Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1890-05-16
THE REPORTERS STORY.
Crawford Asserts That His Report
Was Correct.

New York, May 10.-Under the heading,
"President Cleveland's Veracity I'm
pugned." Frank Leslie's illustrated
Newspaper will this week publish letter
from Friedrich &. Crawford the World re-
porter who obtained the recent Cleveland
interview, which attracted much attention
and the truthfulness of which has been
called in question in some quarters. Mr..
friedrich =. Crawford is "a newspaper man
of long experience, and his correctness and
absolute fidelity were never questioned
before. Mr.. Crawford says:
al assert on my honor that Mr.. Cleveland
was correctly reported in the interview in
question. He was not misrepresented in
any particular, did not write out all that
MIR. Cleveland said, but what did write
was a faithful and accurate report OF his
conversation. Much Of what was omitted
was simply unprintable in any respectable
journal"
He relates how he was sent by the World
to interview Mr.. Cleveland, aud his recep-
ton by the president. He gave Mr..
Cleveland the gist OF the article in the Sun
relating TO Mr.. Clevelans abnormal in.
crease in weight Continues Mr. Craw
ford;
"Mr. Cleveland Strengthened himself up
and made profane expression rejecting
on the chastity of Mr.. Dana's mother
(This was omitted from the published in
terview.
''Mr. Cleveland then launched out into a
vigorous denunCiation OF the editor OF the
Sun. He said he was b!ackguard, vaga-
bond, and dastardly scoundrel He also
characterized him as u 'senile old liar and
thief, with the addition OF profane pre-
1ix. Several other profane words figured
in Mr.. Cleveland's remarks, but none OF
course, were published.
"After the conversation had gone on for
II or 20 minutes Mr.. Cleveland asked me
ttyha I uniny 10 nttbliah md 4 told hi m
the substance OF what he had said. He
drew pencil from his pocket and picking
up "A pad, said: Il will write out something
TO guide YOU He then wrote the first
paragraph of the published Interview
MIR. Cleveland continued talking, says
MIR. Crawford, for 20 minutes after writing
this paragraph, much of his conversation
being reproduced in the published inter
view. Soys Mr.. Crawford:
"ln the course OF the the latter part OF the
conversation / told Mr.. Cleveland that /
should like to use more OF it than he had
written out. | referred especially to the
point he made about the attacks upon Mrs.
Cleveland. He gave me permission TO do
so. He said: i have no objection
Nothing was said by Mr.. Cleveland 70
the effect that he regarded any part OF the
interview as private and left him with
the distinct understanding in my mind that
L could use my discretion in writing out the
that l could have nc possible motive for
mis- representing the ex-rresident."
MIR. Crawford asserts that Mr.. Cleveland
fully understood in advance that he was
being interviewed for publication. The
World publishes another explanation OF
the interview 1t says:
"As part or our Investigation the editor
in charge obtained from Mr.. Cleveland a
specific Reputation of all that portion OF
thh alleged interview which was printed as
an an addendum to what he mfr. Cleye-
laud) had submitted in manuscript. Mr..
Cleveland could only account for the Elis
represer tation saddled upon him upon the
theory that the reporter had uttered many
Of the sentiments himself, and finding mis-
utterance tacitly accepted had attributed
them to the person interviewed and not tC
the interviewer"
The Mail and Express publishes nearly
two columns Of the extracts from the Sun
covering everything that the latter journal
has ever published, editorially, telegraph
cally and locally concerning Mrs. Cleve
! land. The extracts cover a period OF two
years and all speak in the most kindly
| terms of the ex presidents wife, tee edi
torials being especially devoted TO her
praise In the attacks upon Mr. Cleveland
which were evidently made for political
effect the name Of Mrs. Cleveland does no
occur, and there are no separate attack:
upon her.