The Proper Red Stuff In A Ginger Beer Bottle

[Natalie Severn]

And I walked back forgetting that I drove there

I "ve done that more than once---it sounds like the North West must breed em like us!
Today I had a whole load of vouchers from Smiths and Boots and Tescoes--all to do with Christmas I think.I kept trying to sort out one from the other at the till with a long queue of people behind me and my change and everything starting to fall on the floor. I gave up in Tescoes when the girl said go and choose a bottle of wine and take it to the cigarette counter where your vouchers will be worth double-I saw there was another queue there twice as long so I swept up my vouchers from the counter and floor and made haste to the exit where the wind blew my umbrella inside out -thank God for the peace of the internet and my books.

[Tecs]

Close, Tecs. It was Donoghue v. Stevenson, the famous "snail in the ginger beer bottle" case that established negligence as a sub-head of tort law. You must have gone to law school to know about that.

Thanks for the compliment!

No, I didn't go to law school, (although funny you should mention it, it's something I do consider every year. Any advice welcome if you did!)

I actually heard it from Vincent Burke, famous local (Liverpool/North West) crimewriter. You may not have heard of him, but if not try to get some of his cd's or tapes. He has a very distinctive voice and tells great stories, the Wallace case, JTR et al. He passed away last year sadly but I always remember the snail in the bottle case that he read out on the radio.

I'm afraid, to my wife's disdain, I have one of those memories that can remember individual facts like (nearly) Donoghue vs Stevenson, but come back from the shops with a jar of coffee having been asked to go for a loaf.

And I walked back forgetting that I drove there.

And left the baby in the pram at the cashpoint.


Regards,

[The Grave Maurice]

Wasn't it Ginger beer in the famous legal case (I think off the top of my head it was Stephenson vs Donohue) that redefined contract law?

Close, Tecs. It was Donoghue v. Stevenson, the famous "snail in the ginger beer bottle" case that established negligence as a sub-head of tort law. You must have gone to law school to know about that.

[Tecs]

Actually, storing blood in ginger beer bottles may have worked. The problem was, the concentration was much lower in England after 1855, so what would have worked elsewhere, would not have worked there. Ginger is high in salicylates, a natural blood thinner, so if he had tried it before, and it worked, it may have been from somewhere other than England with a higher concentration. Still could have been a lucky guess, but it is not without logic.

Wasn't it Ginger beer in the famous legal case (I think off the top of my head it was Stephenson vs Donohue) that redefined contract law?

Viper, you are spot on. I did a project on salicylic acid at university. They are a natural blood thinner so a layman may very well use it in this way. Good spot!

And thanks Sally as well, nice to hear from you.

Regards,

[sleekviper]

Actually, storing blood in ginger beer bottles may have worked. The problem was, the concentration was much lower in England after 1855, so what would have worked elsewhere, would not have worked there. Ginger is high in salicylates, a natural blood thinner, so if he had tried it before, and it worked, it may have been from somewhere other than England with a higher concentration. Still could have been a lucky guess, but it is not without logic.

[Sally]

Well, unless we're looking for a "Five Go Wild In Whitechapel" scenario.....

Hi Robert - that's hilarious!!

Hi Tecs - yes, this is my understanding of the situation. But even if that turned out not to be the case, I honestly can't see the presence of a ginger beer bottle in Kelly's room being indicative of anything suspicious.

Best regards, both

Sally

[Tecs]

I thought it was pretty much accepted now that the writer was Tom Bulling working with Charles Moore?

Several people including police officers make reference to him writing the letter and as a journalist, he would know to send it to central news in order to get maximum exposure.

Regards,

[Robert]

Well, unless we're looking for a "Five Go Wild In Whitechapel" scenario.....

[Sally]

Ginger Beer

Ginger Beer was (is) pretty ubiquitous stuff. I'd be tempted to see this as a coincidence - nothing more.

Best regards

Sally

[Jane Coram]

Hi,

Sorry, I'm going to be a real miserable sod here.

Best guess is that if someone is nutty enough to want to write a letter like that, then he's nutty enough to want to write it in blood for added effect irrespective of whether or not he was Jack. It wasn't exactly a problem getting blood in those days, you just had to buy a chicken for dinner and slit it's throat. If he was that nutty it could have been a rat or cat, it would really not difficult to get hold of blood. He found out once he started that blood isn't really that great for writing sicko letters.

So really I don't think you can tell anything from that comment.

Hugs

Janie

xxxxx

[Abby Normal]

Hi,
The very fact that the writer of this letter refers to a ginger beer bottle is intresting enough, someone in room 13 obviously had a taste for such a beverage.
Was the term 'Ginger' [ kellys nickname] a reference to her liking it, rather then her hair colouring?
Of all the bottles the writer could have used, could it be, that it was the one most foremost in his/her mind at the time of writing, and if written in Room 13 possibly just feet away from them in a cupboard.
But that would implicate one of the internal triangle , Barnett/Mjk/Fleming...
Surely not Kelly??
Regards Richard.

Hi Richard
Could it also possibly implicate GH? he said he knew her for several years and obviously knew where she lived. He could have been in her room also?

[richardnunweek]

Hi,
The very fact that the writer of this letter refers to a ginger beer bottle is intresting enough, someone in room 13 obviously had a taste for such a beverage.
Was the term 'Ginger' [ kellys nickname] a reference to her liking it, rather then her hair colouring?
Of all the bottles the writer could have used, could it be, that it was the one most foremost in his/her mind at the time of writing, and if written in Room 13 possibly just feet away from them in a cupboard.
But that would implicate one of the internal triangle , Barnett/Mjk/Fleming...
Surely not Kelly??
Regards Richard.

[Madam Red]

Sure thing, Corey.

[corey123]

Hello Red,

I would say it is a well known fact that blood does indeed clot and that line is just another of the writers, whoever he may be, jokes.

If your interested in this line I started a thread a while ago about it. Though it isn't in quite the same direction as your but its worth a look.

Yours truly,

Corey

[The Snapper]

And I thought you were going to be referring to the ginger beer bottles at Millers Court ...
Even though this letter has lost some of it's credibility over the years I can imagine a detective ordering a constable to "check those bottles".