344 TH E INTELLECTUAL RISE IN ELECTRICITY. 



asking for explanations of them. But concerning this 

 fact, as in regard to most other evidences of Sarpi's knowl- 

 edge of magnetism, doubt has been thrown. Writers, 

 probably influenced by the Church in its bitter hostility 

 to Sarpi, insist upon the authenticity of the letter, and 

 claim that it proves that the great Venetian had no such 

 attainments in physical science as his advocates aver, and 

 that hence Galileo's famous reference to him as u my father 

 and master ' ' should be interpreted as indicating that the 

 Friar was merely the philosopher's spiritual guide. 1 The 

 Florentine Society, in publishing the collected correspond- 

 ence of Galileo, however, reject the communication as 

 probably not written by Sarpi. 2 So, also, Sarpi's relations 

 to Gilbert have been very differently regarded. Some 

 biographers even assert that Gilbert learned from Sarpi all 

 the magnetical discoveries which he subsequently pre- 

 sented as original, 3 and fix the time of communication 

 as during Gilbert's foreign tour, 4 which is absurd, seeing 

 that Sarpi was then very young and had only just attracted 

 notice by his precocity in theological debate. 5 Sarpi him- 

 self, on the other hand, strongly praises Gilbert's work, 

 adding: "I have not seen a man in this century who 

 has written originally save Vieta in France and Gilbert in 

 England" an enconium which, as Hallam justly observes, 

 he would hardly have passed without a hint to the effect 

 that the discoveries were in fact his own. 6 



There is no doubt, however, that Galileo learned of 

 Gilbert's discoveries from Sagredo, and repeated his ex- 



1 Nelli : Vita e Commercio Letterario di G. Galilei, Lausanne, 1793, i, 

 407. 



2 Opere de G. Galilei, Florence, 1851. 



3 Griselini: Vita de Fr a Paolo Sarpi, Lausanne, 1760. Giovini : Ibid., 

 Brussels, 1836. Fabronio : Vitse Italorum, Pisa, 1798, xvii. 



*Garbio: Annali di Serviti, Lucca, 1721, vii. Micanzio: Vita de F. P. 

 Sarpi, Verona, 1750. 



5 Robertson: Fra Paolo Sarpi, London, 1893. 



6 Hallam: Lit. Europe, London, 1864, iii, 333. 



