420 ON THE SCOPE AND INFLUENCE OF THE 
singly early period. Baranzan was.a Piedmontese monk of the 
order of Barnabites, and officiated as a Professor of Philosophy 
and Mathematics, in the Colleges of his order. He had early 
distinguished himself as a writer on philosophical subjects, 
and as a discarder of the authority of Arisrorne. After per- 
using the Novum Organwn, he appears to have begun a corre- 
spondence with Bacon, one of whose letters to him is fortu- 
nately preserved. in the account of Baranzay’s life in Nice- 
ron’s Memoirs *. This letter is dated in 1622, only two years 
after the publication of the Novum Organum; and was evi- 
dently written, in answer to some queries/of Baranzan, touch- 
ing its fundamental doctrines. The whole letter is on this ac- 
count extremely interesting ; but the following passage may be 
cited, as more particularly calculated to show, how much phi- 
losophy then stood in need of such a guide as Bacon. “ De 
‘ multitudine instantiarum, que homines deterrere possit, hac 
“ respondeo: quid opus est dissimulatione ?. Aut copia in- 
“ stantiarum comparanda, aut negotium deserendum. Alize 
omnes vie, utcunque blandiantur, impervie.” It is worthy 
of notice, that Bacon concludes this letter with an earnest 
request, that Baranzan would employ himself in framing a 
description of the heavenly bodies, exactly of the kind which 
Descarvres afterwards wished some competent person to un- 
dertake ; as mentioned in his letter, before quoted, to Father 
Mersenne. But this ingenious Italian was not permitted to 
profit by the exhortations of his illustrious correspondent, for 
he died soon after the date of this letter, at the early age of 
thirty-three. . 
ral 
“ce 
There 
* «© Ble est trop interessante,” says Nrcrron, who possessed the original let- 
ter, “ et fait trop bien connoitre la maniere de philosopher, qu‘ils vouloient tous 
deux introduire, pour ne la point communiquer au publique.” —Memotres pou 
servir a Uhistotre des Hommes Illustres, tom. iii. p. 43. 
