Blowout & Crash

If Pope Pius XI should suddenly begin to spend his summers in a high, cool, suburban palace instead of in the low, stuffy Vatican how would most Catholics react?

Since Il Papa and Il Duce settled their differences with the Lateran Treaty (TIME, Feb. 18, 1929, et ante), His Holiness has had no need to consider himself any longer "The Prisoner of the Vatican," but he is widening his orbit of movement with extreme circumspection. One day last week he set out soon after dawn to make a second visit to high, cool Castel Gandolfo, a Papal property in which most Romans expect Pius XI eventually to summer. As His Holiness whizzed along with his Master of Ceremonies suddenly POW !--a tire blew out.

Working fast, the Papal chauffeur had a new tire on in five minutes, sped to Castel Gandolfo where Pius XI inspected every appointment of the Summer Palace down to the vegetable garden, hen houses and kitchen. Early rising villagers received the Apostolic benediction. Then, still so early that socialite Romans had not yet tasted their breakfasts, the Papal motorcade whizzed back toward Vatican City. CRASH!--an Italian army plane came down out of control and cracked up in the Castel Gandolfo road, just after His Holiness had passed. By 10:15 a.m. punctual Pope Pius XI was back at his duties in the sweltering Vatican.

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