Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 6.djvu/429

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371

OALTELLI


371


GALVANI


London priests in his time. He was educat'sd at Stonyhurst, joined the Society of Jesus at Hodder, 7 Sept., 1836, was ordained priest in 1852, and pro- fessed of four vows in 1854. As prefect of studies at Stonyhurst. 1855-57, he made important improve- ments in the methods of study. In 1857 he was sent to the Jesuit church in London, where — except for an interval of eight years during which he held the pro- vincialate and other offices — he spent the remainder of his life. He was a man of deep spirituality, much venerated as a preacher, spiritual director, and giver of retreats; he was also noted for his love of the poor and his earnest advocacy of almsdeeds. So great were his energy and enterprise that he set his stamp on all he undertook. Several London convents and Catho- lic institutions owe largely to his zeal and encourage- ment both their first foundation and their successful subsequent development. His writings comprise among others: "Salvage from the Wreck", sermons preached at the funerals of some notable Catholics (1890); "Watches of the Passion" (3 vols., 1894), a series of meditations on the Passion, embodying the substance of his retreats; a number of sermons, tracts, and other small publications, mostly of a topical kind. No life of Father Gallwey has so far been written, except a flight sketch by Percy Fitzgerald (London, 1906).

Sydney F. Smith.

Galtelli-Nuoro, Diocese of (Galtellinensis- NoRENSis), in the province of Sassari (Sardinia), on a hill of the same name, suffragan of Cagliari. In the neighbourhood there are quarries of red jasper. The ancient cathedral contains some good paintings. Nuoro, the Nora of the ancients, is a sub-prefecture of the same province, and stands about 2000 feet above sea-level. Near it are seen large quarries of granite and argentiferous lead, and a curious irregular ruin, apparently of early Roman origin. In the vicinity are twenty-four of the so-called Xuraghi (known lo- cally as the Giants' Tombs), huge stone buildings in the shape of truncated cones. These belong to the neo- lithic age, and were a source of wonder even to the ancients. Here also are the Virghenes or Domos de Janas, a series of intercommunicating rooms exca- vated out of the granite rock. Galtelli was an episcopal see in 1138, when Innocent II made it a suffragan of Pisa; later, it was directly subject to the Holy See. In 1495, it was suppressed by Alexander VI, and its territory united to Cagliari. In 1787, at the request of King Victor Emmanuel III, it was re-established, but the bishop continued to live at Nuoro. Among its bishops of note was Fra Arnolfo de Bissalis (1366), renowned for his learning and eloquence. In the dio- cese are 25 parishes, 56,300 Catholics, 1 Franciscan monaster}', 2 nunneries, 1 boys' boarding-school, and 3 girls' schools.

Cappelletti, LeCAiesed' /(aha (1857), XIII, 95-99; Spano, Memorie sopra Vantica caitedrale di GalteUi (CagU.ari, 1873); Martin, Storia eccl. ddla Sardegna (1841), III, 325-27, 85-88. U. Benigni.

Galura, Bernhard, Prince-Bishop of Brixen; b. 21 August, 1764, at Herbolzheim, Breisgau; d. 17 May, 1856. After he had completed his classical studies in his native town he entered the convent of the Friars Minor at Altbreisach, but because of its suppression by Emperor Joseph II, his stay here was of short duration. In 1783 he entered the seminary of Freiburg where, after a brilliant course in the eccle- siastical sciences, he was honoured with the doctorate of theology. He was ordained priest in 1788 in the seminary of Vienna whither he had gone to follow a course of practical theology. In the same year he re- turned to the seminary of Freiburg, and after acting as prefect of studies for two years he took up parochial work, first at .\ltoberndorf and later in the cathedral of Freiburg. Recognizing in him a man of learning and sound judgment, Emperor Francisappointed him


in 1805 spiritual referee at Giinzburg, but owing to political changes he lost his position here, and ten years later was assigned to the same duty at Inns- bruck. In 1819 he became Vicar-General of Vorarl- berg. On 30 January, 1820, he was consecrated auxiliary bishop of Brixen, and nine years later took formal possession of the chair of St. Cassian as Bishop of Brixen.

Like his distinguished predecessors, Galura directed all his efforts towards safeguarding the unity of the Faith in his diocese. By the establishment of mis- sions and educational institutions and by the intro- duction of religious orders, especially the Jesuits (who had been bani.shed from there) and the Sisters of Mercy (in 1S3S), he succeeded in restoring much of what the secular power had destroyed during the administration of his predecessor. He was highly respected by the civil authorities, and his deeply re- ligious spirit, his charity towards the poor, and his administrative abilities have made him an orna- ment to his church and country. Besides numerous ascetical, homiletical, and catechetical works, he wrote also: (1) "Christkatholische Religion" (5 vols., Augsburg, 1796-1800); (2) " Neue Theologie des Christenthums" (Augsburg, 1S0O-1S05) ; (3) "Lehrbuch der Christlichen Wohlgezogenheit " (Augs- burg, 1841).

Hurter. Nomencl. (2nd ed.),III, 922; TRiNKHAnsER, Leben mid Wirken des Fursib. Galura (Innsbruck, 1856); Feldbr, Literaturzt. (1810), I, 118-32.

Joseph Schhoeder.

Galvani, Luigi, physician, b. at Bologna, Italy, 9 September, 1737; d. there, 4 December, 1798. It was his original intention to study theology and to enter a monastic order His family, how- ever, persuaded him to abandon that idea. He took up the study of the natural sciences from the point of view of the anato- mist and physiol- ogist. After main- taining his tiiesis on the nature and formation of the bones, he was ap- pointed public lecturer at the University of Bologna and at the age of twenty- five taught anatomy at the Institute of Sciences. He became especially noted as a surgeon and ac- coucheur. In 1790, after thirty years of wedded life, he lost his wife Lucia, the daughter of Dr. Galeazzi, one of his teachers. He kept his chair at the university until 20 April, 1798, when he resigned because he would not take the civil oath demanded by the Cisalpine Republic, it being contrary to his polit- ical and religious convictions. As a result he had to take refuge with his brother Giacomo and broke down completely through poverty and discouragement. Soon after this his friends obtained his exemption from the oath and his appointment, on account of his scien- tific fame, as professor emeritus. He died before the decree went into effect.

Galvani's work in comparative anatomy and physi- ology includes a study of the kidneys of birds and of their sense of hearing. He is famous more especially on account of his experiments concerning " the elec- trical forces in muscular movements", leading up to his theory of animal electricity. This began with the accidental observation, in 1780, of the twitching of the legs of a dissected frog when the bared crural nerve