The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1907-12-24
ENDS ADVENTUROUS CAREER.
Beaufort Man in New York Shoots
Prominent Broken, Then Kills
Himself.

NJ: I'D Courier, under date OF De-
ce, 70: ~. says:
II. Oliphant, head Of one Of
the oldest and most successful OF
Stock Exchange houses, was shot
down in his office at 20 Broad stree:
this afternoon bv DIR. Charles A.
Geiger, of Beaufort, S. c. DR.. Geig-
er killed himself the next instant,
putting a bullet into his brain. To-
night, after an unsuccessful opera
ton mad been performed on Mr.. Oh
phant, it was said that he had per-
haps one chance in ten to pull
through. He came from under tbs
influence Of ether satisfactorily, but
the dreadful nature Of the wound, the
bullet hay; gone through the cen
tire of his abdomen and pierced the
larger intestines, made it practically
impossible to expect that he would
survive.
DR.. Geiger for more than a wear
had been a most luckless trader with
the firm Of James H. Oliphant, his
son. lAfred. L. Norris, and Floyd ".
Mundy. As a suit case full Of state
ments and daily reports, found to-
uight in DR.. Geiger's room at Hol-
land He .tse showed, whatever he
turned his hand to went wrong. Any
stock ne happened to fancy prompt
iv withered in value. If he sold
short, the particular stock was GER
tain to advance swiftly in value.
When Geiger began to speculate
with the OEphant firm on September
IS, 1906, he was worth perhaps S75,-
900. When the police carried his
body out Of 20 Broad street this at
ternoon through a narrow lane the
reserves cut in a crowd Of 10000
people, he was worse than stone
broke. He owed James H. Oliphant &
Co. $4,000 or thereabouts, and there
was: to his credit in the Fifth Avenue
Bank exactly $3.50. His other visible
assets consisted Of .$l1 in cash, a
bottle of Scotch whiskey, morphine
LAYOUT with needles and tubes and a
pair of faded blue pajanas.
The coroner, who went over with
an observaat eye the bundle Of let
tiers, account books, the slips which
represented his daily operations
with mis- brokers, and sheets of figur-
es wherein he had set down profits
and losses. car = the conclusion
that DR.. Geiger lost $4,000 in little
more than a year, aad that when he
went to Mr.. Olipnant's office today
he was no better than a crazy man.
In any case his health was poor, he
was addicted to morphine and his
CORRESPONDENCE indicated that he be-
iieved ne had been badly used.
DR.. Geiger went down to Broad
street from the Holland House at
1880 o'clock in the morning to havt
a chat with James H. Oliphant about
the state Of his affairs. The doctor
had been coming to New York fre-
oueltlv in the past six months and
was fairly we'll know at the Holland.
They had paid no special attention
to him at the MOTEL. He paid his
bills and minded his own business.
Mr.. Oliphant was in when Geiger
appeared and received the South
Carolinian in his private office on the
second floor Of the building. at 20
Broad street. Save James H. Oh
phant himself no one knows what
took place at the morning conference.
Mr.. Oliphant was barely able to say
a few words to Coroner Acitelh, in
the Hudson Street Hospital, while
the surgeons were waiting to operate
on him. It appeared that Geiger was
angry, insisted that he deserved bet
ter treatment, demanding extension
Of credit and permission to operate
without putting up further margins.
Mr.. Oiphant talked to DIR. Geiger
,two hours in the morning, explaining
that Geiger not only had no money
to his credit with the firm but that
he owed James H. Oiphant & Co..
about $4,000. At 1890 Oliphant.
having luncheon engagement. eS-
cused himself and left the office.
When he returned at few minutes
past 2 o'clock DR.. Geiger was wait
ing for him.
DR.. Geiger. when Mr.. Oliphant re-
turned from lunch, was pacing ner-