The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-07-14
From the New York world.

From the New York World.
 When Robert J. Wynne, first assistant postmaster general, went into the depart ment little more than a year ago. A. w. Machen and George W. Beavers, then at the height of their power. looked him over.
 Beavers and Machen were so strong, seemingly, with congress. and so firmly intrenched that the coming of a new first assistant was merely an incident with them. According to the scheme of organization of the department they were both in divisions controlled by and sub ordinate to the first assistant. He was their immediate superior.
 "wynne, eh?" said Machen. Well, we'll do him the way we did Johnson"
 William M. Johnson of New Jersey was Wynne's immediate predecessor. Johnson was overwhelmed He was not a fighter by nature. and when he saw the power of his subordinate he took his own method of protesting. He was absent from his desk for nearly eleven months of the thir- teen he was in office.
 Wynne is built differently. He comes from fighting stock and transmits the strain. His father was a gallant officer in the civil war. His son, a captain in the marine corps at 26, has fought in Cuba, in the Philippines and in China.
 So when word was brought to Wynne that Machen and Beavers intended to do" him, he gritted his teeth. He held the commission of the President of the United States for his office. He was the superior of both Machen and Beavers. Moreover he intended to run his own office in his own way, under the regula- tions, and he told Machen and Beavers so in language that had bones and blood in It.
 Wynne had not been in his office a month before the issue was joined. Mach en and Beavers were first contemptuous and then defiant. wynne fought them to standstill.
 There have been many statements to the contrary, many claims of early activ- ity, but the fact is that Wynne is mainly responsible for the uncovering of the frauds in the postoffice department. He went there an honest man, full of cour- age and fearing nothing. He rolled up his sleeves and pitched in. He put common honesty and common decency above poli- tics and above everything else. Party ex- pediency meant nothing to Wynne. He knew there was crookedness in the post office department and he went after 1t.
 Beavers didn't last long after Wynne began to get the lid pried up. He ran to cover and resigned. Machen held on, defiant and clustering. Wynne and Bris- tow worked along. Machen is now under indictment for collusion in contract whereby he received some ,000 illegally. He is out of the department. There are others who will follow. Wynne is running his department. He isn't popular with Postmaster General Payne. That doesn't worry him. Payne thinks Wynne has been | indiscreet, and thinks. too. that it was unnecessary to bring so much publicity | to bear on the scandals. That doesn't worry wynne. either. He may not be pleasing the politicians, but he is clean ing up the postoffice department. and there is a good deal of satisfaction in that | for an honest man.
 | Everybody in Washington knows | Wynne. He has lived here for twenty. | five or thirty years. He is a compactly built man of 190 pounds weight He is ar Irishman, and he has all the pugnaclty and all the wit of the race. His face 1: