GALILEO AND HIS JUDGES. in 



he first enunciated his opinions, excepting so far 

 as he may have explicitly retracted what he then 

 said (which I do not believe to be the fact). 



I regret that it is my lot to differ from both 

 these able writers. As against Mr. Mivart, I venture 

 to maintain that the Church has a full right to 

 control the study of physical science ; as against 

 the late Dr. Ward, that we are not called upon 

 to defend the action of the Congregation of the 

 Index or of the Inquisition in this particular instance. 



I take Mr. Mivart first, and I may be permitted 

 to say that had it not been for his somewhat 

 aggressive article, I should not have ventured to 

 publish my own views on the subject. I call it 

 aggressive because, though the writer would doubt- 

 less disclaim such intention, it seemed as though 

 he were determined, so to speak, to drive the 

 ecclesiastical authorities into a corner, and leave 

 them no honourable mode of exit ; letting his readers 

 infer that, because certain untenable decisions were 

 once promulgated, it results that no further respect 

 need now be paid to the same authorities when 

 touching on similar questions. Now, it need scarcely 

 be pointed out that no one would presume to treat 

 the decision of secular courts assuredly fallible as 

 they are in so contemptuous a way ; and if any 

 one practically did so, the executive of the country 

 where it occurred, unless it had fallen into a condi- 

 tion of hopeless impotence, would speedily vindicate 

 the rights of the courts so impugned. But if it 



