Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1913-05-23


: HOW DID PRESIDENT :
& FAURE DIE? !
1t is easily within the memory of
many readers of this article the mys-
terry that surrounded the death of Fran
co.'s Felix Faure. president of France.
in 1899. Faure was one of the most
popular of the presidents of France
since the establishment OF the republic
in the early '7Os. He was especially in
the eye OF the public at the time Of his
death. on account of the great publicity
that was being given to the Dreyfus
case.
On the morning of February II a de-
world that Francois Felix Faure.
president Of France. died at the Elysee
palace last night at 1915 from an apo
plectic stroke, This statement was
ma, naturally accebted. and in a great
coghized In him one Of the greatest
statesmen OF the age. There seemed
no mystery whatever attached to the
announcement. The president was over
30 and for some time rumors had been
eirculated that he was not in the best
been caused by the Dreyfus trial had
no doubt told On his nerves.
me statement as t~elegraphed was
accepted evidently by everybody. and
II the French papers, in printing It.
kne" better, their voices were no doubt
sttlled for the reason that a revolution
threatened the country by the expos
ures brought out at the Dreyfus trial.
When, however, danger of such an
occurrence was past, one by one little
mutterings began to be heard to the
death OF the French president. that it
wal not q natural death, and to these
were added little whispers of q scandal
IN connection with his fate. but they
were hushed as much as possible.
It was not until nine years later that
these rumors again became current
n with greater publicity on account
OF the Stetnhell case. In MAY of that
yea h beautiful wife of Arthur Stein
hell. an artist. was, found gagged and
to a bedpost in her room. In
the same house we're found the dead
bodies OF her husband and her step
mother. The police were told a q
matte story by Nine. Steinhell Of how
several masked burglars had entered
n house at night. and a killed the
left her in the condition in which thew
found her. s
About her story there were several
ODD features. yet generally she re-
NAMED an object Of public pity. But
nnally she was arrested for the doubla
murder. Then the French newspaners
began printing that she was a governs
n1ent spy, and connected her with sav-
eral political escapades OF recent. years
and finally several OF them were bold
enough to that President
F'aure had not died in the E.lysee hut
instead In the Steinhell home. and that
poison had e administered through
her agency. The police. 1t was allered
IN these stories. had carried the BODY
OF the stricken president fromthe stein
hell home to the Elysee palace.
The next thing to do was to search
Tor 9 motive. This supposed motive
had been even earlier voiced nv tins
famous Henri Rochefort, when he an.
grtly called to notice in sIa Patria.s
that Faure had died m~ysteriously ION
vision Of the Dreyfus affair was tohava
been presented and which he wn,,I6
nave refused to sign" From othor
sources. too. came the rumor that the
lpresident wal murdered on account e
his attitude toward the Dreyfua casa
and that Nine. Steinhell was the aCart
OF tho onspirators.
Ihcre were other stories circulafAd
one OF which was that Faure comnnf1s.
ted suicide rather than submit 70 IN
c Sh,ch 81 worry ovsr. elackmailers TO
some details were forthcoming, q
while all these stories were huShad ~
far 40 possible. by the French e0vern.
mont. there IL still q general impress
sion. IN many circles. that Faurs did
that he was murdered, the offcial n
ports notwithstanding.
~ real cause OF the death OF Preai-
dent Faure remains q mystery. There