The Detroit times., 1914-01-15
|STRANCE CURSE 4
FOLLOWS LIFE
OF FRANz-JOSEF
Mpthcr Whose Son lie Ordered
Executed Pronounced Anath-
cma i'm His Youth
FACTS SEEM TO
BEAR OUT LEGEND
Awful Wish of Woman, Made
Years Ago, Has Been Fulfill
ed in Fact


cd recently in the London Every
man. a curious story about old Franz
Josef, who celebrated his 60th year
upon the throne OF Austria.
"Because," runs the story, Franz
Josef ordered the execution OF one
OF the Karolyis his victims mother
cursed him in scathing words whlch
seemed TO sum up all the posslDll-
tiles OF human hatred.
"May heaven and hell" She cried.
blast his happiness! May his fam
ily be exterminated, May he be
smitten in the persons OF those he
loves. May his life be wrecked ano
may his children pe brought TO
\ ruin!"
A memorable course. truly, and
one which one might. il one chose,
take for the text OF this article. show.
ing how time has brought the fulfil
ment OF II, drawing the punishment
out slowly, relentlessly, increasingly
The tragedy OF the square OF Quer-
etara where his brother. the vain
and Inflated MAMMALIAN, faced
Mexican firing party; the tragedy OF
the Vatican, where his sister-in-law,
the Empress Charlotte, lost her rea-
son, never to recover II; the tragedy
OF 4 Meyerling. where his only son
died in shame with his mistress the
tragedy OF Paris, where his sisterin
law, the Duchess d'Alencon. persisted
i'm the flames at the Bazaar de la
Charlie; the tragedy OF the Pacific
4. ocean, where his relative John Ortiz,
vanished leaving no trace or record
the tragedy OF Geneva where his
wife was struck down without warn
ing by the assassin's dagger-all
these things could be represented as
sol many stages in the untiring IN
DEFEATING march OF Nemesis.
Whether the story of the curse is
trQe or not, the emperor has been a
man OF very many sorrows. Never
dig crowned head lie more uneasily
THIN old Franz Josef's has.
From College to the Throne
lie was Is years old when he came /
to ythe throne OF Austria and Hun I
gary. He was a student In college
/ at the time they brought him word
that he was emperor, and they say
the boy exclaimed
fOh. my youth. Thou art lost to |
ma forever"
He spoke truly enough. for his So !
f years OF rule have brought him griefs |
pefplexities and troubles more than |
hes could have dreamed. The realm I
thF Hapsburg King rules over is I
m4te up of many nations-Germans /
R Cztchs, Magkars, Croatians, Luth- (
uahians and Polacks Most OF these /
nations hate each other, and there I
was bitter strife before they could !
bel welded into even the semblance |
OF "a single nation. In the first few \
years OF Franz Josefs reign the real I
power lay with his mother, the Arch |
duchess Sophie. who took care 10 |
keep her son from finding out too |
much about the problems which con-
fronted him. She would attend TO |
them. The arohduchess' method of !
conciliation was 10 apply the iron |
y hand, to terrorize, TO kill She had I
her way for while.
Then one day in February, 1853. /
( Wilde the young emperor was re-
n viewing his army, young Hungar-
Ian sprang upon him with a butcher /
knife and made a desperate attempt I
to 9cut Franz Josefs throat Only /
the fact that the knife caught in the /
big buckle he wore at his throat /
saved the emperor's life The as /
8 pasDin was hanged and Franz Josef |
escaped uninjured But the incl. /
dent set him to thinking. Something \
was very wrong in Austria Hungary
when men hated the government /
Ike that. Lenient treatment, under |
standing. was what these diverse peo- /
pies OF his needed not the iron hand /
ne decided. SO he set to work 10 |
ieafn the II languages spoken in |
his dominion, to understand some OF
the complex problems which con.
frocted him.
Became the Real Ruler
From that time Franz Josef. not
Arrhduchess Sophia. ruled in Austria.
Hungary. And IL is great tribute
to the man that. though he has by
no means unified his empire. he has
won the respect and affection OF the
3 whole of 1t. der alte Franz" they
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