The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-03-08
AMAZING ENERGY
OF POPE LEO KILL
His Arduous Require as Few
Called Upon to Exert Yet He Continues Toll Earnestly
Untr ingly.

| WRITTEN FOR THE SUNDAY REPUBLIC.
Most men. upon starting out in life, look
forward to a period Of rest and peace when
age shall have overtaken them. For most
! men, too. the time comes when they can
| no longer toll, whether they will no. and
! the allotted span OF three-score and ten
years. which not many in these rapid times
attain, finds them exhausted physically and
j mentally and no longer capable Of effort.
The most notable exception to all these
conditions within recent history is Pope
Leo XIII. Over 90 years of age, he still
tolls. and. SO far known, Is the hardest
worker In the world. For him there Is no
rest in the twilight of life: standing on the
, pinnacle of human greatness. he must
throw of the burden of years daily and do
I that work for which he alone Is qualified.
His daily routine requires such mental eff
fort as few men are called upon to exert
Young. robust vigorous men could not
continue such toll many years with
out succumbing, vet the venerable head of
the Roman Catholic Church has for more
than twenty-five years labored zealously.
earnestly and untiringly without seeming
fatigue. and to-day he performs almost the
same tasks with the same energy as he
did quarter Of a century ago.
The reign of Leo XIII is one Of the long
est OF the 2e6 papal reigns. Only three Popes
have so far exceeded Leo XIII in the length
OF service. They were: st. Peter, who
reigned twenty-four years. five months and
ten days; Plus XI n775). twenty-four years.
six months and fourteen days; Plus TX
QS4S). thirty-one years. seven months and
twenty-five days. With the death Of Cardi-
nal Galeati on January Is. Pope Leo XIII
had buried 1876 Cardinals since he began to
reign.
The personality of the venerable Pontifr
excites the most profound and constantly
growing interest in all parts of the
civilized world. For more than a quarter
of century a supreme figure in the
religious world. whose elevation of life
and whose wonderful wisdom and interest
in the welfare of all men make him an
object Of admiration and sympathy even
among those who are his professed follow
crs. his saying and doings are of tremen-
dous influence throughout Christendom.
OF all that has been written concerning
his Holiness. the best description is pos
sibly that from the pen of F. Marion C,aw-
ford. who says:
Born and bred in the keen air Of the
Nolscfan Hills. he is Southern Italian. but
of the mountains and there is still about
him something of the hill people He has
the long. straight, broad-shouldered frame
OF the true mountaineer. the marvelousy
bright eye. the eagle features. the well-knit
growth Of strength, traceable even in ex-
treme old age; and in character .here is in
him the well-balanced combination OF
steady caution with en- unerring, unhesitat-
ing decision. which appears in those great
moments when history will not wait for
little mems long phrases. when the pendu-
lum world is swinging its full strike and
when 1t is either glory or death to lay
strong hands upon Its weight But when
1t stops for time and hangs notiorless.
the little men gather abou. II and touch It
boldly and make theories about its next
unrest.
I'm the matter Of physique .here is. in
deed. a resemblance between Leo XIII.
PRESIDENT Lincoln and Mr.. Gladstone
long, sinewy men. all three, of a bony
constitution and indomitable vitality. with
large skulls. high cheek bones and
energetic jaws-all three men OF great rhys-
ical strength. OF profound capacity for
study. of melancholic disposition ard of
unusual eloquence.
Born during the height Of the conflict be-
tween belief and unbelief, Leo XIII.
by significant fatality. was raised
to the pontificate when the Kultur Eampf
Bismarck-a struggle in which the great
was raging and the attention of the world
was riveted on the deadly struggle between
the Roman Catholic Church and Prince