The story of the Sun, New York, 1833-1918 / by Frank M. O'Brien.

DAY FINDS A RIVAL IN BENNETT 111

package containing the message intended for the
Courier and Enquirer. The Sun replied that it received the message legitimately, and that the whole
thing was a scheme to discredit Mr. Day and his bookkeeper, Moses Y. Beach:
The insinuation of Webb that we violated the sanctity
of a seal we hurl back in proud defiance to his own
brow.
Webb went to the police and to the grand jury, and
for a few days it looked as if the hostile editors might
reach for something of larger calibre than pens. Thus
the Sun of January 22:
We were informed yesterday at the police office, and
subsequently by a gentleman from Wall Street, that
Webb, of the Courier and Enquirer, had openly threatened to make a personal assault upon us. It was lucky
for him that we did not hear this threat; but we can
now only say that if such, or anything similar to it, be
his intention, he will find each of the three editors of
the Sun always provided with a brace of " mahogany
stock " pistols, to accommodate him in any way he likes,
or may not like.
The specification of " mahogany stock" referred to
Colonel Webb's own supposed predilection for pistols
of that description. Mr. Day and his aids may have
carried these handsome weapons, but it is not on record
that they made use of them, or that they had occasion
to do so. Persons gunning for editors seemed to neglect
Mr. Day in favour of Mr. Bennett.
No sooner was this fierce clash with Webb over than
the Sun found itself bombarded from many sides in the
war over Maria Monk. This woman's "Awful Disclosures " had just been published in book form by