The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1907-10-02
DETAILS OF POPE'S
PRIVATE HOUSEHOLD

Every one knows the Vatican con-
tains the greatest treasures of an
tiquity that have come down to this
modern world The palace has one
remarkable popularity, however. Its
immense population, which must run
into thousands, does not include a
single woman!
The pope's own private suite of
rooms is on the third floor, overlook
| ing tho immense plaza of st. Peter.
Til csc aalooi s are simply, yet hand
so;nely, fiji. nished One is struck
| by the absence of all luxury, after
| the overwhelming grandeur of the
rest of the Vatican. Just above are
the apartments formerly occupied by
the cardinal secretary of state, who
in the papal court is premier, minis
ter for foreign affairs and chief privy
councillor all in one.
The present holder of this great
office is Cardinal Merry del Val. He
prefers to reside in the magnificent
series of saloons decorated by Pin
turicchio, and bearing the ill-omened
name of Alexander Borgia, their orig
inal occupant. The central figure of
this most stately and impressive court
is kindly, gentle, old peasant priest
the first pope in two centuries of
plebeian birth.
He is of middle height, thickset in
| figure, with dark eyes and bushy gray
hair. For year or two after his
accession the poor man was far from
being at ease in his lofty dignity. He
| wandered like one distraught through
| the vast echoing corridors of the an
cient palace, which has seen some of
the mightiest events in the worlds
history for a thousand years. Could
it be possible that he, Giuseppe Sarto,
of humblest peasant parentage, with
near relatives who are village tailors
and innkeepers at this moment, could
| have been elected spiritual lord of
200, 100000 human souts through
out the nations of the earth?
| With time, however, Plus X con-
quered his nervousness and grew rec
onciled to parting from his aged sis
| tiers, who were even more distressed
over the dramatic change it had
pleased Providence to bring about.
| The peasant Pope has introduced
many changes in the rigid etiquette
of the papal court that have some
what discounted the older and more
| conservative OIHcldlS. lie mas also
cut down expenses on all sides SO as
to meet the heavy drain on his re-
sources caused by the recent action
of the French government
There is nothing the spiritual king
detests more than pomp and state, for
which reason he avoids both when
ever possible. Moreover, as his pre-
vious life has been most active, he
finds the role of Prisoner of the
Vatican most irksome. Had he fol-
| lowed his own wishes the pope would
| long ago have visited Castel Gandol-
| TO, if not even more distant parts OF
Italy; and it was only the most
earnest and pressing demonstrates
| from his elder advisers that prevent
ed him from following the king to
the assistance of the sufferers of the
eruption of Vesuvius last year Ro-
man society greatly regrets that such
counsels were successful; for had
pope and king worked side by side
for the common good in that time OF
terror, the breach between church
and state would have been better re-
paired than could be hoped for from
long years of diplomacy and state
craft.-W. G.. FITZGERALD in Harper's
| Weekly.