1761. Carta de António José da Silva para Joaquim da Silva Freire, bacharel formado em leis.

Protest letter written by António José da Silva to a bachelor in Law, Joaquim da Silva Freire.

The author protests because the addressee seems to pay no attention to the case he is prosecuting for him. He seems either to receive no mail, or to ignore the letters he receives.

In January 1761 the Inquisition learned that a group of men, identifying themselves as Inquisition officials, were inspecting several houses, interrogating the inhabitants and seizing their property. Joaquim da Silva Freire, a bachelor in Law and the son of a High Court judge, was arrested. He confessed he had forged the necessary papers guided by authentic documents kept by his father. He gave the excuse of wanting just to pass a love letter to a woman: if he was to be taken for an Inquisition official, he could give her the love letter disguised as a notification.