Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1875-09-02
The Lost Ballovn Heard Frem--f,rim
woods Body Found.

woods Body Found.
On the iyh day ~ July lad Prof Don
aldSss Elaie a balloon ascension nofn
Tl,tfaq3. acrorBpanisd bv ". b. Grim.
vxood rersorser attached n the Chicago
Rrgufsg Journal The wind carried them
s,veY Lake Michigan. In the direction 81
ntsskegon. Mich, which pojni, had The
current continued in the same direction
and " like intensity. they would have
reached afout iwo o'clock ON the morning
of the following day About midnight ter
rilgls storm agu.e. and IL. wind suddenly
shifted b. an Opposite direction. At thai
time they we're thought 10 be within
twenty on thirty miles u Mnskegon, and
~ neither aefonauis nor the balloon had
been stem since The impression prevailed
that they hsd either found watery grave
in tse depths 81 tie treacherons lake or
suffered not less horrible fate by being
carried into the wilderness of Northern
Michigan, where they must have inevitably
persisted ~ starvation. The feeling " re.
gfet at tIIeir untimely fate Was universal,
and. though some protested hope Of their
ultimate return, the great majority believed
jhcy bad misnabiy perished.
such was the public feeling ON the 10Th
day, ibiayihree days after the ascension, a
telegram vas received from Montague
Mich announcing the finding Of the body
ri Voting Grimaood on the lake shore
Jlet@een Whitehall and that place. The
discovery was made by Mr.. Beckwlth
who carries the mail between Stony Creek
md Montague During his trip along the
sake shore he noticed apeculiar smell and
was attracted by II 30 look along the
beach in search Of the cause. When
he came up 10 the body II was
living ON lis face aud partially covered
with sand Decomposition had already.set
in aud SIR Beckwi,h describes the ap
pearhnee ~ The remains ~ most horrible
and offensive. Al frat Mr.. Beckwith
thought IL might be the body Of some
sailor gsho had been washed overheard
fr0n some vessel, and which, though
cad event to those related 10 him, had NOT
public interest sufficient 10 require him
10 t4y 10 identify him. lie looked again
and siw what appeared 10 be life presery.
er, aud then, remembering the loss
of the acr0nauts, he oyercame his
repugnnnee aud carefully examined
The dead. The pockets contained watch
on which was engraved the name of y >.
GFipwo0d. bis diary, IN which were brief
jottines Of the incidents OF his trip,
numbered ticket 10 the Chicago Public
Library, and other things which showed
c0nclusiycly that IL was the body Of poor
GrimwoOd Ii had on full suit 0fclothes
excepting boots and hat. and the prepare.
lions made, by tightly bu,toning The coat
and putting on the life.prcscryer.
seemed 10 Indicate that the young
nan had prepared TO swim, and
might have succeeded In sustaining
himself above the surface for some
time had the llfe-preseryer been OF any
Use. After being examined the body was
buried near where II was found, II being
impossible 10 transport IL with the appi.
gances nj hand As soon as the finding OF
the body was known a search WAS imme.
diaiely Instituted for traces u Donaldson
or the balloon. The shore for several
miles was carefully looked over by men In
parties and singiy, bu, no other body had
yet been found and no trace OF the airbag
had been reported up TO the evening OF
the 18th.
A dispatch 10 the Epeaiag Journal gives
the following rs n copy Of the jotiings In
Grimwood's diary;
w IN RALI,oosi
FROM the earliest days Of chill hood have
always had q presentiment that some time
are some people who make sport OF PRESENT.
ments, but, after all. presentlment 10 q
handy thing to have around, Where would
have been to.day'if hadn't had a present..
menty In accordance with mypresentiment
have risen, as 10 were, To "point OF or.
der" Like great many y liticians, i rise by
Irrgret The fact that there are only two Of
us--Pfof Donaldson and myself--as would
like TO belong ~ the upper ten" Prof
Donaldson seems 10 be very pleasant gen.
tlemap, although philosopher and aero
maui,
Although II 10 scarcely an hour since !
struggled into emnencc, the restraints Of
my position are already beginning 10 DO irk.
some 10 me and wear upon my spirits.
cannot help rejecting that. II We fan, VIZ fall
like Lucifer, out OF the heavens, and that
watcr--for we are over the middle Of Lake
Michigan--we would be literally dead.
The Chicago Journal Of the 18th says;
q" Mr. Grimwood was a young man Of
more than ordinary promise--physically
stnlwart, robust and strong intellectually,
cultured, studious and unobtusive: SO.
cially. Of peculiarly pleasant, good ma.
tured and humorous disposition---often
witty. always gentle; and morally, high.
minded, OF noble instincts the best o!
habits and above reproach. He was ambi.
tious Of excelling as q practical newspaper
man. lie became a reporter only ~ astep-
ping. stone to something higher In the
journalistic profession, and had he lived
he would no doubt have been sue
.cessiul humorist and essayist In literature.
His last words among his assembled
associates In the journal office on the
afternoon Of the day he assembled In the
iballoon were jovial, and he was unusually
full Of good spirits, He was twenty-five
years OF age In February last, and was en-
gagged 10 be married to a lady In Lockport,
III His aged father, Mr.. William Grim
wood, Of Kendall County, H., is In TIE
city to-day, sadly awaiting the arrival i
the body Of his mourned son."