A.D. 1178. THE LETTER OF THE LEGATE ΓΕΤΕΕ. Reginald, bishop of Bath, and the noble men the viscount of Touraine, and Baymond of Heufchatel, who by our advice had come to the territory of Boger de Bediers, for the purpose of obtaining the liberation of our venerable brother the bishop of Alby, and asserted that they were uujustly treated by the noble man the count of Toulouse and other barons who had for ever abjured them ; on which occasion, on their proposing to come into our presence for the defence of their faith if they could have a safe conduct in coming and returning, the said bishop and viscount, fearing lest this stumbling-block might not be revealed to the hearts of the simple, who were imbued with their abominations, and lest they might ascribe it to our distmstfulness if a hearing were refused them, on our behalf and that of the before -named count, granted them the said indulgence, in order that in full security they might present themselves before us, that in the hearing of ourselves and our venerable brother the bishop of Poitiers, the legate of the Apostolic See, and of other discreet men, and of thewhole people, they might be examined, and, if their belief were sound and proper, be approved of by us ; and in order that, after being examined by us, they might still return in security to their homes, that so they might not appear to have been induced by any fear or violence to make confession of the true faith; but however, upon the understanding that if within eight days from the time that our edict had gone forth, they should not have returned to the true faith, they were to be expelled from the territories of the noble men who had abjured them. We therefore thought proper to ratify the indulgence so granted them by the bishop and viscount ; although, as we have mentioned, an ediet had already gone forth from the aforesaid count of Toulouse and other noble men, that they should be expelled from their territories ; and, the said bishop of Poitiers and the before-named count of Toulouse, and other clergy and laymen, about three hundred in number, being assembled with us in the church of Saint Stephen, we enjoined them to explain to us their belief, and, returning to the truth of the Catholic faith, by a healthful confession of the true faith, to remove the infamy which both the whole land and they themselves had by their damnable doctrines incurred. On this, during the conversation that ensued on both sides, they produced a certain paper in which they had written out the articles of their faith, and read it at length just as written. On our detecting in it some exprès