The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-02-07
.IHE DEADLY GUN PLAY .EPER PRATT HAS GONE.
E. s. GILL SHOOTS MORTIMER l..
STEVENS.
The Victim is In the Hospital With
Go d Chances of Recovery-Giu is
Out on Bail,

As the indirect result of the publca-
ton Of two articles i'm The Republic
can yesterday morning and the fear
that others of a similar character were
to fcHOw, Mortimer l. Stevens, a re-
porter of the Commercial Advertiser
had an encounter with l.. $. Gill the
editor of the Republican last night
Stevens was shot in the left hip by Gill
who soon after surrendered himself to
the authorities. While the physicians
have been unable to locate the bullet,
1t is not thought that the wound will
have any serious effect. That Stevens
did not receive a fatal wound is due
entirely to his presence of mind in
turning just before the shot was fired,
the bullet missing his vitals and strik-
ing the fieshy portion of his body.
The articles in question were a lead
ing editorial and a second article in the
local columns of the Republican which
Stevens thought reflected upon a young
woman friend of his. The young lay in
question is visiting Honolulu with a
small party of women friends who have
all been stopping at the Hawaiian hotel
Mr. Stevens had been paying some at
| tention to the party so when the ag-
grieving article appeared in the local
columns of the Republican, supple
mented by a leading editorial he felt
that the young woman and her friends
as well as himself were meant
1t was not Mr.. Stevens however who
first took it upon himself to demand an
apology, for r. G. Rawlings a relative
of one of the young women visited the
editorial rooms of the Republican yes
1 terday morning and there met Gill. MI
Rawlings desired to learn the identity
of the person who had written the ar
I ticles but as Gill declined to reveal the
identity Of the person and assumed res
possibility Rawlings turned his at
tention to the editor.
| Rawlings demanded an apology from
the paper. Gill claimed that there was
no occasion for an apology as the arti-
/ Gle had not been published with any in
tent to injure but merely as a humor-
Gus effusion. Mr.. Rawlings insisted
that the apology be forthcoming. Gill
! however said he would take the matter
under consideration. Mr.. Rawlings re-
piled that he would give Gill just two
minutes in which to decide to apologize.
I'Gill retorted that he would not in that
event consider it at all, At the same
! time Gill reached for a pair of shears.
! Rawlings claimed that he slapped the
! face of Gill who Immediately attempted
! to stab him with the shears. Members
( of the Republican printing force came
to the rescue of the editor and Raw
lings left the place.
Evidently the attack upon Gill anger
I ed him and it was rumored about town
last night that he intended following up
, the story giving perhaps the names of
! the young women. Stevens heard this
! rumor and naturally desiring to avoid
further notoriety excused himself from
! his own office about o'clock and went
to the office of the Republican and
| sought an interview with Gill. Accord
/ ing to the statement made by Stevens
after the shooting his object was to ask
! Gill as a matter of personal favor and
thing further rejecting upon the young
/ women.
Exactly what occurred i'm the edito-
rial rooms Immediately preceding the
shooting is not entirely clear. Accord
ing to the statement made by Stevens
he first struck Gill one in the face after
the latter had cast further reflections
upon the women. Gill drew a chair
between them and a revolver from his
hip pocket and levelled it at Stevens
The latter advanced toward Gill who
lowered the revolver from pointing al
the head of Stevens until the weapon
was levelled at the young mans abdo-
men. Then after few seconds while
Stevens was advancing upon him. Gil
fired Stevens turned his body in time
to escape receiving the bullet I'm his
abdomen. He also thinks that Gill
tried second time to shoot him.
Mr.. Stevens statement is as follows
Il called upon Mr.. Gill, city editor of
the Republican, in reference to an ar
ticle which appeared in that paper
yesterday morning, believing that he
was going to follow up the story
with more defamatory statements
against the character of innocent par.
ties. / left the Office of the Advertiser
at about 9 o'clock p. m. last even
ing, determined to keep my temper
during my proposed interview with
Mr.. Gill. As l entered his office, in
reply to my inquiry for the city edi-
tor, Mr.. Gill came from his chair ant
introduced himself.
Il told him that / understood that
he was intending to put another ar
ticle in the paper this morning, and
asked him, as a newspaper man, tC
answer if he thought it was called
for. He replied in substance that he
considered the article good joke anG
said he could see nothing objection
able in the article. | asked him that
If his mother, wife or sister were
visiting in strange city and some
newspaper published a similar article
concerning them, if he would ther
consider il a joke. The low charac.
he replied that he did not care what
any one said about them.
He had seated himself at his desk
by this time and was nervously hand.
ling papers, and IL was not so much
what he said but the positive iso-
lence in his bearing. when l asked
him once more If he would permit
the matter to drop where it was anC
be content with the injury already
done. He continued to evade my
questions and when pressed for an
answer replied that he would publish
what he saw fit and now that there
was so much being said concerning
the alleged Joke" that he was in.
clined to believe that the article and
the insinuations contained therein wer,
well deserved. a 70 =
owing to the fact that one of the
ladies mentioned and myself had beer
born and raised in the same city anC
spent much of our childhood together
and the unimpeachable character o
herself and companions was wei
known to me, | could not stand his re
peated insults longer, and struck him
with my fist, in the face. The blow wa
a glancing one and only staggered him
He sprang backward and dragged
Continued on page hve)