ButwhatbecameoftheFranciscanexperiment?[1]Iftherewasoneruleratherthananotheronwhichthefounderlaidstress, itwasthathisarmyoffriarsshouldbeabsolutemendicants, , evenbeforethedeathofFrancis, in1226, astrongparty,headedbyEliasofCortona, thedeputyofhisownappointment, begantohankeraftertheseverythings;and, withinthirtyyearsofthattime, theFranciscanshadbecomeoneofthemostpowerful, wealthy, andworldlycorporationsinChristendom, withtheirfingersineverysinkofpoliticalandsocialcorruption,ifsobeprofitfortheordercouldbefishedoutofit; theirprincipalinterestbeingtofighttheirrivals,theDominicans, andtopersecutesuchoftheirownbrethrenaswerehonestenoughtotrytocarryouttheirfounder''; wheneveritbecomestooprosperous, theyaresuretobringaboutacatastrophebytheircorruptuseofthepoliticalandsocialinfluencewhichtheirorganizationandtheirwealthsecure.
