Note 18 — The Camacho Ecclesiastical Controversy, 1697–1700 (continued 2)
Reading edition
Spanish, octavas. None of the standard dictionaries give a meaning to cover this use of octavas. Dominguez’s Diccionario (Supplement) states that the word is a term in Roman law, designating an ancient form of tribute consisting of one part in eight. Probably it was carried over into ecclesiastical law, and here means that the cura was expected to pay one-eighth of his fees into the church fund.