, 1922-02-02
POPE BENEDICT'S SUCCESSOR

f. DEN ELkIlNEI - SNNN EkSSAVh
1t is bootless to speculate on the
choice OF the conclave which meets
today to select a successor to Pope
benedict. Rumors, to be sure, are
afloat. as usual. We had them in
1914 when busy correspondents can
vassed the Sacred College to find a
likely successor to Pope Plus X.
strangely enough. the name of Card
inal Della Chiesa (Benedict) was moi
mentioned by them as among the
"Papabili." Nor was Cardinal Sarto
(Pius X mentioned before the con-
clave in 1903. Yet when the choice
had been made, in both cases, the
correspondents wondered why they
had not thought OF these Cardinals
before. There is a saying in Rome
that who goes into the conclave
Pope III out Cardinal. 1t would
be well to bear this in mind at this
time.
We profess to no special knowledge
Of the fitness of the Cardinals men
toned in the dispatches as likely Sc
lections to the Papacy. Cardinal
Maffii of Pisa was mentioned before
the conclave in 1914 ard he received
many votes at that time He Is now
in his sixty-fourth year Cardinal
Gasparri is the author OF the Code
Of Canon Law. an able canonist and
statesman. He has been Papal Sec
rotary of State for the past seven
years. But he is now in his seven
tieth year, which OF itself makes his
selection rather improbable. Others
mentioned are Cardinal La Fontaine,
Archbishop OF Venice: Cardinal Bog
riani of Genoa and Cardinal Ratti of
Milan.
The final choice of the Sacred Col
lege may fall upon n of them or it
may o There are other cardinals
not mentioned now in thu press dis
patches who may he seriously con-
sidered by the Cardinals in conclave
and one of whom may be chosen to
succeed Pope Benedict. At any rate
1t Is scarcely conceivable that they
would express their mind and pref
erences to news correspondents. We
only know that the same Divine
Providence that guided the Cardin-
ais to elect a Leo XIII. a Plus X and
a Benedict Xxx each one peculiarly
fitted for the work he had to do
will direct the choice of the new
pope. That Is all we are to know.
The conclave to select the new
pope is organized as follows:
The c%onclave opens officially on the
evening Of the tenth day after the de-
of the Pope. Cardinals alone
have a right to vote. Each Cardfn-
al has the right to take into the con-
clave a secretary and a servant, the
secretary being usually an ecclesias-
tic. Confessors, physicians and serv-
ants OF various kinds are examined
and all are equally sworn to secrecy
and not to hinder the election.
A large part Of the Vatican Palace.
two or three floors, is
walled off for the conclave and the
space is divided off into apartments,
each with three or four small rooms
Or cells. in each of which are a cruc-
fix. a bed. a table and a few chairs.
Access to the conclave is free through
one door only, locked from without
by the marshal of the conclave and
from within bv the Cardinal-Camnr-
Once the conclave begins the
is not opened again until the
is announced. except to ad-
NIT a Cardinal who is late in arriv-
All communication with the
outside is forbidden under pain of
loss OF office and ipso factO eX-cOm-
Every precaution is
taken to exclude those who have no
right within the enclosure and also
communication with the
PaAal legislation has for
hidden with the most evere penal
lies any ante-election agreements |
binding on the new nope and each |
has pledged himself by !
oath never to treat OF the Papal sue
session among themselves during the
lifetime.
The cells of the Cardinals are COW
BRED with cloth, purple II they are
me last Pope's Creation. green II
hey are not. The government of
he Conclave is in the hands Of the
Cardinal-Camerlingo and Of the
representative Cardinals, one
each Of the three Cardinalitial
who succeed one another in |
he order Of seniority every three
The Cardinals assemble in the
Pauline chapel on the morning Of the
day and assist at the Mass