New-York tribune., 1907-06-22
Literary Nes's and Criticism,

onisttis was not novelty invented by the In
- I'll having been. employed by all peoples
e i iiilIhernorial days for extorting the truth
t rom witnesses. II was for instance an fnfaxi
tu'e OF the ancient world that all testimony
t A from slaves must be drawn forth by tor
80, voluntary statements being rejected as nm
u u uiustWorthy. Black as Spain's records aro
therefore, they compare fav avora bl,y with ,l,,e
al other lands in those and earlier davs rbe
i'ohlan Inqusition was far freer in IT'S usa of
w 'NIo' whereas among the Spaniards heresy
!" as discovered more effectually by solitary CON
Llefhent anG the weary oragging, ont of trials
"nen torture was resorteu TO its uso was pra-
Ntioeu by an elaborate set OF rules which the
80. mere brings together. When one under
s'dlius' though, that the procedure of the In
quis4tlon was directed to procuring conviction
rather than justice and in some resnects II hora
t'seLlpiahce TO that of the confessional" the
Jaws governing the of torture appear in their
ue IisHt as being devices for producing the
et'"'eSt physical pain with the least risk Of
causing death or insanity. But their refine
! ilsnts are bungling in comparison with those
".tich the lnquisitors perfected in connection
@ WIN lts plan of extorting confessions by with
oo1. oaus cildfges from prisoners and casting the
NOuSeu INTO prison for months, leaving them TO
WONDER why they had been incarcerated
me HVe chapters exposing the system of pun
4Shlng condemned persons show the Suprenla's 5
senlus Tor publicity. From the moment when
the sentence was passed to the dreadful culnin-
observed for the benefit of spectators Unlike
civil tribunals, the Inquisition had no fixed pro-
ceoure in these cases, but adjusted each par
ucular sentence and its execution TO the occa-
sion, making punishment as public and awe
inspiring as was thought necessary for the sake
or keeping the masses in check Sometimes the
most unusual punishments inflicted, Curl
ousy symbolical but not harsh as when priest
was made TO appear in the street of Valencia
with a bride in his mouth and a pannier of
hoN r1r-l,a, t,1o-
, der was made to serve four years in the Por-
tuguese wars at regular pay.
Inc action taken against various non-con-
iormists is the theme for the last half of the
third volume. The treatment accorded Jews.
Moors, Protestants and questionable writings is
here investigated at length AS in the first vol
ume. II seems that here DR.. Lea's discoveries
weaken his theory about the absence Of racial
antagonism between Spaniards and Semites; the
persecution of the New Christians" as the con-
verts were called, shows that both inQuistors
and common people We're. insincere in their
Christian zeal Compulsory conversion was not
followed by compulsory instruction in the tenets
OF the faith; the converts were placed under
grossly unjust limitations, being Disseminated
against in every conceivable manner and in
the case OF the Moors, converts among them
were not only taxed outrageously, but for
hidden to leave the country. The historian piles
up evidence upon evidence to discredit tacitly
the supposition that the race war in Spain was
| a secondary result of the religious persecution
instigated by the enissaries of the Church. The
fury of batting relentless and wide
spread il overshadowed all considerations of
morality and religion totally, that It is hard
TO doubt that the Church found race prejudice
alive and utilized It for its own ends But we
shall not quarrel with Dr. Lea over this pr OBJ
lem OF Interpretation. He has given us so much
material, and has shown such sane conserva-
tism in constituting the events he has observed.
that his volumes stand as models of scholarship
If he prefers to say too little by way of inter
probation, he deserves credit for displaying a
trait SO often lacking, or underdeveloped. in his
colleagues.