Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1904-06-20
ASKS INVOCATION
FROM PRESIDENT
JAMES NJ. TYNER SEEKS RETRAc
TON OF CHARGE.
CALLED CHIEF OFFENDER
Named in Statement From White
House AS One Who Took Money
From Swindlers to Officially Pro
tect Them-Acquitted by Jury ana
Would Have Redress.

Washington, June Thames \.
Tyner, who was removed from Office
as assistant attorney general for the
postoffice department during the IN
vestigatiOn of the department and who
recently was tried and acquitted by
jury, has addressed a letter to Presl-
dent Roosevelt, in which he says:
ON the strength of certain charges
contained in a report by Mr.. Bristow,
fourth assistant postmaster general,
You gave TO the press OF the country
a statement to the effect that gross
corruption in the case of Assistant At
torney General Tyner has gone On for
a number of years. and after referring
10 me as the chief offender you say
that in my case the corruption took
the form of favoring get-rich-Quic6
concerns and similar schemes; in 9th
or words, criminals, whom IL was
Cmy) sworn duty 10 prosecute, paid
lme) for permission TO fleece the pub
Tic unmolested. After thus giving
your official opinion as the chief mag
istrate of the nation as 10 my guilt
YOU referred 20 the fact that there
were three indictments pending
against me, and you called upon a
Jury 10 do its duty.
No verdict of jury nor sentence
of Judge could have had such 1ar
reaching or irremediable consequences
for me as this extraordinary official
proclamation of guilt by you, and the
ordinary machinery of Justice is prob
ably powerless fully. to rectify the in
justice done"
Mr. Tyner then cites the fact that
upon seeing the statement he sent the
president letter protesting against
its allegations without having a
chance to be heard in his own defense.
He also refers to the fact that after
trial upon the charges against him he
was acquitted by jury and after re
ferTing again to his letter of protest
he says:
I do not mean for moment 10
question the good faith and entire sin
certify of your proclamation; ! wish
merely TO emphasize the fact that you
have been deceived and that your laIri-
able zeal for public and official de-
cency has been imposed upon. You
GccUse me of gross corruption. the
attorneys for the government con
stantly disclaimed any such charge
before the jury. You charge / was
paid by criminals not TO prosecute
them; not a scintilla of evidence was
offered TO sustain such charge. nor
was single witness nor single doe
JsLcnt produced TO show speciaI n.
vors TO swindling schemes or a single
violation of duty. Every charge iE
the Bristow report in any wise re-
fiecting on me has been disproved by
the recent trial-disproved not by vir-
tue of the verdict, but by sworn evil
dence OF the governments own wit
ness.
In my letter to you, / prayed tina;
my life and mental powers might be
spared until / had convinced the
American public. and you as CHIEF
magistrate, that all my acts have been
honest, honorable and straight for
ward, in the sight of God and man.
My remaining hours are few, though
my house is in order and with a clear
conscience | await from day to day the
irrevocable summons. nevertheless. !
cannot close my eyes without first ar-