The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1923-06-25
HAPSBURCS LOST
MILLIONS ON GEMS
Received Only 100000 From
Jewels Worth $7,5OO,OOO.
COURTS FAIL TO FIX GUILT

fastened Breakdown and Death o.
ExiIed Emperor-Why Everyone
Concerned in Transaction Has Es
capped Punishment Is Fact So Shroud
ed in Mystery That 1t VIII Probably
| Never Be known-CIaimed by State
| The loss of $7,5OO,OOO worth of jew
els belonging to the late Emperor OF
| Austria, which the Swiss federal in
vestigating tribunal has declared to be
| robbery without precedent" has
| just been made public in it's entirety.
Three hundred thousand francs $780,
OoO) is all that the owners realized
from the transaction, and this they
never saw, as it was used to settle
their debts. The instrument in the
transaction has escaped punishment
because he persuaded a woman rela-
tive of the emepror to give him writ
ten authorization for his act Why
every one else concerned has escaped
punishment is a fact so shrouded in
mystery that it will probably never
be known. 1t Is maintained that the
jewels were the property of the state
which is question that can never be
decided to everybody's satisfaction.
Certainly many of them were the per-
sonal property of the empress and of
the house of Parma.
Were Guarded jealousy.
Contrary to the muddIed impression
created by rumors regarding the scan
dial, the jewels were never in pawn.
The emperor had guarded them jeal-
OuSly to the last, and to finance his
last venture for the Hungarian throne
he had mortgaged family properties,
including the chateau of Wartegg in
Switzerland, belonging to his brothers
in-law.
The last act of the imperial couple
before stepping into the airplane which
bore them to Hungary and final defeat
was to confide the Jewels to a conf
Dental servitor and caution him not to
touch them under any circumstances
without a written order from the en-
perUr.
When the dash into Hungary failed !
and the emperor and his wife were |
sent into exile, Swiss creditors de- |
scended on the servitor and stormed |
for their money. Then. according to |
the servitor, he lost his head and con-
jewellers for sale, against an advance
of 100000 francs which was needed
to settle the Hapsburg debts.
The jewelers. say they confided the
levels to Intermediates in turn and
were swindled In the meantime the
and empress had been placed
IN costly villa at their own expense
1y the allied governments. They were
in straitened circumstances, and at
asst decided that they would sacrifice
some of the Jewels. With great effort
permission was obtained for the en-
press to go to Switzerland. Nobody
her real object, and the gov
eminent of at least one great Euro
bean nation was thrown into q near
,anic by the trip.
fastened His Death.
1t was only on arriving in Switzer-
and and demanding the jewels that
he empress learned of the stunning
rain of events. When she returned |
0 Funchal she was met by her hus-
and, who was seen to ask her Ques-
lon which brought tears to her eyes.
Jpon her response he grew deathIy |
ale, and neither spoke again till they /
Tere alone.
The next day the imperial couple
uit the expensive villa which the al 4
ed governments had rented for them II
t their expense and installed them II
elves in a modest cottage which the II
rOprietor Ca friend of the local prfest) X
,nted them against the future pay X
ent of a modest suln. Il
A letter written several days later X
a friend by the sole companion of K
e empress states: Il
Emperor Charles has aged with ex- II
aordinary rapidity His hair is turn Il
e white. When l see him walking Z
,out the garden like a lion in cage, ! -
yer finding repose, my heart aches.
he condition of the empress is even X
ore pathetic. 1t is fright Ie
lily cold here and we have neither lE
al or wood to burn. Our situation IS
truly sad The money which we
We is scarcely nothing IL
few days later the emperor suf- 10
red an attack of bronchitis and pneu- is
1nia as result Of hardships, and lE
3D. IL
There is certainly close relation E
tween his death and the suffering is
his wife and children. The Swiss "
tie, while, through the medium of its IL
urts. classifying the crime as a rob- 10
nv without precedent, has done moth us
to bring the criminals to Justice liz
r restore the stolen property to iE
her the emperor's heirs or the Aus IL
an government. is