Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1922-09-08
WHO WAS kAsPAR HAUsER7

Q WIEN the police Of Nurembur
/, first discovered this youth, al
; parently about eighteen years OF sgs
, leaning up against wall In one 0
: the public squares with his hands owe
his eyes to protect them from tn
glnre OF the sun. they at first though
that he was some Idiot who had es
capped from sanltarium. But investi
CATION soon developed that here was ,
case as unique as that Of the man II
the iron mask. and resembling It In d
number of ways.
Not only were the boys eyes weak
but his muscles were as fiabby as
those of an infant and the soles OF
his feet were convex. like those of a
baby that has never learned to walk.
He had to be carried bodily to police
headquarters and even there. the sight
Of the commonest objects appeared to
terrify him, while the slightest of
sounds caused him to cover his ears
and vince as IL his ear-drums were
accustomed only to total silence. On
the other hand, his face indicated
that he was Of good parentage. and
the clothing which he wore was fash
Toned of the softest. finest materials.
In an effort to discover something
about his identity, one Of the police
officials offered him pencil which.
much to the surprise of those present,
he seized and wrote the two words
"Kaspar Hauser," which, as 1t after
wards developed, was the only clue
he could give to his past.
Prof. G. F. Daumer of the University
Of Nuremberg hearing about the
strange case, took the young man to
his home amazed not only by the
fact that he could neither talk nor
walk, but that he would eat nothing |
but bread and water. The professor, |
however, started to educate him at
once and in a surprisingly short time
the youth had progressed sufficiently
to give a graphic story of his expert
ences.
For rs long as he could remember
he had been confined to q dark cell,
into which the sun had never pene-
tratel. He had been visited once a
dressed him and fed him a ration of
bread and water. 1t was this man
who had taught him to write the
words "Kaspar Hauser," which Pro-
fessor Daumer believed to be a false
name given to him In order to mislead
the authorities and to conceal his real
identity. Finally, he declared, he had
l~I
street where the police had found him.
The young mans story naturally
created q vast amount of comment in
all sections of Europe and the Daumer
house became the center Of attraction
for the curious, many of whom main
tanned that they might be able to iden- !
-ify Hauser, but none of whom were
lble to produce the proof of their con- t
entlon.
The next development In the myster- q
Gus chain Of circumstances sur
the youth, came about five I
months after Hauser's discovery by II
he police, when he staggered into II
Professor Daumer's library, half-blind- I
ID by the blood which dripped from
IN open cash In his forehead. 1t was II
ome time before he recovered con- n
ciousness sufficiently to state that
masked man had struck at him with II
aber. that he had lodged the blow o
nd that his assailant had fled before a
lie could give the alarm. The infer a
nee which the police drew from the q
ttack was that the same person who O
ad imprisoned the boy was now striv- h
ne to kill him, lest he divulge the
ecret of his birth. a
Shortly afterward, the case came to
he attention of the wealthy Lord h
,tanhope who, convinced that Hauser m
ras of aristocratic and perhaps of
oval parentage, adopted him and sent ir
i'm under guard to Anspach, where
e was educated. Some three years re
tier. Lord Stanhope arrived in Ans to
ach with the intention of taking his
rotege back to England with him. On m
he morning of the day that they were ST
} leave Hauser received note, tell tn
X him to come to n certain place
here he would learn the secret of his III
lrth. Less than a hour later the Eng
sh nobleman heard means from out m
de his apartment and. opening the IN
DOR. was just In TIME TO catch Hauser be
5 he fell. blood yelling from knife p,
ound In his side. He had barely Ell
asped the words. "Uzen monument
alace grounds" when he fell dead
Lord Stanhope hurried to the Uzen
onument and found there a slip of 49,
iper bearing. In the young mans -
the cryptic message: -
laspar Hnuser-murdered M the age
twenty-0ne. Know by this that - ~
me from the Bayarian frontier on p,
e river. The Initials OF my name are ~
l.. H." -
And not even the Offer of reward p
1000 forms BY Lord Sfanh0pe nor IA,
= investigations OF countless anna. ~,