Rensselaer Journal, Volume 11, Number 26, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 5 December 1901 — Longevity of Pope Leo. [ARTICLE]

Longevity of Pope Leo.

Leo XIII bids fair to be the oldest of the popes. The scars of the operation performed by Dr. Mazzoni on the aged pontiff are said to have thoroughly disappeared. Some time ago, when the physicians removed the last bandages, the pope said, jokingly, to his doctor: “Now, Dr. Mazzoni, how many years of life can you’promise me?” “I believe, conffdentially,” replied the physician, “that your holiness will live to be over a hundred.” “No, no,” answered the pope, “you are stretching my years a little too far.” • The doctor may prove a true prophet, as Leo XIII exhibits signs of most extraordinary mental vigor, and his memory still seems absolutely unimpaired.