has fo many fagacious minifters that thoroughly understand its interefts, fhould be guilty of fuch a grofs omiffion as the word generalium. But 'tis a proof that they thought they had not good grounds to use it; for I am perfuaded if they had, they would never have forgot it.

The court of Rome thinks the Pope's fuperiority authoriz'd in a fpecial manner by the terms of the faid decree of Council; but to confute this, one need only reflect upon the manner how the faid decree was formed. Ta this end it must be remember'd that all the prelates being quite tired out with the long duration of that Council, with the expence they were there obliged to, and with the lofs of lo much time, without improving it to the advantage of chriftendom in general, all their decrees being formed after the model of the maxims of Rome, they watch'd with impatience for the moment of their feparation, that they might return home and reft from their fatigues. In fhort, the whole world waited to fee an end put to this Council, and even the princes, who were not there in perfon, long'd as heartily for their feparation, as they did at firft for their meeting. The emperor himself, who preffed more than any body for their af fembling, that he might have the means to crush thofe heretics who began to grow formidable in his dominions, or at least to oblige them to be filent, till the controverted points were decided, finding by fad experience, that

what

what would have been a healing remedy at other times, did only inflame the wound, heartily confented to their feparation. Mean time, if the princes had not thus defir'd it, the Pope would never have put an end to this Council, tho' 'tis very certain he fecretly wish'd for it more than any body, to free himself from the greatest danger, to which the papal authority had been expos'd for many ages: And Zachary Delfino, a Venetian nobleman, who was his nuncio at Vienna, obtained a cardinal's cap for perfuading the emperor Ferdinand to confent to its diffolution. Now the Council was diffolv'd, and declar'd at an end by the following propofition to the fathers, placetne vobis ut huic facra fynodo finis imponatur? And without staying for an answer to that, they added in the fame breath, & petatur confirmatio omnium, &c. To which the fathers anfwer'd, placet. When one confiders the difpofition the fathers were then in, as has been before remark'd, who can doubt but this word placet was pronounc'd fo quickly, only because it was the word intended to put an end to that tedious Council, and that the fathers gave little or no regard to the confirmation which they were required to intreat of the holy father? Nor can it be doubted that these two propofitions were closely coupled together, artfully to establish the dependency of the Council, and the fuperiority of the holy See? But who does not perceive that in a matter of fuch importance as the eftablishing

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blishing the Pope's authority by the decifion of a Council, it was neceffary, without delaying, or confounding it with the Council's laft words, to make a special decree for that purpole, after mature deliberation ? But it was much to be queftion'd whether they would have had the defir'd Succefs, fo that the shorteft way was to have recourse to artifice ; but an artifice fo grofs and ftaring, as fhews it to be wilful neglect. Having faid enough on this head, we proceed to examine the validity of this confirmation,

A general Council being, as I have already faid, an affembly of all chriftendom, does not exclude the fecular princes, who are many times prefent; not indeed to vote in articles of faith, which are things not within the jurifdiction of the fecular power, but to give the Council their protection and advice. And at this day, when their interefts will not permit them to be abfent from their dominions, they fend their embaffadors, and the Pope does not forget in the bull of convocation to invite and exhort them to go thither in perfon. The Popes themfelves have many times been perfonally prefent in Council, and now they fend their legates; fo that the prefence of the Popes, either immediately in their own perfons, or mediately by their fubftitutes and vicegerents, or reprefentatives, is neceffary to render the Council valid, according to the afore-cited decree of that of Chalcedon, which declares every Coun

cil null that is pretended to be general, without the prefence of the Pope's legates. Then what a vain, whimfical piece of formality is it, to defire of the Pope at Rome, the confirmation of what has been decreed by himself, or with his own concurrence, at Trent? Is it not plain, that if the decrees made at Trent, with his approbation and advice, tho' absent, were good, juft, agreeable to fcripture and tradition, it were needlefs to revise them at Rome, and that this was done with a view only to raife the Pope's fuperiority, and not to examine or confirm any thing already examin'd by himself, and corroborated by the votes and prefence of others? Moreover, is it not demonftrable that nothing was offer'd to the confideration of that Council, but what was propos'd by the Pope's legates? fo that nothing was brought upon the ftage but what the court of Rome had a mind to: Which cuftom, tho' not obferv'd in the primitive Councils, was a check to thofe who had a defign to encroach upon the Pope's prerogative. In the first feffion, under Pius IV. a decree was propos'd by the holy father, that the Council fhould make fuch decifions only, touching the christian faith, as might be thought neceffary; and this decree was paffed as well as all the others that were propos'd. The prelates and princes faw indeed, when 'twas too late, that the ablatives, proponentibus legatis, was a fure fign of their flavery, and they complain'd of it to the Pope;

but

but he brought himfelf off without much dif ficulty, by pretending he had not time to examine either the gender or the cafe. And this was the conduct obferv'd during the whole Council, in which nothing was propos'd but from the Pope by his legates. To what purpose then was this confirmation defir'd?

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Here follows a piece of history worthy of remark. The court of Rome apprehending that the Council might hereafter be told, by way of reproach, in a full affembly, that they were not free, took care that another decree fhould be propos'd in the 24th feffion, declaring that by the terms, proponentibus legatis, it was not their intention to change the methods of treating ufually obferv'd in general Councils. On the other hand, the court of Rome being, to the laft degree, jealous of the Pope's privileges and authority, took great care to have it declar'd in one of the canons pafs'd in the 25th feffion, that in all things establish'd by the faid Council, touching reformation and ecclefiaftic difcipline, a falvo is intended for the Pope's authority. But can any thing be more fuperfluous? for in other decrees, either this authority is attack'd, or it is not. If it be particularly attack'd, this general exception cannot help it; and if it be not, the said exception is needlefs. In the fame feffion it was declar'd, that if any embaffadors fhould give place to others in this Council, the princes, their mafters, fhould not thereby fuffer at all in