El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-08-17
MYSTERIOUS
DISAPPEARANCE
Which Occurred in This City
Two Years Ago.
Recalled.
A STARTLING STATEMENT
which Seems to Clearly Indicate That 1
n. Ronquillo WAS the Victim of For
Play.

n. Ronquillo was the Victim of Foul
| Play.
Col. Prichard, of White Oaks, has
been in the city for the past week, and
in conversation with q reporter of this
paper impaired some information tina,
has not been. hitherto made public re-
garding the disappearance of E. N
Ronquillo from this city about two
years ago.
II knew the missing man for many
years." said the colonel, land was his
attorney in some matters pending in
the court at Las Vegas at the time OF
his disappearance, from which the mo-
tive for his supposed murder Is de-
ducible.
"Ronquillo at one time was an alleg-
ed owner in q grant of land on the Rio
Grande in this state, and sold his in
terest to some Chicago parties, taking
their note therefor, payable to the
San Miguel Nrtional bank, of Las
Vegas.
"One Miguel Salazar, Ia practicing
| lawyer of that place, was authorized by
Ronquillo to collect the notes, which
he did, but failed to turn the money
over to Ronquillo, and Ronquillo en-
ployed me to force the money from Ss-
lsZar.
"After year or more of delay, at
the urgent request OF Ronqu1llo, L
brought suit against Salazar, in New
Mexico, and recovered a judgment
against him for something over $11OO,
q credit having been allowed Salazar
of some kind of claim that he held
against Ronquillo.
RECEIPT EXHIBITED.
"Salazsr, however, in the meantime,
had conveyed most, if not all, of his
property to his wife and children,
presumably to avoid paying this judg-
ment.
"After the disappearance of Ron
quillo, Salszar produced receipt, al
legged to have come from Ronquillo,
acknowledging payment OF the judg-
ment to Ronquillo. The receipt was
forgery, pronounced so by experts,
called upon to examine the signature
as to its genuineness.
"The notary, before whom the re-
ceipt was pretended to have been &C
knowledged, admitted that Ronquillo
was not present and never acknowl-
edged the receipt before him. The re-
ceipt on its face purported to have
been made few days after the judg-
ment was rendered.
sRonouillo and Salazar were not on
speaking terms at that time, and part
of the judgment had already been as
signed, a fact which Salazar probably
had not ascertained.
"After the judgment was rendered
esssasb to 9 s1T to reach so
Vendome. / believe, and sent for Ron
quillo, who was taking breakfast with
his children.
WHEN LAST SEEN.
He Immediately repaired to the
room at the hotel, and after short
conference livery rig was procured,
and the men rode away In it,
with the object, as Salazsr stated after
wards, of showing Ronquillo some land
north of the city, which Salazar claim
ed to own, known as the Fisher tract,
under the pretence of offering 1t to him
in part payment of this judgment.
'sOld man Ronquillo never returned
from that ride, and shortly afterwards
this bogus receipt WAS produced by Sa-
lazar.
"That u fearful tragedy was enacted
on that day am fully convinced, and
firmly believe that If the authorities of
Ell Paso had been sufficiently awake to
their duties Ronquillo's body would
have been found rotting in some hole
in those foothills standing within sight
of your city.
COMMITTED SUICIDE.
Salazar committed suicide in
Trinidad, Colorado, a year or
so ago, impelled to the deed, so it is ru-
mored, by some dark secret preying on
his mind.
Several theories were advanced at
the time to account for Ronquillo's
disappearance, but there was no doubt
at the time that he had been foully
dealt with. He was much attached to
his family and children. and never left
home except for urgent reasons.
"Salazar had made one trip before to
Ell Paso to see Ronquillo and no doubt
the plan to dispose of Ronquillo was
thoroughly perfected long in advance.
"Suspicion fell, of course, upon Sa-
lazar and his companion, but the in
vestigation was luke-warm and in the
absence of the victims body. nothing
was done. 1 was in California at the
time, and did not return until some
time after the excitement had sub
sided.
"a good deal of this was, of course
known to the authorities and relatives