The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1896-07-16
ELECTING 4 POPE.
There Are Three Methods of Choosing the
Suprema PanfiR

quest Of the dean, if the formality
of recognizing the cardinals E.e dis.
pensed with-and in so small body
it is hardly necessary, because no
impostor could hope successfully to
palm himself off as cardinal-the
first business is to choose three scru-
tators. one from each order, to count
the ballots, and three infermieri,
who collect the votes of the sick.
The canons define three kinds of
eleotion-by inspiration, by compro-
mise and by ballot. Election by in
spiration takes place when "all the
cardinals, as if by inspiration of the
Holy Ghost. proclaim one candidate
as pontiff unanimously and viva
yoce." A single dissenting voice
vitiates this method, which, we may
remark, has perhaps never been car
ried out in literal conformity to rule,
although several popes have been
chosen by reclamation.
Election by compromise has some-
times been resorted to after long
deadlock by the appointment of a
committee consisting of representa-
tives of the various rival factions.
The conclave merely ratifies the can
didate nominated by the committee.
But election by ballot is the or
binary method. The ballots, when
open, are about four inches long and
three broad. In the first or upper
section the cardinal writes his name;
in the middle, the name of the can
didate whom he proposes; in the
lower section. some motto from the
Scriptures. When he folds the sheet,
his name, being inside, is covered
by the lower section, and only the
candidates name or the seal comes
uppermost. To guard against the
ballots opening, he seals 1t with
seal he has chosen, but it must not
be one which the scrutators might
recognize. Going to the central Ia
BILE, he deposits the ballot in the
ohalice. repeating at the same time
this formula, "Testor Christum
Dominum qui me judicaturus est, me
eligere quem secundum Deum judico
elegi debere ct quod idem in accessu
pr9stabo. "
When every one has voted and the
infermieri have brought the ballots
of the sick members, the first scru-
tator takes each ballot from the
chalice and opening it-but only so
far as to read the netherlands it
to the second, who, having entered
the vote opposite the candidates
name on the list, passes it to the
third, who reads it aloud. During
this process the other cardinals keep
the tally on the duplicate lists which
each of them has before him. At
the conclusion all the ballots are
taken to the stove and burned, the
smoke from the chimney being a
signal which multitudes outside the
palace await. According to common
belief, when no smoke appears at
the usual time it is a sign that the
pope has been elected. The last bal
lots are burned like the rest, how
ever, the difference in the volume
of smoke being due to the fact that
as no straw is used at the last burn
ing there is very little smoke.
There being no election, the cardi.
nails now return to their quarters
for dinner, after which, at o'clock
or little later, they reassemble for
another ballot. This differs from
the morning one in that the cardi-
nails, instead of voting for their ia
vorite candidates, vote for their seo-
ond choice. The process is called
"acceding" and seems devised for
breaking deadlock. Each must
vote for some one who has received
support at the morning trial, but if
none Of these suits him, being pro-
hibited from again casting for his
favorite, he may simply vote for
nobody" Thus it might happen
that the pope chosen in the accessus,
or acceding, was candidate whom
very few or none of the cardinals
would select on their first choice.
AS matter of fact, however, not
many popes have owed their election
to the accessus, in which the cardi-
nails generally throw random votes
for candidates who have little chance
of success. THE Election of a
Pope" by William r. Thayer, in