ThefirsteffectofMonsignorMarini’sbookseemedusefulincoveringtheretreatoftheChurchapologists。Aidedbyhim，suchvigorouswritersasWardwereabletothrowuptemporaryintrenchmentsbetweentheRomanauthoritiesandtheindignationoftheworld。
ButsometimelatercameaninvestigatorverydifferentfromMonsignorMarini。ThiswasaFrenchman，M。L’Epinois。LikeMarini，L’EpinoiswasdevotedtotheChurch；but，unlikeMarini，hecouldnotlie。Havingobtainedaccessin1867totheGalileodocumentsattheVatican，hepublishedseveralofthemostimportant，withoutsuppressionorpious-fraudulentmanipulation。
ThismadealltheintrenchmentsbaseduponMarini’sstatementsuntenable。Anotherretreathadtobemade。
Andnowcamethemostdesperateeffortofall。Theapologeticarmy，revivinganideawhichthepopesandtheChurchhadspurnedforcenturies，declaredthatthepopesASPOPEShadnevercondemnedthedoctrinesofCopernicusandGalileo；thattheyhadcondemnedthemasmensimply；thatthereforetheChurchhadneverbeencommittedtothem；thatthecondemnationwasmadebythecardinalsoftheinquisitionandindex；andthatthePopehadevidentlybeenrestrainedbyinterpositionofProvidencefromsigningtheircondemnation。Nothingcouldshowthedesperationoftheretreatingpartybetterthanjugglerylikethis。Thefactis，thatintheofficialaccountofthecondemnationbyBellarmin，in1616，hedeclaresdistinctlythathemakesthiscondemnation“inthenameofHisHolinessthePope。”[81]
[81]SeethecitationfromtheVaticanmanuscriptgiveninGebler，p。78。