The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1896-11-04

LisEL bcN THE EMPRESS TAoTI.
Horrisle shsory Of The blood countss,s
Revived. I
satbke as THO Abyesinians arc, tic
fste Emperor John, in spite OF hib
Christianity having been accustomed
TO slice Off the noses and lips OF those
OF his subjects whom he found MAX
ing use Of either snul OF tobacco, there
is no truth in the story circulated in
the French andItaiah press 70 rne ef- Z
feet thai the EmpressTaou is aecns-
toned to bathe in the blood Of young
girls slaughtered for the purpose. the
object being TO. preserFe her waning
beauty, says The rNas York Tribune,
This thle hhtteriS ewitnout foundation
end e 50 obviodsly deffved from the
Iiife OF the Aistrian dountess Nadasdy
who lives IN Austrian history and
poetry as "Die Blut Grafn.n that it may
be worth while to relate briefly the
extraordinary crimes Of the latter.
It seems that in an evil moment the
countess, whose memory is commemo-
rated in Vienna by the name OF the
"Blut-Strasss," given tola thoroughfare
crossing the site formerly occupied by
her palace. discnvert ., as she thought,
that human blood whitened and beauti-
fed the skin From that time forth
the stopped at no crime in order to Sc
cure her horrible cosmetic Mere than
200 young and beautiful girls are known
I to have been murdered, either by her
hands or by those Of her aged maid,
Helen 10; her nurse, Catherine Beenet-
zky. OF her dwarf. Fierko, az her Wen
nese palace alone. While at her castle
of Cseith, in Hungary over 800 more
we're put to death
The total number Of her innocent Vie
Tins. according to absolutely official re-
ports, numbered $50 girls, and this
alarming figure would have been much
larger--as large. indeed. as that attri-
buted TO her by legendtha not the
authorities at last interfered. the gov
crnor Of the province In which her cas-
lie was situated-who, by the way, was
her first cousin--being charged with
the duty OF placing her under arrest
II seems that when he penetrated into
her apartments for the purpose he
found no less than three young peasant
maidens being bled to death. their
blood being carefully collected in o
large tub, into which the dreadful
countess was about to plunge.
Her two female accompliees were
burned at the stake and her dwarf
broken on the wheel, while the countess
herself, being OF too lofty birth and
ancient lineage to be subjected to ordi-
nary criminal procedure. was con-
demned to remain in close confinement
in her gloomy castle. According to ira
} dition She was there starved to death.
Her portrait was shown at the castle
OF zay-Ugrooz in Hungary and Is
that OF n singularly lovely wom'
an, dressed in the purest renaissance
style, with dreamy, winning smile
great black eyes and a wealth Of dusky
: tresses, which enframed the most deli
cate of snowy compilations. Coun
Francis Nedasdy, her husband, far from
checking her crimes, rather encouraged
> them than otherwise. for he was won
4 to profess the opinion, rather common
, In those days. that the lower classes
wera merely meant to serve as pastimei
and Instruments for the nobility. sh'
was barely Is when she married hin
and was much devoted TO him, although
his name is to this day execrated ant
iursed throughout Hungary, thanks T.
+ the absolute bestial ferocity and incred
/ ibo brutality which stained his other
/ wise brilliant military career