The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1878-06-04

| dispatches from Berlin. escaped narrowly
enough with his life from the latest attempt
to assassinate him. Eighteen shots ars re-
ported to have pierced his helmet-for the
Emperor always wears. even in his daily
promenades. that military headdress which
is so Characteristic part Of his portraits.
That the shot used had force enough to
penetrate this shows that our correspondent
is guilty Of no exaggeration in his state
ment that the Empercrs escape Is due only
to the small size of the shot. Buckshot
would in tho same circumstances have
given fatal wound. Our news, it will be
seen, foreshadows the possibility OF an
| abdication, or at least of regency for some
| months.
Within month two attempts at once de-
hberate and desperate, have been made TO
kill the aged Kaiser, and both seem to have
the same source and the same inspiration.
Both have originated in that widespread
discomfort, those fanatical fancies ana that
savage luminosity toward law and order
which animate the so-called party Of social
ism. Hoedel and Modelling are individuals
excited by mischievous teachings TO believe
that they would serve their country and
humanity by the murder Of Kaiser
William. or they are the agents of
a secret society designated to commit
this crime Precisely how they are to be
classed in this respect the German police
| will determine but neither one nor the
other is to be counted with the feeble witted
| fellows who sometimes take o shot at a
sovereign out Of an insane desire for noto-
riety. Princes have been shot at often
| enough for no other reason than that some
lunatic wished to be heard OF in the world,
] and the times have been when to draw the
fire of that sort of people has seemed to be
one Of the functions Of the wearers OF
crowns. An experience of that sort OF
shooting is common to rulers but this
persistent aim at one life by one stripe OF
! fanatics resembles less that morbid desire
to burn gunpowder conspicuously than the
desperate pursuit Of the life OF Napoleon
III. by sworn Italian conspirators.
Behind these attempts, then, what is
there? Other attempts, perhaps From his
| injuries just received the Kaiser will re-
| cover but ii the two assassins now in Gus
tody were designated by some conspiracy
as the men who should attempt 70 kill him
| others will be designated in their turn ;and
if they were only individuals excited by
mischievous doctrines the teachings that
turned their heads will turn other heads,
and perhaps better heads, and heads related
to more unlucky hands. Kaiser William
will never again ride in the main
street OF Berlin and take his turn by
that pretty piece Of woodland which they
call garden but the people who touch
their hats or stand uncovered as he passes
will listen unconscicusly for the sound Of q
pistol shot And the shots will come again
and again. But the stout old Kaiser may
not be the worse for il oil. Napoleon I'LL
| died quietly enough under the hands of o
distinguished surgeon, though six different
sets Of conspirators expiated six different
attempts to murder him. In fact. it is the
| rule with attempts to Stay sovereigns that
they fail. The successes are great excep-
tons. Conspirators Of this sort fail always
because of cowardice. There is a common
want Of desperation. They hope to accom-
plish their purpose and still save their
own lives, and the precautions taken
to save themselves defeat their aim. Assas-
sins who, like Ravaillac, FELTON, or Booth,
have delivered fatal blows, have done this
by coming within arms length of their
victims and thus putting their own lives
desperately at stake against their purpose.
In the two recent attempts to kill the En-
Al a. l.
enough to that desperate plan to sacrifice
their own lives, and. on the mere doctrine
of probabilities, it may be assumed that flu
tdre attempts will be made more cautiously.
Grimes like this supply to repressive gov
eminent the pretext it wants. They are
dangerous to the people only, and there can
be no greater absurdity than tho notion that
they can in any way whatever promote that
regeneration Of human society which the
socialists pretend to desire. How could
the murder of this old monarch change in
any respect whatever the fabric Of civil So
ciety in Germany or elsewhere? His crown
would pass to another head and would be
worn in the same spirit in which he wore it.
All that would be changed would be the
name Of the ruler. Under the son as under
the father the laws would remain
what the representatives, Of the German
people and the German States have made
them, and minority 30 small that it could
not change section Of them would remain
as helpless under Fritz MS it was under
William. Presumably it would then en-
deavor 10 safe by still other assassinations
that fury which might result from the dis
covery that it had no other means by which
to make itself felt. But from that could
only result tho lesson that to wear the
crown Of Prussia and Germany is danger
ous--that to hold that high station must
put ones life in imminent peril. Can the
socialists suppose that this presumption