The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1920-03-03
WOMAN CHOOSES
ROPE METHOD TO
: END HER TROUBLES
HUSBAND FINDS BODY HANG
ING IN WOODSHED IN REAR
OF HOME EARLY THURSDAY


("Dick") Weed, well known and re-
spected residents of this city, living
in the Mike Zahm house at the cor
ner of Ashfield street and Merrick
avenue, ended her life by hanging
herself in the woodshed in the rear
of the family home, sometime We'd
nesday night or shortly after mid
night, Thursday morning. The hus-
band, awakening at four o'clock on
Thursday morning and becoming
alarmed because of the fact that Mrs.
Weed had not as yet went to bed,
got up and in searching the prem
Uses came up against her frozen body
up clothesline which was suspended
from wooden cross piece overhead.
Mr.. Weed at once notified Marshal
Meginley, Deputy Sheriff Murray
and others and the body was cut
down by the marshal and then re-
moved to the undertaking rooms of
the Miller & Harris Furniture Co.,
where the coroner's jury, consisting
of Henry Friedly, Ben Friedly, Fred
McDuffee, Milt Benedict, Jim Megin-
ley and Ed. d. Engemann, was i'm
pannelled and after a careful investi-
cation into the case, rendered YER
dict that the dead woman had taken
her life by her own hand and that no
one was to blame. The coroner's jury
also commended Mr.. Weed in his
trouble and inserted a clause in their
verdict TO that effect and absolved
him from all blame or suspicion in
any way with the horrible event.
Mr.. Weed when sworn at the in
quest stated that he and the dead
woman had known each other as
schoolmates about % years ago in
their childhood DAYS in Massachus-
sets. He stated that after the
breaking up of his home somewhat
more than a year ago he went
to Grand Rapids, having secured a
divorce from his first wife before GO
ing there. While in Grand Rapids
he met the deceased who since he
knew her, had married man named
Carpenter, her husband having died
about eight years ago. She had a
little girl, aged about seven years,
a daughter of an only sister, who had
died when the child was but two days
old. Mrs. Carpenter, so Weed said,
had taken the little orphaned niece
and had since cared for it as If it had
been her own child Mrs. Carpenter
was trained nurse and for three
years prior TO her marriage to Mr..
Weed in August or last year, she had
been engaged bv the United States
government at a South Dakota In
dian reservation. After a courtship
of some months the couple were mar
ried last August, in Grand Rapids
and in October, with Weed's son,
Richard aged nine wears cd and the
little child which the woman had
brought up as her own. they came to
this city to reside.
The family got along well and ev,
esything seemed to be serene and
happy, according to the stories told
by Weed and the two children, until
the return of Weeds former wife,
to the city, following which Mrs.
Weed fancied that her husband would
leave her for the other woman. She
kept this to herself in the main, new
er telling or intimating anything of
the kind to her husband, but on one
occasion when she visited local at
torney she informed him of this fact.
Neighbors however stated that the
husband was true blue to his second
wife and that the latter imagined
much and thus became at times de-
pressed.
The splendid nature of the hus,
band was testified to when officers
who had been to the home early on
Thursday morning to view the body
and take in the surroundings and in
vestigate stated that the woman had
everything which a person could want
to do with and that the home was a
marvel Of neatness and comfort. Ev>
erything in and about the home was
as spick and span as possible and
complete for convenience in every
way.
Mr.. Weed stated that on Wednes,
day morning he had no work at Fac
tory A where he is employed and
that he returned home and assisted
his wife with the family washing
and that they worked throughout the
day in this work and that they were
evidently as happy and contented as
two children playing together. He
said that after supper the work was
done up and that Mrs. Weed undres-
sed the two children and took them
upstairs to bed. Following this she
returned to the dining room, which
was also used as a sitting room and
that she was engaged for some time
in mending underwear for the chill
dren and that after this was finished
she took an old coat which Mr.. Weed
wore to work in the factory and
started in TO mend it. While she
worked in this way he sat near by
and read to her out of the evening
paper.
At about $3.50 O'Clock Mr.. Weed
stated that he would go to bed and
his wife told him that she would soon
retire also. He was soon asleep and
after about an hour woke up and no.
ticing that the Light in the dining
room was still burning and that her
nightgown was still lying on a chair
near the bed, decided that she had
Either not finished her work, had
stepped out, or was engaged in read
ing the paper. Thinking no more of
the matter and being tired, he was
Continued on Page Five)