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On the cope of bright purple color which the Pope wears on Palm Sunday is a silver plate richly gilt, bearing, in beautiful relief, the figure of the Almighty. This was formerly of pure gold, surrounded by three knobs of costly oriental pearls; but the cupidity of the enemies of Pius VI. overcame their fear of sacrilege, and they appropriated it to other purposes. Benvenuto Cellini, who was employed by Clement VII. to engrave this plate, says, somewhat blasphemously, though in true artistic spirit, that he endeavored to represent the "Almighty Father in a free and easy position."

- His Holiness selects the cardinals, seventy in number, who form the high senate of the Church and the privy council of the Pope. They in turn elect the Pope from their own number. In costume they are a shade less brilliant than the Holy Father, wearing, when in chapel, red cassocks with gold tassels, red stockings, white ermine tippets, and red skull or square caps. On solemn occasions they add red shoes and white damask silk mitres, with other changes of raiment, telling with great effect in a procession, but tedious in description.

Throughout the whole edifice of the Roman hierarchy, costume forms a very important and conspicuous part. It is nicely graduated with decreasing splendor and diversified cut from the pope, cardinals, archbishops, and the inferior clergy, who are almost lost amid richly-laced petticoats and purple skirts, to the laughable attire of the sacristans, choristers, and the dirty and dolorous robes of the monastic orders. Each rank has its mark and number, and it must be confessed that no military display can compete, in variety and brilliancy of colors and costliness of uniform, with one got up by the church. The nomenclature of papal costume is intelligible only to those who pass their lives in wearing it. Each article has its peculiar uses and degree of sanctity. The etiquette of the papal court, whether in its spiritual or temporal sense, is no light service. To give an idea of the number and variety of officers attached to it, I have given a programme of the Procession for Easter Sunday as it appears in Saint Peter's previous to High Mass and the General Benediction and Excommunication. The engravings given of several of these ecclesiastical personages and their suites, will bear out the assertion that no operatic or theatrical spectacle can pretend to vie with the papal court when it dons its holiday suit. Imagine the surprise of St. Peter were he to be present, upon being told that that sleepy-looking old gentleman, so buried in gold and jewels as scarcely to be discernible, and borne under a magnificent canopy on the shoulders of twelve men clothed in the brightest scarlet, performing the pantomime of turning from one side to another his uplifted thumb and two fingers as illustrative of the blessing of the Holy Trinity, was his SUCCESSOR ! I question whether at such a sacrilegious libel the old Adam within him would not be more signally displayed than it even was in the garden; for the zealous apostle would least of all forgive humbug. I

speak only of the effect on my own mind, contrasted with what I conceive to be the proper display of that religion which consists in visiting and comforting the fatherless and widows in their affliction. There are others, as we often see, on whom the glitter of a court, or the music and architecture of a church have greater weight than the humility and simplicity of gospel truth. They would be loth to confess that the avenue to their minds and hearts closed with their eyes and ears; but take away the curiously wrought robes, the cunning of the artificer, the genius of the artist, the harmonies of music, and the entire combination of pomp and venerable tradition by which Rome upholds her religion, and how much of faith and conviction would be left to them?

Beside the officers who figure in the above procession, there are a legion of others attached to the court, which swell its bulk to a degree that weighs heavily upon the petty temporal dominions of the Popes, and is out of all proportion to their necessities. There are private gentlemen of the bed-chamber, and among them a secret treasurer, who purveys for the alms and amusement of the Pope. So little bodily exercise does the Roman etiquette allow to the successors of the fisherman, that his present Holiness has been ordered by his physician to play at billiards daily, to counteract his tendency to obesity.

There are one hundred and eight officers and valets, under different titles, attached to the personal service of the Pope; a modest number when the extent of his several palaces is considered. No sovereign pays the penalty of greatness more severely than the Holy Father. His sanctity dooms him perpetually to solitary meals, except on extraordinary occasions, there being no one on earth sufficiently elevated to sit as an equal at table with him. This is the rule, but a spiritual Pope no doubt finds means occasionally to reconcile his social instincts and rank at the same time. Then, too, every dish must be previously tasted, for fear of poison; an antiquated custom, which at present no one would conceive to have any foundation in necessity. His chambers are coldly splendid. Marbles, paintings, mosaics, and gilding there are in abundance, but the whole arranged with more than the usual chilling aspect of a state palace. His private rooms, no doubt, are more comfortable; but the whole state and circumstance that surround a Pope, so far as the public eye can judge, is one which makes him, in all the relations of personal freedom and enjoyment, a being little to be envied. Each natural instinct and generous impulse is so hedged in with sacred etiquette or pusillanimous fear as to be a torture rather than a pleasure to its possessor. A bad Pope can be personally free only by being a hypocrite; a good Pope is a martyr to a rank which in its daily duties involves a constant contradiction of the simplest principles of Christianity, and is a standing reproach upon common sense.

All access to the Pope is guarded with mysterious care. He has his private chamber-men -not maids-private cooks, sweepers, and

domestics of all classes. Besides these he has his confessor, preacher, chaplains-queer necessities these for the fountain-head of religionhis porters, jesters, poultrymen, and muleteers. These all have rank and appointments in the sacred household, mingling strangely with "monsignori" the secretaries of state, and other officials. The private chamberlains who wait in the ante-chambers are clergymen. In imitation of imperial courts, we find cup-bearers, masters of the wardrobe, grand esquires, a grand herald, private chamberlains of the sword and cloak, who wear the black-spangled dress, the most graceful of all court costumes, and a guard of nobles, magnificently uniformed, a section of which attends at divine service in the Pope's chapel with drawn swords.

Each cardinal and high officer has a little court of his own. When the revenues of Christendom flowed into the papal treasury, it was not difficult to maintain this state and expense; but, now that it falls mainly on the Roman Sacristory, it becomes a burden which Christian humility might consistently seek to lighten. When there exists so numerous a corps of servants, whether of the household or church, invention must be racked to find employment for them; consequently, we

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are not surprised to see that during high church ceremonies-for instance, on Palm Sunday-it requires "a prince, an auditor of the rota, two clerks of the chamber, and two mace-bearers," to present a basin of water to the Pope, in which he washes his hands, while a cardinal dean holds the towel, a senior cardinal priest hands him the incense, which he puts into a censer held by the "senior voter of the signature." Verily, St. Peter could have written all his epistles in much less time than it would have taken him to learn the titles and employments of the household of his successors in the nineteenth century! "In the sacred functions of the altar, when the Pope assists without officiating," says Bishop England, he selects the officers from a number of names presented by the chapters of each of the three patriarchal basilics, selecting "always a nobleman, if his other qualifications be equal to those of his associates"-the wisdom of which choice, and its consistency with Christianity, all republicans can not fail to perceive.

The mode of electing a Pope is curious. The conclave is the assemblage of the cardinals for that purpose. They select their own place of meeting, in general choosing simply between the Vatican or Quirinal palaces.

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THE CORPSE OF THE POPE EXPOSED.

The day after the last day of the funeral cere- Before the cardinals enter into conclave, should monies of a deceased Pope, the mass of the Holy any feel not adequate to the discipline about to Ghost is repeated with great solemnity, a Latin be imposed upon them, they are warned to rediscourse pronounced, and the procession of car- tire. Once in conclave, they are placed in solidinals enters the chapel, chanting Veni Creator. tary confinement, each in his own cell. Every The bulls concerning the election are read, and avenue to the palace is strictly guarded by dethe cardinal dean harangues them upon the du- tachments of soldiers, and each door carefully ties prescribed for the occasion. Each cardinal closed. The only communication from without then takes his place in the conclave, that is, re- is by means of small revolving shelves, or boxes, tires to his cell, a small room of about twelve like the "tours" of foundling hospitals, through feet square, modestly furnished by himself, with which the meals are passed, and also any official his arms over the door. These cells are all alike, communications, but only in the presence, and upon the same floor, and arranged in galleries. with the authorization of their military guardChimneys are not permitted, warmth being com- ians. Vocal intercourse is permitted only at cermunicated from the neighboring rooms. To tain high apertures in the walls, in Italian, and make the isolation complete, in winter the win- with raised voices, so that the guards can hear dows are all built up, excepting a single pane. and understand the conversation. The utmost In summer the cardinals are permitted to look precautions are taken to prevent the inmates of into the garden. adjoining cells from communicating with each other. If a cardinal become ill, he is permitted to go out, but he can not re-enter his cell during the conclave.

For the service of each cell there is allowed a secretary and one gentleman, who are obliged to perform the duties of domestics. But as the emoluments are great, consisting of a considerable sum before the conclave, and a distribution of ten thousand crowns by the new Pope after his election, besides certain advantages for their future career, these posts are much sought after by the younger ecclesiastics.

The conclave is allowed also the services of a sacristan, two sub-sacristans, a confessor, four masters of ceremonies, two physicians, an apothecary, three barbers, a mason, a carpenter, and twelve valets, whose livery is violet.

Before the closing of the conclave, a final day is permitted to the visits and conferences of the cardinals, in the hall arranged for that purpose. These interviews are according to prescribed rules.

All the expenses of the conclave are borne by the Apostolic Chamber. Among these, the meals are not the least. As nothing is done in Rome without a procession, the dinners of the cardinals are served up in the same manner. The order is as follows:

At the head, two footmen with wooden maces.

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A valet with the silver.

ELECTION OF PIUS THE SIXTH.

selves on golden plates. Each bulletin containThe gentlemen in service, two by two, bare- ing the vote is carefully sealed, and stamped with headed. some fanciful design, known only to the voter,

The chief cook with a napkin on his shoulder. and prepared expressly for his vote. Great care Cup-bearers and esquires.

Two footmen, carrying upon their shoulders a huge dish-warmer, containing the meats, &c. Then follow the valets, with wine and fruit in baskets.

Upon arriving at the palace, each cardinal is visited in turn by his procession, and the dinner deposited. But before this is done, every dish is inspected lest some letter or message should be concealed within the viands. The bottles and glasses are required to be transparent, and the vases sufficiently shallow to show their depths. With all these precautions, however, diplomatic ingenuity at times contrives to convey hidden communications. The fruits often speak intelligibly for themselves. A truffle has served to baffle a rival combination, and destroy a choice fixed upon for the succeeding day. This species of culinary diplomacy was due, as might be expected, to an embassador of France.

There are four modes of electing the Pope: the adoration," the "compromise," the "scrutin," and the "accessit."

The votes are deposited by the cardinals, according to certain prescribed rules, in a chalice placed upon an altar, either in the Sistine Chapel or one of the same dimensions at the Quirinal. They are summoned twice a day, at six in the morning and at the same hour of the evening, to deposit their votes. These are carried by them

is also taken to disguise the handwriting so that no external clew to the voter's choice can be detected. This act is preceded by an oath to choose him whom they believe the most worthy, and is accompanied by sacred chants. The officers, designated by lot to examine the votes, inspect them with the most minute attention and precautions, for fear of fraud. If a cardinal has obtained twothirds of the votes, they are verified by comparing the names of the voters with their chosen devices. Should two-thirds of the votes be wanting to one name, the bulletins are burned, and the voting commences anew. The smoke which arises from the chimney attached to the chapel at this hour, telegraphs to an expectant crowd without the failure of the vote.

Election by "adoration" is when a cardinal, in giving his vote, goes toward his candidate, proclaiming him the Head of the Church; and is followed by two-thirds of the cardinals imitating his example. The "compromise" is when the uncertain suffrages are given to certain members of the conclave from which to elect a Pope. The "scrutin" is the secret ballot. The "accessit" is the last resource for a choice, but as it is seldom resorted to, and I do not clearly comprehend the process myself, I can not give it to my readers. During the examination of the votes by secret ballot, the cardinals say masses upon the six altars of the chapel.

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