Death of Albert (Cont'd)

Strange indeed were the events that impelled Britain's Foreign Secretary Sir John Simon to rise in the House of Commons one day last week and say: "I feel sure that the whole House will join me m regretting the pain and indignation that have been caused throughout Belgium by this unfounded and irresponsible statement ... by Colonel Seton Hutchison to the effect that the late King of the Belgians was murdered." What the imaginative British lieutenant colonel, wounded and decorated four times during the War, had done was to put into words a rumor that had grown fast from a cloud of unanswered questions about Albert's death while mountain climbing last February.

Speaking before the Writers' Club of Nottingham, England, Lieut.-Colonel Hutchison had said: "I have written a book which is already partly set in type dealing with the mystery of the death of King Albert. . . . 'Albert did not die as the result of an 'alpine accident,' believe me, I know the facts. ... The story of Albert's death was issued in Belgium before he was dead. A man with a rope around his waist does not go climbing by himself. ... In other words he was tapped on the back of the head. . . . The facts are that King Albert was opposed to war. He would not play any part in the deviltry of France in conspiring for war against defenseless Germany."

Brussels papers raged: "Odious lie! German propaganda!" At the Belgian Embassy in London First Secretary H. Borel de Bitche declared: "If that colonel will come here, I will give him a punch on the jaw."

The circumstances of Albert's death were such as to breed ugly stories. Albert left his footman at 2 p. m. saying he would return in an hour. When he failed to return after several hours, the frightened footman did not think to step into a telephone booth at nearby Marche-les- Dames. Instead, with an impulse toward secrecy, he drove a long way to the chateau of Count Anton de Wiart, and from there telephoned the royal palace at Brussels. The two court officials who got the message drove out to Marche-les-Dames to search for the King. It was not until 2 a. m. that the searchers found him. Meanwhile three conflicting stories had been given to the Press: 1) an automobile accident had detained Albert; 2) an automobile accident had killed him; 3) his body had been found floating in the Meuse River. Rattle-brained as all this was, it was natural enough behavior for frightened and anxious men in a crisis.

But Belgians asked other questions. Why was Albert doing any dangerous climbing at all? He was 58, farsighted, heavy and subject to attacks of blood congestion. And why the particular pinnacle he was climbing? The fact that it is small but difficult is probably the reason Albert climbed it. The fact that its crumbly face made it dangerous, is probably why he was killed.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.