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TRIAL OF JOHN W. WEBSTER. 155
1 have known such explosions to take place with new teeth, when heated
suddenly. In fact, it is always necessary to take great care to heat
them gradually; and, with a set which had been worn, I should expect
nothing else, if heated suddenly, than that they would fly into innumer-
able pieces. Another circumstance seems to indicate that they went
into the fire, in the head, or together; and that is, that the spiral
springs
would have thrown them apart, if not confined in some way, when
thrown into the furnace. When the teeth were brought to me, the two
blocks were in one mass, as now shown to me.
Dr. Lester Noble, now of Baltimore, was the assistant, whom I have
mentioned.
Cross-examined by Mr. Sohier.-All these teeth came to me, at the
same time, from Dr. Lewis, on the Monday after Dr. Webster's arrest.
I have used no effort to bring to recollection these facts, connected with
the manufacture of this set of teeth for Dr. Parkman. In reply to your
question, " When they first came to my mind after his disappearance?"
I can hardly say when they were ever out of my mind. They always
occurred to me, whenever I meet the Doctor. They were- in my mind,
when Dr. Lewis first showed the teeth to me; and I immediately said,
" Dr. Parkman is gone: we sha11 see him no more." [The witness, and
many of the audience, were affected to tears.]
I recognized them at once, without the moulds, and then went to
look for the moulds. This name [of Dr. Parkman, on the mould; shown
to the jury,] was written upon it, at the time it was made. They were
kept in my cellar, where I had put them away. I keep my moulds,
mainly, to provide against any accident which may happen to the set
of teeth, made from them, I had before fitted parts of a set of teeth for
Dr. Parkman; a block for this left lower jaw, where the absorption is
shown. This absorption occurred while he wore that block. This was
before he went to Europe. I took a cast of his jaw, at that time.
I first heard of Dr. Parkman's disappearance,, Saturday night, Novem-
ber 24th, before going into the country. I read the advertisement in
the newspaper.
Direct, again.-Dr. Parkman wore no single mineral-teeth. The
natural teeth, which he had remaining, were one tooth, and two roots,
on the left side, and three teeth and one, root upon the right side., in
the following order;-beginning from behind, on the left side, two roots,:
then a tooth, (the eye-tooth,) then a vacancy; then, upon the other side,
three teeth in succession, then a root, or stump. The teeth remaining,
upon the right side, are one front tooth, the eye-tooth, the first
bi-cuspid,
and the root of the second bi-cuspid. Two roots of natural teeth were
exhibited to me, said to have been found among the ashes. One, of
them, at the time of the examination before the grand jury, was still
adhering to the largest block. [Witness identifies it, now separated
from the block.] There was a third block, adhering to the two now
connected together, united with them, by means of slag, yr some other
matter, when the teeth were first shown to me. It has since been broken
apart. [It was stated by Mr. Clifford, and acceded to by Mr. Sohier,
that this separation had taken place, when Mr. Sohier, in company with
the counsel for the Government, was examining the teeth at the City
Marshal's office, previous to the trial.]
Lester Noble, sworn,-examined by Mr. Bemis. I was an assistant
of Dr. Keep's, in 1846. I entered his office the 11th or 12th of September,
of that year, and remained with him till the middle of July, 1849. 1
am now a student of dentistry, in the Baltimore College of Dentists.
I recollect working upon a set of mineral teeth for Dr. Parkma.n, in
the autumn of 1846. The superscription upon the plaster-mould, shown
me, " Dr. Parkman, Oct., 1846,"-(the mould No. 2, produced by Dr.
Keep,) is in my handwriting. I remember writing it.
The teeth shown to me, (the same blocks testified to, by Dr. Keep,)
are the same'which were shown to me, on Monday last, in presence
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