Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1906-03-31

Michel Angeles genius at every turn.
Here you will find a confessional for
almost every race of man and I doubt
not that here thousands of hearts are
unburdened and helped. To the
| American, be he Catholic or Protes-
! tant, much that one sees seems in
congruous with enlightened ideas of
religion, but you forget it all for the
moment. The great aisles and nave
and transepts, the many affairs with
masterpieces in mosaic, the huge mar
BILE pillars, the gilded cornices, the
massive statues of ancient and modern
popes, the great central alter lighted
up by the rays of Gods sum- all, all
are grand and beautiful.
] The Sistine chapel, where again we
see the marks of Michel Angeles
marvellous greatness, is sombre but
impressive place, The light is not
/ good and the frescoes are sometimes
dim, but the old glory of the master
is there. Then the Stanza of Raphael
! the series of rooms near by where are
the best Of his frescoes, here one
longs to linger and study and medi-
tate, but it is too cold and we are
hurrying along. The Vatican museum
with it's treasures of the worlds
sculptured art, is the greatest museum
of it's kind in the world Endless
halls there are with busts and torsos
and sacred animals and Venuses and
Apollos and a thousand and one
marbles which display the genius of
former DAYS. From window we
catch aglimpse Of the papal gardens
where the Pope takes his daily round
of exercise and over opposite is the
great papal mansion, which we can
not visit. Surely this little kingdom
of the Pope is narvolloussly wealthy
in treasure and tradition. These few
acres are the one spot where papal
power is supreme in church and state.
AS we come out into St. Peters
square we are met with the omni-
present beggar. I presume the fact
that / had but recently heard that one
of these beggars gave his daughter
two thousand pounds for a dowry,
made me turn a deaf ear to his plea.
The beggars of Rome, as well as of
italy generally and of Egypt and
Palestine, almost spoil the visit. They
are trained to beg before they leave
their mothers arms and they keep it
up until they are old and feeble and
blind. The authorities of Rome are
trying to abate the nuisance and we
are told that it is better chan formerly.
The really worthy poor do not sit by
the roadway and beg, these whom we
see are taught to regard the tourist
as legitimate prey, as a sort of Christ
mas tree from which magical gifts
come for the asking.
We paid visit to the Jesuit church
of st. Loyola, where that saint is
buried. The decorations are rich and
costly. Many pounds eighteen karat
gold have been used in the decora-
tions. In driving to the church of
st. Paul outside the walls, we went |
thru old Rome and the Ghetto. Here
we saw real slums, here we saw the
shady side of Rome. The streets
were narrow and dirty, the people
were poorly clad and each door pro-
duced it's beggar. We rode along the
banks of the Tiber and our guide
pointed out the traditional spot where
Horatius did such powerful stunts in
off the attack on Rome The
bridge which he held is naturally not
visible. Now I think | could wax
with that school reader
poem Of .Horatius at the Bridge.n
We visited the Palazzo Rospigliosi
% see the ceiling painting of Guido
Reni's "The Aurora. It isa fine
,resco, wish it were more freely open
% the public. ST. John in Lateran is !
,ne of the great churches and the
nosaics of the chancel are among the
inest in the world. The baptistery
lear by is the first one erected in Italy
nd the architecture of all has been