The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-03-30
FIRST SUPPLIES
 FOR US. TROOPS
 SENT OVER RAILS
Shipments Allowed By CarranZa As Regular Freight Whereabouts of Villa Bafles Army Headquarters As Bandit Leader Splits His Followers Into Several Small Bands

l1 Fl Paso, March 30-The first sup plies to be sent by rail to General Pershing's columns are expected to be forwarded today from Juarez follow ing the permission granted by Gen eral Carranza for the use of the Mex ican Northwestern Railroad.
 Army officials here did not conceal their disapp ointment over the first chiefs refusal to permit full train loads to enter Mexico under American military guard. they were visibly re- ieved at the, prospect of using the railroad in even a, limited way for the transportation problem was one of the most serious faced by General Funston.
 The stories of soldiers returning from the front taken in conjunction with the guarded admissions by the military authorities, confirmed the be- lief that the motor truck system had proven inadequate and that some bet ter way of provisioning General Per shings- forces must be found very quickly.
 on what can be hoped for from the dilapidated Northwestern Railroad. For some time a schedule of only one train in two days has been maintain ed between Juarez and Casas Gran des The distance is 16S miles and the trip Is nladeI Tn rom 11 to ~ hours. A heavily loaded freight train is expected to take much longer than this.
 One important question upon which the army officials here are anxious to obtain light is exactly what 1nterpre- tation will be placed by the Mexican officials on Carranza's instructions that supplies must be shipped in the ,oEdin- ary manner as commercial freight. If this is to mean that freight will only be forwarded on the regular trains, officials, say the amount of supplies to reach General Pershing's base will be very small.
 While the railroad situation has temporarily overshadowed the actual pursuit of Villa, interest in the case was revived today on reports that instead of being in the south as re- ported, he was still lowering in the region around Namiquipa- Last word from the front was the stateme ent from General Dodd that for days Villa was reported in the Santa Maria val ley, moving towards SantaN Caterina. No town of the name of Santa Ca- terina appears on any avaiIaiblc maps of Chihuahua but there is a Terrazas Ranch of that name, some miles east of Ell Va11e, one of the temporary bases of thesAmerican expedition. This report considerably mystif1ed Ameri-
 
 Villa some 40 miles northeast of Ma miquipa instead of twice that distance to the south where all previous re ports have placed him.
 The explanation which is generally accepted here is that Villa has adopt ed a, time-honored plan of deceiving his pursuers. He is believed to have scattered his forces into several diff ferent' bands. Each band travels in a different direction, dispensing the information that the chief fugitive is with it.
 In the absence of any definite in- formation there is little room left for anything but speculation and Am ericans here who are not only well acquainted with Mexico but know Villa himself and his habits of mind are unshalxen in their conviction that he is in full l flight to the south east.
 N They point out that the district around Parra1 is the logical place for him to make for as he has thousands of sympathizers there and the con- stitutfonalist government is almost without auth hority except in the heavily garrisoned towns.
 The persistent calm that has reign ed over Chihuahua, for the last two weeks has created strong feeling of optimism While it is felt that crises still are far from passed, many Amer jeans who left Mexico after the raid on Columbus, are returning to their homes, satisfied that no serious out break against foreigners is on the horizon.