296 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1813. 



night, that the prisoner saw Mr. 

 Gee on the staircase, and was thus 

 aware that his rooms were unoc- 

 cupied. Mr. Gee, when he heard 

 the alarm, ran hastily to his rooms 

 for water, and in the confusion of 

 the moment, puHed his outer door 

 after him without its catching the 

 latch. Parkinson, when the fire in 

 Mr.Bonnett's room was extinguish- 

 ed, went to the stable-yard, to assure 

 himself that that part of the col- 

 lege was safe. Mr. Gee's rooms 

 are over the passage leading into 

 the stable-yard, and his windows 

 look into it, and of course are im- 

 mediately obvious to the eye. Park- 

 inson must necessarily have seen 

 any light if there had been one in 

 them at this time ; he is certain 

 there was none. On his return, as 

 the gate moved very stiffly, in 

 order to lock it, he was obliged to 

 slam it with some violence. The 

 villain, who at this moment was 

 executing his atrocious- purpose, 

 was alarmed by the noise, for 

 Parkinson immediately heard some 

 person rush down the staircase 

 from Mr. Gee's rooms ; when 

 •within a few steps of the bottom, 

 his foot slipped, and he fell with 

 some force against the opposite 

 wall, but recovered himself; and 

 then, by the light of a lamp in the 

 staircase behind him, and another 

 in the court, a few yards before 

 him, he distinctly recognized the 

 person of the prisoner. The pri- 

 .'soner ran into the next staircase, 

 and then across the grass-plot to 

 his own rooms. Parkinson pur- 

 sued him, calling out, " I have 

 found the man, "it is Mr. Ken- 

 dall !'' He was joined by another 

 college servant, and they both 

 went to the bottom of Mr. Gee's 



staircase. Parkinson went again 

 into the stable-yard, and looking 

 up, saw a blaze at the windows. 

 They both went into the room. 

 The window-curtain was burning, 

 had fallen and communicated to 

 the skirting-board. They gave the 

 alarm, and fortunately it was soon 

 extinguished. Many persons ran 

 immediately to prisoner's rooms. 

 He would not dwell upon the con- 

 fusion of his appearance, his ge- 

 neral agitation, and the incohe- 

 rence of his answers ; but he would 

 state to the jury, that the account 

 he gave of himself was palpably 

 false. When asked where he had 

 been, he replied in bed ; the bed 

 was examined, and found un- 

 touched: falsehood is not the re- 

 source of innocence; but he would 

 avoid any observation which might 

 prejudice the jury against the pri- 

 soner, and content himself with the 

 simple detail of facts which his wit- 

 nesses were now prepared to give. 

 The first witness called was Dr. 

 Frederick Bailey. — Is a fellow- 

 commoner of Sydney, dined in 

 the Combination-room on the 23rd 

 of January last ; party dispersed 

 about eight o'clock ; the prisoner, 

 himself, Mr. Willis, and one of 

 the fellows, remained ; prisoner 

 talked wildly, was much agitated, 

 lamented his disappointment in 

 his degree ; attributed it to the im- 

 putations which had been cast upon 

 him about the former fire; dwelt 

 strongly, and at great length, upon 

 this ; went out a few minutes afteir 

 eight ; returned in half an hour ; 

 conversation renewed ; prisoner's 

 agitation increased ; Willis cried ; 

 prisoner dropped the conversation; 

 both left the room at half-past nine. 

 Prisoner refused to sup there, as be 



