The Northwestern standard., 1886-04-10

Il left and outside the modern semicircu-,
lar corridor, is a large qladrang
Ispace filled with the bones discovered
here during the excavations, the re-
mains, most likely, of some, at least, Of
Nero s victims, of those whom he clad
lin envelopes Of pitch and bitnmen, aud
set on fire to light the games Of his cir
Gus. or amuse the Roman populace, on
whom the spectacles Of the Coliseum
fell dull and palling. One hundred and
thirty-one Popes are buried here. tits
therefore full Of an awful and indie
scribable solemnity. this spot, where
Nero's feet trod in Christian blood, and
laughed at the fiendish devices of his
own inhumanity. Arrived at the cir
cular corridor, we turn TO our right and
pass on our way two chapels OF consid-
cradle dimensions extending outward
at right angles to our path. Just oppo-
site these we enter the Chapel Of Con-
fession through a much narrower pas
sage. The gem-like altar is above the
tomb. Shining as every portion Of this
beautiful shrine is with the costliest
marbles and the most exquisite adorn-
Ements, I cannot now stop to describe.
lie must haye but little faith who,
coming hither with the dawn to offer
up the sacrifice of his church oyer the
very tomb Of the Apostles, and almost
| iii Immediate contact with their re-
mains, has an eye for outward things
or a thought for anything but the vic
tim he is about to offer up on that al
tar, and for the sacred dust Of the two
great witnesses to Els name From
the great church overhead subdued
noises reach you, as if they were the
echoes of the great city outside, and
the music of the church bells Of Rome
lcomes floating in and dies away in
faint murmurs at the gilded gratlngs
of the crypt, where Canova's kneeling
statue of Plus VII. seems looking in on
the tomb Of the apostles and praying
INCREASINGLY for the afflicted church.
With what feryor Leo XIII. comes
down here to pray-the living Pontif
near the magnificent statue of the
/ first Of the line OF these imprisoned
Popes! When the long, weary day,
( with its labors, its cafes and it's ankle
ties is over, the meek old man in white,
SO like one of Fra Angelico's sainted
figures, steals in the silence and soii-
| tude and gloom to lay before God on
the tomb of the great parents of Rome
the heavy burden of his responsibilities
1 and his fears. And sometimes in the
4 morning, when piety urges, or some
more thorny care is pressing on his
.5ffearJ, Pope Leo comes comes to be-
I, seech the Masters special inspiration
near the remains of those who here
4 taught His truth, here glorifed His
4 name and bore Him such heroic wit
ness. To look on the face of the Pope,
SO careWorn, so wasted with super
4 human toll, one would think that such
] a man only needed the tenderest watch
ing and nursing to keep the flame of
life from going out. But he is equal to
such fatigue as would seem incredible
were / here to detail the labors Of a
4 single day, which to HIM are the labors
of every day.
The Significance and Grandeur Of Papacy.
Papacy is the great question OF the
! day. Indeed, the interest and impor-
tance of the subject can scarcely be ex-
aggerated. Whether viewed histori-
cally, politically, socially or religiously,
it looms up with grandeur and a sig
nifcance far exceeding all other ques-
tions of the age. Simply as histori-
cal study one would naturally suppose
1 that an institution that had outlived
all the dynasties of the world, that had
occupied such a distingu guished position
! in the worlds history and exerted such
a powerful influence on the destinies of
nations, would be esteemed worthy Of
4 the deepest interest and most profound
study. Great force is added to these
considerations by the more recent de-
yelopement Of Protestant thought
throughout the world. The deplorable
evils of divisions among Christian peo-
4 pie are being pressed home upon every
candid, thoughtful mind with con-
4 stantly increasing force, and a general
i movement has commenced in favor Of
union. Indeed, the candid and OUT
spoken manner in which the evils OF
Protestant sectarianism are criticized
and laid bare by Protestant writer's
themselves, is as surprising as it's
hopeful for the revival Of Catholic
truth on this all-impo portant subject. In
1 telligent, thinking men will not always
be satisfied to gr0pe in the dark. to
amuse themselves with vague specula-
tions and impossible theories Of Chris
4 tian union. The impatient, self-Opin-
donated, the skeptically inclined will,
Of course develop their individual,
private Judgment theories logically
into inidelity and unbelief, while, on
the other hand the conservative and
more reigiously inclined will come to
see that the only hope Of "a true and