The daily gazette., 1883-11-24
A DEADLY ENCOUNTER.
FATAL FIGHT IN A NEWSPAPER
OFFICE.
A LAWYER TERRIBLY BEATEN.
He shoots an Editor and in Return ts
Beaten SO Badly That He Cannot Re
cover.
rPhila aaelnhla Times. j

Cheeseman is not seriously wounded. Van
syckle will die within q few hours. Cheese
man has been newspaper publisher In
Bridgeton for IL years and his editorials
have invariably been aggressive. In his
younger days he made some reputation by
his prowess as fighter. He is now As years
old and lives with his vile and two grown
sons in q comfortable house in the centre of
the town. The elder Cheeseman is about six
feet high, raw-boned and muscular. His
countensnce is that of the American seen in
caricatures-long, with prominent cheek
bones, deep-set eyes, high, narrow forehead,
stiff, black hair and dark skin, without
moustache or beard.
THE ORIGIN OF THE TROUBLE.
Vansyckle is a lawyer, thirty five years
old, and has a wife and two Young children.
he Is much smaller than Cheeseman and is
nothing like his equal in muscular develop
ment. Two years ago Vansyckle came here
from Millville and opened law office.
Cheeseman has known him many years.
They are both Democrats, and when Van
syckle came to Bridgeton 1t is said that
Cheeseman at once began to look upon him
as rival in county politics. Cheeseman,
however, denies this and says that Van
syckle was authorized to collect note of
seventy dollars for q widow named Wright.
The widows son worked for Cheeseman,
and as Vansyckle did not give an account
of the collected money within reasonable
time the boy asked his employer to see the
lawyer and ask for an explanation. Cheese
man did this and after some delay Van
syckle gave the widow the money that was
due her. The interest Cheeseman took in
the case caused breach between him and
Vansyckle.
The breach was widened by a series of ar
ticles attacking Cheeseman that were pub
lished IN the EVeaiGg NeiOs, of this place
The Pioneer, another weekly newspaper,
took up the cudgels for Mr.. Vansyckle and
this mornings issue of the Patriot con-
taiDed the following reply:
The Pioneer charges that we have been
guilty of unjust treatment of Mr. Van
syckle. Will 1t please explain in what par
ticular we have been unjust to Mr.. VAN
l sycklea We have intimated that Mr.. Van
syckle had been in the habit of getting his
checks cashed without having funds In the
bank to meet them and said he had been
moderately successful in getting his worth
less checks cashed." We did this for the
purposes of guarding the public against
being defrauded in this manner, and believe
that simple justice to the public required
| that we should do this. We are sure that
this is but just to the public and fail to see
in 1t any unjust treatment of Mr.. Van
syckle. At the same time we offered Mr..
Vansyckle the free use of our columns for
Il bhO COiINChOu VI any IdlBE impressions
which we may have made concerning him,
and shall be pleased to make any correc-
tions ourselves, if either he or his friends
will but indicate them to us. As yet, how
ever, they do not complain of any unjust
treatment and we fall to see why MI, Nichols
sheuld complain for him without being able
to point out the slightest particular in which
we have been unjust.
| 81 WANT TO SEE YOU AT ONCE"
| An obliging friend followed Vansyckle
into the Davis House this morning and read
to him the above article. Vansyckle
| promptly armed himself with a new cow
hide and Smith & Wessen revolver and
went to Cheeseman's office. The pro-
prieter was washing his hands in the second
story back room. His sons and three or
TOUR printers were in the story above. Van
syckle halted in the editorial room, second
story front, and roared at Cheeseman In the
adjoining apartment:
II want to see you at once"
"All right" responded Cheeseman. sPn
| be out in a mirute.
When Cheeseman came out of the back
room Vansyckle arose from the cover of the
| desk on which he was nursing his wrath
and drawing his cowhide shook it at his
swarthy enemy. Although Cheeseman had
| never been cowhided the instrumentin Van
syckle,s hands instead of inspiring with ter
I
| little mans rage knew no bounds. Throw
ing down the cowhide he drew a revolver
and aimed and fired at Cheeseman, who
was but few feet distant.
BEATEN INTO PULP.
The editor threw up his left arm and the
bullet passed through his coat sleeve and
| struck his breast two inches above the heart.
| Cheeseman staggered, but recovered his
presence OF mind in an instant and closed
/ with Vansyckle. In a hand to-hand struggle
the lawyer was at great disadvantage.
Approaching this and fearing that Cheese
man would wrest the revolver from him and
turn Its point upon its owner, he threw the
weapon across the room. Cheeseman
hurled his opponent to the floor, knelt upon
the fallen mans arms and then throttling
/ him with his left hand pounded him in the
face with his right fist.
The pistol shot and Vansyckle's cries for
help brought Cheeseman's sons and the
printers down stairs and drew great crowd
Of people from the street. Cheesemau was
| crazed with rage and 1t was with difficulty
that he was dragged from his almost in
| sensible antagonist.
Tonight Cheeseman said "I thought
was fatally wounded and was resolved to
kill him If my strength lasted"
Several policemen entered and Vansyekle
was helped to the wash room. His nose and
/ Cnechs were pOuuueu 10 Jelly ana the skin
and flesh of his forehead hung in shreds
over his eyes.
| yANsYcKLE DYING IN JAIL.
| Cheeseman explained this by saving:
"Most all of the licks l hit him were
| glancers." Cheeseman went at once TO the
Mayors office and had warrant issued for
the arrest of Vansyckle for shooting with
intent to kill.
| Fifteen minutes later Vansyckle was led
into the Mayors office by Officer Campbell,
Turning to Cheeseman he said:
"Thank God / didn't kill YOU"
| Cheeseman replied: "Well, l am sorry
didn't kill you, and l would have done
so If ! had not been pulled off by the
boys"
During the examination Vansyckle he
came weak from loss of blood and he had tn
be hauled to the jail, where tonight he lies
at the,point OF death. The affair created
the most intense excitement In the townand
county, as the principals are known to every