Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1894-06-27
Assassination of the President of France.

ASSASSINATION OF the President OF france.
NJ Marie Francois Sadi-Carnot,
President of the French republic, was
assassinated in Lyons last Sunday
night. The President had visited the
international exhibition and was on
his way in an opera carriage to the
theatre, where gala performance was
to have been given in his honor. AS
the carriage was passing the Palace of
Commerce, at 9:25 o'clock, man
sprang to the step of the vehicle and
stabbed the President in the breast
with a large knife. The project of
Lyons, who was seated by the side of
the President, knocked the assassin
off the carriage. The police had great
difficulty in preventing the lynching of
the assassin. The President died at
12:45 o'clock Monday morning. The as
sassn was Cesare Gorivanni Santo an
italian.
President Carnot was born August
18th, 1887, and was aged 56 years, 10
months, and 10 days when assassInated.
He was son of NJ. Lazare Heppolyte
Carnot, a well-known politician and
authorin his day, and grandson of the
celebrated war minister of the first
French revolution.
A President of France is elected for
seven years by majority of votes by
the Senate and Chamber of Deputies
united in national assembly or cleo
toral congress.
President Carnot came into power on
January, 1, 1888, and would, in the
natural order of things, have retired on
January 1, 1895.
M. Carnot's last speech was delivered
at the banquet given in his honor. He
dwell upon the success of the eXhi
bition and said that the SINE heart
beats in all French breasts when it is
known that the honor, security or
rights of the country are at stake. This
same union of all Frenchmen formed
a guarantee of the march toward prog
ress and justice, to which it belonged
to France to give an example to the
world.
An official note was issued Monday
morning, calling upon the Senate and
Chamber of Deputies to assemble in
Congress at Verseiles at O'Clock We'd
nesday afternoon for the purpose of
electing a new President.
With President Carnot dead, NJ
Casimir-Perrier, president of the Cham
Der of Deputies, and General Saussier,
military governor of Paris, are the two
strongest men in France.
M. Casimir-P errier is probably the
strongest candidate for the presidency,
as he seems to be the most powerful
man in France at present. Firm, fear
less and alert, the ex-premier was
looked upon as likely to succeed Presi
dent Carnot, and it will be recalled
that his recent fall from the premier
ship was looked upon as nothing more
than a political move calculated to
strengthen his political chances.
Santo, the italian assassin. who
speaks French badly, when questioned
by Project Leipzig at the police station
in Rue Meliere, said he had lived at
Cette, Department of Herault, for the
past six months and had only come to
Lyons that day. He gave his age as
twenty-five years. His replies were
given coolly, but without any sign of
bravado. He refused, however, to
answer any of the many questions put
to him regarding his motive for stab
bling the President, declaring that on
this subject he would speak only be-
fore tribunal.
When he was searched by the police
book was found in one Of his pockets
in which it was written that he had
been born in a village in the Province
of Milan, Italy.
The police had great difficulty to
prevent Santo from being lynched and
killed at once by the Infatuated people,
and it is wonderful that they succeeded
in doing so. 1t seems that persons oc-
cupying prominent official positions
are not safe in this age of anarchists
and murderous cranks. Three Presi-
dents of publics-Liucoln, Garfield,
and CarnOt-have been assassinated
recently. Uneasy lies the head that
wears a crown"
On Tuesday, June 18th John G.
Martin, an inmate of the Soldiers
Home, Washington, committed suicide
in the grounds of that institution by
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