of his greatness, and the most pure virginity and admirable sanctity of the Mother Teresa de Jesus. To my thinking, neither he who asks it nor he who grants it, will act like true sons of hers.”
Having dealt with so celebrated a case in some detail we may very briefly pass in review some four or five other instances more premising that these have been selected from a very great many, something at random, and not because they present any remarkable or unique phenomena which it would not be tolerably easy to parallel in other accounts. On the other hand they are no less memorable than is the case of S. Teresa herself: For example, the body of S. Pascal Bayion, who died at Villa Reale, 15th May, 1592, although covered with quick-lime, was found nine months later to be entire and incorrupt, and in 1611 expert surgeons declared that the preservation was miraculous. Again the body of S. Philip Neri, who died 25th May, 1595, was discovered perfectly intact eight months after burial, and was still entire when examined in 1599, 1602, and 1639. In the cases of two saints who died in 1608, Francis Caracciolo, who expired at Agnone in the Abruzzi, 4th June, 1608; and Andrea Avellino, who was struck down by apoplexy at Naples on 10th November of the same year, there were noticed curious blood phenomena. The body of S. Francis remained flexible, and when an incision was made blood freely flowed. The body of S. Andrea was found incorrupt more than a year after he had been buried. A quantity of blood that had been received in a phial did not congeal, but is constantly observed to be still liquid. In the case of S. Camillus de Lellis who died at Rome, 14th July, 1614, the body remained soft and flexible. At her convent in the Umbrian aerie of Città di Castello reposes the unflecked and whole body of the Capuchiness, S. Veronica Giuliani, who died 9th July, 1727. There it may be seen, reposing as though she were not dead, but slept.
This list might be greatly prolonged without much research or difficulty; however, it is no doubt already sufficiently ample, and I have thought it worth while to treat the subject of the incorruptibility of the bodies of saints in some detail, as though of course, this phenomenon is in itself not to be regarded as evidence of sanctity, the preservation of the body of a person who has led a life of heroic virtue when this
