With the 2021 donation, the Geosciences Library received the handwritten Memoirs of Achille De Zigno, from volume 2, 1878, to vol. 13, 1892. The final page was written on his last day of life.
His memoirs have a diary style. They are about private events, from the management of the expenses to his everyday life, and his personal or political thoughts, but rarely they address scientific matters.
The volumes often end by an index for month, or for subject, or people or job position, and are always compiled with great precision and attention.
In vol. no. 11, De Zigno discontinues the chronological order and inserts an excursus whose title is ‘How I became a naturalist’ in which he explains his vocation for science and his course of study and research.
At the beginning of the 2nd volume, De Zigno wrote his ‘profession of faith’.
During these unhappy times I feel the need to express the bitterness of my soul, as it is, on these pages, and at the same time, my profession of faith.
I respect and worship Religion, that is a necessity, a privilege and a consolation for mankind. Only Religion can make peoples moral and truly civilised.
In politics, I am a monarchist and I prefer a strong Government that enforces authority, law, property and people. I hate meetings and Assemblies that try to make the government's decisions open to public opinion and judgement. I believe that freedom of press and freedom of association are harmful to social order and to the real progress of civilization.
Regarding literature, I love everything that can be useful to learn and an example for moral and social education. History should register simple facts (that are what you need for learning) without any comments, dictated by a partisan aim.
As far as science is concerned, I love what is positive, facts proven by experiences, and I do not like the utopias of the Darwinists and of the Germans, who fund their theories upon hypotheses and simple connotations.
I admire the works of art, ancient and modern, and the present progress of industry and mechanics, but I do not think that the last century French Revolution contributed to human development, but on the contrary, it delayed it.
I think that young people, besides having a social and intellectual education, should practise fencing, dancing, gymnastic, horse riding and swimming, to obtain a healthy body, an elegant gait and become able to defend themselves from dangers with strength, agility and quick wit.
I would like young people to study the most widespread modern languages, besides classic literature, because studying languages can be of real advantage in a great number of life situations.
I would like, in conclusion, that young people of the present time give more importance to cultivate their intellectual abilities, and strong principles, keeping in their hearts the feelings of religion, ethics, honour and duty that will build a strong and brave disposition of the soul.
Furthermore, I would like them to behave with dignity, kindness and friendliness, keeping an attitude of noble unselfishness together with moderation in desires and steadiness in pursuing their ideals. They should learn how to manage their economic means and acquire that wisdom that can assure an honoured, serene, respectful and independent life.
October 1878
Achille de Zigno
In 1879, De Zigno blamed the planet lined up with the Sun for the bad weather conditions. According to the observations he had found in ‘American and British journals [...], that planet line up had happened only once, about 1800 years ago, during the great eruption described by the Latin writer Plinius, when Ercolano and Pompei were covered by ashes. De Zigno considered the possible connections between the two events he had noticed – bad weather and the planet lined up- and asked himself about the coincidence of these with a restart of Mount Etna’s activity. ‘Those facts deserve the attention of the scientists. However, In Italy only a few love science, instead most are politicians whose aim is that of an outrageous assembly of busybodies and windbags that they consider as sovereign and they call Parliament. That’s all for today.’
