The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1898-09-12

sweet and kindly smile OF a mother(
But on the contrary, the royal mothery
ordered > the Archduchess to repaid
alone to the vault in which her dead
father lay, and there kneeling by his|
coffin to pray for the repose OF hist
soul. The Archduchess regarded thisI
as the last and most dreadful blow.I
She entreated her mother to save herI
such en- ordeal. Maria-Theresa. how'd
ever, was little moved to pity and as{
little used to brook opposition In any-l
thing; and least of all would she toll
crate 1t in a matter where she ap-I
peared to have a mysterious persona
interest. She, therefore, refused toi
listen to her daughters pleading andI
Insisted upon her orders being obeyedI
to the letter. The Archduchess wasI
not ignorant of the motive which ac.|
tuated her mother but she dared noti
disobey.
Il am going down to my tomb,-|
whispered the Archduchess in the earl
OF one OF her maids of honor. as she|
proceeded to carry out the Injunction
laid upon her. The Archduchess powI
descended unattended and alone intol
the vault, where shortly before the rel
mains OF one OF the princesses Of thel
House OF Hapsburg, Maria Josephine,
wife OF the King OF Saxony, had been
Inferred beside that OF Francis OIL
Lorraine. The Queen OF Saxony had|
died OF smallpox. To send the Arch
duchess to pray in such a place was
virtually to pass sentence Of death up
on her. Accordingly upon the day foil
lowing the Archduchess herself took
III OF smallpox. Maria-Theresa order
ed masses to be celebrated in all the
churches of Vienna for the recovery oil
the Archduchess. But as the coffin
that contained the remains OF the
Queen of Saxony had been pried par
TALLY open there was no chance for
Josepha to escape the catching and
terrible disease. She died upon the
very day fixed for herself and King
Ferdinand to leave Vienna for Naples.
There was weeping at the Court OF
Vienna In consequence but the eyes of
the empress-queen were dry. No.
motherly instinct OF grief overcame
the fierce fires Of jealousy that blazed
in her queenly heart. Maria Theresa
never gave the slightest proof Of re-
morse, and after the court OF the Haps-
burgs had solemnly gone into mourn
ing for the young Pene pc whom the
head OF the House of Ilapsburg had
placed in the path of Death, Maria
Theresa secured the Ncapolitan al
liarce sCr her next daughter, the Arch
duchess Caroline. Not b cath OF sus-
picion IVES aroused. Not murmur Of
protest arose. Not one cringing cour-
tier dared to give uttcrance to the
stifed feelings which he entertained.
But one sad and stricken soul sigh
ed and sobbed in the secrecy of her
chamber amid all the sins and revelry
of that putrescent Court. One break
Ing heart was ready to burst. II was
that of the faithful maid of honor into
whose ear the Archduchess had whis-
pered. 81 am going down to my tomb"
In these few awful but prophetic
words we have recalled tragedy as
romantic IN its way as that when
Marie Antoinette's head was struck off
by the guillotine in the days of the
French revolution, or when the blood
of the beautiful and ill-fated Mary,
Queen Of Scots. was lapred by one OF
her pet dogs in order to appease the
tigerly instincts of her cousin, Eliza
beth. Vice is terrible enough In or
dinary natures but under the law of
her. .dity it runs TO appalling extremes
in royal ones.