The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-01-05
MAY YET BE AN EMPRESS.
The Only Daughter Of the Late Crown
Prince Of Austria.
New York World.

Archduchess Elizabeth, the twelve-year-
old only daughter of the late Crown Prince
Rudolph. of Austria, took her first com
in Vienna 'f few days ~ aso tat the e cpncu
sion OF the ceremony the little Archiuchess
walked up, not to her mother, but TO her
grandfather. to whom she is passionately
attached, and who bent down and ciasIed
her in his arms.
Archduchess Elizabeth, "Our Little Wom-
an" as the Viennese fondly call her. is. in
spite OF her tender years, the most popular
member Of the reigning house, with the
solitary exception of the Emperor. The
A thd T and Hungarians in general. and
transferred that affection which they mani
Tested towards "Unser Rudi," as they were
wont to style the late Crown Prince. 10 bis
the ward Of her grandparents, no mention
being made of his wife. And the Emperor
has accepted the trust in The fulles; sense
Of the word.
Rudolph's widow. Stephanie, whom no.
body likes, spends at least nine months OF
the year in foreign travel. exciting COM
travagant behavior, Eighty conduct, cynical
utterances and thoroughly frivolous and un-
Cowes and elsewhere. During these alb
sences it is the old Emperor and, in a
minor desree. his consort who III towards
mother. He finds time aee to supervise her
lessons and inspect her copy-oooks ard her
tasks. and it is her grandfather to whom
manifestations of paternal tenderness
which every. child Graves. The Empress.
too. IS very kind to her whenever size is in
Vienna, while the other members IF the
imperial family vie with one another in
trying to soften any sorrow that the cE:ld
might feel by reason of her mothers attn
tude
If, as asserted by the historian, Hor-
mayer, the signatures of the 'Pragma tic
Sanction" were forged, and. as is admitted
In the Legislature, well as in the semi
official press of Pesth and Vienna, that no
trace of the document be found in the
state archives. the little Archduchess Eliz-
abeth, as only daughter Of the late Crown
Prince, is heir to the throne of Hungary
The Pragmatic Sanction was supposed to
provide for the succession Of a woman to
the throne Of the dual empire only in the
event OF there being member of the male
dynasty left alive But if this sanction does
not exist then the old laws of succession
as still in existence, and they provide for
succession according to seniority i'm the
male or female.
There is no doubt that little Archduches,
Elizabeth would be infinitely more welcome
to the Hungarians as their sovereign than
the Emperor's brother, Archduke Carl Lud-
wig, who for the past ten or fifteen years
has opposed the liberal reforms and popular
corded to the Magyar nation by the Emper-
or Francis Joseph. And his sons are little
better than he. The elder of the two, Fran
els Ferdinand. is dying of consumption in
Egypt; the other, Archduke Otto, is re-
nowned as being the biggest blackguard of
old-world royalty, even the disreputable
ex-King Milan of Servia being a high-bred
and honorable gentleman in comparison
So great indeed are the disadvantages pre-
sented by the possibility Of the advent to the
throne of either Archduke Carl. Ludwig
or of his son. Otto, that Emperor Francis
Joseph has persistently refrained since Ru-
dolph's death from giving the slightest
countenance to the rumors and reports re-
ferring to his brother and his nephews az
heirs apparent. and within the past fort
night he has given serious indication of his
intention to avail himself of the power
which he possesses to bar them both from
the succession.