The Irish standard., 1910-02-19

Pope came to hiatrelief, pensioned him
for life. and STRETCHED out a helping
hand to his son hoS expressed wish
to study astronomy. Now listen to
Sir David Brewetsr: The pension
thus given by Pope Urban was not the
remuneration which Ssovereigns award
to the services Of their subjects. CALL
go "a Florentine was foreigner at
Rome. The Pope owed him no obll-
cation, and we must therefore regard
the pension otsaalileo as donation
from the Roman Pontff to science It.
SELF" Calico was not content, like
the other great astronomers of his
time. to demonatrate the Copernican
system as an hypothesis ASTRONOMICAL
~ true; he would Insist on it's physical
certainty, although many of tho arr
guments he: advanced were far from
being faultless. "A For instance. he de-
rived his chief arEnment from, the hux
and reflux Of the tides, which no ast
tronomer now holdssto be proof Of
the earth's motion. There were also
many physical difficulties in the way.
for the specific gravity of the air was
not then determined. and it was not
till fifty years 'safter Gallleo's death
that the law Of gravitation was dis
covered by the genius of Newton.
Add to this that Calico dragged the
sacred Scripturessinto the controversy
and commended that his Interpretation.
which at times was more fanciful than
accurate, was alone to be accepted
Cardinal Bellarmine, who was one Of
the most prominent oounsellors of the
! Holy See, set the matter in it's true
light when he wrot to Galileo: I'VE
cannot so bend the Interpretation Of
the Scriptures ag to suit your system
of astronomy; but this tell you, when
the demonstration shall be found to
establish the earth's motion, it will
be proper then to interpret the Holy
Scriptures otherwise than they have
hitherto been in those passages which
mention the moving Of the heavens
and the stabilitysof the world"
When the scientific men of that age.
men like Francis Bacon, ware no de-
terminea n their i \ s r. The earth''
motion. we can readily appreciate thu
prudence Of the theologians of Rome
in their unwillingness, to commit them.
selves to Galileo's theories. In the
controversy then raging over the
planetary system, the intemperate Ian
guage and violent invectives of Galileo
deprived him Of the sympathy of hi
t.hest friends. 'FIe persisted in opposing
the teaching of his day and hurled
bitter invectives against all who diff.
ferred from him. In spite of repeated
remonstrance, and relying on the Pom.
tins patronage, Cardinal Barbareni':
friendship for him, and the encourage.
ment of members ofsthe papal court
J, he resumed with greatest violence hii
attack on his rivals, and once mor>
he dragged the sacred Scriptures int.
the controversy, reasserted the physica
certainty of his theories and violated
promises he had made. So they az.
rested him and sentenced him to con
finement in palace for twenty days
i, Some English writer's and America!
copyists have conjured UP disma
4 visions Of dreary dungeons and tor
ture, and violent punishment, but Al
Won Gebler, the latest German his
torian of Galileos life, has fully prov
ed in all this there is not single par
ticle Of truth. According to the lega
procedure of those times he was sen
fenced to imprisonment. The apart
ments in which he was confined wer
4 large, light and cheerful rooms: OF
one side you enjoy the prospect Of tn
majestic dome Of st. Peters and on tn
J, other Of the beautiful gardens Of tn
. Vatican" (von Gebler, page 21o)
} From the vatican1she was transfer
. red to the Villa Medlci. which, un
}. rivaled in its position and crownin
+ the Pincian gardens. was the center q
fashion In those days, and is at tn
) present day one Of the loveliest villa
J In the Eternal city. From here h
: went to the city Of Siena and becam
;. the guest of the bishop of that ses
After a pleasant stay here he returne
to his own home, near Florence. Sue
!, was the much -talked-of Imprisonment
Of Calico. Until the day Of his deaf
: he continued to enjoy the pensio
which years before had been munifi
J Gently assigned him by the, sovereig
!, pontin, Pope Urban. For the thou
; sandth time it has been repeated, iteE
] ated and reiterated that after his. con
) demnation, or as our own. dear 81
> Telegram has it, "asshe came out frol
8 the hall and looked at the sun
] murmured to himself, But It doe