3"(O TRIAL OF JOHN W. WEBSTER.
wholly unaware. I was entirely ignorant that there was any key that
would fit the lock of either of the front doors of the College. Had I
been aware that there was among those keys one by which I could
enter either of those doors, I should have put it upon the bunch I carried
with me. I have often gone to the College with my bunch of keys, and
been obliged to wait some time after ringing the bell, until some one
came and unlocked the door. I never opened either of these doors with
a key in my possession.
When the College was built, locks more or less similar to each other
were put into the many doors; and, finding that my rooms could be
entered by means of several keys, and fearing derangement and injury
to my apparatus, I caused other locks to be put upon several of the
doors.
There are three doors in the lecture-room, each of which had origi-
ally one lock; on two of these doors I had a second lock put. The three
keys of the original lock being alike, I needed but one on my bunch;
the others were laid aside in a drawer. Upon the door between the
lecture-room and back laboratory, I also had a second lock put, about
a year before November last. I afterwards had the lock taken off, and
procured three locks alike, for the three doors in the back room; one
key, which fitted all three locks, I put upon my bunch; the others,
together with the old key, were laid aside in my drawer.
In the lower laboratory are five doors. These all have locks, the
duplicate keys to which were laid aside with the others.
As the College is open cften, at times and seasons when there are no
lectures, and as not only students, but strangers, and many persons
visit it when I am absent, and as it was desirable that there should not
be free access to my rooms, containing valuable apparatus and costly
chemical articles,-I had the additional locks put on, leaving the lecture-
room accessible; this being the only room of much interest to strangers
who might wish to see the arrangements in the new College.
The changes and additions of so many locks caused the accumulation
of old and duplicate keys; and I have never used one of those keys to
open any doors in the building, except those in my own room. I have
more than once, in going round with some friend or stranger, had to
wait at the door of the museum or library, or some other door, until
I called the janitor or his wife to bring the key, which I should not
have done had I been aware that I had a key that would admit us.
On the morning of Friday, November 30th, as I was leaving home,
Mrs. Webster desired me to bring with me, on my return, some citric
acid for domestic use. I purchased some at Thayer's, under the Revere
House waited in his shop until the omnibus came along, took the parcel,
jumped into the omnibus, and delivered it into the hands of Mrs. Web-
ster on my arrival at home.
In consequence of seeing a paragraph in a. newspaper, a few days
after my arrest, stating that I had purchased oxalic acid for the purpose
of removing blood-stains, I wrote to my daughter, desiring her not to
have the parcel of citric acid opened, as I supposed it was the purchase
of that which gave origin to the paragraph; and I knew, if it were
untouched, the false statement could be disproved. It was not opened,
and was taken to Court by one of my daughters; but it Was not called
for, or any opportunity given for explanation.
The tea-chest was not sent in that week, but had been in the lower
room several months; haying been sent on from New York with glass.
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