Who was the City PC who was a beat near Mitre Square?

[Natalie Severn]

In the Aberconway version of Macnaghten"s 1894 memoranda ,where Sir Melville , repudiates the theory of the Sun newspaper that Thomas Cutbush was the Ripper,he refers to a "City PC who was a beat near Mitre Square". This comment has long puzzled those who have tried to discover who he meant so I thought it may be worth giving some thought to it.
A clue may be found in the February 14th article in the Sun Newspaper of 1894 ,the second article in a series of five where that newspaper makes its case accusing Thomas Cutbush of being the ripper.
The third paragraph of the Sun"s Feb 14th feature article begins:

"On October 2,1888, the City Police announced that the man wanted for the Mitre Square murder was
"aged 28;slight of build,height 5ft 8 ins;complexion dark; clean shaven ;black diagonal coat;hard felt hat; collar and tie;carried newspaper
parcel;respectable appearance."

So now we know that the City Police appear to have used the description provided NOT by one of their own City of London PC"s,but the description provided by a met policeman, PC William Smith working his beat in Berner Street/Commercial Street.
Lets compare the above description with the description provided by PC Smith on the night of the "double event".
PC Smith had seen a man and a woman, whom he later identified as Elizabeth Stride,as he passed through Berner Street on his beat, between 12.30 and 12.35 am and walked towards Commercial Street.The couple were on the pavement opposite the club.The woman he noticed had a red rose pinned to her jacket.
description of man : The man was about 5ft 7ins tall and wore a black diagonal coat and dark trousers and was wearing a hard felt hat and white collar and tie.He had a newspaper parcel in his hand.He was clean shaven -small dark moustache -and appeared to be respectable.PC Smith guessed his age to be about 28.

These descriptions tally and its clear the City of London Police used PC Smith"s description when they tried to gain information about the Mitre Square murder committed in their neck of the woods.I suggest therefore that the City [beat ]PC ,Macnaghten refers to above, is not a City PC but PC Smith of the met.Macnaghten,writing many months after the event when he wasnt even in post,has simply assumed the City Police were talking about one of their own.
Norma

[perrymason]

Hi Nats,

I think the descriptions are relatively the same and likely the basis for the "City PC" sighting comment...but what of the reference to Mitre Square in the beat?

Did Met PC Smiths beat take him any where near Mitre Square or the City Boundary, or are you suggesting that the details of that suspect sighting were transposed onto a sighting that was recorded near Mitre Square....not by a PC at all, but by Lawende and friends?

Was his error about the location, the police affiliation, or which suspect sighting itself?

That is like PC Smiths sighting, but I cannot imagine that anyone really thought that the "only" probable sighting of the Jack the Ripper....particularly when Mitre Square is mentioned and Lawende is suspected of being the witness who refuses to ID a suspect in an asylum.

Cheers Nats

[Ben]

Hi Norma,

The journalists of The Sun were clearly confused, since the only reliable eyewitness evidence to have emerged from the Mitre Square murder investigation originated from Lawende and companions, and certainly didn't implicate anyone with a respectable appearance similar to the man seen by PC Smith. It raises an interesting point, though, insofar as these erroneous 1894 press claims may well have contributed to Macnaghten's own confusion. In other words, his apparent amalgamation of the Lawende and Smith details may well have originated from The Sun.

All the best,
Ben

[Sam Flynn]

It raises an interesting point, though, insofar as these erroneous 1894 press claims may well have contributed to Macnaghten's own confusion. In other words, his apparent amalgamation of the Lawende and Smith details may well have originated from The Sun.

An interesting observation, Ben, given that Macnaghten's reason for penning his famous Memorandum in the first place was precisely to put the Sun straight. I wonder if he swotted up on back-copies of the same newspaper as part of his prep?

[Ben]

Quite possibly, Gareth.

I wonder if there really was a 2nd October 1888 press claim that the City police were seeking the man described by Smith? Seems rather unlikely to me.

All the best,
Ben

[Natalie Severn]

Thanks Michael,Ben and Sam,
The only other facts I can establish tonight are these:

a] a REPORT was made by the City of London Police by City Inspector McWilliams on the 2nd October 1888
which like Swanson"s report of 19th October on Elizabeth Stride confirms the two forces are working together and that Swanson of Scotland Yard and McWilliam of City of London Police are meeting daily.

b]Donald Swanson in his report on Elizabeth Stride"s murder of 19th October 1888 also confirms that :

"the description of the man seen by the PC [ie PC Smith in Berner Street which Swanson had just referred to in this report] was circulated amongst police by wire and by authority of the Commissioner IT WAS ALSO GIVEN TO THE PRESS."
Presumably then,this is the description which the Sun refers to since their description of 14th February 1894 tallied exactly with PC Smiths description of 30 September 1888.

Since the City of Police report was made on 2nd October 1888 ,its possible this same description was released then or soon after to police from both forces by wire and to the press on the orders of the commissioner as stated
in Swanson"s 19th October report ,
Best
Norma
ps my suggestion is that Macnaghten may have muddled up those words concerning City /Mitre Square and beat PC"s!

[sdreid]

It was probably the PC who blew it and lost her trail after being assigned to follow her undercover (or even with her knowledge) from the jail.

[jason_c]

It was probably the PC who blew it and lost her trail after being assigned to follow her undercover (or even with her knowledge) from the jail.

There is no proof of such an event.

If such a scenario as you mention occurred I would suspect a behind the scenes firefight between departments and individual police officers. Many police officials were later to disagree publicly and privately concerning the investigation. In the bitter aftermath there is no mention of such an incident occurring.

[perrymason]

I believe the 3 men searching alleys and lanes near Mitre Square that night were not Constables but Detectives, but both men who visited the Square as part of their beats that night were PC's. Maybe Harveys timing looking into the square wasnt as uncomfortable for him as it would seem...maybe he was the PC and saw him, because the times he gave for being at the entrance to the square has to be very near to the moment the killer is leaving. Jack or whomever didnt have extra minutes to luxuriate if Lawende saw him outside the square with Kate at 1:35am.

Im not certain whether he mixed up witness descriptions based on the respective murder scenes, the police affiliation or whether the witness was really a policeman at all, so Im not sure how to interpret the remarks.

Cheers Nats, all.