which, as he said, contained the announcement of a new phenomenon, in the highest degree important to the truth of the Copernican system. The interpretation of this is,
Cynthiæ figuras æmulatur mater amorum,
that is to say,—Venus rivals the appearances of the moon—for Venus being now arrived at that part of her orbit in which she is placed between the earth and the sun, and consequently, with only a part of her enlightened surface turned towards the earth, the telescope shewed her in a crescent form, like the moon in a similar position, and tracing her through the whole of her orbit round the sun, or at least so long as she was not invisible from his overpowering light, Galileo had the satisfaction of seeing the enlightened portion in each position assume the form appropriate to that hypothesis. It was with reason, therefore, that he laid stress on the importance of this observation, which also established another doctrine scarcely less obnoxious to the Anti-Copernicans, namely, that a new point of resemblance was here found between the earth and one of the principal planets; and as the reflection from the earth upon the moon had shewn it to be luminous like the planets when subjected to the rays of the sun, so this change of apparent figure demonstrated that one of the planets not near the earth, and therefore probably all, were in their own nature not luminous, and only reflected the sun's light which fell upon them; an inference, of which the probability was still farther increased a few years later by the observation of the transit of Mercury over the sun's disc.
It is curious that only twenty-five years before this discovery of the phases (or appearances) of Venus, a commentator of Aristotle, under the name of Lucillus Philalthæus, had advanced the doctrine that all the planets except the moon are luminous of themselves, and in proof of his assertion had urged, "that if the other planets and fixed stars received their light from the sun, they would, as they approached and receded from him, or as he approached and receded from them, assume the same phases as the moon, which, he adds, we have never yet observed."—He further remarks, "that Mercury and Venus would, in the supposed case of their being nearer the earth than the sun, eclipse it occasionally, just as eclipses are occasioned by the moon." Perhaps it is still more remarkable, that these very passages, in which the reasoning is so correct, though the facts are too hastily taken for granted, (the common error of that school,) are quoted by Benedetti, expressly to shew the ignorance and presumption of the author. Copernicus, whose want of instruments had prevented him from observing the horned appearance of Venus when between the earth and sun, had perceived how formidable an obstacle the non-appearance of this phenomenon presented to his system; he endeavoured, though unsatisfactorily, to account for it by supposing that the rays of the sun passed freely through the body of the planet, and Galileo takes occasion to praise him for not being deterred from adopting the system, which, on the whole, appeared to agree best with the phenomena, by meeting with some which it did not enable him to explain. Milton, whose poem is filled with allusions to Galileo and his astronomy, has not suffered this beautiful phenomenon to pass unnoticed. After describing the creation of the Sun, he adds:—
Hither, as to their fountain, other stars
Repairing, in their golden urns draw light,
And hence the morning planet gilds her horns.[60]
Galileo also assured himself, at the same time, that the fixed stars did not receive their light from the sun. This he ascertained by comparing the vividness of their light, in all positions, with the feebleness of that of the distant planets, and by observing the different degrees of brightness with which all the planets shone at different distances from the sun. The more remote planets did not, of course, afford equal facilities with Venus for so decisive an observation; but Galileo thought he observed, that when Mars was in quadratures, (or in the quarters, the middle points of his path on either side,) his figure varied slightly from a perfect circle. Galileo concludes the letter, in which he announces these last observations to his pupil Castelli, with the following expressions, shewing how justly he estimated the opposition they encountered:—"You almost make me laugh by saying that these clear observations are sufficient to convince the most obstinate: it seems you have yet to learn that long ago the observations were enough to convince those who are capable of reasoning, and those who wish to learn the truth; but that to convince the obstinate, and those who care for nothing beyond the vain applause of the stupid and senseless vulgar, not even the testimony of the stars would suffice, were they to descend on earth to speak for themselves. Let us then endeavour to procure some knowledge for ourselves, and rest contented with this sole satisfaction; but of advancing in popular opinion, or gaining the assent of the book-philosophers, let us abandon both the hope and the desire."
FOOTNOTES:
[56] Adone di Marini, Venetiis, 1623, Cant. x.