The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-01-31
A WONDERFUL OLD MAN

! dispatch from Rome records that Mr..
Philbin, ex-district attorney Of New York,
was presented by Bishop Farley to Pope
Leo XIII. Wednesday and stated that
he found the PontifeX Maximus sin per-
feet health and vigorous intelligence. -
Evidently. there are some persons
abroad who, Judging by the cables they
have been sending about 80 the popes
health, are very anxious to have him
Killed off. One recent cable described
the pontiff rrcstrate in a comatose
condition and mis- death only a question of
a few hours, and the cardinal camerlingo
waiting at the door with his little silver
hammer With which tie dead body of a
pope is tapped three times on the fore
head. .. II
No doubt Pope Leo has been very i'll
at times during the past decade, but he
rallies with extraordinary rapi6ity, and
now, when cable comes with the usual
report that he is near the article of DEATH
the statement is received with much in
credulity for there Is conviction that
Pope Leo will live some years longer. The
cardinals and other ecclesiastics who are
candidates for the Dontifical office and
have been expecting a conclave and i'm
murement in the primitive cells on short
rations to elect a successor, must wait
some time longer. -.- -!
And it is possible that a cardinal or
bishop may not be chosen to the exalted
position. There have been laymen elect
4 1,,io
episcopal conservation following the cleo
ton, and there is nothing to pScvent a
layman elected to the certificate from ex-
ercising the most significant functions be-
longing to the pope, as head of the Roman
Catholic churcn, even before his conse-
Grafton. Adrian ", during his short
reign, issued DEGREES modifying the whole
system of papal elections without having
taken holy orders. BY precedent. there
fore, there is a chance for layman to be
elected pope as successor of Leo XIII.
Gioachno Pecci was not q conspicuous
member of the college when he was elect
ed to succeed Plus TX, who disliked him
as. did Cardinal Antonelli and he was
made Archbishop Of Perugia to get him
out Of the way. But Plus relented shortly
before his death and made him Gamer
lingo of the church and he came to Rome
and became the fayorite of the cardinals
who went into concIave in February, 1878
after tie death OF Plus TX.
Pope Leo has distinguished himself by
his championship Of the principles of st
Thonpes Aquinas as the constructor of the
weapons with which the alterations OF
modern skepticism can be most effective
ly fought, and as the promulgator of the
principles of Christian Democracy as the
effective annihilator of the principles Ct
Social Democracy which assails the foun-
dations of religion. Pope Leo has as
suredly shown hiGnself.a good and highly
conscientious pontiff, anxious to do his
full duty as to all the difficult problems
which in this latter day he has been
called upon to solve. No pontiff, indeed
has had such an enlightened perception
of the conditions under which he lives
but he has failed in one particular in that
he has yielded too much to the party OF
reaction and has kept UP the opposition
to the political rnifcation of Italy, which
is dear to the hearts of the italian people