The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1865-08-19
GALILEO.
BIZ JAMES PARTON.

habit OF winding up an article with the French
phrase, Nous rerr0ns-" We shall see OF
late wears, editors, hard pushed 70. a com
ment on passing eieuts, have fallen into the
practice O. saying, The world moves"
With these two phrases, a paper could be |
very we'll edited since the first is applicabl.
to all runors and representations, and the sec
ond to most facts. / propose to relate this
week the origin Of the saying, - The world
IN yves.
In the winter of 1888. venerable man,
enfeebl. d by disease and borre down by the
weight of sxty-iline years, was travelling
from Florence to Rome, toilsome, horse
b ,ck Journey of a hundred and iorty-six
miles. He had been summoned from his
home IN this incement season Ivy that Tread
tribunal, ihe Inquisilfon, whose diSHieasure
he had provoked. The lnquisition was th-lr
in the pentude of its power. In no land
that acknowledged the papal suprem ,cy was
there any escape from its omn pre>e eye
and its omnipotent ARA TOR 1t welded, at
once all the temporal power of iEc state.
1t was the great Calico who was Journey
ing toward Rome 10 submit to the question
ings of the Inqui,iti, IN. His offence was,
that he knew more than the doctors OF the
lnquisition knew. He had spent his lie in
the l.,borious study of nature. The son OF
DDD. Italian nuSlcitH. lie cAuipitCN Ia
rs youth that aptitude tor mechanics .'hich
we have observed III the boyhood OF Newton
as we'll as a passionate love Of literature and
masic which Newton never possessed. His
father, besides being poor, hal family OF
six chiilrea II maintain and couii therefore
atfJrd MS sIn very tie aid III his Ssudles.
Gaiieu, however, made up in zeal and dill
gence what he licked III advantages. be
.ides mastering the Latin authors, he became
re ..lg pIoh :Ient IN drawing, and learned TO
play ou several instruments with so much Ia
cIiiLy aud tsist- that he was Ur- -ei II devote
his lie to music At the age o. eighteen h.
sho.ed so many and such remarkable proofs
OF genus, that his father determined, at all
hazards. t, give him University education,
and he was accordingly entered student
OF medicine al the University # Pisa. But
he was no; destined to be a physician Fall
of Curiosity upon all subjects. and, finally.
fascinated by the study OF mathematics, he
woa so much distinction rs To be appointed
professor Oi mathematics at Pisa before he
had completed his t~euty-i!th year.
He hSi sc ircely entered the University be
fore he made one of his most important H.
ventious. As the fall OF apples from tree
led Newton TO the theory OF eravItatiOn, 50
the slow and Uniform swinging OF a lamp
suspended from the roof o; the Pisa cathe-
DR. suggested to Calico the idea af the pen
duiufn as :; neasurer of time and as motive
power # clocks. 1t WIS fly years later,
however, before he actually constructed a
uendulum clock We cannot, of course,
dwell lpon the details of the career of this
great man He had but two objects in his
life To acquire knowledge, aud to c0mmuni-
cate knowledge. Never has there beer
more earnest student q more successful
teacher. For his pupils he wro'e many eX-
ceient treatises upon science, far IN advance
Of his age. For the state be constructed
several machines of public utility. He n
vented the thermometer and improved the
Compass. Hearing one day by chance that
some one in Holland had iuve ted a coutri-
vance by which distant objects could be seen
as though they were near. he entered upon
course of expert nents which, III a few days,
, resulted in the construction OF telescope
al once he began to use the new INSTRUMENT
in the study ri the he vens. To his bound
less wonder AMI delight, he discovered that
the moon like the earth had her noun aims
and her valleys; that the planet Jupiter went
his round accompanied by four moons; that
The milky way WAS composed of innumerable
stars: and that there were spots upon the sun.
IL had been well for Calico if he had had
n little OF the caution and management OF
Copernicus, who, century before, had de-
;molshed the ancient astronmv without draw
ing down upon himself or his bopk the tbnn-
ders of Rome Galileo was a bolder man
Overioyed at his discoveries, he hastened to
publish them to the world, and thus called
attention anew to the great truths demonstra-
ted by Copernicus. that the sun Is the centre
of cur system and that around him all the
plaaets revo;ve. TIE Inquisition awtke to
The importance of these heresie', Denounced
the Copernicam system contr .ry to Strip
ture, and summoned Calico to Rome to al
swer tor the crime of supporting l..
Arriving in Rome on the 9th of Fet ruary,
1853, he was at once placed under arrest ii
the palace of an ambassador, and a few days
4, after, he appeared before an assembly ofcardi-
mails aud iuquisitors, where he was permitted
10 speak in his defence. He began to de-
n,onstra the truth 0 the Copernican syste m,
2 as be hal been wont to do at the University.
His accusers ignorant OF all science, could
not com Drehend his reasoning. Then he en-
deavored to explain himself i'll simpler ian
guage, and strove with all his powers to geta
nJtioa of the true astronomy into those OBJ
tuse and obstinate minds. But unfortunate
ly for me- he says in one of his letters. my
proofs were not apprehended. aud notwlth
standing all ie p ins took, couldn't succeed
in making myself understood" They broke
in upon his argum nts with loud outcries, &C
cusing him OF bringing scandal upon the
church, and repeating, over an over, the
passage of the Bible which -ciares tina
Joshua commanded the sun and moon to stant
stiA aud they obeyed him.
la vain Galileo reminded them that H..
Bible also says, that the Heavens are soli
and are polished like mirror of brass. i
VAN he pointed out that the language of ih
Bible is invariably confirmed TO the state G
science " the time when it WAS ritten. Th
assembled priests only shrugged thei- shou
ders at his reasoning, or interrulte him Wit
derisive and contemptuous shouts.
For seven weeks longer he remained :
Rom :, under arrest. awaiting the sentence
the InauiSiti IN. On the 22nd of June he wa
again brought before The tribunal, TO hear b
DOOM He was pronounced guilty of heres
in maintaining, contrary to the express d.
claratlohs of Scripture, that the sun did NJ
move from east to west, as it seemed to d
and that the earth, which appeared motion
less, did move round the sun. 1t was furth'
declared in his sentence, that the holding
such opinions had rendered him liable 70 Il
penalty OF death by burning. From which
continued the sentence, '' it is our pleasu
that yoc be absoived, provided that, frs
with a sincere heart and unfeigned faith,
our presence, you abiure, curse and detest II
said errors and heresies." Nevertheless, eve