Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1909-10-17
RUSSIA AND ROYALTY
A Shadow That DarkenS the
 Path of the Czars.
THE FEAR OF ASSASSINATION


 tered His eody-An Internal Machine
 That Failed to Kill Alexander III.
 The shadow that falls across the path of tn" cZarS may extend the world round. Wherever the ruler of all the RuSsas may happen to le. there the shadow of fear lies.
 Once in Paris, once in the palace gardens. Alexander II. was fired at. Again in the Winter Palace square pne Solurici1. wearing 'ile uniform of an official. passed the guards one day. and again the cZ;lr w;ls fired upon Alexander ran for the palace. Soio- rietf followed him and fired three times. The czar ran in zi@Za"S, how ever. and so escaped. Not long after ward two mines were laid to blow up the imperial train. One did not cx- plode. but the second wrecked the train. Once more the czar escaped Watching eyes had saved him, their owners having persuaded the ruler to take another train.
 Later Alexander IT, owed hs life to the fact that he came late to func- ton at the palace. \ bomb blew clean out q large portion of the imperial reSi- dence but the cZar was not present.
 But of Ill the attempts on the lives of HuSSia's rulers wo stand out most clearly for their amazing ingenuity. One tells the story of little unpfe- ,entiol,s shop in Malaja Saaovaja street koboZeif, then unknown to the police. took the shop and set out to impress the police. who were al premises along the thorouglfareS ,hratt-l which Alexander II, passed. that l,t was nothin. but q provision deaier Nearly every OH" in that S!r.,.i was q paid spy. bul keboZrf iok.al with his customers. pleased his apparently harmless.
 i'h, deaier inspired confidence. and ;.iS rl>lom increased gradually. No M:..3,i,r. for most "' the par'tiS that his customers were carrying aWaN by ,l;iN ,.ontaineh nothing hul earth .l - lr.en S,rapeu hN the man atd lllS wife from beneath the street. II Was be such ingenious method hat d tun- ne was hollowed and cleared under he thorougilfare aud q mine laid be. neath he way tine czar often passed, iM innocent couch upon which tue housewife slept covering the entry to the tunnel.
 Yet all the work was useless. On ;hp day the Scheme W;lS to he carried out the cZal upset all the arrange alcat> by going off to lunch with he Grand Duchess Catherine Michaclovlli.
 Anon" those who were watching on baaalf of the terroriSts was heauti- f;!l cirl-a countess. too-named l'e- re:i skaTt. It WaS she who. seeing the altered arrangements. gave warning Y!.e czar would return to the palace another way. Along this route four n:en carrying bombs were stationed Ono threw bis Men and horses were killed all around. but the ear stepped from his coach unscathed. \ second man holding il bomb came forward | and threw it. This time the effect was awful. says Waclaw Gasiorow- ski, who describes the incident in lis book. "Tra-ie Russia" ''The cZar fell as if cut by q scythe. His legs were sll;tftercd 10 pieces" So died the czar who had escaped as by a miracle inany times.
 Alexander III. followed. and there were attt lllptS upon bis life. The l fourth was one of the most Sens;l- l tional in the entire list of nlhilist plots. 1 On bri"ht au;umn day the imp"- riai train travelled at full speed on the track well guarded by soldiers. It was toward noon. The imperial family were in the dining car. where lunch was about to be served. The cook and his help were making the last prepara 1 tions for it when an assistant was 1 taken ill.
 The court physician attended the man and. havin. stated that he had | fever. with symptoms of some mex plicable ailment, decided thar the man ceull not remain in the imperial train and he was left at the next station.
 Tine train moved forward toward Borki. travelling at the speed of eighty kilomcters an hour. Then the cleo trica bell notified the cook that the imperial family were ready for lunch con. \ few seconds after the bel sounded terrific noise was heard and violent explosion changed in the twinklng of an eye the luxurious i'm perial train into heap of broker iron. of wrecked cars. Of mueilate, corpsea. enveloped in smoke and mad, all the more narrowing by the moan ing and cries for help of the wounded
 Yet the cZ&r escaped. The dining room car that the nihilists had in tended should be grave for the czal
 his family and his suit saved him. fo l although it's roof and floor wer' | wrecked it's sides were preserved