New-York tribune., 1910-09-20
GAYNOR TELLS HIS
SISTER OF SHOOTING
Hearst Newspapers. by ViruIent
Attacks, InfIamed Many
Against Him, He Says.
HAD EXPECTED AN ATTACK
Received Clippings of Editorials,
with Threats Scrawled Upon
Them, and Was Pre-
pared for Blow.

/ on September ,. to his sister, Miss Mary
/ F. Gavnor. of Utica. in which the Mayor
! described the assault from his point Of
view. and gave his idea on what led up
TO it. placing the blame on the Hearst
/ newspapers
Tho letter is copyrighted by The
/ Evening Post" and is reprinted by per-
mission Of that paper.
In giving the letter out for publication
Miss CIaynor said that she would allow
it to be published only on the condition
that not word Of it was omitted.
MY brother" she said. has often
written me letters concerning events of
which he wished some family record, and
he wrote this letter for the same pur-
pose but. in my judgment. it is a letter
which belongs to tie whole public and
The publication Of it will do some good
have. therefore. determined to take the
responsibility of publishing it"
Corrections by the Mayor.
The letter was typewriter on plain
paper, and contains five corrective inter
Iineations in Mayor Gaynor's handwrit-
ing.
He substituted the word deck" for
| dock when he tells where he was told
who shot him, inserted the name Ed
wards" among those who were talking
to him when Gallagher fired the first
bullet
! In speaking Of his thought Of death.
and his resignation to that fate if it were
10 be his then. the Mayor inserted the
words and mind" in the typewriter
copy of the next page of the letter. max
| ing the phrase read. yea. even though
| it were true that he is to be dissolved
forever into the infnity of matter and
mind from which he car7e.''
The word city is inserted before
character" in referring to the licenses
! for moving pictures. and in writing
about yellow journalism" the words
instead Of honest statements and fair
discussion" in the following sentence are
! interlined in the Mayors handwriting:
The grossest railleries and Hbels. in
stead of honest statements and fair dis
cussion, have gone on unchecked"
The terrible cartoon" TO which Mayor
! Gaynor refers in his letter was entitled
/ The New Barker" and was published
On the second page Of The New York
American" on July %
Il depicted Mayor Gaynor standing in
front of moving picture theatre, upon
the billboards of which were represented
pictures Of the Jeffries-Johnson prize
fight at Reno.
The letter ir fun follows:
Copyright. 1910 by New York Evening Post
! Company
St James Long Island. September z.
Nv Dear Sister: Your letter encouraged
me very mush. I was so glad TO get it, for
| 7 was feeling depressed, although coming
! home had braced me up for the time being. |
felt shaky and doubtful of myself until |
Tuesday the first day I walked out. but
/ now my strength is returning fast. The /
barking neuralgia in all the side Of M
/ head and my ear has subsided- The wound /
! teaIed without trouble You remember how /
/ quickly the two bad cuts I got when boy |
! healed-one from an axe and the other
! from a scythe. The doctors looked at the /
scars in the hospital.
/ I still find il difficult 70 talk but my /
voice comes back a little every day. But 1
( shall not infict my Ills and aches on you. |
I am sorry for the worry I have caused /
you all. You remember my dog Spot. when |
We were children. He got hurt once, and /
| crawled under a pile Of logs and lay there /
for more than a week before he came out. |
Well. when any trouble happens to me I
feel just like poor Spot-I would ike to
crawl under the log pile and stay there.
Had Not Read Newspapers.
l have not read any newspaper since I
was hurt nor have / been told how the |
thing happened. except that Commissioner |
Thompson told me on the deck that l had /
been shot By a former employe Of the Dock /
Department I do not remember the name |
he gave II is my intention never TO read a
line OF what has been published in the !
! newspapers about the matter or me since |
was hurt II might warp my mind about /
myself What I I am, with all my |
shortcomings. and 1 am content with that |
Ny own knowledge of the occurrence is,
Of course, very limited, and may be mac |
cJrate- I think I shall tell il TO you now,
so that there may be some family record Of
it, and in year or two I wish you TO turn |
this letter over 70 Rufus 10 keep 7 was /
taking him with me for company. AS you
know. he and I have travelled much to-
gether. He was the other side of the
ship and did not see NE shot.
I was standing on the deck, talking with |
Commissioners Thompson, Lederle. Ed
wards Corporation Counsel Watson. my
secretary. Mr. Robert Adamson. and sew
eral friends Nho had come aboard TO see
me off Mr Montt. President OF Chilli and |
Mrs Montt had just passed by. and 1 had |
spoken a few words with them. Mr.. |
Adarnson pointed out that the ship was
dressed with flags for me. but I said 1 did |
not think il could be for me. Ny next |
| consciousness was of a terrible metallic
roar in my head II filed my head, which
seemed as though il would burst open. It
swelled to the highest pitch, and then fell.
and then rose again. and so alternated until
II subsidized into continuous buzz. II was
sickeniug, but iny stomach did not give
Tav ] was meanwhile entirely sightless
Knew First He Was Choking.
do not think [ fell. for when I became
conscious | was on my feet. I suppose
they saved me from falling and they were
sllpporting me My sight gradually re-
turned. so that after A while / could see
the deck and the outlines OF the crowd
around me- | became conscious that | was
choking Blood was coming from my mouth
and I tried all ] could TO swallow it, so
those around would not it. But I
found I could not swallow. and then knew
nv throat was hurt. IT seemed as though
GrV fo hra h,