‘Consider, my lords, what falsehoods are contained in the accusations of our adversary, and that such as read his libel must be deceived. It behoves, therefore, the reverend professors of theology to correct it as soon as possible, for they know that such libels ought not to be written nor published; but the most marvellous circumstance of all is, that this libel and these falsehoods have been suffered and made public by a theologian in the presence of the king’s majesty. ‘We are at present in a similar situation to that in which Saint Austin represents the companion of the physician and astrologer disputing on twin children, the one fat and the other lean. The astrologer attributing the difference to the ascendancy of the stars,—the physician declaring, that the fat one received the soul first, and, being the strongest, sucked nearly the whole of the food,—which ought to be believed? The physician, certainly, as St Austin says. We, in like manner, may give greater credit to the faculty of medicine in this manner than to the faculty of theology: the professor has very foolishly argued his case. ‘O, most merciful God! apply a remedy to this, for thou seest theologians affirm that sorcerers may succeed in their incantations; and it is erring against the holy Scriptures to say, that sorcerers are others than liars. And the wise Solomon makes this answer to those who asserted similar errors, in the 33d chapter of Ecclesiasticus,—‘Quod divinatio erroris, et arguta mendacia et somnia maleficiorum vanitas est.’ Thomas Aquinas quotes this authority to prove that sorcerers cannot succeed. ‘O, thou university of Paris! please to correct thyself; for such absurd sciences are not only forbidden, as being contrary to the honour of God, but as containing nothing true, which is confirmed by the workers of magic. ‘Ovid says, in his book, ‘De Remedia Amoris,’ ‘Fallitur Hermionæ si quis mala pabula terræ: Et magicas artes posse juvare putat.’ ‘Master John de Bar, who was very expert in this accursed art, and who was burnt, with all his books, declared, at his last confession, that the devil never appeared to him, and that his invocations and sorceries never succeeded, although many said the contrary. He added, that he had practised this art to obtain money from persons of high rank. It is therefore most strange to charge the duke of Orleans with such vain and foolish sorceries, as there never was a man who hated them more, or who persecuted such as practised them with greater rigour. ‘Every one knows that my late lord was the principal cause of the trial of John de Bar and of two augustan friars, before the king’s council and clergy summoned for this purpose, and were in consequence executed for their evil deeds.