Time-gap between Eddowes murder and Goulston Graffito

[Bridewell]

Tom
I think the FBI profiler stuff does assist in establishing in broad terms the sort of person who would have done these crimes.
I think it was a ‘run of the mill’ serial murderer case. I am less certain about the sex aspect, but err towards there being a sexual aspect.
I think the police were human. Some were lazy, some lied to get out of trouble, some were vain. They made mistakes and but broadly, organisationally, they were sensible.
I am uncertain about whether or not the Lusk letter and kidney came from the culprit. I tend towards the notion that they were genuine.
I suspect that Long missed the apron and it was there all along.
However I can see a scenario where the killer took the kidney to a bolt hole - the same location where he took the other body parts. But perhaps on those other occasions he had some sort of receptacle with him to carry them in. That might explain why he took the apron part and didn’t leave it at his bolt hole but took it away and discarded it. It perhaps suggests that his bolt hole wasn’t his domicile as otherwise why deposit the body parts at his house, leave and dump the apron, and then return to his house.
On the balance of probabilities I would say that the graffiti was written by the culprit also.
So in essence I am an old-school traditionalist – believing Long was mistaken, the apron was dumped more or less immediately, the graffiti was by the killer as was the Lusk letter. But I am not 100% on any of these aspects… and none of them trouble my suspect theorising!

Good post, Ed. I don't (as you know!) share your suspect theory but this is pretty much my view on everything else you've covered.

[Bridewell]

As regards the possible uses of the apron, I think the one thing above all that the killer will have been wary of was the possibility of a trail of blood being followed, either by the much publicised bloodhounds or by a sharp-eyed detective. The blood would have been hard to see on wet ground at night but perhaps less so during the day. Over-wrapping of the organs, and of any possible injury, would have been a sensible precaution.

As for the 'time gap', I think the likeliest scenario is that there wasn't one. Far more likely that Long was mistaken than that JtR was still on the street within 1/4 mile of the crime scene, and carrying incriminating evidence, 45 minutes after the murder.

[GUT]

G'Day Bridewell.

I didn't think that the hounds had been announced yet, I might be wrong.

[Lechmere]

Bridewell - it's only a matter of time.

Moonbeggar
Most street markets have a team of cleaners who move through them after they close. Petticoat Lane is closed on Saturdays now. It is pretty clean and tidy on Saturday nights. I don't know whether it was open on Saturdays in 1888.
Anyway Wentworth Model Dwellings was only a couple of years old in 1888 and I would presume it had yet to succumb to squalor.

[moonbegger]

Moonbeggar
Most street markets have a team of cleaners who move through them after they close. Petticoat Lane is closed on Saturdays now. It is pretty clean and tidy on Saturday nights. I don't know whether it was open on Saturdays in 1888.
Anyway Wentworth Model Dwellings was only a couple of years old in 1888 and I would presume it had yet to succumb to squalor.

It would be interesting to discover if there was a Saturday market ! because I have walked both Ridley road and Chap in the early hours following market day , and they both still had plenty of litter and rubbish laying about , especially on a windy rainy night .. most other days too for that matter !

moonbegger

[Lechmere]

Moonbegger
That's Islington and Hackney Councils for you.

[Paddy]

Markets...

When I was young (1950s) we always went to Petticoat Lane and Club Row on a Sunday. On Saturdays we went to East Lane market.

Pat......................

[Lechmere]

Do you mean East Street?

I always assumed Middlesex Street was closed Saturday because of the Jewish Sabbath.

[Paddy]

Markets

Hio Lechmere yes East street in Walworth. We always called it East Lane.

Both were in the mornings. but Petticoat lane was always on Sunday mornings.
Wonder why they called it Petticoat Lane?
I seem to recall small animals being sold in Club Row, which was very near to Petticoat Lane.
The first pair of shoes I brought for myself were from a little Jewish shoe shop in Whitechapel Road. I loved them so much, till my little cousin thought one was the potty under the bed and wee'd in it. She was half asleep though !

Pat..........................

[Ginger]

Wonder why they called it Petticoat Lane?

Apparently it was Hog Lane until about 1600 or so, when it acquired the name Petticoat Lane because of the large number of secondhand clothes dealers there.

[DRoy]

I don't believe graffiti was that commonplace.

Boggles,

Didn't even your favorite suspect write graffiti on his own property? Or is the graffiti one more reason for Bury to be The Ripper?

Cheers
DRoy

[Boggles]

Didn't even your favorite suspect write graffiti on his own property

My only suspect - the others dont come close, wish they did.

But even without my suspect tinted glasses on, I still believe on the balance of probablity that the GSG was written by Jack.
I also think that Warren was a very silly man to wash it off, but you cant change the past and he may have been right, more harm ultimatly could have been caused if he didnt.

[Lechmere]

I remember people calling East Street 'The Lane' in the 1980s. I think it was open Sundays as I used to get confused and thought they meant Brick Lane, also known as 'The Lane'. To add further confusion Tottenham tend to play at the Lane on Sundays rather than Saturdays.

It didn't take long for the wording of the GSG to become common knowledge with the added frisson of a police cover up associated with it. And no riot. So that rather suggests that Arnold and Warren were wrong and far too jumpy. No wonder he resigned.

[moonbegger]

Moonbegger
That's Islington and Hackney Councils for you.

Would have to agree with you on that point Ed .. although I still don't see an 1888 Goulston street being that much cleaner , not so much that Long could accurately pin point the position of any discarded litter , or even that it would set alarm bells ringing for him .

moonbegger

[Lechmere]

I don't recall too much litter being on the streets in contemporary photographs. They always seem to me to look remarkably well kept.