St. Paul daily globe., 1892-12-26

Their home beyond the starry skies
Tie saints will share with thee.
All may thy God in pity deign
To give thy days that happyNend;
May ChriSt's dear Mother. Virgin mild,
Thy tolls ana aims befriend.
Here in this short poem Tie bishop
of Perugia aliudes to his birth at Car
pineto. his first schooling at Viterbo,
his stay in Rome with his uncle. the |
Mar0uaSS Mutt, and subsequent term at
the Academy of Noble EceiesiaStics,
with illusions 10 Father Manera, 5. j.,
and Cardinal Saia, who was friend
and patron: his priesthood, his degree
OF doctor OF laws, his rule as governor
of Benevento and Perugia. his mission
to Belgium dS papal nunclo. his trans
iation to the see of Perugia. his eeva-
ton to the cardlualate in 1853 and his
receiving from King Leopold the collar
OF knight of the Order,o Leopold.
Then. after this artieSS enumeration
of his houors, with SolOmOnic cry OF
"VanitaS Fanitatum, he declares vr-
tue the only thing. and prays that he
might secure the celestial rewards of
that priceless acquisition.
As an example of another style Of
| poetry, the following appeal to gen
| Jleman named Gallus is interesting:
| Gale, quid insanis? quid te torperc veterno,
Diffluere iilecebrjS delicilsquc juyat;
| Puber. 9dhuc prima adspeTsus lanugine
| malas.
Deperis lncantum captus amore Chloen.
Grandior ecce Bycem ardes Mollemque
| Corvnnam.
Igne dies vulnus savior ignis ALT.
Jamque senesceniem. miseroque cupidine
| fractum,
! Nunc premit indIgne vafra Nigella hugo
| EcquiS crit modusy E cpuo caput eXtere
| tandem,
Tandem rumpe moras, execute corde luem.
| Cunctaris veteresque amens sectaris nmores!
! Jam speS heu misero nulla saulis adest.
| Pr9dam inhiaus raOiduS lateri stat demon,
amara
TIE mors te vindex Numinis ira manet
Here is tine translation of this almost
risque eifuslon, 40 Gallus:"
What madness. Gallusl Why this torpid
Soul
That yields its life to wanton loves control:
| a boy, with downy cheek aMd downier wit,
| Loves fever fame Within thee Cnloe lit
| A man, and still 70 fan the amorous fire.
Gay Byee and Corinna soft conspire
A graybeard now, dislempered passions
wreck,
Unshamec to be al shrewd Nigalla's beck
Is there no end: Come, from thy torpor
start:
Come. shake the burning fever from thy
heart
Dos. shrink thy veteran wees to forswear?
Doomed man. there's naught TO stay thy
sheer despairl
Grim Death and fierce Perdition summon
thee.
The avengers dire of outraged Deity.
He addressed many of his poems to
various prelateS and to some worthy SIS
ters. But his two greatest poems.
which are too lengthy TO give, are ad-
dressed to Saints Iierculanus and Con-
stantino, both bishops of Perugia in the
early Christian days and both martyrs.
They are greatly veEerated by the Peru
/ fl,.,i.. 81,
Cardinal Pecei must nave found special
delight in commemOrating them i'll
classic Latin verse.
In these poems be employs an un-
usual meter. 1t is dimeter iamblc
verse. Two iambic feet are regarded
as one in such measures. Here Is one
stanza from the poem to st. herculanuS.
Preourris omnes: occidis
Spectandus invlctas tide,
Nirtute frangi nescia
Ell gloriOsu funere.
Which is to say:
Brave heart outstripplng cen the brave
You fell, but i'll your fall you gave
Example fair of steadfaSL faith.
OF dauutless soul. of glorious death.
The second half of the poem on St
Constantine is written in sapphics and
adOnlcS-a dainty Latin meter of which
Horace was very foad.
Ill lOO4 Ngr. Ieccl NaQ wafer DlOugn
} down from the mountains into his na
tive town OF Carpineto. This was d
very practical undertaking. but he made
very pretty Latin poem on the event
setting it forth with much poetic grace
lie has one poem, short one, on the ar
OF photography. The pope was not only
a poet; he was theologian, metaphy
sician. scientist and diplomat.
But from the extract given one will
be able to judge of the poetic merit o
: Pope Leo XIII. These poetic effusion
were the recreation of the churchman
They are graceful, and show nc
spirit of cultivated Latin scholarship
Coming from reigning pontff, the
have an interest beyond their intrinsi
worth, but any one skilled in the diff
cult art Of writing poetry in Latin vii
feel that they are elegant and finishes
specimens OF this accomplishment.