The morning journal-courier., 1907-12-21
STOCK BROKER
 FATALLY SHOT. Failing to Get Extension of Credit, Customer Shoots oliphant and Kills
 Himself.
UNBALANCED BY LOSSES
Dropped S75,COo in Steel and Owed $5,000 on Account--Broker Member of the Exchange
 and Prominent.

New York, Dec. 2o James H Oli- phant, senior members of the stock exchange firm of James H. Oliphant & Co. Is dying tonight from a bullet wound inflicted at his office this af- ternoon by Charles A. Geiger, cus- toner from Beaufort, sS C., who after firing upon Oliphant,, killed himself
 The men were closeted in Oliphants $ private office at the time and all that is known of what immediately preced- ed the shooting was learned from the dying broker
 0liphant said that his refusal to ex- tend further credit to Geiger caused the tragedy, There is reason to be- lieve, however that Geiger had become mentally Irresponsible A note book found upon his person contained com putations by which the writer appars ently figured that he would be worth $S,oo0,oo0 by January 1, 1908 He ac- tually possessed, so far as his personal effects showed less than $11.
 Geiger owed the Oliphants $5,OOO and had been asked for a settlement. He called at their office to-day and after explaining that he could not meet his obligation, asked that the firm advance { him sufficient credit to carry 5000 shares of a certain stock until a rise in the price yielded him a profit. His request was refused, and the shooting followed
 The offices of James H. 0liphant & Go, are at 20 Broad street in the cen- ter of the financial district and the tragedy caused a sensation in the street and temporarily interrupted the business of the curb traders which takes place in front of the big office building.
 Clerks who pushed their way into Oliphant's office when they heard shots fired, stumbled over Geiger's dead body He had shot himself in the mouth and in the right temple. A re- volver was olurched in his right hand. Oliphant had slipped from his chair and lay half concealed under his desk. A bullet had entered his stomach, but he was still conscious At the hospital, where the operation of laparotomy was performed, it was found that the bul- let had grazed his kidneys and lodged in his back. It was not removed. Oli- phant, while supported in the arms of his son. was able to say:
 He shot me. guess the poor fel- lows mind was deranged
 At the hospital to which Oliphant was taken it was said late tonight that death was expected nonentartly.
 Oliphapt's horne is at 415 Clinton ave- nue, Brooklyn He is prominent i'll business and socially. He is a director in the Lafayette Fire Insurance com pany the St. Lawrence River Real Els tate association, a trustee in the Title Guarantee and Trust company and a member of the stock exchange, the chamber of commerce, the New York Athletic club and many other clubs.
 Papers found in a room which GeigeI occupied last night at the Holland house indicate that he had loss no less than S75,G00 in dealings in steel com mon and that he still owed the firm s, DOC He was uneommunicative, never l drank, and seemed to live an abstem- ious and regular life.
 He srent many years abroad and on l coming back to Beaufort in January 1906, he told friends here that he was at one time court physician to Ktns i Menelik of Abyssinia, and became 3 friend of Count Szechenyi, the flance of Miss Vanderbilt Tn his room here are many photographs of himself ant the count taken together ip Abyssinia i He said that he served also as physi. clan at the court of the sultan of Mo rocco. To the very few with whom hg talked he showed himself to be a man
 of culture, education and travel and ;
 skillful physician
 New York. Dec. 21--The broker oli plant, who was shot in his office yes. terday afternoon, expired at 2:3O o'olocl this morning.