The Sleepwalkers (215 page)

We
have
followed
the
events
of
1615,
from
Lorini's
denunciation
of
Galileo
Letter
and
Caccini's
denunciation
of
his
personal
activities,
to
the
collapse
of
the
case
against
him
in
November.
The
proceedings
were
conducted
in
secret,
and
Galileo
had
no
part
in
them;
but
his
friends
in
Rome
knew
that
something
was
up,
and
kept
him
informed
of
all
rumours
and
developments.
Among
his
informants
were
Cardinal
Piero
Dini,
Archbishop
of
Fermo,
and
Monsignor
Giovanni
Ciàmpoli.
The
letters
exchanged,
during
1615,
between
these
two
in
Rome
and
Galileo
in
Florence,
are
important
for
the
understanding
of
the
developments
which
led
to
the
prohibition
of
Copernicus.

On
16
February,
Galileo
sent
a
copy
of
his
Letter
to
Castelli
to
Dini,
with
the
request
that
it
should
be
shown
to
Father
Grienberger
and,
if
possible,
to
Cardinal
Bellarmine.
In
his
covering
letter
there
were
the
usual
complaints
about
the
hostility
surrounding
him.
He
remarked
that
the
Letter
to
Castelli
was
written
in
haste
and
that
he
was
going
to
improve
and
extend
it;
the
extended
version,
as
we
know,
became
the
Letter
to
the
Grand
Duchess
Christina
.

Before
Dini answered, Ciàmpoli wrote, at the end of February (my italics):

"
CardinalBarberini
[the
future
Pope
Urban
VIII],
who,
as
you
know
from
experience,
has
always
admired
your
worth,
told
me
only
yesterday
evening
that
with
respect
to
these
opinions
he
would
like
greater
caution
in
not
going
beyond
the
arguments
used
by
Ptolemy
and
Copernicus
,
^*
and
finally
in
not
exceeding
the
limitations
of
physics
and
mathematics.
For
to
explain
the
Scriptures
is
claimed
by
theologians
as
their
field,
and
if
new
things
are
brought
in,
even
by
an
admirable
mind,
not
everyone
has
the
dispassionate
faculty
of
taking
them
just
as
they
are
said..."
²³

____________________

A
few
days
later,
on
3
March,
Dini's
answer
arrived
(my
italics):

"With
Bellarmine
I
spoke
at
length
of
the
things
you
had
written...
And
he
said
that
as
to
Copernicus,
there
is
no
question
of
his
book
being
prohibited;
the
worst
that
might
happen,
according
to
him,
would
be
the
addition
of
some
material
in
the
margins
of
that
book
to
the
effect
that
Copernicus
had
introduced
his
theory
in
order
to
save
the
appearances,
or
some
such
thing
–
just
as
others
had
introduced
epicycles
without
thereafter
believing
in
their
existence.
And
with
a
similar
precaution
you
may
at
any
time
deal
with
these
matters
.
If
things
are
fixed
according
to
the
Copernican
system,
[he
said],
it
does
not
appear
presently
that
they
would
have
any
greater
obstacle
in
the
Bible
than
the
passage
'[the
sun]
exults
as
a
strong
man
to
run
his
course,'
etc.,
which
all
expositors
up
to
now
have
understood
by
attributing
motion
to
the
sun.
And
although
I
replied
that
this
also
could
be
explained
as
a
concession
to
our
ordinary
forms
of
expression,
I
was
told
in
answer
that
this
was
not
a
thing
to
be
done
in
haste,
just
as
the
condemnation
of
any
of
these
opinions
was
not
to
be
passionately
hurried...
I
can
only
rejoice
for
you..."
²⁴

On
the
same
day
–
7
March
–
Prince
Cesi,
the
President
of
the
Linceian
Academy,
also
wrote
to
Galileo.
His
letter
contained
the
sensational
news
that
a
Carmelite
monk
from
Naples,
Paolo
Antonio
Foscarini,
a
Provincial
of
his
Order,
had
published
a
book
in
defence
of
Galileo
and
Copernicus.
²⁵
Foscarini
was
now
preaching
in
Rome
and
had
offered
to
meet
all
comers
in
public
discussion.
He
had
sent
a
copy
of
his
book
to
Bellarmine.

On
21
March,
Ciàmpoli
relayed
further
assurances
by
Cardinals
Bellarmine
and
del
Monte,
that
Galileo
had
nothing
to
fear
so
long
as
he
kept
to
the
province
of
physics
and
mathematics,
and
refrained
from
theological
interpretations
of
Scripture.
²⁶
He
added
that
there
was
a
danger
of
Foscarini's
book
being
prohibited,
but
only
because
it
meddled
with
Holy
Scripture.
Ciàmpoli
had
also
been
told
that
several
Jesuit
astronomers
were
Copernicans,
but
were
still
holding
back,
that
it
was
essential
to
go
on
working
until
all
quietened
down,
and
to
avoid
new
occasions
for
scandal-makers.
²⁷