Clues for Jack the Ripper's murders

Clues 

"Dear Boss" Letter 
Dated 25th September 1888 and received by the Central News agency on the 27th September 1888 and passed into the police. Read:

"That joke about the Leather Apron gave me Real Fits" 

"I am down on whores and I shant quit ripping them til I get buckled" 

Was signed

"Jack the Ripper" 

Saucy Jack Postcard 

Used same red ink and appeared to have the same handwriting as the "Dear Boss" letter. It was dated  1st October and received the same day by the Central News Agency

The writer called himself "Saucy Jack" and spoke of the "double event" in reference to the murder of Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddows both murdered on the same day

From Hell Letter 

Recieved by George Lusk, leader of the Whitechapel vigilance committe on October 16 1888. Handwriting and style was unlike thar of the Dear Boss letter and Saucy Jack Postcard. The letter came in a small box containing half a Kidney (which was confirmed to be a females's who was about 45 years of age who suffered from Bright's disease- which is caused by the failing of the kidney's caused by heavy drinking. This could argubaly match the missing kidney of Catherine Eddows who was 46 and a heavy drinker) which was preserved in the "spirits of wine"

"I send you half the Kidne I took from one women prasarved it for you tother piece I fried and ate it was very nise"

Also signed

"Jack the Ripper" 

Clothes

A part of Eddow's blooded apron was found about a quarter of a mile away from the entrance to a tenement building  in Goulston street under graffiti that read

"The Juwes are not the men to be blamed for nothing" 

Although Graffiti was common

Witnesses to Jack the Ripper's murders

Witnesses 

• Mitre Square (where Catherine Eddows was found) would have been passed every 15 minuets by a police constable on his beat 
• Local man Joseph Lawende had passed through Mitre Sqaure shortly before the murder on the 30th September and he described seeing a fair haired man with a shabby appearance with a woman who might have been Catherine Eddows 
• Witnesses reported seeing Annie Chapman (second murder 8th September 1888) at about 5:30am (half an hour before she was found dead) with a dark haired with a shabby appearance 

Suspects for Jack the Ripper

Suspects

• Butchers
• Slaughterers 
• Surgeon 
• Physicians 

↑↑ All Suspected because of the manner of mutilation of the murders ↑↑

• Queen Victoria's Grandson, Prince Albery Victor (Duke of Clarence). Although insubstantial evidence 
• Kosminiski, a poor polish Jewish Resident in Whitechapel 
• Montague John Druitt, a 31 year old barrister and school teacher who committed suicide December 1888 
• "Leather Apron" aka John Pizer who was briefly suspected at the time of Annie Chapman 
• Dr Francis J. Tumolety, a 56 year old American Quaker Doctor who was arrested November 1888 for Gross indecency 
• Michaelostrong- a Russian born multi-pseudo thief and confidence tricker believed to be 55 years old in 1888 and detained in asylums on several occasions 

Victims of Jack the Ripper- Mary Kelly

Name: Mary Kelly

Age: 24

Place/Date/Time: Found 10:45am Friday 9th November laying in a single room where she lived at 13 Miller Court

Injuries: Throat had been severed down the spine, the abdomen was emptied of it's organs. Her heart was missing. 

Victims of Jack the Ripper- Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddows

Name: Elizabeth Stride 

Age: 45

Place/Date/Time: Sunday 30th September 1888 as around 1am in Dutfield's Yard off Berner Street

Injuries: The main artery of the left side of the neck had been severed. Some suggest that the killing was perhaps interrupted as there were no mutilations 

Name: Catherine Eddowes

Age: Mid-Fouries

Place/Date/Time: Mitre sqaure in Londonn 45 minuets after Stride. 

Injuries: Throat was severed and the abdomen ripped. The left kidney and most of the uterus had been removed. Her face was mutilated

Victims of Jack the Ripper- Annie Chapman

Name: Annie Chapman 

Age: 47

Place/Date/Time: Found in a yard off Hanbury Street 6am on Saturday 8th September 1888

Injuries: Throat cut following strangulation. Some intestines pulled from body

Victims of Jack the Ripper- Mary Nichols

Name: Mary Nichols

Age: 42

Place/Date/Time: Found 3:40am on Friday 31st August 1888

Injuries: Throat severed by two cuts and abdomen had been cut open

Difficulties of Policing- Immigration

What difficulties of policing did Immigration cause 
There were tensions between Immigrants and Londoners. More Londoners held and focused on the stereotypes of Jews as greedy and dishonest. Suspicion and anti- Semtitism caused problems for Jews living in Whitechapel. In turn, many (especially new) Jewish immigrants tended to police their own problems because of the persecution they faced from the police in Russia.

The police and judge were also nervous and suspicious by the presences of many Eastern European Jews.

Matters were futhermore complicated by the fact that many newly arrived Jewish immigrants only spoke Yiddish.

What did the police do about this issue 
In 1904 the superintendent of Whitechapel Divison wrote to the Home Office to ask for funds for language lessons in Yiddish.

Violent Demonstrations and Attacks on Jews 
Jewish people targeted because of their religion- there were some clumsy attempts by Christians to convert them.

Protests that could lead to marches

Assults on offciers during attack

Strikes

Crimes and some anti- sentimtic attacks on Jews

What did the police do about this issue 
Arrested leaders of protest

Brought crowds under control

Difficulties of policing- Gangs and protection rackets

What difficulties of policing did gangs and protection rackets cause? 
What was racketeering? 
Associated with organised crime. It is a crime committed through extortion or coercion. To be a racketeer is to obtain money or property from another person, usually through intimidation or force.

Racketing in Whitechapel
It was often run by well organised gangs and were most common in illegal pubs and unlicensed boxing matches 

What was a protection racket? 
A protection racket was taking money from people in exchange for agreeing not to hurt them

An example of a protection racket and why is caused problems for the police 
Within W.G Cornish detective Whitechapel memoirs it has the details of gangs threatening Jewish businesses. This caused problems as these Immigrants held a fear of the authorities due to their treatment of them in Russia where they were persecuted by the police. Therefore, they tried to sort out the issue without police involvement. This caused issues because it means there was little evidence left for the police for them to prosecute them.

Examples of gangs 
Bessarabian Tigers
Odessians

Problems caused by young people 
Some stories of groups of youths getting into fights, or stealing. However, most of the problems caused by young people were less dramatic than that. For example, gambling.

What did the police do about this? 
There were attempts to investigate. However, people were scared of gangs in case of violence towards them. Therefore, few were arrested or put on trial.

Because they were overstretched and understaffed, the H division made no attempt to shut down fights and other criminal activity in some areas of whitechapel which they would have acted upon in other neighborhoods.

Difficulties of policing- Prostitution

What difficulty did prostitution cause in Whitechapel?
Necessity in desperate situations or when their lives were effected by alcoholism.

It makes women vulnerable- all the Ripper's victims were prostitutes

Leads to violent crimes where the prostitute hurts the man

1888: 1200 prostitutes in Whitechapel

Not illegal but a serious social problem

Sometimes led to the crime Petty Theft being committed by prostitutes

What did the police do about the issue?  
Turned a blind eye to the legal abortions that were necessary as there were no forms of contraception available

However, their attempts to control prostitution were resented by woman. This was because their lives depended on prostitution for their survival and a way to avoid starvation

Difficulties of policing- Alcohol and pubs

What Difficulties did Alcohol and pubs cause for policing? 
Very strong drink affordable to everyone but the poorest and there a pubs and gin houses on every corner. For example, from one mile off Whitechapel road there was no less than 45 pubs of gin houses

Alcohol made more people vulnerable to becoming a victim of crime. For example, all of the Ripper's  victims were alcoholics and it was likely they were all drunk when attacked. Furthermore, there a many examples of victims being robbed whilst drunk

Alcohols turn to crime to get money for drink (perhaps after losing jobs)

Alcohol reduced people's inhibitions and affected judgement- leads to wrong choices and committing crimes. Also makes small disputes much worse and make work harder and more dangerous for policemen

Finally, it plays a part in violence and abuse in families

What did the police do about this issue? 
Made sure landlords of pubs don't break the terms of their licenses
Check landlords are closing pubs on time, not allowing gambling or illegal boxing to take place on their premises.
After 1870s it became illegal to serve someone who is already drunk

Tensions in Whitechapel- Anarchism and Socialism

Anarchism: the political idea that people would be better off without the government and without laws

Within Europe, there were a series of attempted assassinations and bomb attacks which the newspapers blamed on anarchists. The idea of anarchism was developed by Russian revolutionaries  and therefore some politicians emphasised the treat of Jewish immigration and radicalism. Furthermore, this encouraged the authorities and public to be suspicious of Jewish immigrants that fled into England in large numbers- fleeing from Russia after facing persecution. 

Rumors of a Russian anarchist Jew was responsible for similar murders in France and was now living in England circulated. There was no serious connection between the anarchist and the Ripper murder but the police were worried about their ability to keep an eye on the activities of the Jews in Berner street especially as many were carried out in Yiddish

Socialism: a political and economic system in which property and resources are owned and controlled by the state

Some Jewish immigrants brought radical political beliefs and, to the fear of the authorities who feared a socialist movement which could could perhaps encourage unrest and revolution, set up socialist organisations, newspapers, strikes and demonstrations (demanding shorter working hours and better pay in workshops). The police in Whitechapel were busy dealing with such groups. 

Some people began to blame the ripper murders on a Jewish man when the body of a victim was found in the yard of one of the theaters in which a socialist newspaper was set up

Tensions in Whitechapel- Immigration

The main immigration into Whitechapel was Irish Immigration and Eastern European Jewish Immigration. 

Irish Immigration 
When did they immigrate to the East End? 
Since the early nineteenth century but there was a rise in the 1840s.

Why did they immigrate? 
Irish Immigration rose in 1840 due to the Irish Potato famine.
 In general, They aimed to find work as "navvies". This meant to be a labourer on canals, roads and railways. Whitechapel in particular was attractive to large number of settles because of the cheap lodgings and closeness to the docks.

Why did this immigration cause tensions?
"Nature" of the Irish: They were hard drinking which led to violent behavior and therefore unpopular with the rest of the community
Religion:Targets of prejudice as they were Catholics
Fenians: During this time, Ireland was under British rule. However, many of the Irish wanted independence. A group of Irish that held this belief were called Fenians. There was a rise in this Fenian Irish Nationalism and in 1884 they began a bombing campaign. Few hurt but this led the public to believe the Irish were violent criminals and potential terrorists. Furthermore, a new police department, Special Branch dealt with Irish Terrorism.

Eastern European Jewish Immigration 
When did they immigrate to the East End? 
30,000 arrived in London between 1881-91

Why did they immigrate to the East End? 
The assassination of Tsar Alexander II led to Russian Jews being persecuted in Russia. This caused many to flee to England in large numbers

Why did this immigration cause tensions? 
It was harder for them to integrate into the community than it was for Irish Immigrant due to the language barrier (most spoke only Yiddish) the cultural and religious differences (Religious Holidays and Sabbath Rituals). This lead to segregation as Jewish immigrants ended up working for more established Jewish employers (usually in sweatshops) and therefore they were apart from the community and a target for prejudice.

Jewish settlers were widely resented by the local population because of the cultural differences and conflicting attitudes to work and business.
Jewish people were often successful, hardworking new immigrants who were desperate for work and will work for low wages. Many ran businesses in sweatshop models- which were illegal so could sell at lower prices than businesses that followed government rules about fair working conditions. Furthermore, the Jewish holy day was Saturday not Sunday meaning they could work Sundays when others couldn't.

Tensions in Whitechapel

Why did people fear crime in Whitechapel? 
- There was this belief in this criminal underclass. People believed criminals were "naturally born criminals" who set out to make a living out of crime
- People were worried that the overcrowded,  unhealthy conditions in lodging houses or pubs would cause criminal behavior to spread to decent people
- Whitechapel had a reputation of drunk people. Drunk people tended to more violent and aggressive. Furthermore, drunk victims could possibly be more vulnerable