Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1879-07-25
SHOCKING ACCIDENT AT aIpToN.
A Little Girl Falls ever a Cliff.

| SAD FATE OF LITTLE BERTHA GooDYEAR.
Our Geographic dispatches briefly amour
ced, the other day, the terrible death of
little Bertha Goodyear, at Ripton. A cores
pondent of the FREE Press sends us the fol
lowing complete account of the dreadful
casualty:
1t seems that IN the afternoon of July l.,
the wife of J. +. Goodyear sent their two
girls, aged respectively about seven and nine
years. TO neighbors by the name OF Roberts,
distance Of some half mile by the road
The distance between the two houses is not
great in a direct line, but Mr.. Roberts lives
near river, in deep valley which is dense
ly wooded, the hillside being SO abrupt that
the road descends from Mr. &. 5 in diagonal
manner, and at one point forms an COX
bow with the two arms close
together, and connected by n
foot -path that saves n good share of the dis
lance. After staying some little time the
two girls started for home about five O'Clock,
one Julia, taking the road, and the other
Bertha, the foot-path. The latter climbed
the first part Of the hill in safety, but on
reaching Il sort of shelf in the hill, she bv
mistake turned aside into logging road
that intersected the path and which had re-
Gently been used by the father ''bobbing
logs" giving it some resemblance TO the
true path. Julia went home and upon being
inquired Of by the mother, told what she
knew, and the mother started at once, but
soon found that the little one had plunged
be made Il hear calls.
Mrs. Goodyear promptly gave the alarm.
and small body of men, that constantly re-
ceived accessions, formed skirmsh line
and the forest was thoroughly searched for
about mile and half with no success. ex-
cept the finding of the girls tracks at two
widely separated points. Allthe loggingroads
with which the forest alboundcd were closely
examined, when darkness put an end TO the
search for Il few hours. Reinforcements
having arrived Il force of over hundred
tlC Nv li1Hl
far an hnnr ar twa when that failing.
halt was ordered until daybreak, when some
hundred and fifty men pushed on,
determined 10 find the lost little
one, and Were soon rewarded by finding
tracks following the north branch Of Middle |
bury river, which here flows through some
steep hills, in Il rough rocky chasm that
would appal any but the strongest nerves
from undertaking its descent. For some
mile and half farther the girl was tracked, |
in which distance she crossed the branch |
twice, and having reached the junction of the
stream with the south fork, she again crossed |
the stream, clambered up u high, almost per
pendicular rock, and overcome by the eX-
cessive eXertions of the past few hours, lost |
her hold and fell thirty feet to the
rocks and river below, crushing in II
upper part of her forehead. She was
instantly killed, and iloated into
an eddy of shallow water, where she was
found about $50 10y the scarchcrs. and after
1 little delay taken To her almost distracted
parents, who have the sympathy of the en-
ire community. The gorge which she was
is probably one OF the widest in
he State parts of it being absolutely inac-
'essiblc by those that were born and bred
lmong our hills, being bounded for several
niles by almost perpendicular walls of rock
n some placrs hun1rp1a pf feet hiph