The Sleepwalkers (79 page)

Canon
Koppernigk
had,
of
course,
every
reason
to
be
furious
about
Osiander's
unfortunate
remarks
that
his
Venus-orbit
was
"contradicted
by
the
experience
of
all
ages",
that
the
book
contained
other
"absurdities",
and
so
forth.
That
indeed
was
carrying
the
diplomacy
of
appeasement
too
far.
But
on
Osiander's
more
fundamental
point
that
his
system
was
merely
a
computing
hypothesis,
he
had
no
grounds
for
complaint.
Copernicus
did
believe
that
the
earth
really
moved;
but
it
was
impossible
for
him
to
believe
that
either
the
earth
or
the
planets
moved
in
the
manner
described
in
his
system
of
epicycles
and
deferents,
which
were
geometrical
fictions.
And
so
long
as
the
why
and
how
of
the
heavenly
motions
rested
on
a
purely
fictional
basis,
with
wheels-on-wheels
which
the
astronomer
manipulated
with
happy
unconcern
for
physical
reality,
he
could
not
object
to
Osiander's
correct
statement
about
the
purely
formal
nature
of
his
hypotheses.
⁶⁹

Whether
Copernicus
actually
protested
against
the
wording
of
the
Preface
we
do
not
know;
but
it
is
hard
to
believe
that
Osiander
would
have
refused
to
alter
the
wording
in
defiance
of
the
author's
wishes.
Perhaps
it
was
too
late;
the
Preface
was
written
around
November
1542,
and
in
that
last
winter
of
his
life
Canon
Koppernigk
was
a
very
sick
man.
Perhaps
considerations
on
the
lines
mentioned
in
the
previous
paragraph
made
him
realize
that
he
had
really
no
cause
for
protest;
more
likely
he
procrastinated,
as
he
had
done
all
his
life.
⁷⁰

There
is
a
strangely
consistent
parallel
between
Copernicus'
character,
and
the
humble,
devious
manner
in
which
the
Copernican
revolution
entered
through
the
back
door
of
history,
preceded
by
the
apologetic
remark:
"Please
don't
take
seriously
–
it
is
all
meant
in
fun,
for
mathematicians
only,
and
highly
improbable
indeed."

13.
The Betrayal of Rheticus

There
was a second, and more personal scandal aroused by the publication of
the book; it concerned Rheticus.

The
great
moment
in
the
disciple's
life
is
the
master's
death.
It
is
the
moment
when
he
reaches
his
full
stature,
and
acquires
a
new
dignity
as
the
keeper
of
the
tradition,
the
preserver
of
the
legend.
In
this
particular
case
the
death
of
the
master
coincided,
moreover,
with
the
long-awaited
publication
of
his
book.
One
would
have
expected
that
Rheticus,
the
prime
mover
of
this
event,
would
now
become
more
active
than
ever
as
a
prophet
and
propagandist.
What
an
opportunity
to
indulge
in
personal
reminiscences
and
intimate
detail,
no
longer
restrained
by
the
domine
praeceptor's
mania
for
secrecy!
During
his
last
stay
in
Frauenburg,
Rheticus
had
actually
written
a
biography
of
the
master,
which
was
the
more
needed
as
virtually
nothing
was
known
in
the
learned
world
about
Canon
Koppernigk's
person
and
career.
Rheticus
was
the
legitimate
heir
and
executor
of
the
Copernican
doctrine
–
destined,
so
it
seemed,
to
become
to
the
departed
what
Plato
had
been
to
Socrates,
Boswell
to
Dr.
Johnson,
Max
Brod
to
Kafka.

To
the
surprise
of
his
contemporaries
and
the
vexation
of
posterity,
the
moment
Rheticus
left
Nuremberg
and
handed
over
the
editorship
to
Osiander,
he
suddenly
and
completely
lost
interest
in
Copernicus
and
his
teachings.
His
biography
of
Copernicus
was
never
published,
and
its
manuscript
was
lost.
The
same
fate
befell
a
pamphlet
which
he
wrote
to
prove
that
the
Copernican
theory
was
not
at
variance
with
Holy
Scripture.
Professor
Rheticus
lived
on
for
another
thirty-odd
years;
but
the
Apostle
Rheticus
had
died
even
before
his
Teacher.
He
had
died,
more
precisely,
at
the
age
of
twenty-eight,
some
time
in
the
summer
of
1542,
while
the
Book
of
Revolutions
was
being
printed.

What
caused
this
sudden
extinction
of
the
flame?
Again
one
can
only
guess,
but
there
is
a
plausible
guess
at
hand.
Copernicus'
own
introduction
to
the
book,
in
the
form
of
a
Dedication
to
Paul
III,
was
written
in
June
1542,
⁷¹
and
sent
to
Rheticus
in
Nuremberg,
while
he
was
still
in
charge
of
the
printing.
It
was
probably
the
text
of
this
Dedication
which
killed
the
apostle
in
Rheticus.
It
explained
how
the
book
came
to
be
written;
how
Copernicus
hesitated
to
publish
it,
for
fear
of
being
ridiculed,
and
thought
of
abandoning
the
whole
project.
The
Dedication
then
continued: