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 but had disappeared, and it was not now known whether they were still there or had been taken away. He told him that during the Empire the publication and translation of the documents had been projected, but political events had prevented it from being carried out; the extracts, however, then made, and the French translation which had been begun, were in existence. These, which M. Barbier had placed at Delambre's disposal, he sent to Venturi. Delambre expressed his great regret that the material which he could obtain was not complete; but he consoled himself with the opinion that by the publication of the documents in Riccioli's "Almagestum novum," 1651, and in the first volume of Venturi's work, nothing essential would be wanting; and "that unfortunate business, which would be ridiculous if it were not so repulsive, is now as widely known as can be desired." Delambre, as it seems, was only concerned with the clearing up of the torture question; and as the fragments which had come to his knowledge contained no evidence of torture, and as he might have been informed by Barbier that there was no trace of it in any of the papers, he wrote as above in calm conviction to Venturi.

Eight years afterwards Count Darü, who was intending to bring out his work on astronomy, made inquiries of Barbier about the existence of the Acts of Galileo's trial. The information he received must have been wholly unsatisfactory, as appears from the following letter from the Count to Barbier of 16th October, 1828:—

"J'ai reçu Monsieur les deux lettres que vous m'avez fait l'honneur de m'écrire. J'ai trouve, joint à la seconde, le billet de M. l'abbé Denina qui prouve que la traduction du procès de Galilée a existé au moins en partie. Du reste, nous en avions déjà la preuve par l'extrait de M. Delambre. Je suis persuadé que le procès existe quelque