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upon the prisoner; without explanation, without further examination, and
without the clearest analyai&it would
naturally have that tendency. We have undertaken to satisfy yon, eyond all
doubt, that Dr. P. did leave this
building, and was seen in various parts of this city at a late hour on that
same day. Suppose that the
evidence in the case shall convince you that Dr. P. separated himself from
Dr. Webster, and went his way; where
is the evidence to show that they ever met again? Admit that the parts of a
body found in that building, were
the remains of Dr. P.-and that he came to his death by vic.lence-yet if
these parties separated once, and there is
no proof that they came together again, we must say that it is one great
mystery that has baffled all investigation.
So, gentlemen, is the every day experience of life. It has been said that
realities are stranger than fiction. The
imagination cannot keep pace with the extraordinary events of life, and
there are mysteries in the order of Pro-
vidence, and course of human life, which human reason cannot fathom, which
lie deeper and lower than the hu-
man heartlcan sound. Then, Gentlemen of the Jury, if these parties
separated. although it may be true that the
remains of Dr, George Parkman were found laying under the Medical College;
if those parties separated, there is
no proof that touches, or can touch the life of the prisoner at the bar;
none that can connect him with the sad
events that transpired on or immediately after the 23d of November; and
how, gentlemen, does the case stand?
Did they separate, or did they not? We have called several witnesses, all
respectable inhabitants of this com-
munity, to testify before you concerning his character. Seeing the
conditiou in which Dr. W. has been plac-
ed in reference to the discovery(of these remains alone in his cell, with
no powerful and opulent family to aid and
assist him-with a wife and three daughters, whom you have seen upon this
stand, occupying his mansion in a
neighboring city-these witnesses have sprung up, as it were, by their
casual recollection, and we have been ena-
bled to discover these proofs and bring them to your ears. Gentlemen, the
number of witnesses is not large; but con-
trast it lb this estimate with the Government witnesses, with all their
search, and compare the number of witnes-
ses who saw Doctor Parkman in the afternoon of Friday, the 23d of November,
with the number who have been
brought here by the Government to show that he was seenlin the morning when
he was engaged in his ordinary
pursuits, and even in that they will not stand. We call, gentlemen, before
you the testimony of Messrs. Thomh-
son, Wentworth, Cleland, Mrs. and Miss Rhodes, Mrs. Hatch and several
others. I shall not, at this moment,
dwell upon this testimony. Mrs. Hatch testifies that on Friday, the 23d of
Nov. at a 34beforc 2 o'clock, she saw Dr.
P. in Cambridge street. It was also testified that the Dr. was seen after 2
o'clock. Of this testimony I shall
have to speak hereafter in a connection of the highest importance, most
pregnant of suggestions, and will be
found, as I think, of the greatest moment. Mr. Thompson says he came in
from Cambridge that afternoon. after
three o'clock, more than an hour after Dr. P. left the College; he saw him
in Causeway street, and knew him, as
he says perfectly well; he was upon one side of the street and the Doctor
upon the other. I did not know. on the
cross-examination, that upon one occasion the witness had given a different
account, which would be calculated to
create a distrust of the testimony given here. When the Attorney General
cross-examined this witness; from a pa-
per which he held in his hand, I inferred that somethingbad been stated
which he had not conformed to on the
stand. It said that;he related the circumstance of meeting Dr. P. in
Causeway street to Mr. Andrews, and asked
him to write it down for him, alleging as an excuse, that his hands were
cold; and he could not convenientlyuse
the pen. He, Mr. Thompson, then communicated he interview which he had on
Friday, Nov. 23, with Dr.W., and
put it into Andrew's hands, in writing; there is nothing in that paper
which could affect the credibility of this wit,
nr; he is employed in the ffice of the Register of Deeds, in Cambridge, and
met him at twenty minutes past two
o'clock on the day which he disappeared. [The learned counsel then alluded
to the ideas on biology, of this wit-
ness, and to the fact that the Government had attempted to discharge his
evidence on account of his belief in that
theory.] Judge Merrick continued-I do not think this witness is to be
discredited every one can say that honest
and sincere men sometimes adopt strange systems of philosophy; he is a
witness who is well known in this com-
munity, and a man whose personal appearance upon the stand entitles him to
favorable consideration. Mr. Went-
worth testifies that between two and three o'clock on the day of the
disappearance. he saw Dr. P. coming towards
him; he had his hand under his coat, and the witness spoke of it to .,.r.
Russell, who was with him at the time.
This witness states that he remembers it was Friday. from the circumstance
that he went down to Haymarket
Square to purchase his provisions, &c., for the succeeding day. On
returning to his home, he was informed by his
wife, that, during his absence, two men had been to his house to inquire
for Dr. P., and he immediately said to his
wife, 111 think Dr. P. cannot be a great way off, for I saw him yesterday
afternoon." Now, gentlemen. hear his
evidence which is not to be impeached. The only true circumstance which
have been found hpre to reject the
teetimon.r of Mr. Wentworth is simply this: that Mr. Russell has been
called to testify that he has no recollec-
tion of that event at all; he remembers, however, that at some time he was
walking with Mr. Wentworth, and they
met Dr. P , but he has no recollection whatever of the particular time. We
cannot well explain the workings of
our own mind-we are engaged from morning until night in a vast number of
transactions; we see a great number
of individuals, and casual observation is made; we speak to these persons,
and there being nothing particular at
the moment to make upon our minds an impression, no trace is left there.
And I put it to you, gentlemen of the
jury-you have been separated from your fellow-citizens many tedious days-go
back in your recollection to the,
day you came here, and answer to your own consciences, whether you can
recount to yourselves, or anybody else
whom you saw the day you came. The important objects are impressed-upon
your minds, but the unimportant are
gone with the air which you breathe-so it is with Mr. Russell.
V, (The learned council then proceeded to a review of the other
testimonyathat had been given, tending to prove
that Dr. P. was seen in different parts of the city at an hour subsequent
to that in which he is alleged to have
entered the Medical College, and never came out.)
Mrs. Rhodes was acquainted with Dr. Parkman's family; had been for a number
of years; she had been out
shopping with her daughter, and met Dr. P. in Greene street, and bowed to
him, receiving from him a similar
salutation. Her daughter testified to the same fact.
(Mr. Merrick reiterated the different points in these witnesses testimony,
and in forcible language portrayed
their importance to the Jury.)
This, then, continued the learned counsel, is the testimony upon which we
rely, to convince you that Dr. Park-
man came out of the College on (and was seen in different parts of the
city) the afternoon of the 23d. He did not
return to his family-that is strange. Something occurred that day, w1joh we
cannot understand, and cannot reach
in any manner-what that was who can tell? When his friends, at first, made
a comparatively alight and
fruitless search, they gave notice to the world. and put their minds upon
'causes which produced such strange
effects, and it is neither unjust nor unreasonable to suggest what upon the
greatest deliberation was suggested
by his friends. There we support a new theory; but we take up the theory of
his friends, and those who know
him best. They thought he might have strayed away under the influence of
some sudden aberration of mind.
They would not have put forth a suggestion of that kind under a reward of
$3,000 for his discovery, and you know
it. We know that respectable and unimpeachable men and women, who are
capable of determining this problem,
did see this man on that afternoon. Who can say that that is not true? The
suggestion is, they may be mista-
ken but are you certain that they are mistaken? When the mangled remains of
this human being were spread out
on the floors of the Medical College, and exposed to medical gentlemen and
friends. they were asked to examine
and see if they could find anything dissimilar; but when they bring that
testimony here to you as a fact from which
you are to draw an inference, yet they ask you to rely upon circumstantial
evidence to believe that respectable
men and women were not misaken in the naked leg, but in the open face, and
the peculiarities of the living
man. What then are we here for? What is the solemn duty, which you are to
perform ? To weigh all the
evidence-not a part-to take up all the evidence a.d see whether the
evidence which they produce tends to estab-
lish thathypothesis. Gentlemen, I shall proceed to an examination of the
testimony which the Government
have brought in, and I mean to treat this testimony with all the fairness
that my mind is capable of. I do not feel
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