The from hell letter

[Garry Wroe]

Let's not forget that the From Hell letter, like the Dear Boss, had it's companion piece. I'm referring to the 'Box of Toys' letter, which DID reference the 'Dear Boss' missives, but like 'From Hell' did not carry a signature. Those who saw it said it was in the same hand as From Hell. This significantly damages the argument that the author of From Hell was trying to distance himself from the Dear Boss letters.

Since no copy of the Lusk postcard appears to have survived, Tom, we have to take a great deal on trust regarding its hand style. In this context, it may be worth remembering the ensuing confusion when trained policemen copied the Goulston Street message. Likewise, there is controversy even today over assertions of common authorship with respect to several of the ‘Jack the Ripper’ letters. And this is to say nothing of the miscellany of inaccuracies that emerged during the press coverage of the case. Personally, Tom, I would require a little more in the way of evidence before being satisfied with a link of common authorship between the postcard and From hell letter.

But surely the fact that the kidney was too fresh to have come from Eddowes points more towards a hoax than the real killer?

Again, Tom, where is the evidence to substantiate such a ‘fact’? Whilst I’d be reluctant to take any of Major Smith’s assertions at face value, I would certainly not dismiss his claims out of hand. And since Smith’s narrative involves a human kidney whose abstraction accords well with the Mitre Square murder, there exists at least a possibility that the organ had indeed been removed from Kate Eddowes’ body.

The gross anatomy of pig versus human kidneys is rather similar - especially, one would think, with "trimmed-up" specimens; even the microscopic differences are quite subtle, and from what I've been able to ascertain, the differences between the two weren't well-documented until the 20th century.

I don’t doubt it for a moment, Sam. Again, though, if Smith’s assertions were even remotely credible, Dr Sutton stated that the kidney had been preserved in spirits of wine. Given the relative ease with which a hoaxer could have acquired a pig’s kidney, the alleged preservational process would have been wholly unnecessary. Hence, if one accepts Smith’s version of events, the presence of a preservative would seem to indicate a human specimen – irrespective of Sutton’s ability to discriminate between a human and pig kidney.

Best wishes.

Garry Wroe.

[Phil Carter]

Hello Gary,

Agreed about the evidence of handwriting.

There is one thing I think of upon reflection here.

Are BOTH the writing on the wall, and a PIG'S kidney, pointing a disguised finger at the Jewish community?

If the killer DID send these messages out, then we have someone taking the precaution to deflect responsibility upon other members of society... Not once, but twice. Connected to the two murders in one night.
And that, to me, is eyebrow raising. Because no such "message" was sent out after the C5 murder.

Food for thought perhaps?

best wishes

Phil

[Garry Wroe]

Sorry, Phil, but the reference to the Goulston Street message was merely an example of how the simple task of copying a few words descended into farce.

Best wishes.

Garry Wroe.

[Phil Carter]

Hello Gary,

Agreed. I was just letting the possibility run a little.

Have a Happy New Year!

best wishes

Phil

[perrymason]

It seems "From Hell", like the apron section, refers only to one murder on that night, and the GSG hasnt even been proven to have any connection with the apron section....so if "From Hell" was real, it seems to me we are still lacking his claim for the murder in Dutfields Yard.

The only reference to any double murder by Jack is almost certainly a press hoax.

Best regards all.

[claire]

Of course, the hoaxer would need to know the similarity between a pig's kidney and a human one, in order for it to be plausible. I don't know how widespread this sort of knowledge was (or how feasible coincidence would be--that he just happened to choose a pig's kidney rather than one from any other animal).

I'm not particularly convinced of the authenticity of the whole thing (the letter, postcard or partial organ), but the selection of the recipient does strike me as being rather intriguing.

[perrymason]

Of course, the hoaxer would need to know the similarity between a pig's kidney and a human one, in order for it to be plausible. I don't know how widespread this sort of knowledge was (or how feasible coincidence would be--that he just happened to choose a pig's kidney rather than one from any other animal).

I'm not particularly convinced of the authenticity of the whole thing (the letter, postcard or partial organ), but the selection of the recipient does strike me as being rather intriguing.

I think one thing is clear at this point Claire, the access to a human organ would be something that was limited to med students and researchers, and Jack.

Perhaps one and the same...at least the police suspected as much at one point.

Best regards

[claire]

Hi Michael...
Yes, that's why I didn't want to go there But a med student et cetera would perhaps know the similarities, and it wouldn't be the first time one of 'em had had a bit of a joke at someone else's expense

[Garry Wroe]

The possibility of a jolly jape by a medical student is certainly intriguing. But then, the From hell author disregarded the precedent set by the Dear Boss letter and made no mention of the supposed double event or Jack the Ripper. Neither did he refer to Lusk as 'boss' or resort to the mocking 'ha ha'. In other words, this communication is of interest for what it didn't say rather than what it did.

All the best.

Garry Wroe.

[perrymason]

The possibility of a jolly jape by a medical student is certainly intriguing. But then, the From hell author disregarded the precedent set by the Dear Boss letter and made no mention of the supposed double event or Jack the Ripper. Neither did he refer to Lusk as 'boss' or resort to the mocking 'ha ha'. In other words, this communication is of interest for what it didn't say rather than what it did.

All the best.

Garry Wroe.

I would agree with that evaluation Gary, and for me, its one reason why this is one of the only communications I feel has some substance to it,...the narrow scope of available sources for fresh organs leaves us with a hoax by someone in the medical field or studying to be, an undertaker, or essentially an organ thief. That last category would include Jack I would think,... but in his case, it wouldnt be a hoax.

Now, if its med students, then one would have to wonder if the risk of being thrown out of school and arrested is validated by the widespread knowledge of their hoax.....meaning, does it seem that they would certainly gain some delight by sending this to a private citizen who might have thrown the whole thing out....in fact, Lusk ignores the package for almost 2 full days.

Seems a very risky thing to do for a joke if only one person might get the punch line, so to speak.

Dear Boss......addressed to Central News......From Hell, partially home addressed to a virtual nobody.

Best regards Gary

[Sam Flynn]

Hi Michael...
Yes, that's why I didn't want to go there But a med student et cetera would perhaps know the similarities, and it wouldn't be the first time one of 'em had had a bit of a joke at someone else's expense

The point is that anyone could have sent a piece of pig's kidney and gotten away with it - without it ever occurring to them that the similarity/dissimilarity could be an issue. Think of the fake "mermaids" made of animal parts that turned up in various exhibitions or collections of curiosities during the Victorian era, or the Piltdown Man - did the people who knocked those up necessarily have to know much about comparative anatomy? Did Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths need an intimate knowledge of photographic technology in order to chance their arm at the "Cottingley Fairies" hoax, or did they just "wing it" (so to speak)? Some very intelligent people were taken in by such things, but that's no great shame if their - and the hoaxers' - knowledge at that time didn't equip them to realise the potential pitfalls in what they were dealing with.

[Jon Guy]

When one remembers that Lusk’s men also committed themselves to local intelligence gathering, and posted a reward for the killer’s capture, it isn’t difficult to see how an angry and frustrated Whitechapel Murderer might have come to view George Lusk as a major threat – an adversary deserving of some special attention.

Hi Garry

If the killer saw the Vigilance committee as a threat you`d think the kidney would have been sent to their much publicised meeting place, The Crown, on the Mile End Road.

For this, and other reasons, I believe someone who knew Lusk`s address was having a laugh.

[Sam Flynn]

For this, and other reasons, I believe someone who knew Lusk`s address was having a laugh.

... which could have been just about anyone in Britain who could read, as many of the newspapers, including the "nationals", had recently published Lusk's address. Furthermore Lusk had received considerable coverage in all the major local and national newspapers for some time, as the following survey illustrates:

[DVV]

Hi Sam,

excellent... It settles the context.
I suspect sometimes that the real purpose was to "offer" something to the public, in the middle of a deadly boring October...

Amitiés,
David

[perrymason]

Yes, Sam does suggest that anyone could have sent a pigs kidney section and achieved the same results likely, and anyone had the partial address of Lusk via the papers...if a hoax...then why isnt it a pigs kidney? And how would a hoaxer get a human kidney if not within the medical field or in undertaking? Why were police investigating medical students for the crimes themselves? 3 in particular.

The fact is that a catalyst for a hoax would be to play a practical joke on the specific person it was addressed to, or as a joke on the community at large, ...I think if a hoax, in this case it points towards someone hoaxing Lusk specifically...or, it wasnt a hoax.

Best regards