The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1883-04-06
Daily Life of the Pope.
now THE HEAD or THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
PASSES Ills TIME.


The following interesting description
of the daily life of Pope Leo XIII.
appeared n the Catholic Reyie,o AZ
ter his mass, which he says early, Leo
XIII. gives audience to cardinal Jaco.
bini, secretary of the state; the cardinal
secretary Of ecclesiastical affairs, or to
the congregation of cardinals, each of
which has its fixed day. The several
councils generally occupy the whole
morning, until one hour after midday.
The Pope's dinner is potage, one
dish of meat and some cheese. A few
minutes suffices for its consumption.
While he takes the air Of the afternoon
generally in his carriage-he usually
reads the bishops reports, all of which
come direct into his own hands, the
dispatches from the nunclatures, and
especially any news from Belgium, is
particularly near his heart. Toward
four clock the Pope gives his private
and pablo audiences, aud the evening
hours is devoted to the reception of
bishops. The long day over, Leo XIII.
regains the solitude of his own closet.
Then at last he is able to begin work.
Tall, thin, spare, with his pale and
deeply lined face, the Pope has delicate
health, of which he takes small care.
His austerity is extreme. The spirit
ual sovereign OF 200,000,000 Catholics
does not spend 100 francs month for
his table. The energy of strongly
developed nervous system alone enables
him to resit the fatigue of his labor
and vast responsibilities. AT times
those about him perceive moment of
exhaustion and collapse, but a little
happiness, piece of good news, or a
pleasant telegram restores the life of
his worn frame. Suddenly well again,
he takes up once more his heavy bur
den. He is always grave, or, rather,
solemn always the Pope. The Ital-
ians call his manners and surrounding
ceremonious. Gravity is inherent in
his nature, as those aver who have
known him from his earliest youth
He never aoandons himself, laughs
rarely. He might be thought stern did
he not temper his severity by the pa
tient attention with which he listens
without interruption, TO all who speak
to him. His audiences are far less than
were those of Pious IX
He has not the brilliant side so
noticeable in his predecessor, the genial
ease, the fine good humor which en-
dured, Notwithstanding the surprising
vicissitudes of the last Ponti ficate, nor
the frank, bold and genial speech, full
of witty and happy words, thrown off
in that sonorous voice which Pious TX
retained iii his extreme old age. Leo
XIII. is as slow of speech as the Arch
bishop of Paris. But if neither the
Pope nor the cardinal has received the
orators gift, each has been endowed
with the authors. The pastorals in
which the Archbishop of Perugia (thls
was the Cardinal Pecci's office before
his election as Pope was wont to dem
onstrate the harmony of faith and ,.rea-
son, of religion and civilization,
growing like the flower and fruit from
the root of Christianity" were much
noticed by Italian publicists. The
priest loved to treat the question of the
day, and of modern society.
The illustrious Bonghi said of him,
that this was "one of the finely bal
anced aud vigorous of characters" that
he was ga man who had realized the
ideal of cardinal such as ST. Bernard
conceived it, Since the eighteenth
century, since the time of Benedict
XIV. and Clement XIV, Rome has
not seen a Pope of so cultivated
mind, so accomplished in Latin and
TUSCAN verse, so familiar at once with
classic and contemporary letters. AT
the present time, the two qualities
which Leo XIII. most prizes and aims
most in securing in his writings are
simplicity and moderation. His letters,
his encyclcals, are all submitted to the
sacred nollege. Nothing is more ad
m.rable than the manner in which he
elicits opinions and weighs objections.
lie has been known to completely re
write, after grave debates, encyclicals
which he has already completed.