The morning call., 1891-08-31
THE AUSTRIAN TRAGEDY.
Vas the Dead Baroness Related 10 the
Emperor?

New YORK, Aug. 31.-1he:WorId prints
a letter signed "D. Co. who is described as
former member of the Austrian Court, in
which startling theory is advanced con-
cerning the death Of Crown Prince
Rudolph of ~ Austria and Baroness
Marie de Vetzera. The writer SAYS
for eighteen months Baroness Vetzera has
been seeking by every means in her power
to secure the publication of n suppressed
pamphlet in Paris, in Berlin, in Milan, in fact
in every large city of the Continent. She
found unsurmounl able obstacles placed in
her way by the police acting in Difference
to urgent entreaties received from the Aus
trian authorities. Having been personally
acquainted for many years with the widowed
Baroness Vetzera, with her late husband,
with her brothers aud several of her relatives
am not surprised at the tenor of the PAM
phlet nor at Nine. de Vetzera'S anxiety to
secure its publication. Unfortunately for
Nine. de VetZera, both l myself and
many others are able to show that
the Baroness came with her daughter to
London at tn time of the Queens Jubilee
for the expre ess purpose OF enabling the
young glrl TO meet her imperial lover. Dur
ing the time Rudolph spent in London he
passed every spare moment with young Ma
RE NetZera and was frequently seen aud met
walking and driving in her company.
Sometimes she was alone with him, at other
times she was attended either by her
mother or sister. The intimacy OF the
was well known to the King and Queen of
tile Belgians, to Crown Princess Stephanie,
to number of people in Vienna and
London and to Nine. de Vetzera
herself fully a year before the lat
made her daughters acquaintance and two
years before the day on which the Baroness
claims that she first became cogniZant
thereof. Cool blooded intriguante and
selfish selfish, as sb L tS know her, her, | doubt
anxious to prove her ignorance of her
daughters intimacy with tile Crown Prince
had 1t been merely an ordinary liason.
There Is every reason to suppose
that the relations between the two
lovers constituted not only an ordinary in
fraction Of the seventh commandment, but
moreover crime which the Baroness alone
was cOgnZant and of a character which
both her daughter and the Archduke were
entirely ignorant.
- The writer then states that neither the
baroness nor her sisters have ever been
received at court. She did not accom-
pany her husband on any of his vaIi-
ous diplomatic missions, but remained
In Vienna and became the heroine Of any
number cf adventures. The writer adds:
Her name became connected In a very
questionable manner with quite a number
Of leading men OF high life, not the least
among whom was the Emperor Francis
Joseph. The question as to whether there
was strong resemblance between Marie
and the Emperor was current and favorlte
topic of discussion in the salons of Nine.
Vetzera and of her most intimate friends at
the time when | first knew the young girl.
The writer then states that there was
widespread belief in military and diplo-
matte circles that Marie was more
closely related TO the Emperor than to
Baron Vetzera. The Baron was rapidly
promoted and displayed remarkable indif-
ference to his wife's doings except once when
he brought suit in England to secure
the removal of the children from the
mothers care on the ground that she was
unfit to be their guardian. He was then
temporarily unemployed, but SOON after
was given well-paid berth in Egypt,
where lie died
The Countess Marie Larisch, the niece of
the Empress who was exiled for her share in
Marie's d0ings is said to be no blacker
than painted. The writer says that the day
before the suicide of the Prince and the
Baroness the Emperor and the Crown
Prince had stormy interview, and
that then the Prince realized for the first
time the true situation and the impOssi-
bility of continuing relationship w hich
had become part of his very existence.