Juan Velarde Colodro, 1612-1614 
467 
hardships for the sake of advancing royal service and extending the 
power of the crown, returned to this province, whereupon the viceroy, the 
Marquis of Salinas, 100 entrusted to him the relief expedition 101 which 
was sent to New Mexico, which he led as commissary, occupying in this 
service about two years and travelling more than one thousand leagues. 
Let them tell what they know, or whether they know to the contrary. 
Whether they know that the captain is the person described in the titles 
and documents which he presents, and whether, during the time he was in 
New Mexico, he was compensated for his services, and whether he pre¬ 
sented himself punctually upon all occasions where required for the ser¬ 
vice of his Majesty with his arms, servants, and horses, without 
considering hardships or inclemency of weather. Let them tell, et cetera, 
or whether they know anything to the contrary. 
This was the command and order of the oidor, and Doctor Quesada 
signed it before me. Bartolomé Rodríguez Torquemada, 
Notary and regidor. 
In the City of Mexico, on the seventeenth day of the month of August, 
1612, Doctor Juan Quesada de Figueroa, oidor of this royal Audiencia, 
caused to appear before him for the preparation of the above-mentioned 
statement Don Juan de Oñate, adelantado of New Mexico and former 
governor of those provinces. The oath was received from him, he tak¬ 
ing it before God with the sign of the cross in legal form, and promising 
under the obligation thereof to tell the truth. Being interrogated ac¬ 
cording to the official questionnaire, he said as follows: 
To the first question he answered that he knows his Majesty’s fiscal 
and the captain Juan Velarde Colodro. As to the general questions he 
declared that he is fifty-eight years old, and that he is not disqualified by 
the general questions. 
To the second question he replied that he knows that the contents of 
the question are true, for when this witness announced the expedition to 
New Mexico in the province of Zacatecas, the captain was one of the first 
who enlisted for it under the royal standard; that he went at his own 
expense, taking with him horses, servants, and other adherents; that he 
helped to enlist all the men of the expedition in company with this wit¬ 
ness, who was general of it; that he assisted in all the business of the 
expedition, and upon the march he aided and labored with great care, 
being a capable man of great trustworthiness. This is a well-known fact, 
of which this declarant was an eye-witness. This is his response, and 
there is nothing to say to the contrary. 
To the third question he replied that the contents of this question are 
true, for when this witness had arrived in New Mexico, and the Indians 
thereof were reduced to peace and obedience to his Majesty, they gave 
their submission in many provinces, in some of them before the said cap¬ 
tain, because this witness named him as his secretary and gave him a title 
as such, to which title the witness refers. This is his response, and there 
is nothing to say to the contrary. 
To the fourth question he said that he knows and saw what is said 
therein, because this witness, being general and governor of New Mexico, 
