The Belding banner-news. (Belding, Mich.) 1918-1973, 1921-04-27
JUMPING FISH LURE
YOUNG MAN TO DEATH

and remained unde.' water practical
ly one and three quarters hours. He
carried an ordinary garden rake and
so tho oughly covered the bottom OF
the river that there is absolutely no
doubt in his mind but that the st ong
current rs swept the body out of
the pond and down the river, to
heaven alone knows where.
Mr.. Allmendinger made several
othe.. descents both on the east and
west sides of the river before the
work was abandoned and the recov-
cry of the body was left to the time
when someone will unexpectedly
make the gruesome find. 1t may be
as far down the river as Smyrna, o.
even below that, or it may be lodged
in some secluded place in the river
between here and Smyrna.
I Mr. Allmendinger said that he was
wo king as deep as twenty-five feet
on this local job nd that while he
encoun Rsed some sunken slabs of
driftwood, the bottom of the river
is fairly clear and in good shape. He
said that there were rocks as big as
Ford automobile down there and
that he came ac.oss a number of
claI lodges and could see where the
graphing hooks had caught in the
previous work with them. He was
positive that he had explored every
foot of the bottom and that the cur
rent, which he said was also strong
at the bottom of the river, had wash
ed the body away.
The al which enabled Mr.. Al,men-
dinger to operate under the water,
was supplied from pump operated
by Shorty Wood on one side and by
several other men who took turns on
the other side, M. Wood standing
his turn alone against the others.
The drowned boy was a son of
James Preston, of Breckenridge. The
family has played in hard luck for
several years back, three children
are reported to have died from some
disease inside of a few days, two
years ago and the family has been
burned out two times since then.
Mr.. Preston arrived here on Friday
and remained until Satur-
day evening when he returned home
He was nearly heartb-oken over the
tragic event.
Frank Scully, former resident of
that section Of the state around
Breckenridge, was acquainted with
the family and a paper was started
on which nearly $50 was received
and given to Mr.. Preston. This was
secured largely from the business
men. On Sunday collection was
taken up among the multitude of
people who thronged the banks of
the river, $1,000 being secured at
this time Mr.. Allendinger, the diver
also gave $40.
The expense of having the diver
come here in the final. effort to To-
cate the body, was incurred by the
city and was set at 500 for the days
work, together with the necessary
expenses of the trip
Mr.. Almendinger and his associ-
ates could not help but express them
selves on the conduct of the people
here in the charitable interest which
they took in the case and stated that
in the many places where they had
been engaged in similar work they
had never met with anything like it.
While everyone stood ready and
willing to lend hand, too much Gre
dit can not be given to Marshal Jas.
Meginley, Elmer Cook and the many
other gallant tireless workers who
assisted materially in the fruitless
search, nor can too much praise be
thrown Mayor Washburn's way for
his prompt action Of getting the
diver here on the job.
Mr.. Preston had not resided in this
city long enough to have gained a
residence here, but had the unfor-
tunate victim happened to have been
one of the community's best and un-
ive-sally loved young men, no great
er efforts could have been put forth
to locate and recover his body.
Note--As we go to press We learn
that Preston's body was noticed
floating past the brick yard bridge.
A number of men were sent down
the river and Frank Treyno-, one of
the men, found the body lodged in a
tree top in the rear of the slaughter
house on the Travis farm.