CONTINENTAL CRIMES AND SENSATIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 129, 30 May 1908, Page 15

CONTINENTAL CRIMES AND SENSATIONS.

; EXCITEMENT AT A "WEDDING. ■WTien. on one of those too rarely fine spring mornings in Paris, a blushing" bride eppeared before "Monsieur le Maire." and received the congratulations of troops of fiends, one little dreamt of the sad fate dat was in store for her before the end of ftas eventful day. The wedding party partook of an appetising dejeuner, going afterwards for a drive in the Bois de Boulogne, and , when the company had assembled at! jjje dinner table only smiling faces were to be seen, fnluckily. however, as the meal score on. two of the guests got into an altercation over a trivial matter, and, instead af apply*"? their wine-glasses to the purpose for which they were intended, they flung them at each other. One of the offenders promptly evicted, a proceeding to which another guest objected so strongly that he galled out a revolver, a demonstration whicn led to a general stampede. Excited by the snouts and the screams, this individual took to blazing away. The first bullet simply lodged in the wall, bnt the second hit the pretty bride in the thigh, and a moment later she was prone on the floor moaning jrtteously. Conveyed to the nearest hospital Bfce soon got better, bnt her assailant has 3nst been sentenced to ten months" imprisonment which may teach him to behave himself at wedding parties when he is liberated it indeed, so undesirable a guest is ever BC°*" in demand at such festivities. THE MISBK'S END. He literally clung to his money, even irhen he was on his deathbed, and he was Btill fingering his gold and silver as he drew iis last breath. This miser was an old bachelor, dwelling in the Dunkirk district, France. JHe was unsociable, and lived by himself, .gloating in his leisure moments over the Bavings which he had accumulated by dint vt depriving himself of the most ordinary Necessaries. A day or two ago a man who *?as acquainted with his avaricious habits broke into his house and fired at him wounding him severely, but afterwards failfed to discover a single sou. Kind neighbours tended the old bachelor, who had to take jfco his bed. and when the gendarmes arrived bn the scene of the tragedy he promptly repnested them to descend into the cellar and fetch his treasure, which he had stowed tway in a huge bottle concealed in a cask. ffhey did so, and presently they were laying pnt on ttL. hed SOOO francs in gold and 1250 Irancs in nve-frauc pieces. "At least you tare not taken anything from mc?" he asied rather suspiciously, and then he handled the coins tenderly, playing with them until, B. few hours later, he expired, still with a (tristful look at the gold and silver pieces jrhich be alone loved of all things in the JBide world. MOBBING A VANDEKBILT. The arrival of Count and Countess Szectenyi (nee Vanderbilt) at Buda Pesth led £o scandalous proceedings on the part of ihe public On the first appearance of the «3ewly married pair in the street they were Eo molested by the crowd that they were ■obliged to return to their hotel and tele■phnne to the police for protection. About ■1000 persons, all demanding an audience of Jthe count, were dispersed by the police. ■ Hundreds of letters arrive daily, requesting ■ money or participation in some commercial ■ affair. The adventurers have employed all IP sinds of tricks to obtain an interview wiva £< : *he count. One man sent in a card bearing in ancient aristocratic name, and was admitted to the count's apartments. The latfer soon discovered the error, and the man was, dismissed by the groom of the chamber. then sent by the police authorities to keep guard and esamj iae would-be visitors. Countess Szechenyi declared to the police ronunissioner, who called to tranquilise her. that tie conduct of the people was perfectly barbarous. She said her husband was in Saily danger of his life, especially when he Pentured out in the evening, for he was met : at every corner by a sudden blaze of magnesium light, followed by an attempt by amateurs to photograph his face. He and his ■anfe have now left for Oermezoe. the count's Hungarian estate, and it will probably be . some time bpfore they venture again to *isft the Hungarian capital. WATCHED HIM DIE. Tne Paris correspondent of the "Morning trader" says that the belief is even yet common in France that the commissary of jjolice is alone authorised to cut down a man who has hanged himself, and this ridiculous idea that nothing can be done without the police is responsible for the death of a work Ban named Trie. k SThe man had been drinking rather freely, *nd on reaching home hanged himself on She door of his room. His wife, who is partially paralysed, woke up to see her hustend's body dangling in the air. II«>r tmrieks brought a score of fellow-lodgers to fhe spot. Trie was still alive, bnt one and all agreed Bat the commissary of police alone had the Sight to cut him down. So they formed a Jarde and watched the man give his last {asp. Then someone ran for the commismj. WHO WAS TO BLAME? '■ Mnxsock Bey, of the Turkish Embassy, in eferis, has brought a novel action against! tte famons Cafe de La Paix. On entering j tte cafe recently Sursock Bey gave his fur j *oat to the waiter, who hung it up in a far ; •orner of the room, from which it was Stolen. s"orced t? go home coatless on a bitterly *Bid night the Turkish secretary of Embassy j (Wight a violent toothache. This ended in j •n abscess, which necessitated the dentist's •ervices. the sequel to whjeh was a bill for •25. He is therefore suing the proprietor tt lie cafe for the value of his coat. £100, #ns the dentist's bill, and £36 damages. ■' The proprietor's defence is that his waft•sare there to serve drinks, and not to look •fter coats. The court will take a week to ■ Mill iiiul' its decision.

HIS FATHER IN COLD r BLOOD.

t!he trial at Munich of a young farmer '•anieii Schefall. who recently killed his own is creating a great sensation owing atothe absolute callousness exhibited by the massed. - tt is stated by the prosecution that in T*Wer to obtain money to enable him to emigrate to America, Schefall carefully planned to murder and rob a number of persons, Rune of whom were his former employers, earing purchased a revolver he started on a •wad of visits to his '•victims," of whom he *nl drawn up a list. The first on his list *ac a farm bailiff named Maurer, whom he •tot in the chest whilst engaging him in con■eaetion. Firing again, Schefall wounded Itim In the arm, b.ut Maurer retaliated by •**flnng his assailant on the head with a •Set Assistance arriving, Schefall made ■ta escape, and went straight to his father's fcrmhocse, where he demanded money. TTie «M man turned to his desk, complaining ■keut ms son's frequent demands for money, Itet no sooner had he produced his cashbox .Aat Schefall fired at him several times and fcffled him. He then seized the money and ■■eaped into a forest, where he was arrest•S, being in hiding several days. Medical evidence showed that Schefall, rttboagh perfectly sane and even sixarpl"*tted, is utterly devoid of ail moral feel- !■«■. He declares himself quite prepared to -»Ser the penalty of his crime, saying that fc*» witiLoat money is useless.

JOKE THAT ENDED IN TRAGEDY. A remarkable love tragedy, which occurred at Serenja as the sequel to a snapshot, is reported from Budapest. Peter Begesh, a military inspector, had been out in the country taking photographs, : and on his return called on his fiancee and gleefully told her he has discovered another romance in the village. He had seen a friend of his walking with his arm round the waist of a girl, and had snapshotted them as they went by. He explained thai he did not mentify the girl, but that when he had developed the plate he would send it to her. His fiancee asked him to destroy the Plate, as it might cause trouble, but Begesn replied that he could not miss such an ex ceneui joke, and went home. Later In the day he rushed back with a revolver in one hand and a photograph in the other. Before his fiancee could say a word he shot her through the heart. Up then turned the weapon against himself and committed suicide. The photograph showed that his fiancee had taken advantage of his absence iv the country to go out with a male friend. TRAGEDY OF TWIN 'BROTHERS. Two army officers, twin brothers, named Nicholas and Paul Galkovics, committed suicide together in Budapest on the night of April 12. They were well known figures in the highest circles here, and countless anecdotes are told of their romantic attachment to each other. When Nicolas fell ill recently, Panl was so harassed by anxiety that he also lost his health. inability to meet their debts was the cause of their death together. They irave their word of honour to Count Paul Esterhazy. who backed some bills for them, that they would repay their debts in full by April 13. They found themselves unable lo redeem their pledges, and were facet! with dismissal from the army and boycotting at the dubs. The fateful day having come to a c-lcsc the twins decided on death. Nicholas seated himself in an armchair before a long looking-glass in their rooms. Paul stood beside his broth.fir. Tosccclipr ttit?y raised their revolvers to their foreheads. They pressed the triggoi simultaneously, and died on the instant, the bullets so shattering their heado as to render them unrecognisable. They left letters to their superior officers, the burden of which was a simple sentence. "We cannot do our dnry. therefore we di» together." Heavy gambling, it is said, was ' the prime cause of their financial troubles. I DRAMA OF JEALOUSY. The whole of Venice was excited recently by the news of a remarkable double tragedy, involving the death of a well-known lawyer and the suicide of a woman of his ac- ■ quaintance. A few evenings ago. Signor Teresa Vaain, 40 years of age. whose lover he had been, but with whom he had relong conversation, and finally the lawyer accepted an invitation to Vanin's house for a farewell supper. On Friday. April 10th. the young advocate kept the appointment, and since that, day nothing more was seen of him. At length, ilnnari's friends, suspecting that something in the nature of a drama of jealousy hart occurred, reported his disi appearance to the police. The door of the ■ widow's residence was broken open.j and a terrible spectacle wae presented to those who entered. The young lawyer was lying dead on the floor, with a large kitchen knife thrust in his heart. All about the room was empty champagne bottles, ana ;it was apparent that the widow had made I her victim senseless with drink before kill-1 j ing him. On the floor above the corpse or I Vanin was found. She had suffocated heri self by placing the end of a gaspipe In I her mouth. She had left a letter saying: ■"We could not be united in life: we shall be united in death."'