THE "MISHAPSBURGS" DISEASE, DECADENCE AND DEATH

NZ Truth, Issue 685, 27 July 1918, Page 5

THE "MISHAPSBURGS" DISEASE, DECADENCE AND DEATH

Siine Inner History of the Reyal Hiuse of Austria

How Tragedy had Dogged the Footsteps of the Hapsburgs NO. I. ' -'"•■■"■■'

Whatever is to be the ultimate oiit-. come of the terrible conflict now raging m Europe, one thing seems certain, and that is that Austria-Hun-gary, known as the "Ramschackle Empire," will crumble away to nothingness. The -murder of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo by Serbian conspirators provided Germanywith the pretext for declaring war and giving effect to the Prussian dream of world domination, On© of the my«terlea of the war yet to be solved ia how oftme It that Austria- Hungary was so completely under the domination of the Prussian Junkers that thq rulers of Austria failed to agree to tho terms providing: for the punishment of Serbia for tha frightful deed at Sarajevo. Speculation to-day on that score is idle. The murder of the Archduke was not the cause for war, but so far as one can gather, it was made the pretext for war by THE PRUSSIAN JACKBOOTERS, with the result that Europe has been converted into a bloody shambles. The Archduke Franz Ferdinand was the heir to the Crown of Austria. He was the nephew of the reigning Emperor Franz Joseph, at whose death it was declared the Austrian-Hun-garian Empire would fall asunder. We know little of the true conditions m Austria to-day, but what little we do. know points to the fact that the Empire is m the last stages of decay and that, a crushing military : defeat will send Austria out of the war, and probably leave the Emperor Karl "a- Kingwithout a throne." Much has been written about the Hapsburgs, the name of the reigning monarch s of the Empire, '= and the latest news from Vienna indicates that the forecasts of disintegration are being- fulfilled. The recent defeat of the Austrians by the Italians, the rumors of court scandals, of immorality and corruption at court, the desire of Austria for peace, and the efforts of the Prussians to obtain complete control of the Austrian armies, all contribute to the fulfilment of the prophecies which were made concerning the Aus-trian-Hungarian Empire when the aged Emperor Franz Joseph, m reality the last of the. Hapsburgs, should breathe his last. Much haa been written concerning the court life and the general condH tlons of Austria. Much that has been written is true, while a great deal is false, m other words FICTION OR MERE GUESSING. However, occasionally, the secrets of Austrian court life have been exposed by members of the Austrian Royal Family, and the chief writer who hasdone so much to expose the rottenness and the shallowness of the life of the Royal Family at Vieuua is the Coun-r tess Zanardi Landi. This woman was the daughter of the Empress of Austria, and was brought up almost free from the pernicious influence of the corrupt court. She married an Italian nobleman, and her book, "The Secrets of an Empress," caused a great sensation m, European court circles. Some time before the death of the aged Emperor, and subsequently to the. as- ; sas3inatlon at Sarajevo, this Royal woman wrote an article, for an English magazine which was entitled "The Doom of the Hapsburgs," which m view of the predictions made . which seem to be about to be carried out, justifies its republication m these columns. In an introduction to the ar^ ticl« to* editor of the English magazine s<stK forth the following: — •'This Mapsburgs — the unhappy Hapsburgs, as they are often called, or the "Mishtipsburffs" ns sc-rne punster has dubfcftd them — attract misfortune as the magnet dra.ws ths steel, u'ragedy dogs their footstep.?, and the aged 33mperor of Austria has evsry reason to be the saddest man m Europe — if indeed he is not the most cruel and tyrannical, for he Is the most mysterious figure m a court shrouded m -mystery. His estrangement from his beautiful consort, her assassination at Geneva m IS9B, the disappearance of the

MR. W. H. ATACK (Manager, United Press Association). He's the boss of the fellows whose fables In the day-lies appear headed "cables"; And scissors and paste Are oft used m haste By the "cubs" that sit round his ■ tables.

Archduke John — the "Johann Orth" whom some still firmly believe to be alive — the murder of the Crown Prince Rudolph at Mayerling 1 , are bat the most notorious of the many sordid dramas of the Imperial House of Haps^ burg, which culminated last year m the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarejevo — a spark which has ;^et ;l half ;: tHe lf \vc>?i-d ;j int'flames >;:.•;• This .arttc4«w«Shed«w^all^*[.tr^om.-th«. stifling etiquette alrtd demor'alisiTig- intrigue which are dragging the dynasty to its doom. TJtijj author, Countess^ ,-Landj^ who^bpok if Ths> .Secrets . of 4i* Empresfe 1 ; nWtfewthe' sen&&tf6n of :;.Ja|i; y.^r, a 4,|| the daughter whom the late" impress of A.usjria™deternii.vied . herseff £# mould th'e;dnafacter of at 'least one of her children-— elected to bring up away from the court and m ignorance of her rank. In consequence, G^untess Ldndi has never been recog;ised by the Imperial House, and some years ago married her husband, an Italian nobleman. '■ The Countess proceeds: — I have often In the course of .the last i'ew months been asked (he question, "What should 1 do if I could suddenly become Emperor of Austria?". The question has no doubt been suggested by the thought that, had I been born a boy, I might now actually be the heir to the Austrian throne, or even the Emperor already. There are, however," two point* m connection with the question which may bo explained In a faw words. '

. First] j r , if by some extraordinary .chance such as the house' of Hapsbiirg is so prolific iiv 1 had been born a : boy and had been reared m the same obscurity m which I> •, : BORN AN INSIGNIFICANT FEMALE, , actually was reared, What would .be my lot to-day? The answer to that -is perfectly. Clear. I Certainly should hot be alive to-day. There la no country m the whole World which has «uoh Secret police methods and sudh art army of agents, as Austria, Being ft womanj I am hot sufficiently d&ngdrouit, Thd second point is thlfli If t had been a boy, my mother would not havt been permitted to keep me to herself alorie. I should have been reared m the Court of Austria, and m that case my mind would probably be crippled to narrowness and dominated by the Church, just as has been the case with all Emperors of Austria throughout the ages. And therefore Austria would still be going- forward to its doom — as far as the Hapsburg rule is concerned — were I its Emperor m place of anyone else. The death-knell would still be sounding, as it is now, for an epocli of obscurity, ignorance, superstition, bigotry, and intolerance. Anyone who takes the trouble to read the history of Austria would soon find • that, the Hapsburgs, durihg the whole of their long reign over Austria, have themselves been ruled by Home. No country In the world has ever been so permanently under the domination of the Roman Church as Austria. It is an extraordinary fact that all the Hapsburg Emperor 3, during, the centuries of their rule, should have been so amenable to ; „..-. „ .. the: commands of the CHURCH. And here <the thought occurs at oncei Were all' the Hapsburg3 really so amenable, or was it that the Churchmen understood only too well how to rid themselves of those who might hava thwarted their designs? The latter; conjecture appears the more plausible one, for it seems almost impossible that, m all that long line of monarcha and their heirs (some of thenv h'eveY reaching the throne), riot one ever refused to be ruled instead of ruling himself. . The death of Joseph 11,, Marie Antoinette's brother, will doubtless always remain a mystery. But there is no mystery m the fact that this Emperor with all his might and main opposed the interference of Rome m hia methods of government. Then the end of my brother, the gifted Crown Prince Rudolf, proves over again that only such of the Hapsburgs as are approved by Rome have ever a chance to rule. It is therefore very open to question whether I, had I been a man, would ever really have had this chUnce. A statement has often been made m books, as well as m the newspapers, < which it is necessary to refute here, namely, that the Hapsburgs are a family of more or less unsound mind. Without wishing- to challenge the scientific abilities of the psychiatrists, I must ask for a brief answer to the question: WHAT IS INSANITY? The only real insanity is that of those poor beings who are born, into the world mentally deficient, who have not the power of thinking and acting: for themselves. Then there is the temporary insanity caused by some over-indulgence; it may be m drugs, m alcohol, m work, or m worry. Thia is an overstrain of the physical faculties. It can easily be proved that there are practically none of the Hapsburgs afflicted m any of these ways. Thero remains, therefore, the third degree of insanity, which is recognised by the' custom of society, and which :s not a real unspundness of mind. This may be defined thus: "Any person who conducts his life m a way contrary to or inharmonious with the prescriptions of convention is more or ■ less of an unsound mind." Much depends on how far such a person wanders w from the regular course. In almost every family we can find the family crank. It may be simply the case that this one member does not feel inclined to bend i^x the prescribed way. With the growth of freedom and mental tolerance, a change will come about, when humanity shall have learnt to pay more respect to individual thought and inclination. Up to the present day, however, those who depart from the traditional way of life are still considered wrong, while the rules laid down by convention, however silly they may be, are considered perfectly sane by the crowd. A woman may dress m a most outrageous way as long as it is ■ fashionable, but she would be considered hopelessly mad m an Early Victorian dress or one of any other period, unless it happened to be th© fashion of the present day. If this third degree is really to ba called insanity, then I am afraid that many a iys umber of - %he Hapsburg family cannot b$ considered perfectly sound m mind. For the. rules of Coiirt etiquette are so rigi^ and inhuman that only individuals lacking? all personality can be expected to conform to them entirely. So, as a matter of fact, it is not th« Hapsburgs who are mad m themselves, but the life which, they are supposed to live is under such narrow constraints as to drive THE SOUNDEST-MINDED PERSON MAD. To the average man and woman who have always lived outside it, the court life of any country is something m th» nature of a mysterj*-, and perhaps to them it is attractive for that reason alone. By me, jtr.cl probably by rrtoSt Of those who have had to see something of it, it must be considered lh« dullest, most useless, and most unattractive life which any human being can be condemned to live. It is not etiquette, however, which is the most terrible part of it; fotf habit does much m our lives, and w» can get- used even to rigid rules. Unfortunately, a C.ourt consists of a tre* mendously large staff, which, contrary to the rules of any other, big concern, has very little work to dp. Court employments m Austria are mostly . sinecures, sought after by idlers who wish to satisfy their social ambitions with as little trouble an<* exertions as possible. Having- very little^&*tf); tlfese^people/ ftave plenty .0/,., .s£|m.e.v,.,inj iwh'iclv^to^ talk/ .jibout * ? their ■.- -neighbor's. The victims are mostly those who. find it. difficult to submit to : , the thousand' petty rules of court con- L .: ventior&lity, or who., are .^. placed JnsoVotsstoslUon which -stirs"' tip jeal«n<* Fo¥ those who are in- enjoyment 01 an ; official post, however; ,it rests, with themselves only whether they will put up with this or go. But if the unfortunate victim is a member of the reigning- family, lie or she soon becomes the targ-et of all the maliciom Idlers who pass their time m torturing- with the shafts of their tongue. The hardest fate is usually that of the bride of the sovereign or of his heir. The Crown Princess Cecilie of! Germany had no enviable time at th© beginning. THE KAISER. HATED HER MOTHER, the widowed grand Duchess of Mecklenburg- Schw/erin, for her rather easygoing manner?. Only, when .CeciU© had proved herself a worthy mother a£ Hohenzollern bpya did she obtain full recognition. (To be contlnuod.)