The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1922-06-24


ofAthe Foremost Men oi
His, Day
Berlin. June 24.-(By the Associat
edPress.) DIR. Walter Rathenau, Ger
man minister of foreign affairs, was
assassinated today.
Official announcement of DR.. Rath
enaus death was made in the Reich
stag.
Tho murderer, who was driving in
a motor car, slowed up as he was
nearing DR.. Rathenau and shot twice
at the foreign minister. the shots TAX
ing effect Immediately and proving
fatal. Putting on high speed the as
sassin escaped.
No clue to the identity of the muir
derer had been found up to noon to-
day.
DR.. Rathenau was guest at din
ner last night of Allinson B. Hough-
ton, the American minister. On re-
ceiving news of the assassination Of
the foreign minister this morning the
American embassy promptly hOisted
its flag to half mast
The minister was shot and instantly
killed as he was leaving his resiG-
ence in Grune valid, 4 suburb of BE:
lin, for the foreign office in an auto
mobile Thc. assassin escaped.
The assassination cg DR.. Rathenau
followed hard upon vitriolic attack
upon the foreign minister by DR..
Karl Kelfferich in the reichstag yes
terday. when the nationalist leader
gI:iled the government generally and
DR. Rathenau in particular, regarding
the cabinets reparation policy ard its
attitude toward the populations OF the
Rhineland and the Saar valley.
The news of the assassination
reached the reichstag at IL o'clock
just when the committee on taxation
had convened. Chancellor Wirth an
nounced the assassination upon which
pandemonium broke out among the
various parties groups.
Two socialists jumped up, shouting
to DIR. Helfferich, "You are the as
sassin!"
They threatened to pounce upon
him and DR.. Helfferich hastily left
the committee room.
In one of the reichstag lounges a
heated outbreak of recrimination oc-
Cured between deputies belonging
to the left and party of representa-
of the other extreme in the cham
ber
When the news was communicated
TO the Reichstag itself at 11:25 o'clock
it was received with deep emotion.
Then. amidst a turmoil the reichstag
adjourned
There were two persons in the au-
tomobile from which the shots that
killed DR.. Rathenau were fired. His
car was nearing his house and had
reduced its speed, when the machine
containing the assassns was encoun-
tered.
Both the occupants are said to have
opened fire upon the foreign minis
ter who fell to the floor of his car
fatally wounded, expiring shortly af-
terward, :,
Large numbers 9e police were on
yfhe>scene shortly! safterward and a
firing squad was dispatched in the
direction the car was reported to have
taken.
DIR. Walter Rathenau was styled the
wizard of the German empire, be-
cause, by his high powers of organi-
zation and business efficiency he
devised expedients which kept the
people eating and the army shoot
ing when the blockade had shut on
the importation of raw materials dur
ing the war.
After the war, as minister OF re-
construction, his meetings with the
French minister, Louis Loucheur'
brought about, with businesslike dl-
rectness. adjustments and accommo-
dations which had been the despair
Of dinlomats. He was of jewish
birth and was described as a man
Of great force and energy bubsiness
acumen, vision and initiative his
father founded the Allegemeine EiaK-
trizaete Cesellschaft German General
Electric Company of BraziD COM
monty known as the A. e. G.
After studying at the Universities
of Berlin and Strasbourg, DR.. Rathe-
nau began his profession of engineer
with establishments in Switzerland
and Savoy. Then he went to the A
E. G., and rose rapidly to the head
of the organization. alter he retired
after failing in an attempt to oppose
a combination with Siemens-Schukert
Company.
Aside from business obligations ne
accompanied DR.. Dernberg, then sec
retary of state for the colonies, on Q
tour of the German possessions In
Africa. He later represented Germa'
ny concessionaires in mine exploita'
tion in Morocco. Banking next en-
gagged his energies and he became the
head of one of the leading German
financial houses.
He became chairman Of the admin