Letter dated 14th October 1896.

[Callmebill]

"Dear Boss, you will be surprised to find that this comes from yours as of old Jack the Ripper. Ha Ha. If my old friend Mr. Warren is dead you can read it. You might remember me if you try and think a little. Ha Ha ..."
...."The Jewes are people that are blamed for nothing." Ha Ha. have you heard this before." It was signed 'yours truly. Jack the Ripper."

I haven't seen a copy of the letter just the transcript - does it still exist, anywhere? Anyway, it is peculiar that the author used the same, more rare, and discredited spelling of jewes. Almost as if the writer wanted to reiterate a point - Jews would seem the obvious choice.

[GUT]

"Dear Boss, you will be surprised to find that this comes from yours as of old Jack the Ripper. Ha Ha. If my old friend Mr. Warren is dead you can read it. You might remember me if you try and think a little. Ha Ha ..."
...."The Jewes are people that are blamed for nothing." Ha Ha. have you heard this before." It was signed 'yours truly. Jack the Ripper."

I haven't seen a copy of the letter just the transcript - does it still exist, anywhere? Anyway, it is peculiar that the author used the same, more rare, and discredited spelling of jewes. Almost as if the writer wanted to reiterate a point - Jews would seem the obvious choice.

Not if they were familiar with the reports of the GSG.

[Callmebill]

More likely, if using old newspaper reports, to write jews or juwes if he were trying to establish a convincing connection - not use the least 'popular' word.

[Abby Normal]

"Dear Boss, you will be surprised to find that this comes from yours as of old Jack the Ripper. Ha Ha. If my old friend Mr. Warren is dead you can read it. You might remember me if you try and think a little. Ha Ha ..."
...."The Jewes are people that are blamed for nothing." Ha Ha. have you heard this before." It was signed 'yours truly. Jack the Ripper."

I haven't seen a copy of the letter just the transcript - does it still exist, anywhere? Anyway, it is peculiar that the author used the same, more rare, and discredited spelling of jewes. Almost as if the writer wanted to reiterate a point - Jews would seem the obvious choice.

I don't think it does. I own Letters from Hell and I just tied to check but cant find it. grrrr

ive always thought that this letter could be from the same writer as Dear Boss.

[phantom]

"Dear Boss, you will be surprised to find that this comes from yours as of old Jack the Ripper. Ha Ha. If my old friend Mr. Warren is dead you can read it. You might remember me if you try and think a little. Ha Ha ..."
...."The Jewes are people that are blamed for nothing." Ha Ha. have you heard this before." It was signed 'yours truly. Jack the Ripper."

I haven't seen a copy of the letter just the transcript - does it still exist, anywhere? Anyway, it is peculiar that the author used the same, more rare, and discredited spelling of jewes. Almost as if the writer wanted to reiterate a point - Jews would seem the obvious choice.

Hi
A colour facsimile of the 14 October 1896 letter appears on p.195 Ch.17 Letters from Hell, Evans & Skinner 2001 hardback edition.

[James_J]

Morning all. Just passing this along from Keith

TO Callmebill

The original 14th October 1896 letter can be seen at The National Archives under MEPO 3/142 ff. 234-5.

Hope this helps.

Best Wishes
Keith Skinner

[Abby Normal]

Thanks Keith and phantom

I’ve got to find my letters from hell!

I’ve always been intrigued by this one. Most of the letters are obvious and poor copycats but this one stands out. As it did for the police at the time also.

[James_J]

TO ABBY NORMAL

Thanks Abby. Hope you find your copy of Letters From Hell.

It is an intriguing letter, especially Chief Inspector Henry Moore’s lengthy and detailed internal report about it dated October 18th 1896. Comparisons are made with the September 25th 1888 letter and the post-card, post-marked October 1st 1888. References are also made to the writing on the wall at Goulston Street which, in Moore’s opinion, was written “undoubtedly by the murderer.” Moore concludes that, in his opinion, the handwritings are not the same.

Supt Swanson countersigns Moore’s report agreeing with Moore’s conclusion. Yet, after 1910, both, Anderson and Swanson both wrote that the original ‘Jack the Ripper letter’ was the work of a journalist whom they could identify. So I wonder if, in October 1896, Swanson was aware of the identity of the journalist but for some reason chose not to share this information with other Scotland Yard officers?

Best Wishes
KS

[Abby Normal]

TO ABBY NORMAL

Thanks Abby. Hope you find your copy of Letters From Hell.

It is an intriguing letter, especially Chief Inspector Henry Moore’s lengthy and detailed internal report about it dated October 18th 1896. Comparisons are made with the September 25th 1888 letter and the post-card, post-marked October 1st 1888. References are also made to the writing on the wall at Goulston Street which, in Moore’s opinion, was written “undoubtedly by the murderer.” Moore concludes that, in his opinion, the handwritings are not the same.

Supt Swanson countersigns Moore’s report agreeing with Moore’s conclusion. Yet, after 1910, both, Anderson and Swanson both wrote that the original ‘Jack the Ripper letter’ was the work of a journalist whom they could identify. So I wonder if, in October 1896, Swanson was aware of the identity of the journalist but for some reason chose not to share this information with other Scotland Yard officers?

Best Wishes
KS

Hi Keith
So happy to see you on another thread besides the diary! : )
Yes. It is interesting. And IMHO Anderson and Swanson had no clue who the ripper or the journalist was in 1896 or later and this exemplifies that their suspects for both was mainly wishful thinking.

I also find it highly interesting this writer references the gsg and also spells Jews wrong. I mean who is going to remember that eight years later?

I lean towards it being the same writer as dear boss and Saucy jack and that it was in fact from Jack the Ripper.

[James_J]

TO ABBY NORMAL

“There are more threads in Heaven and Earth, Abby, than are dreamt of in the Diary.”

Your observation about the GSG and spelling of the word Jews is exactly the point hit on by Moore as well – whose own preferred suspect, by the time he retired in 1913, was a “mad foreign sailor.” In the same year (1913), Littlechild is writing to Sims telling him that the most likely suspect was Tumblety and the following year, (1914), out comes Macnaghten with his autobiography heavily pointing the finger at Druitt, although not naming him as he had done in his 1894 memoranda.

I’ve never really gone away from Druitt and – like everybody else – would dearly love to know what Managhten’s “private info.” about him was!

Best Wishes
Keith

[c.d.]

While it is certainly not definitive wasn't it Anderson who wrote that the police were pretty certain that the Dear Boss and Saucy Jacky letters were the work of newspaperman Tom Bulling but that the police were afraid to say so publicly for fear of a libel suit?

c.d.

[James_J]

Evening all, just passing this along from KS.

TO c.d.

Anderson’s words in his autobiography were...

“So I will only add here that the “Jack-the-Ripper” letter which is preserved in the Police Museum at New Scotland Yard is the creation of an enterprising London journalist.”

“Having regard to the interest attaching to this case, I am almost tempted to disclose the identity of the murderer and of the pressman who wrote the letter above referred to. But no public benefit would result from such a course, and the traditions of my old department would suffer.”

It was Littlechild, writing privately to Sims in 1913, who went the distance and named Tom Bulling and Moore as the probable originators of the term “Jack the Ripper”. It would of been interesting to know upon what evidence Littlechild based his belief?

KS

[c.d.]

Hello James,

Thanks for that info. I do seem to recall some mention of libel by somebody which seems to add to the assertion that it was a newspaperman.

c.d.

[Joshua Rogan]

Anderson’s words in his autobiography were...

“So I will only add here that the “Jack-the-Ripper” letter which is preserved in the Police Museum at New Scotland Yard is the creation of an enterprising London journalist.”

Hi Keith,
Is it definitely the case that Anderson was referring to the 1888 Dear Boss letter in his autobiography, or could he be referring to the 1896 letter? Only I notice that the extract above has the hyphenated signature seen in the photo of the later letter (the earlier letter has no hyphens). Or is this just my eyes playing tricks on me?

[c.d.]

Hello Joshua,

I would say it was most likely to have been the 1888 letter. I think the giveaway is the word "enterprising" as this seems to indicate someone who capitalized on the original hysteria surrounding the murders.

c.d.