From Hell (Lusk) Letter likely Fake

[perrymason]

Hi all,

I think people forget just how many letters, cards, notes ...were sent to the police just over the few years immediately after the murders.

There were supposedly hundreds sent in weekly at the height of the "scare", and overall there may have been as many as a few thousand. We know of some 225-250 that have been saved or documented, but there may be a few hundred letters that went missing from the file over the years.

The point being.....to my knowledge only one contained a biological sample that could conceivably have been taken from a victim..

That alone sets this communication apart from the others.....and by the addressee and the notes content, I dont see a direct threat to anyone in there at all.

Best regards all.

[AdamWalsh]

Hello, and sorry the the dreadful title. I do apologize for it, but I could not for the life of me figure out a good title.

I don't understand how people believe this letter to be from the real "Jack", if they also believe he possessed any medical knowledge. Clearly, I would assume that someone who has gone through medical training must understand basic grammar principles. And misspelling words is something everyone has done, but a medical student(of any caliber) would certainly know how to spell the word kidney.

As for how this "From Hell" author obtained the kidney, I believe in multiple theories. From reading online, this forum, and other texts; the ability to get your hands on a kidney in Victorian times was rather easy. Medical students and the black market buyers could most likely get their hands on one.

JennyL explained it as I would - I think you overlook the fact the bad spelling was no doubt on purpose as was the phrasing - an attempt to mask the writes identity knowing the public would sooner or later see the letter - sometimes a letter can be as good as a photo in terms of someone recognising the author - hence the mistakes.

[The Good Michael]

The mistakes were intentional and seem to have been a trick being played just for jolly. I don't believe it was a disguise to hide the identity or to shift blame, but just for fun.

Mike

[perrymason]

The mistakes were intentional and seem to have been a trick being played just for jolly. I don't believe it was a disguise to hide the identity or to shift blame, but just for fun.

Mike

I would disagree Mike that it wasnt written to disguise......as we can see "whil" and "knif" arent phonetic errors.... yet "wate" and "nise" are. Those are 2 different types of errors but one has indications of some grammar training present.....the silent "h" and "k" in the first 2 words. Plus he spells "piece" correctly. "Fried" is also correct...not "fryed".

The gloved man that asked the lady shopkkeeper for the newspaper a day or 2 before the parcel arrives, so he could take down Lusks address....(which appeared incomplete, just as the parcel address was)....might well be the man who sends this....and by his description one would imagine he could read and write. He was also thought to be Irish...which this letter hints at. Perhaps, by accident.

Cheers Mike

[Sam Flynn]

Re: Irish or not...

Here are some examples from Victorian literature, unambiguously conveying in words the sound of an "Oirish" brogue:


"Presarve! hadn't they better cry royalty over the broad sea... Heaven's name! what have they to presarve?" (The Sportsman in Ireland, 1840)

"I presarve 'em underground, in an air of liberty which British oppression has never tainted" (The Lover's Pilgrimage, 1846)

"Do you give me the touch av your shoulther to presarve my formation... but we must presarve thim. What d'you want to do, Sorr?" (Soldiers Three, Kipling, 1890)

"God presarve us an' save us this night!" (Traits and Stories of the Irish Peasantry, 1896)

"you are presarved from his cursed arts" (The Dublin Penny Journal, 1834)

"Not where mere flesh an' blood is consarned. I'm afeard of neither man nor woman — but I wouldn't like to meet a ghost or spirit, may the Lord presarve us!" (The Dublin University Magazine, 1846)

"Saint Pathrick prasarve us!" (Our Young Folks, 1866)

[lynn cates]

Yorkshire

Hello. I seem to recall some of these motifs in the Yorkshire accent.

Is there any possibility there?

LC

[perrymason]

Here are some examples from Victorian literature, unambiguously conveying in words the sound of an "Oirish" brogue:


"Presarve! hadn't they better cry royalty over the broad sea... Heaven's name! what have they to presarve?" (The Sportsman in Ireland, 1840)

"I presarve 'em underground, in an air of liberty which British oppression has never tainted" (The Lover's Pilgrimage, 1846)

"Do you give me the touch av your shoulther to presarve my formation... but we must presarve thim. What d'you want to do, Sorr?" (Soldiers Three, Kipling, 1890)

"God presarve us an' save us this night!" (Traits and Stories of the Irish Peasantry, 1896)

"you are presarved from his cursed arts" (The Dublin Penny Journal, 1834)

"Not where mere flesh an' blood is consarned. I'm afeard of neither man nor woman — but I wouldn't like to meet a ghost or spirit, may the Lord presarve us!" (The Dublin University Magazine, 1846)

"Saint Pathrick prasarve us!" (Our Young Folks, 1866)

I thought the "Sor" and "presarve" were great examples of how this letter may be Irish in origins Sam.

Cheers Mate

[Sam Flynn]

Hello. I seem to recall some of these motifs in the Yorkshire accent.

Not "prasarve", I don't think, Lynn. Or "mishter", for that matter - granted, the standard stage-Irish is "misTHer", but it's close enough.

[lynn cates]

Dickens

Hello. Thanks for refreshing me. I was thinking of misther. I think I read that in Dickens.

LC

[ChrisGeorge]

Hello, and sorry the the dreadful title. I do apologize for it, but I could not for the life of me figure out a good title.

I don't understand how people believe this letter to be from the real "Jack", if they also believe he possessed any medical knowledge. Clearly, I would assume that someone who has gone through medical training must understand basic grammar principles. And misspelling words is something everyone has done, but a medical student(of any caliber) would certainly know how to spell the word kidney.

As for how this "From Hell" author obtained the kidney, I believe in multiple theories. From reading online, this forum, and other texts; the ability to get your hands on a kidney in Victorian times was rather easy. Medical students and the black market buyers could most likely get their hands on one.

Hello zero et al.

Most of the "Jack the Ripper letters" if not all are doubtful as to whether they are from the killer. Read Evans and Skinner's excellent Jack the Ripper: Letters from Hell.

What distinguishes the Lusk or "From Hell" letter from the hundreds of other letters allegedly from the killer is that it came with the piece of kidney supposedly from fourth canonical victim Kate Eddowes. This gives it somewhat more of a cachet that no other letter possesses. Although on the other hand there's a good argument to be made that the piece of kidney was a practical joke by some troublemaker who had read in the press about the kidney taken from the victim.

The best that can be said is that a number of students of the case think that if any letter was from the killer, the Lusk letter might be the one.

As for the misspelled words and the stagy presentation of the letter, I have written previously that there's a case to be made that the Lusk letter and the Openshaw letter might have been from the same person. Read my recent post at JtR Forums on the matter.

Best regards

Chris George

[slysnide]

It's also been speculated that the morticians took the organs after their autopsies. VERY unlikely I know, but I've seen it out there. As for the kidney and grammar, perhaps if it was JTR then he was trying to throw off the police by sending a conflicting message that would read somewhat like this: "I'm the killer. Here's the kidney to prove it. But I can't master proper grammar to save my life, so I may be lying."

Given it's been said that obtaining things like half a kidney would be easy to do through the black market (is there any truth to that?), then why was this letter considered legit for so long, or better put, why IS it still considered legit? And given it was considered legit at one point or another back when it was received, then how could they have lost it??????

[lynn cates]

secret message

Hello Sly. Have you considered that it's possible Jack took that organ from Kate and then sent it to Lusk as a secret message identifying Liz's real killer?

Forgive me, I'm in a silly mood. Next I'll develop a silly walk.

The best.
LC

[perrymason]

There are some elements of this story that suggest Lusk himself didnt consider this package to be anything more than a hoax.....one is that his "fear" might be tied to his seeking help from the police just prior to this package because he felt he was being harassed and followed by a bearded man. When he gets the package, he opens it, reads the note, and drops it into his desk drawer. It stays there without him telling anyone about it for almost 2 full days....he finally shows it to some committee members requesting that they get it out of his sight.

Anyone wonder why a man who receives a parcel that may have come from a murderer doesnt take it immediately to the Police....since as I mentioned, he obviously does seek help from the police on matters that scare him.

So do they convince him to take it to the Police finally? Nope. They first take it to a physician.

This is obviously not being handled by someone who believes he has in his possession a clue from a murderer he himself scours the streets for at night.

Did Lusk maybe have an idea who sent it...and that he was unrelated to the Ripper? Is someone attempting to scare Lusk off for some reason?

Cheers all

[Tom_Wescott]

I thought the "Sor" and "presarve" were great examples of how this letter may be Irish in origins Sam.

A close look shows that it actually reads 'Sir' and not 'Sor'. I used to think it was 'Sor' but it's actually not misspelled.

There are some elements of this story that suggest Lusk himself didnt consider this package to be anything more than a hoax.....one is that his "fear" might be tied to his seeking help from the police just prior to this package because he felt he was being harassed and followed by a bearded man. When he gets the package, he opens it, reads the note, and drops it into his desk drawer. It stays there without him telling anyone about it for almost 2 full days....he finally shows it to some committee members requesting that they get it out of his sight.

And let's not forget that before taking it to the police, they first stopped by the Evening News office for a handwriting comparison between the Lusk letter and the 'Box of Toys' postcard. Let's not forget that Le Grand - their private investigator - gave the Evening News the Packer 'scoop', so they had contacts there. They were in need of money, and it's likely that one or probably more of the Vigilance Committee heads hoaxed the letter and kidney themselves to get donations coming in. At least that's what their actions and the circumstances say to me. I don't think Lusk was in on it though. He was the dupe.

Did Lusk maybe have an idea who sent it...and that he was unrelated to the Ripper? Is someone attempting to scare Lusk off for some reason?

Lusk told relatives he thought it may have been a practical joke from someone at the London Hospital, where he'd recently done some work. His grandson related this to the London Hospital Gazette in the 1960's.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[lynn cates]

Lusk's concerns

Hello Mike. Do you happen to know if Lusk had his fingers in any pies except the Ripper?

Cheers.
LC