exorciststo give them every possible proof that the possession was real. Uponthis, Mignon approached the mother superior, and, having orderedeveryone to be silent, placed two of his fingers in her mouth, and, having gone through the form of exorcism prescribed by the ritual, heasked the following questions word for word as they are given, D. Why have you entered into the body of this young girl? R. Causa animositatis. Out of enmity. D. Per quod pactum? By what pact? R. Per flores. By flowers. D. Quales? What flowers? R. Rosas. Roses. D. Quis misfit? By whom wert thou sent?

 At this question the magistrates remarked that the superior hesitated to reply; twice she opened her mouth in vain, but the third time she said in a weak voice--

 D. Dic cognomen? What is his surname? R. Urbanus. Urbain. 

 Here there was again the same hesitation, but as if impelled by the will of the exorcist she answered--

 R. Grandier. Grandier. D. Dic qualitatem? What is his profession? R. Sacerdos. A priest. D. Cujus ecclesiae? Of what church? R. Sancti Petri. Saint-Pierre. D. Quae persona attulit flores? Who brought the flowers? R. Diabolica. Someone sent by the devil. 

As the patient pronounced the last word she recovered her senses, andhaving repeated a prayer, attempted to swallow a morsel of bread whichwas offered her; she was, however, obliged to spit it out, saying it wasso dry she could not get it down. 

Something more liquid was then brought, but even of that she couldswallow very little, as she fell into convulsions every few minutes. 

Upon this the two officials, seeing there was nothing more to be gotout of the superior, withdrew to one of the window recesses and began toconverse in a low tone; whereupon Mignon, who feared that they had notbeen sufficiently impressed, followed them, and drew their attention tothe fact that there was much in what they had just seen to recallthe case of Gaufredi, who had been put to death a few years before inconsequence of a decree of the Parliament of Aix, in Provence. Thisill-judged remark of Mignon showed so clearly what his aim was that themagistrates made no reply. The civil lieutenant remarked that he hadbeen surprised that Mignon had not made any attempt to find out thecause of the enmity of which the superior had spoken, and which it wasso important to find out; but Mignon excused himself by saying that hehad no right to put questions merely to gratify curiosity. The civillieutenant was about to insist on the matter being investigated, whenthe lay sister in her turn went into a fit, thus extricating Mignon fromhis embarrassment. The magistrates approached the lay sister's bed atonce, and directed Mignon to put the same questions to her as to thesuperior: he did so, but all in vain; all she would reply was, "To theother! To the other!"

Mignon explained this refusal to answer by saying that the evil spiritwhich was in her was of an inferior order, and referred all questionersto Ashtaroth, who was his superior. As this was the only explanation, good or bad, offered them by Mignon, the magistrates went away, anddrew up a report of all they had seen and heard without comment, merelyappending their signatures. 

But in the town very few people showed the same discretion and reticenceas the magistrates. The bigoted believed, the hypocrites pretendedto believe; and the worldly-minded, who were numerous, discussed thedoctrine of possession in all its phases, and made no secret of theirown entire incredulity. They wondered, and not without reason it must beconfessed, what had induced the devils to go out of the nuns' bodiesfor two days only, and then come back and resume possession, to theconfusion of the exorcists; further, they wanted to know why the mothersuperior's devil spoke Latin, while the lay sister's was ignorant ofthat tongue; for a mere difference of rank in the hierarchy of hell didnot seem a sufficient explanation of such a difference in education;Mignon's refusal to go on with his interrogations as to the cause of theenmity made them, they said, suspect that, knowing he had reached theend of Ashtaroth's classical knowledge, he felt it useless to try tocontinue the dialogue in the Ciceronian idiom. Moreover, it was wellknown that only a few days before all Urbain's worst enemies had met inconclave in the village of Puidardane; and besides, how stupidly Mignonhad shown his hand by mentioning Gaufredi, the priest who had beenexecuted at Aix: lastly, why had not a desire for impartiality beenshown by calling in other than Carmelite monks to be present at theexorcism, that order having a private quarrel with Grandier? It mustbe admitted that this way of looking at the case was not wanting inshrewdness. 

On the following day, October 12th, the bailiff and the civillieutenant, having heard that exorcisms had been again tried withouttheir having been informed beforehand, requested a certain CanonRousseau to accompany them, and set out with him and their clerk for theconvent. On arriving, they asked for Mignon, and on his appearance theytold him that this matter of exorcism was of such importance that nofurther steps were to be taken in it without the authorities beingpresent, and that in future they were to be given timely notice of everyattempt to get rid of the evil spirits. They added that this was all themore necessary as Mignon's position as director of the sisterhood andhis well-known hate for Grandier would draw suspicions on him unworthyof his cloth, suspicions which he ought to be the first to wish to seedissipated, and that quickly; and that, therefore, the work which he hadso piously begun would be completed by exorcists appointed by the court. 

Mignon replied that, though he had not the slightest objection to themagistrates being present at all the exorcisms, yet he could not promisethat the spirits would reply to anyone except himself and Barre. Justat that moment Barre came on the scene, paler and more gloomy thanever, and speaking with the air of a man whose word no one couldhelp believing, he announced that before their arrival some mostextraordinary things had taken place. The magistrates asked what things, and Barre replied that he had learned from the mother superior that shewas possessed, not by one, but by seven devils, of whom Ashtaroth wasthe chief; that Grandier had entrusted his pact with the devil, underthe symbol of a bunch of roses, to a certain Jean Pivart, to give to agirl who had introduced it into the convent garden by throwing it overthe wall; that this took place in the night between Saturday and Sunday"hora secunda nocturna" (two hours after midnight); that those werethe very words the superior had used, but that while she readily namedPivart, she absolutely refused to give the name of the girl; thaton asking what Pivart was; she had replied, "Pauper magus" (a poormagician); that he then had pressed her as to the word magus, and thatshe had replied "Magicianus et civis" (magician and citizen); and thatjust as she said those words the magistrates had arrived, and he hadasked no more questions. 

The two officials listened to this information with the seriousnessbefitting men entrusted with high judicial functions, and announcedto the two priests that they proposed to visit the possessed women andwitness for themselves the miracles that were taking place. The clericsoffered no opposition, but said they feared that the devils werefatigued and would refuse to reply; and, in fact, when the officialsreached the sickroom the two patients appeared to have regained somedegree of calm. Mignon took advantage of this quiet moment to say mass, to which the two magistrates listened devoutly and tranquilly, and whilethe sacrifice was being offered the demons did not dare to move. It wasexpected that they would offer some opposition at the elevation ofthe Host, but everything passed off without disturbance, only the laysister's hands and feet twitched a great deal; and this was the onlyfact which the magistrates thought worthy of mention in their reportfor that morning. Barre assured them, however, that if they wouldreturn about three o'clock the devils would probably have recoveredsufficiently from their fatigue to give a second performance. 

As the two gentlemen had determined to see the affair to the end, theyreturned to the convent at the hour named, accompanied by Messire Ireneede Sainte-Marthe, sieur Deshurneaux; and found the room in which thepossessed were lying full of curious spectators; for the exorcists hadbeen true prophets--the devils were at work again. 

The superior, as always, was the more tormented of the two, as was onlyto be expected, she having seven devils in her all at once; she wasterribly convulsed, and was writhing and foaming at the mouth as if shewere mad. No one could long continue in such a condition without seriousinjury to health; Barre therefore asked the devil-in-chief how soonhe would come out. "Cras mane" (To-morrow morning), he replied. Theexorcist then tried to hurry him, asking him why he would not come outat once; whereupon the superior murmured the word "Pactum" (A pact); andthen "Sacerdos" (A priest), and finally "Finis, " or "Finit, " for eventhose nearest could not catch the word distinctly, as the devil, afraiddoubtless of perpetrating a barbarism, spoke through the nun's closelyclenched teeth. This being all decidedly unsatisfying, the magistratesinsisted that the examination should continue, but the devils had againexhausted themselves, and refused to utter another word. The priesteven tried touching the superior's head with the pyx, while prayers andlitanies were recited, but it was all in vain, except that some ofthe spectators thought that the contortions of the patient became moreviolent when the intercessions of certain saints were invoked, as forinstance Saints Augustine Jerome, Antony, and Mary Magdalene. Barrenext directed the mother superior to dedicate her heart and soul to God, which she did without difficulty; but when he commanded her to dedicateher body also, the chief devil indicated by fresh convulsions that hewas not going to allow himself to be deprived of a domicile withoutresistance, and made those who had heard him say that he would leave thenext morning feel that he had only said so under compulsion; and theircuriosity as to the result became heightened. At length, however, despite the obstinate resistance of the demon, the superior succeededin dedicating her body also to God, and thus victorious her featuresresumed their usual expression, and smiling as if nothing had happened, she turned to Barre and said that there was no vestige of Satan left inher. The civil lieutenant then asked her if she remembered the questionsshe had been asked and the answers she had given, but she replied thatshe remembered nothing; but afterwards, having taken some refreshment, she said to those around her that she recollected perfectly how thefirst possession, over which Mignon had triumphed, had taken place: oneevening about ten o'clock, while several nuns were still in her room, although she was already in bed, it seemed to her that someone took herhand and laid something in it, closing her fingers; at that instant shefelt a sharp pain as if she had been pricked by three pins, and hearingher scream, the nuns came to her bedside to ask what ailed her. She heldout her hand, and they found three black thorns sticking in it, eachhaving made a tiny wound. Just as she had told this tale, the laysister, as if to prevent all commentary, was seized with convulsions, and Barre recommenced his prayers and exorcisms, but was sooninterrupted by shrieks; for one of the persons present had seen a blackcat come down the chimney and disappear. Instantly everyone concludedit must be the devil, and began to seek it out. It was not without greatdifficulty that it was caught; for, terrified at the sight of so manypeople and at the noise, the poor animal had sought refuge undera canopy; but at last it was secured and carried to the superior'sbedside, where Barre began his exorcisms once more, covering the catwith signs of the cross, and adjuring the devil to take his true shape. Suddenly the 'touriere', (the woman who received the tradespeople, )came forward, declaring the supposed devil to be only her cat, and sheimmediately took possession of it, lest some harm should happen to it. 

The gathering had been just about to separate, but Barry fearing thatthe incident of the cat might throw a ridiculous light upon the evilspirits, resolved to awake once more a salutary terror by announcingthat he was going to burn the flowers through which the second spell hadbeen made to work. Producing a bunch of white roses, already faded, heordered a lighted brazier to be brought. He then threw the flowers onthe glowing charcoal, and to the general astonishment they were consumedwithout any visible effect: the heavens still smiled, no peal of thunderwas heard, and no unpleasant odour diffused itself through the room. Barre feeling that the baldness of this act of destruction had had abad effect, predicted that the morrow would bring forth wondrous things;that the chief devil would speak more distinctly than hitherto; thathe would leave the body of the superior, giving such clear signs of hispassage that no one would dare to doubt any longer that it was a case ofgenuine possession. Thereupon the criminal lieutenant, Henri Herve, who had been present during the exorcism, said they must seize uponthe moment of his exit to ask about Pivart, who was unknown at Loudun, although everyone who lived there knew everybody else. Barre replied inLatin, "Et hoc dicet epuellam nominabit" (He will not only tell abouthim, but he will also name the young girl). The young girl whom thedevil was to name was, it may be recollected, she who had introducedthe flowers into the convent, and whose name the demon until now hadabsolutely refused to give. On the strength of these promises everyonewent home to await the morrow with impatience. 

CHAPTER IV

That evening Grandier asked the bailiff for an audience. At first he hadmade fun of the exorcisms, for the story had been so badly concocted, and the accusations were so glaringly improbable, that he had not feltthe least anxiety. But as the case went on it assumed such an importantaspect, and the hatred displayed by his enemies was so intense, that thefate of the priest Gaufredi, referred to by Mignon, occurred to Urbain'smind, and in order to be beforehand with his enemies he determined tolodge a complaint against them. This complaint was founded on the factthat Mignon had performed the rite of exorcism in the presence of thecivil lieutenant, the bailiff, and many other persons, and had causedthe nuns who were said to be possessed, in the hearing of all thesepeople, to name him, Urbain, as the author of their possession. Thisbeing a falsehood and an attack upon his honour, he begged the bailiff, in whose hands the conduct of the affair had been specially placed, toorder the nuns to be sequestered, apart from the rest of the sisterhoodand from each other, and then to have each separately examined. Shouldthere appear to be any evidence of possession, he hoped that the bailiffwould be pleased to appoint clerics of well-known rank and uprightcharacter to perform whatever exorcisms were needful; such men having nobias against him would be more impartial than Mignon and his adherents. He also called upon the bailiff to have an exact report drawn upof everything that took place at the exorcisms, in order that, ifnecessary, he as petitioner might be able to lay it before anyone towhose judgment he might appeal. The bailiff gave Grandier a statement ofthe conclusions at which he had arrived, and told him that the exorcismshad been performed that day by Barre, armed with the authority of theBishop of Poitiers himself. Being, as we have seen, a man of commonsense and entirely unprejudiced in the matter, the bailiff advisedGrandier to lay his complaint before his bishop; but unfortunately hewas under the authority of the Bishop of Poitiers, who was so prejudicedagainst him that he had done everything in his power to induce theArchbishop of Bordeaux to refuse to ratify the decision in favour ofGrandier, pronounced by the presidial court. Urbain could not hide fromthe magistrate that he had nothing to hope for from this quarter, andit was decided that he should wait and see what the morrow would bringforth, before taking any further step. 

The impatiently expected day dawned at last, and at eight o'clock inthe morning the bailiff, the king's attorney, the civil lieutenant, thecriminal lieutenant, and the provost's lieutenant, with their respectiveclerks, were already at the convent. They found the outer gate open, butthe inner door shut. In a few moments Mignon came to them and broughtthem into a waiting-room. There he told them that the nuns werepreparing for communion, and that he would be very much obliged tothem if they would withdraw and wait in a house across the street, justopposite the convent, and that he would send them word when they couldcome back. The magistrates, having first informed Mignon of Urbain'spetition, retired as requested. 

An hour passed, and as Mignon did not summon them, in spite of hispromise, they all went together to the convent chapel, where they weretold the exorcisms were already over. The nuns had quitted the choir, and Mignon and Barre came to the grating and told them that they hadjust completed the rite, and that, thanks to their conjurations, the twoafflicted ones were now quite free from evil spirits. They went onto say that they had been working together at the exorcism from seveno'clock in the morning, and that great wonders, of which they had drawnup an account, had come to pass; but they had considered it would not beproper to allow any one else to be present during the ceremony besidesthe exorcists and the possessed. The bailiff pointed out that theirmanner of proceedings was not only illegal, but that it laid themunder suspicion of fraud and collusion, in the eyes of the impartial:Moreover, as the superior had accused Grandier publicly, she was boundto renew and prove her accusation also publicly, and not in secret;furthermore, it was a great piece of insolence on the part of theexorcists to invite people of their standing and character to come tothe convent, and having kept them waiting an hour, to tell them thatthey considered them unworthy to be admitted to the ceremony which theyhad been requested to attend; and he wound up by saying that he woulddraw up a report, as he had already done on each of the preceding days, setting forth the extraordinary discrepancy between their promises andtheir performance. Mignon replied that he and Barre had had only onething in view, viz. The expulsion of the demons, and that in that theyhad succeeded, and that their success would be of great benefit to theholy Catholic faith, for they had got the demons so thoroughly intotheir power that they had been able to command them to produce within aweek miraculous proofs of the spells cast on the nuns by Urbain Grandierand their wonderful deliverance therefrom; so that in future no onewould be able to doubt as to the reality of the possession. Thereuponthe magistrates drew up a report of all that had happened, and of whatBarre and Mignon had said. This was signed by all the officials present, except the criminal lieutenant, who declared that, having perfectconfidence in the statements of the exorcists, he was anxious to donothing to increase the doubting spirit which was unhappily so prevalentamong the worldly. 

The same day the bailiff secretly warned Urbain of the refusal of thecriminal lieutenant to join with the others in signing the report, andalmost at the same moment he learned that the cause of his adversarieswas strengthened by the adhesion of a certain Messire Rene Memin, seigneur de Silly, and prefect of the town. This gentleman was heldin great esteem not only on account of his wealth and the many officeswhich he filled, but above all on account of his powerful friends, amongwhom was the cardinal-duke himself, to whom he had formerly been of usewhen the cardinal was only a prior. The character of the conspiracy hadnow become so alarming that Grandier felt it was time to oppose itwith all his strength. Recalling his conversation with the bailiff thepreceding day, during which he had advised him to lay his complaintbefore the Bishop of Poitiers, he set out, accompanied by a priest ofLoudun, named Jean Buron, for the prelate's country house at Dissay. The bishop, anticipating his visit, had already given his orders, andGrandier was met by Dupuis, the intendant of the palace, who, in replyto Grandier's request to see the bishop, told him that his lordship wasill. Urbain next addressed himself to the bishop's chaplain, and beggedhim to inform the prelate that his object in coming was to lay beforehim the official reports which the magistrates had drawn up of theevents which had taken place at the Ursuline convent, and to lodge acomplaint as to the slanders and accusations of which he was the victim. Grandier spoke so urgently that the chaplain could not refuse to carryhis message; he returned, however, in a few moments, and told Grandier, in the presence of Dupuis, Buron, and a certain sieur Labrasse, thatthe bishop advised him to take his case to the royal judges, and thathe earnestly hoped he would obtain justice from them. Grandier perceivedthat the bishop had been warned against him, and felt that he wasbecoming more and more entangled in the net of conspiracy around him;but he was not a man to flinch before any danger. He therefore returnedimmediately to Loudun, and went once more to the bailiff, to whom herelated all that had happened at Dissay; he then, a second time, made aformal complaint as to the slanders circulated with regard to him, andbegged the magistrates to have recourse to the king's courts in thebusiness. He also said that he desired to be placed under the protectionof the king and his justice, as the accusations made against him wereaimed at his honour and his life. The bailiff hastened to make out acertificate of Urbain's protest, which forbade at the same time therepetition of the slanders or the infliction on Urbain of any injury. 

Thanks to this document, a change of parts took place: Mignon, theaccuser, became the accused. Feeling that he had powerful support behindhim, he had the audacity to appear before the bailiff the same day. Hesaid that he did not acknowledge his jurisdiction, as in what concernedGrandier and himself, they being both priests, they could only be judgedby their bishop; he nevertheless protested against the complaint lodgedby Grandier, which characterised him as a slanderer, and declared thathe was ready to give himself up as a prisoner, in order to show everyonethat he did not fear the result of any inquiry. Furthermore, he hadtaken an oath on the sacred elements the day before, in the presence ofhis parishioners who had come to mass, that in all he had hitherto donehe had been moved, not by hatred of Grandier, but by love of the truth, and by his desire for the triumph of the Catholic faith; and he insistedthat the bailiff should give him a certificate of his declaration, andserved notice of the same on Grandier that very day. 

CHAPTER V

Since October 13th, the day on which the demons had been expelled, lifeat the convent seemed to have returned to its usual quiet; but Grandierdid not let himself be lulled to sleep by the calm: he knew those withwhom he was contending too well to imagine for an instant that he wouldhear no more of them; and when the bailiff expressed pleasure at thisinterval of repose, Grandier said that it would not last long, as thenuns were only conning new parts, in order to carry on the drama in amore effective manner than ever. And in fact, on November 22nd, ReneMannouri, surgeon to the convent, was sent to one of his colleagues, named Gaspard Joubert, to beg him to come, bringing some of thephysicians of the town with him, to visit the two sisters, who wereagain tormented by evil spirits. Mannouri, however, had gone to thewrong man, for Joubert had a frank and loyal character, and hatedeverything that was underhand. Being determined to take no part in thebusiness, except in a public and judicial manner, he applied at once tothe bailiff to know if it was by his orders that he was called in. Thebailiff said it was not, and summoned Mannouri before him to ask himby whose authority he had sent for Joubert. Mannouri declared that the'touriere' had run in a fright to his house, saying that the nuns hadnever been worse possessed than now, and that the director, Mignon, begged him to come at once to the convent, bringing with him all thedoctors he could find. 

The bailiff, seeing that fresh plots against Grandier were being formed, sent for him and warned him that Barre had come over from Chinon the daybefore, and had resumed his exorcisms at the convent, adding that itwas currently reported in the town that the mother superior and SisterClaire were again tormented by devils. The news neither astonished nordiscouraged Grandier, who replied, with his usual smile of disdain, thatit was evident his enemies were hatching new plots against him, and thatas he had instituted proceedings against them for the former ones, he would take the same course with regard to these. At the same time, knowing how impartial the bailiff was, he begged him to accompanythe doctors and officials to the convent, and to be present at theexorcisms, and should any sign of real possession manifest itself, tosequester the afflicted nuns at once, and cause them to be examinedby other persons than Mignon and Barre, whom he had such good cause todistrust. 

The bailiff wrote to the king's attorney, who, notwithstanding his biasagainst Grandier, was forced to see that the conclusions arrived at werecorrect, and having certified this in writing, he at once sent his clerkto the convent to inquire if the superior were still possessed. In caseof an affirmative reply being given, the clerk had instructions to warnMignon and Barre that they were not to undertake exorcisms unless inpresence of the bailiff and of such officials and doctors as he mightchoose to bring with him, and that they would disobey at their peril;he was also to tell them that Grandier's demands to have the nunssequestered and other exorcists called in were granted. 

Mignon and Barre listened while the clerk read his instructions, andthen said they refused to recognise the jurisdiction of the bailiff inthis case; that they had been summoned by the mother superior and SisterClaire when their strange illness returned, an illness which they wereconvinced was nothing else than possession by evil spirits; that theyhad hitherto carried out their exorcisms under the authority of acommission given them by the Bishop of Poitiers; and as the time forwhich they had permission had not yet expired; they would continue toexorcise as often as might be necessary. They had, however, given noticeto the worthy prelate of what was going on, in order that he mighteither come himself or send other exorcists as best suited him, so thata valid opinion as to the reality, of the possession might be procured, for up to the present the worldly and unbelieving had taken uponthemselves to declare in an off-hand manner that the whole affair was amixture of fraud and delusion, in contempt of the glory of God and theCatholic religion. As to the rest of the message, they would not, in anyway prevent the bailiff and the other officials, with as many medicalmen as they chose to bring, from seeing the nuns, at least until theyheard from the bishop, from whom they expected a letter next day. But itwas for the nuns themselves to say whether it was convenient for them toreceive visitors; as far as concerned themselves, they desired to renewtheir protest, and declared they could not accept the bailiff as theirjudge, and did not think that it could be legal for them to refuseto obey a command from their ecclesiastical superiors, whether withrelation to exorcism or any other thing of which the ecclesiasticalcourts properly took cognisance. The clerk brought this answer to thebailiff, and he, thinking it was better to wait for the arrival of thebishop or of fresh orders from him, put off his visit to the conventuntil the next day. But the next day came without anything being heardof the prelate himself or of a messenger from him. 

Early in the morning the bailiff went to the convent, but was notadmitted; he then waited patiently until noon, and seeing that no newshad arrived from Dissay, and that the convent gates were still closedagainst him, he granted a second petition of Grandier's, to the effectthat Byre and Mignon should be prohibited from questioning the superiorand the other nuns in a manner tending to blacken the character of thepetitioner or any other person. Notice of this prohibition was servedthe same day on Barre and on one nun chosen to represent the community. Barre did not pay the slightest attention to this notice, but kepton asserting that the bailiff had no right to prevent his obeying thecommands of his bishop, and declaring that henceforward he wouldperform all exorcisms solely under ecclesiastical sanction, without anyreference to lay persons, whose unbelief and impatience impaired thesolemnity with which such rites should be conducted. 

The best part of the day having gone over without any sign of eitherbishop or messenger, Grandier presented a new petition to the bailiff. The bailiff at once summoned all the officers of the bailiwick and theattorneys of the king, in order to lay it before them; but the king'sattorneys refused to consider the matter, declaring upon their honourthat although they did not accuse Grandier of being the cause, yet theybelieved that the nuns were veritably possessed, being convinced by thetestimony of the devout ecclesiastics in whose presence the evil spiritshad come out. This was only the ostensible reason for their refusal, the real one being that the advocate was a relation of Mignon's, and theattorney a son-in-law of Trinquant's, to whose office he had succeeded. Thus Grandier, against whom were all the ecclesiastical judges, beganto feel as if he were condemned beforehand by the judges of theroyal courts, for he knew how very short was the interval between therecognition of the possession as a fact and the recognition of himselfas its author. 

Nevertheless, in spite of the formal declarations of the king's advocateand attorney, the bailiff ordered the superior and the lay sister to beremoved to houses in town, each to be accompanied by a nun as companion. During their absence from the convent they were to be looked afterby exorcists, by women of high character and position, as well as byphysicians and attendants, all of whom he himself would appoint, allothers being forbidden access to the nuns without his permission. 

The clerk was again sent to the convent with a copy of this decision, but the superior having listened to the reading of the document, answered that in her own name and that of the sisterhood she refused torecognise the jurisdiction of the bailiff; that she had already receiveddirections from the Bishop of Poitiers, dated 18th November, explainingthe measures which were to be taken in the matter, and she would gladlysend a copy of these directions to the bailiff, to prevent his pleadingignorance of them; furthermore, she demurred to the order for herremoval, having vowed to live always secluded in a convent, and that noone could dispense her from this vow but the bishop. This protest havingbeen made in the presence of Madame de Charnisay, aunt of two of thenuns, and Surgeon Mannouri, who was related to another, they both unitedin drawing up a protest against violence, in case the bailiff shouldinsist on having his orders carried out, declaring that, should hemake the attempt, they would resist him, as if he were a mereprivate individual. This document being duly signed and witnessed wasimmediately sent to the bailiff by the hand of his own clerk, whereuponthe bailiff ordered that preparations should be made with regard to thesequestration, and announced that the next day, the 24th November, hewould repair to the convent and be present at the exorcisms. 

The next day accordingly, at the appointed hour, the bailiff summonedDaniel Roger, Vincent de Faux, Gaspard Joubert, and Matthieu Fanson, allfour physicians, to his presence, and acquainting them with his reasonsfor having called them, asked them to accompany him to the convent toexamine, with the most scrupulous impartiality, two nuns whom he wouldpoint out, in order to discover if their illness were feigned, or arosefrom natural or supernatural causes. Having thus instructed them as tohis wishes, they all set out for the convent. 

They were shown into the chapel and placed close to the altar, beingseparated by a grating from the choir, in which the nuns who sangusually sat. In a few moments the superior was carried in on a smallbed, which was laid down before the grating. Barre then said mass, during which the superior went into violent convulsions. She threw herarms about, her fingers were clenched, her cheeks enormously inflated, and her eyes turned up so that only the whites could be seen. 

The mass finished, Barre approached her to administer the holy communionand to commence the exorcism. Holding the holy wafer in his hand, hesaid--

"Adora Deum tuum, creatorem tuum" (Adore God, thy Creator). 

The superior hesitated, as if she found great difficulty in making thisact of love, but at length she said--

"Adoro te" (I adore Thee). 

"Quem adoras?" (Whom dost thou adore?)

"Jesus Christus" (Jesus Christ), answered the nun, quite unconsciousthat the verb adorn governs accusative. 

This mistake, which no sixth-form boy would make, gave rise to burstsof laughter in the church; and Daniel Douin, the provost's assessor, wasconstrained to say aloud--

"There's a devil for you, who does not know much about transitiveverbs. "

Barre perceiving the bad impression that the superior's nominative hadmade, hastened to ask her--

"Quis est iste quem adoras?" (Who is it whom thou dost adore?)

His hope was that she would again reply "Jesus Christus, " but he wasdisappointed. 

"Jesu Christe, " was her answer. 

Renewed shouts of laughter greeted this infraction of one of the mostelementary rules of syntax, and several of those present exclaimed:

"Oh, your reverence, what very poor Latin!"

Barre pretended not to hear, and next asked what was the name of thedemon who had taken possession of her. The poor superior, who wasgreatly confused by the unexpected effect of her last two answers, couldnot speak for a long time; but at length with great trouble she broughtout the name Asmodee, without daring to latinise it. The exorcist theninquired how many devils the superior had in her body, and to thisquestion she replied quite fluently:

"Sex" (Six). 

The bailiff upon this requested Barre to ask the chief devil how manyevil spirits he had with him. But the need for this answer had beenforeseen, and the nun unhesitatingly returned--

"Quinque" (Five). 

This answer raised Asmodee somewhat in the opinion of those present; butwhen the bailiff adjured the superior to repeat in Greek what shehad just said in Latin she made no reply, and on the adjuration beingrenewed she immediately recovered her senses. 

The examination of the superior being thus cut short, a little nun whoappeared for the first time in public was brought forward. She began bytwice pronouncing the name of Grandier with a loud laugh; then turningto the bystanders, called out--

"For all your number, you can do nothing worth while. "

As it was easy to see that nothing of importance was to be expected fromthis new patient, she was soon suppressed, and her place taken bythe lay sister Claire who had already made her debut in the mothersuperior's room. 

Hardly had she entered the choir than she uttered a groan, but as soonas they placed her on the little bed on which the other nuns had lain, she gave way to uncontrollable laughter, and cried out between theparoxysms--

"Grandier, Grandier, you must buy some at the market. "

Barre at once declared that these wild and whirling words were a proofof possession, and approached to exorcise the demon; but Sister Claireresisted, and pretending to spit in the face of the exorcist, put outher tongue at him, making indecent gestures, using a word in harmonywith her actions. This word being in the vernacular was understood byeveryone and required no interpretation. 

The exorcist then conjured her to give the name of the demon who was inher, and she replied--

"Grandier. "

But Barre by repeating his question gave her to understand that she hadmade a mistake, whereupon she corrected herself and said--

"Elimi. "

Nothing in the world could induce her to reveal the number of evilspirits by whom Elimi was accompanied, so that Barre, seeing that it wasuseless to press her on this point, passed on to the next question. 

"Quo pacto ingressus est daemon" (By what pact did the demon get in?). 

"Duplex" (Double), returned Sister Claire. 

This horror of the ablative, when the ablative was absolutely necessary, aroused once more the hilarity of the audience, and proved that SisterClaire's devil was just as poor a Latin scholar as the superior's, andBarre, fearing some new linguistic eccentricity on the part of the evilspirit, adjourned the meeting to another day. 

The paucity of learning shown in the answers of the nuns beingsufficient to convince any fairminded person that the whole affair was aridiculous comedy, the bailiff felt encouraged to persevere until hehad unravelled the whole plot. Consequently, at three o'clock in theafternoon, he returned to the convent, accompanied by his clerk, byseveral magistrates, and by a considerable number of the best knownpeople of Loudun, and asked to see the superior. Being admitted, heannounced to Barre that he had come to insist on the superior beingseparated from Sister Claire, so that each could be exorcised apart. Barre dared not refuse before such a great number of witnesses, therefore the superior was isolated and the exorcisms begun all overagain. Instantly the convulsions returned, just as in the morning, onlythat now she twisted her feet into the form of hooks, which was a newaccomplishment. 

Having adjured her several times, the exorcist succeeded in making herrepeat some prayers, and then sounded her as to the name and number ofthe demons in possession, whereupon she said three times that there wasone called Achaos. The bailiff then directed Barre to ask if she werepossessed 'ex pacto magi, aut ex Aura voluntate Dei' (by a pact with asorcerer or by the pure will of God), to which the superior answered, "Non est voluntas Dei" (Not by the will of God). 

Upon this, Barre dreading more questions from the bystanders, hastilyresumed his own catechism by asking who was the sorcerer. 

"Urbanus, " answered the superior. 

"Est-ne Urbanus papa" (Is it Pope Urban?), asked the exorcist. 

"Grandier, " replied the superior. 

"Quare ingressus es in corpus hujus puellae" (Why did you enter the bodyof this maiden?), said Barre. 

"Propter praesentiam tuum" (Because of your presence), answered thesuperior. 

At this point the bailiff, seeing no reason why the dialogue betweenBarre and the superior should ever come to an end, interposed anddemanded that questions suggested by him and the other officials presentshould be put to the superior, promising that if she answered three offour such questions correctly, he, and those with him, would believe inthe reality of the possession, and would certify to that effect. Barreaccepted the challenge, but unluckily just at that moment the superiorregained consciousness, and as it was already late, everyone retired. 

CHAPTER VI

The next day, November 25th, the bailiff and the majority of theofficers of the two jurisdictions came to the convent once more, andwere all conducted to the choir. In a few moments the curtains behindthe grating were drawn back, and the superior, lying on her bed, cameto view. Barre began, as usual, by the celebration of mass, during whichthe superior was seized with convulsions, and exclaimed two or threetimes, "Grandier! Grandier! false priest!" When the mass was over, thecelebrant went behind the grating, carrying the pyx; then, placing it onhis head and holding it there, he protested that in all he was doing hewas actuated by the purest motives and the highest integrity; that hehad no desire to harm anyone on earth; and he adjured God to strikehim dead if he had been guilty of any bad action or collusion, or hadinstigated the nuns to any deceit during the investigation. 

The prior of the Carmelites next advanced and made the same declaration, taking the oath in the same manner, holding the pyx over his head; andfurther calling down on himself and his brethren the curse of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram if they had sinned during this inquiry. Theseprotestations did not, however, produce the salutary effect intended, some of those present saying aloud that such oaths smacked of sacrilege. 

Barre hearing the murmurs, hastened to begin the exorcisms, firstadvancing to the superior to offer her the holy sacrament: but as soonas she caught sight of him she became terribly convulsed, and attemptedto drag the pyx from his hands. Barre, however, by pronouncing thesacred words, overcame the repulsion of the superior, and succeeded inplacing the wafer in her mouth; she, however, pushed it out again withher tongue, as if it made her sick; Barge caught it in his fingers andgave it to her again, at the same time forbidding the demon to makeher vomit, and this time she succeeded in partly swallowing the sacredmorsel, but complained that it stuck in her throat. At last, in orderto get it down, Barge three times gave her water to drink; and then, asalways during his exorcisms, he began by interrogating the demon. 

"Per quod pactum ingressus es in corpus hujus puellae?" (By what pactdidst thou enter the body of this maiden?)

"Aqua" ( By water), said the superior. 

One of those who had accompanied the bailiff was a Scotchman calledStracan, the head of the Reformed College of Loudun. Hearing thisanswer, he called on the demon to translate aqua into Gaelic, saying ifhe gave this proof of having those linguistic attainments which allbad spirits possess, he and those with him would be convinced that thepossession was genuine and no deception. Barre, without being in theleast taken aback, replied that he would make the demon say it if Godpermitted, and ordered the spirit to answer in Gaelic. But though herepeated his command twice, it was not obeyed; on the third repetitionthe superior said--

"Nimia curiositas" (Too much curiosity), and on being asked again, said--

"Deus non volo. "

This time the poor devil went astray in his conjugation, and confusingthe first with the third person, said, "God, I do not wish, " which inthe context had no meaning. "God does not wish, " being the appointedanswer. 

The Scotchman laughed heartily at this nonsense, and proposed to Barreto let his devil enter into competition with the boys of his seventhform; but Barre, instead of frankly accepting the challenge in thedevil's name, hemmed and hawed, and opined that the devil was justifiedin not satisfying idle curiosity. 

"But, sir, you must be aware, " said the civil lieutenant, "and if youare not, the manual you hold in your hand will teach you, that the giftof tongues is one of the unfailing symptoms of true possession, and thepower to tell what is happening at a distance another. "

"Sir, " returned Barre, "the devil knows the language very well, but, does not wish to speak it; he also knows all your sins, in proof ofwhich, if you so desire, I shall order him to give the list. "

"I shall be delighted to hear it, " said the civil lieutenant; "be sogood as to try the experiment. "

Barre was about to approach the superior, when he was held back by thebailiff, who remonstrated with him on the impropriety of his conduct, whereupon Barre assured the magistrate that he had never really intendedto do as he threatened. 

However, in spite of all Barre's attempts to distract the attention ofthe bystanders from the subject, they still persisted in desiring todiscover the extent of the devil's knowledge of foreign languages, andat their suggestion the bailiff proposed to Barre to try him in Hebrewinstead of Gaelic. Hebrew being, according to Scripture, the mostancient language of all, ought to be familiar to the demon, unlessindeed he had forgotten it. This idea met with such general applausethat Barre was forced to command the possessed nun to say aqua inHebrew. The poor woman, who found it difficult enough to repeatcorrectly the few Latin words she had learned by rote, made an impatientmovement, and said--

"I can't help it; I retract" (Je renie). 

These words being heard and repeated by those near her produced such anunfavourable impression that one of the Carmelite monks tried to explainthem away by declaring that the superior had not said "Je renie, " but"Zaquay, " a Hebrew word corresponding to the two Latin words, "Effudiaquam" (I threw water about). But the words "Je renie" had been heardso distinctly that the monk's assertion was greeted with jeers, and thesub-prior reprimanded him publicly as a liar. Upon this, the superiorhad a fresh attack of convulsions, and as all present knew that theseattacks usually indicated that the performance was about to end, theywithdrew, making very merry over a devil who knew neither Hebrew norGaelic, and whose smattering of Latin was so incorrect. 

However, as the bailiff and civil lieutenant were determined to clear upevery doubt so far as they still felt any, they went once again to theconvent at three o'clock the same afternoon. Barre came out to meetthem, and took them for a stroll in the convent grounds. During theirwalk he said to the civil lieutenant that he felt very much surprisedthat he, who had on a former occasion, by order of the Bishop ofPoitiers, laid information against Grandier should be now on his side. The civil lieutenant replied that he would be ready to inform againsthim again if there were any justification, but at present his objectwas to arrive at the truth, and in this he felt sure he should besuccessful. Such an answer was very unsatisfactory to Barre; so, drawingthe bailiff aside, he remarked to him that a man among whose ancestorswere many persons of condition, several of whom had held positionsof much dignity in the Church, and who himself held such an importantjudicial position, ought to show less incredulity in regard to thepossibility of a devil entering into a human body, since if it wereproved it would redound to the glory of God and the good of the Churchand of religion. The bailiff received this remonstrance with markedcoldness, and replied that he hoped always to take justice for hisguide, as his duty commanded. Upon this, Barre pursued the subject nofarther, but led the way to the superior's apartment. 

Just as they entered the room, where a large number of people werealready gathered, the superior, catching sight of the pyx which Barrehad brought with him, fell once more into convulsions. Barre wenttowards her, and having asked the demon as usual by what pact he hadentered the maiden's body, and received the information that it was bywater, continued his examination as follows:

"Quis finis pacti" (What is the object of this pact?)

"Impuritas" (Unchastity). 

At these words the bailiff interrupted the exorcist and ordered him tomake the demon say in Greek the three words, 'finis, pacti, impuritas'. But the superior, who had once already got out of her difficulties by anevasive answer, had again recourse to the same convenient phrase, "Nimiacuriositas, " with which Barre agreed, saying that they were indeed toomuch given to curiosity. So the bailiff had to desist from his attemptto make the demon speak Greek, as he had before been obliged to giveup trying to make him speak Hebrew and Gaelic. Barre then continued hisexamination. 

"Quis attulit pactum?" (Who brought the pact?)

"Magus" (The sorcerer). 

"Quale nomen magi?" (What is the sorcerer's name?)

"Urbanus" (Urban). 

"Quis Urbanus? Est-ne Urbanus papa?"

(What Urban? Pope Urban?)

"Grandier. "

"Cujus qualitatis?" (What is his profession?)

"Curcatus. "

The enriching of the Latin language by this new and unknown wordproduced a great effect on the audience; however, Barre did not pauselong enough to allow it to be received with all the consideration itdeserved, but went on at once. 

"Quis attulit aquam pacti?" (Who brought the water of the pact?)

"Magus" (The magician). 

"Qua hora?" (At what o'clock?)

"Septima" (At seven o'clock). 

"An matutina?" (In the morning?)

"Sego" (In the evening). 

"Quomodo intravit?" (How did he enter?)

"Janua" (By the door). 

"Quis vidit?" (Who saw him?)

"Tres" (Three persons). 

Here Barre stopped, in order to confirm the testimony of the devil, assuring his hearers that the Sunday after the superior's deliverancefrom the second possession he along with Mignon and one of the sisterswas sitting with her at supper, it being about seven o'clock in theevening, when she showed them drops of water on her arm, and no onecould tell where they came from. He had instantly washed her arm inholy water and repeated some prayers, and while he was saying them thebreviary of the superior was twice dragged from her hands and thrown athis feet, and when he stooped to pick it up for the second time he got abox on the ear without being able to see the hand that administeredit. Then Mignon came up and confirmed what Barre had said in a longdiscourse, which he wound up by calling down upon his head the mostterrible penalties if every word he said were not the exact truth. Hethen dismissed the assembly, promising to drive out the evil spiritthe next day, and exhorting those present to prepare themselves, bypenitence and receiving the holy communion, for the contemplation of thewonders which awaited them. 

CHAPTER VII

The last two exorcisms had been so much talked about in the town, thatGrandier, although he had not been present, knew everything that hadhappened, down to the smallest detail, so he once more laid a complaintbefore the bailiff, in which he represented that the nuns maliciouslycontinued to name him during the exorcisms as the author of theirpretended possession, being evidently influenced thereto by his enemies, whereas in fact not only had he had no communication with them, but hadnever set eyes on them; that in order to prove that they acted underinfluence it was absolutely necessary that they should be sequestered, it being most unjust that Mignon and Barre, his mortal enemies, shouldhave constant access to them and be able to stay with them night andday, their doing so making the collusion evident and undeniable; thatthe honour of God was involved, and also that of the petitioner, who hadsome right to be respected, seeing that he was first in rank among theecclesiastics of the town. 

Taking all this into consideration, he consequently prayed the bailiffto be pleased to order that the nuns buffering from the so-calledpossession should at once be separated from each other and from theirpresent associates, and placed under the control of clerics assisted byphysicians in whose impartiality the petitioner could have confidence;and he further prayed that all this should be performed in spite of anyopposition or appeal whatsoever (but without prejudice to the rightof appeal), because of the importance of the matter. And in case thebailiff were not pleased to order the sequestration, the petitionerwould enter a protest and complaint against his refusal as a withholdingof justice. 

The bailiff wrote at the bottom of the petition that it would be at oncecomplied with. 

After Urbain Grandier had departed, the physicians who had been presentat the exorcisms presented themselves before the bailiff, bringing theirreport with them. In this report they said that they had recognisedconvulsive movements of the mother superior's body, but that one visitwas not sufficient to enable them to make a thorough diagnosis, as themovements above mentioned might arise as well from a natural as fromsupernatural causes; they therefore desired to be afforded opportunityfor a thorough examination before being called on to pronounce anopinion. To this end they required permission to spend several days andnights uninterruptedly in the same room with the patients, and to treatthem in the presence of other nuns and some of the magistrates. Further, they required that all the food and medicine should pass through thedoctors' hands, and that no one, should touch the patients exceptquite openly, or speak to them except in an audible voice. Under theseconditions they would undertake to find out the true cause of theconvulsions and to make a report of the same. 

It being now nine o'clock in the morning, the hour when the exorcismsbegan, the bailiff went over at once to the convent, and found Barrehalf way through the mass, and the superior in convulsions. Themagistrate entered the church at the moment of the elevation of theHost, and noticed among the kneeling Catholics a young man calledDessentier standing up with his hat on. He ordered him either to uncoveror to go away. At this the convulsive movements of the superior becamemore violent, and she cried out that there were Huguenots in the church, which gave the demon great power over her. Barre asked her how manythere were present, and she replied, "Two, " thus proving that the devilwas no stronger in arithmetic than in Latin; for besides Dessentier, Councillor Abraham Gauthier, one of his brothers, four of his sisters, Rene Fourneau, a deputy, and an attorney called Angevin, all of theReformed faith, were present. 

As Barre saw that those present were greatly struck, by this numericalinaccuracy, he tried to turn their thoughts in another direction byasking the superior if it were true that she knew no Latin. On herreplying that she did not know a single word, he held the pyx before herand ordered her to swear by the holy sacrament. She resisted at first, saying loud enough for those around her to hear--

"My father, you make me take such solemn oaths that I fear God willpunish me. "

To this Barre replied--

"My daughter, you must swear for the glory of God. "

And she took the oath. 

Just then one of the bystanders remarked that the mother superior wasin the habit of interpreting the Catechism to her scholars. This shedenied, but acknowledged that she used to translate the Paternosterand the Creed for them. As the superior felt herself becoming somewhatconfused at this long series of embarrassing questions, she decided ongoing into convulsions again, but with only moderate success, for thebailiff insisted that the exorcists should ask her where Grandier was atthat very moment. Now, as the ritual teaches that one of the proofsof possession is the faculty of telling, when asked, where peopleare, without seeing them, and as the question was propounded in theprescribed terms, she was bound to answer, so she said that Grandier wasin the great hall of the castle. 

"That is not correct, " said the bailiff, "for before coming here Ipointed out a house to Grandier and asked him to stay in it till I cameback. If anybody will go there, they will be sure to find him, for hewished to help me to discover the truth without my being obliged toresort to sequestration, which is a difficult measure to take withregard to nuns. "

Barre was now ordered to send some of the monks present to the castle, accompanied by a magistrate and a clerk. Barre chose the Carmeliteprior, and the bailiff Charles Chauvet, assessor of the bailiwick, Ismael Boulieau a priest, and Pierre Thibaut, an articled clerk, whoall set out at once to execute their commission, while the rest of thosepresent were to await their return. 

Meanwhile the superior, who had not spoken a word since the bailiff'sdeclaration, remained, in spite of repeated exorcisms, dumb, so Barresent for Sister Claire, saying that one devil would encourage the other. The bailiff entered a formal protest against this step, insisting thatthe only result of a double exorcism would be to cause confusion, duringwhich suggestions might be conveyed to the superior, and that the properthing to do was, before beginning new conjurations, to await thereturn of the messengers. Although the bailiff's suggestion was mostreasonable, Barre knew better than to adopt it, for he felt that nomatter what it cost he must either get rid of the bailiff and all theother officials who shared his doubts, or find means with the help ofSister Claire to delude them into belief. The lay sister was thereforebrought in, in spite of the opposition of the bailiff and the othermagistrates, and as they did not wish to seem to countenance a fraud, they all withdrew, declaring that they could no longer look on at such adisgusting comedy. In the courtyard they met their messengers returning, who told them they had gone first to the castle and had searched thegreat hall and all the other rooms without seeing anything of Grandier;they had then gone to the house mentioned by the bailiff, where theyfound him for whom they were looking, in the company of Pere Veret, theconfessor of the nuns, Mathurin Rousseau, and Nicolas Benoit, canons, and Conte, a doctor, from whom they learned that Grandier had not beenan instant out of their sight for the last two hours. This being allthe magistrates wanted to know, they went home, while their envoys wentupstairs and told their story, which produced the effect which mightbe expected. Thereupon a Carmelite brother wishing to weaken theimpression, and thinking that the devil might be more lucky in his, second guess than the first, asked the superior where Grandier was justthen. She answered without the slightest hesitation that he was walkingwith the bailiff in the church of Sainte-Croix. A new deputation was atonce sent off, which finding the church empty, went on to the palace, and saw the bailiff presiding at a court. He had gone direct from theconvent to the palace, and had not yet seen Grandier. The same day thenuns sent word that they would not consent to any more exorcisms beingperformed in the presence of the bailiff and the officials who usuallyaccompanied him, and that for the future they were determined to answerno questions before such witnesses. 

Grandier learning of this piece of insolence, which prevented theonly man on whose impartiality he could reckon from being henceforwardpresent at the exorcisms, once more handed in a petition to the bailiff, begging for the sequestration of the two nuns, no matter at what risk. The bailiff, however, in the interests of the petitioner himself, did not dare to grant this request, for he was afraid that theecclesiastical authorities would nullify his procedure, on the groundthat the convent was not under his jurisdiction. 

He, however, summoned a meeting of the principal inhabitants of thetown, in order to consult with them as to the best course to take forthe public good. The conclusion they arrived at was to write to theattorney-general and to the Bishop of Poitiers, enclosing copies ofthe reports which had been drawn up, and imploring them to use theirauthority to put an end to these pernicious intrigues. This wasdone, but the attorney-general replied that the matter being entirelyecclesiastical the Parliament was not competent to take cognisance ofit. As for the bishop, he sent no answer at all. 

He was not, however, so silent towards Grandier's enemies; for theill-success of the exorcisms of November 26th having made increasedprecautions necessary, they considered it would be well to apply tothe bishop for a new commission, wherein he should appoint certainecclesiastics to represent him during the exorcisms to come. Barrehimself went to Poitiers to make this request. It was immediatelygranted, and the bishop appointed Bazile, senior-canon of Champigny, andDemorans, senior canon of Thouars, both of whom were related to some ofGrandier's adversaries. The following is a copy of the new commission:

"Henri-Louis le Chataignier de la Rochepezai, by the divine will Bishopof Poitiers, to the senior canons of the Chatelet de Saint-Pierre deThouars et de Champigny-sur-Vese, greeting:

"We by these presents command you to repair to the town of Loudun, tothe convent of the nuns of Sainte-Ursule, to be present at the exorcismswhich will be undertaken by Sieur Barre upon some nuns of the saidconvent who are tormented by evil spirits, we having thereto authorisedthe said Barre. You are also to draw up a report of all that takesplace, and for this purpose are to take any clerk you may choose withyou. 

"Given and done at Poitiers, November 28th, 1632. 

"(Signed) HENRI LOUIS, Bishop of Poitiers. 

"(Countersigned) By order of the said Lord Bishop, "MICHELET"

These two commissioners having been notified beforehand, went to Loudun, where Marescot, one of the queen's chaplains, arrived at the same time;for the pious queen, Anne of Austria, had heard so many conflictingaccounts of the possession of the Ursuline nuns, that she desired, forher own edification, to get to the bottom of the affair. We can judgewhat importance the case was beginning to assume by its being alreadydiscussed at court. 

In spite of the notice which had been sent them that the nuns wouldnot receive them, the bailiff and the civil lieutenant fearing that theroyal envoy would allow himself to be imposed on, and would draw up anaccount which would cast doubt on the facts contained in their reports, betook themselves to the convent on December 1st, the day on which theexorcisms were to recommence, in the presence of the new commissioners. They were accompanied by their assessor, by the provost's lieutenant, and a clerk. They had to knock repeatedly before anyone seemed to hearthem, but at length a nun opened the door and told them they could notenter, being suspected of bad faith, as they had publicly declaredthat the possession was a fraud and an imposture. The bailiff, withoutwasting his time arguing with the sister, asked to see Barre, who soonappeared arrayed in his priestly vestments, and surrounded by severalpersons, among whom was the queen's chaplain. The bailiff complainedthat admittance had been refused to him and those with him, althoughhe had been authorised to visit the convent by the Bishop of Poitiers. Barre' replied that he would not hinder their coming in, as far as itconcerned him. 

"We are here with the intention of entering, " said the bailiff, "andalso for the purpose of requesting you to put one or two questions tothe demon which we have drawn up in terms which are in accordance withwhat is prescribed in the ritual. I am sure you will not refuse, " headded, turning with a bow to Marescot, "to make this experiment inthe presence of the queen's chaplain, since by that means all thosesuspicions of imposture can be removed which are unfortunately so rifeconcerning this business. "

"In that respect I shall do as I please, and not as you order me, " wasthe insolent reply of the exorcist. 

"It is, however, your duty to follow legal methods in your procedure, "returned the bailiff, "if you sincerely desire the truth; for it wouldbe an affront to God to perform a spurious miracle in His honour, and awrong to the Catholic faith, whose power is in its truth, to attemptto give adventitious lustre to its doctrines by the aid of fraud anddeception. "

"Sir, " said Barre, "I am a man of honour, I know my duty and I shalldischarge it; but as to yourself, I must recall to your recollectionthat the last time you were here you left the chapel in anger andexcitement, which is an attitude of mind most unbecoming in one whoseduty it is to administer justice. "

Seeing that these recriminations would have no practical result, themagistrates cut them short by reiterating their demand for admittance;and on this being refused, they reminded the exorcists that they wereexpressly prohibited from asking any questions tending to cast a sluron the character of any person or persons whatever, under pain of beingtreated as disturbers of the public peace. At this warning Barre, sayingthat he did not acknowledge the bailiff's jurisdiction, shut the door inthe faces of the two magistrates. 

As there was no time to lose if the machinations of his enemies wereto be brought to nought, the bailiff and the civil lieutenant advisedGrandier to write to the Archbishop of Bordeaux, who had once alreadyextricated him from imminent danger, setting forth at length his presentpredicament; this letter; accompanied by the reports drawn up by thebailiff and the civil lieutenant, were sent off at once by a trustymessenger to His Grace of Escoubleau de Sourdis. As soon as he receivedthe despatches, the worthy prelate seeing how grave was the crisis, andthat the slightest delay might be fatal to Grandier, set out at once forhis abbey of Saint-Jouinles-Marmes, the place in which he had alreadyvindicated in so striking a manner the upright character of the poorpersecuted priest by a fearless act of justice. 

It is not difficult to realise what a blow his arrival was to those whoheld a brief for the evil spirits in possession; hardly had he reachedSaint-Jouin than he sent his own physician to the convent with orders tosee the afflicted nuns and to test their condition, in order to judgeif the convulsions were real or simulated. The physician arrived, armedwith a letter from the archbishop, ordering Mignon to permit the bearerto make a thorough examination into the position of affairs. Mignonreceived the physician with all the respect due to him who sent him, butexpressed great regret that he had not come a little sooner, as, thanksto his (Mignon's) exertions and those of Barre, the devils had beenexorcised the preceding day. He nevertheless introduced the archbishop'senvoy to the presence of the superior and Sister Claire, whose demeanourwas as calm as if they had never been disturbed by any agitating'experiences. Mignon's statement being thus confirmed, the doctorreturned to Saint-Jouin, the only thing to which he could bear testimonybeing the tranquillity which reigned at the moment in the convent. 

The imposture being now laid so completely bare, the archbishop wasconvinced that the infamous persecutions to which it had led would ceaseat once and for ever; but Grandier, better acquainted with the characterof his adversaries, arrived on the 27th of December at the abbey andlaid a petition at the archbishop's feet. In this document he setforth that his enemies having formerly brought false and slanderousaccusations, against him of which, through the justice of thearchbishop, he had been able to clear himself, had employed themselvesduring the last three months in inventing and publishing as a fact thatthe petitioner had sent evil spirits into the bodies of nuns in theUrsuline convent of Loudun, although he had never spoken to any ofthe sisterhood there; that the guardianship of the sisters who, it wasalleged, were possessed, and the task of exorcism, had been entrustedto Jean Mignon and Pierre Barre, who had in the most unmistakable mannershown themselves to be the mortal enemies of the petitioner; that inthe reports drawn up by the said Jean Mignon and Pierre Barre, whichdiffered so widely from those made by the bailiff and the civillieutenant, it was boastfully alleged that three or four times devilshad been driven out, but that they had succeeded in returning and takingpossession of their victims again and again, in virtue of successivepacts entered into between the prince of darkness and the petitioner;that the aim of these reports and allegations was to destroy thereputation of the petitioner and excite public opinion against him; thatalthough the demons had been put to flight by the arrival of His Grace, yet it was too probable that as soon as he was gone they would returnto the charge; that if, such being the case, the powerful support ofthe archbishop were not available, the innocence of the petitioner, nomatter how strongly established, would by the cunning tactics of hisinveterate foes be obscured and denied: he, the petitioner, thereforeprayed that, should the foregoing reasons prove on examination to becogent, the archbishop would be pleased to prohibit Barre, Mignon, andtheir partisans, whether among the secular or the regular clergy, fromtaking part in any future exorcisms, should such be necessary, or in thecontrol of any persons alleged to be possessed; furthermore, petitionerprayed that His Grace would be pleased to appoint as a precautionarymeasure such other clerics and lay persons as seemed to him suitable, to superintend the administration of food and medicine and the rite ofexorcism to those alleged to be possessed, and that all the treatmentshould be carried out in the presence of magistrates. 

The archbishop accepted the petition, and wrote below it:

"The present petition having been seen by us and the opinion of ourattorney having been taken in the matter, we have sent the petitioner inadvance of our said attorney back to Poitiers, that justice may be donehim, and in the meantime we have appointed Sieur Barre, Pere l'Escaye, a Jesuit residing in Poitiers, Pere Gaut of the Oratory, residing atTours, to conduct the exorcisms, should such be necessary, and havegiven them an order to this effect. 

"It is forbidden to all others to meddle with the said exorcisms, onpain of being punished according to law. "

It will be seen from the above that His Grace the Archbishop ofBordeaux, in his enlightened and generous exercise of justice, hadforeseen and provided for every possible contingency; so that as soonas his orders were made known to the exorcists the possession ceased atonce and completely, and was no longer even talked of. Barre withdrew toChinon, the senior canons rejoined their chapters, and the nuns, happilyrescued for the time, resumed their life of retirement and tranquillity. The archbishop nevertheless urged on Grandier the prudence of effectingan exchange of benefices, but he replied that he would not at thatmoment change his simple living of Loudun for a bishopric. 

CHAPTER VIII

The exposure of the plot was most prejudicial to the prosperity of theUrsuline community: spurious possession, far from bringing to theirconvent an increase of subscriptions and enhancing their reputation, asMignon had promised, had ended for them in open shame, while in privatethey suffered from straitened circumstances, for the parents of theirboarders hastened to withdraw their daughters from the convent, and thenuns in losing their pupils lost their sole source of income. Their fallin the estimation of the public filled them with despair, and it leakedout that they had had several altercations with their director, duringwhich they reproached him for having, by making them commit such a greatsin, overwhelmed them with infamy and reduced them to misery, insteadof securing for them the great spiritual and temporal advantages he hadpromised them. Mignon, although devoured by hate, was obliged to remainquiet, but he was none the less as determined as ever to have revenge, and as he was one of those men who never give up while a gleam of hoperemains, and whom no waiting can tire, he bided his time, avoidingnotice, apparently resigned to circumstances, but keeping his eyes fixedon Grandier, ready to seize on the first chance of recovering possessionof the prey that had escaped his hands. And unluckily the chance soonpresented itself. 

It was now 1633: Richelieu was at the height of his power, carrying outhis work of destruction, making castles fall before him where he couldnot make heads fall, in the spirit of John Knox's words, "Destroy thenests and the crows will disappear. " Now one of these nests was thecrenellated castle of Loudun, and Richelieu had therefore ordered itsdemolition. 

The person appointed to carry out this order was a man such as thosewhom Louis XI. Had employed fifty years earlier to destroy the feudalsystem, and Robespierre one hundred and fifty years later to destroythe aristocracy. Every woodman needs an axe, every reaper a sickle, and Richelieu found the instrument he required in de Laubardemont, Councillor of State. 

But he was an instrument full of intelligence, detecting by the mannerin which he was wielded the moving passion of the wielder, and adaptinghis whole nature with marvellous dexterity to gratify that passionaccording to the character of him whom it possessed; now by a roughand ready impetuosity, now by a deliberate and hidden advance; equallywilling to strike with the sword or to poison by calumny, as the man whomoved him lusted for the blood or sought to accomplish the dishonour ofhis victim. 

M. De Laubardemont arrived at Loudun during the month of August 1633, and in order to carry out his mission addressed himself to Sieur Meminde Silly, prefect of the town, that old friend of the cardinal's whomMignon and Barre, as we have said, had impressed so favourably. Meminsaw in the arrival of Laubardemont a special intimation that it was thewill of Heaven that the seemingly lost cause of those in whom he tooksuch a warm interest should ultimately triumph. He presented Mignonand all his friends to M. Laubardemont, who received them with muchcordiality. They talked of the mother superior, who was a relation, aswe have seen, of M. De Laubardemont, and exaggerated the insult offeredher by the decree of the archbishop, saying it was an affront to thewhole family; and before long the one thing alone which occupied thethoughts of the conspirators and the councillor was how best to drawdown upon Grandier the anger of the cardinal-duke. A way soon opened. 

The Queen mother, Marie de Medici, had among her attendants a womancalled Hammon, to whom, having once had occasion to speak, she had takena fancy, and given a post near her person. In consequence of this whim, Hammon came to be regarded as a person of some importance in the queen'shousehold. Hammon was a native of Loudun, and had passed the greaterpart of her youth there with her own people, who belonged to the lowerclasses. Grandier had been her confessor, and she attended his church, and as she was lively and clever he enjoyed talking to her, so that atlength an intimacy sprang up between them. It so happened at a time whenhe and the other ministers were in momentary disgrace, that a satirefull of biting wit and raillery appeared, directed especially againstthe cardinal, and this satire had been attributed to Hammon, who wasknown to share, as was natural, her mistress's hatred of Richelieu. Protected as she was by the queen's favour, the cardinal had found itimpossible to punish Hammon, but he still cherished a deep resentmentagainst her. 

It now occurred to the conspirators to accuse Grandier of being thereal author of the satire; and it was asserted that he had learned fromHammon all the details of the cardinal's private life, the knowledgeof which gave so much point to the attack on him; if they could oncesucceed in making Richelieu believe this, Grandier was lost. 

This plan being decided on, M. De Laubardemont was asked to visit theconvent, and the devils knowing what an important personage he was, flocked thither to give him a worthy welcome. Accordingly, the nunshad attacks of the most indescribably violent convulsions, and M. DeLaubardemont returned to Paris convinced as to the reality of theirpossession. 

The first word the councillor of state said to the cardinal about UrbainGrandier showed him that he had taken useless trouble in inventing thestory about the satire, for by the bare mention of his name he was ableto arouse the cardinal's anger to any height he wished. The fact was, that when Richelieu had been Prior of Coussay he and Grandier had hada quarrel on a question of etiquette, the latter as priest of Loudunhaving claimed precedence over the prior, and carried his point. Thecardinal had noted the affront in his bloodstained tablets, and at thefirst hint de Laubardemont found him as eager to bring about Grandier'sruin as was the councillor himself. 

De Laubardemont was at once granted the following commission:

"Sieur de Laubardemont, Councillor of State and Privy Councillor, willbetake himself to Loudun, and to whatever other places may be necessary, to institute proceedings against Grandier on all the charges formerlypreferred against him, and on other facts which have since come tolight, touching the possession by evil spirits of the Ursuline nuns ofLoudun, and of other persons, who are said like wise to be tormentedof devils through the evil practices of the said Grandier; he willdiligently investigate everything from the beginning that has anybearing either on the said possession or on the exorcisms, and willforward to us his report thereon, and the reports and other documentssent in by former commissioners and delegates, and will be present atall future exorcisms, and take proper steps to obtain evidence of thesaid facts, that they may be clearly established; and, above all, will direct, institute, and carry through the said proceedings againstGrandier and all others who have been involved with him in the saidcase, until definitive sentence be passed; and in spite of any appeal orcountercharge this cause will not be delayed (but without prejudice tothe right of appeal in other causes), on account of the nature of thecrimes, and no regard will be paid to any request for postponement madeby the said Grandier. His majesty commands all governors, provinciallieutenant-generals, bailiffs, seneschals, and other municipalauthorities, and all subjects whom it may concern, to give everyassistance in arresting and imprisoning all persons whom it may benecessary to put under constraint, if they shall be required so to do. "

Furnished with this order, which was equivalent to a condemnation, de Laubardemont arrived at Laudun, the 5th of December, 1633, at nineo'clock in the evening; and to avoid being seen he alighted in a suburbat the house of one maitre Paul Aubin, king's usher, and son-in-law ofMemin de Silly. His arrival was kept so secret that neither Grandiernor his friends knew of it, but Memin, Herve Menuau, and Mignon werenotified, and immediately called on him. De Laubardemont receivedthem, commission in hand, but broad as it was, it did not seem tothem sufficient, for it contained no order for Grandier's arrest, andGrandier might fly. De Laubardemont, smiling at the idea that he couldbe so much in fault, drew from his pocket an order in duplicate, incase one copy should be lost, dated like the commission, November 30th, signed LOUIS, and countersigned PHILIPPEAUX. It was conceived in thefollowing terms:

LOUIS, etc. Etc. "We have entrusted these presents to Sieur deLaubardemont, Privy Councillor, to empower the said Sieur deLaubardemont to arrest Grandier and his accomplices and imprison themin a secure place, with orders to all provosts, marshals, and otherofficers, and to all our subjects in general, to lend whateverassistance is necessary to carry out above order; and they are commandedby these presents to obey all orders given by the said Sieur; and allgovernors and lieutenants-general are also hereby commanded to furnishthe said Sieur with whatever aid he may require at their hands. "

This document being the completion of the other, it was immediatelyresolved, in order to show that they had the royal authority at theirback, and as a preventive measure, to arrest Grandier at once, withoutany preliminary investigation. They hoped by this step to intimidate anyofficial who might still be inclined to take Grandier's part, and anywitness who might be disposed to testify in his favour. Accordingly, they immediately sent for Guillaume Aubin, Sieur de Lagrange andprovost's lieutenant. De Laubardemont communicated to him the commissionof the cardinal and the order of the king, and requested him to arrestGrandier early next morning. M. De Lagrange could not deny the twosignatures, and answered that he would obey; but as he foresawfrom their manner of going to work that the proceedings about to beinstituted would be an assassination and not a fair trial, he sent, inspite of being a distant connection of Memin, whose daughter was marriedto his (Lagrange's) brother, to warn Grandier of the orders he hadreceived. But Grandier with his usual intrepidity, while thankingLagrange for his generous message, sent back word that, secure in hisinnocence and relying on the justice of God, he was determined to standhis ground. 

So Grandier remained, and his brother, who slept beside him, declaredthat his sleep that night was as quiet as usual. The next morning herose, as was his habit, at six o'clock, took his breviary in his hand, and went out with the intention of attending matins at the church ofSainte-Croix. He had hardly put his foot over the threshold beforeLagrange, in the presence of Memin, Mignon, and the other conspirators, who had come out to gloat over the sight, arrested him in the nameof the king. He was at once placed in the custody of Jean Pouguet, anarcher in His Majesty's guards, and of the archers of the provosts ofLoudun and Chinon, to be taken to the castle at Angers. Meanwhile asearch was instituted, and the royal seal affixed to the doors of hisapartments, to his presses, his other articles of furniture-in fact, toevery thing and place in the house; but nothing was found that tended tocompromise him, except an essay against the celibacy of priests, andtwo sheets of paper whereon were written in another hand than his, somelove-poems in the taste of that time. 

CHAPTER IX

For four months Grandier languished in prison, and, according to thereport of Michelon, commandant of Angers, and of Pierre Bacher, hisconfessor, he was, during the whole period, a model of patience andfirmness, passing his days in reading good books or in writing prayersand meditations, which were afterwards produced at his trial. Meanwhile, in spite of the urgent appeals of Jeanne Esteye, mother of the accused, who, although seventy years of age, seemed to recover her youthfulstrength and activity in the desire to save her son, Laubardemontcontinued the examination, which was finished on April 4th. Urbain wasthen brought back from Angers to Loudun. 

An extraordinary cell had been prepared for him in a house belongingto Mignon, and which had formerly been occupied by a sergeant namedBontems, once clerk to Trinquant, who had been a witness for theprosecution in the first trial. It was on the topmost story; the windowshad been walled up, leaving only one small slit open, and even thisopening was secured by enormous iron bars; and by an exaggeration ofcaution the mouth of the fireplace was furnished with a grating, lestthe devils should arrive through the chimney to free the sorcerer fromhis chains. Furthermore, two holes in the corners of the room, so formedthat they were unnoticeable from within, allowed a constant watch to bekept over Grandier's movements by Bontem's wife, a precaution bywhich they hoped to learn something that would help them in the comingexorcisms. In this room, lying on a little straw, and almost withoutlight, Grandier wrote the following letter to his mother:

"MY MOTHER, --I received your letter and everything you sent me exceptthe woollen stockings. I endure any affliction with patience, and feelmore pity for you than for myself. I am very much inconvenienced forwant of a bed; try and have mine brought to me, for my mind will giveway if my body has no rest: if you can, send me a breviary, a Bible, anda St. Thomas for my consolation; and above all, do not grieve for me. I trust that, God will bring my innocence to light. Commend me tomy brother and sister, and all our good friends. --I am, mother, yourdutiful son and servant, "GRANDIER"

While Grandier had been in prison at Angers the cases of possession atthe convent had miraculously multiplied, for it was no longer only thesuperior and Sister Claire who had fallen a prey to the evil spirits, but also several other sisters, who were divided into three groups asfollows, and separated:--

The superior, with Sisters Louise des Anges and Anne de Sainte-Agnes, were sent to the house of Sieur Delaville, advocate, legal adviser tothe sisterhood; Sisters Claire and Catherine de la Presentation wereplaced in the house of Canon Maurat; Sisters Elisabeth de la Croix, Monique de Sainte-Marthe, Jeanne du Sainte-Esprit, and Seraphique Archerwere in a third house. 

A general supervision was undertaken by Memin's sister, the wife ofMoussant, who was thus closely connected with two of the greatestenemies of the accused, and to her Bontems' wife told all that thesuperior needed to know about Grandier. Such was the manner of thesequestration!

The choice of physicians was no less extraordinary. Instead of callingin the most skilled practitioners of Angers, Tours, Poitiers, or Saumur, all of them, except Daniel Roger of Loudun, came from the surroundingvillages, and were men of no education: one of them, indeed, had failedto obtain either degree or licence, and had been obliged to leave Saumurin consequence; another had been employed in a small shop to take goodshome, a position he had exchanged for the more lucrative one of quack. 

There was just as little sense of fairness and propriety shown in thechoice of the apothecary and surgeon. The apothecary, whose name wasAdam, was Mignon's first cousin, and had been one of the witnesses forthe prosecution at Grandier's first trial; and as on that occasion--hehad libelled a young girl of Loudun, he had been sentenced by a decreeof Parliament to make a public apology. And yet, though his hatred ofGrandier in consequence of this humiliation was so well known, --perhapsfor that very reason, it was to him the duty of dispensing andadministering the prescriptions was entrusted, no one supervising thework even so far as to see that the proper doses were given, or takingnote whether for sedatives he did not sometimes substitute stimulatingand exciting drugs, capable of producing real convulsions. The surgeonMannouri was still more unsuitable, for he was a nephew of Memin deSilly, and brother of the nun who had offered the most determinedopposition to Grandier's demand for sequestration of the possessedsisters, during the second series of exorcisms. In vain did themother and brother of the accused present petitions setting forth theincapacity of the doctors and the hatred of Grandier professed by theapothecary; they could not, even at their own expense, obtain certifiedcopies of any of these petitions, although they had witnesses ready toprove that Adam had once in his ignorance dispensed crocus metallorumfor crocus mantis--a mistake which had caused the death of the patientfor whom the prescription was made up. In short, so determined were theconspirators that this time Grandier should be done to death, that theyhad not even the decency to conceal the infamous methods by which theyhad arranged to attain this result. 

The examination was carried on with vigour. As one of the firstformalities would be the identification of the accused, Grandierpublished a memorial in which he recalled the case of Saint-Anastasiusat the Council of Tyre, who had been accused of immorality by a fallenwoman whom he had never seen before. When this woman entered the hall ofjustice in order to swear to her deposition, a priest named Timothy wentup to her and began to talk to her as if he were Anastasius; fallinginto the trap, she answered as if she recognised him, and thus theinnocence of the saint was shown forth. Grandier therefore demanded thattwo or three persons of his own height and complexion should be dressedexactly like himself, and with him should be allowed to confront thenuns. As he had never seen any of them, and was almost certain they hadnever seen him, they would not be able, he felt sure, to point himout with certainty, in spite of the allegations of undue intimacy withthemselves they brought against him. This demand showed such consciousinnocence that it was embarrassing to answer, so no notice was taken ofit. 

Meanwhile the Bishop of Poitiers, who felt much elated at gettingthe better of the Archbishop of Bordeaux, who of course was powerlessagainst an order issued by the cardinal-duke, took exception to Perel'Escaye and Pere Gaut, the exorcists appointed by his superior, andnamed instead his own chaplain, who had been judge at Grandier's firsttrial, and had passed sentence on him, and Pere Lactance, a Franciscanmonk. These two, making no secret of the side with which theysympathised, put up on their arrival at Nicolas Moussant's, one ofGrandier's most bitter enemies; on the following day they went to thesuperior's apartments and began their exorcisms. The first time thesuperior opened her lips to reply, Pere Lactance perceived that she knewalmost no Latin, and consequently would not shine during the exorcism, so he ordered her to answer in French, although he still continuedto exorcise her in Latin; and when someone was bold enough to object, saying that the devil, according to the ritual, knew all languagesliving and dead, and ought to reply in the same language in which he wasaddressed, the father declared that the incongruity was caused by thepact, and that moreover some devils were more ignorant than peasants. 

Following these exorcists, and two Carmelite monks, named Pierre deSaint-Thomas and Pierre de Saint-Mathurin, who had, from the verybeginning, pushed their way in when anything was going on, came fourCapuchins sent by Pere Joseph, head of the Franciscans, "His greyEminence, " as he was called, and whose names were Peres Luc, Tranquille, Potais, and Elisee; so that a much more rapid advance could be madethan hitherto by carrying on the exorcisms in four different placesat once--viz. , in the convent, and in the churches of Sainte-Croix, Saint-Pierre du Martroy, and Notre-Dame du Chateau. Very little ofimportance took place, however, on the first two occasions, the 15th and16th of April; for the declarations of the doctors were most vagueand indefinite, merely saying that the things they had seen weresupernatural, surpassing their knowledge and the rules of medicine. 

The ceremony of the 23rd April presented, however, some points ofinterest. The superior, in reply to the interrogations of Pere Lactance, stated that the demon had entered her body under the forms of a cat, adog, a stag, and a buck-goat. 

"Quoties?" (How often?), inquired the exorcist. 

"I didn't notice the day, " replied the superior, mistaking the wordquoties for quando (when). 

It was probably to revenge herself for this error that the superiordeclared the same day that Grandier had on his body five marks made bythe devil, and that though his body was else insensible to pain, he wasvulnerable at those spots. Mannouri, the surgeon, was therefore orderedto verify this assertion, and the day appointed for the verification wasthe 26th. 

In virtue of this mandate Mannouri presented himself early on thatday at Grandier's prison, caused him to be stripped naked and cleanlyshaven, then ordered him to be laid on a table and his eyes bandaged. But the devil was wrong again: Grandier had only two marks, instead offive--one on the shoulder-blade, and the other on the thigh. 

Then took place one of the most abominable performances that can beimagined. Mannouri held in his hand a probe, with a hollow handle, into which the needle slipped when a spring was touched: when Mannouriapplied the probe to those parts of Grandier's body which, according tothe superior, were insensible, he touched the spring, and the needle, while seeming to bury itself in the flesh, really retreated into thehandle, thus causing no pain; but when he touched one of the marks saidto be vulnerable, he left the needle fixed, and drove it in to thedepth of several inches. The first time he did this it drew from poorGrandier, who was taken unprepared, such a piercing cry that it washeard in the street by the crowd which had gathered round the door. Fromthe mark on the shoulder-blade with which he had commenced, Mannouripassed to that on the thigh, but though he plunged the needle in to itsfull depth Grandier uttered neither cry nor groan, but went on quietlyrepeating a prayer, and notwithstanding that Mannouri stabbed him twicemore through each of the two marks, he could draw nothing from hisvictim but prayers for his tormentors. 

M. De Laubardemont was present at this scene. 

The next day the devil was addressed in such forcible terms that anacknowledgment was wrung from him that Grandier's body bore, not five, but two marks only; and also, to the vast admiration of the spectators, he was able this time to indicate their precise situation. 

Unfortunately for the demon, a joke in which he indulged on thisoccasion detracted from the effect of the above proof of cleverness. Having been asked why he had refused to speak on the preceding Saturday, he said he had not been at Loudun on that day, as the whole morninghe had been occupied in accompanying the soul of a certain Le Proust, attorney to the Parliament of Paris, to hell. This answer awoke suchdoubts in the breasts of some of the laymen present that they took thetrouble to examine the register of deaths, and found that no one of thename of Le Proust, belonging to any profession whatever, had died onthat date. This discovery rendered the devil less terrible, and perhapsless amusing. 

Meantime the progress of the other exorcisms met with likeinterruptions. Pere Pierre de Saint Thomas, who conducted the operationsin the Carmelite church, asked one of the possessed sisters whereGrandier's books of magic were; she replied that they were kept at thehouse of a certain young girl, whose name she gave, and who was the sameto whom Adam had been forced to apologise. De Laubardemont, Moussant, Herve, and Meunau hastened at once to the house indicated, searched therooms and the presses, opened the chests and the wardrobes and all thesecret places in the house, but in vain. On their return to the church, they reproached the devil for having deceived them, but he explainedthat a niece of the young woman had removed the books. Upon this, theyhurried to the niece's dwelling, but unluckily she was not at home, having spent the whole day at a certain church making her devotions, andwhen they went thither, the priests and attendants averred that she hadnot gone out all day; so notwithstanding the desire of the exorcists tooblige Adam they were forced to let the matter drop. 

These two false statements increased the number of unbelievers; but itwas announced that a most interesting performance would take place onMay 4th; indeed, the programme when issued was varied enough to arousegeneral curiosity. Asmodeus was to raise the superior two feet from theground, and the fiends Eazas and Cerberus, in emulation of theirleader, would do as much for two other nuns; while a fourth devil, namedBeherit, would go farther still, and, greatly daring, would attack M. DeLaubardemont himself, and, having spirited his councillor's cap from hishead, would hold it suspended in the air for the space of a Misereye. Furthermore, the exorcists announced that six of the strongest men inthe town would try to prevent the contortions of the weakest of theconvulsed nuns, and would fail. 

It need hardly be said that the prospect of such an entertainment filledthe church on the appointed day to overflowing. Pere Lactance began bycalling on Asmodeus to fulfil his promise of raising the superior fromthe ground. She began, hereupon, to perform various evolutions on hermattress, and at one moment it seemed as if she were really suspended inthe air; but one of the spectators lifted her dress and showed that shewas only standing on tiptoe, which, though it might be clever, wasnot miraculous. Shouts of laughter rent the air, which had such anintimidating effect on Eazas and Cerberus that not all the adjurationsof the exorcists could extract the slightest response. Beherit wastheir last hope, and he replied that he was prepared to lift up M. DeLaubardemont's cap, and would do so before the expiration of a quarterof an hour. 

We must here remark that this time the exorcisms took place in theevening, instead of in the morning as hitherto; and it was nowgrowing dark, and darkness is favourable to illusions. Several of theunbelieving ones present, therefore, began to call attention to the factthat the quarter of an hour's delay would necessitate the employmentof artificial light during the next scene. They also noticed that M. DeLaubardemont had seated himself apart and immediately beneath one of thearches in the vaulted roof, through which a hole had been drilled forthe passage of the bell-rope. They therefore slipped out of the church, and up into the belfry, where they hid. In a few moments a man appearedwho began to work at something. They sprang on him and seized hiswrists, and found in one of his hands a thin line of horsehair, to oneend of which a hook was attached. The holder being frightened, droppedthe line and fled, and although M. De Laubardemont, the exorcists, andthe spectators waited, expecting every moment that the cap would riseinto the air, it remained quite firm on the owner's head, to the nosmall confusion of Pere Lactance, who, all unwitting of the fiasco, continued to adjure Beherit to keep his word--of course without theleast effect. 

Altogether, this performance of May 4th, went anything but smoothly. Till now no trick had succeeded; never before had the demons been suchbunglers. But the exorcists were sure that the last trick would go offwithout a hitch. This was, that a nun, held by six men chosen for theirstrength, would succeed in extricating herself from their grasp, despitetheir utmost efforts. Two Carmelites and two Capuchins went through theaudience and selected six giants from among the porters and messengersof the town. 

This time the devil answered expectations by showing that if he was notclever he was strong, for although the six men tried to hold herdown upon her mattress, the superior was seized with such terribleconvulsions that she escaped from their hands, throwing down oneof those who tried to detain her. This experiment, thrice renewed, succeeded thrice, and belief seemed about to return to the assembly, when a physician of Saumur named Duncan, suspecting trickery, enteredthe choir, and, ordering the six men to retire, said he was going to tryand hold the superior down unaided, and if she escaped from his hands hewould make a public apology for his unbelief. M. De Laubardemont triedto prevent this test, by objecting to Duncan as an atheist, but asDuncan was greatly respected on account of his skill and probity, therewas such an outcry at this interference from the entire audience thatthe commissioner was forced to let him have his way. The six porterswere therefore dismissed, but instead of resuming their places amongthe spectators they left the church by the sacristy, while Duncanapproaching the bed on which the superior had again lain down, seizedher by the wrist, and making certain that he had a firm hold, he toldthe exorcists to begin. 

Never up to that time had it been so clearly shown that the conflictgoing on was between public opinion and the private aims of a few. Ahush fell on the church; everyone stood motionless in silent expectancy. 

The moment Pere Lactance uttered the sacred words the convulsions of thesuperior recommenced; but it seemed as if Duncan had more strength thanhis six predecessors together, for twist and writhe and struggle as shewould, the superior's wrist remained none the less firmly clasped inDuncan's hand. At length she fell back on her bed exhausted, exclaiming!

"It's no use, it's no use! He's holding me!"

"Release her arm!" shouted Pere Lactance in a rage. "How can theconvulsions take place if you hold her that way?"

"If she is really possessed by a demon, " answered Duncan aloud, "heshould be stronger than I; for it is stated in the ritual that amongthe symptoms of possession is strength beyond one's years, beyond one'scondition, and beyond what is natural. "

"That is badly argued, " said Lactance sharply: "a demon outside the bodyis indeed stronger than you, but when enclosed in a weak frame such asthis it cannot show such strength, for its efforts are proportioned tothe strength of the body it possesses. "

"Enough!" said M. De Laubardemont; "we did not come here to argue withphilosophers, but to build up the faith of Christians. "

With that he rose up from his chair amidst a terrible uproar, and theassembly dispersed in the utmost disorder, as if they were leaving atheatre rather than a church. 

The ill success of this exhibition caused a cessation of events ofinterest for some days. The result was that a great number of noblemenand other people of quality who had come to Loudun expecting to seewonders and had been shown only commonplace transparent tricks, beganto think it was not worth while remaining any longer, and went theirseveral ways--a defection much bewailed by Pere Tranquille in a littlework which he published on this affair. 

"Many, " he says, "came to see miracles at Loudun, but finding the devilsdid not give them the signs they expected, they went away dissatisfied, and swelled the numbers of the unbelieving. "

It was determined, therefore, in order to keep the town full, to predictsome great event which would revive curiosity and increase faith. PereLactance therefore announced that on the 20th of May three of the sevendevils dwelling in the superior would come out, leaving three woundsin her left side, with corresponding holes in her chemise, bodice, anddress. The three parting devils were Asmodeus, Gresil des Trones, andAman des Puissances. He added that the superior's hands would be boundbehind her back at the time the wounds were given. 

On the appointed day the church of Sainte-Croix was filled tooverflowing with sightseers curious to know if the devils would keeptheir promises better this time than the last. Physicians were invitedto examine the superior's side and her clothes; and amongst those whocame forward was Duncan, whose presence guaranteed the public againstdeception; but none of the exorcists ventured to exclude him, despitethe hatred in which they held him--a hatred which they would have madehim feel if he had not been under the special protection of MarshalBreze. The physicians having completed their examination, gave thefollowing certificate:--

"We have found no wound in the patient's side, no rent in her vestments, and our search revealed no sharp instrument hidden in the folds of herdress. "

These preliminaries having been got through, Pere Lactance questionedher in French for nearly two hours, her answers being in the samelanguage. Then he passed from questions to adjurations: on this, Duncancame forward, and said a promise had been given that the superior'shands should be tied behind her back, in order that there might be noroom for suspicion of fraud, and that the moment had now arrived to keepthat promise. Pere Lactance admitted the justice of the demand, butsaid as there were many present who had never seen the superior inconvulsions such as afflicted the possessed, it would be only fairthat she should be exorcised for their satisfaction before binding her. Accordingly he began to repeat the form of exorcism, and the superiorwas immediately attacked by frightful convulsions, which in a fewminutes produced complete exhaustion, so that she fell on her face tothe ground, and turning on her left arm and side, remained motionlesssome instants, after which she uttered a low cry, followed by a groan. The physicians approached her, and Duncan seeing her take away herhand from her left side, seized her arm, and found that the tips of herfingers were stained with blood. They then examined her clothing andbody, and found her dress, bodice, and chemise cut through in threeplaces, the cuts being less than an inch long. There were also threescratches beneath the left breast, so slight as to be scarcely more thanskin deep, the middle one being a barleycorn in length; still, fromall three a sufficient quantity of blood had oozed to stain the chemiseabove them. 

This time the fraud was so glaring that even de Laubardemont exhibitedsome signs of confusion because of the number and quality of thespectators. He would not, however, allow the doctors to include intheir report their opinion as to the manner in which the wounds wereinflicted; but Grandier protested against this in a Statement of Facts, which he drew up during the night, and which was distributed next day. 

It was as follows:

"That if the superior had not groaned the physicians would not haveremoved her clothes, and would have suffered her to be bound, withouthaving the least idea that the wounds were already made; that then theexorcists would have commanded the devils to come forth, leaving thetraces they had promised; that the superior would then have gone throughthe most extraordinary contortions of which she was capable, and havehad a long fit of, convulsions, at the end of which she would have beendelivered from the three demons, and the wounds would have been foundin her body; that her groans, which had betrayed her, had by God's willthwarted the best-laid plans of men and devils. Why do you suppose, " hewent on to ask, "that clean incised wounds, such as a sharp blade wouldmake, 'were chosen for a token, seeing that the wounds left by devilsresemble burns? Was it not because it was easier for the superior toconceal a lancet with which to wound herself slightly, than to concealany instrument sufficiently heated to burn her? Why do you think theleft side was chosen rather than the forehead and nose, if not becauseshe could not give herself a wound in either of those places withoutbeing seen by all the spectators? Why was the left side rather thanthe right chosen, if it were not that it was easier for the superiorto wound herself with her right hand, which she habitually used, in theleft side than in the right? Why did she turn on her left side and armand remain so long in that position, if it were not to hide from thebystanders the instrument with which she wounded herself? What do youthink caused her to groan, in spite of all her resolution, if it werenot the pain of the wound she gave herself? for the most courageouscannot repress a shudder when the surgeon opens a vein. Why were herfinger-tips stained with blood, if it were not that the secreted bladewas so small that the fingers which held it could not escape beingreddened by the blood it caused to flow? How came it that the woundswere so superficial that they barely went deeper than the cuticle, whiledevils are known to rend and tear demoniacs when leaving them, if itwere not that the superior did not hate herself enough to inflict deepand dangerous wounds?"

Despite this logical protest from Grandier and the barefaced knavery ofthe exorcist, M. De Laubardemont prepared a report of the expulsion ofthe three devils, Asmodeus, Gresil, and Aman, from the body of sisterJeanne des Anges, through three wounds below the region of the heart;a report which was afterwards shamelessly used against Grandier, and ofwhich the memorandum still exists, a monument, not so much of credulityand superstition, as of hatred and revenge. Pere Lactance, in order toallay the suspicions which the pretended miracle had aroused among theeye-witnesses, asked Balaam, one of the four demons who still remainedin the superior's body, the following day, why Asmodeus and his twocompanions had gone out against their promise, while the superior's faceand hands were hidden from the people. 

"To lengthen the incredulity of certain people, " answered Balaam. 

As for Pere Tranquille, he published a little volume describing thewhole affair, in which, with the irresponsible frivolity of a trueCapuchin, he poked fun at those who could not swallow the miracleswholesale. 

"They had every reason to feel vexed, " he said, "at the small courtesyor civility shown by the demons to persons of their merit and station;but if they had examined their consciences, perhaps they would havefound the real reason of their discontent, and, turning their angeragainst themselves, would have done penance for having come to theexorcisms led by a depraved moral sense and a prying spirit. "

Nothing remarkable happened from the 20th May till the 13th June, a daywhich became noteworthy by reason of the superior's vomiting a quill afinger long. It was doubtless this last miracle which brought the Bishopof Poitiers to Loudun, "not, " as he said to those who came to pay theirrespects to him, "to examine into the genuineness of the possession, butto force those to believe who still doubted, and to discover the classeswhich Urbain had founded to teach the black art to pupils of bothsexes. "

Thereupon the opinion began to prevail among the people that it would beprudent to believe in the possession, since the king, the cardinal-duke, and the bishop believed in it, and that continued doubt would lay themopen to the charges of disloyalty to their king and their Church, and ofcomplicity in the crimes of Grandier, and thus draw down upon them theruthless punishment of Laubardemont. 

"The reason we feel so certain that our work is pleasing to God is thatit is also pleasing to the king, " wrote Pere Lactance. 

The arrival of the bishop was followed by a new exorcism; and of this aneye-witness, who was a good Catholic and a firm believer in possession, has left us a written description, more interesting than any we couldgive. We shall present it to our readers, word for word, as it stands:--

"On Friday, 23rd June 1634, on the Eve of Saint John, about 3 p. M. , the Lord Bishop of Poitiers and M. De Laubardemont being present inthe church of Sainte-Croix of Loudun, to continue the exorcisms of theUrsuline nuns, by order of M, de Laubardemont, commissioner, UrbainGrandier, priest-in-charge, accused and denounced as a magician by thesaid possessed nuns, was brought from his prison to the said church. 

"There were produced by the said commissioner to the said UrbainGrandier four pacts mentioned several times by the said possessed nunsat the preceding exorcisms, which the devils who possessed the nunsdeclared they had made with the said Grandier on several occasions:there was one in especial which Leviathan gave up on Saturday the 17thinst. , composed of an infant's heart procured at a witches' sabbath, held in Orleans in 1631; the ashes of a consecrated wafer, blood, etc. , of the said Grandier, whereby Leviathan asserted he had entered the bodyof the sister, Jeanne des Anges, the superior of the said nuns, and tookpossession of her with his coadjutors Beherit, Eazas, and Balaam, on December 8th, 1632. Another such pact was composed of the pips ofGrenada oranges, and was given up by Asmodeus and a number of otherdevils. It had been made to hinder Beherit from keeping his promiseto lift the commissioner's hat two inches from his head and to hold itthere the length of a Miseyere, as a sign that he had come out of thenun. On all these pacts being shown to the said Grandier, he said, without astonishment, but with much firmness and resolution, that he hadno knowledge of them whatever, that he had never made them, and had notthe skill by which to make them, that he had held no communication withdevils, and knew nothing of what they were talking about. A report ofall this being made and shown to him, he signed it. 

"This done, they brought all the possessed nuns, to the number of elevenor twelve, including three lay sisters, also possessed, into the choirof the said church, accompanied by a great many monks, Carmelites, Capuchins, and Franciscans; and by three physicians and a surgeon. Thesisters on entering made some wanton remarks, calling Grandier theirmaster, and exhibiting great delight at seeing him. 

"Thereupon Pere Lactance and Gabriel, a Franciscan brother, and one ofthe exorcists, exhorted all present with great fervour to lift uptheir hearts to God and to make an act of contrition for the offencescommitted against His divine majesty, and to pray that the number oftheir sins might not be an obstacle to the fulfilment of the plans whichHe in His providence had formed for the promotion of His glory onthat occasion, and to give outward proof of their heartfelt grief byrepeating the Confiteor as a preparation for the blessing of the LordBishop of Poitiers. This having been done, he went on to say that thematter in question was of such moment and so important in itsrelation to the great truths of the Roman Catholic Church, that thisconsideration alone ought to be sufficient to excite their devotion; andfurthermore, that the affliction of these poor sisters was so peculiarand had lasted so long, that charity impelled all those who had theright to work for their deliverance and the expulsion of the devils, toemploy the power entrusted to them with their office in accomplishing soworthy a task by the forms of exorcism prescribed by the Church toits ministers; then addressing Grandier, he said that he having beenanointed as a priest belonged to this number, and that he ought to helpwith all his power and with all his energy, if the bishop were pleasedto allow him to do so, and to remit his suspension from authority. Thebishop having granted permission, the Franciscan friar offered a stoleto Grandier, who, turning towards the prelate, asked him if he mighttake it. On receiving a reply in the affirmative, he passed it round hisneck, and on being offered a copy of the ritual, he asked permissionto accept it as before, and received the bishop's blessing, prostratinghimself at his feet to kiss them; whereupon the Veni Creator Spiritushaving been sung, he rose, and addressing the bishop, asked--

"'My lord, whom am I to exorcise?'"

The said bishop having replied--

"'These maidens. '

"Grandier again asked--

"'What maidens?'

"'The possessed maidens, ' was the answer. 

"'That is to say, my lord, ' said he; 'that I am obliged to believein the fact of possession. The Church believes in it, therefore I toobelieve; but I cannot believe that a sorcerer can cause a Christian tobe possessed unless the Christian consent. '

"Upon this, some of those present exclaimed that it was heretical toprofess such a belief; that the contrary was indubitable, believed bythe whole Church and approved by the Sorbonne. To which he replied thathis mind on that point was not yet irrevocably made up, that what he hadsaid was simply his own idea, and that in any case he submitted to theopinion of the whole body of which he was only a member; that nobody wasdeclared a heretic for having doubts, but only for persisting in them, and that what he had advanced was only for the purpose of drawing anassurance from the bishop that in doing what he was about to do he wouldnot be abusing the authority of the Church. Sister Catherine having beenbrought to him by the Franciscan as the most ignorant of all the nuns, and the least open to the suspicion of being acquainted with Latin, hebegan the exorcism in the form prescribed by the ritual. But as soon ashe began to question her he was interrupted, for all the other nuns wereattacked by devils, and uttered strange and terrible noises. Amongst therest, Sister Claire came near, and reproached him for his blindnessand obstinacy, so that he was forced to leave the nun with whom he hadbegun, and address his words to the said Sister Claire, who during theentire duration of the exorcism continued to talk at random, withoutpaying any heed to Grandier's words, which were also interrupted bythe mother superior, to whom he of last gave attention, leaving SisterClaire. But it is to be noted that before beginning to exorcise thesuperior, he said, speaking in Latin as heretofore, that knowing sheunderstood Latin, he would question her in Greek. To which the devilreplied by the mouth of the possessed:

"'Ah! how clever you are! You know it was one of the first conditions ofour pact that I was not to answer in Greek. '

"Upon this, he cried, 'O pulchra illusio, egregica evasio!' ( O superbfraud, outrageous evasion!)

"He was then told that he was permitted to exorcise in Greek, providedhe first wrote down what he wished to say, and the superior hereuponsaid that he should be answered in what language he pleased; but it wasimpossible, for as soon as he opened his mouth all the nuns recommencedtheir shrieks and paroxysms, showing unexampled despair, and giving wayto convulsions, which in each patient assumed a new form, and persistingin accusing Grandier of using magic and the black art to torment them;offering to wring his neck if they were allowed, and trying tooutrage his feelings in every possible way. But this being against theprohibitions of the Church, the priests and monks present workedwith the utmost zeal to calm the frenzy which had seized on the nuns. Grandier meanwhile remained calm and unmoved, gazing fixedly at themaniacs, protesting his innocence, and praying to God for protection. Then addressing himself to the bishop and M. De Laubardemont, heimplored them by the ecclesiastical and royal authority of which theywere the ministers to command these demons to wring his neck, or atleast to put a mark in his forehead, if he were guilty of the crime ofwhich they accused him, that the glory of God might be shown forth, theauthority of the Church vindicated, and himself brought to confusion, provided that the nuns did not touch him with their hands. But to thisthe bishop and the commissioner would not consent, because they did notwant to be responsible for what might happen to him, neither would theyexpose the authority of the Church to the wiles of the devils, who mighthave made some pact on that point with Grandier. Then the exorcists, to the number of eight, having commanded the devils to be silent and tocease their tumult, ordered a brazier to be brought, and into this theythrew the pacts one by one, whereupon the convulsions returned with suchawful violence and confused cries, rising into frenzied shrieks, andaccompanied by such horrible contortions, that the scene might have beentaken for an orgy of witches, were it not for the sanctity of the placeand the character of those present, of whom Grandier, in outward seemingat least, was the least amazed of any, although he had the most reason. The devils continued their accusations, citing the places, the days, and the hours of their intercourse with him; the first spell he cast onthem, his scandalous behaviour, his insensibility, his abjurations ofGod and the faith. To all this he calmly returned that these accusationswere calumnies, and all the more unjust considering his profession;that he renounced Satan and all his fiends, having neither knowledge norcomprehension of them; that in spite of all he was a Christian, and whatwas more, an anointed priest; that though he knew himself to be a sinfulman, yet his trust was in God and in His Christ; that he had neverindulged in such abominations, end that it would be impossible tofurnish any pertinent and convincing proof of his guilt. 

"At this point no words could express what the senses perceived; eyesand ears received an impression of being surrounded by furies such ashad never been gathered together before; and unless accustomed to suchghastly scenes as those who sacrifice to demons, no one could keep hismind free from astonishment and horror in the midst of such a spectacle. Grandier alone remained unchanged through it all, seemingly insensibleto the monstrous exhibitions, singing hymns to the Lord with the rest ofthe people, as confident as if he were guarded by legions of angels. Oneof the demons cried out that Beelzebub was standing between him and PereTranquille the Capuchin, upon which Grandier said to the demon--

"'Obmutescas!' (Hold thy peace). 

"Upon this the demon began to curse, and said that was their watchword;but they could not hold their peace, because God was infinitelypowerful, and the powers of hell could not prevail against Him. Thereupon they all struggled to get at Grandier, threatening to tear himlimb from limb, to point out his marks, to strangle him although he wastheir master; whereupon he seized a chance to say he was neither theirmaster nor their servant, and that it was incredible that they should inthe same breath acknowledge him for their master and express a desireto strangle him: on hearing this, the frenzy of the nuns reached itsheight, and they kicked their slippers into his face. 

"'Just look!' said he; 'the shoes drop from the hoofs of their ownaccord. '

"At length, had it not been for the help and interposition of peoplein the choir, the nuns in their frenzy would have taken the life of thechief personage in this spectacle; so there was no choice but to takehim away from the church and the furies who threatened his life. He wastherefore brought back to prison about six o'clock in the evening, andthe rest of the day the exorcists were employed in calming the poorsisters--a task of no small difficulty. "

Everyone did not regard the possessed sisters with the indulgent eyeof the author of the above narrative, and many saw in this terribleexhibition of hysteria and convulsions an infamous and sacrilegiousorgy, at which revenge ran riot. There was such difference of opinionabout it that it was considered necessary to publish the followingproclamation by means of placards on July 2nd:

"All persons, of whatever rank or profession, are hereby expresslyforbidden to traduce, or in any way malign, the nuns and other personsat Loudun possessed by evil spirits; or their exorcists; or those whoaccompany them either to the places appointed for exorcism or elsewhere;in any form or manner whatever, on pain of a fine of ten thousandlivres, or a larger sum and corporal punishment should the case sorequire; and in order that no one may plead ignorance hereof, thisproclamation will be read and published to-day from the pulpits ofall the churches, and copies affixed to the church doors and in othersuitable public places. 

"Done at Loudun, July 2nd, 1634. "

This order had great influence with worldly folk, and from that moment, whether their belief was strengthened or not, they no longer dared toexpress any incredulity. But in spite of that, the judges were put toshame, for the nuns themselves began to repent; and on the day followingthe impious scene above described, just as Pere Lactanee began toexorcise Sister Claire in the castle chapel, she rose, and turningtowards the congregation, while tears ran down her cheeks, said in avoice that could be heard by all present, that she was going to speakthe truth at last in the sight of Heaven. Thereupon she confessed thatall that she had said during the last fortnight against Grandier wascalumnious and false, and that all her actions had been done at theinstigation of the Franciscan Pere Lactance, the director, Mignon, andthe Carmelite brothers. Pere Lactance, not in the least taken aback, declared that her confession was a fresh wile of the devil to save hermaster Grandier. She then made an urgent appeal to the bishop and to M. De Laubardemont, asking to be sequestered and placed in charge of otherpriests than those who had destroyed her soul, by making her bear falsewitness against an innocent man; but they only laughed at the pranks thedevil was playing, and ordered her to be at once taken back to the housein which she was then living. When she heard this order, she darted outof the choir, trying to escape through the church door, imploringthose present to come to her assistance and save her from everlastingdamnation. But such terrible fruit had the proclamation borne that noondared respond, so she was recaptured and taken back to the house inwhich she was sequestered, never to leave it again. 

CHAPTER X

The next day a still more extraordinary scene took place. While M. DeLaubardemont was questioning one of the nuns, the superior came downinto the court, barefooted; in her chemise, and a cord round her neck;and there she remained for two hours, in the midst of a fearful storm, not shrinking before lightning, thunder, or rain, but waiting till M. DeLaubardemont and the other exorcists should come out. At length the dooropened and the royal commissioner appeared, whereupon Sister Jeanne desAnges, throwing herself at his feet, declared she had not sufficientstrength to play the horrible part they had made her learn any longer, and that before God and man she declared Urbain Grandier innocent, saying that all the hatred which she and her companions had felt againsthim arose from the baffled desires which his comeliness awoke--desireswhich the seclusion of conventional life made still more ardent. M. DeLaubardemont threatened her with the full weight of his displeasure, butshe answered, weeping bitterly, that all she now dreaded was her sin, for though the mercy of the Saviour was great, she felt that the crimeshe had committed could never be pardoned. M. De Laubardemont exclaimedthat it was the demon who dwelt in her who was speaking, but she repliedthat the only demon by whom she had even been possessed was the spiritof vengeance, and that it was indulgence in her own evil thoughts, andnot a pact with the devil, which had admitted him into her heart. 

With these words she withdrew slowly, still weeping, and going into thegarden, attached one end of the cord round her neck to the branch of atree, and hanged herself. But some of the sisters who had followed hercut her down before life was extinct. 

The same day an order for her strict seclusion was issued for her as forSister Claire, and the circumstances that she was a relation of M. De Laubardemont did not avail to lessen her punishment in view of thegravity of her fault. 

It was impossible to continue the exorcisms other nuns might be temptedto follow the example, of the superior and Sister Claire, and in thatcase all would be lost. And besides, was not Urbain Grandier well andduly convicted? It was announced, therefore, that the examination hadproceeded far enough, and that the judges would consider the evidenceand deliver judgment. 

This long succession of violent and irregular breaches of law procedure, the repeated denials of his claim to justice, the refusal to let hiswitnesses appear, or to listen to his defence, all combined to convinceGrandier that his ruin was determined on; for the case had gone so farand had attained such publicity that it was necessary either to punishhim as a sorcerer and magician or to render a royal commissioner, abishop, an entire community of nuns, several monks of various orders, many judges of high reputation, and laymen of birth and standing, liable to the penalties incurred by calumniators. But although, as thisconviction grew, he confronted it with resignation, his courage did notfail, --and holding it to be his duty as a man and a Christian todefend his life and honour to the end, he drew up and published anothermemorandum, headed Reasons for Acquittal, and had copies laid before hisjudges. It was a weighty and, impartial summing up of the whole case, such as a stranger might have written, and began, with these words. 

"I entreat you in all humility to consider deliberately and withattention what the Psalmist says in Psalm 82, where he exhorts judges tofulfil their charge with absolute rectitude; they being themselves meremortals who will one day have to appear before God, the sovereign judgeof the universe, to give an account of their administration. The Lord'sAnointed speaks to you to-day who are sitting in judgment, and says--

"'God standeth in the congregation of the mighty: He judgeth among thegods. 

"'How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked?

"'Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. 

"'Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked. 

"'I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the MostHigh. 

"'But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes. '"

But this appeal, although convincing and dignified, had no influenceupon the commission; and on the 18th of August the following verdict andsentence was pronounced:--

"We have declared, and do hereby declare, Urbain Grandier duly accusedand convicted of the crimes of magic and witchcraft, and of causing thepersons of certain Ursuline nuns of this town and of other females tobecome possessed of evil spirits, wherefrom other crimes and offenceshave resulted. By way of reparation therefor, we have sentenced, and dohereby sentence, the said Grandier to make public apology, bareheaded, with a cord around his neck, holding a lighted torch of two poundsweight in his hand, before the west door of the church of Saint-Pierrein the Market Place and before--that of Sainte-Ursule, both of thistown, and there on bended knee to ask pardon of God and the king and thelaw, and this done, to be taken to the public square of Sainte-Croixand there to be attached to a stake, set in the midst of a pile of wood, both of which to be prepared there for this purpose, and to be burntalive, along with the pacts and spells which remain in the hands ofthe clerk and the manuscript of the book written by the said Grandieragainst a celibate priesthood, and his ashes, to be scattered to thefour winds of heaven. And we have declared, and do hereby declare, alland every part of his property confiscate to the king, the sum of onehundred and fifty livres being first taken therefrom to be employedin the purchase of a copper plate whereon the substance of the presentdecree shall be engraved, the same to be exposed in a conspicuous placein the said church of Sainte-Ursule, there to remain in perpetuity; andbefore this sentence is carried out, we order the said Grandier to beput to the question ordinary and extraordinary, so that his accomplicesmay become known. 

"Pronounced at Loudun against the said Grandier this 18th day of August1634. "

On the morning of the day on which this sentence was passed, M. DeLaubardemont ordered the surgeon Francois Fourneau to be arrested athis own house and taken to Grandier's cell, although he was ready togo there of his own free will. In passing through the adjoining room heheard the voice of the accused saying:--

"What do you want with me, wretched executioner? Have you come to killme? You know how cruelly you have already tortured my body. Well I amready to die. "

On entering the room, Fourneau saw that these words had been addressedto the surgeon Mannouri. 

One of the officers of the 'grand privot de l'hotel', to whom M. DeLaubardemont lent for the occasion the title of officer of the king'sguard, ordered the new arrival to shave Grandier, and not leave asingle hair on his whole body. This was a formality employed in casesof witchcraft, so that the devil should have no place to hide in; for itwas the common belief that if a single hair were left, the devil couldrender the accused insensible to the pains of torture. From thisUrbain understood that the verdict had gone against him and that he wascondemned to death. 

Fourneau having saluted Grandier, proceeded to carry out his orders, whereupon a judge said it was not sufficient to shave the body of theprisoner, but that his nails must also be torn out, lest the devilshould hide beneath them. Grandier looked at the speaker with anexpression of unutterable pity, and held out his hands to Fourneau; butForneau put them gently aside, and said he would do nothing of the kind, even were the order given by the cardinal-duke himself, and at the sametime begged Grandier's pardon for shaving him. At, these words Grandier, who had for so long met with nothing but barbarous treatment from thosewith whom he came in contact, turned towards the surgeon with tears inhis eyes, saying--

"So you are the only one who has any pity for me. "

"Ah, sir, " replied Fourneau, "you don't see everybody. "

Grandier was then shaved, but only two marks found on him, one as wehave said on the shoulder blade, and the other on the thigh. Both markswere very sensitive, the wounds which Mannouri had made not havingyet healed. This point having been certified by Fourneau, Grandierwas handed, not his own clothes, but some wretched garments which hadprobably belonged to some other condemned man. 

Then, although his sentence had been pronounced at the Carmeliteconvent, he was taken by the grand provost's officer, with two of hisarchers, accompanied by the provosts of Loudun and Chinon, to thetown hall, where several ladies of quality, among them Madame deLaubardemont, led by curiosity, were sitting beside the judges, waitingto hear the sentence read. M. De Laubardemont was in the seat usuallyoccupied by the clerk, and the clerk was standing before him. All theapproaches were lined with soldiers. 

Before the accused was brought in, Pere Lactance and another Franciscanwho had come with him exorcised him to oblige the devils to leave him;then entering the judgment hall, they exorcised the earth, the air, "andthe other elements. " Not till that was done was Grandier led in. 

At first he was kept at the far end of the hall, to allow time for theexorcisms to have their full effect, then he was brought forward to thebar and ordered to kneel down. Grandier obeyed, but could remove neitherhis hat nor his skull-cap, as his hands were bound behind his back, whereupon the clerk seized on the one and the provost's officer on theother, and flung them at de Laubardemont's feet. Seeing that the accusedfixed his eyes on the commissioner as if waiting to see what he wasabout to do, the clerk said:

"Turn your head, unhappy man, and adore the crucifix above the bench. "

Grandier obeyed without a murmur and with great humility, and remainedsunk in silent prayer for about ten minutes; he then resumed his formerattitude. 

The clerk then began to read the sentence in a trembling voice, whileGrandier listened with unshaken firmness and wonderful tranquillity, although it was the most terrible sentence that could be passed, condemning the accused to be burnt alive the same day, after theinfliction of ordinary and extraordinary torture. When the clerk hadended, Grandier said, with a voice unmoved from its usual calm--

"Messeigneurs, I aver in the name of the Father, the Son, and the HolyGhost, and the Blessed Virgin, my only hope, that I have never been amagician, that I have never committed sacrilege, that I know no othermagic than that of the Holy Scriptures, which I have always preached, and that I have never held any other belief than that of our Holy Motherthe Catholic Apostolic Church of Rome; I renounce the devil and all hisworks; I confess my Redeemer, and I pray to be saved through the bloodof the Cross; and I beseech you, messeigneurs, to mitigate the rigour ofmy sentence, and not to drive my soul to despair. "

The concluding words led de Laubardemont to believe that he could obtainsome admission from Grandier through fear of suffering, so he orderedthe court to be cleared, and, being left alone with Maitre Houmain, criminal lieutenant of Orleans, and the Franciscans, he addressedGrandier in a stern voice, saying there was only one way to obtain anymitigation of his sentence, and that was to confess the names of hisaccomplices and to sign the confession. Grandier replied that havingcommitted no crime he could have no accomplices, whereupon Laubardemontordered the prisoner to be taken to the torture chamber, which adjoinedthe judgment hall--an order which was instantly obeyed. 

CHAPTER XI

The mode of torture employed at Loudun was a variety of the boot, andone of the most painful of all. Each of the victim's legs below the kneewas placed between two boards, the two pairs were then laid one abovethe other and bound together firmly at the ends; wedges were thendriven in with a mallet between the two middle boards; four such wedgesconstituted ordinary and eight extraordinary torture; and this latterwas seldom inflicted, except on those condemned to death, as almost noone ever survived it, the sufferer's legs being crushed to a pulp beforehe left the torturer's bands. In this case M. De Laubardemont on his owninitiative, for it had never been done before, added two wedges to thoseof the extraordinary torture, so that instead of eight, ten were to bedriven in. 

Nor was this all: the commissioner royal and the two Franciscansundertook to inflict the torture themselves. 

Laubardemont ordered Grandier to be bound in the usual manner, I andthen saw his legs placed between the boards. He then dismissedthe executioner and his assistants, and directed the keeper of theinstruments to bring the wedges, which he complained of as being toosmall. Unluckily, there were no larger ones in stock, and in spite ofthreats the keeper persisted in saying he did not know where to procureothers. M. De Laubardemont then asked how long it would take to makesome, and was told two hours; finding that too long to wait, he wasobliged to put up with those he had. 

Thereupon the torture began. Pere Lactance having exorcised theinstruments, drove in the first wedge, but could not draw a murmur fromGrandier, who was reciting a prayer in a low voice; a second was drivenhome, and this time the victim, despite his resolution, could not avoidinterrupting his devotions by two groans, at each of which Pere Lactancestruck harder, crying, "Dicas! dicas!" (Confess, confess!), a word whichhe repeated so often and so furiously, till all was over, that he wasever after popularly called "Pere Dicas. "

When the second wedge was in, de Laubardemont showed Grandier hismanuscript against the celibacy of the priests, and asked if heacknowledged it to be in his own handwriting. Grandier answered in theaffirmative. Asked what motive he had in writing it, he said it was anattempt to restore peace of mind to a poor girl whom he had loved, aswas proved by the two lines written at the end--

 "Si ton gentil esprit prend bien cette science, Tu mettras en repos ta bonne conscience. "

 [If thy sensitive mind imbibe this teaching, It will give ease to thy tender conscience]

Upon this, M. De Laubardemont demanded the girl's name; but Grandierassured him it should never pass his lips, none knowing it but himselfand God. Thereupon M. De Laubardemont ordered Pere Lactance to insertthe third wedge. While it was being driven in by the monk's lusty arm, each blow being accompanied by the word "'Dicas'!" Grandier exclaimed--

"My God! they are killing me, and yet I am neither a sorcerer norsacrilegious!"

At the fourth wedge Grandier fainted, muttering--

"Oh, Pere Lactance, is this charity?"

Although his victim was unconscious, Pere Lactance continued to strike;so that, having lost consciousness through pain, pain soon brought himback to life. 

De Laubardemont took advantage of this revival to take his turn atdemanding a confession of his crimes; but Grandier said--

"I have committed no crimes, sir, only errors. Being a man, I have oftengone astray; but I have confessed and done penance, and believe that myprayers for pardon have been heard; but if not, I trust that God willgrant me pardon now, for the sake of my sufferings. "

At the fifth wedge Grandier fainted once more, but they restored him toconsciousness by dashing cold water in his face, whereupon he moaned, turning to M. De Laubardemont--

"In pity, sir, put me to death at once! I am only a man, and I cannotanswer for myself that if you continue to torture me so I shall not giveway to despair. "

"Then sign this, and the torture shall cease, " answered the commissionerroyal, offering him a paper. 

"My father, " said Urbain, turning towards the Franciscan, "can youassure me on your conscience that it is permissible for a man, in orderto escape suffering, to confess a crime he has never committed?"

"No, " replied the monk; "for if he die with a lie on his lips he dies inmortal sin. "

"Go on, then, " said Grandier; "for having suffered so much in my body, Idesire to save my soul. "

As Pere Lactance drove in the sixth wedge Grandier fainted anew. 

When he had been revived, Laubardemont called upon him to confess thata certain Elisabeth Blanchard had been his mistress, as well as thegirl for whom he had written the treatise against celibacy; but Grandierreplied that not only had no improper relations ever existed betweenthem, but that the day he had been confronted with her at his trial wasthe first time he had ever seen her. 

At the seventh wedge Grandier's legs burst open, and the blood spurtedinto Pere Lactance's face; but he wiped it away with the sleeve of hisgown. 

"O Lord my God, have mercy on me! I die!" cried Grandier, and faintedfor the fourth time. Pere Lactance seized the opportunity to take ashort rest, and sat down. 

When Grandier had once more come to himself, he began slowly to utter aprayer, so beautiful and so moving that the provost's lieutenant wroteit down; but de Laubardemont noticing this, forbade him ever to show itto anyone. 

At the eighth wedge the bones gave way, and the marrow oozed out ofthe wounds, and it became useless to drive in any more wedges, the legsbeing now as flat as the boards that compressed them, and moreover PereLactance was quite worn out. 

Grandier was unbound and laid upon the flagged floor, and while his eyesshone with fever and agony he prayed again a second prayer--a veritablemartyr's prayer, overflowing with faith and enthusiasm; but as he endedhis strength failed, and he again became unconscious. The provost'slieutenant forced a little wine between his lips, which brought him to;then he made an act of contrition, renounced Satan and all his worksonce again, and commended his soul to God. 

Four men entered, his legs were freed from the boards, and the crushedparts were found to be a mere inert mass, only attached to the knees bythe sinews. He was then carried to the council chamber, and laid on alittle straw before the fire. 

In a corner of the fireplace an Augustinian monk was seated. Urbainasked leave to confess to him, which de Laubardemont refused, holdingout the paper he desired to have signed once more, at which Grandiersaid--

"If I would not sign to spare myself before, am I likely to give way nowthat only death remains?"

"True, " replied Laubardemont; "but the mode of your death is in ourhands: it rests with us to make it slow or quick, painless or agonising;so take this paper and sign?"

Grandier pushed the paper gently away, shaking his head in sign ofrefusal, whereupon de Laubardemont left the room in a fury, and orderedPeres Tranquille and Claude to be admitted, they being the confessorshe had chosen for Urbain. When they came near to fulfil their office, Urbain recognised in them two of his torturers, so he said that, as itwas only four days since he had confessed to Pere Grillau, and he didnot believe he had committed any mortal sin since then, he would nottrouble them, upon which they cried out at him as a heretic and infidel, but without any effect. 

At four o'clock the executioner's assistants came to fetch him; he wasplaced lying on a bier and carried out in that position. On the way hemet the criminal lieutenant of Orleans, who once more exhorted him toconfess his crimes openly; but Grandier replied--

"Alas, sir, I have avowed them all; I have kept nothing back. "

"Do you desire me to have masses said for you?" continued thelieutenant. 

"I not only desire it, but I beg for it as a great favour, " said Urbain. 

A lighted torch was then placed in his hand: as the procession startedhe pressed the torch to his lips; he looked on all whom he met withmodest confidence, and begged those whom he knew to intercede with Godfor him. On the threshold of the door his sentence was read to him, and he was then placed in a small cart and driven to the church of St. Pierre in the market-place. There he was awaited by M. De Laubardemont, who ordered him to alight. As he could not stand on his mangled limbs, he was pushed out, and fell first on his knees and then on his face. Inthis position he remained patiently waiting to be lifted. He was carriedto the top of the steps and laid down, while his sentence was read tohim once more, and just as it was finished, his confessor, who had notbeen allowed to see him for four days, forced a way through the crowdand threw himself into Grandier's arms. At first tears choked PereGrillau's voice, but at last he said, "Remember, sir, that our SaviourJesus Christ ascended to His Father through the agony of the Cross: youare a wise man, do not give way now and lose everything. I bring youyour mother's blessing; she and I never cease to pray that God may havemercy on you and receive you into Paradise. "

These words seemed to inspire Grandier with new strength; he lifted hishead, which pain had bowed, and raising his eyes to heaven, murmured ashort prayer. Then turning towards the worthy, friar, he said--

"Be a son to my mother; pray to God for me constantly; ask all our goodfriars to pray for my soul; my one consolation is that I die innocent. Itrust that God in His mercy may receive me into Paradise. "

"Is there nothing else I can do for you?" asked Pere Grillau. 

"Alas, my father!" replied Grandier, "I am condemned to die a most crueldeath; ask the executioner if there is no way of shortening what I mustundergo. "

"I go at once, " said the friar; and giving him absolution in 'articulomortis', he went down the steps, and while Grandier was making hisconfession aloud the good monk drew the executioner aside and asked ifthere were no possibility of alleviating the death-agony by means of ashirt dipped in brimstone. The executioner answered that as the sentenceexpressly stated that Grandier was to be burnt alive, he could notemploy an expedient so sure to be discovered as that; but that ifthe friar would give him thirty crowns he would undertake to strangleGrandier while he was kindling the pile. Pere Grillau gave him themoney, and the executioner provided himself with a rope. The Franciscanthen placed himself where he could speak to his penitent as he passed, and as he embraced him for the last time, whispered to him what he hadarranged with the executioner, whereupon Grandier turned towards thelatter and said in a tone of deep gratitude--

"Thanks, my brother. "

At that moment, the archers having driven away Pere Grillau, by order ofM. De Laubardemont, by beating him with their halberts, the processionresumed its march, to go through the same ceremony at the Ursulinechurch, and from there to proceed to the square of Sainte-Croix. On theway Urbain met and recognised Moussant, who was accompanied by his wife, and turning towards him, said--

"I die your debtor, and if I have ever said a word that could offend youI ask you to forgive me. "

When the place of execution was reached, the provost's lieutenantapproached Grandier and asked his forgiveness. 

"You have not offended me, " was the reply; "you have only done what yourduty obliged you to do. "

The executioner then came forward and removed the back board of thecart, and ordered his assistants to carry Grandier to where the pile wasprepared. As he was unable to stand, he was attached to the stake byan iron hoop passed round his body. At that moment a flock of pigeonsseemed to fall from the sky, and, fearless of the crowd, which was sogreat that the archers could not succeed even by blows of their weaponsin clearing a way for the magistrates, began to fly around Grandier, while one, as white as the driven snow, alighted on the summit of thestake, just above his head. Those who believed in possession exclaimedthat they were only a band of devils come to seek their master, butthere were many who muttered that devils were not wont to assume such aform, and who persisted in believing that the doves had come in defaultof men to bear witness to Grandier's innocence. 

In trying next day to combat this impression, a monk asserted that hehad seen a huge fly buzzing round Grandier's head, and as Beelzebubmeant in Hebrew, as he said, the god of flies, it was quite evident thatit was that demon himself who, taking upon him the form of one of hissubjects, had come to carry off the magician's soul. 

When everything was prepared, the executioner passed the rope bywhich he meant to strangle him round Grandier's neck; then the priestsexorcised the earth, air, and wood, and again demanded of their victimif he would not publicly confess his crimes. Urbain replied that hehad nothing to say, but that he hoped through the martyr's death he wasabout to die to be that day with Christ in Paradise. 

The clerk then read his sentence to him for the fourth time, and askedif he persisted in what he said under torture. 

"Most certainly I do, " said Urbain; "for it was the exact truth. "

Upon this, the clerk withdrew, first informing Grandier that if he hadanything to say to the people he was at liberty to speak. 

But this was just what the exorcists did not want: they knew Grandier'seloquence and courage, and a firm, unshaken denial at the moment ofdeath would be most prejudicial to their interests. As soon, therefore, as Grandier opened his lips to speak, they dashed such a quantity ofholy water in his face that it took away his breath. It was but fora moment, however, and he recovered himself, and again endeavoured tospeak, a monk stooped down and stifled the words by kissing him on thelips. Grandier, guessing his intention, said loud enough for those nextthe pile to hear, "That was the kiss of Judas!"

At these words the monks become so enraged that one of them struckGrandier three times in the face with a crucifix, while he appeared tobe giving it him to kiss; but by the blood that flowed from his noseand lips at the third blow those standing near perceived the truth: allGrandier could do was to call out that he asked for a Salve Regina andan Ave Maria, which many began at once to repeat, whilst he with claspedhands and eyes raised to heaven commended himself to God and the Virgin. The exorcists then made one more effort to get him to confess publicly, but he exclaimed--

"My fathers, I have said all I had to say; I hope in God and in Hismercy. "

At this refusal the anger of the exorcists surpassed all bounds, andPere Lactance, taking a twist of straw, dipped it in a bucket of pitchwhich was standing beside the pile, and lighting it at a torch, thrustit into his face, crying--

"Miserable wretch! will nothing force you to confess your crimes andrenounce the devil?"

"I do not belong to the devil, " said Grandier, pushing away the strawwith his hands; "I have renounced the devil, I now renounce him and allhis works again, and I pray that God may have mercy on me. "

At this, without waiting for the signal from the provost's lieutenant, Pere Lactance poured the bucket of pitch on one corner of the pile ofwood and set fire to it, upon which Grandier called the executioner tohis aid, who, hastening up, tried in vain to strangle him, while theflames spread apace. 

"Ah! my brother, " said the sufferer, "is this the way you keep yourpromise?"

"It's not my fault, " answered the executioner; "the monks have knottedthe cord, so that the noose cannot slip. "

"Oh, Father Lactance! Father Lactance! have you no charity?" criedGrandier. 

The executioner by this time was forced by the increasing heat to jumpdown from the pile, being indeed almost overcome; and seeing this, Grandier stretched forth a hand into the flames, and said--

"Pere Lactance, God in heaven will judge between thee and me; I summonthee to appear before Him in thirty days. "

Grandier was then seen to make attempts to strangle himself, but eitherbecause it was impossible, or because he felt it would be wrong to endhis life by his own hands, he desisted, and clasping his hands, prayedaloud--

"Deus meus, ad te vigilo, miserere me. "

A Capuchin fearing that he would have time to say more, approachedthe pile from the side which had not yet caught fire, and dashed theremainder of the holy water in his face. This caused such smoke thatGrandier was hidden for a moment from the eyes of the spectators; whenit cleared away, it was seen that his clothes were now alight; his voicecould still be heard from the midst of the flames raised in prayer;then three times, each time in a weaker voice, he pronounced the name ofJesus, and giving one cry, his head fell forward on his breast. 

At that moment the pigeons which had till then never ceased to circleround the stake, flew away, and were lost in the clouds. 

Urbain Grandier had given up the ghost. 

CHAPTER XII

This time it was not the man who was executed who was guilty, but theexecutioners; consequently we feel sure that our readers will be anxiousto learn something of their fate. 

Pere Lactance died in the most terrible agony on September 18th, 1634, exactly a month from the date of Grandier's death. His brother-monksconsidered that this was due to the vengeance of Satan; but others werenot wanting who said, remembering the summons uttered by Grandier, thatit was rather due to the justice of God. Several attendant circumstancesseemed to favour the latter opinion. The author of the History of theDevils of Loudzin gives an account of one of these circumstances, forthe authenticity of which he vouches, and from which we extract thefollowing:

"Some days after the execution of Grandier, Pere Lactance fell illof the disease of which he died. Feeling that it was of supernaturalorigin, he determined to take a pilgrimage to Notre Dame des Andilliersde Saumur, where many miracles were wrought, and which was held in highestimation in the neighbourhood. A place in the carriage of the Sieur deCanaye was offered him for the journey; for this gentleman, accompaniedby a large party on pleasure bent, was just then setting out for hisestate of Grand Fonds, which lay in the same direction. The reason forthe offer was that Canaye and his friends, having heard that the lastwords of Grandier had affected Pere Lactance's mind, expected to finda great deal of amusement in exciting the terrors of theirtravelling-companion. And in truth, for a day or two, the booncompanions sharpened their wits at the expense of the worthy monk, whenall at once, on a good road and without apparent cause, the carriageoverturned. Though no one was hurt, the accident appeared so strange tothe pleasure-seekers that it put an end to the jokes of even the boldestamong them. Pere Lactance himself appeared melancholy and preoccupied, and that evening at supper refused to eat, repeating over and overagain--

"'It was wrong of me to deny Grandier the confessor he asked for; God ispunishing me, God is punishing me!'

"On the following morning the journey was resumed, but the evidentdistress of mind under which Pere Lactance laboured had so damped thespirits of the party that all their gaiety had disappeared. Suddenly, just outside Fenet, where the road was in excellent condition and noobstacle to their progress apparent, the carriage upset for the secondtime. Although again no one was hurt, the travellers felt that therewas among them someone against whom God's anger was turned, and theirsuspicions pointing to Pere Lactance, they went on their way, leavinghim behind, and feeling very uncomfortable at the thought that they hadspent two or three days in his society. 

"Pere Lactance at last reached Notre-Dame des Andilliers; but howevernumerous were the miracles there performed, the remission of the doompronounced by the martyr on Pere Lactance was not added to their number;and at a quarter-past six on September 18th, exactly a month to the veryminute after Grandier's death, Pere Lactance expired in excruciatingagony. "

Pere Tranquille's turn came four years later. The malady which attackedhim was so extraordinary that the physicians were quite at a loss, and forced to declare their ignorance of any remedy. His shrieks andblasphemies were so distinctly heard in the streets, that his brotherFranciscans, fearing the effect they would have on his after-reputation, especially in the minds of those who had seen Grandier die with words ofprayer on his lips, spread abroad the report that the devils whom he hadexpelled from the bodies of the nuns had entered into the body of theexorcist. He died shrieking--

"My God! how I suffer! Not all the devils and all the damned togetherendure what I endure!" His panegyrist, in whose book we find all thehorrible details of his death employed to much purpose to illustrate theadvantages of belonging to the true faith, remarks--

"Truly big generous heart must have been a hot hell for those fiends whoentered his body to torment it. "

The following epitaph which was placed over his grave was interpreted, according to the prepossessions of those who read it, either as atestimony to his sanctity or as a proof of his punishment:--

"Here lies Pere Tranquille, of Saint-Remi; a humble Capuchin preacher. The demons no longer able to endure his fearlessly exercised power asan exorcist, and encouraged by sorcerers, tortured him to death, on May31st, 1638. "

But a death about which there could be no doubt as to the cause was thatof the surgeon Mannouri, the same who had, as the reader may recollect, been the first to torture Grandier. One evening about ten o'clock he wasreturning from a visit to a patient who lived on the outskirts of thetown, accompanied by a colleague and preceded by his surgery attendantcarrying a lantern. When they reached the centre of the town in the rueGrand-Pave, which passes between the walls of the castle grounds andthe gardens of the Franciscan monastery, Mannouri suddenly stopped, and, staring fixedly at some object which was invisible to his companions, exclaimed with a start--

"Oh! there is Grandier!

"Where? where?" cried the others. 

He pointed in the direction towards which his eyes were turned, andbeginning to tremble violently, asked--

"What do you want with me, Grandier? What do you want?"

A moment later he added

"Yes-yes, I am coming. "

Immediately it seemed as if the vision vanished from before his eyes, but the effect remained. His brother-surgeon and the servant brought himhome, but neither candles nor the light of day could allay his fears;his disordered brain showed him Grandier ever standing at the foot ofhis bed. A whole week he continued, as was known all over the town, inthis condition of abject terror; then the spectre seemed to move fromits place and gradually to draw nearer, for he kept on repeating, "He iscoming! he is coming!" and at length, towards evening, at about the samehour at which Grandier expired, Surgeon Mannouri drew his last breath. 

We have still to tell of M. De Laubardemont. All we know is thus relatedin the letters of M. De Patin:--

"On the 9th inst. , at nine o'clock in the evening, a carriage wasattacked by robbers; on hearing the noise the townspeople ran to thespot, drawn thither as much by curiosity as by humanity. A few shotswere exchanged and the robbers put to flight, with the exception of oneman belonging to their band who was taken prisoner, and another who laywounded on the paving-stones. This latter died next day without havingspoken, and left no clue behind as to who he was. His identity was, however, at length made clear. He was the son of a high dignitary namedde Laubardemont, who in 1634, as royal commissioner, condemned UrbainGrandier, a poor, priest of Loudun, to be burnt alive, under thepretence that he had caused several nuns of Loudun to be possessed bydevils. These nuns he had so tutored as to their behaviour that manypeople foolishly believed them to be demoniacs. May we not regard thefate of his son as a chastisement inflicted by Heaven on this unjustjudge--an expiation exacted for the pitilessly cruel death inflicted onhis victim, whose blood still cries unto the Lord from the ground?"

Naturally the persecution of Urbain Grandier attracted the attentionnot only of journalists but of poets. Among the many poems which wereinspired by it, the following is one of the best. Urbain speaks:--

 "From hell came the tidings that by horrible sanctions I had made a pact with the devil to have power over women: Though not one could be found to accuse me. In the trial which delivered me to torture and the stake, The demon who accused me invented and suggested the crime, And his testimony was the only proof against me. 

 The English in their rage burnt the Maid alive; Like her, I too fell a victim to revenge; We were both accused falsely of the same crime; In Paris she is adored, in London abhorred; In Loudun some hold me guilty of witchcraft, Some believe me innocent; some halt between two minds. 

 Like Hercules, I loved passionately; Like him, I was consumed by fire; But he by death became a god. The injustice of my death was so well concealed That no one can judge whether the flames saved or destroyed me; Whether they blackened me for hell, or purified me for heaven. 

 In vain did I suffer torments with unshaken resolution; They said that I felt no pain, being a sorcerer died unrepentant; That the prayers I uttered were impious words; That in kissing the image on the cross I spat in its face; That casting my eyes to heaven I mocked the saints; That when I seemed to call on God, I invoked the devil

 Others, more charitable, say, in spite of their hatred of my crime, That my death may be admired although my life was not blameless; That my resignation showed that I died in hope and faith; That to forgive, to suffer without complaint or murmur, Is perfect love; and that the soul is purified From the sins of life by a death like mine. "