第95章 THE EXAMINATION IN PRISON.LENT,(8)

After admonitions made to her she was required,if she had done anything contrary to the faith,to submit herself to the decision of the Church.She replied,that her answers had all been heard and seen by clerks,and that they could say whether there was anything in them against the faith:and that if they would point out to her where any error was,afterwards she would tell them what was said by her counsellors.At all events if there was anything against the faith which our Lord had commanded,she would not sustain it,and would be very sorry to go against that.Here it was shown to her that there was a Church militant and a Church triumphant,and she was asked if she knew the difference between them.She was also required to put herself under the jurisdiction of the Church,in respect to what she had done,whether it was good or evil,but replied,"I will answer no more on this point for the present."Having thrown in this tentative question which she did not understand,they returned to the question of her dress,which holds such an important place in the entire interrogatory.If she were allowed to hear mass as she wished,having been all this time deprived of religious ordinances,did not she think it would be more honest and befitting that she should go in the dress of a woman?To this she replied vaguely,that she would much rather go to mass in the dress of a woman than to retain her male costume and not to hear mass;and that if she were certified that she should hear mass,she would be there in a woman's dress."I certify you that you shall hear mass,"the examiner replied,"but you must be dressed as a woman.""What would you say,"she answered as with a momentary doubt,"if I had sworn to my King never to change?"but she added:"Anyhow I answer for it.Find me a dress,long,touching the ground,without a train,and give it to me to go to mass;but I will return to my present dress when I come back."She was then asked why she would not have all the parts of a female dress to go to mass in;she said,"I will take counsel upon that,and answer you,"and begged again for the honour of God and our Lady that she might be allowed to hear mass in this good town.

Afterwards she was again recommended to assume the whole dress of a woman and gave a conditional assent:"Get me a dress like that of a young /bourgeoise/,that is to say,a long /houppelande/;I will wear that and a woman's hood to go to mass."After having promised,however,she made an appeal to them to leave her free,and to think no more of her garb,but to allow her to hear mass without changing it.

This would seem to have been refused,and all at once without warning the jurisdiction of the Church was suddenly introduced again.

She was asked,whether in all she did and said she would submit herself to the Church,and replied:"All my deeds and works are in the hands of God,and I depend only on Him;and I certify that I desire to do nothing and say nothing against the Christian faith;and if I have done or said anything in the body that was against the Christian faith which our Lord has established,I should not defend it but cast it forth from me."Asked again,if she would not submit to the laws of the Church she replied:"I can answer no more to-day on this point;but on Saturday send the clerk to me,if you do not come,and I will answer by the grace of God,and it can be put in writing."A great many questions followed as to her visions,but chiefly what had been asked before.One thing only we may note,since it was one of the special sayings all her own,which fell from the lips of Jeanne,during this private and almost sympathetic examination.After being questioned closely as to how she knew her first visitor to be St.

Michael,etc.she was asked,how she would have known had he been "l'Anemy"himself (a Norman must surely have used this word),taking the form of an angel:and finally,what doctrine he taught her?

She answered;above all things he said that she was to be a good child and that God would help her:and among other things that she was to go to the succour of the King of France.But the greater part of what the angel taught her,she continued,was already in their book;and THEANGEL SHOWED HER THE GREAT PITY THERE WAS OF THE KINGDOM OF FRANCE.

The pity of it!That which has always gone most to the tender heart:a country torn in pieces,brother fighting against brother,the invader seated at the native hearth,and blood and fire making the smiling land a desert:"/la pitie qui estoit au royaume de France/."Did the Inquisitor break down here?Could no one go on?or was it mere human incompetence to feel the divine touch?Some one broke into a foolish question about the height of the angel,and the sitting was hurriedly concluded.Monseigneur might well be on his mettle;that very pity,was it not stealing into the souls of his private committee deputed for so different a use?