Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1894-09-15

lowing 8. boundary Of said grant miles
to 8. W. corner; thence continuing W. Al
chains and 20 links to the W. boundary
line of Ortiz mine grant, being a total on
the s. boundary of tract of miles, AZ
chains and 23 links; thence n. along W.
boundary of Ortiz mine grant miles
and 40 chains to n. W. corner of said grant
to place of beginning"
PENCIL PAYMENT.
Upon this return the com pany was as
sessed on $4,000 and its taxes levied at
$602.50. Opposite this amount on the
books of the sheriff and collector appear
the words: "Suit by R. E. Twitchel,"
without date, and then the Endorsement
in pencil: Compromised and paid"
without date.
It will be remembered that from 1885
to 1888 A. j. Wolf, of New York City, was
stationed in south Santa Fe county az
agent of the Ortiz mine grant, and as
such agent undertook to GUST the Ger
rillos Coal g. Coke or Iron company from
that part of the Juana Lopez grant which
conficted with the Ortiz mine grant.
This action threatened to shed
DANGEROUS FLOOD OF LIGHT
upon the murky and mysterious methods
whereby Catron, Elkins, Kerens, ct al,
claimed ownership of large tracts of the
richest lands in Santa Fe county, and it is
alleged, Catron teegraphed Elkins that
f., Wolf was about to attack the title of the
Juana Lopez grant and that If he (Elkins)
allowed Wolf to proceed further he (Cat-
ROM would break the title of the Ortiz
mine grant. Thereupon Wolf was dis
charged and returned to New York.
Possibly this circumstance may be the
key to the mystery connected with the
apparently sudden conclusion of the COM
pany to return an approximately correct
description of its property to the assess
or.
In 1891 the lands of the Cerrillos Coal
& Iron company, described the same as
assessor at $4,000, this
VALUATION WAS APPROVED
by the county commissioners, and taxes
to the amount of $51625 levied thereon
The record shows that $477.5O of this
sum we're paid.
In 1892, F. W. Risque, agent and gen.
eral manager of the Cerrillos Coal & Iron
company, made sworn statement of the
property of said company, reciting the
description above given, and placed
valuation of $4,000 thereon. This was
raised by the county commissioners to
$4,000 and subsequently reduced to $780,
600. The taxes levied that year, amount
ing to $1,Ol4, appear to have been paid
in full.
In 1885, E. I. Cartilage, land commits
sioner of the Cerrillos Coal q Iron COM
pany, made sworn return to the asses
sor of the lands and Improvements of the
company at $4,000.
REVISED DESCRIPTION.
The description of the property, as
revised and amplifed by R. E. Twitchell,
district attorney, was as follows:
"All that part of the Mesita de
Juana Lopez grant lying south of
the right of-way of the New Mexico d
Southern Pacific Railroad company;
also all that part of the Ortiz mine grant
described as follows: Commencing at
n. W. corner of the said Ortiz mine grant,
then east along the n. line miles, AZ
chains and % links to point; then 8. at
right angles miles and As chains to
point; then W. parallel to the n. line of
said Ortiz mine grant 6 miles, AZ chains
and 20 links to the west line of said grant;
then n. along the W. line of said grant 8
miles and IS chains and to beginning;
embracing 26,99S acres"
MAsTERLY MANIPULATION
Thine, through the mastarly maninn,a-
ton of MIR. Twitchell, this company seems
suddenly to have acquired nearly $4,000
acres more than it claimed the year be-
fore without the formality of any fresh
deeds, but it's valuation was not increased
and 1t was only taxed $3.50. This
amount appears to have been paid.
In searching for light respecting the
magical manner in which the Cerrillos
Coal & Iron company seemed to be in
creasing its landed possessions, the writer
came across the following, and concluded
to transcribe it from the records:
LEASE TO CERR1LLOs COAL RAILROAD.
"Lease May 16, 1892. Cerrillos Coal &
Iron company to Cerrillos Coal railroad
company 90 years.. About $4,000 acres
of land lying and being situate in Santa
Fe county, N. NJ, on the south side of
the Galisteo river, 15,026.O6 acres of said
land, being embraced within what is
known as the Ortiz mine grant, conveyed
by Chaffee and Elkins to the Cerrillos
Coal & Iron company by deed dated
| lro oil oil hok -
portion of the Mesita de Juana Lopez
grant lying south of the Galisteo river
and extending to the north boundary of
the Ortiz mine grant, estimated to con-
tain II 900 acres OF land, conveyed by T.
B. Catron and wife to the Cerrillos Coal &
Iron company July l, 1885, and recorded
in book N, page 222." Recorded July 20,
1892.
1t may be that the Cerrillos Coal Il
Iron company did not realize that it
owned the additional $4,000 acres of land
until the foregoing lease was made.
pR1NoELy ASSESSMENT.
The lands and Improvements of the
Cerrillos Coal & Iron company have this
year been assessed at $94,ssO, upon which
the taxes levied amount to $3,439.4O.
1t will be perceived from the above
official figures that the Cerrillos Coal g.
Iron company or the pretended Cerrillos
Coal Railroad company proposes to pay
taxes on $94,8S0 when it is enjoying a
revenue from an investment of over
100000 above lands, its whole property
Is actually bonded for 81 100000 and it is
earning interest on that amount. Among
the investments ofthea company are ten
miles of railroad track and equipment,
100000; fifty coke ovens, $1,000 each,
$4,000; hard coal breaking plant, $780,
600; engines, hosting plant and other
machinery, $4,000; buildings and other
g AR nm i