GALILEO AND HIS JUDGES. 165 



contributed to encourage a sound knowledge of 

 natural philosophy, and in harmony with Christian 

 theology. 



They both lived when physical science was in its 

 infancy, though at intervals of nearly 800 years 

 apart. St. Augustine, who flourished towards the 

 latter part of that period dominated by the corrupt 

 civilisation of ancient Rome, amongst his voluminous 

 works devoted one treatise to the interpretation of 

 the Book of Genesis, "De Genesi ad Litteram ; " 

 and he takes the opportunity of cautioning those 

 whom he addresses against the risk of exciting the 

 ridicule of unbelievers by a mistaken adherence to 

 a rigidly literal interpretation of Holy Scripture. 

 He was, I believe, one of the first that interpreted 

 the six days of Creation in the non-literal sense, 

 though his particular theory is not one in accordance 

 with modern scientific opinion. I allude to him not 

 for the details of natural philosophy, but as enun- 

 ciating a principle, which some subsequent authors 

 have not followed as they might have done. 



St. Thomas Aquinas lived in those middle ages of 

 which he was one of the most brilliant ornaments. 

 The power of his intellect is admitted by those who 

 have little sympathy with his teaching ; his literary 

 industry is a standing marvel ; and I have already 

 observed that besides the theological and metaphy- 

 sical works on which he expended so much labour, he 

 wrote a treatise on the astronomy of Aristotle. It 



