d law in Paris. No one knew better
than the Bishop how false these were; Manchon himself had been so
impressed with their utter fraudulence that he had inserted in their
margin, under the date of the 4th of April, the statement that in
many instances the facts alleged were entirely at variance with the
declarations of the prisoner. Cauchon despatched the articles to Paris
on the following day, April the 5th. M. Wallon, in his admirable and
exhaustive history of Joan of Arc, has remarked that all her deeds
were in these twelve articles travestied from acts of piety or
patriotism into acts of superstition and rebellion against God and His
Church. 'What,' asks M. Wallon, 'had her accusers to reproach her
with? Her visions? None of her judges could declare these were
impossible, for then they would declare themselves unbelievers in the
history of all the saints, which is full of such visions. They might
deny them if they pleased, but it required all the wilful blindness of
passion to affirm, once such things were articles of belief, that they
came from Satanic influence.' As regards Joan of Arc's costume, she
had on several occasions answered with sufficient clearness, and every
person might have made a like answer, that there is no hard and fast
law laid down by the Church relating to the costume that may be worn
by members of the Church. Nay more, it was notorious that one of the
female saints of the Church (Sainte Marine) had always worn a man's
dress. The question as to her dress had been gone into thoroughly
during Joan of Arc's examination by the Churchmen and laymen at
Poitiers; that which the Church had not blamed at Poitiers could not
therefore be a sin in Rouen. By the same token, how was it possible
for Joan to believe that what had not been disapproved of by the
Archbishop at Rheims should be considered a criminal offence by the
Bishop of Beauvais? As regards the question of her submission to the
Church, Joan of Arc replied, when asked if she would submit to its
will, in these words: 'You speak to me of the "Church Militant" and of
the "Church Triumphant." I do not understand the signification of
those terms; but I wish to submit myself to the Church as all good
Christians should do.' What more could be required of her than this
entire submission to the Church? She had made that answer to the
doctors and clergy at Poitiers, and it had entirely satisfied those
men. What Joan of Arc had a clear right not to do was