The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1900-03-03

of a wonderful picture exhibited at the
Church of the Annunziata, at Assist,
Italy. In part, he says:
Il left Rome, Thursday, ian. IS, and
went to Assist ana said Mass before
the remains of the poor of Christ-St.
Francis. Assist is one of the most an
cient cities of Italy. 1t is situated on a
mountain. On top of the mountain is
an ancient fort, now unoccupied. The
principal building is the convent and
church of st. Francis, all built of stone
and brick and most extensive. Most
of the convent now is occupied by
government school, where lay teachers
teach the orphans Of the school teach
ers of the kingdom of Italy The up
per Church has just been restored in it's
stalls which are many-about 120-beau-
tifully carved. with figures of Saints of
the Order of st. Francis. These figures
are worked in different woods. The
frescoeS are all we'll preserved and give
the life and miracles of the Saint.
4 interrupted this letter to go and
see a most wonderful thing. Father
Edward O'Reilly of Dublin, Ireland,
who was leaving the Duomo when i en-
tered it this evening, told me that at
the Church of the Annunziata was to
be seen the picture Of the Virgin Mary
painted by an angel, but that it was
only shown when a Bishop wishes to
see it. So ! asked him to go and tell
the Services that l would call at s
o'clock that evening. He came for me
while l was writing to you. and now
that / saw it / must tell you all about
il.
We walked from my hotel, the
Helvetia, about ten minutes, and reach
ed the place. 1t was dark, but there
were quite a number of people still lin
gering in the church-part of them be-
fore an altar where ] saw more lights
than before the. other fifteen affairs. Fa-
Their O'Reilly said the people here seem
TO have a special devotion. for the Bles-
sed Virgin at this altar This one was
near the door of the Church. So we
went all around, and the Father said:
/ wonder where the Sisters are A
number of the English Sisters. of whom
he is the temporary chaplain at Fiesoli
had come to see the picture, as it would
be shown to me. Finally he found them
in the sacrSty. He called me in, and
there We're a number of the Servites.
half a dozen of the Daughters of Mary.
an Italian priest, an officer with his wife
ana some other ladies and gentlemen
who had been told they had a chance
to see the picture. We had to wait a
quarter of an hour until the people had
left the church, which was then closed.
Then one curtain was drawn up then
another nedNy one, ana the priest said,
Ave Maria Stella with the prayers.
Then he showed us with a light the
miraculous figure of the Virgin made
by supernatural power.
History says that at a time when
seven noblemen Of Florence had begun
a new religious order to honor the
mother of Christ on Mount Serrano.
they established themselves at this
place in 1850 Two years later they
asked a painter to make a picture of the
AnnunciatiOn. He made one. but the
last thing and what he dreaded most
TO paint was the face of Jesus moth
er when the angel Saluted her. After
having received the sacraments of
confession and communion, he went to
work and behold, he found the face
painted, but with such a beauty of
heavenly love that. he cried out mira
Gle and burst into tears. Those near
aim ran up to see what was the mat
ter, and they saw, as we see today, a
painting of the Virgins face of which
Michael Angelo said that no human
pencil could make it. l know L will
never forget it. After seeing it, 1
looked at the face of the angled painted
by the artist, and it seemed to me like
a shadow. After a while I could see
that the face of the angel was well eX-
ecuted, though immensely inferior to
that. of the Virgin. / felt alone on the
altar looking at that picture, though
twenty others were near me looking at
that wonderful production"