New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-05-04
Al STRIAN COUNTESS GIVES HER VERSION OF ROYAL TRACED
In Telling Her Own Story Of the incidents
Leading to the Tragc Death Of Crown
Prince Rudolph Of Austria the Mar
rator Slabs at August Persons.

:, too, she consented to carry out. 81.
bribed her cab driver with Rudolnb,.
money to support her statement that IN.
girl had skipped away rom her in aha,
and then returned to the Vetsera hous.
The baroness. now thoroughly ala-raa
called I'm the poli"e, the countess ke.u,,.
up her pretence of ignorance of What Aaa
happened. And when, at last the motbs,
succeeded In reaching the presence OF m.
Empress, Elizabeth said coldly: You Ar.
too late. They are both dead"
The book describes all the grewsom.
details of the tragedy at Meyerne a.
they were told to its author by the cour,
physician. She was suspected from N.
first, for still another link between bs,
and the affair had been forged by IN.
cab driver whom she had brbed and vbo
had. of course, confessed at once. In IN.
living room of the hunting lodge drunt.
en- orgy had been going on far into the
night, while upstairs the double murder
or murder and suicide, or double suicIds
had been committed. not to be discoye,as
until the next morning. Rudoph's far.
was so torn and disigured that IL migb,
as well have been battered in as shot n
pieces. Marie Vetseras uncles yer.
ordered TO dress her body in the clothes
in which she had come. and to take II
away in a carriage. as IL still alive,
drive Of many miles. her rolling head
being held upright by a cane to which n
was tied. But all attempts at secrecy
availed nothing. The witnesses OF the
deed after its commission were too many.
History added one of it's bloodiest pages
to the long and dark story Of royalty.
THE MOTIVE.
According to Countess Larlsch, Rudolph
killed Marie Vetsera and then committed
suicide. She pronounces untrue the wide.
ly entertained story that he was driven
to the deed By the discovery that the XIII
was his half-sister. Her explanation
that the Crown Prince found himself
caught in a trap from which there was
no escape. Her narrative is plausible,
and fits perfectly into the political condi-
tons OF the Dual Monarchy In the late
SOS. when a large party In Hungary
looked confidently forward 10 the sep
aration of their kingdom from Austria
on the death OF Francis Joseph and to
Rudolph's choice OF the Hungarian over
the Austrian crown. The Crown Prnce,
according TO Countess Larisch, had grown
tired OF waiting for his fathers death
and had entered into a conspiracy 10
make himself King OF Hungary before
that event. The conspiracy she contia-
ues. was on the eve OF being unmasked.
and Rudolph faced Impeachment for high
treason. disgrace and Imprisonment II
not death, at the hands OF justice. He
chose to Kill himself.
To clinch this theory, which smacks Of
the Middle Ages. Countess Larisch adds
that the man who ultimately claimed the
metal casket intrusted TO her by Rudolph
admitted to her that her surmlse was
true. And that man, so she afiirms. was
none other than the Archduke John Of
Tuscany-the John Ortiz who vanished
years ago.
This explanation gives a truly melo
dramatic ending OF as scandalous .
chronicle as was ever written IN earlier
centuries, when self-preservaton pre-
scribed secrecy. But there still remains
even If this explanation be true, the IN
fathomable reason of Rudolphs murder
OF Marie Vetsera before he took his oxa
disgraced life.