Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1903-07-13

Pope Leo, as ClacOLnO FScCl, Was
born on March 2, 1910, at Carpineto,
in the diocese of Anagni. the son OF
Count Ludovico Pecci, small landed
proprietor. He was ordained priest
on December 81. 1887, consecrated
titular archbishop OF Damietn on
February II, 1S43; transferred TO the
see of Perugia on January IS, 1876;
proclaimed cardinal ON December -,
1858; elected pope ON February 20,
1878, and crowned ON March 3 OF the
same year. Leo XIII is the 263d sue
sessor of St. Peter. He is, according
to the New York Sun, the only one
OF the long line OF popes who has
worn the episcopal mitre SO con-
secutive years. He is the sixth in line
as to length Of reign, AMI fourth as to
personal age. He is now the senior
bishop o. the whole Catholic world,
and also the doyen of those who have
held the rank OF cardinal. He has
seen 1877 cardinals die since he began
his reign, a record nowhere ap-
preached by any of his predecessors,
and has created las members OF the
senate OF the church.
Plus TX, the immediate predecessor
of Leo XIII, died on February Z, 1878.
The college OF cardinals was instantly
summoned to elect a successor, and on
the goth of the same month Cardinal
Giacomo Pecci was found To have re
ceived a majority OF the votes. On
March 8, 1873, the new pope was
solemnly crowned in st. Peters as the
sovereign pontiff, vicar of Christ on
earth, bishop OF Rome, and successor
to the chair of st. Potter. He entered
upon his pontifoate burdened with a
dismal legacy in the shape Of re-
stricted temporal powers, transmitted
TO him by Plus TX. He found the
papal states lately passed under the
dominion of the new kingdom of Italy,
and vast and valuable portions OF the
church property throughout the coun-
try oonfiscated from the holy see
under the new order of things. He re-
membered that only few days before
the body Of the late pope had been
stoned by a rabble as it was carried
through the streets OF Rome on the
way TO its burial place, and he be
lleved that revolutionary and anti
religious ideas we're rife throughout
Italy. He could not protest by the
force of arms, so-As he has ever since
vigorously asAerted-he made his
moral protest by presenting himself TO
the world az the prisoner of the
Vatican. During all the years that
have elapsed he has not accepted one
penny of the huge revenue that has
been accorded to him by the Italian
government; and he has never Left
the confines of the Vatican palace and
gardens except to enter the church OF
st. Peters that thereto adjoins-
OF the long papal line, 195 have
been Italians; Syrians, Z; Greeks, Is;
Africans, 3; Spaniarjs, 4; French, II;
Burgundians, 2; Germans, 6; Saxons,
2; Bavarians, 4; English, l; ana
Belgian l. The nationality OF the
others Is not well established. Forty
popes are venerated Is saints and
confessors, and 81 as martyrs, making
the entire number of the beatifed a.
The first 80 popes were martyred.
The religious orders supplied about
20 popes TO the throne. The Bene-
dictines have given 80, the Carthus-
ians two; the CSrmelites two; the
Dominicans four, and the Augustinians
and FTancisoans many. Numerous
popes were members OF royal and
noble families, but many poor men
have reached the tiara also. st.
Peter was a fisherman. Adriaa Nv,
the only Englishman who held the
throne, was the son OF a woman who
begged aims at the door OF her parish
church. Urban ~ was the son of
Celestine were in very humble cir
cumstances. So were those OF
Benedict ii, an Italian Dominican, and
also those of Nicholas V. The father
of Odrian VI was a ship carpenter,
of Sixtus V, farm laborer, and of
Plus V, a shepherd.
ST. Peter reigned for % years, and
there used to be tradition told to
each new pope, no matter how young
he was when he began, Thou shalt
not see the years of Peter" 1t was
contained in ,Aese Latin verses
STINT licet assumpti juvenes al Ponti-
fcatum,
Petri amos potuit memo videre tamen.
But Leo's predecessor, Plus *, broke
through this tradition by occupying
the Vatican for 50 years, the longest
Of all the reigns. Gregory XI, 1875,
died within a few hours of his elec-
ton; Stephanus ii was pope for only
three days, Urban VII for u, Boniface
VI for 10, Celestine " for II,
Sininius, Ineodorus ii, Damascus II,
Plus III and MarcellrN II for 20;
Valentinus for so, and Leo XI for %.
Since the time of st. Peter only nine
popes have reigned more than 20
years.
Alexander l was made pope willie a
mere youth. He reigned IL years.
John II was 20 years old at his cleo
ton and reigned four years and 10