The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-06-24
RUSSELL RANTANKER|NS
Undertakes to Bully a
Reporter.
DENOUNCED AS A LIAR.
He Attacks the Reporter on Account
of a Certain Newspaper Artiele-Fltes
Into q Passion and with His Hand on
q Pistol Hid in His Desk DenOunces
the Reporter. who Closes the Au.
dience by Giving the Governor the
Lie.
Especial to The MesseEger.p }

Especial to The MeSSeESeTl
Raleigh, N. c., June 22.-There was
an exciting scene at the governors Of
flee today in which Governor Russell
and City Editor Henry Bagley, of The
Times-Visltor were participants.
- The affair is town talk Bagley was
requested to give a statement about
the affair and said he was requested
by the adjutant general to introduce
to Governor Russell Lieutenant Har-
lowe, U. S. A, who had just arrived
from Charleston; that he went to the
governors Office and made the intro
ductiOn, then went into another de-
partment in the capitol; that while in
this department the governors exec
utive clerk came to him with a mes
sage that the governor wished to see
him.
Bagley says: "As soon as | entered
the room Governor Russell stepped
from his desk saying loudly and ours
ing:
"You are the man who published an
article Slandering white lady at my
, house, l order you out of my office
Il replied l had never slandered any
, lady Or any one else in his house.
"He became furious, stepped back to
his desk, put his hand in a drawer and
said:
'''Its a lie. You slandered a white
! lady and printed lies
Il retorted 1 had never printed lies
about any body and no matter how
big the man was; governor or not, he
could not bully me and what he said
! was a lie
when I said this he was standing
I in front of his desk. 1 could see he
was lingering pistol. He almous1
! shouted: You can't insult me in my
| Office
"In reply I said: I know I can't in.
| suit you in your Office. You can't be
insulted. Nothing l could say would
be an insult to you. Nothing said by
you would be an insult to me-
Il returned to the Office of pri
! vate secretary. The latter attempted
to persuade me that the governor wa:
angry and would regret it and | should
let the matter drop. He acknowledged
| that the governor besides keeping th'
pistol in his drawer kept double
barrel shot gun loaded in his Office
and said the governor was liable to b.
attacked at any time.
Lieutenant Harlowe was able to SCI
in the desk drawer and he stated tt
me he saw the governor finger the pis
tol''
"The article which the governor re
ferred to was about the arrest of :
thief at the executive mansion las
Friday. A few days after the publ
cation the governor bought numbel
of copies of the paper containing thu
report. l had never heard that thu
governor took exceptions to anything
in the article. He treated me unit
today as he did before the publica
| tion.''
At midnight tonight Private Secre
tary Cade and Executive Clerk Fowl'
were at the capitol and gave out ;
statement. They say the governo
didn't swear, but called Bagley a 'ly
ing scoundrel'' and told him he hat
gone to the Jail to interview Negro
! strumpet to get her to tell him lies OF
a white lady and then told Bagley tt
get out of the Office and never return