Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1901-11-11

and his friends reveled night after
night, and there in time came Edward
S. Stokes.
Stokes was of good birth and breed
ing, a. Wall street clerk of handsome
personality and features, whom Fisk
took fancy to one day and made his
protege Jay Gould also fancied
Stokes and aided him. The young
man was frequently at the Fisk man
sion where "Josie" presided. He and
Fisk became interested in an oil COM
pany which furnished all the oil used
by the Erie company. Stokes man.
aged the company while Fisk gave
himself up to his infatuation for the
Mansfield woman. She was the rage
in New York, despite her character.
Mansfield bonnets, Mansfield dresses,
Mansfield jewels were copied every
where.
Stokes came under the influence of
the woman when he first met her. He
loved her and Fisk became jealous.
He learned that Mansfield had only
taken him on for his wealth. She
boosted to him of her love for Stokes.
Once Fisk became convinced that
Stokes had supplanted him in the
womans affections he started to ruin
him. Stokes was arrested on Satur-
day night for embezzling oil company
funds He retaliated by having Fisk
arrested for conspiracy and false i'm
prisonment. Fisk forced down the
stock of the oil company and nearly
ruined Stokes financially, Miss Mans
field at once joined cause with Stokes
and gave him letters she had received
from Fisk which exposed the secrets
of Tammany and the Erie ring.
Stokes held these over Fisk's head.
Fisk paid $4,000 to get them back.
swears Fisk Must Die.
Fisk sued Stokes and Mansfield for
blackmail He also sought the indict-
ment of both for the same offense,
Stokes, lounging at the home of Josie
Mansfield, heard of this and imme-
diately swore that Fisk must die. It
has been alleged that Josie Mansfield
l.
kill him. Stokes left her house the
afternoon of Jan. 6, 1872. He went to
the Grand Central hotel, where he
stationed himself in the corridor Of
the parlor floor. He saw Fisk enter
and start upstairs. The latter was
seven steps up when he saw Stokes,
his right arm resting on the standard
at the head of the stairs, pistol in
his hand Without speaking Stokes
fred twice. The first bullet took eff
feet in the abdomen, the second in
the left arm. Fisk fell to the floor.
Stokes walked away, but was cap
tured before he could leave the hotel
Fisk was carried upstairs and Jay
Gould and Boss Tweed came to his
bedside. He died the next day, but
Josie Mansfield was not with him. In
stead came his wife and his brothers,
and they remained with him to the
end.
Colonel Jim" Fisk was buried with
honors such as New York has be-
slowed upon few men. Tweed blub-
bered, and even Gould cried Stokes
remained in prison. He hired the best
counsel he could and was tried three
times, the last time being convicted
of manslaughter in the third degree
Grover Cleveland pardoned him from
prison in 1877 after he had served
four years. Something of his fortune
was left and on that he had lived
since.
The Mansfield woman fled to Bos-
ton after Fisk's death. From there
she removed to Paris. In 1891 she
married Robert L. Reade, formerly Of
Minneapolis and New York. Since
then she has lived in comparative OBJ
security. She is wealthy-most of her
money came from Fisk and Stokes.
After Stokes killed Fisk the rela-
tons between the former and "Josie"
Mansfield ended. She deserted Stokes
said he never mentioned her name.
After leaving prison Stokes went to
live at the Hoffman house in New
York, the owner of which, Cassius M.
Reed, had furnished Stokes with
money at his trial. In 1882 John w.
Mackay loaned Stokes $370,000 to en-
able him to become a partner with
Reed in the Hoffman house. Stokes
decorated the house with costly paint
ings. He managed the house until
forced out under foreclosure and re-
Ownership in 1897.
After Fisk's death Josie Mansfield
sued Colonel Fisk's widow for $780,
600, which she claimed the dead man
owed her. She did not win the suit.
She went to Boston. The people
hooted her as she passed through the
streets, and she finally found more
congenial abode in Paris. She was
often seen at Baden-Baden. In 1883
woman known as Josie Williams
died in Delanco, N. J., and was buried
in Monument cemetery. Beverly, N. J.
1t was printed all over the country at
the time that this woman was Josie
Mansfield.