Why Lusk letter could be genuine

[DJA]

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (character) - Wikipedia

Dr J (Henry G Kill) is Gull

Mr H is Henry G Sutton

Inspector Newcomen is Major Henry Smith

Sir Danvers Carew is several clues,however based on one of Gull's clients who died from a chloral hydrate overdose

Soho Square,see Sutton Street

the trampled girl,Mary Ann Kelly

Gull resides at 8 Finsbury Square,Sutton at 9 Finsbury Square

Just for starters ..... have fun

[Lewis C]

Brilliant post!

I thought it had some form of musicality and your post proves it.

So the author was inspired by a Scottish song it seems?

Any suspects with links to Scotland?

Bury, but I imagine you're looking for someone with links to Scotland before the murders rather than after.

[DJA]

English song

[JeffHamm]

Way back in 2008, I found this song called "The Upper Denton Hornpipe", which imho was almost certainly the inspiration for the Openshaw ditty:



The lyrics are:

Did you ever see the devil with his wooden spade or shovel,
Did you ever see the devil with his tail cocked out?
The p'tatoes were so big that the devil couldn't dig,
So he ran through the fields with his tail cocked out!

Upper Denton is in Cumbria, England, although I found it in an anthology of sailors' fiddle tunes from Nova Scotia.

Fun stuff! My kids are both accomplished violinists, so I've sent them a copy of this.

- Jeff

[GBinOz]

I tend to think the Lusk letter is genuine. Here is a blog post I wrote on it in 2021:
https://jayhartley.com/letters-from-hell/

Hi Jay,

Thank you for the link. I found your blog to be interesting, and thought provoking.

The fact that the From Hell letter was delivered to Lusk (and not a news agency), and NOT signed Jack the ripper, has set me wondering as to what its purpose may have been. My first thought is that it may have been sent by a disgruntled member of the vigilance force as a protest against the management policies of Lusk. The police whistle that was heard at Berner St before Lamb's arrival originated, IMO, from a member of the vigilance force - Isaacs (Kozebrodsky) or Jacobs, that was present at the IWEC on the night when Stride's body was discovered. Membership of a vigilance committee would be a good cover and provide intelligence not available to the general public.

I can't say that I see a similarity of penmanship between the Lusk letter and the Openshaw letter. However, once again it was not set to a news agency, but was signed Jack the Ripper. I suspect that the postscript was some sort of jibe, like "you think you're so clever, but you're not" against the scientific analysis. I would not be adverse to a suggestion that a student subject to the oversight of London Hospital doctors might have been prompted to conduct such a protest.

Did you form any conclusions from your analysis?

Cheers, George

[Holmes' Idiot Brother]

If any of the letters were genuine, I believe it was certainly the From Hell letter. And I feel the kidney is genuine, too.

[erobitha]

Hi Jay,

Thank you for the link. I found your blog to be interesting, and thought provoking.

The fact that the From Hell letter was delivered to Lusk (and not a news agency), and NOT signed Jack the ripper, has set me wondering as to what its purpose may have been. My first thought is that it may have been sent by a disgruntled member of the vigilance force as a protest against the management policies of Lusk. The police whistle that was heard at Berner St before Lamb's arrival originated, IMO, from a member of the vigilance force - Isaacs (Kozebrodsky) or Jacobs, that was present at the IWEC on the night when Stride's body was discovered. Membership of a vigilance committee would be a good cover and provide intelligence not available to the general public.

I can't say that I see a similarity of penmanship between the Lusk letter and the Openshaw letter. However, once again it was not set to a news agency, but was signed Jack the Ripper. I suspect that the postscript was some sort of jibe, like "you think you're so clever, but you're not" against the scientific analysis. I would not be adverse to a suggestion that a student subject to the oversight of London Hospital doctors might have been prompted to conduct such a protest.

Did you form any conclusions from your analysis?

Cheers, George

Hi George,

Thanks for this interesting perspective.

Of course I have a suspect in mind but, I am happy to park that for now in order to address your thoughts.

For me, the deliberate mis-spellings are a big clue that the writer was not as uneducated as they wanted the reader to believe. When you consider the writer kept the silent K in knife in "From Hell" and spelt "Pathological" perfectly on the Openshaw envelope, I can't help but feel these behaviours mirror each other. Now, the handwriting itself is not an exact match, but it is fair to say both have been written to try and give the impression of an erratic mind. Again, a link. The fact he signs off as JtR in Openshaw but not in "From Hell" could quite simply be him adopting the moniker and being comfortable with it by the time he pens the Openshaw letter. As you also highlighted, these are specific individuals. Not police. Not press. However, both men appeared in newspapers.

I feel the person was the same man who wrote both, and the tone of gloating in both letters is a clear sign to me that this person wants Lusk and Openshaw to be genuinely intimidated.

I struggle with the idea that a disgruntled medical student would go to such extreme lengths, but it could be possible. However, these are definitely actions in tune with a narcissistic psychopath serial killer.

These letters are hugely about ego.

[GBinOz]

Hi George,

Thanks for this interesting perspective.

Of course I have a suspect in mind but, I am happy to park that for now in order to address your thoughts.

For me, the deliberate mis-spellings are a big clue that the writer was not as uneducated as they wanted the reader to believe. When you consider the writer kept the silent K in knife in "From Hell" and spelt "Pathological" perfectly on the Openshaw envelope, I can't help but feel these behaviours mirror each other. Now, the handwriting itself is not an exact match, but it is fair to say both have been written to try and give the impression of an erratic mind. Again, a link. The fact he signs off as JtR in Openshaw but not in "From Hell" could quite simply be him adopting the moniker and being comfortable with it by the time he pens the Openshaw letter. As you also highlighted, these are specific individuals. Not police. Not press. However, both men appeared in newspapers.

I feel the person was the same man who wrote both, and the tone of gloating in both letters is a clear sign to me that this person wants Lusk and Openshaw to be genuinely intimidated.

I struggle with the idea that a disgruntled medical student would go to such extreme lengths, but it could be possible. However, these are definitely actions in tune with a narcissistic psychopath serial killer.

These letters are hugely about ego.

Hi Jay,

Thanks for the reply. I would be interested in who you have in mind as a suspect, and why, if you are happy to share.

Cheers, George