The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-07-21
POPE'S READY MONEY
PLACED AT S20,OO0,00O;
TEXT OF AN OLD WILL.

Pope Leo NH made a will as long ago
as 1887. A copy of the document reads:
II leave my soul in the hands of God and
of the blessed Mary. / institute as the
heirs OF my property my dear brothers,
Charles and John Baptist. in equal shares,
enjoining upon them to have fifty masses
said for the benefit of my soul each year
for a period of five years. after which time
they will be relieved of this duty, although
I will myself to their love and charity to
help my Soul still further. I also impose
upon them the duty of distributing 30 scudi
each year to the most needy poor Of Car
pinoto. my native town. beaueath to my
uncle Anthony as token of my respect and
affection the porcelain service which His
Eminence. Cardinal Sala, presented to me-"
This will was made when the Pope was
only q years old and at time when his
health was so poor that he did not expect to
survive many months. Yet he outlived
every man of his time. every associate of
his youth. every Cardinal that belonged to
the Sacred College when he was elevated to
It, This will, of course, has been super
seeded by one of a much la.er date. the
contents of which will not be made known
for some time 1t is known however, that
the distribution of the Pope's collection Of
Jewels which are of fabulous wealth, en-
gagged a great deal of his attention during
the past few years
One of its notable treasures, curious1y
enough. came to him from the hands of one
of the most stubborn Protestants since
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Kruger. 1t came out
of the Kimberley mines and is valued at
"a O0auOO In the collection are thirty tiaras
set in diamonds. emeralds. rubies and pearls
and upward of Il hundred rings, one OF the
most magnificent being a present from the
Sultan. This contains marvelously beau
tiful blue diamond, which is valued at nearly
SIS OOc. OF gold crosses, the collection con-
tains 3ls, set with all kinds of precious
stones The number of chalices and vessels
used in the ceremonies of the church ex-
ceeds 2,OOO and they all more or less
richly incrusted with jewels of every exist
ing variety.
The tiara actually worn by the Pope,
splendid as it is, is far from being the
equal of dozen others which have been
worn at the Vatican since the days of
Boniface VIII. each of which eclipsed its
predecessor in cost and beauty.
These were a treasury for the Roman
Court in times Of adversely, and were
| freely drawn upon that in the evil days OF
| Plus VII but a single gem remained.
| AT the beginning OF the last century the
| tiara was OF pasteboard, Its ornaments, eX-
| cept this solitary jewel, being of paste and
! colored glass. After the Concordat in 1901
f, Napoleon gave the Holy Father the diadem
! which is still worn and still glitters with all
| Its genuine decorations. 1t is valued at
about $4,000. and during the revolution OF
1878 was hidden, being intrusted, it is said.
to the care of Hebrew banker, who re-
| stored it when the troubled times were over
as safely as Rothschild returned the horde
Of the German elector confided to his care
| in time of similar political agitation
| In addition to his jewels the Pontiff had
other large possessions. The amount of his
ready money is estimated at s2O.OoO.ooO, the
| bulk of 1t deposited in the Bank of Eng
! land and the residue in various state banks.
| He always was good business man and
a successful financier and his death leaves
| the Holy See not only free from debt. but
with an annual income considerably in ex-
/ cess of Its expenditures.