Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-02-20
CLEMENCEAU SHOT BY
ANARCHIST; IS NOT BE-
LEVIED SERIOUSLY HURT
Continued From rage one.)

| time.
Premier Clemenceau was quite
cheerful, in spite Of occasional fits Of
/ coughing. He declared to members Of
| his household that he thought he
knew his assailant He had seen him
/ last evening when entering his home,
! but the man had SUNK away.
Henry Moulin, q BARRIERS assistant
who was the first to seize the assass-
! in, described his experience in a
| somewhat flustered manner:
Il kept running after the murder
| err he said, but AS | ran | was
! greatly puzzled what TO do with him
once I reached him. But when
saw him fling his revolver away it
| gave me courage, and | ran faster,
| closing in on him, and / took one
| good swipe at him and couple OF
kicks before a detective arrived"
Moulin is a strong youth of about
! 1G. He seemed to feel proud as he
posed for photographers, and blushed
as girls checred and kissed him for
/ Believe Assailant Russian.
/ Policeman Goursat, who was
wounded in the right eye. said:
The bullet which struck me went
through the Limousine, as | was di-
4 rectly in line with the assassin, who
was rushing towards the premier s
! car.
This man surely was not French
man; his whole appearance is much
| like the nihilists, familiar on the left
| bank of the Seine.
| Huge crowds gathered around the
premiers house and kept repeating:
! This is a Russian Despite the
| fact that they were informed that
the premier's assailant was French,
| they refused to believe it,
At police headquarters the Asso-
ciated Press was informed Coffin has
record there, with Bertillon mea-
! surements. He was regarded as a
mild sort OF anarchist. The authori-
! ties did not believe he would be reck-
/ less enough to attempt such IL ter
| rible act.
| Coffin lived at Mont Rouge. a su
/ burb Of Paris, in a small hotel which
| has long been under police supervi-
| on, as it is frequented by anarch-
| lists These persons. however are
more notorious for spreading liter
| ature ana making speeches than for
acts of violence
! Probe for Plot.
The police refuse to say whether
! they believe the attack on the pre-
micr was the result of a plot or mere
| Is an individual act. They are work
| ing however, apparently on the the
| DRY that it was plot as the little ho-
! tel vas encircled and a thorough
search Of the building for incriminat-
ing documents is being made.
Secretary Lansing called at the
Clcmenceau home to convey the SYM
patty of the American commission
and the American people. After his
visit he said that in order to allay the
very natural apprehension that
might be created as to the effect of
the attack upon the French premier
on the work of the peace conference,
il was his opinion and that of others
, with whom he conferred that the
conference work had been so well or
ganized by NJ. Clemeneeau and had
progressed to such l an advanced
stage that most of it now was in com
mittee and would continue virtually
without interruption.
Smokes and Laughs.
When the first shot was fired Pre-
mier Clemenceau Immediately tried to
open the door of his car. 1t was
While he was attempting to do this
that he was struck lie was able to
go on foot into his own house, where
shortly before noon The Associated
Press was informed he was sitting up
in an arm chair smoking and laugh
ing with his staff of assistants,
The only sign of trouble from the
wound, it was stated, was a slightly in
creased temperatures.
The actual arrest of NJ. Clemen-
10 NJ do "
Agent Labaugh He also made the
first examination of the prisoner.
Policeman Goursat gave his de-
scription of the shooting to The Asso-
| ciated Press representative in the city
hall where the arrested man was
Thought.
An enormous crowd which observed
a respectful silence, assembled near
NJ Cleamehceau's residence after the
occurrence. Within half hour
President Poincare arrived He was
quickly followed by various members
of the cabinet, high officials of the
government and representatives of the
army and navy, as well as of the Dip
lomatic corps, including Wipiam
Graves Sharp, the American anbas-
sadOr,
tlfSI ntIbDflS &OtttiohptoiS'
First reports of the incidents of the
shooting We're contradictory, espec-
tally as to whether the premier was
inside or outside his automobile when
the shots were fired, 1t seems to
have been established, however that
NJ. Clemenceau was already in his au-
tomobie. The car was turning q
corner of the Rue Franklin into the
Rue Del l9ssert when man standing
on the sidewalk jumped toward the
door of the automobile and fired sew
eral times. one of the bullets pene-
trated the interior of the car and
struck the premier in the right shoul-
der, The premier had tried to open
the door of the car when the first
shot was fired, and it was while ne
was thus engaged that the bullet hi
him. His chauffeur, Brabant also
was slightly wounded. Thus three OF
the assassins bullets, it appears took
effect one upon the premier, another
upon the chauffeur and the third up
on Policeman Goursat, who was one
of the police agents who guard the
premier.
1t was in the struggle with the as
sassin that the police officer was
! wounded. Meanwhile the premier had
stepped out OF bis automobile ana
walked into his house.