being thus supported, the prisoner was tried by torture.  The rack was the court of justice; the criminal’s only advocate was his fortitude—­for the nominal counsellor, who was permitted no communication with the prisoner, and was furnished neither with documents nor with power to procure evidence, was a puppet, aggravating the lawlessness of the proceedings by the mockery of legal forms:  The torture took place at midnight, in a gloomy dungeon, dimly, lighted by torches.  The victim—­whether man, matron, or tender virgin—­was stripped naked, and stretched upon the wooden bench.  Water, weights, fires, pulleys, screws—­all the apparatus by which the sinews could be strained without cracking, the bones crushed without breaking, and the body racked exquisitely without giving up its ghost, was now put into operation.  The executioner, enveloped in a black robe from head to foot, with his eyes glaring at his victim through holes cut in the hood which muffled his face, practised successively all the forms of torture which the devilish ingenuity of the monks had invented.  The imagination sickens when striving to keep pace with these dreadful realities.  Those who wish to indulge their curiosity concerning the details of the system, may easily satisfy themselves at the present day.  The flood of light which has been poured upon the subject more than justifies the horror and the rebellion of the Netherlanders.

The period during which torture might be inflicted from day to day was unlimited in duration.  It could only be terminated by confession; so that the scaffold was the sole refuge from the rack.  Individuals have borne the torture and the dungeon fifteen years, and have been burned at the stake at last.

Execution followed confession, but the number of condemned prisoners was allowed to accumulate, that a multitude of victims might grace each great gala-day.  The auto-da fe was a solemn festival.  The monarch, the high functionaries of the land, the reverend clergy, the populace regarded it as an inspiring and delightful recreation.  When the appointed morning arrived, the victim was taken from his dungeon.  He was then attired in a yellow robe without sleeves, like a herald’s coat, embroidered all over with black figures of devils.  A large conical paper mitre was placed upon his head, upon which was represented a human being in the midst of flames, surrounded by imps.  His tongue was then painfully gagged, so that he could neither open nor shut his mouth.  After he was thus accoutred, and just as he was leaving his cell, a breakfast, consisting of every delicacy, was placed before him, and he was urged, with ironical politeness, to satisfy his hunger.  He was then led forth into the public square.  The procession was formed with great pomp.  It was headed by the little school children, who were immediately followed by the band of prisoners, each attired in the horrible yet ludicrous manner described.  Then came the magistrates and nobility, the prelates and other dignitaries