THE POPE'S HUMOR.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume IV, Issue 201, 9 February 1877, Page 9

THE POPE'S HUMOR.

One of the ablest American journalists, Mr. J. R. G. Hassard, a Catholic, and associate editor of the ' New York Tribune,' has been recently received by the Holy Father. The Holy Father appeared to be wonderfully well and strong. Mr. Hassard has the following good sayings to attribute to the Pope :—": — " There is a photograph of the Pope in the shop windows, representing him under a broad and most unbecoming red hat. He does not like the picture, and when a lady asked for his autograph on a copy of it, he wrote, ' Nolite titnere, ego sum, I—'1 — ' Fear not, it is I.' During the French occupation of Rome he was obliged to request the recall of a French Colonel on account of a gross af ront to the Papal authority. Colonel , who seems not to have been a very wise man, surprised the Pope by going to the palace to take leave, and improving the opportunity to ask a great many small favors. No allusion was made to the unpleasant circumstances which led to his recall, but when the Colonel presented a picture, and asked for an autograph, the Pope wrote the words which Christ used to Judas in the garden : 'Amice, ad quid venisti V — ' Friend, wherefore hast thou come hither?' The delighted Colonel showed the picture to all bis acquaintances as a souvenir of the Pontiff's kind regard/until somebody cruelly translated the Latin for him." Bishop Gross related a little anecdote showing the Pope's cheerfulness and appreciation of a joke : " I hear, Monsignor," said the Pope, " that some good people in your country were afraid that because I made the Archbishop of New York a cardinal, I- was about to go over to America and make myself a king ! " " Certainly, Holy Father, that was believed by some people. Indeed, I myself met some very good Protestant ladies who were very anxious on the subject ; and on one occasion they said to me, ' what a dreadful thing this cardinal business was,' and ' how foolish the Pope was to think of making himself a king in Washington,' I said to them, ' was it not possible that it might be a good thing? ' They replied, 'O, Bishop, and you an American citizen ! ' I answered, " But, don't you sse, my good friends, now lam nobody. If the Pope makes himself king you see I'll be somebody — a power behind the throne, in fact. Why, then I can give your husbands fine fat offices.' " When I told this to the Pope," said the bishop, "he laughed outright, and said that banter of that kind was the most effective answer to such nonsense."