The Conscientious Official

While a Division Superintendent of a railway was diligently focused on his responsibilities of placing obstructions on the track and tampering with the switches, he received alarming news: the President of the railway was about to discharge him for incompetency.

"Good heavens!" he exclaimed. "There are more accidents on my division than on all the rest of the line!"

"The President is very particular," replied the man who brought him the news. "He believes that the same loss of life could be achieved with less damage to the company's property."

"Does he expect me to shoot passengers through the car windows?" the indignant official retorted, angrily spiking a loose tie across the rails. "Does he take me for an assassin?"

In that moment, the superintendent felt both frustrated and misunderstood. He believed his actions were necessary for the operation of the railway, yet the looming threat of dismissal hung heavily over him.