200 JEROME CARDAN 



in full, but gathered a very imperfect notion of Cardan's 

 reply. He indignantly denied this charge, and in his 

 own account of the scene he affirms that he won the 

 approbation of all who listened, by the moderation of 

 his bearing and speech. 



Four days after this occurrence he again met this 

 physician, who declared he knew for certain that a 

 kinsman of the Duca di Sessa, a hot-tempered man, had 

 just read some slanders written by Cardan about the 

 Duke, and had declared he would cut the writer in half 

 and throw his remains into the jakes ; the physician 

 went on to say that he had appeased this gentleman's 

 resentment, and that Cardan had now no cause for fear. 

 Cardan at once saw through the dishonesty of the 

 fellow, who was not content with bringing forward an 

 unjust accusation, but must likewise subject him to 

 these calumnies and the consequent dangers. After a 

 bout of wrangling, in which the physician sought vainly 

 to win from him an acknowledgment of the service he 

 had wrought, the malicious fellow shouted out to the 

 crowd which had gathered around them that Cardan 

 persisted in his infamous slanders against the Governor. 

 Wanton as the charge was, Cardan felt that with his 

 present unpopularity it might easily grow into a fatal 

 danger. Might was right in Milan as far as he was 

 concerned, but he determined that he must make a 

 stand against this pestilent fellow. By good luck he 

 met some friends, to whom he told the adventure ; and 

 while he was speaking, the gentleman who was said to 

 have threatened him, and the slanderous physician as 

 well, joined the gathering ; whereupon one of Cardan's 

 friends repeated the whole story to the gentleman ; who, 

 as he was quite unversed in letters, was hugely diverted 

 at hearing himself set down as a student, and told the 



