New York Globe report of the Webster Case, 1850,
Image No: 26
   Enlarge and print image (102K)           << PREVIOUS  NEXT >>
clear space clear space clear space white space


 

New York Globe report of the Webster Case, 1850,
Image No: 26
   Enlarge and print image (102K)           << PREVIOUS  NEXT >>
25 At about half-past 5 o'clock, as I was in my kitchen, I heard some one coming down theItaira of the back entry. [Here the position of the stairs referred to was exhibited in the model.] The person was Professor W.; he sat the candle down. To the Court-He had a candlestick in his hand, and a candle burning; he put the candle down on the settee, and went out the east entry; didn't hear any more of Prof. W. that night; I went to a party after that, where I remained till half-past 9 o'clock; got home about 10 O'clock; I went to Mr. Grant's; when I got home, I went to the kitchen, took off my coat, and went to lock up the building; went to the Laboratory stairs' door, and I found that it was fast. To the Court.-I mean the one that leads from my cellar; next went to the dissecting rooms to look up them, and tried the door of the store room; unlocked the dissecting room door, but saw no one there; the students, sometimes, dissect till 9, 10, or 11 P. M.; I bolted the outside door, and shortly after went to bed; never knew the doors of Professor W.'s laboratory to have been locked before at night; on Saturday, the next day, I made fires in all the rooms of the Pro- fessors, excepting Prof. W.'s; went next to the dissecting room, and found that it was unlocked; it was near 7 o'clock, A. M. ; I thought at the time I had fastened some student in the night before ; nobody had a key to the outer door, to my knowledge, excepting Doctor Leigh, librarian ; on Saturday I went to Professor Webster's lecture room to make a fire ; passed down through the lecture room and to the door between the lecture room and his private rooms; never had any keys to that door; he had two locks to his door, to lock up his room during the summer vacation; left the door and went down to my part; pretty soon after that Prof Webster came into the College through my entry; think he had a small bundle under his arm; he turned to go up the stairs that he had come down in the night; I followed him up; he took the key of his lecture- room door and went in; I followed him in; he took out his keys and unlocked the door of his room; he said to me,. " Mr. Littlefield, make me up a fire; I made it in the stove; asked him if' he wanted anything else done; he said he did not ; then started to go down stairs through the laboratory; he stopped me, and told me to go out the other way; I turned round and went out; don't think I was in the laboratory again that day; I saw Prof. W. once more after that, about 11 A. M.; met him in the lower entry, coming into the college; he had a bundle wrapped in a newspaper under his arm; I paid Prof. Webster $15, in half'-eagles, the amount received from the student Ridgeway; don't recollect anything further that took place that day; Prof. W. went up to his room to work. Saturday is my sweeping day; I couldn't get into his rooms any more than I could on Friday; generally swept his lecture-room once in two or three weeks; tried the doors several times that day; I heard him in his room; , I mean I heard some one in his rooms; don't remember of seeing the Professor again that day; I heard some one walking in Prof. W.'s room and could hear the water running all the time; it was not in the habit of running so; didn't see Prof. W. in the college all day the next Sunday or Sunday night; I was ii North Grove street, facing Fruit street, with a Mr. Calhoun; we were talking about the mysterious disappearance of Dr. P. ; Mr. Kingsley had told me of it on Saturday afternoon; Mr. Calhoun exclaimed: " There is one of our professors now;" I looked up and saw Professor W. coming toward us; he came from Bridge into Fruit street ; he came directly to me and said. " Did you see Dr. Parkman during the lu4tpr part of last week?" I told him I had: he asked me what time I had seen him; I replied, " last Friday about half past one o'clock;" he asked, " where did you see him?" I 'said, " about this spot;" he asked which way he was going; I said, "right toward the College;" he asked, " where were you standing that you saw him?" I answered, ` in the front entry near the door;" he struck-his cane on the ground and said, " that is the very time I paid him $483 and 60 odd cents;" don't recollect the cents precisely.; Prof. W. didn't say "sixty odd" cents; I told Web- stor I didn't see him (W.) go into the Lecture room or the Laboratory; he said he had counted the money down to Dr. P. on the table in his lecture room; he said Dr. P. had grabbed the money, up without counting it, and ran up the steps from the Lecture room as fast as he could, two steps at a time; he said Dr. P. told him he would go over to Cambridge and discharge a mortgage; Dr. W. said, "I suppose he did, but I haven't been over to see;" he (W.) said he had come to see about it; I eard him say that he had been to Francis Parkman's to see about it; when: Dr. Webster talks with me generally he holds his head up and looks me in the face; this time he looked down all the time, and seemed to be agitated; never saw him look so before; he looked pale; cannot say which way he went when he left me; think he went to North Grove street, towards Cambridge street; on Monday I could not get to his rooms to make the fires; tried the doors twice; I afterwards went into my kitchen and my wife came in and told me that Dr. Samuel Parkman wanted to see me, and had just gone up to see Prof. W. ; I asked how he W., could have got down stairs when all the doors were locked; he said that one of the cellar doors was open; I went up into Prof. Webster's lecture room, and saw Webster and Dr. Samuel Park- man; Prof. Webster stood in the door of the lecture room, and Dr. Parkman stood near him; they were talking about Dr. George Parkman ; they said something about money, and Prof. Webster said that he seemed very angry; shortly afterward my door bell rung, and on going to it, I found there a gentleman in specs ; did not know him at the time ; it was Dr. Parkman Blake; he wanted to see Prof. Webster, and requested me to carry his name to the Professor; I went to the door of his lecture room, and tried it, but could not get in; I then went round to the other door of the room, and found Prof. Webster; I told him that I)r. Blake was at the door and wanted to see him; he seemed to hesitate, but finally said, ".let him in;". this was about -r o'clock in the morning.