Analysis of the September 24th Letter

[JTRSickert]

Hello

For those who may be unaware, the very first communication that was received by the police (that even predates the "Dear Boss letter") that allegedly came from the killer is the letter dated September the 24th. In this letter, the writer says he specifically was after Chapman, says he is suffering from nightmares, works as a horse slaughterer, wants to surrender but won't turn himself in, and most interestingly, he writes his name and address but these spaces have been blocked out with black ink, making anything that is written there (if anything) illegible. He also draws a picture of a knife.

I was just wondering if it has ever occured to anyone that maybe this letter should be analyzed forensically, specifically on the spaces where the words are blocked out with black ink in an effort to determine if there is anything written down underneath them. I'm not saying that I believe this letter is from the killer but I do think it would be interesting to see what this person wrote down, if anything. Maybe we should ask if Stewart Evans, Paul Begg, Keith Skinner, or Martin Fido or someone could get ahold of that letter and have Scotland Yard run some tests to see if there is any writing underneath the black ink.

Anyone with me?

[caz]

Hi JTRS,

I have received the following message for you from Keith Skinner:

The letter in question, (MEPO 3/142 ff.4-5), was forensically examined by Patricia Cornwell using an Omnichrome alternate light source and a variety of different filters with which to try and discern whether there was any writing under the blacked out sections. The results were given in the first edition of her book, (Portrait of a Killer), but the potential significance, allowing one accepts the analysis, was not discussed. Patricia wrote:-

Under the black ink the Omnichrome revealed ha and the barely legible and partial signature Ripper.


Love,

Caz
X

[JTRSickert]

Wow, who would have thought that patty's research would actually turn up soem interesting results for a change. I guess I have to give credit where credit is due.

Wait a minute though, if it's true that this letter says "Ripper" and "ha" and it predates the Dear Boss letter, then does that mean that this could have been authored by he same writer as the DB? I mean, it just seems to be too big of a coincidence for this letter to have Ripper in it when the very first use of the term "Jack the Ripper" was in the Dear Boss letter.

[Abby Normal]

Wow, who would have thought that patty's research would actually turn up soem interesting results for a change. I guess I have to give credit where credit is due.

Wait a minute though, if it's true that this letter says "Ripper" and "ha" and it predates the Dear Boss letter, then does that mean that this could have been authored by he same writer as the DB? I mean, it just seems to be too big of a coincidence for this letter to have Ripper in it when the very first use of the term "Jack the Ripper" was in the Dear Boss letter.

Thats the first thing that jumped out at me too when I saw Caz's response.
Is the handwriting similar to DB letter?

[JTRSickert]

Abby,

Not only is the handwriting dissimilar to the Dear Boss letter, but it's also different in terms in tone as well. This letter is meant to convey a statement and to make known certain characteristics about the writer. By contrast, the Dear Boss letter is meant to be mocking, sly, and regarded as a warning to future victims. So, if both of these letters contain "Ripper" in them and they were written by 2 different people [not to mention sent to 2 different recipients....the police (09/24) and the Central News Agency (Dear Boss)], then does this mean that 2 writers collaborated to write these hoaxes? Or is there some other explanation?

[Abby Normal]

Abby,

Not only is the handwriting dissimilar to the Dear Boss letter, but it's also different in terms in tone as well. This letter is meant to convey a statement and to make known certain characteristics about the writer. By contrast, the Dear Boss letter is meant to be mocking, sly, and regarded as a warning to future victims. So, if both of these letters contain "Ripper" in them and they were written by 2 different people [not to mention sent to 2 different recipients....the police (09/24) and the Central News Agency (Dear Boss)], then does this mean that 2 writers collaborated to write these hoaxes? Or is there some other explanation?

Hi JTR
Thanks for the response and explanation. Wow. Not sure what to make of all this at the moment. The tendrils of enigma keep sprouting.

[bolo]

Hello JTRSickert, all,

personally I never put much thought into the name "Jack the Ripper" or any of its variations to be honest, it's too common stuff. That is why I wouldn't be surprised if some of those variations had been used for letters that predate the Dear Boss one.

In other words, I think it's very well possible that two or more people came up with something as generic as "Ripper" as a pseudonym, that's why I wouldn't base any theory on it or use it as a starting point for further research.

Regards,

Boris

[Lawrence]

Lawrence is sure that [s]he -- during a mad hallucination -- saw in the Letters From Hell book, hidden beneath the first coffin (which is surrounded by the words "so-and-so") the name "Jack".

How [s]he could possibly descry with [her]his little eyes something that even infamous Patricia Cornwell could overlook makes this claim of [hers]his into a foolish rambling. Well, we hope that if any of you do own this Letters From Hell book, please peer closely at the coffin silhouette.

If "Jack" is in fact, written there, it would seem that this "Jack" business is a collusion.

[Supe]

Oh for crying out loud Lawrence, nobody cares what your sex is and by being so careful to disguise it, the point of your post is muted to the point of incoherence.

Don.

[Barnaby]

The author of the 24 September letter also uses the phrase "yours truly."

[Phil Carter]

Hello JTRS,

I noticed the observation you gave about the chances of etc etc.
It has to be said here that if the September 24th letter is a hoax, the most obvious pointer to me would be that the hoaxer would indeed use the name "Ripper".

A.N.Other writing a single letter to the police, in a totally disimilar style to the Dear Boss letter, just pre-dating the aforementioned one, sounds far more convincing as a one off letter being a genuine article than one that also has the name "Ripper" in it. Usage of the name "Ripper" but in a disimilar handwriting style counters its own potential authenticity, I surmise.

Therefore it is unlikely to have come from the writer of the Dear Boss letter, and the chances of two people using the same signature (Ripper) are small, when the name itself is previously unheard of, imho.

The signature itself, "ha" indicates a joke being played, i.e.someone is having a laugh (hopefully at everyone else's expense) or poking fun at the authorities and or Ripperology.

There have been quite a few little jokes played in this genre. Even "whopping fibs" and outright invention. These days, people are not so easily fooled, and it would take something of substance to be totally brilliant to get through the eye of the inspection needle without being stopped in its tracks.


Then again, some are more "Gullible" than others. "Princely" little ideas are now (hopefully) a thing of the past, but I wouldn't mind betting that in the next ten years or so, more attemps to pull wool over people's eyes will occur. Some people think its a great way to get their 15 minutes of fame. There are jokers around in this field, with a misguided sense of the mischevious. Others, with more sinister motives, are no doubt already planning and scheming. It happened around the 100th anniversary and shortly afterwards. There is no doubt in this man's mind that history will repeat itself within the next few years.

best wishes

Phil

[towboydds]

No offense to anyone intended, BUT, is there a visible copy of the letter in the writers hand? The words themselves do nothing to prove or disprove if it was written by the hand of someone who also penned one of the other letters, that did make notoriety. If anyone has a link to this letter for me to see it with my own two eyes, and in the comfort of dissecting equipment it would be much appreciated. Thank you in advance.

[moonbegger]

Hello all ,

Wasn't the High Rip gang accused of murdering Polly by the newspapers a few days after her killing , they also referred to her as being Ripped open ..
So if anything i think the author's the DBL and sep24th letter both drew their water from the same well ..

cheers

moonbegger .

[Michael W Richards]

Hi all,

There really isnt any mystery as to how someone came up with a name like Jack the Ripper for these cases, and why we would see that or variants of it on some of the thousands of letters sent to the press and the police during that period.

Many fictional characters, some created by the mythologies surrounding horrific crimes, or in nursery rhymes, or urban legends, were named "Jack", and the Ripper adjective is self explanatory when assessing the murders that occurred before the arrival of the 1st letter with either Ripper or Jack on them.

The fact that more than one letter has either Ripper, or Saucy Jack or Jack the Ripper on it is really to be expected when one considers the usage of the given name Jack in historical application, and the common knowledge of nursery rhymes.

Anyone seeking to categorize the acts committed on Polly and Annie could easily come up with the adjective "ripped".

An unsigned letter.....one with specific unpublished information...now thats a different tale. But these Ripper letters are just noise from an angry and volatile public.

Cheers

[TizerisT]

Found the letter. Page 19.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/documents/education/jacktheripper.pdf

Looking at the name of his workplace, there appears to be a sort of ^ at the top of the first letter where it has not been fully marked out, indicating that the first letter of workplace is a 'tall' letter, possibly an A, L, or lowercase t perhaps?