In later times an immense number of Jews were converted to the Christian religion; but the hatred of the people was not extinguished thereby, and mistrust followed these converts into their new state.  It is very probable that a great number of these conversions were hardly sincere, as they were partly caused by the sad position in which the Jews who continued in Judaism were placed.  In default of conjectures founded on reason in this respect, we will regard as a sufficient corroboration of our opinion the multitude of Judaizing Christians who were discovered as soon as care was taken to find out those who had been guilty of apostasy.  However this may be, it is certain that the distinction between New and Old Christians was introduced; the latter denomination was a title of honor, and the former a mark of ignominy; the converted Jews were contemptuously called maranos ("impure men,” “pigs").  With more or less foundation, they were accused of horrible crimes.  In their dark assemblies they committed, it was said, atrocities which could hardly be believed for the honor of humanity.  For example, it was said that, to revenge themselves on the Christians and in contempt of religion, they crucified Christian children, taking care to choose for the purpose the greatest day among Christian solemnities.  There is the often-repeated history of the knight of the house of Guzman, who, being hidden one night in the house of a Jew whose daughter he loved, saw a child crucified at the time when the Christians celebrated the institution of the sacrifice of the eucharist.  Besides infanticide, there were attributed to the Jews sacrileges, poisonings, conspiracies, and other crimes.  That these rumors were generally believed by the people is proved by the fact that the Jews were forbidden by law to exercise the professions of doctor, surgeon, barber, and tavern-keeper; this shows what degree of confidence was placed in their morality.  It is useless to stay to examine the foundations for these sinister accusations.  We are not ignorant how far popular credulity will go, above all when it is under the influence of excited feelings, which makes it view all things in the same light.  It is enough for us to know that these rumors circulated everywhere and with credit, to understand what must have been the public indignation against the Jews, and consequently how natural it was that authority, yielding to the impulse of the general mind, should be urged to treat them with excessive rigor.

The situation in which the Jews were placed is sufficient to show that they might have attempted to act in concert to resist the Christians; what they did after the death of St. Peter Arbues shows what they were capable of doing on other occasions.  The funds necessary for the accomplishment of the murder—­the pay of the assassins, and the other expenses required for the plot—­were collected by means of voluntary contributions imposed on themselves by all the Jews of Aragon.  Does not this show an advanced state of organization, which might have become fatal if it had not been watched?