New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-04-02

of Augustus Won Kotzebue, containing an account
of his exile into Siberia and Of the other txtiaol
binary Events which happened to him IN Russia.
He revisited that country in 1900 and the event
| proved that lie had much better have kept away
from il. lie almost Immediately arrested sep'
rated from his wife and children. ana sent 10
Tobolsk He was utterly unable to understand 'nl'
extraordinary treatment Upon the routc nc ih"oc
an unsuccessful effort to escape. The Governor OF
Tobolsk when the poor playwright arrived .he'o
was very polite and informed him that he had read
his works and admired them exceedingly ho'lo
buo Immediately drew up a long memorial 10 INC
Fmneror some parts of which are quite dvcTting
7 cannot refrain from giving part OF Article
| XVIII of This document: is kotZebue an Hh-
| moral man? And ought he not to he Danlsheu lIoi
| societvf No. First proof: On the perusal ol 'iio
journal of his occupations, and OF all his ao''on'
what does the reader find That he pianteu 'io0
on his wifes birthday; that he gave te'e cha"Pe"e
on the cutting of a child's first tooth IL Will 'peh
he found that he uniformly placed his happiness III
| the endearments of domestic life" Inc EhPe,o'
| Paul was hardly monarch to be much anec'ou W
| these tea-tray patitudes. kotzeDue mas 'no S''i'
faction occasionally Of seeing his own piaSs si''"
| at the Tobolsk theatre But he was cio s
| ordered to Kurgan-an ominouS name loi II n's"'
6es y grave. However he did not stay there long,
| eration. In fact. he seems TO have Deeh tica'ou
| onita ceperopslv the eccentric Paul bestowlng
mon him an estate in Iivonia worth four thousand
| rouhles \ wear The whole matter OF the exile TO
mains n mysterious one. II was probably n piece Vi
nersonal magnlty on the part of the oilica persons
| engaged in it, and there Is reason 10 peio'0 '
the Emperor had nothing to do with IT, iio ni"'O
! Kotzebue afterward manager oil MS "oiin"A
| Theatre at Petersburg.
One NIGHT orr manager received summons from
Count Palhlen TO hasten TO BIN lmnedlalely' hc
went in 4 great fright and app. endihe soh'' ~"
| calamity and was informed thai the Emperor hau
determined TO send challenge 20 all the soVoi',s"'
of Europe and their Ministers, and had CHOSEN nin
| TO draw I'D the form of the defiance when WAS ~
I i,sort.d in fine ne,yspapers The work was to be
done within an honr Then the Count ana thc poo'
went TO the palace together: and for the first ti
Eot,ebue saw ths semi Iunatic Paul. The inter
view with his Majesty WAS remarkable Tor various
things and especially for an admission when lhc
mooarch made: have often acted like TOOL no
said and if is but Just that should be punished
| The Fmperor's challenge. as written 10y holeDue'
Appeared in the The court Gdae'fG to the great "S
Punishment of all Europe. kptzebue GOT Tue oes'
Of if for he received snuii-box set with Drilahs'
of the value of about two thousand roubles'
Not long after the death of Paul kotzebue iel'
Hussia greatly &c his satisfaction, iOr III
seems never to have been at his ease there lo' III
1917 lie accepted from Alexander the oilco Va
Consul General at Koningsberg. IL was ho' IoSi
tion which much elevated him in The eyes Oh his
couptr,men. who REGARDED him Is n spy Of the lus-
sian court and ms a supple tool OF the leacllonaiS
policy. suddenly lie resigned and going oacS 10
| Wemor announced his intention Of devotmg NM
eof tn liierature He then surprised the puplie ny
the production of an Imperial Russian patent Great
! inc him the accredited diplomatic agent Oh thaV
! court at Neinar. lie employed also 10 Il any
reDorts directly to the Emperor Alexander hlhstil
on the state of public opinion. Nothing couiu ''
| mara dietaetetul to the mind Of Germany at thaI
time excited as il was by liberal hopes ana asPird
| tions. Kotzebuo did more. lie set up a Weehi5
literary journal in which lie opposed all proJcOta VI
politcal ameoration. and especially deho"hcc" VIC
| liberty of the press. lie everywhere regaIueu
| rs n hireling and a traitor. In 1918 he Hul'Icu
Weinar to reside at Mannheim. lie continued TO
write AGAINST liberalism and especially the LIBERAL
ism If the universities. 1t this which cost MN
| lis life There was young student OF thouioEs
| Charles Louis Sand, whose mind was exceedingly
i embittereG against Kotzebue-that foreign SuPcH
| diary and political apOstate He often declaleu
that if had become a duty to destroy the monster
adding that he himself was prepared to SttiSe inc
! blow Finally lie made ready to execute me once
of ayenger. He left Jena on the 7th OF march,
| $50 ON foot and with but little money taking
| leave of no one and making nobody conhdah' o.
| his Intentions He reached Mannheim on the I'D
aDd called twice OF the same morning nj the resi-
dencc of Kotzebue when he failed to sec him. AT >
ocock in the afternoon he went again, and was re-
| ceiyed by his destined victim. into whose body he
MINCED a long poiguard inAicting mortal wound
| of tie heart Afterward, to make sure he gave
| the diving man three more wounds. lie then lushed
| down the staircase excaiming: The traitor mas
! fallen" He displayed paper upon when was
| written: am the murderer; but IL IS thus that
| all traitors should die" Another paper when he
exhibited contained the words: "Death-ploW "i
| Aucust Won Kofzebue. III the name of Virtue" lie
then thrust the dagger into his own bosom. lie re-
covered and was afterward executed His doctrine
VS. that of the Nihsts Of to-day: 1t was necos-
saryr he said that Kotzebue should DIE; the gem
era interests of Germany demanded if, for his mani
fold offences against the country and the people,
| Sand was regarded by the youthful liberals Of
| Germany as a martyr, while few lamencd The fate
! of Kotzebue. who knew his own appropriately. and
is said to have had forebodings of a violent death
| He had his rewards while heTe-yery ample consd-
| ering his real service to mankind. For literary
| work as far as possible from being hrst-rate, lie
received great hOnOTs and adulationS, and large re-
| compensc in money. He is and Will remain stand
ing example of the utter iutlity OF literary hoto
rety. OF marvellous fccundity, turning out two
PLAYS in a month, for which all Europe was so
caoer that he could not furnish his wares fast
enough for the market, he has passed into the limbo
| of the dubious and is admired of no man
| whose admiration is worth having There is some
thing in the quality of his pathos which if It wins
| our tears makes us afterward ashamed OF shedding
them He was thoroughly artificial, but in one
sense lie was master of his art rs Sterne was. lie
takes our sympathes by surprise and thus disaIms
our Judgment, though only for a moment. His SEN
tment is false, his incidents are Improbable and his
tendency to exagecration perpetual; yet he