Report of the case of John W. Webster, indicted for the murder of George Parkman, before the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts : including the hearing on the petition for a writ of error, the prisoner's confessional statements and application for a commutation of sentence, and an appendix containing several interesting matters never before published / by George Bemis.

Webster, John White, 1793-1850.

Date:: 1850

Credit: Report of the case of John W. Webster, indicted for the murder of George Parkman, before the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts : including the hearing on the petition for a writ of error, the prisoner's confessional statements and application for a commutation of sentence, and an appendix containing several interesting matters never before published / by George Bemis. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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not see it from that time, till it came out of the tea-chest. I took it into my hands, on the Monday referred to. I don't recollect his telling me, that he got it to cut grape-vines with. I have seen the Doctor cut corks, with a knife, or something else. I have got twine for Dr. Webster. I never got any blood, before, for him. either during this course of lectures, or at any other time. He may have had blood, before, but I do not recollect of getting it for him. I had no particular signal with the Doctor, to get into his room. If anybody called. 1 used to knock on the door. I sometimes found the lecture-room door bolted ; but seldom. I did not knock on Friday. I tried the doors, and did not think it proper to knock, simply for myself. When he was at work, I never attempted to force my way in. T did not attempt to be more accurate in my testimony before the coroner's jury, than now. I did go to Mr. Merrill, one of the jury, to correct my testimony about the turkey. I don't recollect of going to correct anything about Tuesday's search. I may have made some minutes of testimony before the coroner's jury was held: I did, afterwards. I kept the minutes to look at. I never wrote the heads off, but once. I did not examine the minutes every day. I have read, a number of times, my own minutes of testimony before the coroner's jury : — not a hundred times ; but twenty times, I guess. I kept it in a drawer, where I kept cigars, and frequently went there, to gel articles. I have never had a copy of my own statement before the coroner's jury. I never read in the book, (exhibited by counsel) the statement which I made before the coroner's jury. It was my own minutes, that I saw. I never heard the. book read, that I recollect of. [Mr. Sohier here read extracts from his copy of the testi- mony before the coroner's inquest, to show some contradic- tion as to the witness's statement, about returning with his wife, Wednesday, at one o'clock, and hearing some one in the laboratory. On explanation, the apparent contradiction was seen to arise from the mis-punctuation of the copy, and the subject was dropped.] To Mr. Merrick — [who exhibited to the witness, the handbills offering a reward for the discovery of Dr. Park man.] I saw the advertisement, by Mr. Shaw, offering $3.000 reward, on Monday. I took one, and carried it down to the College, and showed it to Dr. Ainsworth. I also saw the $1.01)0 handbill. I met Mr. Trenhohn distributing them. I saw these handbills stuck up in great numbers about all the

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