The Colville examiner. [volume] (Colville, Wash.) 1907-1948, 1919-09-06
TWO DROWN
IN COLUMBIA
AUTOS AND OCCUPANTS DROP
FROM FERRY BOAT INTO
FAST CURRENT
Divers Fail to Find Body of Mrs.
Divers Fail to Find Body of Mrs.
Grain, but Car Is Located
on River Bottom

After making 1O00-mile trip
through eastern Washington, DR.. and
Mrs. j. B. Grain of Pasco met disas-
ter at the Bossburg ferry last week
Thursday afternoon, and the body of
Mrs. Grain has not been located, al
though the automobile was found
in 20 feet of water in a 10-mile cur
rent 70 feet below the scene of the
accident.
VIM. Simmonds, diver of Spokane,
and Homer E. Miller of Colville,
made several descents in an effort to
locate the body, there having been
hope that Mrs. Grain would be found
in the car. But the body had been
washed away, and the car was
drawn up by windlass from raft
Tuesday night, some of the tools
remaining in the car Boats have
been used this week to search for
the body along the shores below the
ferry.
A letter from C. w. Clepper of
Marcus gives a good description Of
the assistance rendered by S. A..
Tucker who was crossing on the
ferry on his way to Marble:
"Mr. Grain had a little accident
before reaching the ferry in descend
ing the steep hill at the west side
of the river, his car having run
against a stump which slightly bent
up the machine and his wife was
thrown up against the top of the
car, humping her head quite severely.
Mr.. Grain in reaching the ferry told
Mr.. Tucker and his brother of the
incident, stating that they very near
ly had serious accident and also
that it had been about the first they
had experienced during their trip of
nearly 1000 miles.
"It was only a few minutes later
that Mr.. Grain drove his machine
onto the ferry and stopped. The fer
ryman suggested that he move his
car a little and when the machine
was started up he must have lost
control of same as it plunged head
foremost into the river, breaking the
chain and posts at the end of the
boat.
"Mr. fuckers first thought was to
jump in, but at second thought he
obtained the boat and started after
the wreckage which seemed to float
on the surface of the river for sew
eral minutes before going down. AS
soon as he started for the scene Mr..
Grain came up off to- one side of the
wreckage and probably SO to IS
yards from the bank of the river,
and apparently half drowned. AS
soon as he saw Mr. Tucker in the
boat he began shouting for help,
stating that he was completely ex-
hausted. Mr.. Tucker then turned
llo uO0t dlLCI doouIulS HHIScll Oilctt
Mr.. Grain could not reach the shore
He shouted to Mr.. Grain to swim to
shore and that he would endeavor to
get his wife, but Mr.. Grain was too
weak to even help himself into the
boat, holding on until Mr.. Tucker
rowed to shore.
"Mr Grain says that he tried with
all his might to get his wife out
when the car left the ferry boat, but
that she. was fast and that he could
not disentangle her. The top Of the
car probably held her in, or it may
be that she grabbed on to the seat
when she noticed the car was going
into the river.
GAS it was near train time Mr.
Tucker had his brother, who lives
across the river from Bossburg, and
was witness of the disaster, go to
nearby Indians home and obtain
his services with his boat to try and
get some of the wreckage and
endeavor to locate the woman and
the car"