Meanwhile, the council, which had replied to Simão Bacamarte’s memorandum saying that it would set out its position concerning the end of paragraph four in due course, finally set about legislating on the matter. A bylaw was adopted, without debate, authorizing the alienist to detain in the Casa Verde anyone whose mental faculties were found to be in perfect equilibrium. And after the council’s previous painful experience, a clause was included stating that such authorization was provisional in nature and limited to one year, so that the new theory could be put to the test, and authorizing the council to close down the Casa Verde at any time, should this be deemed advisable for reasons of public order. Councillor Freitas also proposed a provision that under no circumstances should any councillor be committed to the mental asylum, and this clause was accepted, voted through, and included in the bylaw, despite Councillor Galvão’s objections. The latter’s main argument was that the council, in passing legislation relating to a scientific experiment, could not exclude its own members from the consequences of the law; such an exemption was both odious and ridiculous. As soon as he uttered those two words, the other councillors erupted in howls of disapproval at their colleague’s audacity and foolishness; for his part, he heard them out and simply repeated, calmly, that he would vote against the exemption.

“Our position as councillors,” he concluded, “grants us no special powers, nor does it exclude us from the foibles of the human mind.”

Simão Bacamarte accepted the bylaw with all its restrictions. As for the councillors being exempted, he declared that he would have been deeply saddened had he been compelled to commit a single one of them to the Casa Verde; the clause itself, however, was the best possible proof that their mental faculties did not suffer from perfect equilibrium. The same could not, however, be said for Councillor Galvão, whose wisdom in objecting to the exemption, and moderation in responding to his colleagues’ abusive tirades, clearly demonstrated a well-organized brain, and on this account Bacamarte respectfully requested the council to hand him over for treatment. The council, still somewhat offended by Councillor Galvão’s behavior, considered the alienist’s request and voted unanimously in favor.