New Britain herald., 1914-08-20

Roman Count ...- Leo XIII. conferred upon Bishop Sarto the title of Roman Count and in the consistory of June, 1893, created him cardinal, giving him the Roman church of San Bernardo from
 which to take his title. He was so poor that he was unable to pay the fees connected with the accept l ance of the new dignity, but some of his admirers came forward and 1 provided him with the necessary funds.
 Creating him cardinal Leo XIII , appointed him also Patriarch of Venice, but he did not leave Mantua i until year later, owing to conflict between the Italian government and the Holy See, over the right of the House of Savoy to be consulted be- fore the appointment of a patriarch, the government having inherited the rights of the republic of Venice. The
 dispute was cut short by King Hum- bert also appointing Cardinal Sarto as patriarch of Venice.
 Relations Most Cordial.
 The patriarch's relations with the
 House of Savoy were always most
 cordial. Every time that their mai
 esties or the princes visited Venice
 he paid them a visit and presented
 his homage. He was one of Queen
 Margherita's confessors, and only d
 few months before the death of
 Leo XIII he was next the Count of
 Turin in public. when he (the patri-
 arch) blessed the foundation stone of
 the new Campanile in Piazza San
 Marco. He was the candidate of Leo XIII as his successor, but he so lit tie realized the future that when
 he left Venice in July, 1903, for the
 conclave in Rome, he bought re- turn ticket.
 In the conclave the struggle was for and against Cardinal Rampolla, Leo XIII's secretary of state, whose chances were lost when Cardinal Puzyna pronounced the veto of Aus tria against him, which veto was supposed to represent the triple al- liance. Then, needing a "compro- mise' Pope, all eyes turned to Car dinal Sarto, who at first refused, but was afterward induced to accept the ] high position, being elected almost, unanim ously on August 4, assuming l the title of Pope Plus x, Bishop of Rome and Vicar of Jesus Christ, Suc- cessor of St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles; Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, Patriarch of the West, Primate of Italy; Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Prov | ince and Sovereign of the Temporal Dominions of the Holy Roman Church. Pope Was Modest.
 The pontificate of Pope Plus x was characterized by that spirit of mod esty which never abandoned him and By that strong religious feeling which 1 made him choose as motto, ITO re- Store everything to Christ The day after his coronation he for his private apartment in the Vatican, and while he urged the then young Monsignor Merry del Val, his pro-secretary of state, to -oc- cupy the gorgeous Borgia apartment, l he himself chose four small rooms Tn the low-ceilinged suite above the | state department of the pontiff, which l under Leo XIII. had been occupied l by his private secretary Mgr. Angen. |
 Plus X desired to give himself up | entirely to his work. In so doing he | did not spare any fatigue, giving au- diences, admitting people to large re- captions, celebrating masses, preach | ing and giving communion, reached 1 such a. point of exha ustion that while ! in the exercise of his priestly func- | tion in the Pauline chapel, crowded | with people, he tainted, and thus ! started that report which pursued ! him eyer after-that he was liable to | fainting fits, which was quite untrue, l as that was the only occasion on which he suffered in that way, and 1t l was entirely due to the heat and the | vitiated air of the chapel. Isolation Attempted. !!
 That was the first opportunity for | the officials of the Vatican to step in, | and on the pretext of protecting the | Pope's health, attempt gradually to 1 isolate him from the world. However, l they were not always successful. One of the yearly American Pilgrimages | had left the United States at the | beginning of July, 1903. On their l way to Europe Leo XIII, who should l have received them, died, so that l they were in Rome during the con- clave, and the day on which Plus X., | was elected and descended into St. l Peters to. give his benediction they l were in the Basilica, with two Amer | ican flags waving above the immense crowd assem- bled there and joining l hurrahs to the cheering which greeted the venerable figure. Some days af- ter the same American pilgrimage was in the Vatican gardens when sud- denly, the work of the officials having already begun, they were ordered away as the Pope was seen approach ing. With true American determina- tion they objected that they did not want to leave. Plus X, who under l stood something of what was going ] on, inquired, and Cardinal Gibbons, ! who was among those who accom-