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28 TRIAL OF JOHN W. WEBSTER.
directly to his brother's, the Rev. Dr. Francis Parkman, (also my
brother-in-law) and informed him of the Doctor's absence, and thence
to Mr. Edward Blake's ofce in Court street, my nephew, to concert.
means for making inquiries for him. There was some suspicion on
our minds, at first, in regard to a man who had been punished for steal-
ing from the Doctor's house; and we sent to the attorney who had
defended him and found that that man was away from the city, and had
not been in it recently. We then went to the City Marshal's, between
ten and twelve o'clock, and engaged him to have inquiries made through
the police. That evening, an advertisement was inserted in the news-
papers by my direction, giving notice of the Doctor's digappearance. I
offered a reward subsequently, of $3,000, for information in regard to
h~itn, and one of $1,000, for the discovery of his body. I do not remember
the day on which they were advertised. During the whole week suc-
ceeding, I was consulted, and took an active interest in the investiga-
tions.
I knew of the discovery of the remains, on the night of the 30th of
November; have seen them since they were arranged and put together.
(The Attorney General having here asked the witness, " whose body,
in his opinion, the remains constituted a part of?" and objection having
been made y the counsel for the defence, to the question being
answered, the Court intimated that the inquiry would be proper, if put in
the shape, what appearances, if any, did the witness observe, show-
ing a resemblance to any person?"-antecedent to the statement of
his opinion.) I saw appearances about these remains, which induced
me to believe them to belong to the body of Dr. George Parkman. These
were principally the color and kind of hair, on his breast and leg, which
exactly corresponded with what I had seen. Tile hair upon his breast,
I had seen previously; but that on his leg, I had seen in November
last; not a great while before his disappearance. He came to my house
early one morning,--a cold morning,-without any surtout; and to
my remark, " that he wasn't dressed warm enough," he replied, that
he had not on even drawers, and pulled up his pantaloons to show it.
I have seen him open his breast in such a way as to show how much it
was covered with hair, before. I could not identify the leg, so well from
the complexion of the hair, as the breast. The form, size, and height,
of the parts, corresponded to Dr. Parkman. There was nothing about
them dissimilar from him.
I saw the teeth which were found. I am knowing to the fact of
his wearing false teeth.
I finally took charge of the remains, to have them entombed, as
those of Dr. Parkman, and they were so buried.
As to my financial relations with Dr. Webster, so far as they were
also connected with Dr. Parkman:-I received a note from the defendant,
about the 18th or 19th of April, 1848, asking for a private interview. I
appointed the next morning. He came and informed me of his
embarrassments, and said that he expected the sheriff would seize his
furniture if he. couldn't raise. a certain sum to pay off a pressing de-
mand which had been long standing; -I think, a year. He then pro-
posed to sell me a cabinet of minerals. I told him that I did not want
them. He said that I might like to make a donation of them to some
institution; that he Would sell them to me for $1,200. 1 refused; but
he pressed me so hard, and worked upon my feelings so much, that I
concluded to aid him. I asked him, "how much he needed?" and he
said that $600 would relieve him for the present. I told him that if he
could get my note discounted for that amount, at some bank which he
named, I would buy his minerals. In the course of the morning, he
called and said that he could get it discounted,-at the Charles River
Bank,-I think; and I let him have my note, for which I took this
receipt, dated April 20th. (Receipt produced.) He shortly after brought
me a catalogue, and bill of sale of the minerals, which I put on file,
without examining. On the 6th of June, he called on me again, and I
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