The history of the popes, from the close of the middle ages : drawn ...

go HISTORY OF THE POPES.
tried to put an end to the evils of prostitution.^ As a first
step, at the end of June, 1566, all women of ill-fame were
driven out of the Borgo by the police, and the Conservatori
were ordered to find some segregated locality for the others
who lived in various parts of the city. The Trastevere was
thought of as a place for this' purpose. An edict published
on St. Mary Magdalen's day, July 22nd, 1566, ordered that
the more notorious prostitutes (cortegiane) were to be ex-
pelled from Rome within six days, and within a further
period from the Papal States, unless they preferred to marry
or enter the convent delle Penitenti. This edict caused great
anxiety in Rome ; many complained that such rigour would
depopulate the city, and that many tradesmen, who had
supplied goods to these people on credit, would suffer
seriously. The customs authorities asked for a reduction
of their tax by 20,000 ducats^ on the ground that the expulsion
of these people would mean a great reduction in the importa-
tion of dutiable goods. ^ The city council met and decided
^ The police measures, as far as morals were concerned, which
were taken by Pius V., dealt principally with the increase of
as to this see what
prostitution dating from the XVth century ;
has been said in Vol. V. of this work 98 seqq. With Graf (Attraverso
il Cinquecento, Turin, 1888, 269 seq., 281) and Rodocanachi
(Courtisanes et Bouffons, Paris, 1894, 82 seq., 174) Bertolotti
has treated of the matter specially fully (Repressioni straordinarie
della prostituzione in Roma nel sec. XVI., Rome, 1887) ; he has
published valuable reports from Mantua, but has been as little
fair to Pius V. as Brosch (I., 242 seq.). Altogether apart from
the undignified treatment of so serious a matter, the reproaches
which they both make against Pius V. are quite unjustified. It
may be admitted that the means adopted by Pius V. did not
altogether attain the end in view, but it must be remembered
that our age is still in as great a state of perplexity as to how to
deal with the evil of prostitution, and it is still a matter of dispute
whether the means finally adopted by Pius V. were right or wrong.
That the Church has the right to work for the extirpation of prostitution
by every tneans is brought out by Penck in the Hand-
worterbuch der Staatswissenschaften, V., 296.
^ Cf. the *Avvisi di Roma in App. nn. 16 to 25 Vatican Library.