"He was an excellent teacher," says Nina Cannizzaro-Byrne, who taught with Cole in Literature and Arts A-21 in the fall of 1993. "His relations with students were really wonderful."

"He encouraged class discussions," she adds. "He was adept at formulating questions that would get students to speak."

Cole's teaching performance was such that he could be invited back to campus as an instructor in the future. He left his teaching job, according to director of the core curriculum Susan Lewis, only after Babbitt Professor of Comparative Literature Dante Della Terza retired during the past academic year and his course, Literature and Arts A-21, was eliminated. Recently, Harvard considered Cole for a job as assistant dean of freshmen.

Cole also was valued for his contribution to discussions about curricular issues. In fact, some of Cole's recommendations in his Chronicle of Higher Education article--such as reporting the mean grades for all courses on students' transcripts in order to curb grade inflation--have been considered by the Faculty Council.

But even as he rose in Harvard circles, he told the outside world a story about his life here that did not always match the facts.

For example, in his entry in the encyclopedia of bridge, Cole claimed that he founded the Harvard Bridge Team in 1985. But according to bridge community sources, Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III and newspaper clippings on file in the University archives, the Harvard Bridge Club has fielded teams in intercollegiate competitions since the 1950s.

In Cape Cod, Cole Faces Legal Trouble

In the small Cape Cod town of Cotuit (pop. 3000), a man with "lots of curly black hair" entered the Isaiah Thomas Books and Prints store on the morning of June 23. From behind the counter, the store's owner, James A. Visbeck, eyed the stranger.

As Visbeck later told police, the man, carrying a black brief case, picked up three of the store's rare books, with a total value of about $250. First, he brought the books into the front room near the cash register. Then he transported them to a marble display case, and, says Visbeck, covered them over with one of the books on display.

Then they vanished into the briefcase, according to the store owner's account to police.

Before the man, later identified as William D. Cole, could leave, Visbeck confronted him, according to his account.

"You want to tell me about the books you have?" Visbeck asked.

"What books?"

"The books you have in your case. Let's see. Open your case."

"I usually don't let people look in my case."