The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-01-25
ITALIAN CARDINALS
in THE MAJORITY
With the Death of Cardinal Al
maraz y Santos, Non-Italians
Have 20 at COnclaye.
Csy The Associated Press)


WASHINGTON, Jan. PAS a re-
suit of the death of Cardinal Almaraz
Santos, archbishop OF Toledo, Spain,
which occurred one day after the death
Of the pope, It was said here today the
non-Italian cardinals who will enter
the next conclave will be reduced to 20
as against 81 Italians.
Tt is considered probable here that
Cardinal O'Connell, who is said to be-
long TO the group supporting the cleo
ton of Cardinal Merry Del Val, will
not arrive before the proclamation of
the new pope, nor will Cardinal
Dougherty. OF Philadelphia, who is
said to be one of the group supporting
the election of Cardinal Gasparri.
other cardinals who it is believed
now probably will not participate in
the opening conclave are Begin, arch
bishop of Quebec, Caval Can't, arch
bishop Of Rio de Janeiro. and Frisco
archbishop of Naples. In such an event
there will be but so cardinals present
at the conclave In February
1t is expected that on the first ball
lot the votes will be dispersed so that
no one will even approach the two
thirds vote OF SO required. The first
ballot it was said today, would GER
tainly show votes for Gasparri, Delai
Pompilj LeFontain, Bogglani, Lualdi,
Maffi, Merry Del Val and MERCER.
The second ballot, however, it was
added, would probably reveal the two
strongest cardinals, although neither
perhaps would approach the prescribed
two-thirds. If the necessary vote is
not received by a candidate on the
third or fourth ballot, it is most likely
that at the fifth ballot on the morning
OF February 4, the majority of the sa-
cred college will agree on candidate
outside Of those who have received in
sufficient votes in the previous two
days. Should this prove to be the
case, a week from Saturday, shortly
before noon throughout the thousand
rooms OF the vatican the cry will ring
out of "Habenmus Ponteficem."
The assertion was made here today
that any impression that a kind of ri
valry exists between the Italian and
the so-called foreign cardinals over
the selection of a pope OF Italian or
non-Italian nationality was mistaken.
Most Of the so-called foreign cardinals
agree on the advisability that the pope
should be an Italian because OF tradi-
tion (only 48 popes were foreigners out
of 260) because the seat of the papacy
is in Italy (when II was at Avignon,
the popes were F'rench) and because of
the neutrality which the Italians sue
ceeded in maintaining in the most mo-
mentous periods in the history of the
papacy.
The coming conclave is an example
of the difficulty of electing a pope
from outside Italy. The most popular
foreign candidate. it is considered, will
be Cardinal MERCER, but he is expected
here to receive at the outside only the
votes of five French cardinals, two
English, two Poles, one Canadian, one
Portuguese, one Czecho-Slovak and
perhaps half the Italians, making a
total of less than 20 votes, insufficient
to be elected.
This figure probably cannot be aug
mented, it is said, as the cardinals of
Germany, Austria, Hungary, SPAIN
Holland, and at least half of Italy. who
have not sympathized with the atti-
tude of the Belgian member of the sa-
cred college during the war; would
not vote for him.
The only possibility OF returning
now, after several centuries, to a non
Italian pope, il Is believed, lies in the
selection of Cardinal Merry Del Val,
who, because OF his long sojourn in
Rome, is considered an Italian. Yet
his election is considered improbable.