The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1919-07-24
the beneficiary of Fisk and her rela-
tions with Stokes.

the beneficiary of Fisk and her rela-
tions with Stokes.
Stokes's face was white and set
when he left the court room after
the ordeal. He entered a coupe and
drove downtown in the wake of Fisk S
pretentious carriage, which was head
ed for the Grand Central Hotel, at
that time the last word in New York
hotels. A few blocks from the hotel
Stokes alighted from the coupe and
hurried by short cut to the main
entrance of the building. He hasten
ed upstairs to the first floor and pass
ed along the corridor to the stairway
leading from the ladies' parlor to the
entrance on Broadway, through which
he expected Fisk. He descended to
the first landing just as Fisk started
up and fired twice without word,
one bullet inf1icting slight wound
in Fisk's left arm, the other penetrat-
ing his abdomen.
Stokes threw his pistol back into
the ladies' parlor and tried to escape
from the hotel. He was captured
|. a few minutes after the shooting and
identified by Fisk and others as Fisk S
assailant. Fisk was helped into a
room and the best physicians in New
York rushed to his side. He died
the next day, after recounting most
of the events leading up to the at
tack. The news created a profound
sensation and through the night the
hotel was filled with the most ihflu-
entail and widely known men in New
York, including financial magnates,
great politicians, jurists, lawyers and
clergymen, for he had a personality
that drew all classes to him.
Fisk's funeral was one of the most
notable in the history of New York.
| Besides all the pomp that wealth
could claim, he was accorded an i'm
posing military funeraI because of his
position of colonel of the ninth Regi-
ment, New York national guard.
Stokes was indicted on the charge of
murder and tried few months later.
The trial was long landmark in the
legal world. Adding to the interest
of the court proceedings were many
rumors that illegal agencies were be-
ing used to influence the result. The
testimony brought out all phases of
the scandal involving Fisk, Stokes
and "Josie" Mansfield.
The jury failed to agree and in the
next two years Stokes was given two
other trials, the second resulting in
conviction of manslaughter in the
third degree and a sentence of four
years in Sing Sing prison. He served
the full term, despite repeated efforts
to obtain pardon. When released,
he went to California, where he re-
mained several years. Then he re-
turned to New York and acquired the
Hoffman House bar, which he made
one of the finest liquor dispensaries
in the world. He prospered, bought
a large interest in the famous hotel
from which the bar, took its name,
became a considerable power in pol
itics and business and died in 1901.
Stokes's wife took their daughter
and went to Europe to live after the
shooting. The daughter died after
some years and Mrs. Stokes returned
to her old home near Boston, where
she died almost in poverty in 1912.
Josephine Mansfield, the cause of the
tragedy, appeared to give neither man
a thought after the trial. She lived
for some years gay life in Paris
and returned to the United States
eventually and the public lost sight
of her. It was reported a few years
ago that she was living in very hum
BILE circumstances in little town in
Dakota. She was then more than
seventy years old.
Reverting again to the Gould fam
lily and it's suggestion of the Fisk
Stokes case-after Stokes had served
his prison sentence, he was relent-
Iessly pursued by Jay Gould, who paid
great prices for anything that could
be used to injure Stokes or protect
the memory of Gould's former part
ner, Fisk. Stokes was restored to
citizenship by Grover Cleveland while
the latter was governor of New York.
kansas City Star.