The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1878-08-29
A FAMOUS MURDER CASE.
Vecs,tections of the Crime Of DR.. Webster
The Most Remarkable Murder Case Il
New England.

Tho Most Remarkable Murder Case In
Now England.
A correspondent of the Brooklyn
Eagle revives the story of murder in
Boston twenty-nine years ago that was
one OF the most famous cases of the day.
The correspondent says: Except the
murder of the child, Mabel Young, in
the Warren avenue Baptist church by
the sexton, Piper, O few years since,
nothing of criminal and bloody nature
has go stirred the citizens of Boston as
did the murder of DIR. George Parkman
by DIR. John W. Webster, on November
29, 1849, at the Massachusetts, Medical
College, in North Grove street. DR..
Parkman was a wealthy man, who de-
voted most of his time to looking after
his property. DR.. Webster was the
Professor of Chemistry in the institu-
tion, and owed Parkman $470, which
sum of money the latter called at the
college to collect on the day above in
dicated. The last seen of Parkman alive
by any one who knew him, except his
murderer, was when about two o'clock
in the day he entered a provision store
in the neighborhood of the college and
purchased few articles, saying that he
had an engagement, but would soon
return and himself carry the articles
home. DR.. Webster had finished his
lecture for the day, and all the medical
students had left the building when DIR.
Parkman entered it. The latter passed
rapidly to the chemical room in the rear
of the lecture hall, where he found DR..
Webster arranging the apparatus that
had been used In his lecture. Parkman
was hard and grasping man, and Web
ster was man of science, poor, but
proud, with high temper. Webster's
inability to pay note that Parkman
held led to a quarrel, and the former
struck the latter over the head with
heavy piece of grape vine and killed
him. Webster then locked the doors,
dragged his victim down stairs, removed
the clothing, and having placed the
body in sink, deliberately proceeded
to cut it up. The room in which he
worked was a laboratory on the ground
floor, having furnace, into which he
put Parkman's head and all his clothing
and attempted to burn them up. The
thorax he placed in tea chest. Some
parts of the body he attached to fish
lines and lowered into privy vault that
parts of the limbs were never found.
Webster worked several days, and most
OF the time for one or two nights in try
ing to cover up all traces of his victim.
The disappearance of DIR. Parkman
was the talk of the town, and his family
issued posters containing full descrip-
ton of his person, together with large
reward-$3, 900, if my memory serves
me-for his return if alive, or for his
body if dead. As soon as Webster
learned that Parkman had an appoint
ment with some one on the day of his
disappearance, he called on Mrs. Park
man, offered his coincidence, and said he
was the one with whom the doctor had
an engagement on the unfortunate day.
He said he had paid the doctor $47O,
who, on receiving the money, had run
out of the college, seeming to be in great
haste. Search was made in the vicinity
of the college, in many of the tenement
houses owned by DIR. Parkman. who,
it was feared, had been murdered for
the money he might have had while col
lecting rents. The reward was large
one, or so considered in those days, and
great efforts were made to gain it. The
earth in the cellars of all DR.. Parkman's
houses was dragged, but the man could
not be found. Reports came that Park
man had been seen in far away places
and had been spoken to by those who
knew him; but there was no truth in
these statements.
The crime was traced to Webster in |
this way: DIR. Parkman had been seen |
the last time alive in the medical college. |
This fact, coupled with the strange ac-
tions of DIR. Webster, led the janitor of
the college, Littleield by name, to sus.
pect that DR.. Parkman had been killed
and his body secreted within the COL
lege building. The jan;tor had always
had the run of the building, but since
the disappearance DIR. Webster had kept
up his mind to examine the vault above
and in order to do 80 he was
obliged to enter the cellar and dig
through heavy stone wall. Whenever
DR.. Webster left the building, which
was seldom, Littlefeld stationed his
wife at the front window, in order to in
form him of the doctors return, and
made the best of his opportunities to
penetrate the dense masonry. At last
he made hole in the wall, and placing
a light in the vault he saw suspended,
by means of fish hooks and lines, parts
of human body. His suspicious being
Littlefield communicated
with the police. and the matter was very
rapidly thereafter worked up. After
the murder DIR. Webster was much of
the time at the college, an unusual thing
with him, and Little6eld noticed that
hot fire was kept in the laboratory fur.
mace for several days and nights that he
could feel the heat in an adjoining pas
sage-way, by placing his hand on wall
that was near the furnace.
One evening, after DIR. Webster went |
TO his home in Cambridge, the labora-
tory was opened and during a long
search more of the remains of DIR. Park |
mans body were found.
DIR. Webster was arrested in a very |
neat way. Two officers in hack went |
20 his house at about ten o'clock in the
evening and informed him that friends
If the Parkman family wanted TO search
;he college, but did not want to act with
,ut his presence. The doctor put on his
boots and said he would go with them
md help in the search. He then in
ormed his family that he was going out
or short time, and that he should soon
'eturn; but he never saw his home again.
In the confession that he made in the
asst hours of that bloody tragedy Web
'ter described the agony of that dread
ul night. As he rode in the carriage
With the two officers he tried to appear
rec and easy in conversation, but he