Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 96, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 August 1903 — BALLOT FOR A POPE. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

BALLOT FOR A POPE.

MANY FRUITLESS ATTEMPTB TO CHOOSE LEO’S SUCCESSOR. £lx Ballots Taken bj the Conclave Without Electing; a Pontiff—Thousands Watch Smoke Signal—Crowd at St. Peters Estimated at 50,000. The cardinals in conclave for the purpose of electing a successor to Pope Leo took their fifth ballot Monday mornjjyfcwith no result. At 11:03 umoke was seen coining out of the chimney over the Sistine Chapel, which indicated Jtliat no selection had been made. At 0:25 p. m., after the-**ixt'h ballot, again rose from the chapel. Monday was the third day of the cardinals’ imprisonment. In the hope that over night au agreement might.have been reached, the foreign ministers, many other personages and two or three thousand of the general public went to St. Peter’s during the morning to await developments. They were i doomed to another disappointment. The result of Sunday morning’s ballot was awaited by 2,000 or 3,000 persons; who began to suspect that an election had been reached when the hour for the smoke to appear passed without a sign. There was a light, fleecy puff at 11:20 o’clock, and a light smoke followed for several minuter. When the time for the afternoon ballot approached there was seed for the first time a sign of public interest in the election. The great square of St. Peter’s rapidly filled, until at 0 o’clock a vast multitude stretched from the entrance of the basilica for more thau 200 yards. It was the most striking sight that Rome lias seen in recent years. There were fully 50,000 persons in the assemblage, representing every class of Roman citizenship, ns well ns almost every race on the globe. Several attempts to establish communication with the conclave were discovered in time, and there were some suspicious lights waving in the cells of several of the cardinals which were interpreted .as

signals. These were immediately reported to the epmerlengo by the marshal and extra precautions were provided to prevent a repetition of the occurrence. Conventioiijd si guv for the communication codes, etc., all failed.

COLLEGE OF CARDINALS BALLOTING FOB POPE LEO'S SUCESSOR.