The Alaska daily empire., 1922-04-01

I1dWh OdStiS vi uHe DdHhS VI lHe
River Aar.
Two hundred or more monarchs of
this historic house of Hapsburg RULED
fer centuries the land CT Magyar,
lSlav and Teuton-centuries of blood
shed, tyranny and aggression-and
sleep their last sleep in the wonder
FIJI crypt OF the Capauchin Church in
Vienna. Emperor Francis JOSEPH, the
aged predecessor off the youthful
Charles, seeing 1.-The handwriting on
the wall" had hoped to unite the dis
cordalt elements among his 50.000,00
subjects whose racial antagonisms
were complicated by the absorption
by Austria Of the Serbian provinces
of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1908
It was the Archduke Francis Fer
dinand's determination to being about
a triune empire made up of Magyar,
Slav and German states, it is gener-
ally believed, that led to his assassi.
nation in Saraievo. Francis Ferdin.
and hsgsi tlie sstsssf "a oaiaftisS iifghf
be ended upon the death of Francis
JtfctpI NY IDt Illtl tHiiOn vi JNuS-
STA 'or Germany and sought thus to
forestall it.
Charles l. was born August II,
1887, the son OF the late Archduke
Otto of SaXony He married the
Princess Zita of the Bourbon house
eff Parma Gtalian) in 1911. When
the Nunc Dimittisw as sung for his
dead grand-uncle, the Emperor Fran
els Joseph, the only achievements of
Charles brought to public notice were
hat he was keen sportsman, an
excellent shot and motorist Ere
quently he was seen in the parks
off Vienna wheeling one of his young
dukes in a baby Eerambulator. When
he acceded to the throne on Deem
Der 80, 1916, Austria-Hungary, torn
by four years of war. saw the first
gaint CLEAN of possible peace.
Berlin Regulates Course
The course OF the new ruler was
regulated largely from Berlin and
for the first six months of his reign,
Austria Hungary was regarded as a
mere German state Hindenburg S
successes in Galicia in 1916, in which
Charles shared as a commander in
the field gave the young monarch a
prestige which enabled him to hold
the Austrians to the Central Powers
until the collapse of Bulgaria and
Turkey and the final crash.
Numerous peace overtres and
naneuvers characterized the diDlom-
acy of the dual monarchy after Fran
els Joseph's death, precipitated doubt
less by bread riots and other out
breaks throughout Austria. Unable
to maintain his pledge to the German
Emperor "to continue the war to the
end" Charles made use of the famous
Dear Sixtus' letter. an autographed
missive written in April, 1918, to
Prince Sxtus de Bourbon for trans
mission to the French government
in which the monarch said France s
claim to Alsace-Lorraine was "justi-
fled
Although the letter was denounced
as a forgery" in Vienna. the Foreign
Office claiming it had been written
by a French ecclesiastic who had
been acting as confessor to the EN-
press Zita, subsequent events proved
it's authenticity. 1t was the first
revelation of the break between the
German Emperor and his yassal king
Previously, Emperor Charles had in
dicated his desire for peace, how
ever. in speeches before the Reichs
rat. In December, 1917. he declared
his Willingness to conclude peace
with the Allies if they would guaran'
tee the integrity Of Austria-Hungary.
Conditions Grow Bad
Conditions in the dual monarchy
were rapidly growing worse. There
were many cabinet changes and as
sassinations The Magyars, CZecho
Slavs and other nationalities were
clamoring for constitutional reforms
and autonomous government.
Thereafter Charles lot was far
from being a happy one. He was re
ported to have refused to send Aus
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