Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-04-24

| In the department He is one of the best
known men in official life in Washington.
he and Mrs. Tyner and President and
Mrs. Grant were intimate friends
During the universal postal congress-
| which met here in 1897, he was one of the
committee which represented this govern
ment.
Tyner's Counsel Makes Statement.
After General Tyner had received the let
ter OF dismissal from Postmaster General
Payne he called into consultation Mr.. r.
Ross Perry and Mr.. l.. T. Kitchener, at
torneys Of this city. who are intimate
friends. These gentlemen later in the
evening made a statement as follows:
Gen. James N. Tyner asks from the pub
lie suspension of judgment until he can
put before them the facts relating to his
removal from office and the cause assigned
therefor by the Postmaster General. The
matter has come upon him so suddenly that
he cannot now make detailed statement,
but must necessarily confine himself to the
following general account:
I'm July last he was stricken with paraly-
sis. from which he has only partially re-
covered. Realizing that his usefulness as
a public officer was seriously impaired he
conferred with the Postmaster General as
| to the time of his resignation, and it was
agreed between them that it should be ac-
cepted to take effect on May 1. 1903.
On Tuesday last, feeling that the time
OF his retirement from office was very near
he realized that he should remove from his
office certain private property and papers
belonging to his wife and himself. These
were contained in safe in his room at the
Post Office Department. For the many
years during which he has been connected
with that department he has had a room
which has been virtually his own, and
safe In this room in which he has kept per-
| sonal papers. This is practice which has
been common for years to the chief officials
of the government departments
Gen. Tyner's health prevented his going
In person to open this safe and remove his
papers therefrom. Even had he been able
to leave his house his disabled arm would
have prevented him from opening the safe.
Accordingly he requested Mrs. Tyner to act
for him, giving her the combination of the
safe. Upon her reminding him that she
could not open 1t, even with the combna-
tion he directed her to telephone for Mr..
Hammer, who had on prior occasion open
ed 1t for him. This was accordingly done,
and Mrs. Tyner made an appointment for
Mr.. Hammer to meet her at the generals
room at half past on Tuesday last. Mrs.
Barrett. who is Mrs. Tyners sister, and
who lives in the same house with her, ac-
companied her, as she did not wish to go
alone. They did not reach the department
until 3:45 O'Clock.
TT is easy to see now that it would have
been better had Mrs Tyner gone to the
Postmaster General and asked him to be
present and supervise her act. But neither
Gen. Tyner nor herself contemplated any
wrongdoing. or imagined that such would
be imputed to them. His many years serv-
ice and her frequent visits to his room
made it seem only natural that she should
go there to take his property. since he
could not go himself.
Mrs. Tyner removed from this safe its
contents, which was all that she had been
instructed to get. A messenger OF the de-
partment made these papers into a bundle
and carried them to the generals house.
Shortly after he reached there two in
spectors from the department came to the
house and demanded these papers. Gen.
Tyner upon the spur Of the moment and
without other guide than his Indignation,
refused to deliver them. Later on the same
evening he sent letter to Mr. Brtstow, the
i fourth assistant postmaster general asking
him to come to his house. intending to put
the papers in his charge. Unfortunately
Mr. Bristow was unable to some.
These papers are now in the possession
of Gen. Tyner in the same condition in
They are all the private papers of Gen. and
Mrs. Tyner save one bundle which relate
to a matter not at all connected with any
thing now pending in the department and
long since closed. These papers will all
be placed at the disposal Of the proper au-
thorities of the government.
No blame. far as can be learned, Is
attached to Mr.. Hammer, the safe expert,
who had performed similar services for Mr..
Tyner in his office. and who went there IN
nocent of the thought that he was being
u6ed As tool,