Did The Victims Carry Weapons?

[Bridewell]

Mary Nichols

Well probably none wore either. Victorian women's shoes are brutal, but these ladies likely had the more working class ankle boot, which kind of looks like a short combat boot with a slightly higher heel. Half inch maybe. At least those who weren't wearing men's boots, which you still can't stick a decent sized blade in.

Hi Errata,

Would not the "men's spring-sided boots" worn by Polly Nichols allow for the concealment of some kind of blade? - Although whether or not she could have got at it might be another thing.
Something which probably would be easily concealed would be the pre-safety "cut-throat" razor. You'd only need to borrow a needle and thread to make a small discreet pouch at waist level in which to conceal it. I know they had no money, but how difficult would it be to steal one? The fact that no weapons were recovered continues to puzzle me.

Regards, Bridewell

[Errata]

Hi Errata,

Would not the "men's spring-sided boots" worn by Polly Nichols allow for the concealment of some kind of blade? - Although whether or not she could have got at it might be another thing.
Something which probably would be easily concealed would be the pre-safety "cut-throat" razor. You'd only need to borrow a needle and thread to make a small discreet pouch at waist level in which to conceal it. I know they had no money, but how difficult would it be to steal one? The fact that no weapons were recovered continues to puzzle me.

Regards, Bridewell

There are any number of weapons they could conceal on their persons. It's just that almost none of them could possibly be confused with a Bowie knife. The thing I would go for would be a sharpened file. Files take an edge just as well as a blade, and they are all over the East End. Kitchen knives are a little harder to get, and the blades are so thing that they snap pretty easily. It's not the best weapon, but obviously you do what you can.

But the easiest weapon isn't even a knife. Technically. Broken glass with some fabric wrapped around it to create a handle is very easy. Or even a bottle neck. A small thin pipe could be deadly. For something that works at more of a distance, theres not a whole lot, but one is effective. It's called a "miser's purse". it's a small purse (or in their case, bag with a string attached) filled with lead. You can hit someone hard enough to crack a skull from a couple feet away.

Weapons were to be had. Even for the brutally poor. But stashing weapons in clothing is inadvisable when you are lifting your skirts a dozen times a night. And any weapon you keep in an ankle boot is going to rub you raw, and these women covered a lot of ground. I think it's likely that anyone new to the business would try to carry something, but quickly learn not to bother. The times when they are the most vulnerable are the times that they either they wouldn't be able to get their hands on the weapon, or wouldn't be in a position to use it.

[Cogidubnus]

Were the women you're referring to skirted or dressed...I guess the presence or otherwise of a waistband or perhaps a belt might well make a difference.

Dave

[Robert]

Nichols had a broken piece of mirror. I don't know if this was sharp.

[DVV]

That's only for close combat, Robert.

[Wickerman]

Hi Jon,

...and again I stumble over some English phrase that I picked up somewhere but should have back-checked before use... with "the story holds no water" I want to say that the idea of an East End woman carrying a genuine Bowie on her person (concealed, even) does not sound very plausible.

You are quite right Bolo, I doubt very much if many of these down and out women of the night even knew what a Bowie knife was. Perhaps, the term used was the result of a reporters artistic license, spicing up the story.

The real issue is, that some of these women armed themselves with knives.
Lets not get bogged down with trivialities of make & design.

Have a great weekend...

Regards, Jon S.

[bolo]

Jon,

The real issue is, that some of these women armed themselves with knives.
Lets not get bogged down with trivialities of make & design.

completely agreed. I guess this is a case for Occam's Razor.

Have a great weekend...

The same to you.

Regards,

Boris

[curious4]

Hello all,

Many women in their situation had the attitide "it's Jack or the river for me." I think they realised that they would be helpless even with a weapon and relied on their best weapon - their wits. Sadly this wasn't enough for the victims.

C4

[c.d.]

This is something that I have always wondered about as well. I find it hard to believe that they would go out on the streets unarmed even before Jack was on the scene. It was a rough neighborhood, they were dealing with rough customers and many of those customers had probably been drinking.

I have to dismiss the cost argument. Knives were relatively cheap and plentiful and considering their purpose would be a worthwhile investment.

I also disagree with the argument that the mechanics of the act prevented their use. Even if that is true, a knife could be used to dissuade a drunk that simply wanted to hassle them or persuade a reluctant customer to pay up or one that wanted more than what was bargained for.

If Jack went through pockets looking for money would he pass on helping himself to a knife? That could explain any variation in knife cuts.

c.d.

[moonbegger]

They obviously did carry Knives ! I just read on here somewhere that it was one of them cut off part of Vincent Van gogh's ear