The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-01-10
THE FISK TRAGEDY.
FULL DETAILS OF TIE ASSASSLN4-
TION OF THE "PRINCE OF ERIE"
The Circumstances and Causes that Led
to the Bloody Deed.

already announced by telegraph, eliminated
Saturday afternoon in the fatal shooting o
James Fisk, Jr., the Prince of the Erie Ring
by Edward Stokes. The shooting affair tool
place at 43O P. N. Saturday. at the Grand Cen
| trail Hotel, New York, and Fisk was STRUCK
twice. Stokes, who fired the fatal ahot, It Il
alleged, was Flsk's rival In the affections O
Miss Helen Josephine Mansfield, who had sui
on trial against Fisk for slander, In which she
and Stokes were both on the stand as witnesses
on Saturday. Miss Mansheld'a suits and threats
to publish her letters from Fisk have beer
the subject tofprotracted litigation and newspa
per gossip for weeks. Fisk, it would appear, had
by his mastery manlpulations of the machine
~ OF the law. triumphed with injunctiens In
thle, as on many other noted occasions, driV'
Ing his rival to madness, with the fatal result
no chronicIed. The career of Fisk Is well
known. A few years ago he drove pedder's
cart across the hills of Vermont. BE has since
passed through such career as no other ad-
venturer has ever run, always buoyant and
nearly always successful, whether by fair
means or foul. Hiss Helen Josephine Mans
field, or Mrs. Lawlor, as she is sometimes call
ed, as the wife of the actor of that name, Is
represented as sweet siren, q gorgeous ad.
ventures, whose silks'and diamonds and rare
beauty matched the meleoric brilliancy Of the
career OF the ''Prince of Erie" Stokes, the
assassin, is a married man, about thirty years
of age, and is only known to.the public recent
ly 10 connection with the Mansfield affair. The
end which has been reached is the natural
climax of such career as has marked the
lives of the respective parties. -
Dispatches from New York, received satur-
day and Sunday, give the following particulars
of the occurrence, together with the fatal
result:
THE LIBEL SUIT.
During the morning, the trial Of the suit OF
Miss Mansfield against Fisk, for libel, occupied
the Yorkville Police Court. Miss Mansfield
was cross.e1amined by Flsk's counsel. she
and the Egyptian consul-general, George But
Ter, at one Miss Woods; met Butler In Call.
tornia, and had never Intended TO blackma1l
Fisk, Mrs Williams testified that the state
ments made that Miss Mansfield aud MIR.
Stokes had held conversations In her presence
8OOuC DlachIuHlluB Floh WSAo unst tuSs A1' ~
Stokes also testified that there was no truth IN
said statements He testified that he had
family; arst met Miss Mansfield in New York
at dinner with Fisk; visited Miss Mansfield
nine or ten times month; had threatened TO
pursue Fisk In legal, not physical, way; have
threatened to print bis letters, and made pro-
positions to settle with Fisk; witnesss rela-
lions with Miss Mansfield were not improper,
but he had often stayed at her house all night.
THE SHOOTING OF FISK.
Ate: the testimony of Stokes he encoun-
tered Fisk In the vestibule OF the Grand Cen
tral Hotel, when the shooting look place. IL
seems that at 430 P. N. q carriage stopped at
the entrance of the Grand Central Hotel. 1t
contained Fisk and companion; the former
alIghted aud entered the hotel for the pur.
pose Of proceeding, TO bis roous. and es he as.
cended the first 0tep Stokes came out at an
adjoining passage way, and, unobserVed oy
Fisk, unbottoned bis coat ald drew out his
revolver and rapidly discharged three shots
at Fisk. The first shot lodged IN Flsk's
shoulder, the second whlsued close by hls
head, and the third, with more fatal direction,
took effect in the abdomen, infllctlng mortal
wound Fisk at once staggered and fell,
while Stokes sad: 81 have done for the
this time.n Fisk evidently recognized his as
sailant before falling, but made no remark.
Immediately after the shots were fired the
hetel employees rushed to the scene, and
while some cared for The wounded man,
others seized Stokes7 avho made no resistance,
and was promptly handed oyer-to the police.
Fisk was conveyed to his room, where the
surgeon of the hotel was soon In attendance
upon him. Meanwhile telegraphic messages
were sent for further surgical aid and for the
frtenda Of Flax