What vast importance they at once thought fit to assign to this annotation without signature, we learn from a despatch of Niccolini's to Cioli, of 11th September.[1] Niccolini refers in it to a recent interview with the Master of the Palace. He had again strongly advised that nothing be done in a hurry, and that time must be gained, for the Pope was firmly convinced that religion was really imperilled, for the work did not treat of mathematics, but of Holy Scripture, religion, and faith, and the orders respecting the printing of the work had not been complied with, for the opinion of the author was not merely indicated, but expressed in many places in the most decided and unsuitable manner. After Riccardi had assured the ambassador that all efforts to get Campanella and Castelli put on the preliminary commission had failed, but that he (Riccardi) would do his best to defend Galileo, both from friendship for him, and to serve his Highness, and because he had given the permission to print, he confided to Niccolini, under seal of profound secrecy, as of the highest importance, "that it had been discovered in the books of the Holy Office, that sixteen years ago, it having been heard that Galileo entertained that opinion, and disseminated it in Florence, he was summoned to Rome, and forbidden by Cardinal Bellarmine, in the name of the Pope and the Holy Office, to hold that opinion, and this alone is enough to ruin him entirely."[2]
This communication of Riccardi's contains an obvious mis-statement, namely, that any document had been found showing that Galileo had been summoned to Rome in 1616. As we have seen,[3] all the historical documents show that
- ↑ Op. ix. pp. 423–425.
- ↑ … "Ma sopra tutte le cose dice, con la solita confidenza e segretezza, essersi trovato ne' libri del S. Offizio, che circa a 16 anni sono essendosi sentito che il Signor Galilei aveva questa opinione, e la seminara in Fiorenza, e che per questo essendo fatto venire a Roma, gli fu proibito in nome del Papa e del S. Offizio dal Signor Cardinale Bellarmino il poter tenere questa opinione, e che questo solo è bastante per rovinarlo affatto."
- ↑ Comp. pp. 71, 72.
