e and
the King) and the "Blacks" (the devoted followers of the Palazzo
Vaticano and the Pope) a great gulf is fixed over which no one may
cross.
Pope Pius X is wonderfully accessible, considering the great
responsibilities and duties he has on him, and his generous goodness,
his gracious tact and the beauty of his spirit endear him to all,
Catholic or Protestant alike, for every one recognizes in him the
Christian gentleman, whose ideals of gentleness and inspiring
helpfulness impress themselves on all who are so fortunate as to meet
him.
The most impressive ceremonial receptions of the "Blacks" are those
given at the Spanish Embassy in the Piazza di Spagna. At the Embassy or
in the private palace of any Roman noble which a Cardinal honors by
accepting an invitation, he is received according to a most picturesque
old Roman custom. At the foot of the stairs two servants bearing lighted
torches meet his Eminence, and, making a profound obeisance, escort him
to the portals of the grand reception salon and await, in the corridor,
his return. On his departure they escort him in the same way down the
staircase.
In the College of Cardinals and among the many interesting
individualities of the Vatican, the most marked figure is that of the
Cardinal Secretary of State, Merry del Val. He occupies the Borgia
apartments, which are hung with tapestry and ornamented with the most
unique and valuable articles _de vertu_,--wonderful vases, inlaid
cabinets, old tapestries, paintings, statues, busts, and ivories. These
Borgia apartments are one of the most interesting features of the
Palazzo Vaticano, and may be seen now and then by special permission
when the Cardinal secretary is out, or when he may be pleased to retire
into his more private salons in the apartment while the others are
shown. Cardinal Rafael Merry del Val is an impressive personality, whose
life seems strangely determined by destiny. His father was an _attache_
of the Spanish embassy to the Court of St. James when the future
Cardinal was born in 1865. In 1904, at the early age of thirty-nine, he
was advanced from the soutane violet of the bishop to the mantelletta
scarlet of the cardinal, and after the accession of the present Pope,
Pius X, he was appointed to the highest office in the Vatican, that of
Secretary of State, the Pope paying him the high tribute because of his
"devotion to work, his capability and absolute self-negation."
Cardinal Merry del Val h
|