Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-09-10

OF RINOC0 IS
STILL MYSTERY
Had Drawn Gun to Shoot
Murderer in Fraction of
Second He Lived.

q Jose. Costa Rica, Aug. 2S.-By
Mail)-Assassination OF Joaquin I'll
noco. late minister Of war and brother
OF former President FREDERICK Tinoco,
on August 8 last, is still an unsolved
mystery with indications that the
slayer may never be brought to an
swer for his crime. The fortnight
which has. elapsed since the tragedy
mas brought out a number Of inter-
esting facts in connection with it
which, never before have. been told.
Joaquin was 80 years old, one of
the handsomest men in Costa RIGA,
a quick shooter and courageous as
a lion. He was tall and of athletic
build, fond of horses, and a member
OF one Of the most distinguished
families. He rarely went unarmed
and had fought a number of duels.
The widow of one Of his a~dversaries,
a lawyer he killed in a revolver fight,
a few years g sought to avenge
her husband and fired five shots al
close range at Tinoco but the latter
survived his wounds.
When on January "a, 1917. his
brother Federico, who was minister
Alfredo Gonzales, deposed the latter
and became head of the government,
Joaquin was given the war portfolio
and ~thereupon, it. is said, became the
real president of Costa Rica. For
two years previously Joaquin had
been fighting revolutionists and per-
sonal enemies and when he became
minister of war he became still more
energetic and aggressive. 1t has been
said that Joaquin on the day of his
death had more enemies than a popu-
lar motion picture actress in the Unit
ed States had, admirers.
On the day before The assassination
Joaquin went before. the Costa Rican
congress and asked to be relieved as
vice president, position he held by
virtue of his cabinet post. At the
same time his brother, the president,
asked official permission to, leave the
country because of "ill-health." Both
requests were granted and the two
Tinocos were preparing to depart
when Joaquin was shot down.
A few months before he met his
death Joaquin began to take a
strange interest in spiritualism. FIRE.
quently he went to a small village
called Guadalupe where he consulted
visit seemed disturbed by what she
had told him. That same afternoon
he returned home and telephoned
for his a but 1t was out of order
and he decided to go for a walk. A
block from hisN residence a man
stepped from behind a tree and fired
at Tinoco point blank. The shot
pierced his eye causing almost instant
death. Notwithstanding the sudden
ness OF the attack, in the fraction of
the second he remained alive, Joaquin
had drawn his own revolver. The
weapon was found in his clenched
hand, every cartridge chamber full:
On the day after the tragedy Joa-
quin was buried with military honore
and 4S hours later the remaining
members of the Tinoco family, includ-
ing the former president. left here
for Bort Limon ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
they sailed for Kingston, Jamaica,
and thence intend to go to England.
The new president, General Juan
Bautista SQuiros, formerly manager Of
the Banco International de Costa Ri
ca, a government institution, s, and
generally regarded as a conservative
Costa Rican, is pledged to Hrestore
order after two years of tyranny, and
the leakage of public funds and, after
q few months of reconstruction, bring
about free electiOnS."