THE House of Habsburg appears to be always in the shadow of some
fresh disaster. Its recent history recalls the horrors of a Greek
tragedy. The venerable Emperor, upon whom a crushing blow has again
fallen, has seen in turn his brother, Maximilian of Mexico, foully
slain; his son and heir dead in circumstances round which hangs an
impenetrable mystery; his Consort assassinated; and now the
presumptive successor to his throne slain, together with his wife,
in the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo. The death blow seems to have been
delivered by a young Serb student, who may or may not have been
merely the tool of a body of conspirators, to whom the late
Archduke Franz Ferdinand was obnoxious on account of his supposed
hostility to the aims of the Serbs of the Kingdom of Servia.
Throughout the civilized world the tragic news of this double
assassination sent a thrill of horror, which was immediately
followed by a passionate feeling of pity for the aged Emperor-King
in this his crowning sorrow. It is too early to speculate on the
effect this tragedy may have upon the politics of Europe. For the
moment all that is possible to say is that a successor to the late
Archduke's right of succession exists in the person of his nephew,
the Archduke Karl Franz Joseph, who may be expected to carry on the
policy of the Austro-Hungarian State.