The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-01-15

us-Reminiscences OF John Cochrane
Mt the Charleston Conventional h e
Whirligfg OF Politics.
| [FRoN OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT
NEW YORK, January 10.
Not the least surprising feature of the Fisk
tragedy Is the suddenness with which it has
ceased to become sensation. The dreadful
taking off of one who had filled so large 9
place in the public eye promised to be some
thing more than nine. days wonder. But
the very intensity of the public excitement
must have burned 1t up quickly. 1t was only
four days ago that the colonel was busy at the
Erie office with his everyday affairs, sur.
rounded By his swarm Of clerks and assist
ants, and to-day he is lying under the sod
| among the mountains Of Vermont and men
have almost ceased to talk about him.
Enough time has already elapsed to gauge
the public temper about the murder. When
the news of the shooting spread like wilddre
through the city on Saturday evening, the In
men exchanged the news, both exclaimed,
'.The cowardly sooundrel ought to be
lyrched." Everybody was hoping. that Fisk
would not die. Some ventured 10 Joke to the
extent of wishing that "Jim," like the Prince
OF Wales, might ind this calamity an incentive
70 reform. On Sunday morning the interest
iu the fate of the wounded man was very
great, aud when he drew his last breath at
TO- SIS O'Clock A. NJ, 1t seemed as If the COM
munity knew of 1t instinctively. heard of It
thirty minutes afterwards, though was four
miles away iu Brooklyn, and separated By a
river.
The murdered man is in his grave, the muir
derer has been presented TO the grand jury
BY the cotoner's inquisition, and The public
excitement has died away. People have
come to Judge of the affair with some calm.
ness. In the first place. the death OF James
Fisk, even IN the shocking manner In which
he met II, ls not regarded as public calamf.
ty. The example aud influence OF the mau
was bad. He was doing more to corrupt our
youth than any score Of fother men. The boys
saw bold adventurer rising ta wealth and
power by interruptions means&and Inc law
seemed powerless to touch him. Such q
gilded career appeared to be open to any one
who had the pluck 10 tread In Fisk's foot
steps. It was well. perhaps, to have the
world reminded again that the ''wages of sin
Is DEATH" and the more startlfngly the warn
ing could come the more effective 1t would be.
On the other hand lt is not easy to forget,
even In condemnlng the manner of the mans
life, bis better qualities. He was good-hu-
mored, generous fellow, kind to The humblest
of his employees, and constantly doing cllari-
table deeds BY stealth as well as Ostentatious
ly, 1t is said his heart never harbOred malice
towards any one. 1t Is not hard to believe
this OF him. Ellis efforts to make the travel
ler's lot more comfortable were praiseworthy:
The Erie Railway carr, and the Boston and
Fall River and Long Branch steamers, are
models OF luxury and convenience. He had
other projects for the public good in his brain,
and had he.outlived the years of folly he might
have been regarded In time In The light OF a
benefactor. Charity, therefore, is not out Of
place In dealing with poor Jim. One of the
newspaper writer's put the case well when he
said. HWhen God comes 10 Judge James Fisk
that Chicago relief train will be taken into
account"
So much for the dead. How about the
slayer Well, have yet to find the first 1ndi-
vdual who believes that Stokes will be hang
ed. That he ought to be hanged, and speedily
too. .is granted, but that ELMER .nrousn tne
well. known tenderness Of New York jury or
the laws delays he will eventually escape pun
ishment, is claimed with equal confidence.
There were hundred and fifty murders IN
this city last year and not one execution. The
public Indignation was hot against Foster, the
street-car murderer, and 1t was thought That
Justice, for once. would be done: Foster was
found guilty and sentenced to death, but he
still resides at The Tombs, aud has no more ex-
pectalion of swinging than the reader Of this
has. Mcfarland may be seen any day In
Broadway, although Mr.. Graham proved that
he was q raving lunatic when he murdered
Richardson. II has come to pass that no MUIR
derer can be punished here, II ne has money
enough to fight the prosecution. The last
hanging at the Tombs was of Jack Reynolds, q
poor vsgabond outcast, without friend or
cent in the world.
Mr.. Stokes has some money. The miSera-
BILE creature who has caused this tragedy has
more, and, probably, like women OF her class,
she Is willing to spend 1t freely on her faYorite
John Graham, the leading criminal lawyer OF
New York, has been retained tor the defence.
John McKeon, who Is also lawyer Of great
ability, is one of the murderer's counsel. At
the coroner's nqi1est, the tactics Of the de-
fence we're foreshadowed. Graham began 10
bully and browbeat the court, the witnesses
aud opposing counsel. just as he did In the
Mcfarland trial. He interjected many re-
marks lntos the proceedings, not because ne
expected t6 change the verdict of the jnry,
but because he saw reporters present taking
down every word he uttered, and might USE
this method of influencing the community
through the newspapers.
II is evident that Messrs. Graham and Nc
Keon will attempt to prove on the trial that
Stokes was In fear of being assassinated BY
Fisk's hired bravos; that he went abroad IN
mortal dread, and carried pistol to defend
himself; that, on the stairs of the Grand Cen
trail Hotel, the foemen met; that Flsk drew his
weapon to fire, and that Stokes saved him
self by firing first. They will hold that Fisk's
weapon was removed by bis friends as soon
as his body was carried into the room In which
he died. The trial will probably not take
place for two or three months Stokes Ia ap.
parently unconcerned. He ls a man of iron
nerve. and, ii he has emotions of anxiety or
modification, he does not show them. He is
good-looking young man; dresses In the
height of fashion, and has the manner of
weiI-bred gentleman. At the coroner's in-
quest, he chalted gaily with his counsel, and
nodded familiarly 10 several acQuainIances.
he evidently does Rpt expect to be hanged.
He will be little disappointed perhaps II he
Is not buling or beBriug stocks again in Wall
street by the first Of March.
How the Ring has melted away since elec-
tion day Tweed and Connolly are out Of
office, and awaiting trial under heavy bonds.
Garvry and Ingersoll are fuglliVes. and
Fisk Is dead. Yesterday the last link was
broken. Mayor Hall retired, leaving the
reins of government In the hands OF the
president Of the board OF aldermen. Our new
mayor is John Cochrane. Visitors to the In
stitute Hall In 1860, when the Democratic
National Convention was In session, will re-
member tall, handsome, red-bearded man,
who acted as one of the spokesmen for the
regular Tammany delegation from New York.
Fernando Wood was In Charleston with his
contesing Mozart delegation, and Cochrane
tIiof n1,No