church was almost destroyed, and the power of Pius VII. seemed parted from him for ever; and his own lot for weal or woe was inseparably connected with that of his superior. Other and unexpected events, however, changed all his views; the oppressor of Pius VII., whose vaulting ambition overleaped itself, was thrust from his imperial sway, and became as powerless as he once was mighty. Louis XVIII. had ascended the throne of his ancestors: Della Genga had quitted his retirement, and, in an unguarded moment, and without considering the consequences, was sent by Pius on a mission of congratulation to the restored monarch. Consalvi was, however, already in Paris, accredited by all the sovereigns, managing the affairs of the Popedom with consummate skill, and not unnaturally considered the visit of Della Genga-under whatever pretence-an uncalled-for intrusion.

The new envoy had an early audience of leave, and bade farewell to Louis and to Paris. Whether from chagrin at his compulsory departure from Paris, or from other causes, cannot now be known-but Della Genga was, from illness, unable to proceed further than Montrouge. Louis testified his high respect by sending M. de Perigord, archbishop of Rheims, to inquire after the health of the archbishop. After a tedious journey he reached his favourite abode, Montecelli, where he remained till the re-establishment of his health. On the 8th of March, 1816, he received the rank of cardinal, being the first among the numerous promotions of that day. To this was shortly added the bishopric of Sinigaglia; over this diocese he presided five years, "cependant," says our author, "il ne peut jamais y aller résider." This non-residence is easily accounted for-his own future interests rendering it far more important that he should continue in the capital. In 1820 he succeeded Litta as Cardinal-Vicar of Rome, an office which confers upon its possessor the whole spiritual care of that diversely populated city. In the fulfilment of the duties of this office he appears to have acted upon a policy somewhat different from that of Consalvi; the latter being, perhaps, more anxious to increase the temporal power of Rome, than to examine too closely into the morals of its inhabitants.

The year 1823 brought with it the fatal accident which accelerated, if it did not occasion, the death of Pius VII. As soon as his danger became imminent, the attention of all was directed to the consideration of a successor. The sacred college was at that time divided into two parties: the one had the greatest aversion both to the policy and the person of Consalvi, whom they not only rejected as a candidate for the papal throne, but whom they wished to see removed from the powerful station of secretary of state. Consalvi had with consummate wisdom, and

with a perfect knowledge of the spirit of the times, refused to confer any office on such men as Cardinal della Somaglia, De Gregorio and others, who were insane enough to attempt to restore the ecclesiastical authority of the Romish Church as it had been in darker times; an effort which would have been fatal to its power altogether. These, with the zelanti, were anxious for the elevation of Cardinal Severoli, bishop of Viterbo a man strongly impressed with lofty views of the power of the church, and whose character was reported to be stern and inflexible. To this party Della Genga was attached. The other wished for a pope who would be prudent and moderate in his conduct, and who would persevere in the policy of Consalvi, which, by its freedom from all those inordinate views which once influenced the papal cabinet, had insured the favourable opinion of the different European powers. These fixed their choice on Cardinal Castiglioni. The sovereigns of Austria, Sardinia, Naples, and France, concurred also in this choice-France ostensibly, but after events proved not in reality.

On the 20th of August, 1823, Pius VII. died; and immediately after the termination of the "novendiali," the nine days devoted to the funeral obsequies of the late pope, the sacred college proceeded to the business of electing his successor. These nine days, however, had not been passed in idleness by those interested in the election. Indeed, as soon as the pontiff's danger became known, the representatives of the Roman Catholic sovereigns had written to their several courts for instructions, had made themselves acquainted with the numbers both of the inclusive and exclusive, and were preparing for their intrigues accordingly-for intrigue will have its sway even in the election of a pope. On the day following the death of Pius, letters had been sent to all the absent cardinals to summon them to the duties of the conclave. Visits of high ceremony were paid by the ambassadors— speeches of flattering condolence were made, and replies given in suitable terms; all was busy till the important day arrived on which the formal and canonical election was to commence.

Few, perhaps, of our readers are well acquainted with the cere monies and observances attendant on the choice of an infallible head of the Romish Church; we will, therefore, as far as we can without obscurity, condense the account given by our author, which is much fuller than any hitherto published, and from which many errors committed by other writers may be corrected. M. Artaud de Montor expressly states that the secrets of the conclave have never before been so much disclosed.

The sacred college, from the members of which the pope must be chosen, when complete, is composed of seventy cardinals.

These are divided into three classes: the first contains the six suburban bishops, viz. those of Veletri, Porto Santo Rufino and Civita Vecchia, Frascati, Albano, Palestrino, and Sabino; the second contains fifty cardinal-priests, among whom are found archbishops and bishops of all countries; the third contains fourteen cardinal-deacons, among which number, however, are many priests. It very rarely, if ever, happens that the number of the sacred college is full. The cardinal-dean of the sacred college is the head of the bishops, and the oldest cardinal-priest and deacon are at the head of their respective orders.

With the general account of the proceedings on these occasions we must unite some of the events which took place at the death of Pius VII., so that we may combine with the history of the new pope those particulars which are common to all elections. In the present instance it was arranged that, instead of the conclave being holden in the Vatican, the long wing of the palace of the Quirinal should be substituted. To isolate this as much as possible, the street in which that part of the palace is situated was carefully closed to the north and south, while the pope's garden wall was to be the limit of the conclave on that side; the entrance to the garden itself being prohibited to all. This curtailing of liberty and comfort was for the purpose of accelerating the election as much as possible.

On the 2nd of September, fourteen days after the death of Pius, the cardinals entered the conclave. On the 3rd, clad in the croccia, a long violet-coloured mantle, they commenced the important business of their assembling. Little, however, was done till the 14th, when most of those who lived away from Rome had arrived. About this time the Duke de Laval and the Count Appony, the ambassadors of France and Austria, went on separate days, with great pomp, to deliver letters of condolence from their respective sovereigns. These were not admitted into the immediate presence of the cardinals, but had to deliver their letters, make their speeches, and receive answers, through a grating in a wicket door; each cardinal in turn passing in review and receiving the compliments and civilities of the ambassadors. These appear to have vied with each other in the display which they made-wishing to impress upon the inhabitants the respect of these monarchs towards the Holy See; and, after the manner in which poor Pius VII. had been treated by Napoleon, it was both politic on their part, and agreeable to the citizens of Rome.

The number of which the sacred college was composed at the time of this election was only forty-nine. The cardinal-bishops were full; but instead of fifty cardinal-priests, there were but thirty-three present, and of cardinal-deacons only ten.

The explanation of the business of one day will be sufficient

for all. Unless the pope be chosen by acclamation, as were Gregory XIII. and Sixtus V., the mode of proceeding is by scrutiny, to which is added, what we must borrow their own term to express, the accesso. These take place in the morning and evening of each day. Previously to the scrutiny, certain printed forms are prepared, so that each vote may be given in an uniform manner; the object of this is to ease the labours of the scrutators as much as possible, as well as to prevent trickery. It seems rather disrespectful to the sacred college to mention the word trickery; but if it is not to prevent it, why are such precautions taken. Each morning the cardinals are summoned by the master of the ceremonies, ("c'est une charge très importante à Rome que celle de maître des cérémonies," says our author,) ad Capellam Domini, where, on the first day, mass is performed by the oldest cardinal, according to the date of his elevation-all partaking of the holy communion. After the first day, the sacristan, assisted by the master of the ceremonies, performs mass. This concluded, extracts are read from the bill of ceremonial of Gregory XV. A table is placed before the altar, on which are two chalices and two basins. The oath which each cardinal must take before voting is also conspicuously placed upon it. Three scrutators are then chosen from the cardinals present, and three also to wait upon those who, though present, and forming part of the conclave, may, from the infirmity of age, or from illness, be unable to leave their cells. For their votes, a small box, with an opening at the top sufficiently large to receive the paper, is prepared, and which is kept by the scrutators carefully locked. In order that our readers may be put in full possession of every thing relative to the election, we subjoin the form of the voting paper employed :

A. Ego cardinalis

B.

C. seal

folded

seal

D. Eligo in summum Pontificem Rev. Dom. meum D.

These printed forms are about eight inches long and four broad: our author has given "le modèle exact, absolument conformé aux cédules qu'on imprime pour les conclaves," and from which our own is scrupulously copied. The mode of filling up this paper is as follows:-In the space A, each cardinal writes his own name after the words " ego cardinalis." B is then folded down, over which C is folded, and the whole is sealed. In the space D the elector writes the name of him whom he chooses for the future pope; this is also most carefully sealed down, and the space F is folded over it. G contains a number selected by the voter, and a passage from Scripture; this is again folded down, and the remaining space is left blank. To prevent any prying eye from discovering the name within, the back of the printed form is covered with an ornamental scroll, which renders the writing illegible.

When assembled for the election, the cardinal-dean presents himself before the table, takes a printed form from the first basin, retires to one of the numerous tables disposed in different parts of the open spaces of the chapel, and fills it up according to the directions given. After him, each cardinal, according to his rank, does the same. The forms being filled up, the cardinaldean takes his paper between two fingers only, elevates it so that it may be seen by all, walks slowly towards the altar, before which he kneels, makes a short prayer, raises himself, and reads aloud the following oath, the words of which are conspicuously placed upon the table :

"Testor Dominum qui me judicaturus est, me eligere quem, secundum Deum, judico eligi debere, et quod idem in accessu præstabo." The oath having been pronounced, he places the paper on the paten of one of the chalices, turns it from the paten into the chalice, and goes back to his place. After him those cardinals follow who have been chosen to wait upon the infirm, though they may be inferior in rank to the others; and the rest follow in order. If any cardinal be present whose infirmities are not so great as to prevent his public attendance at the conclave, but who is nevertheless unable to walk from his place, either to take the paper or to deposit it in the chalice, the last elected scrutator presents him with the necessary paper, receives it when filled up, and places it in the chalice with the same ceremonies as the rest. In the mean time, the selected persons wait upon those cardinals who are confined to their cells, receive the votes, which are carefully deposited in the box we have before mentioned, and which is brought into the chapel. It is there opened by the scrutators, the papers are collected, and if the number correspond with the complement of the sick, they are placed one