IN THE POPE'S PALACE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20229, 13 April 1929, Page 2 (Supplement)

IN THE POPE'S PALACE.

SPLENDOUR OF THE VATICAN. LIFE OF NEARLY 500 YEARS. books , And art treasures. At one stroke a long-standing disagreement between the Roman Catholic Church and the Italian authorities has been terminated, and tho " liberation " of tho Popo from the Vatican accomplished. For nearly sixty years successive Popes have never left the Vatican Palace as a protest against tho taking from the Church of the territory it formerly owned. At the time when their territories were seized, in order to unite all Italy under one king, the reigning Pope declared that neither ho nor his successors would set foot on their former lands until theso were restored. Hence the phrase, " tho prisoner of the Vatican." Now with the restoration of a small portion of Romo to the Church a peace has been signed, and the Popo is free to visit Lis people in all parts of the world. No other prisoner has ever been treated with so much honour and reverence as tho Pope. The kings of most nations havo but ono crown; the Pope wears three.

Diplomatic representatives of all countries attend his court. He has ministers of his own,, as well as officers and guards. And the palace in which he lives is said to be the largest' in the world. The building of the Vatican was begun some 480 years ago. Almost every Pope since then has made additions 'to it. The Vatican, just like a prison, has great walls round it, which enclose the gardens as well as the palace itself. Inside it are various marble halls of considerable height. Tho work of some of the finest painters ever known is to be seen in them. There are no fewer than six chapels in the Vatican, and a library which contains over 250.000 printed books and 34,000 manuscripts. There are also two schools of music, two museums, a print-ing-press, and an observatory, in addition to the offices of the various State departments of tho Church. Altogether, the Vatican contains about 700Q rooms. Tho gardens belonging to it are twice the size of those at Buckingham Palace. But perhaps the most interesting part of tho Vatican is the apartment of the Conclave, where tho election of a. new Pope is carried out. There is only one door to this part. When it is shut the cardinals, who constitute the electors, are completely cut off from the rest of the world in order that none of them shall bo prejudiced by outside influences while corning to their decision. Even the food which is passed through this door is examined in case messages are hidden in it.

The electors live night and day in this part of the Vatican until one of tho candidates lias secured a two-thirds majority. Each time the voting fails to achieve such a result the voting papers are mixed wit h straw and burned. The smoko from the fire can bo seen coming out of a special chimney on the Vatican, and at the sight of it tho huge crowd that awaits in the square of St. Peter's disappears until tho next vote is taken, some hours later.