The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-06-10
Cross of Christ Extant.

| II seems almost beyond belief that this
| piece of wood should have survived down
| through the ages Of nearly nineteen hun
dred years, but il is positive fact. anthem
ticated by the highest known authorities.
II has been handed down from generation
| TO generation, each succeeding custodian
receiving a document bearing the seals OF
emperors and popes testifying TO its au-
/ thentic.ty. There Is absolutely no question
of doubt as to its genuiness- Its record
has been clearly traced from the time of the
crucifixion down TO the present day. and is
now without a break
| The relic is most carefully sealed IN an
air-tight crystal casket. which is in turn
set in the center of a heavily jewe,ed cross.
Were this casket for moment opened the
| piece of wood which has been so carefully
preserved for so many centuries would al
once crum5Ie away, leaving only tradi-
| ton OF It's existence. 1t is at present -
the treasury vaults Of the Cathedral, where
/ II is most jealousy guarded.
| The finding of the portion of the cross
| from which the relic was cut occurred un-
der the most extraordinary circumstances.
| After the crucihxtion the cross disappeared
and for three centuries its whereabouts was
unknown
| In the meantime. the Emperor Constan-
| tine had come into power, and by inc
strength Of his victories had emblazoned
| bis empire with many structures OF NAM
moth size He erected magnificent tenn
| pies and churches, into which he brought
| the richest treasures of the land. To fur
Their add 70 their splendor. he conceived the
| i6ea of enriching them with the real instu-
ments of the crucifixion. To this end he
| charged his mother, st. Helena, with the
| commission of finding and procuring them.
without regard TO cost She was at this
! time 70 years old, but she began prepare
| tons for the search without hesitancy. She
| became convinced that her only possible
| chance of success was to journey TO Je-
| Iusalem and, by identifying the spots con-
| nected with the life OF Christ, gradually
trace up the circumstances of the cruc!ix.
! ION, and thus ultimately arrive at a locality
| " here excavation should be commenced
| There is no doubt in the minds of his
| torians that the events surrounding gthe
| crucifxion were at that time still fresh in
the traditions of the people Of Jerusalem.
| who had already begun to realize the inn
portance Of the mighty historical event that
| had taken place.
| They were Of great help to st. Helena,
| who at once set about identifying the holy
| places. Step by step she traced Christs
| pilgrimage, following along In HIS foot
| steps until she arrived at the place Of exc
| cut:on, where all further trace was lost.
| Helena made many unsuccessful attempta
| to discover the burial place. and In despair
| sought the aid of the most learned men OF
Jerusalem, who then for the first time be-
| gan in earnest the search for the sacred
| tomb.
| All traditions existing among the people
OF Jerusalem were greedily gathered up,
and by dint of persistent questioning GER
tain spot was marked out where the Saviour
was supposed to have been buried. 1t
proved a myth but the evidence that had
| been obtained proved conclusively that they
were in the right locality, and by continu-
Gus excavations the holy tomb was at last
discovered. But 1t did not contain the
cross or any relic of the execution.
The search was renewed. and all the
| ground surrounding the tomb was careful
| ly explored, but without result. Near the
tomb stood the Temple OF Venus, erected
many years after Christ's death by the En-
peror Hadrian. From evidence obtained
| by Helena, it was considered possible that
this temple marked the site where the cross
was buried. The edifice was demolished
earthed. The true cross had at last been
found! After years Of patient search. years
of toll and uncertainty. /. lay there, once
more restored to the world, the most prec-
ious of all relics. The title board, which
was found close by served to identify II.
This tablet was a thin board. three and a
half feet long by foot wide. The inscrtp-
ton on 1t was composed by Plate himself,
and proclaimed the kngship Of Christ. The
letters were cut into the board with sharp
instrument, and then colored red. 1t was
carried in the procession conducting Christ
to the place of execution, and there fasten-
ed with nails to the cross, over His head
About one-third of this tablet still exists.
1t is preserved in the Church OF Santa Croce
in Rome, and is in good state of preserva-
ton, the letters being still plainly discerni-
Bile.
On it can be read the word NAZARINCS
RE."' in Latin. Then the words APENOC
l., in Greek, and lower down on the tablet
can be seen few strokes of Hebrew char
acters The letters are written from right
&c left, after the Hebrew fashion. 1t IS
thought likely by scholars that the Roman
soldier who prepared the title under Pilates
directions, knowing only Latin, wrote the
three inscriptions in Latin. with Hebrew.
Greek and Roman letters.
Taking the cross and the title board with
her. she journeyed with them TO Rome,
where they were delivered to Emperor Con-
tsntine. So impressed was he with the
recovery of the sacred relis that he at once
began the building of the Church OF Santa
Croce. at Rome. for the express purpose
of providing a safe and suitable abiding
A.
further safeguard IL was decided 10 cut the
cross into several pieces and secrete the
pieces in different places, so that in the
event Of one being stolen there would be
other portions of il stu existing.
Accordingly, the cross was divided into
four pieces, the largest being deposited In a
specially prepared Vault n the Church of
Santa Croce. Another portion was con-
veyed by Helena TO Constantinople, which
city had been named after her son, and
there placed in a secret vault Then re-
turning TO Jerusalem, she built church
over the spot where the cross had been
found Within 1t she deposited the third
portion OF the relic The remaining part
was kept BY Constantine himself. who had
ii cut w and a portion set IN the affairs OF
several of the great churches he had found
ed. MOI satisfied with this, he caused an
immense statue OF himself 20 be erected.
ard in the head he inserted piece Of tie
wood. that Il might last forever. He also
had another piece set IN he front OF lis
helmet. All this occurred in the year Is.
and within short time after TIE finding OF
the relies
II order 10 mare safely preserve the title
tablet. II was likewise cut up into three
pieces. The central portion beng coasi3- |
cred the most important was taken 20 ne
Church Of Santa Crocs and deposited IN a |