The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1903-11-14

1.-The telegraph has long since made
known the fact that Plus X has chos-
EN- his secretary of state in the person
of a. young man of thirty-eight," !"
says the New York Freeman's Jour-
nal. ''In the letter which his holiness
handed to Mgr. Merry del Val last
Sunday afternoon, he expressed his
thanks for the manner in which the
prelate had discharged the delicate
duties of secretary of the conclave and
pro-secretary of state, adding that all
the cardinals to whom he had spoken
about the permanent appointment to
the office of secretary Of state were at
one with him in recognizing the fitness
of the young prelate. The nomination
was remarkable one, and, like most
.of the other acts of Plus X, it depart
ed from the beaten track of custom.
1t is probable that no man of Mgr.
Merry del Walls years was ever before
elevated to this Office, and it is GER
tain that he is the first non-Italian
who has presided over the diplomatic
life of the holy see. Mgr. Merry del
Val's mother is English, his father is
"A Spaniard, and his first ancestors in
Spain both on the fathers and moth
.cr's side were Irish. They came l
believe, from Waterford. where both
.Merrys and Walls are still to be found.
But the secretary of state himself is
neither Spanish, nor English, nor
Irish. He is cosmopolitan in tho
highest and finest sense of the word.
He speaks seven languages with
thuency. He has lived in Spain, Eng
land, Austria and Italy. He has been
.on missions representing the holy see
to Canada and Germany. In many
ways he is complete contrast to his
great predecessor, Cardinal Rampolla.
The cardinal at once strikes those who
meet him as man of tremendous
power and character, which makes
you almost forget the charm Of his ad
dress; the first thing that strikes you,
on the other hand, in the young mon
signore. is his exquisite polish and his
easy, naffectedness-tho he has
shown that remarkable power is
there, too. In one thing both the car
sdlinal and the prelate are alike-tlley
are universally admired for their un.
affected piety. Mgr. Merry del Val
desired to devote himself to the life
.Of a poor missionary in England, and
it was only the command of Leo XIII
which kept him in Rome. 1t is said
that the same command has prevented
him from entering religious order.
Anyway, life in the papal court and
his duties as president of the academy
rof church diplomats never prevented
him from occupying his confessional
;at the little chapel of st. George. in
Rome. When he was consecrated
archbishop a few years ago Che was
then and, believe, still is the young
.est archbishop in the Church,, he
varied the usual custom of giving an
elaborate breakfast to his friends, by
inviting in thousand poor persons
to a substantial dinner. And now the
holy father has informed him that
after the next consistory which is to
he held on November 8. he is to be
raised to the sacred college. The HON
or and the choice are another tribute
paid by Plus X to Leo XIII, under
whose fatherly care the powers of
Mgr. Merry del Val have been brought
to their full growth and fruition. The
italian papers, and those of most
European countries, have already in
formed their readers what the new
of states policy is to be.
They feel bound to do that sort of
thing, OH similar occasions, but the
truth is that in the present case the
secretary of state is to be the instru-
ment of the sovereign pontiff, and the
policy of Plus X has been clearly and
concisely defined in the symbol: "To
restore all things in Christ" The
holy father has declared that with re-
gard to the relations of the holy see
with the temporal powers his policy