Gould and the Trustees of the Albany
Observatory was not one of merely private or passing interest. It
concerned not only all men of science, but all men of honor. It
concerned all who like pluck, and who, in a quarrel, instinctively take
sides with one against many. It was of interest to men of science,
because the question was between show and reality, between newspaper
notoriety and the quiet advancement of real and enduring knowledge. It
concerned men of honor, because it was of some consequence to know
whether public sentiment in America would justify, nay, tolerate even,
the printing of confidential letters, and not only the printing, but
the garbling of them to suit the ends of personal spite. It concerned
lovers of fair-play, because it was to be settled whether it is right
to accuse a man of peculation whom you wish to convict of disagreeable
manners.
Dr. Gould's pamphlet is a thorough vindication of himself. It is so not
only as to graver charges, but incidentally, by its perfect quietness
of tone, it answers the accusation of bad temper. The hitting is none
the less severe that it is done with scientific precision, and the
astronomer shows his ability to make his antagonists "see stars" in a
less comfortable way than through a telescope.
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