, 1884-12-17
W BLOODY CORPSES.
A Desperate Lover Kills the Wife
of His Friend
And then Puts a Bullet Through
His Own Breast.
A Graphic Account of a Tragedy
Yesterday Morning.
The Deed Doubtless the Result of
Uncontrolled Passion.

AT 6 o'clock yesterday morning a
tragedy of a rather unusual nature, and
which resulted in the death of two peo-
pie, was enacted in this city. Juan Bonito
Duran, a Mexican Spaniard, shot Mrs.
Adella Sanchez, a white woman, and
turning the pistol to his own breast sent a
bullet through his guilty heart. The
tragedy is wen yet surrounded by 4 num-
Der Of strange circumstances and the pro-
found mystery in which it was at first
shrouded was only penetrated after a long
and most thorough investigation. The
friends and relatives Of the principal ac-
tors in the affair did not aid the investi-
cations and a reporter Of THE LEADER
was enabled to ascertain the facts only by
a persistent search and careful inquiring
among those who, in many instances, were
unwilling to reveal any information which
would explain the motives that prompted
the double crime.
The house where the murder and sui
eide occurred is a small frame cottage of
three rooms, at the southwest corner of
Eddy and Twentieth streets. and is the
more ~easterlY of three cottages owned by
Riner & johnson.
At the time of the tragedy the dwell
ing was occupied by Mrs. Adella Sanchez
and her two small children, Mrs. Eleanor
Lambert, mother of Mrs. Sanchez, and
Juan Bonito Duran. The women and
the children occupied the middle room of
the three. and Duran had passed the
night in the front room. At 6 O'Clock in
the morning Mrs. Lambert was awakened
by the whistle at the railroad shops. She
aroused her daughter, who arose and
dressed. After dressing she entered the
room occupied by Duran, for the purpose
of replenishing the fire, which had been
burning all night. Duran was dressed
at that time and after a few
words had been exchanged between the
two he drew a large Colts 44-calibre re-
volver from beneath a pillow on the bed
and fred at Mrs. Sanchez. The ball
struck her about an inch from the spinal
column, near the point OF the right Shout
der blade, passed entirely through her
body, made its exit from the right breast
and entered the wall over the door of the
room. Immediately after she was shot,
Mrs. Sanchez ran screaming from the
room, and calling to her mother that
Duran murdered her, she ran out of the
house and fell, but struggling to
her feet she ran toward the adjoining
house. No fence separated the houses
and she reached the door only to sink ex-
hausted upon the step. The house was
occupied by Mrs. John Nyquist and Miss
Mary johnson, neither of whom was out
of bed. Just as she reached her neigh
boris door another shot was fred in her
own house and evidently frenzied with
fright, the woman again struggled to her
feet and ran a few yards, when nature
succumbed and she fell upon the snow.
Mrs. Lambert, although an aged and
inirm woman, ran from the house,
seized her daughter and dragged her into
the kitchen. The old lady then ran to
the homes Of neighbors and with piercing
shrieks aroused every one in the vicinity.
The following diagram will give an idea
Of the arrangement of the house where
the tragedy occurred, the place where
Mrs. Sanchez stood when shot and where
she was taken by Mrs. Lambert.