Milford chronicle., 1903-03-06
Pope LEOS JUBILEE
$4,000 People Crowd St. Peters to
Pay Respect to POntiff.
DAZZLING SCENE IN CATHEDRAL

POpe's Appearance Was Greeted With
Tremendous Roar of Welcome.
Blessings Bestowed On Many-Pon-
tiff Well Pleased With Demonstration
Rome, March 4-From sunrise yes
teTday all Rome was on the alert and
showing most unusual animation and
interest in the celebration of the 25th
anniversary of the coronation of Pope
Leo XIII. The scene on the piazzi of
St Peters was magnificent. There
were assembled many hundreds of
Italian troops in various modern uni
forms. making a striking contrast with
the medieval costumes of the Swiss
Papal Guard, on duty at the bronze
doors of the cathedral The crowds
which gathered before the first cor
don of troops were impatient as they
stood dripping under the persistent
rain.
When the doors of. st. Peters were
opened an almost indescribable strug-
gle occurred, in which the immense
crowd pushed and elbowed desperately
to reach the interior of the cathedral.
The crush was so great that many
women tainted Fully $4,000 were in
: the hall when the ceremonies began.
There were about 1000 Americans
present.
At II o'clock precisely the great bell
of st. Peters rang out a signal, which
was followed by the changing of the
bells of about 500 churches in Rome
as they sounded the announcement
that the Pontiff was on his way to the
Basilica. The life of the ancient city
seemed to pause for a moment, hats
were raised, and the sign of the cross
was made. Shortly afterwards, inside
st. Peters, silver trumpets blared out
their message and the POntiff ap-
peared The people held their breath
for a moment, and then all the pent-
up enthusiasm burst forth in a tre-
mendous roar of welcome From his
elevation on the new Soda Gestatoria,
carried by u men in costumes of red
brocade, fanked by the famous fla
belli (spreading feather fans), and
surmOunted by a white and gold can
opy, the Pope appeared to be more
than a human being. He seemed to
be a white spirit, this impression be-
ing added to by the POntiff's white
robes and white mitre. delicate fea-
lures, face white as alabaster, and his
thin hand moving slowly in benedic-
tion.
When the Pope arrived at the throne
the ceremony proceeded rapidly. Leav-
lfng the Sedia Gestatoria, the Pontiff
knelt and prayed, and then rose with
out assistance, donned the falda, and
the new triple crown, and the celebra-
tion of the mass began. At the mo-
ment Of the elevation of the host a
profound silence fell on the assem-
blage, the guards presented arms, the
people knelt, where it was possible
for them to do so, and from the GU
poIa came the clear, thin sounds of sill
yer trumpets, giving the idea of heav-
emily music.
The Fope then administered the
Papal benediction, and retired to a
room for restoratives, prepared on pur-
pose every time he goes to st. Peters.
There, addressing DR.. Lapponi, his pri-
vate physician, the Pontiff said: you
see that after all your warnings the
ceremony did me good. What touch
ing loyalty!"
When the Pope returned to the Vati-
can from the Basilica he resumed his
place on the. Scdia Gestatoria and was
carried throughout the whole length
of the cathedral, rising erect many
times to bestow blessings, while many
princes, cardinals, diplomatists and
bishops bowed low and the crowd sa- |
luted him frantically.
The ceremony in st. Peters Cathe- |
dral lasted two hours and a quarter, |
and although it was noticeable that |
Pope Leo felt the effects of his recent |
cold, all were surprised to see how |
we'll he seemed. His voice was strong, |
his gestures vigorous, and the frantic |
cheering which greeted his arrival and |
departure gave him visible pleasure
and brought a faint tinge of color to
his face.
When the Pope reached his apart
ments he wished to discuss the cere-
mony and give his impressions of it,
but his physician insisted on COM
plete quiet, on which the Pontiff ex-
claimed: "The demonstration today
has been so affecting 1t surpassed all
my expectations. l am completely
satisfied. There was no note of dis
cord"