SEQUEL TO COPERNICUS. 419 



of the earth were adduced from the expressions of 

 scripture, he could not be satisfied without main- 

 taining his favourite opinion to be conformable to 

 scripture as well as to philosophy; and he was very 

 eager in his attempts to obtain from authority a 

 declaration to this effect. The ecclesiastical autho- 

 rities were naturally averse to express themselves 

 in favour of a novel opinion, startling to the com- 

 mon mind, and contrary to the most obvious mean- 

 ing of the words of the Bible ; and when they were 

 compelled to pronounce, they decided against Gali- 

 leo and his doctrines. He was accused before the 

 Inquisition in 1615; but at that period the result 

 was that he was merely recommended to confine 

 himself to the mathematical reasonings upon the 

 system, and to abstain from meddling with the 

 scripture. Galileo's zeal for his opinions soon led 

 him again to bring the question under the notice of 

 the Pope, and the result was a declaration of the 

 Inquisition that the doctrine of the earth's motion 

 appeared to be contrary to the sacred scripture, 

 Galileo was prohibited from defending and teaching 

 this doctrine in any manner, and promised obedi- 

 ence to this injunction. But in 1632 he published 

 his Dialogo delli due Massimi Sistemi del Mondo, 

 Tolemaico e Copernicano" and in this, he defended 

 the heliocentric system by all the strongest argu- 

 ments which its admirers used. Not only so, but he 

 introduced into this Dialogue a character under the 

 name of Simplicius, in whoso mouth was put the 



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