many; ‘all these priests refuse to give an account of their faith.’ The Dominican said to the council: ‘Let my lords the ambassadors select as judges two doctors from Germany; and we will select two from Paris; then I will reply not only to Farel, Viret, and Froment, but to a hundred or two hundred of such preachers.... Alone I will meet them all!’ The Bernese declared they would trust the matter to those only who were lawfully authorized. They wanted more. The refusal of the Dominican served but to increase their desire to see the Reformation freely preached in Geneva. Not contenting themselves with a theological discussion, they said to the syndics: ‘The way to pacify the city and to be just towards all, is to pick out one of the parish churches and appoint a preacher of the Gospel to it. Those who wish to go to the sermon, will go to the sermon; those who wish to go to mass, will go to mass; every man is to remain free in his conscience; no one shall be constrained, and all will be satisfied.’ ‘We are only laymen,’ answered the astonished syndics; ‘it is not our business to choose preachers and assign them churches.’ The council sent a deputation to Berne to soften the rigor of the chiefs of the state; but it was useless. The greater the _suppleness_ (to use the language of a manuscript) shown by the Genevans, the greater the inflexibility displayed by the Bernese. It was a struggle between the pliant and the rigid; and the pliant, as usual, were compelled to give way.[445] [Sidenote: Reparation Demanded.] The Bernese ambassadors pursued their plans with vigor, and demanded reparation for the insults of the Dominican, and a church for the preachers of the Gospel. ‘If you refuse,’ added Diesbach, ‘we shall return you the seals of our alliance; we shall take back ours; we shall prosecute the monk ... and whomsoever we think fit.’ The Two Hundred were astounded, involuntary tears escaped from the eyes of some, and even the people outside were much disturbed (says the Council minute). Joining deeds to words, Sebastian of Diesbach placed the letters of alliance on the table. The whole assembly immediately rose up with indescribable emotion, and with tears begged the ambassadors to take back their letters. ‘We will do our best to satisfy you!’ exclaimed the premier-syndic, stout catholic as he was. The stern Bernese noble was touched. ‘We take them back,’ he said at last; ‘but we protest that we shall return them if you do not satisfy our demands.’[446] Everything was then prepared for the trial. Geneva undertook to bear the axe into the wilderness of church abuses: a priest, accused by laymen, was about to be tried by laymen. This in itself was a revolution. [Sidenote: The Monk On His Trial.]