Los Angeles herald., 1907-09-22
GUARD LIFE OF
PAPAL DIPLOMAT
ITALIAN GOVERNMENT TAKES
ELABORATE PRECAUTIONS
Service Men Watch Over Conn
ines and GoIngs of the
Cardinal

ROME, Sept A.--Cardinal Merry del
Val, the papal secretary of state. who is
Just now the most talked about prelate
in the sCuria because of the recent at
lacks upon him at the hands of anti
clerical mobs, is still enjoying his vaca-
ton at Castel Gandolfo. But in order
that he should do so in peace, the Italian
government has been obliged to station
in the little town twenty-five carabineers
from the Roman garrison and about
thirty policemen in plain clothes provided
with bicycles.
These bicycle policemen follow the
cardinal wherever he goes, even as FAR
as Rome, distance of twenty miles.
Whenever the cardinal goes to Rome,
which he does every Friday in order to
attend the usual reception to the diplo-
matte corps, the road from Castel Can
dolfo to Rome Is lined up with mounted
carabineers They salute the cardinal
as he passes in his carriage, while be-
hind and ahead of him there are at least
a score of bicycle policemen clearing the.
way and protecting him from assaults
from the rear.
There is much comment Just now in
the italian papers about this, because 1t
Is claimed that the government is not
justified in the great expenditure that
this protection to the cardinal secretary
of state entails. The newspapers claim
that 1t is absurd to send a large police
force to small town like Castel Gan
dolfo, which numbers 2500 inhabitants
and which was sold in the fifteenth
century to the popes for the small sum
of $150,000 However, the Italian gov
ernment has now recognized the fact
that the cardinal secretary of state is an
important parsonage in international
political matters and besides that he is
foreigner and must be protected at all
COSTS All the assailants of the cardinal
have been. condemned to various terms
of Imprisonment.
1t Is a mistake however to think
that the vacation of the cardinal secre-
tary is real vacation. He does just
as much work now as when living In
the Vatican palace, near the pope. The
papal villa Is connected by telephone
with the papal apartment; and there is
hardly an hour that Cardinal Merry del
Val has not to answer some message
from the pope or his secretaries and
give his personal advice on important
matters. Besides, every evening
special courier from the Vatican, gem
orally a prelate, arrives at the villa OF
Castel Gandolfo, and brings bunch
of papers and DEGREES for the cardinal
to examine and sign.
Enjoys Game of Billiards
AS to amusements, the cardinal
greatly enjoys fishing and shooting, but
has little time to give to the sport. The
beautiful lake near the papal villa
abounds with trout, and the cardinal is
said to have captured quite load of
them in past seasons. This year, how
ever, he has never indulged in the sport
because the shores of the lake are very
much deserted, and 1t was feared by the
| police that some one might lie in am
| bush to do him harm. The cardinals
| shooting is done on the grounds of the
! papal villa, where he had targets
| affixed to several trees in the garden.
Street urchins stand every day under
the windows of the cardinals apart
ment, because they know that occa=
sionally he, comes to the balcony and
throws down handfuls of coins. But
Cardinal Merry del Val takes special
delight in visiting the country resi-
dence of the American college nearly
every day in the week. The American
students spend the summer months in a
| delightful place near the papa1 villa,
and the cardinal is regular daily Wis
| itor to the college. When he arrives
he loses all his dignified demeanor and
becomes boy again. He plays with
the students, baseball, football or
| whatever Is going on. AS a rule he
| generally invites the rector of the col
| lege and some of the students to q
game of billiards in the evening at the
papal villa, where he has had a bill
lard room especially fitted up in what
was once the, sleeping apartment of
ancient popes. These are all the
amusements the cardinal will indulge
in until the end of this month, when
he will have to return to the Vatican
and to his important duties.