The sun., 1900-07-22

the Commando OF Subiaco, with all It's for
tresses, was ceded in perpetuitr TO tho Polonna,
On Cardinal Michel was conferred the Bishop
ric OF PortIs, on Cardinal Sclafetani the town
OF Nept and on Cardinal Save,l Civita Castel-
lana. while large sums Of monev were prom
ised In various directions Even the
Patriarch Of Venice, aged e5, stretched forth
his trembling hand for 5000 ducats. II is
said that only nve members OF the Conclave
possessed sufficient self-respect to repe Bor-
sia's offers. Under the circumstances. II Is
scarcely possible n describe the decision OF the
conclave a. an act OF the Holy Ghost. II il. NJ
the same time, pointed ont by Greaorovins
that in choosing Rodrigo Borgia the Cardinals
were not electing Alexander vi. as We now see
him In history. The private excesses. indeed
OF Cardinal Borgia were well known. Plus H.
had already oensured them: but was he the
only prclate guilty of such offences' The
morality OF that age condoned nothing more
readily than sensual msdeeds. Borgia had
children bv mistress; but had not Innocent
VII. recently acknowledged his own illegti-
mate offspring and made princes OF them'
The truth Is that. as Cardinal. Rodrigo borgta
had not been looked upon AZ particularly wicked
contemporary who describes his character
saws; He is man Of aspiring mind OF mod
erate education, OF readv and vigorous speech.
OF caity nature but above all OF admirable IN
teisect where action IL concerned. HIS long
services IN the Church. bis thorough knowledge
OF business, his personal majesty and the IN
teilectual az well as physical strength, which
ne retained AZ the age OF ol, convinced the cleo
tors that no was emnently WORTHY OF the
rapacv. Az all events, he was unanimously
chosen. and 1t Is admitted that hve OF the Car
dnas were not bribed
The career OF Alexander vi. before he be-
came Pope may be outlined In paragraph.
Rodrigo Lanzol Borgia was born at Aatiya
near Valencia, In Spain. on jan l, i4si: he was
the son OF nobleman OF moderate means.
Don Jofre. and OF Donna Isabel De Borgia. sister
OF Calixtns III. After he had studied canon
law at Bologna, his uncle made him CARDINAL
oeacon. ana soon aiter Nice-Chanceilor OF the
Church. fodrigo also received IRON the rope.
MS uncle. he oishoprc OF valencia: under Sixtus
~. he became Bishop OF Portus and legate
Tor spain HIS wealth. partly inherited from
Calxtus ILL.,. and partly from his brother. Don
Peoro Luis, the iavorite OF that Pope. was in
creased by the revenues OF three bishoprics
ana several conven's IN spain ana ltaiy. ana
by the office OF Vioe-Chancellor. which alone
puted tho richest cardinal after fstoutev,ie,
he dweit IN The megnlfcent palace now known
as the sforza-Cesarini. which if had erected
among the oanK DuiiuihSs' Inc roman chrohl-
clers occasionally mention the mngniicence
which he displayed there but no one speaks OF
eAtravagant bana'iets such os were given by
faui H. as Saroihal, or by Estontev,lc' hirarlo.
or Ascanio. II seems that Rodrigo, grasTing by
"A
step which consideration for his children ara
ior MS own fntnre may have conhsell'd' lie
was OF passohat'ly sensnous t'mI'rsmen'.
"hch IL alieeed 10 nave given MN masneuc
atuac'ioh lot women bn' ne hinlHeH was so
oNNhareu' hrs' oy me charms. ana 'heh d, 'he
aSultehesS OF woman. mat he acAhowfoe'u
ner i't'ers as no less phoii9 'nan 'Oo7e VI
marriage rms woman was 'aho2za de
'a'aneiS Hemoer' Nrnaps' OF 'he lesser
hoo'n'y OF rome
"ou'o oo u MISTAKE W ''has'he norsha
iriehu Messahna Inc circumstances o'
her me are no' wei KNOWN ana " IL ohiy IRON
'le ages VI her ch''u'ei' uih' we "r''e a' 'ne
co"ciuNoh 'hat ner re"'ioh' 'o~aiu 'hru'na'
hour'so may nave oesuh shor'y oeiore lto'
she was hersen dorm IN july it'.' Accoru'is
10 'he oouo"ui aS%ruon OF lhessnra' VINO
nistress tn marry n cert ain Domenico az Arip-
nano. Roman documents show her TO have
been married twice again. About l4s0, she wu'
the wife OF 6iorgo de Croce. Milanese. who
was appointed by Cardinal Rodrigo apostolic
secretary. He died in itsj, and the next year
his widow married MaNuan. Carlo Canale.
who, after 400, is spoken Of as secretary TO
the Penitenziaria. and. In iass. "a soldan or
bailiif OF the Tore d Mona Nanozza was so
years old and was still the wife Of Canale when
her former lover became Pope, and she ac-
knowledsed herself TIE mother of his four
living children. Juan. Caesar. Jofre and II-
crezla She even assumed the surname Of
Borgia. though not. II would appear, until
after the death of Alexander VI Her lover
had outved his IVA .sion, but not his attach
rnent for her, and the shrewd woman hence
forward. satisfied with the good fortune OF
her children, remained so entirely aoof from
public affairs that her name is never linked
In history with that Of the Borgias, even by
the bitterest enemies Of the House Jovius
speaks Of her personally as an upright woman
Such, at all events, she became when. like 80
many Of her knd--her own celebrated daughter
for instance--she strove to expiats the sins OF
her youth through so-callcd works OF piety
The election OF Borga Is pronounced by
Guicciardint one OF the greatest misfortunes
that ever befeli Italy, 30 In the end 1t proved