The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-01-24
ON THE JOB
What Kansas City Man Is Doing
 in Mexico

From the Kansas City Star
 | Down in the war wrasked state of Si- naloa, Mexico, John l.. Case. one time Kansas Citian, is guarding the battered l fragments of division of the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient railway. Re- ceivers may come and receivers may go indeed, most of the receivers in Mexico
 did go early in the hostilties, carrying with them the last girnmering hope of pay rol-but Case stays on the job. Technically, he is just division super intendent still; actually he could write more graphically about war than most of the war correspondents
 But John Case has no time for writing.
 He is too busy guarding the tattered re- mains of his division and jotting down Tn small book memoranda of destruc- ton. Some day, when there's stable government in Mexico, the Orient hopes to get value received for that division
 For certainly all kinds of things have happened to 1t in the last few years
 Cases operating force left long ago It was lots more fun to be a lieutenant col onel in the insurrecto army than a freight conductor on the Orient, and required no higher grade of intelligence Most of the divisions operating force has marched away under the catered colors of Fran cisco Villa.
 And the things that have happened to the railroad-t's a shame to tell them.
 Early in the game all the plush seat coverings in the coaches on Cases di- vision were ripped out by the Mexicans who fancied them for serapes-the ma = tiional blanket costume. Afterward most of the coaches were burned, and there $ hardly bridge intact on the division any more.
 One Sunday few weeks ago the pop- ulace of Fuerte, where Cases headauar- ters are, desired a bull fight. TCere wasn't any bull available and there were not any bullffghters, so the populace did the next best thing. It amused itself by taking two of Cases locomotives and running them into each other head on at full speed. There wasn't anything the superintendent could do about it except to jot down an item of two locomotives in his little ledger book
 About year ago MT. Case was in Kan sas City He had stayed with his rail- road as long as there was any railroad to stay with, and until his funds were almost exhausted. He hadn't been able to- runfa train in five months and fur- ther tarrying at Sinalpa seemed to MT. Case rather. n waste of time. But when he told his story to the Orient receivers they decided that as a reward for his nerve and loyalty he had better go back to Sinaloa and do it some more So he went back. And there he is today Once in while his sister, Mrs. G C. Cowles. who livesa at 717 West Thirty sixth street, gets letter from him. She received one recently telling of the latest play fitness of the Mexicans in the matter of the locomotives. John Case is a son of the late Judge Theodore g. Case.
 Apparently Mir. Case is in no great per sonal danger just at present Impetuous Mexicans offered to kill the stubborn gringo who wouldn't go home when the war broke out. But. after the fashion of Mexicans. they put it off till next day, and next day they thought better of. it. Mir. Case also thought much better of the change in plans.