The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, September 11, 1898, Page 1

VOLUME LXXXIV. NO 108. SAN FRANCISCO, SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 1898—_THIRTY-TWO PAGES. PRICE FIVE CENTS. ELIZABETH EMPRESS IS STABBED TO THE HEART Terrible Deed Committed by an Italian at Geneva, Switzerland. One of the Most loved Women in Europe Ruth- lessly Cut Down by an Assassin. GENEVA, Switzerland, ] g Austria was assassinated near the Hotel Beaurivage this & afternoon by an anarchist o was arrested. He stabbed ? ment supposed to be a triangular file. = It appears that her Majesty was walking from her & hotel to the landing place g o’clock when an Italian anarchist suddenly approached » and stabbed her to the heart. & again and was carried to the steamer unconscious. g The boat started, but seeing the Empress had not recov-~ 5 ered consciousness the captain returned and the Em- o press was carried to the Hotel Beaurivage, where she g expired. The stretcher upon which the Em- | archist since he was 13 years of age. rried to the hotel was hast- >d with oars and sail cloth. s were immediately press was c pired at 3 ’clock. shows that a small The wound was just r the left breast. There was hardly 1y bleeding. After striking the blow he ran along the Rue des Alpes, with the evident in- tention of entering the Square Les was but before reaching it he ed by two cabmen who had wit- nessed the crime. They handed him over to a boatman and a gendarme, who conveyed him to the police sta- i r made no resistance. He he walked along; saying, did it,” and ‘‘She must be dead.” At the polic tion he declared that he was a ‘‘starving anarchist, with no hatred for the poor, but only for the rich.” Later, when taken to the courthouse interrogated by a magistrate in The prison en sang ey b | ste and the presence of three members of the local government and the police offi- cialg, he pretended not to know French, and refused to answer questiors. The | police, on searching him, found a docu- ment showing his name to be Luigl Laochini, bern in Paris in 1874, and an Italian soldier. A great crowd quickly assembled around the Hotel Beaurivage, where the officials proceeded after Interrogat- ing the prisoner. The police searched the scene of the crime for the weapon and the accomplices of the assassin. It appears that a boatman noticed three persons closely following the Em- press, who was making purchases in the-shops. The local government, immediately on receiving the news of her Majesty's death, half-masted the flag on the Hotel de Ville, the municipal office, and proceéded in a body to the Hotel Beau- rivage as a token of respect. The shops on the Kursaal were closed. The assassin told the magistrate that he came to Geneva in order to assassi- nate “another important person,” but h:d been unable to execute the project. The reason of his failure he did not give, but he declared that it was only by accident he had learned of the pres- ence of the Austrian Empress in Ge- neva. The assassin, on being interrogated by the magistrate, sald he came to Geneva with the intention of killing the Duc d’Orleans, but the latter had already left. He foliowed the Duc to Evian, about 256 miles north of Geneva, on the lake, where h: was again un- successful. He then returned to Gene- va and learned of the arrival of the Fmpress. Yesterday he dogged her footsteps, but found no opportunity to carry out his purpose, though he watched the Hotel Beatrivage all day. This afternoon aboul half past 1 o'clock, he sald, he saw the valet of the Empress leaving the hotel and going toward the landing. He inferred from this that the Empress was going to take the steamboat and he hid him- self behind a tree on the quay with the knife concealed in his right hand. In a few minutes the Empress, accompa- nied by her lady of hontr, appeared and the assassin struck the knife home. Ha confessed that he has been an an- 'OF AUSTRIA IS SLAIN BY AN ANARCHIST Popular and Be- Sept. 10.—The Empress of named Luigi Laochini, who her Majesty with an instru- of the steamer at about 1 The Empress fell, got up “If all anarchists did their duty as | T have done mine,” he said, “bourgeoise | soclety would soon disappear.” He admitted that-he knew the crime was useless, but sald he committed It for “the sake of example.” | In spite'of minute searching, the weapon of the murderer has not been found. Dense crowds still surround the Hotel Beaurivage this evening. | SWISS OFFICIALS HORRIFIED BY THE FEARFUL CRIME BERNE, Switzerland, Sept. 10.—An- | other account of the assassination of | | the Empress of Austria says: After having been stabbed from behind the | Empress rose and walked on board the steamer, where she fell fainting. The captain did not wish to put off from the quay, but did so at the request of the Empress and her suite, there being no apprehension that she was seriously | hurt. The steamer was turned back, | however, before it reached the open lake, and the Empress, unconscious, was carried to the hotel on a stretcher. The Empress had been stopping at the Hotel Beaurivage for several days. The Fresident of Switzerland, and | other members of the Government were stunned with horror and grief when the | news reached the palace that the Em- | press, so beloved by all Europeans, had | fallen a victim to an assassin within | the borders of their country. They im- | mediately arranged to hold an extraor- dinary Federal Council on Sunday | morning in order to consider the meas- | ures to take against the assassin. The latter must be tried according to the statutes of the Canton, which for- bid capital punishment, and makes life | imprisonment the most severe.penalty | which can be imposed. When the Aus- | | trian Minister, Count Kuerfstein, was | informed of the tragedy, he hurried to | the palace and was met with expres- | sions of the utmost sympathy. So soon | as a special train could be arranged the Minister started for Geneva, accom- | panied by the Deputy Prosecutor Gen- eral, who took up the case at once, his chief being on a vacation. He will hold a preliminary inquiry at Geneva to- night or as soon as possible, and re- turn to-morrow in order to report to the federal council. The federal authorities had been in- formed of the visit of the Empress, and they notified the Governors of the Canton the Empress expected to visit, instructing them to take special po- | lice measures for her comfort and safe- ty if it appeared necessary. They were not potified of her Majesty's intention to visit Geneva, nor were the local of- ficlals there aware of her presence, as she was traveling incognito. The po- lice are not blamed, though the circum- stances responsible for the lack of pre- cautions are widely regretted. Al Switzerland is profoundly stirred with sorrow and Indignation. The papers in all the cities have printed extra edi- tions expressing horror of the crime. ———— INDESCRIBABLE GRIEF OVERPOWERS AUSTRIA'S PEOPLE VIENNA, Sept. 10.—The news of the assassination became known here 3080308 008 08 006 XK X0 O O O O N o)) Tl 2 D 22 Illllllfliflltl//>/”£fl#w/”6 7. 77 =5 o = / Z 3 A N AN llllllll’ 4 7 o127} 24157 Y>3 T Qi V. L Ve s eet rmpasrsraeiris: PR S > = SO S TN s rr L7 C2or 7 s, > RN G 2242, — Lt ez EMPRESS ELIZABETH OF AUSTRIA, THE VICTIM OF AN ANARCHIST ASSASSIN. shortly before 6 o’clock.: It spread like lightning. The streets were suddenly filled with multitudes of people, many of them becoming impassable for vehi- cles. Extra editions were issued by all the papers. Many Viennese considered ‘the report incredible until the semi-official Wiener Abend Post appeared, confirm- ing the statements of the other papers. All the papers accompanied the an- nouncement with warm tributes to the Empress. They were eagerly snatched from the hands of the sellers and were read aloud to groups of citizens. An indescribable grief overpowers the the people. - The performances at the court theatres and the jubilee exhibi- tion have been canceled. Emperor Francis Joseph recelved the news at Schoenbruhn. His Majesty's journey to attend the maneuvers at Zips, Hungary, was, of course, aban- doned. £ All the theaters here and in the pro- vincial towns are closed. The extra edition of the Weiner Abend Post appeared with black bor- ders. It expresses the universal sorrow felt at the loss of the noble Empress, whose life was one long case of philan- throphy, adding: “She had gone abroad in order to obtain fresh strength but only to become the victim of a wicked and mad attack.” It concludes with an expression of “sincere sympathy with the Emperor, upon whose beloved head such grief has fallen in the year of his jubilee.” THOUGHT A THIEF HAD ASSAILED HER PARIS, Sept. 11.—The Figaro states that the weapon used by the assassin of the Empress of Austria was found in the lake. It was a three-sided file, very slender and sharp. The postmor- tem examination showed one almost imperceptible wound, the file having penetrated the heart and not causing exterior bleeding. The Empress, it seems, only supposed that she had re- ceived a violent blow. At first she maintained great coolness. When uked‘ if she wished to return to the hotel she | replied: “No; he only struck me on the | breast and doubtless wished to steal my watch.” | The assassin made a.complete con-' fession, adding that he regrets that the death penalty does not exist in 'the Canton where the tragedy occurred. The Geneva police belleve that they are on the track of two accomplices of the assassin. S5 G s s FEARS FOR THE EFFECT ON FRANCIS JOSEPH LONDON, Sept. 10.—Grave fears are expressed here regarding the effect which the assassination of the Empress of Austria may have upon the Em- peror, whose health has never recov- ered from the blow of Crown Prince Rudolph’s tragic death. It i{s known that his Majesty has been very feeble of late. e GREAT SENSATION AT THE FRENCH CAPITAL LONDON, Sept. 11.—A special dis- patch to the Sunday Times from Paris says: The assassination of the Em- press Elizabeth of Austria has created an immense sensation in the French capital, where the sympathy of .the people is all the greater because it is remembered that her sister, the Duchess D’Alencon, perished in the ter- rible charity bazaar fire last year. Her other sister, the former Queen of Na. ples, has resided in: Paris since ,the death of her husband, and the mur- dered Empress was a_frequent visitor. here and familiar to Parisians. Sym- pathetic crowds gathered near the Aus- | trian Embassy soon after the sad news began to spread through the city. The Vienna correspondent of the Ob- server says: When Count Goluchow- ski, the Austro-Hungarian Foreign Minister, communicated the mnews to the Emperor the latter se speechlet ltrlnxtno a cl&ml’and rvmn.mrfi _for" ‘lo': e motlonless. e_remains of Empress will be’ bfought to”Vienna' at once for a state funeral. The Emperor is reported to have said: ‘“Shall I not be freed from grief ‘and pain in this world?” S e MKINLEY’S 'MESSAGE TENDERING SYMPATHY WASHINGTON, Sept. 10.—The fol- lowing message has been received at the State Department: “GENEVA, Sept. 10.—The Empress of Austria has just been assassinated here by an Italian anarchist. k “RIGLEY, Consul.” Upon receipt of Consul Rigley’s noti- fication of the death of the Empress, President McKinley sent the following message of condolence: - “EXECUTIVE MANSION, WASH- INGTON, Sept. 10.—To his Majesty, the Emperor of Austria, Vienna: I have heard with profound regrét of the as- sassination of her Majesty, the Em- press of Austria, while at Geneva, and tender to your Majesty the deep sympa- thy of the Government and people of the United,States. % “WILLIAM McKINLEY.” —_—— AUSTRIAN EMBASSADOR. -COMPLETELY OVERCOME NEW LONDON, Conn., Sept. 10.—The news of the assassination of' the Em- press of Austria first reached Embas- sador’ Hengelmuller, who, with his suite, has been!spending the summer here. - The Embassador .was seen at his cottage at Pequot, and when told of the tragedy was completely over- come. He declined to be interviewed on.the subject at present. ———— HUNGARIANS WEEP ‘ IN THE STREETS BUDAPEST, Hungary, Sept. 10— | The news of the assassination of the .Queen of Hungary and Empress of | Austria .was received . here with con- sternation. Men and women were seen weeping in the streets. - Everywhere 'mourning. banners were displayed. 1B i @ || The Hungarian Diet will be convened In special sessfon’ to-morrow. DEATH SCENE OF THE EMPRESS Wds TRAGIC Staggers Aboard the Boat and Is Quickly Carried to a Hotel. When the Beloved Sovereign Breathed Her Last Those Present Knpelt in Prayer. ° Special Cable to The Call and the New York Herald. Copyrighted, 1898, by James Gordon Bennett. PARIS, Sept. 11.—The Figaro pub- lishes this morning the following from | Geneva: The Tribune de Geneva pub- | lished an interview with M. Teisset, a merchant member of the Chamber of Commerce at Clermont-Ferrand, | who was an eyewitness of the dea(hi scene of the Empress Elizabeth of | Austria. Accompanied by a party he | went on board the steamer at Geneva at 20 minutes to 2 o’clock p. m. He was exchanging a few words | with the captain on deck when alady came forward, walking with difficul- | ty and supported by another lady. M. Teisset, without knowing who the lady was, took her in his arms, carried her across the deck and seated her on a bench. The lady then opened her eyes and gave him a look of grati- tude. M. Teisset left the boat and re- turned to the Hotel Beaurivage. A short time afterward messengers came up shouting that the steamer had re- turned and a misfortune happened. M. Teisset ran to ask Dr. Golay to g0 to the landing stage as his services would probably be required. Captain Roux had already given all attention to the Empress, who was accompanied only by one lady in waiting and a servant. Gebel, the pilot of the boat, had cut the stays of the Empress and found a very small wound only one centimeter in width above the left breast from which issued only two or three drops of blood. E The lady in waiting asked the Em- press, who for a moment regained con- sclousness, “Are you suffering?” The reply was “No.” Captain Roux then brought the ves- sel aroupd and made straight for the landing place. Gebel had a litter al- ready prepared of two bars, four camp stools and velvet cushions. The Em- press was laid upon it and carried to the Hotel Beaurivage by Captain Roux, M. Teisset and two of the crew. M. Teisset carried her Majesty in his arms up the stairs to her apartment on the first floor, which she had just left, and laid her on a bed. Dr. Golay, assisted by M. Teisset and the lady in waiting, and also by a nurse who was in the hotel, rapidly undressed her Majesty and endeavored to induce artificlal respiration by friction and the application of eau de cologne and vinegar. All efforts, however, were in vain. Golay sent for Dr. Mayer, who has- tened to the hotel at the request of the lady in waiting. A slight incision was made in the patient’s right wrist, but all was over in a short time. Before her Majesty's death a par- ish priest had come and administered extreme unction. Everything possible, humanly speaking, was done. The body was laid out by Mme. Mayer. M. Teisset belleves the Empress breathed her last at the moment he laid her head on the bed. When her Majesty’s death was announced all present knelt down in prayer. The murderer has finally given some explanation regarding the crime. He says he came to Geneva to assassinate some high personage, and he added that he chiefly had In view the Duc d’Orleans—probably Prince Henri—but he could not put his scheme into_exe- cution for reasons which he does not give. It was quite by chance that he heard that the Empress of Austria was in Geneva. HAD PREMONITIONS THAT HER END WAS NEAR Became a Changed Woman Since the Suicide of Her Son Rudolph. Of late Empress Elizabeth had fallen upon the ‘idea that her end' was near and that she would soon die. Since the death of her son Rudolnh she has built memorial chapels and ‘monuments throughout the empire, and these she visited from time to time as the fancy seized her. Her latest employment’ in this line was to arrange for her final resting- place at great expense. She had built at Corfu, upon plans approved by her- self, a magnificent villa, and had chris- tened it “L’Achilleion.” To her will she added a codicil in which she said: “I wish to be interred at Corfu, near the sea, 5o that the waters can con- tinually break on my tomb.” Empress Elizabeth was the daughter of Maximilian Joseph, Duke of Bavarfa. She was born December 24, 1837, and wedded Emperor in 1854, For since the tragic sul. cide of Prince Rudolph, heir to the crown of the Hapsburgs, Empress Elizabeth had been failing both in body and mind. The decay was so slow as to be almost imperceptible at first. It was shown to have grown out of her grief for the tragic death of her only son. But the outbreak$ of the Em- press and had of late passed the bounds mere eccentricity, and it was necessary to keep her in a sense under surveil- lance. She was not crossed or inter- fered with. Her whims were not no- ticed seriously, albeit they were some- times expensive, and she did practically as she pleased. None the less, she was lovingly watched and guarded. Ten years ago the Empress was still one of the most beautiful women in Europe, just as her husband, Francis Joseph, was one of the handsomest men of his years to be found anywhere. The Empress was then one of the best horsewomen of her time. She surprised even the daring cross-country riders of England and Ireland when she visited those countries by her grace, courage and dash. Of late she was but a wreck of her former self. She lost her high spirits, shunned the companion- ship of former favorites and spent her time in mourning and brooding over the past. The ¢ase of Empress Elizabeth is markedly pathetic. It may truthfully be said of her that she was a good woman, \who had done her duty since she shared with her husband the ruling of Austria-Hungary. When they were married it was said of the royal, bride- groom- and bride that they were the handsomest couple in. Europe. He was (as he Is still) broad-shouldered and tall, ‘handsome and frank of face, and as. courteous as a knight of old. She was fair, vivacious, brilliant in conver- sation, and at the same time with the dignity of a Queen. Many changes have occurred since the marriage of the Princess Elizabeth to the ruler.of Austria, and some of these have been such as to sadden the" lives of the Austrian Emperor and Em- press. First the favorite brother of the Emperor married a dancer. Stripped of his honors and offices, he bought a mer- chant vessel—he had been trained for the navy—and, taking his bride with him, started in to make his own living by trading. His ship is supposed to have gone down at sea. At any rate it disappeared, and the Archduke is still among the missing. Then came the hu- miliation of Austria by Germany, and the Maximilian episode, and finally the tragedy in which Prince Rudolph figured. All of these things have served to make Francis Joseph a melancholy, much broken man, and the effect upon his wife has been much more severe. Even the influence of her husband, who was devoted to her, and her one mar- ried _daughter, the Princess Valerie, were lost upon her. About ten years ago, when Empress Elizabeth became infatuated with the English sport of fox-hunting, she was a striking woman in appearance. She looked much younger than she really was, and she created a furore in Eng- land. She spoke English like a native, was unconventional, cordial in manner and witty. She speedily became popu- lar. Following the hounds was a pas- sion with her. The Empress of Aus- tria was a familiar figure on the hunt- ing field, and, to use a sporting expres- sion, she rode straight. There was no fence or hedge too high, and no ditch or water jump too broad for her. In her first season she won more praises for her good riding and her pluck than for her accomplishments as Empress of Austria. In her own court Empress Elizabeth always displayed these same amiable qualities. In no court in Europe is eti- quette more strict, in none are the nobles more proud or more jealous of their rights and privileges. Even Fran- cis “Joseph, an amiable, easy-going man, has been bound as with hooks of steel to all the old rules and traditions of the Hapsburgs, the ‘Austrian Caesars,” as they proudly call them- selves. Empress Elizabeth showed that she was able to ride roughshod over old fogy traditions and unwritten rules. But she did this with such tact, so quietly, and yet so thoroughly, that the old court favorites that had ruled the roost prior to the coming of the clever young Empress scarcely knew how it was that they graduallly fell to the rear and left their places to be filled by another coterie, younger, more. lib- éral, more brilllant and more in accord with the tastes of the Empress. The young woman went further. The old court at Vienna had been more cor- rupt than any other in Europe. It was a hotbed of scandal. Royal names had been smirched, and even that of the Emperor himself was not free from scandal. The young Empress set her- self to the task of{ working out re- form in this directiop. It was a diffi- cult task. Indeed, it§was one in which she could hope to sudceed only in part. But she accomplished more than it had been thought she would, and she made the court at Vienna more healthy as to morals than it had ever been in the past. What is more, she enlisted good- natured, easy-going Francis Jogeph in her ‘work. He, perhaps. had no real interest in it or sympathy for it. But he loved his clever wife with a deep and abiding love that has never waver- ed and that still abides. Yet it seems a sort of tragic out-