Waterbury evening Democrat., 1904-06-06
DEATH AT FOREST PARK.
Ains Year Old Leroy Phelan Drowned
 Yesterday norninG.

Another life went out at Forest park yesterday when J. Leroy Phelan, the nine years and eleven months old son Of MT and Mrs Frank Phelan of 95 Bishop street, was drowned in eighteen feet of water at the landing stage, where few boats were anchor ed. The boy went to the children's mass at St Thomas's church and when he returned home his mother was busy getting some of the rest Of the chil- dren ready for church and took no particular notice of him. Things went along until dinner was ready and the boy had not been seen about the house since he came from Sunday school. This was unusual, because the little fellow never went away without bis mothers Knowledge, and naturally the family became uneasy and his father started out to look him up. After tramping through the whole district and making inquiries of everybody whom he thought might have seen him he turned his steps toward Forest park where so many young lives have been sacrificed since it became public re- sort, and there was shown a cap which had been found floating on the water about 10 o'clock in the forenoon. MT Phelan recognized the cap as the one worn by his son and immediately steps were taken to drag the lake for the body. This was kept up without finding anything until between and 10 o'clock at night when the body was found under one of the boats and hauled to the surface in presence of the grief-stricken father. Medical Examiner Crane viewed the body af- ter which it was removed to the family residence by Undertaken Mulville.
 MT Phelan said to-day that some body must have seen the boy for he feels confident that he never would have made the trip alone, and consid- erable color is given to this contention owing to the fact that in the morning Harry Beecher who has charge of the boats at the park, when going out to have bath saw a youngster standing at the dock with the cap in his hand He turned it over to MT Beecher say ing that he had picked it out of the water and didn't know to whom It belonged. Beecher threw it On the roof of a shed to dry, thinking that whoever owned it would come along later and claim 1t. From this it would seem that the boy who had the cap in his hand must have been with young Phelan and probably was afraid to say so. But this is not material. 1t is certain that J. Leroy Phelan was drowned in the pond, and his father thinks that he was stepping from one boat to another when he fell in. The first time the family heard that the boy ever visited the park was after the accident. Then they learned that he was up there Saturday with a couple of other little fellows and helped bail water out of one of the boats, in return for which, whoever was there at the time, promised them Ia free sail when they would come along with somebody who could TOW. It is thought that 1t was in anticipation of the promised sail that the boy hur- ried to the park yesterday morning and while romping about got into the water, and nobody being on hand to lend assistance, he was drowned with in a few feet of land It is great blow to his parents and they have the sympathy of the whole community in their great bereavement,
 The funeral will take place to-mor- row afternoon at o'clock.