The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-05-31
BLOOD STAINED ROYALTY.
MANY MURDERS HAVE BEEN COM
l1ITTED By KINGS.
Lunntics in the PurDle-Mad King
Otto Of Bavaria Fancies lie is a
stOrk or "A Pig.

King Otto Of Bavaria has been insane
since his accession 20 the throne ten
| years ago His mania is sometimes homi-
/ cidal and at other moments is analogous
70 that with which Nebudchadnezzar was
afi.cted-an insanity which scientists call
Aathesis.
King Otto is not the only royal per-
sonage OF modern times who has slain
one or more OF his fellow creatures. A
| giant in stature and physical strength,
King otto has already killed three Of his
attendants at the castle of Furstenried.
where he is confined. and injured for life
several others by hurting heavy articles
| Of furniture at their heads in his moments
/ of frenzy.
| The only time when the mad king is
| not dangerous is when Mathesis possesses
! him and leads him 10 believe that he
is hog or else a stOrk. When thus pos
| sessed he roams about the palace on all
/ fours, grunting ana roofing with his
] head under the furniture. Ina ginning
| himself stork. he devotes days to the
| collection of twiss. sticks and straws
| which he arranges like a stork $ nest, in
/ the center Of which he solemnly stands
| first on one leg and then on the other
| Tapping the tails Of his long black frock
I "a
| ne does not altogether dispense with
| clothes) like the wings Of a stork.
| Sing Otto, too, has a craze Tor matches.
/ When he is sane enough to smoke he
| consumes an iuOrdinate quantity of ci-
garettes. For each cigarette he uses an
| entire box of matches taking an imbecfle
! pleasure in seeing the box flare up. The
/ tiOors of the palace when he smokes are
| Uttered with thousands upon thousands
| The greatest care is observed to pre-
vent MIN from setting ire TO the palace,
/ precautions rendered difficult by his
! habit of finglng the first thing he lays
| his hand at any person who annoys
him. CandelaSras. lamps, heavy ink
| stands, statueues, busts and, heavy
| giant as missiles. The mirrors with which
/ the palace is adorned are constantly be-
ing removed, as Otto takes mischievous
/ delight IN smashing them.
| For weeks, sometimes, he eats nothing
and food is forced down his throat. Al
| other times he gOrges voraclously and
| himself a porker The kings attendants
| are the eX-nOn-commissloned army OF
| hcers and they retain unimpaired their
| devotion and respect Tor their a1liG gu
monarch even after they have seen him
/ on all fours Stimulating the uncouth ana
| When Otto fancies Himself a stork he
struts stOrk-lil1e ABOUT the palace gar
dens looking for frogs; seraplhhg sa ne ne
/ imagines himself TO be. He frequently
/ wades. fully clothed, into the park lake
1 are under strict orders to keep all frogs
/ out Of the way. But every now and
! then the poor king-stork catches one
/ and devours il with great relish.
4 lis attendants find it difficult 10 keep
| him presentable, for the giant madman is
so powerful that eight or ten men are
/ needed TO subdue him when he becomes
/ unruly.
/ No one is permitted to loiter in the
neighborhOod of the palace OF Furstenrled,
/ which is surrounded with lofty walls,
/ precaution due not only to the fear that
! the king may injure or Kill any passing
! stranger. but to the apprehension that an
1 attempt might be made to rescue his ma
! 1esty. The loyal peasantry OF Bavaria be-
/ lieVe that their king is not mad but is
/ kept locked up In Difference to the wishes
/ of the abhorred Prusslans-a victim or the
/ malignant designs of Prince Bismarck and
! Of Emperor William.
! Only once has King Otto left Fursten-
! ried since his brothers tragic death ten
/ years ago. He scaled the wall one day and
] escaped unobserved, making his way, un-
| recognized to Munich, about an hour dis
! tant. There he entered the Cathedral dur
/ ing divine service Qt was on a Sunday.
! strobe straight up to the high altar, before
| which he threw himself PROSTATE. Then,
! raising himself on his knees, he lifted up
4 his hands and pathetically besought the
/ Almighty to pity poor demented King otto
! and in Ills mercy restore TO him his rea-
/ son.
It was an indescribably pathetic scene;
women and men wept aloud. The rector,
/ a venerable ecclesiastic with snow white
i hair, approached the king kneit down be
side him and prayed with him, then sooth-
/ ed him with comforting words and finally
| led him quietly into the vestry whence
! he was removed in a court carriage by mis-
! medical attendants, who had been sent for
King Otto's elder brother and prede-
cessor, King Louis II, killed a couple of
men during his reign, one in fit of fury,
the other by accident, while he drowned
\ a third, his medical attendant, himself
| succumb bling al the same time The king
/ had been placed under restraint as a
J lunatic, but in lucid intervals realized his
| condition He attributed his irksome re-
| straint to his physician, and a the first
| opportunity he deliberately drowned the
unforNunate man, himself dying of fit
The late King John of Saxony became
insane three days prior to the date Off
| cially declared to be that of his death.
| His madness first assumed a violent form
at a grand court ball, where he so gross
! ~ lnsulted the daughter of the Austrian
| envoy that he had to be removed to his
| private apartments, while the unfortunate
| girl and her parents left the city before
| daybreak. Twenty-four hours later lie
| military aides.
The doctors consulted by the presen,
i king declared that the old monarch's N
sanity was not only homicidal, but incur
| able.
AS Saxony is full of socialists it was
considered impolitic to establish a re.
| gency, so King John was declared dead.
| A preteXt was found for avoiding Law.
ing the remains out in state, and no enc
| was aIOWeu 10 look at the supposed
! corpse coffin, declared to be his, was
carried to the grave with imposing cere
monies, and his son ascended the throne
The old monarch survived this mock
burial for nearly four years. He was
conflned in a remote monastery IN
Saxon, Switzerland.
The Crown Prince of Austria shot and
| Killed the Baroness Marie Vetzera before
he took his own life one sombre January
morning at Meyerling 1t was this muir.
derouS act and not his suicide which in.
duced many of the Austrian clergy to de.
ices.
The late Emperor Alexander III OF
Russia shot and killed Count Reutern
one of the officers of his household under
the impression that the count was &
Nihilist and a would-be assassin. Thg
count approached the car in the DARK
at CATCHING, al as he neared the EN-
peror made a movement that led his
majesty to believe that the stranger was
getting some weapon ready for murder
/ without an instants hesitation Alexan
der drew revolver and shot the mar
dead realizing too late his terrible mis-
The late Prince Peter Bonaparte. father
OF Prince Roland Bonaparte, who fire
| quently visits this country, and who de