The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-08-22
THEY INVITE MURDER
PRIME MINISTER'S PRETTY CERTAIN
no BE MARKED MEN.
Bismarck, Gambettn, Crispi, Our Own
Seward and Ii Hung Chang All
Met Would-Bc ASsassins.
New York Press.

the king had the easier job of the two.
He has to look only way for danger
from his subjects. But the premier has TO
guard front and rear If the king loafs
ground the throne and let's his prime min
lister do the governing. the foreman is IKE
~ to get the AK where Charles the Martyr
got 1t, if the governing has been done too
indulgently. On the other hand, II the
power behind the throne is too obvious ana
oppressive, the prime minister is pretty
sure to have to give an accountipg TO the
people. And when the people balance ac-
counts the king usually has to find a new
prime minister, vice the old one, deceased.
That the throne of Spain totters is small
fault of Canovas, who had the placing CT
it. He ran things to suit himself in Iberia,
and his hand came down hard upon the
Anarchists He fought fire with fire, and
paid the penalty The establishment of a
modern nquisitjon was attended with
personal risk, from which Canovas did not
shrink. Canovas lived with the knowledge
that every breath might he his last. He
nearly tasted OF death June 20 1893,
when an attempt was made to blow up his
house in Madrid. The Anarchists miscal aleu-
lated. and Canovas wasn't there. Several
persons were hurt and the Red himself was
killed. saving the state and the premier
some trouble.
For, though murderers sometimes escape
punishment. assassins never do The diff
ference between the crimes is in the prom
inence of the victims. The killing of a
commoner is murder sometimes to be pun
ished, sometimes not. The killing of roy
atty or of a state official is assassination,
which always has been punished with
death. That is the rule.
But rules have exceptions, and one of
anti flan clio afS 70
buloff. Because this killing was not pun
ished in a way BETTING the crime it ought
perhaps to be called murder instead of as
Fascination. If Stambuloffs master had
had any backbone the terms and conditions
would have changed. Stambuloff governed
much the same as CanOVaS-With a neaVy
hand. But Canovas received a state flu
neral and respect from most of the people
of his country; Stambuloff. who did fully
Spain, and in the same way, fell without
honors.
HARD TO GET STAMBULOFF.
In 1880 Major Panitza conspred against
the life of Prince Ferdinand of Bulgaria.
Stambuloff as premier, insisted upon the
execution of PanitZa, thereby earning for
himself the hatred of large body of Bull
garians II was done for the prince and
for the state, but neither had any gratitude
to lavish upon the premier living or the
= emier dead. The next year the minister
of france was assass!nated by mistake for
the premier. and Bulgaria said it was sorry
it wasn't the prime minister. Then an
other member of the government was
killed. Stambuloff, however. wasn't awed.
He was brave-corrupt, after the way of
southeastern Europe-but stanch and game.
His turn came on July 15 1885. He had
fallen then from his high estate. He was
the enemy of Russia, and Ferdinand want
ed to be King The prince knew that
long StamhulOff reiOned Russia would
not recognize him as King. So the maker
of Bulgaria was deposed. On the evening
of July 10, when he was returning in cab
from the Union Club, in Sofia, the capital
of Bulgaria, he was attacked and fatally
wounded by three or four friends of PANT
"a, the conspirator. The conduct of the
funeral five days later was disgrace to
any state which held itself civilized. On
the Seth of last December two men were
convicted of his murder and one acquitted.
The convicted men-Tufektchieff, formerly
an empoye of the government, and ALTON,
Stambuloff's coachman-were sentenced to
three years Imprisonment. Thus ended one
premier.
Canovas was not the first prime minister
of Spain to fall before assassins. Twenty
seven years ago Gen. Juan Prim was al
the head OF the Cabinet in the provisional
government of that time. His offer of the
crown of Spain to Prince Leopold of Ho-
henzollern was the immediate cause of the
Franco-PrusSian war. Later General Prim
favored the election of the Duke OF Aosta.
The day the King landed at Barcelona,
Dec. 2S, 1870, Prim was riding in a coupe
through New Madrid Five guns, loaded
Prim was instantly killed, though his Sec
rotary, who was riding with him, escaped
injury. The assassins were put to death
some time after.
It's an odd coincidence that General
Sickles at that time was United States min
lister to Spain, and one of the attaches of
our legation there now is a nephew of the
general Prim had almost concluded ar
rangements by which the United States
was to buy Cuba, but his taking off put an
end to this scheme.
IN ENGLAND AND JAPAN.
England has not been without a sensation
in this line. Spencer Perceval prime min
lister. was shot and killed in the lobby of
the House of Commons on May H. 1872, by
John Bellingham. Bellngham was an En-
glish merchant, who lived and did business
in Archangel. He had some grievance
against the Russian government, which he
tried in vain to have the English embassa-
dor at St Petersburg take up. Then he
turned his attentions to the home govern
ment, with no better success. He decided
first to kill the ambassador, but as that
was not convenient, he selected the prime
minister. He was hanged for MS crime,
after futile attempts to get clear on the
plea of insanity.
A quarter of a century ago Marquis
Okudo, president of the Japanese Privy
Council was killed in the streets of Toxic
by several men who thought he was too
progressive. They anticipated their pun
ishment by committing hari-kari on the
spot. A few years ago an attempt was
made on the life of Marquis Ito, then count
and premier. The reasons alleged were
similar to those which actuated the assas-
sins of Okudo. Ito, however, was not
harmed Two hundred students\ We're ex-
fled from the capital in consequence of the
attempt their comrades had made.
When Crispi was prime minister of italy,
ment. he carried a brace of pistols with
him every day. People who went to see
him on business were confronted with a
cleaning barrel of a revolver on the desk.
His coach never followed the same route 10
the Parliament buildings two successive
the stiletto or the bullet. but when the as
sassins made their appearance Crispi
showed that he was no coward In Sep
TENDER, 1889, he was attacked by Emilano
Caponal, a Neapolitan. Again on June
is, 1894, Paola Lega fired at him while he
was riding In carriage Crispi jumped
out TO seize him, but the police were too
quick. Thereafter Crsprs carriage was
followed by a police inspector and two po-
lcemen in q cab This last attempt was
the result OF Crispi'S active work in sup
pressing Anarchists. and preceded by n
few days the assassination OF the President
of the French republic.
In one OF the earlier attempts on the life
of King Humbert his prime minister was
badly wounded. AS the King was entering
Naples on Nov. II, 1878 the year OF his ac~
cession. Giovanni Passanante approached
the carriage and tried to stab him The
King escaped with a scratch but Premier
Cav;oH was severely cut. Passanante was
condemned to death. but King Humbert
committed his sentence to life imprson-
ment.
BISMARCK TWICE IN DANGER