The Sun.
London, England, 1869-12-15 00:00:00

OPENING OF THE (ECUMENICAL COUNCIL
FROM OUR OW =RESPONDENT.) •
ROME, DECIZIDZU 9.
The opening of the Teumenical Council has taken
place ; but the hurry and agitation of the last forty-eight
hours have been such as to render it almost impossible to
give your readers more than a very brief outline of the pro-
ceedinge.
The Pope visited SS. XII. Apostoli on Wednesday, and
his reception was more than usually enthusiastic. At two
o'clock the church was full, and every balcony of the
palaces adjoining the Piazza was draped with crirason
sdlc
and tapestries, those especially of the Odescalchi,Ruffo, and
Terloina families, and the Savorelli Palace, occupied by the
Marquis of Bute. The Empress of Austria and the es--
King of Naples, with the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cecil-.
pied the tribune of the church over the altar, and the
opposite ono was filled by the French Embassy, wiles°
palace it adjoins. The altar was brilliantly lighted, and
draped with silver and crimson hangings.
About half-past three, a deafening cheer announced the
approach of the Pope, and he entered a few minutes after
by the sacristy door, attended by his household and 11
the sacred college. He looked wonderfully well, con,
sidering the great fatigue and anxiety of the previous days, •
and went straight to the altar, where ho knelt during the
chanting of the Litany and the following prayers. Whel/„
these were concluded, he rose and intoned the "Te Deno,
in which the whole assembly joined, and the cerenioni
concluded with the benediction of the blessed Sacrament,
given by the Pope, after which he left the church by the
convent, or sacristy door, and the crowd poured out into
the Piazza to witness and cheer his departure. I ha"
rarely seen such an ovation as he received.
All through the evening crowds of travellers poured int°
Rome. Trains from Florence, Naples, and Ancona waived
throughout the night. What became of the excursionsf‘
it is difficult to conjecture, as most of the hotels Were
already gilled to overflowing, and the rain fell heavily
through the night, and continued to do so the whole of
yesterday, by no means increasing the festal aspect of the
Eternal City.
The cannon of St. Angelo and the clangour of V°
hundred belfries woke us early yesterday morning 4° 9:
sense of the day that was before us—a day of the deepeob
interest to most, of mere spectacle to the sight-seeing Pari
of the community, and of severe fatigue to all, as earl!'
rising and many hours' standing formed an essential Par'
of the proceedings. Long before daybreak the sovereign
people, braving the rain and mud, took up its quarter:
under the arcades of St. Peter's, while the American la'
English visitors, of the inveterate sight-seeing section*
besieged the bronze doors of the Basilica before WY
were thrown open, camp-stool, Murray, and sandwich-I°
in hand, resolved on" doing the Council," and taking 111)
a front place near the Aula. The Pope left his 'Orel
at eight o'clock, and at nine the procession be to Um"
gan
down the Scala Bogie. Six hundred and twenty:
bishops, patriarchs, archbishops, and cardinals, and'
eighty mitred abbots and generals of order',
formed the cortege, which was preceded, as I Wet!:
to you last week, by the Bassolanti, Cross, Acolytes, and
other attendants on Pontifical ceremonies. Ilavblg,'
obtained an excellent place for viewing the passage of the
procession, near the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament''_"„'
I was able to see the entry, which took place at 2111''
o'clock.
Nothing could be stranger than the contrasts offered
in
the procession, the bishops being arranged according t° the
date of their consecration, and not according to rite
nationality. Armenians, Bulgarians, Chaldeans,
Cd
Maronite3, 3lelchites, Roumanians, Ruthonians,
Syrians, mingling with French, Italians, English, Ger:
man and American prelates. The great interest of the
crowd seemed centred on Mgr. Dupanloup, Mgr. gat
and Mgr. Manning. The Italians who stood near me Were;
evidently diligent readers of the " Unita Cattolica," anL
ardent partisans of the Papal Infallibility, and it
curious to hear how well up in the recent controves%
they were. The Archbishop of Westminster walked Witi
Mgr. De Merode, and looked remarkably well. I wisli
could give as good a bulletin of the Bishop of Southwar-
(Mgr. Grant); he was unable to encounter the Wits
of the procession, and only joined the gathell'
in time for the obedience in the Aula itself. 1),111.
Ullathorne, of Birmingham ; Chadwick, of Neweasti
Vaughan, of Plymouth; Clifford, of Clifton ;
Amherst, of Northampton, were all in the oft;
and were eagerly asked for by the crowd. Mgr' of
Deux Bri!ze, Mgr. Pi 6, of Poitiers, Mgr. Lynch'
Charlestown, U.S., and Mgr. Moucesillor, of Jaen, vr id_e"
all objects of a hearty stare. Then came the card/0'
the senators and conservators, the great officers of State'
the Swiss and Noble Guards, and lastly the Pope hilly'
self.
The Pope descended from the Sedia Gestaloria, and 1111;
covered his head at the entrance of the Basilica, and maid
the rest of the procession on foot; the bishops 'lO
the same on entering the Basilica. The Pope tb,/,°o
adored the Sacrament, while the choir terminated ""3,
"Veni Creator," and recited the prayers and responsll,
appointed. In the meantime, the cardinals, bisheeri;
patriarchs, generals of orders, and abbots had taken th
stand within the Aula, which presented thus filled on° :r
the most imposing scenes I ever witnessed. Rank °ltee
over rank of white-robed prelates and cardinals rne
purple of the Church. The Royal Gallery was crowded, the
lovely Empress of Austria with her brother-in-law* nd
ex-King of Naples, the Queen of Wertumberg, the C4ll.nd
Duchess Vera Constanicona, the ex-Grand Duke P-14
•Duchess of Tuscany, the ex-Duke and Duchess of YOllate
the Counts and Countesses of Tropanni, Caserta, Girgeahe
ac., being there. General Dumont was also present,end A,
Corps Diplomatique occupied the opposite g411°,1%,10
small space had been allotted for the '°--1100
Princesses, and in this compartment were cli
several English families—Lord But; Lord and "--xe.
Denbigh, Lady Jersey, the Countess Bodenhent, nd
The Pope ascended the throne erected in the Aulniif sloso
the Mass of the Immaculate Conception, with the coif,
of the Holy Ghost, was celebrated at the altar in the oellere,
of the Aula by Cardinal Patrizi. After a little more cbto-
mony, the Pope then rested, as is usual, for the ee'e ge
'don of Mass and the audience, or rendering of 11°10:
took place. This part of the ceremony lasted more 160
an hour and a half, as seven hundred and twentLiel
fathers performed it individually, the cardinals
the knee, and the bishops the hand of the Pope. vin%
The prayers then recommenced, andthe anthem 11$ i
been sung by the Curator of the Papal Chapel, the Lit:litiele
of the Saints were solemnly intoned by the Pope/ an
Jas
whole assembly joining in the chant as far as the 00-
"Et omnes ecclesiasticos ordines, in sancta religione„
servare digneris." Here the Pope rose, and, with his reia,:so
his head,andhis staff in his hand surmounted with the e'd,
as symbolic of universal jurisdiction, blessed the sloe
while the rest of the Litanies wore being sung.. Net ore
more magnificent can be conceived than the effect Of In
than fifty thousand voices joining in the chant.
The Allocution was delivered from the throne " but
Pope. He used considerable gesture in its deliver the
his dignity of beaiing was great. The Secretary e. tole
Council advanced to the foot of the throne ironed the
after the Veni Creator had been sung, and plaoe'lloas,
decree for the opening of the council in the Pope's b o of
and the Pope giving it to Mgr. Valenziani, Bisn'lear
Tabriano, the latter read it in a YerYi
the
and distinct voice from the pulpit, all' One
Fathers present accepted it by acclamation•
coed
cry of " PLecet" rang from the assembly. Th° %e
o,
decree was then read and carried equally by steentli
by which the next general session was fixed for the teen
January, being the feast of the Epiphany. The Popes
sanctioned both decrees, an. I the formal promulgation
registrations of the acts took place. te
The Te Dom. was then solemnly chanted, and bj, ,
session of the Council of the Vatican was thus elege .04
private session, with closed doors, takes PlaCeishoe
t
morning (Friday), for the purpose of electing the bdor°
who shall decide on the subjects to be first brought iii be
the congregations. On this point strict secrecy
observed, and some of your contemporaries who art, 0°
cipating a harvest of news as to what passes viirssoia-
Aula and the Commissions will find that, W.° -egifeil
tionary canards, very little information will he
them or anyone else on the matter.
The weather continues so bad that the review
take place to-morrow. Cross
of
The Pope has conferred this morning the Grand
ook,
Pius IX. on the Earl of Denbigh and Lord Petro, iapy
nition of their services to the Holy See, and esPeel
the Pontifical army.

BIRTHS.

~i,iao3'

WitLIND—On the 12th inst., tho wife of gnic'r
lit
of a daughter.
sir;
0 oE N
of Captain
CaOnp thetai n
1d
13th s inst., at
son. Bro ad wato r, Sass
A

NARRIAGES. tt''',
, ~,v.i.*- 0
G 31LL —BULLER—On the I.lth inst. at St. .51,3'tielltau,:c
Westminster, Henry Chandos Yule Gall, 4'l rof ''.
Hall, Derbyshire, to Teresa Charlotte, (laugh°.
Edward M. Buller, Bart. M.P. 0.00
Clot. 7th
ITODOKINSON —GREEN--0117 the 12th inst., at St*
TT dg1;1" CO
Danes, Sydney, second son 01 the late W. --° 0,05
Esq., of East Dulwich, to Anna Sophia, the 1
daughter of Win. Green, Esq., of Anurley.

DE.ITB S. p;514
CorEs—On the 13th inst., at Rainbow-hill, the ltest•
Henry Cotes, LL.B., aged 49. Antliovi
~, lia-
HAmoxin —On the 13th inst., at Westaere,
mond, Esq., aged 61.

London; Printed and Published by WILLIAg AN9111,0,0111
ino th
No. 112, Strand, Printer, at Tics Sus Office 1
N 0.12,
of gicoloov
e Precinct of the Savoy, in the County
Wednesday, December 15, 186.',