31. Item, whether he beleueth that the pope or any other Prelate for the time being, or their vicars may excommunicate their subiect Ecclesiasticall or secular for disobediēce or contumacie, so that such a one is to be holden and taken for excommunicate or not.

32. Item, whether ye beleue that for the disobediēce and contumacie of persons excommunicate, increasing: the prelates or their vicares in spirituall thinges haue power to agrauate and to reagrauate, to put vpon men the interdict and to call for the secular arme: and that the same secular arme or power ought to be obedient to the censures, by their inferiors called for.

33. Item, whether he beleue that the pope and other prelates or els their vicares, haue power in spirituall things to excommunicate priestes and lay men that are stubberne and disobedient, from theyr office, benefice or entrance into the church, and from the administration of the sacraments of the Church, also to suspend them.

34. MarginaliaThese Popes wil be sure to lose nothing.Item, whether he beleue, that it is lawfull for ecclesiasticall persons without committing sinne, to haue anye possessions & temporall goodes: and whether he beleeue, þ^t it is not lawfull for lay men to take away the same from thē by their authoritie: but rather that such takers away & incrochers vpō ecclesiasticall goods, are to be punished as committers of sacriledge,MarginaliaWealthy wickednes maintained. yea although such Ecclesiasticall persons liue naughtely that haue such goodes.

35. Item, whether any such taking away or incrochyng vpō any priest rashly or violently made, although þ^e priest be an euill liuer, be sacriledge or not.

36. Item, whether he beleue that it is lawfull for lay mē of whether sexe soeuer: that is men and women, to preache the word of God or not.

37. MarginaliaThe pope neyther preacheth himselfe, nor yet will suffer other good priests to preach.Item, whether he beleue that it is lawfull to al priestes freely to preach the word of God whersoeuer, whenso euer, and to whom soeuer it shal please them, althogh they be not sent at all.

38. Item, whether he beleue that all mortall sinnes, and especially such as be manifest and publike, are to be corrected and to be extirpate or not.

Furthermore, wee will commaunde, and decree, that if any by secrete information by you or any other to be receiued, shall be founde either enfamed or suspected of anye kind of þ^e pestiferous sect, heresie & doctrine of the most pestilence men I. Wickleffe, I. Hus and Hierome of Prage the archheretickes aforesaid, or of fauoring, receiuing or defending the foresayd damned men whilest they liued on the earth, their false followers and disciples, or any that beleeueth their errours, or any that after their death pray for thē or any of them, or that nominateth them to be amongst the number of catholick men, or þ^t defendeth them to be placed amongst the number of þ^e saintes, either by their preaching worshipping, or otherwaies wherin they deserue to be suspected: þ^t then they by you or some of you, may be cited personally to appeare before you or some of you, w^tout either Proctor or Doctor to answere for them, an oth being opēly taken by them as is aforesayd, to speak the plain & mere veritie of the articles aboue written and euery of them, or other oportune, as case and circumstance shall require, according to your discretion, as you or anye of you shall see expediēt to proceed against them, or any of them according to these presentes or otherwise canonically, as you shall thinke good.

Also that you do publish solemnly & cause to be published, these present letters, omitting the articles & interrogatories herein contayned, in the citties & other places of your dioces, where conueniently you may, vnder our authoritie, & there to denounce and cause to be denounced all & singular such hereticks, with their abbetters & fauorers of their heresies & erroures, of what sexe or kinde soeuer, that do hold, & defend the sayd erroures, or doe participate any maner of way with heretickes, priuely or apertly, of what state, dignitie, or condition soeuer he or they be, Patriarche, Archbishop, king, Queene, Duke or of what other dignitie either Ecclesiasticall or seculare he be: also with their aduocates and procurators whosoeuer, whiche are beleuers, followers, fauourers defenders, or receiuers of such heretickes, or suspected to be beleuers, followers, fautors, defenders or receiuers of them, MarginaliaPapa spirat minas & cædes.to be excommunicate, euery sonday and festiuall day, in the presence of the people.

Furthermore, that you dilligently do to be inquired by the sayd our authoritie, vpon all and singular such persons both men and women, that mayntayne, approue, defend, & teach such erroures, or that be fauourers, receauers and defenders of them, whether exempt or not exempt, of what dignitie, state, preeminence, degree, order, or condition so-euer. And such as you shal finde in the sayd your inquisition, either by their own confession, or by any other meane to be diffamed, or otherwise infected with the spot of suche heresie or errour, you, through the sentence of excommunication, suspension, interdict, and priuation of their dignities, personages, offices, or other benefices of the Church, and fees, which they hold of any church, monastery and other Ecclesiastical places, also of honours and secular dignities and degrees of sciences or other faculties, as also by other paynes and censures of the Church, or by wayes and meanes whatsoeuer els shall seeme to you expedient, by taking and imprisoning of their bodies, and other corporall punishmentes wherwith heretickes are punished, or are wont, and are commaunded by canonical sanctions to be vsed: and if they be clerkes, by degradation, doe correcte and punishe, and cause them to be corrected and punyshed with all dilligence.

MarginaliaSee here the Dragon casting out whole floudes to swalow vp the Saintes.Furthermore, that you do rise vp stoutly and couragiously agaynst suche heretickes, and the goodes as well of them, as of the lay men, according to the canonicall sanctiō made agaynst heretickes, and their followers, vnder the which we will and commaunde them and their partakers to be subiect. And also such persons, as shall be infamed of the heresies or errors aforesayd, or any of þ^e premisses, shall be bounde to purge themselues, at your arbitrement: but the other which either be witnesses, or by their owne confessions, or other allegations or probations, shalbe conuicted of the foresaid heresies, or articles, or of any the premisses, they shalbe compelled to reuoke and abiure publikely and solemnly the sayd articles and erroures, and to suffer condigne penaunce and punishment, yea euen to perpetuall imprisonment, (if need be) for the same.

And to the intent þ^t they shall not nourish any kinde of heresies hereafter, either in word, deede, or gesture, or shall induce other, either in worde or deede, priuely or apertly, directly or indirectly to beleeue þ^e same, they shalbe forced to put in sufficient suretie. Who, if it so chaunce that they wil not publikely and solemnly renounce and abiure their articles and errors, and take at your handes condigne penaunce, though it be to perpetual, or tēporal punishment, according to your discretion, neither wil be cōtented to put in sufficient suretie that they will not hereafter holde nor nourish those erroures and heresies, neither wil induce other by word or deed, priuily or apertly, directly or indirectly, or by any other maner of colour, to beleue the same: that then you shall proceede agaynst them, according to þ^e qualty of their erroures and demerites, yea and if you see it so expedient, as against heretickes, & as infected with heresie by our authoritie, according to the canonical sanctions sūmarily and simply and plainly, sine strepitu & figura iudicij, & of office, all appellatiō or appellations whatsoeuer ceasing and that you punish the same, according to the sanctions & traditions canonicall, yea if neede be, in leauing and committing them to the secular power: and agayinst such as be superiors or learned doctors, laying the censures of ecclesiasticall excōmunication, al appellation set aside, also inuocating if neede shall require, ayd of the secular arme: The constitution as wel of our predecessor P. Boniface 8.MarginaliaPope Martin 5. contrary to Pope Boniface 8. of blessed memory, wherein is decreed that no man without hys City or dioces (except in certayne cases) or in places being one daies iornye distant from thence where he inhabiteth, shalbe called into iudgement, & that no man do presume to depute iudges frō þ^e sea Apostolicke, w^tout the city & dioces where they are deputed, to proceede agaynst any: or do presume to cōmit their authority to any other person or persōs or to fetch & remoue any man beyond one dayes iorny frō out his Dioces where he dwelleth, or at most two dayes iourny, if it be in a generall councell: MarginaliaPope Martyn vndoeth the acts and edictes of al other popes.as also all other constitutions of any byshop of Rome, touching as well, Iudges delegate, as persons not to be called to iudgement beyond a certaine number: or els any other edict indulce, priuelege, or exemption generall or special graunted from the Apostolike sea, for anye person or persons not to be interdicted, suspended, or excommunicated, or cited vp to iudgement without the compasse of certaine limites: or els what soeuer thing otherwise may hinder, stop, or impeache your iurisdiction, power, and free proceeding herein by anye meanes to the contrary notwithstanding. Dat Constant. the first yeare of our popedome.

¶ This bloudy and abhominable commission of pope Martine, which I haue copied out of a certaine olde monument remaining in the handes of Maister Hackluyt, student in the Temple, seemeth to be directed and geuen out to the publike destruction of all faithful Christen men, about the latter end & breaking vp of the councel of Constance, an. 1418. By the which the pruedent reader hath this