The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-10-02
AN OLD STORY AGAIN TOLD.
THE MURDER OF DIR. PARKMAN BIZ
DIR. WEBSTER.
The Most Extraordinary Murder OF the
Nineteenth Century-Dr.
MIssed-Dr. Webater's Visit to his Vic
TINS Brother-How the Body was
Discovered.

MIssed-Dr. Webster's Visit to his Vic
TINS Brother-How n Body wa
Discovered.
From the New York Dispatch.l
On the morning of the Oath of November
l84s, information was given to the police o
Boston, Mass, that DR.. Parkman, one of thu
most wealthy and influential men In the city
had left home on the preceding day with the
intention of returning to dinner, and had no
| been seen or heard of since. He had an inter
| view at an early hour with a stranger, whose
| name he did not menLloR to bis family, ant
with whom he made An appointment for hall
past one. He then went out, and at a quarter
to two purchased some lettuces, which he left
at q shop near the Medical College, saying thai
he would call for them In q lew minutes, on
his way home. He did not return, however,
nor was he ever again seen alive.
The absence or any elderly, domestcated
gentleman for twenty-tour hours would ex.
cite surprise and anxiety; and In the case OF
DR.. Parkman these feelings were Increased by
his invariable punctuallty, and bis w~ell-known
precise and m%ethodical habits. There was
nothing known In his whole life that would
favor the Idea Involuntary absence, nor was
III huOHu W nave dey cucullcbs VI W uhfo
had any dispute or quarrel with any one.
VISITING TIE MISSING MANS BROTHER.
Two days passed from tie time when he was
last seen Without any discovery being made,
or any information whatever received con-
for Information, the harbor and river were
dragged, aud the yards aud cellars Of houses
near the place where he was last seen were
aearched by The police,
On the afternoon of the second day, how
ever, the Rev. Samuel Parkmap, the brother
OF the missing man, received q visit from Dr..
Webster, professor OF chemistry at Harvard
College. from whom he received the NORMA
tlon that 1t was he who had called on DR..
| Parkman on the morning of the 23d, and that
| he saw him again at the Medical College, at
| half past one, and paid him some money.
In consequence of this Information the Med
| ical College was searched, but without any
| discovery being made. The examination of
| DR.. Perkman's- accounts, however, showed
that he had lent money TO DR.. Webster on sew.
| eral occasions, and that the payments had
| dollars had been advanced In 1912, and re-
maIned unpaid five years later, when q FUR
| Their advance of $1,000 was made on the secu-
rity OF the professors personal property, In
! Guiding q valuable cabinet Of minerals. There
was q considerable balance OF this loan Sill
| %unliauldated In 1849, when DR.. Webster SOLD
| to q orother-in-law OF Dr.. Parkman the cabl-
net of minerals which was under mortgage to
| the latter.
THE CAUSE FOR THE MURDER.
This so incensed Or. parkman that he ex.
pressed an Intention of pressing his claim upon
Dr. Webster, but consented to wait, on receiv.
out of the proceeds Of q course Of lectures 1t
the Medical College. But the Professor was
again guilty OF q breach of faith. He applied
the promised funds to the payment of another
debt, and DR.. Parkman thereupon threatened
to sue him, 10 seize his furniture, and to de-
prlve him of bis pretessorship.
This was the stale Of the relations between
the two men at the time of Parkman's dlsap.
pearance. The examination of the missing
mans accounts led to the discovery. by q gen
tlemsn who was well acquainted with the state
OF r-Hahster,s pscpnIary anlirs, that the
only avafiapio funo8 or the latler, az me Lime
of his creditors disappearance, had been de-
consequently, that his statement that he had
paid DR., Parkman could not be true.
Bpt though 1t began to be said that, II the
missing man was ever discovered, hls corpse
would Be found in the Medical College, noth.
ing was observed 10 the movements or man.
nsrs Of any one connected with that Institution
to give o tangible shape to the growing sus-
picion. DR.. " ebster returned home later than
usual during the week following Parkman's
society Of Cambridge. and conversed freely
about the event which vas the talk OF every
circle.
TIE RORTER's SUSPICION.
One Individual alone seems to have sus-
pected from the first that DR.. Webster was
responsible for Parkman's disappearance, apd
was day BY day accommodating evidence against
him, which, however, he did not communicate
to any one. This was Ephraim Littlefeld, the
porter of The Medical College, who had charge
Of the building, aud occupied apartments In
the basem ent. He remembered that on the
day Parkman disappeared, the professor, To-
stead Of leaving the college as soon as bis
lecture was concluded, as was bis custom,
remained ill late In the evening, shut up 10
his laboratory; and that. though there were no
classes on Saturday and Monday, and during
IN . following week none alter Tuesday, owing
to the occurrence OF a religious festival, pr:
day, including even Sunday, I'LL late hours In
the evening. In the laboratory, which he had
never been known to do before.
It was still more remarkable that, though he
had directed the servants not to light fres In
his rooms on those days, fires of more Than or.
binary size and intensity had been burning
every day, which the professor must have laid
ana llRQl0u uluunoIls 4uo uOOlo uOho hCPS
locked, and the key OF one; which led to q slnk
attached to the laboratory, was carried away
every evening by DR.. Webster. Saturday was
the usual day for cleaning and dusting the
apartments, but the professor had looked the
doors and spoken to the servants through Inc
keyhole, desiring them to 60 away.
WHAT LrTTLEFIELD REMEMBERED.
Llttlefeld had accidentally overheard Park
man on one occasion charge the professor with
remembered that, on the same day, the pre-
fessor asked him how access was had to the
vault below the School Of Anatomy, Into which
the human remains from the dlssecttng table
were cast, and whether a light would burn
there. Little1eld replied to the latter query
In the negative, adding that he had recently
hung the head of a negro to macerate, but the
cord rotted and the skull fell, and the foul air
extinguished the lamp when he tried to re.
cover 1t.
On the day before Psrkman disappeared,
DR.. Webster had asked the porter to procure
him q Jar of human blood from the hospital,
| saying that he required 1t for experiments In
| the lecture of the following day; but, aH none
of the patients were hled on that day, he was
| unable to procure 1t. He had q misglVing
| that this blood might have been intended 10
| account for any stains Of blood that might
| have been discovered In the laboratory when
IL was visited by the detectives.
He remembered, too, that he had seen 9
| heavy hammer In Dr.. Webstel's room on the
| day Parkman disappeared, and that, though
| IL was missed from its accustomed place 10
| another apartment, 1t had not been seen