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| To Pantaleo, Notary.
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Epistle XXXIV.
To Pantaleo, Notary.
Gregory to Pantaleo, &c.
Thy Experience remembers what and what kind of oath thou tookest over the most sacred body of the blessed apostle
Peter. Whence also we committed to thee without fear the charge
of enquiry in the patrimony of the Syracusan district. It is,
then, incumbent on thee to have thine own good faith and the fear of
the same blessed apostle Peter ever before thine eyes, and so to act
that neither with men in this present life nor with Almighty God in the
last judgment thou mayest be open to blame. Now from the report
of Salerius our chartularius we have learnt that thou hast found
the modius in which the husbandmen (coloni)219
of the Church have been compelled to give
their corn to be one of twenty-five sextarii220
. This we altogether execrated, and
were sorry thou hadst been late in making it a subject of
enquiry. We rejoice, therefore, at thy telling us that thou hast
broken the said modius and made a just one. But, inasmuch
as the aforesaid chartularius has taken care to mention also
what has already been collected under thy Experience by the fraudulent
dealings of the farmers (conductores)221
from two territories, therefore, even as with a view to the future, we
rejoice that thou hast acted zealously in breaking the unjust
modius, so also we think of sins in the past; lest, if what the
farmers have fraudulently taken away from the peasants
(rusticis)222
accrues to us, we
should be implicated in their sins. And accordingly we desire thy Experience, with all
faithfulness, with all integrity—having regard to the fear of
Almighty God, and recalling to mind the strictness of the blessed
apostle Peter—to make a list throughout each several estate
(massam)223
of poor and
indigent husbandmen, and with the money found to have been got by fraud
to procure cows, sheep, and swine, and distribute them among the
several poor husbandmen. And this we desire thee to do with the
advice of the most reverend lord bishop John224
,
and Adrian our chartularius and rector225
| 225 Adrian, previously
addressed as notarius Siciliæ (X. 23), had been succeeded
by Pantaleo and made rector patrimonii (XIII. 18). | . If, moreover, it should be necessary
for the sake of consultation, our son also the lord Julian should be
called in, so that no one else may know, but all be kept quite
secret. Do you therefore consult among yourselves whether this
same assistance should be given to the said poor husbandmen in money or
in kind. But, whatever be the common fund, first, as I have said,
make a list, and afterwards take pains to distribute to each according
to the degree of his poverty. For I, as the teacher of the
Gentiles testifies, have all and abound; nor do I seek money, but
reward (Phil. iv.). So act therefore
that in the day of judgment thou mayest shew me fruit of thy labour
from the service that has been committed to thy Experience. If
thou do this purely, faithfully, and strenuously, thou wilt both
receive it back here in thy children, and hereafter wilt have plenary
retribution in the scrutiny of the Eternal Judge.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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