"The great bell of the cathedral tolled a little before sunrise, as a signal to the multitude to assemble for the august solemnity of the auto-da-fé, which is the triumph of the holy office; and we were then commanded to go forth one by one. When I got into the street, I saw that the procession was headed by the community of the Dominicans, who have this privilege, because St. Dominic, their patron, was also the founder of the Inquisition. They were preceded by the banner of the holy office, in which the image of the founder was represented in very rich embroidery, with a sword in one hand and an olive branch in the other, with the inscription, '_Justitia et Misericordia_.' "These Religious were followed by the prisoners singly, each holding a taper, and having his godfather by his side. The least guilty marched first, and, as I was not reckoned as one of the most innocent, more than a hundred went before me. Like the rest, my head and feet were bare, and I was greatly annoyed during the procession, which continued upwards of an hour, by the small flints with which the streets of Goa are covered, causing the blood to stream from my feet. "We were led through the principal streets, and every where regarded by an immense crowd, which came from all parts of India, and lined all the roads by which we passed; notice having been given from the pulpit in the most distant parishes, long before the act of faith was to be celebrated. "At length, overwhelmed with shame and confusion, and fatigued by the walk, we arrived at the church of St. Francis, which had been previously fitted up for the celebration of the auto-da-fé. So soon as I was seated, I attended to the procedure observed as to those who followed me. I remarked that those to whom the horrible carochas had been given, marched the last of our party, and immediately after them a large crucifix was carried, with the face towards those who preceded it, and was followed by two persons and the statues of four others, as large as life, accurately executed, and which were placed upon long poles, accompanied by the same number of chests filled with the bones of those represented by the statues, and each carried by a man. The front of the crucifix being turned upon those who walked before, signified that mercy had been extended to them, by their deliverance from the death they had justly merited; and, on the contrary, that those behind had no favour to hope for. Such is the mystery which pervades every thing in the holy office.