, 1873-04-29
THE P0PE'S ILLNESS.


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London {April 19 Correspondence ef tho Fs,o Yor)
EoTid.
1am informed that while 1t is probable Vt
shall hear Of the death Of the Pope in shorl
time, the news of that event will arrive stimuli.
taneoualy with the announcement that the new
Pope has been elected. Everything has been nr.
ranged to this end under the special direction o1
Plus Il. himself. 1ou understand why this is
considered necessary. Should the Pope expire
to-day or next weok, and should the fact
b. b., known, II the x Governments q
IT 6nos and perhaps ee p5ssts A9ss in roa I'D
election OF his successor. Nay, in the opinion
Of some people, the italian Government would
use force to prevent the assembling Of the con
claye Immediately, and would seek to postpone
the election Of the new Pontif until it had time
to either set up an anti-Pope by a pretended pie.
biscito Of the inhabitants Of Rome, or had thrown
elements OF discord among the College Of Cardi-
nails. One Of the schemes attributed to the Ital-
ian Government, which is believed by those in
side the Vatican to be capable Of every villainy,
composed Of seventy members. There are now
only forty-four-or rather forty-six, two
being reserved i" ;. peto-and the
1' Italian Government, it -, is :. said, it
Of q Pope by this small number Of Cardinals
would be illegal and void. That is IN absurd
claim to aet up, for there are plenty of prece-
dents against it, but it is believed In the Vatican
that nothing is too absurd for the Itaihn Gov
e1nment II it can aid in their schome Of totally
oyerthrowing the Papacy by preventing the cleo
ion Of q Pope OF Of controlling the Cardinals 80
az to force them to choose Pope who will make
friends with the Government and consent to be-
their servant. Be all this as 1t may, however, I
death Of the Pope 3 secret until the conclaye
has been held and his successor has been
chosen. This can easily ba done. The Vatican
Is such an immense place. city, almost, by it.
seH-and it is 60 we'll guarded from intrusion
from without and from unauthorized egress
from within, that it will DO perfectly easy to pre-
vent any one outside its walls from the slightest
knowledge OF what is going On within, All the
Cardinals-wlth single e1ception-ara now in
the Vatican and chapel has been prepared as
the place for the holding Of the conclaye, which
formerly assembled in the nov confscnted Quiri-
nal. Even the contingency Of an attempt on
the part Of the Italian Government to force their
way into the Vatican in order to learn the fact Of
the Pope's death, has been thought Of and pro-
xided against, The Pope still retains in the
his famous guard; they can and will make
stout resistance to any force which the Govern
ment can send against the Vatican with instruc-
tions short Of making breach with artllery;
and, at the very least, the resistance they will
offer to forcible entrance will gain time enough
to enable the conclave to do all it's work. There
could be no justification for an attempt On the
part Of the Government to invade the Vatican
they have promised, over and over again, to hold
that sacred to the Pope; and it is improbable,
an act Of violence which would stir all Catholic
Europe and America to madness against them.
Some private dispatches from the Vatican ar
rived here last night. Necessarily, they came tn
cipher. I believe they were osteneibly sent by
O banker in Rome to hio correspondent in Lon
Inn nd a-&1 {n f17nr