Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-06-05
BY Edgar Wallace


had been executed for giving news to an Eng
nsh reporter 1t vigo. and, as was the only
English reporter at Vigo, felt in the circun1-
stances that was not likely to get more first
hand information from the members Of the
fleet; in fact, the visit to Tangiers brought no
further news Of any Importance.
Tangiers and Algeciras were like home towns
to me. was in Algeciras at the time when
Germany and France were disputing the fate
Of Morocco. I was in Tangiers during the
activities Of Raisul, the brigand, who oonde.
scended to write me letter justifying his action
In kidnapping q very prominent Greek.
But in all Of my Spanish visits there was
none quite so exciting as that which made in
connection with the wedding of the King Of
Spain where I experienced probably the most
trying day any journalist has ever had I worked
on the story all the previous night and was In
the streets at in the morning, picking UP what
Is known as the human interest angle"
To facilitate my passage in the crowd a
special badge had been issued to me- and what
was much more important I had gained the
good will OF the telegraph staff. We had an
amusing and interesting evening at the Cafe
Fornos two nights before-a very wise precaution
on my part as 1t proved. 1 rather spread my
self on the wedding, and had two columns ready
TO telegraph, describing the ceremony, which
I had not seen, but which, in accordance with
the punctlllous practice of the Spanish court,
would not vary from the pre-arranged pro-
gram.
BEFORE the wedding party came out Of the
church pssceeded down the clear streets
packed with the masses OF humanity on each
SIDE to the telegraph office, and handed In
my dispatch / came out to the Puerta del
Sol to see the procession pass and after the
King and Queen turned into the Gale Mayor
went on foot by the side of the procession.
suppose was about so yards bshnd the royal
coach
Nobody knew that in one of the unsta;rs
rooms OF a high building in the narrowest part
OF the street an anarchist had been waiting all
the morning with bomb, which he had dis
gulsed by dressing it with flowers saw it fall
and lnstinctively I knew that it was falling
much too quickly for bouquet Before real.
lied what had happened it exploded, and there
was a panic.
There were two people in that crowd who
were not panic-stricken. The King of Spain
hardly moved a muscle. He turned with 4
smile to the crowd and helped his young bride
out OF the coach thinl, she was terrified;
she wasn't, she would not have been human.
out. she showed an amazing courage. I Just
hao glimpse OF them, and then the crowd
and the soldiers and the gendarmes closed
IN on me and was very CAD to make nv
escape
from journalists point OF view the situa-
ton was desperate one, for had spent all
the wedding No banks were open and to
add to the difficulties the government i'm
mediatey established a strict censorship on
kilograms. Fortunately for me- my friends of
the gay supper party came to my rescue. NY
dispatch was accepted without any money at
all and given priority. and the consequence was
that when the censorship was lifted late that
night, my wire was the first through to London
In fact, think it was the only long account
that reached Fleet street
wedding, and then I had an urgent wire from
headquarters telling me to go at once to Lisbon,
where letter would be waiting for me- or
would come to me little time after my ar
rival. It was very confidential letter. the
purport of which was that information had
come through to London that an attempt was
to be made to assassinate the King of Portugal
I was intructed not to leave him. These in
structions were a little difficult to carry out,
because, far from never leaving him. never
found him nor got within half a mile Of him.
One presumes that the Lisbon police had the
same information.
THE King eventually assassinated and,
curiously enough, in the very street where,
according to our information it was planned
1t Is q dismal job waiting in foreign city
for somebody to be killed and was very glad
TO get wire sending me on one of the hardest
cross-country journeys have ever taken-from
Lisbon to Trondhjem, to be present at tho
coronation of King Haakon of Norway.
Mine was an amazingly fascinating job:
think the most interesting that any profession
offers. 1t was not all royal professions believe
me! have stood all night in bitter wind
at the pit head. waiting for the dead to be
brought up: I have had to run for my life
from French rioters, and I have seen French
soldiers thrown into the river and held down
until they were drowned. I have seen the
carriages of three kings held up to allow q dead
anarchist to cross the professional route.
have sat on a churchyard wall while q body
was being exhumed, and after one execution
had breakfast with a man who was the next
to be executed in that Jail
I have sat for half an hour closeted with
Joseph Chamberlain, when he told me that he
never made q mistake to be