The Washington times. [volume], January 04, 1920, FINAL EDITION, The American Weekly, Image 30

About The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939

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WhoWas This Beauty, and Why Did She P
Name, and What Was the Secret That I
Destruction the Night of the Great Ball?
"We returned fron
the bell soon after
two-thirty in the
morning. She went
into her bedroom and
soon called me. On
entering the room I
found her standing
in front of the fire
place. I saw her put
her hand to her
mouth?then she
drank a glass of
water from the man
telpiece. I didn't
realize what had
taken place until she
said, Tony, kiss me
for the last time."?
From the testimony
of Mr. Cedric S.
Steane, husband of
the mysterious
beauty.
The royal palace
In Vienna
where
Mrs. Steane
pretended
ahe was born
-nil? i. mi. - -J- vr U40WHV
WHO was the briliant young beauty, Mrs. Alma
Vetsera Steane, who committed suicide on the
morning after London's second Victory Ball,
November lit
That there is a mystery about her origin, a mystery
that overshadowed her whole life and finally drove her
to commit suicide appears certain, but at present it is
only possible to peer a little way into the tangled mass of
tragedies, adventures and inexplicable circumstances that
surround her existence.
She has passed away pursued by the haunting mystery
of her life at a moment when she seemed to have every
thing worth living for, when she was the wife of a wealthy
and handsome young officer of the British army. Captain
Cedrif Sebastian Steane, when she was the spoijed dar
ling of London society and the friend of such dis
tinguished London social leaders as the Countess of
Wilton. She killed herself on the morning after the
second Victory Ball, exactly one year after the pretty
young actress, Billie Cat-leton, died mysteriously of
poisoning, following the first Victory Ball. This fact has
led many persons to-refer to the Steane case as "The
Second Victory Rail Mystery."
In Billie Carleton's case the public interest was
aroused mainly by the revelations which followed con
cerning the corrupt and criminal set in London society
that surrounded her, while in Mrs. Steane's'case it is the
romantic and mysterious career of the woman herself
that compels attention.
When Mrs. Steane first became known to society, she
came from a religions institution in Toronto, Call., where
she had been highly educated and where her parentage
was always concealed. She always called herself Alma
Vetsera and Rave herself out to be the child of the ill
fated Crown Prince Rudolph of Austria, and his sweet
heart. the Baroness Vetsera. both of whom perished
mysteriously at Meyerling, near Vienna, on January 30,
1888
At seventeen she married George Osborne Hayne, a
young Canadian of wealthy family who filled several good
business positions and finally became a British officer
during the war. After the birth of a little boy she drifted
apart from Hayne and began suit for divorce.
Another young Canadian, Justin B. McDougald, be
came infatuated with her while she was waiting for the
divorce. His father placed him in an institution, alleging
that he was out of his senses, and Alma Vetsera Hayne
made two attempts to rescue the youth by stealth at
night in an automobile.
After this Mrs. Hayne moved to New York, where she
lived in the best of hotels and apartments and enjoyed
much social popularity. She also paid long visits to
London.
In New York she met young Donald Shields Andrews,
son of a Cleveland millionaire mine owner and a senior
at Yale University. The young man fell in love with her,
as so many other men had done, and they were married
at Mamaroneck, N. Y., in 1915.
They went to London, but disagreed after a short
time, owing to the opposition of his family, the reduction
of income, the young man's alleged extravagance and
other causes. A divorce resulted.
Mrs. Hayne had been living in London when the war
broke out, and her claim to be of Austrian parentage
would have rendered her subject to internment. The
Scotland Yard dectective force conducted an extcnaivfe
investigation into this matter and decided that she was of
"American parentage." but refused to give further infor
mation on the subject. She then became a popular
member of London society, not merely of the Bohemian
set. but of the most aristocratic circles. Her beauty, her
exquisite taste in dreaa. her edbeation and accomplish
menu, her knowledge of Mile and l?iig?? f? ssftde b?r ft
?Ur itbMtioa ftt every social gathering.
During her residence is London her first husband, now
Cftptftin Hayne, visited her several timed. It may be
?uppoaed that hia visits were prompted by ft natural
deaire to learn about his little boy, but-it waa noticed
that she waa always greatly depreseed and appeared
frightened after these visits.
About a year and a half ago in (London her engage
ment waa announced to a Greek named Andunoa, who had
made a great fortune in war trading. This was suddenly
broken for no known reason and once more Mrs. Hayne
appeared terror stricken by the hidden mystery that over
shadowed her existence.
She recovered her spirits again, and in the 8pring of
this year ahe waa married to Captain Cedrie Sebaatian
8teane, of the British army, a handsome young man of
twenty-eight and the son of a Manchester millionaire. He
served with distinction in a Manchester regiment during
the war.
The last chapter in the Strange, inexplicable life of the
mysterious beauty ia best given in the words of her
husband, as he told them with bowed head and broken'
tones in the Coroner's court. Captain Steane arrived at
the Westminster Coroner's court, accompanied by ft
friend, Lord Willoughby de Broke. The Captain's heart
breaking grief, his youth and handsome appearance kn
{>ressed everybody sympathetically, but the Coroner
nsisted on answers to many distressing questions about
his married life in spite of his protests.
Question bv the Coroner: Do you identify the body
of the deceased f .
A. It is my wife, Alma Vetaera Steane,
Q. How old waa ahe T
A. Twenty nine years.
Q. When did you marry herf
A. On August 30 of this year.
Q. Where was she living thenf
A. At No. 37 St. James'8 place,-which was her own flat.
Q. Where did you go after the marriage f
A. To St. Ives, in Cornwall.
Q. And then where did you got
A. As far as I can remember we returned about
Oetober 6 and went to No. 3 Carlisle place. We remained
there until last Tuesday, the 11th.
Q. Was that your own flatt
A. It was a friend's flat; he had rented it to us until
December 3.
Q. On Tuesday you went to another addreasf
A. Yes, to No. 73 Duke street, which is another flat,
and belonged to my wife.
Q. Had that flat been occupied by someone else ? ?
A. Yes, by a Mr. Morris for a year. He went out on
the same day as we arrived. We arrived about 5:30. We
took no servants when we entered the. flat, but two came
in later on?a mother and her daughter?who were in the
flat during the night.
Q. What Happened on the night of Tuesday, November
lit
A. We went out about twenty minutes past nine on
Tuesday to Claridge's Hotel, where we dined and chatted
until we left. There was a dance at the hotel that night.
Q. Was there any other man who exerted any influence
on your wife's state of mind?
A. My wife was at one time engaged to somebody
else, but the engagement was broken off. I have never
met the man.
Q. He wax not at Claridge's that night?
A. No. ^ .
Q. Did she seem to have any trouble on her mindf
A. No, sir. During the early part of the evening she
seemed to be very happy, indeed, mostly at the thought
of being back at the flat again ?
Q. Did you have arif quarrel or disagreement with
your wife that evening?
A. No, sir. Certainly not.
Q. Did your wife drink to excess at all T
A.. Never to excess. That night she had champagne.
We dined alone, and had an ordinary bottle of cham
pagne between us. We had no liquors. We came home
soon after 2:30 in the morning, and sat down on the fcouch
in front of the fire in the dining-room of the flat. We
chattcd about things in general My wife said to me: "I
am .so happy to be back here and so glad because you are
here."
Q. What did she talk about that night f
A. She spoke playfully of the odd circumstance that
she had lived in this flat before She satd to met "Tony,
you are my guest here; all my guests here have always
had a wonderful time." Tony was the nickname by which
she called me. It is not my right name. I took her in
my arms and soothed her, for I felt that she might be
tired after the day's exertion.
Q. What happened then?
A. She wpnt rnto her room. I said I would get ready,
and I used the dining-room as a dressing room. I began
to undress and she went into her room perfectly happy.
I then heard her call me.
Q. How long was it before she called out?
A. About four minutes. She called out my name:
"Tony, I art really going to take this stuff this time."
Q. Did you know what she was referring tof
A. At the time I did not. That was said to me as I
waa coming from the dining-room into the bedroom'. On
entering the room I found her standing in front of the
fireplace, and when I got to her the motion she made
vm that (witu?M imitated what he meant by raising his
hand to hi* mouth).
Q. Putting something into hsr mouth f
A. 1 saw her put her hand to her mouth.
Q. Did she drinh anything!
A. She then drank water from a glass on the mantel
piece. Then I heard something tinkle on the flat roof
outside.
? Q. Waa the window open!
A. 8he opened it
Q. Did ahe aay anything!
A. I did not realise what had taken place. She im
mediately came back to me and said, "Tony, king me for
the last time." Almost immediately ahe had said it she
sank down, and I caught her in my arma and lifted her
on to the bed. I aummoned the neareat doctor by tele
phone, and Dr. Maxwell 8impaon came round.
Q. Did your wife aay anything elaet
A. She did not aay a word or give any aign of con
seiousness from the moment she sank into my arms.
Q. Can you give any reaaon why ahe should hsve
taken poison f
A* I only know what ahe told me about her past life
being very aad.
Q. What did she tell youf
A. That her first marriage waa very unhappy.
The Coroner: I only want to know any facts that will
bear upon the queation of auicide or the state of her mind
Q. Did ahe get some sort of obsession about her
parents!
A. Yes.
Q. What was itt
A. Am I, for her sake, bound to tell you!
The Coroner j I don't want to pry into secrets. I only
want to know anything bearing on the state of her mind.
A. Both her parents had committed suicide, too.
Q. I suppose she talked of that a great deal!
A. Yes, a great deal.
Q. And it got on her mind T
A. Yes. She aaid ahe felt her mother calling her, and
wanted to go.
The Coroner: That ia very important. You don't
know whether it waa true that her parenta committed
suicide !
A. Of course, I don't.
Q. All you knew about her paat was what she told you
herself!
A. Exactly. She showed me many photographs.
Q. Did she have any delusion other than that she heard
her mother calling to her! That anyone was persecuting
her, or anything of that kind!
A. She used to allude to her former husband. She
could not bear the thought that perhaps he might see
her son. *
Q. Did she divorce her husband!
A. Yes. * .
Q. And she did not wish him to see her boy !
A. She did not want him to come into contact with
him.
Q. Has she lfeft any writing bearing on her death!
A. 8he left no message for me or for her son whatever.
Q. What was her financial position roughly ! *
A. It was good. I don't think money worried hefd
very much when she married me. We loved each otheq
so much that money did not matter because of that fact.
Q. Are you well off!
A. Yes.
Dr. Philip Henry Qunn, a police surgeon, testified that
he had examined the poison, phial, which had been picked
up in the gutter outside the window The doctor said
that it contained cyanide of potassium and that this was
the cause of Mrs. Steam's desth.
Not a word was said which explained in any way why
this beautiful young woman, newly married, a favorite in
society, with ample means at her dispossl, should have
suddenly taken her life after a very gay and enjoyable
day.
What message of dreadful import suddenly came to
her after she went into her bedroom! How did it come?
Was it written! Waa it spoken through the window!
Did it come by telephone! Did it come in some more
occult manner!
Nothing in her husband's recollection of her conver
sationa gave any rational explanation of her act. Tha
fact that her father and mother were said to have com-!
mitted suicide, as the Austrian Crown Prince andi
Baroness Vetsera are supposed to have done, was no ade-J
quate explanation. Why should that well known occur-1
rence of long ago cause her to commit suicide suddenly
after a life in which she had sought and deeply enjoyed
most of the world's pleasures!
Throughout her life Mrs. Steane had adhered con
sistently to the story that she was the child of the Aus
trian Crown Prince and the Baroness Vetsera In favor
of it was a certain resemblance to the deceased Baroness
and a foreign accent and appearance. Among the many
people who knew her in the United States, no one had
ever been able to find out that she hacf "American
parenta." The religious sisters who conducted her educa
tion considered themselves bound to conceal her origin.
Mrs. Steane after leaving her Canadian convent
always used the name of Vetsera (sometimes Vecera, as
it appears on her marriage certificate), after the Baroness
who she believed was her mother.
It b interesting to note that on the certificate of her
marriage with Captain Steane in London this year bo
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