The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-01-27
THE BIRMINGHAM AGE-HERALDSUNDAY, JANUARY 27, 1924

mas soothed the leaders humiliation by giving all the reasons he could in vent, including the statement that 800 Americans were, on the train and that he. Christmas. was busy breaking rec ords in carrying them to San Pedro Sula. Christmas train had unmolested right of Way that night.
 Next day the government troops were sighted advancing on another train. The commandants of the reyo' lutionists ordered a small hand car placed on the rails behind the train Mounted on this car, he ordered his troops to precede him and charge the enemy. The enemy's train meanwhile was approaching. it's engine driven by an American, . personal friend %of Christmas. The only mounted can. non on either side was in Christmas flat car. Not wishing to risk kill ing the American engineer on the government train, the soldier by force" opened fire with his cannon, using blanks. The big guns first road causde precipitate backing up by the government train; it mad two other trains continuing to back up at high speed until they reached the end of the line, which had q total length of less than 5O miles. The insurrecto train followed them, shooting blanks and always within hearing range.
 Driven From Country
 Colonel Duron was leader of the in- ,surrectOs on. Christmas train. The leader of the revolution was finally driven from the country and Christ mas with him., The latter returned in about year, surrendered formal iy and went back to work for the
 ",aa.
 al 1902 Christmas was appointed chief of police of Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras, by President Sierra. The force was barefoote,l when the American took charge. a prisoner was accustomed to require four policemen to take him to jail, if he showed any fight at all, and there was a regulation that any es- caping prisoner who entered house could pot be pursued beyond the door. Christmas put the. police in full uniforms, including collars and shoes, and taught them to swing clubs. and to disregard the doorway deadline regulation. At the end of the year the force of 1S7 men had improved to the point where it was said that certain sophisticated of lenders were willing to go to Jail alone, rather than risk the honor of having even one policeman escort them.
 Enforced Civil Service
 It was by enforcing the civil serv- ice rules that Christmas got his first real power in Honduras. He dis charged every policeman whom he found engaging in politics, and. in consequence. had force loyal to him when in January, 1923, a junta of ministers tried to prevent Manuel BOnilla. just elected, from taking his seat. Being one of the only two men in the country empowered to call out an armed force. Christmas summoned his police and seated Bonilla. There was fighting, however, before Bonilla secured the reins of government. Christmas started the shooting by ex- ecuting ten policemen who deserted after they had refused an opportunity to leave his banner without danger and had sworn to stand by him.
 After Bonilla became president. Christmas continued as chief of po- lice, and was commissioned A gem eral in the Honduran army. During the last year of Bonilla's power he