Black smoke signals more deliberation for cardinals

BLACK smoke wafted from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney in Vatican City yesterday evening, signalling that the cardinals holding the first papal conclave of the new millennium had held their first vote — but failed to elect a new leader for the world’s 1.1 billion Roman Catholics.

Vatican Radio pronounced the smoke black, meaning the 115 voting "princes" of the church would retire for the night and return to the chapel this morning for two more rounds of balloting in their search for a successor to Pope John Paul II.

If those rounds fail to produce a pope, the cardinals will hold two additional rounds this afternoon.