Page:Bohemia An Historical Sketch.djvu/188

 kinds, and his speech was only brought to a conclusion at the meeting of the Council on the 19th. After Rokycan the other Bohemian ambassadors delivered their orations; the last of them, Peter Payne, finished his speech on the 28th. Some of these speeches caused great irritation among the Romanist hearers. This specially applies to Magister Payne. He praised Wycliffe and his doctrines, and alluded to the persecution that he had endured at Oxford, stating that he had been obliged to seek refuge in Bohemia. Payne was violently interrupted by the English ecclesiastics who were present, and a stormy altercation between him and them took place.

When the Bohemian priests had finished their speeches, Cardinal Cesarini caused a paper to be read enumerating twenty-eight points, or "articles" as they were called, in which the Hussite belief differed from that of the Roman Church. The Bohemians were requested to define their views with regard to these articles. This clever move on the part of the cardinal placed them in a rather difficult position, as some of these articles referred to points with regard to which no complete agreement existed between the Calixtines and the Taborites. Both parties, however, agreed that only by remaining united could they expect to obtain concessions from the Council. They therefore gave no immediate answer. A month afterwards, John of Rokycan made a statement in the name of the whole Bohemian embassy. He declared that it had been agreed at Cheb that the four Articles of Prague should form the basis of the negotiations; the Bohemians could therefore discuss no other questions till an accord as to the four Articles had been obtained.

Before Rokycan had made this statement, the four priests on the papal side had delivered their orations in answer to those of the Bohemians. Rokycan now (March 2) began his second speech in defence of the communion in both kinds, refuting the arguments of his papal antagonist. After him the other Bohemian, and then the papal orators, again spoke in the same order; it was only on April 8 that the last of these speeches came to a conclusion.

Before that date it had become evident to all that an agreement was for the moment impossible. Duke William of Bavaria, who had in the absence of the Emperor Sigismund held the position of "protector" of the Council,