Tamworth Herald 26th July 1890

[Monty]

Exactly its known as "The Ways and Means Act"

To confirm, this isn't actually an act but rather a colloquialism used within the force for obscure acts which can be used to justify arrest or detention, such as the Lunacy act I cited from the Police Code.

Monty

[Stephen Thomas]

Hello Mac.

"Why was Tommy Cutbush, who did no more than stab some poor lass around the arse region, which is debatable as his solicitor felt there were good grounds for his innocence, sent to England's high security prison for dangerous, homicidal lunatics; while Aaron Kosminski, aka Jack the Ripper, was allowed to lounge around in a local asylum?

Something's not right there."

You, good sir, are a master of understatement.

Yes, Lynn, and big up to FMac.

In the wonderful world of Ripperology this rates very high on the weirdness scale. The sentence that Cutbush received when compared with his South London neighbour Collicott who got a slap on the wrist for exactly the same offence beggars belief.

[robhouse]

Does anyone have anything to say about the Tamworth Herald article?

I had never seen it before, but it does seem to suggest that there was a general rumor going around that Jack the Ripper had been "arrested" in July 1890. This is a new piece of information, since the only other mention of this that I have seen is the "woman from Halifax" story printed in American papers. It is interesting that the police not only denied the truth of the rumor, but that the article uses the phrase "The Press Association is authorised to state..." which suggests that the Police were trying to control how the story played out in the press.

I wonder if there might be other, more substantial articles in other papers around the same time. (apart from the Edinburgh one)

Rob H

[Trevor Marriott]

To repeat, what I'm asking is whether Mr Marriott can provide evidence of a case where a person who would otherwise have been considered sane (according to the criteria of the time, obviously), but was committed to an asylum by a doctor because the police suspected (but could not prove) he had committed a crime.

We are not talking about any old crime we are talking serious crime here i.e serial killings of the most horrific kind which at the time may have been considered by the police likely to re occur if not stopped.

Crimes which the police clearly did not want to re-occur and so what better way to prevent further crimes than to take out of circulation someone who you have positive evidence against. Evidence which used in conjunction with all the other insane factors surrounding that persons incarceration would be more than enough for him to be professionally assessed as being mad and locked away.

After all as I said previous look at the two things which eventually got him certified clearly not to difficult a decision for a doctor.

Plus the fact if a doctor was told all about Kosminski and his ripper connection would any doctor want to release him and maybe allow him to kill again and them have that persons murder on their conscience.

Its a much bigger picture than you can ever imagine

[Robert]

Hi Rob

Not found anything yet in the British press about the arrest. Three or four local papers carried the disclaimer. One (Freeman's Journal) added that the arrest story was sent out by Dalziel's Agency. This must be the chap :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davison_Dalziel,_1st_Baron_Dalziel_of_Wooler

[robhouse]

Hi Rob

Not found anything yet in the British press about the arrest. Three or four local papers carried the disclaimer. One (Freeman's Journal) added that the arrest story was sent out by Dalziel's Agency. This must be the chap :



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Davison...ziel_of_Wooler

Good work Robert. Keep looking. So, do you think that means that Dalziel's Agency broke the story and it was picked up by other papers? Was it a sort of AP? I am not too clear on how such an agency worked.

RH

[Mayerling]

I'm still working on the curious matter of a lady from Halifax getting this information from her visiting a high ranking official in London. A though has crossed my mind about it due to the timing of this visit in 1890 and who this woman may have been visiting.

1) Although the vagueness of the reports suggest it could be any high ranking dignitary, my possible guess would have been Canada's resident Commissioner in London, Sir Charles Tupper (briefly Canadian Tory Prime Minister in 1896). Tupper loved the advantages of being High Commissioner and residing in London, so he may have been privy to information other people never heard. But why this information?

2) In 1890 there was a major international murder case - the "Blenheim Forest" Murder of Frederick Benwall. Benwall was lured to Canada by an advertisement for anyone who wished to be a partner in a potentially good farm in Ontario, and who brought a large fee with him. He went to Canada with a former Oxford student named Reginald Birchall (and Birchall's wife) and was lured to Blenheim Forest in Ontario by Birchall and shot there. Birchall was eventually arrested, and tried and convicted, and hanged. Our lady from Halifax may have been discussing the major case with the High Commissioner Tupper, and he may have mentioned what he have heard about the Ripper investigation.

But all this is still just my suppositions. I don't know if the lady (if she existed, that is) actually spoke with Tupper.

Jeff

[Stephen Thomas]

We are not talking about any old crime we are talking serious crime here i.e serial killings of the most horrific kind which at the time may have been considered by the police likely to re occur if not stopped.

Crimes which the police clearly did not want to re-occur and so what better way to prevent further crimes than to take out of circulation someone who you have positive evidence against. Evidence which used in conjunction with all the other insane factors surrounding that persons incarceration would be more than enough for him to be professionally assessed as being mad and locked away.

Very well said, Trevor.

That's about the size of it as the phrase goes.

[Mayerling]

I just looked up Sir Charles Tupper's biography on Wikipedia. He was was originally the Prime Minister of Nova Scotia. An additional point that he is the illustrious high figure that lady from Halifax is visiting.

[Robert]

Hi Rob and Jeff

From what I can make out, Dalziel's Agency was a trusted news source for British newspapers from the word Go, supplying various papers including the Times, usually on matters North American. I imagine the Agency got hold of the Halifax lady's story and then disseminated it. Of course, the question is, did the lady report the info correctly and was her source also correct?

The Times used the Agency at least twice on the Benwell case.

There is a Tupper reference in 'Emily and the Bibliophile' but sadly it seems to be a different Tupper family.

[Mayerling]

More on Sir Charles Tupper

Tupper is a fairly interesting 19th Century Canadian Statesman - best recalled for being one of the father's of Canadian Federation (and the last one to die - in 1915), and for services in support of Sir John MacDonald's government in various cabinet posts. He even served (for nearly two years) as Finance Minister in Ottawa while still High Commissioner in London. This period ended in May 1888, when he returned to London as High Commissioner. He'd be returning just in time to see the horror and panic from the Whitechapel Murders, and it might bring them to the forefront of his conversations. He was married and had several sons, one of whom (Sir Charles Tupper Jr.) was a major figure in the government of Sir Mackenzie Bowell's administration (1894-1896) which preceeded Sir Charles Tupper Sr.'s term as Prime Minister. Tupper would be opposition leader to Sir Wilfred Laurier from 1896-1900, then resign after (in a general election) he lost his own seat from Nova Scotia. He spent the rest of his life in London, his body being brought back to Canada for burial). He was not only recipient of two
knighthoods, but also a baronetcy. Tupper was (originally) trained as a doctor, and was still practicing medicine (despite national offices) in the early 1880s.

Jeff

[Mr Lucky]

I think we should try to work out which Halifax (Yorkshire or N.S.) the lady is connected with first.

The Fort Wayne Weekly Sentinel - July 24.
The Edinburgh Evening Post is from the 25 July

Both just mention 'Halifax'

Is this the first mention of Halifax, Nova Scotia, from Galveston ? - Halifax, N.S. July 28.

The transatlantic cable landed near Halifax N.S., if Galveston was telegrammed directly from N.S., this could be how 'Halifax' became 'Halifax N.S.'

[Robert]

Hi Jeff

I eventually found a (very tenuous) link between the Emily and the Bibliophile Tupper and your Tupper, but of course any Druitt angle would be a dead end, since Monty could hardly have been arrested posthumously.

TIMES MAY 1st 1922

[Chris]

Crimes which the police clearly did not want to re-occur and so what better way to prevent further crimes than to take out of circulation someone who you have positive evidence against.

Setting aside the fact that yesterday you were suggesting this would happen when the police had "no evidence", and now you are talking about the police "having positive evidence", the question I've asked three times still remains unanswered.

Do you have any evidence whatsoever that the police have ever persuaded a doctor to certify someone who otherwise appeared sane, on the basis that he was suspected of having committed a crime?

If not, what is your speculation based on? Is it based on your professional experience of how the police operated in the late 20th century? Or if not, what?

[Chris]

I think we should try to work out which Halifax (Yorkshire or N.S.) the lady is connected with first.

The Fort Wayne Weekly Sentinel - July 24.
The Edinburgh Evening Post is from the 25 July

Both just mention 'Halifax'

Is this the first mention of Halifax, Nova Scotia, from Galveston ? - Halifax, N.S. July 28.

No - a similar report appeared in the Morning Herald (published in Halifax, Nova Scotia), on 25 July:

JACK THE RIPPER ARRESTED.
A gentleman in London, England, who is in a position to know, writes to a friend in Halifax, that 'Jack the Ripper' was arrested some time ago. He is a medical student and the arrest was made on information furnished by his sister. The authorities have kept the fact of the 'ripper's' arrest a profound secret for certain reasons - probably until the chain of evidence is complete.

Unfortunately this is the only paper published in Halifax that's held by the British Library for the relevant dates. There were others.