The Pope's Week

With fortitude which his 73 years, an intense physical discomfort and Rome's sultriness made remarkable, His Holiness ended an unusually busy nine days last Monday. It was the conclusion of his golden jubilee celebration of being ordained a priest on Dec. 20, 1879. It touched the anniversary of his being proclaimed Cardinal June 21, 1921 (eight months later he was elected Pope Pius XI).

The nine-day period began with his canonizing as Saints Lucia Filippini, foundress of the religious educational order Maestre Pie Filippini, and Caterina Thoma, a Spanish canoness. That morning he refused to take the elevator down from his private apartment, walked down the long flights. In his heavy vestments he mounted his sedia gestatoria and was carried to the canonization ceremonies at St. Peter's. They lasted five hours. He perspired profusely, several times passed his hand wearily over his face. Near him was the Rt. Rev. Thomas Joseph Walsh, Bishop of Newark, N. J., only American prelate so honored. Bishop Walsh is the man who built up the Filippini order in the U. S., to regulate the large number of Italian immigrant children in Newark. His diocese is one of the strongest in the U. S.

All week His Holiness held continuous conferences with prelates, gave audiences to hundreds of pilgrims at a time. He broke the busy days with short promenades after frugal lunches in the Vatican gardens.

Last Sunday was feast day of Saints Peter & Paul. His Holiness continued what was becoming a physically painful ordeal, canonized ten more saints. Two were Robert Cardinal Bellarmine, illustrious Jesuit, and Theophilus Da Corte. The others were the first North American saints, all martyred by Indians--Isaac Jogues, John de Brebeuf, Noel Chabanel, Anthony Daniel, Gabriel Lalemant, Charles Gamier (Jesuit priests), Rene Goupil, John Lalande (laymen) (TIME, April 7).

Next day he held a secret consistory to appoint new cardinals. The College of Cardinals should have, but rarely has had, 70 members. Before the consistory this week the college numbered 59--29 Italians, 30 of other nationalities. How many would be named and who they would be remained of course a cardinal, consistorial secret until after the preconization.

The extent of the Pope's fortitude became appreciated when news seeped from the Vatican that he had been under close medical observation. Unlike his predecessors Pius XI has no archiater, or personal physician. So from Paris was summoned the great surgeon who operated comfortably and successfully on Raymond Poincare's prostate gland (TIME, Dec. 23), and from Milan an eminent German proctologist. It has been well known that His Holiness, like very many elderly men of immaculate habits, suffers from prostatic hypertrophy. The infirmity can become painful, can cause bladder distress, uremia. The specialists decided that there was at least no immediate necessity of prostatectomy, relieved him by catheterization, advised him to abstain from many papal obligations. Such advice His Holiness, a man of indomitable will, of course disregarded for the nonce. Perhaps after the public investiture of his new cardinals his household would persuade him to retire to the balmy hills above Rome.

A light but bulky package arrived at the Vatican last week from Alaska, addressed to Pope Pius XI, a surprise gift from hundreds of Catholic Eskimo children. The contents: a large piece of birchbark. Painted on its inner surface was a dog sled carrying nuns and a missionary priest through the main street of Holy Cross Mission, Alaska, towards a primitive rendering of the dome of St. Peter's while a female figure, representing St. Therese, scattered celestial petals from the clouds.

"This," announced official L'Osservatore Romano, "is the most precious gift yet received at the Vatican."

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