The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1896-03-19
EUROPEAN LETTER.
From Our Special Correspondent.


tired after that climb, and sat down
and rested and drank in the beauty of
that scene for a long time. On the
west lay the drearer campagna, which
is lntererting historically, mot physi-
cdlly. The soil looks poor 1t has
had time to wear out, hasn't it, dur
ing 1000 years The city outskirts
are belted with undulating hills.
Farther on, these wrinkles are
smoothed out. Still farther. in the
distance, the sea can be seen. This
roof is so immense that families occu-
py houses built on top of it. TO the
north lay the Janculum Aventine,
Capltolne and Palatine Hills. To
the east, the Pincian and Ouirina.
and in the distance the snow-capped
Alban mountains. Just in front flow.
ed the Tiber, separating the old,
densely built section of the city from
the more open, newer part. 1t turns
sharply at right angles soon after it
passes the Castle of St. Angelo, get
ting out of the way of the slope which
rises gradually to st. Peters. To the
south lay a great campus, on which
counted twenty companies of soldiers
going through their daily drill. Ad-
joining the church on this side, is the
largest palace in the world, the Vati-
can, which is, indeed a small world in
itself, politically isolated, as is the
District of Columbia. On this terri
tory, sacred to the Pope, no Italian
soldier can set foot l refer of course,
to the palace or Vatican gardens.
From my height, | looked down on
his Holluess' private grounds, beauti
fully laid out. Just beyond them is a
piece of woodland which looks as if it
had been snatched bodily from
dense forest and set down here-so
wild and uncultivated is is. Here,
we imagine, His Holiness takes
refuge on hot summer evenings and
with the trees as sentinels, he walks
and meditates on how he can regain
the power he will never know He
has enough titles to be at the head
Of the universe. Here they are !:
Vicar of Jesus Christ, Successor of
the Prince of the Apostles, Pontifex
of the Universal Church, Patriarch of
the West, Primate of Italy, Metropo-
Titan Archbishop of the Province of
Rome, Sovereign of the Temporal
Dominlons of the Holy Roman
Church. Are you out of breath ?
And yet he is a good man. He can
not help his titles.
Coming down the stairs, l counted
81 marble slabs, which had been in
laid in the wall, announcing that on
such date, such a crowned head or
royal parsonage had assembled the
dome Of St. Peters. This reminds
me that one of the original stones of
the wall of Romlus, which surrounded
the old city on the Palatine Hill, is
among the inlaid stones in our Wash
ington monument. Then | went
down and around to the Vatican
library, where | saw many relics from
the Catacombs, many invaluable il
Illuminated manuscripts, beautiful
stained glass, and many priceless
treasures in the shape of vases, etc,
which had been presented to the diff
ferent Popes from the greatest per
sonages, and from the farthest ends
of the earth. But what surprised me
on the street, was an African
Franciscan monk.
Yesterday, under the shadow OF
the prison where his Apostolic name
sake was confined, | took Paul, a
book and ball, and went to spend
the afternoon in the Forum
Romanum. sat on the steps Of the
Basilica Julia and read, while Paul
kicked his football up and down the
fl, gstones of the Sacred Way. If
stones ever preach sermon S, how elo.
quent are thesel Presently the ball
rolled far off and fell into the Cleoaca
Maxlma. Then there was a great
anxiety until spoke to a workman,
who got ladder and handed the ball
up from the sluggish. The ladder
was at hand, or | should never have
taken steps to recover the ball. We
have just come home and are tired.
Yesterday, likewise, we spent the
afternoon there, and the two days
preceding we enjoyed the warm sun
shine and the fine military band on
the green lawns of the Pincian Hill.
Here we almost always see the King
and Queen taking drive. But they
are always in different carriages, and
appear at different times. Thursday
the King was driving a pair of spirited
horses, and yet took off his hat to
everybody who glanced toward him.
A kingly prerogative As the hill
was swarming with people he had his
hands full