Southern sentinel. [volume] (Plaquemine, Parish of Iberville [La.]) 1848-1858, 1850-05-15

mighty if not superior, is realized-the money
is ready for the heirs, but they cannot touch II
until the Doctor is proven to be dead. how
;s this effected? He calls upon Professor Web
ster on business, in the Medical College which
his money erected, and where he was 1requent-
" known to 60. An unprecedented reward is
offered for his body. The %janitor Of the college,
Iittlefeld, a man of VIGOROUSLY bad character,
and ON this account was refused a situation IN
the Medical Institute, Baltimore, suddenly, for
reasons best known to himself, suspects the
Professor of Chemistry e man Of fine feeling
and refined taste) to be the murderer. With
the possession of keys that opened the disseet-
ing room as well as the Professors, he secretly
cuts his way through a wall, whittier he con-
ducts the police, and points out secret places,
rhere something might be found to conrict the
Professor. Human remains were thus found.
Webster was arrested, and the nervousness
manifested by a man Of refined feeling under
such circumstances is further evidence of his
guilt! He is carried to prison, and from that
moment a vitiated press adds fuel to a preju-
dice something more than fanaticism, and but
little less than lunacy. The whole air of Bos-
ton seemed diseased, and the minds of the
people--eyen judge, jurors and lawyers-ap-
peared to be i%mpregnated with a hellish desire
for a grand spectacle, for something magnii-
cent in the hanging line. They never dreampt
that the remains found gould be any other than
Parkpan's: that of all places in the world for
human remains to be found out of their natural
deposit, was the apartment of the Chemist, ad-
joining the Dissecting Room: it never occur
red to their innocent minds that the grand wit
ness wassa man Of bad repute-that through
the janitor dead subjects were procured for dis
section-that they were as accustomed to the
smell and handling of dead subjects, as the
butcher Of his beef--that a janitor is in fact a
resurrectionist!-that this man could with the
geatest ease, secretly deposit the remains of a
dead body in Professor Webster's room at any
time! The great trial at length takes place.
The whole minptia is published to the world,
and everybody of common sense can read and
judgef For himself. The prisoner is brought to
trial, and his very calmness now is further evil
dence of his guilt. The body discovered in
the prisoners apartment, through the agency
of Littlefeld, was identified as Parkman's, not
by auy portion Of his body, or remnant of his
clothing, but by a set Of artificial teeth, found
in a furnace, where it was presumed the head
was consumed, but the gold and the compost
ton of the teeth of course retained their origi-
nal appearance! The supposed deceased had
travelled in Europe; he might have procureda
set there-might have had several sets. Sew
eral witnesses swore they saw Parkman after
the hour he entered the Medical College, but
their evidence was of no avail. Finally, the
evidence is got through with. The dead re-
mains in Webster's apartment and the artificial
teeth effect the business. The Judge charges
the jury, but he refuses to tell them that their
doubts must be in faxer of the prisoner. They
retire to form their verdict with doubts upon
their minds, for they fall upon their hypocritical
knees, and in defiance Of their oaths to be gpi-
ded by the law and the evidence, call upon the
Almighty to enligghten their minds-and from
their verdict it appeared they received that
light not obtained in conrt-and Webster was
sentenced to death for the murder of a man not
proven to be dead! BUT the mystery of this
case does not end here. We almost forgot to
state, however, that the body found had upon
the back unusually long hair9 Why did not
the prosecution attempt to prove that such was
the case with Parkman? We do not believe
Webster a murderer-we hardly believe Park
man is dead. A writer asserts that he saw him
a short time since in Terre Haute, Indiana; he
was subsequently seen in Baltimore, so another
states his family admit that he is subject to
temporary fits Of insanity. Thus the mystery
thickens. But we must close.
CUBA.-The New York Sun says; ssFhe for
- . 1 - Al. C-.-s--1- 49,.