In the dead of night a hearse rattled its way along the narrow streets of Rome from St. Peter's to the Basilica of St. John Lateran. Beside the hearse walked a few of the Pope's georgeous guards, a few Vatican officials. All Rome slept. The body of Pope Leo XIII was being removed, in accordance with his expressed will, to its final resting place.
After the body had lain in state for several days, a requiem was held and the triple coffin of elm, cypress and lead was lowered into the crypt that had long...
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