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Show MY VISIT WITH POPE PIUS XI BY JOHN A O'DWYER, Supreme Director of the Knights of Columbus of Ohio Who Has Just Returned From Rome, Wnere He Was the First American Layman to Have an Audience With Pope Pius XI. NEW YORK The first Imprepslon . one gels when His Holiness Pope Pius XI enu i s the audience chamber -- at the Vatican Is -fyoo.- thai in him is j0 t he Ideal of ihc y" world-figure one bus t rave I ft f r i jiqus&nfjB o f Hlft v o i a o," ia I yaWr&PfcgKj middle sixties. j inaks perfect I J. A. O'DWYEB Rpgllph j i.eardi him, on the day he received me, speak j in English, French and, of course. Italian, and at the sanje time acknowledge ac-knowledge the greeting of a distin guished looking Austrian In the Aus-tian's Aus-tian's native tongue. Everything in Rome cultured Ital-J ians had told me how much they look ed forward to the entry of the Knights of Columbus into welfare work there. The late Pope Benedict looked forward for-ward with the keenest interest to the advent of the K of V . a select body Of whom had visited hi mon their pll grimage In August, 1920. Now Pope Pius will witness the inauguration of, the work. "You come from Toledo, Ohio, not Toledo. Spain," the pope said to me, i after I had made my obeisance and been introduced "It Is your great middle west of which I have beard and read much ' The puriiy of his pronunciation of j our language is striking. As a rule, Europeans who spe.ik Bngllsh do so with an English acceni The pope has not accent beyond an attractive I Italian inflection. The Kpights of Columbus " he said , ' have my special blessing Their pa triotic work is worthy of admiration : I am always delighted to have Amerl I canB visit the Holy See." Then 1 received, some scores of ro ! sarles blessed by i(e pope ai (aging (ag-ing my departure ih- riolinftsi gave me a typical American handshake Hh J has a strong, BjlfaleUfl grip doubtless I a development of his mountalg eijmb-' eijmb-' Ing days Several others were awaiting and , iences with His Holiness as I left the CharaQftFi tnj or two not members of Ihe Catholic church but eager to 6ee and hear ih ruler of that church. I patched. Ills Holiness walk awa j to receive them. He appeared a mag niiicent fluure, in pure while, wiiii a ! touch of bright scarlet on his buckled shoes, walking amid guards arrayed j in purple apainst a background of 1 gorgeous tapestries of the renais j nance. I came away from the Vatican convinced con-vinced that in Pope Plus the Catholic (liurch has a ruler of great personal vitality and varied learning, a man who keenly appreciates the part that j the United States must play in the I church of the future, and I felt proud I that as a director of the Knights of j Columbus ii was my privilege to aid j in the executive management of the work which the K of C have under i taken In Romo at the behest of the j Vatican. j (Copyright, 1922, by NEA Service) oo |