The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1913-03-24
George White Missing From
Retreat Since
Dec. 8
ESCAPED BY JUMP
ING FROM WINDOW
Thought to Have Been Traced Toward
New Hampshire Home-Seen Float
ing by Cecil streeter and Robert
Whidden Saturday Afternoon.

Whidden Saturday Afternoon.
While walking along the bank of the
West river Saturday afternoon IN the
rear of the cottage on the Bradley farm,
Cecil Streeter and Robert Whidden, two
bows, discovered the body Of a man, face
down. in the river They lost no time
in notifying the authorities and Select
men j. Edgar Mellen and a. +. Merrill
went to the scene. The authorities At
the BrattleborO Retreat were also no.
titled that they might identify the body
in the event that il proved TO be that
Of n person missing from that instItu-
ton. 1t was remembered that George
White, an inmate, had escaped Dee.
and had never been found. Moran &
Co, undertakers, were notified 10 get
the body.
Arthur Rohde and John J. Clune Of
Moran 4 60. secured an old leaky boat
from the south shore and with two
pieces of wood for paddles worked their
way across the river to where the body
lay in the water. Capt. William T.
Haigh. supervisor at the Retreat. asked
the men in the boat what color the
trousers were and upon receiving their
answer expressed the belief that the
body was that of White Later, after
the body had been towed to shore, the
name Of the unfortunate man was found
on his undertaking.
Mr. White was resident Of Warner.
y. H., and was admitted to the imstitu-
tion only a few weeks before his disap-
pearance, a brother in Barton. whom
he had been visiting, having arran -ed
for his care there because of his mental
condition. He was a painter by trade,
Il years old, and q short time before
his admission to the institution had
broken down because of overwork. Tie
gave up his trade for time and work
ed in a general store in Warner, later
returning 10 work at his trade. but tgain
broke down. Then he went 10 the home
of his two brothers in Barton and from
there was committed TO the institution,
suffering, it was supposed, from a nerv-
Gus breakdown.
1t developed at the institution that
\ he had broken down mentally, but he
was not considered dangerous to himself
or others and was a patient on what is
known as the parlor ward where the
patients are under almost constant
oversight, but under only partial re-
/ straint.
On the morning of his disappearance
he was left alone by the attendant on
that ward a few minutes and when the
attendant returned to call White to his
breakfast he found that the patient i'm
some manner unknown had obtained an
instrument by means of which he had
been enabled to unscrew a block Of
wood so fastened as to permit the win
dow being opened only six inches. He
had raised the window, dropped 10 feet
to the ground, and disappeared.
Immediately after the disappearance
was reported several Of the attendants
=
word was Immediately sent to surround
ing towns notifying the officials of the
disappearance Of a patient from the
Retreat
He was traced, it was believed by the
Retreat authorities, across the river and
to a point where he would have turned
to 90 toward his home town in Warner,
but there all trace of him was lost, it
was reported at that time. 1t was then
believed that he had safely crossed the
river and that, if his body ever was
found, it would be somewhere in the
woods.
1t would appear from the discovery
of the body in the river a trife more
. than a mile from the Retreat buildings.
that he did not safely cross the river,
or, if he did, that he must have re-
! traced his steps and fallen into the wa
{ ter near the cottage of the Bradley
I farm
At the time the Retreat authorities
were making search for him, which
I continued some time, a relative Of
] White 5 came from Warner to learn the
situation and expressed himself "a
I Superintendent s. f. Lawton of the Re
: treat as perfectly satisfied with what
I had been done.
T Mr.. White was born in Barton, Vt
Ii but had been resident OF Warner
t about 10 years. He was married, ans
I leaves his widow and a son, 10 years
t old. He also leaves two brothers il
4 Barton. Arrangements were made thi
h morning whereby the body was shippes
e to Warner. 1t will be taken later L,
o Manchester for burial