The Secrets of the Special Reports

[David Orsam]

I now have a theory about the missing Second Special Report in the Nichols case which hopefully explains all the puzzling aspects of it.

The way I see it is that Inspector Spratling, being the first inspector on the scene, and involved in the investigation between about 5am and 11am on the Friday morning, had to submit a report to Scotland Yard via his Superintendent. He probably did so in a state of some exhaustion having probably been on duty all night but certainly since 4:30am. This was the first Special Report.

We know that Inspector Helson was also involved in the investigation that day, having received information about the murder at 6:45am, at which time he went straight to the mortuary (and then, no doubt, continued investigating through the day). As the Local C.I.D. inspector within J Division, I am assuming that he too had a responsibility to file a report to Scotland Yard, which he would probably have written later on the Friday and despatched it on either the 5:24pm or the 9:24pm cart from Bethnal Green Police Station. This is the report (which would also thus have been dated 31 August 1888) which I suggest is the missing second Special Report.

In line with PO of 9th Feb 1888 (which says that, "A further report of the progress of the inquiry is to be sent in at not longer intervals than a week"), Helson then provided his second report a week later, on 7 September 1888. This was the third Special Report.

The notion that he sent the second (his first) Special Report on 31 August explains why the third (his second) begins with the identification of the body as being Mary Ann Nichols, which was established on Saturday 1 September. It explains why two reports would have been sent on the same day, but by different inspectors.

(There may also be a similar explanation for the missing Special Report in the Tabram case because I note from Swanson's report on the murder that Local C.I.D. Inspector Reid took statements from local residents on 7 August 1888, yet we have no report from Reid on that day but the table in the MEPO file does list a police report dated "7 Augt 1888" which we do not have - the first report in the file is one from Inspector Ellisdon dated 10 August).

In the Nichols case, it may be that the reports of Spratling and Helson were essentially duplicative, so one of them was not retained but I still can't help wondering if the missing report is in the original file but was not microfilmed. Has anyone ever been allowed to inspect the original MEPO file??? The fact that it seems to be plausible that two reports on the same day might have been submitted to C.O. gives me a little hope that it exists.

[David Orsam]

Here is the timetable of the despatch cart from the 27 January 1888 Police Order:

[Simon Wood]

Hi Monty,

Will do.

A copy of your book is speeding its way to me.

Regards,

Simon

[Monty]

Hi All,

Apologies if this is off-topic, but not all communication within the Metropolitan Police washorse-drawn.

By 1849 Scotland Yard and all the district police stations of London were connected by a telegraph line.

And on 9th November 1888 Robert Anderson made a telephone call from Whitechapel to Scotland Yard whilst Dr. Thomas Bond was examining the corpse in Millers Court.

Regards,

Simon

Absolutely,

See pages 38, 49-50 (notes 33, 34 and 35), and image number 22 in my book Simon. ;-)

Monty

[Simon Wood]

Hi All,

Apologies if this is off-topic, but not all communication within the Metropolitan Police was horse-drawn.

By 1849 Scotland Yard and all the district police stations of London were connected by a telegraph line.

And on 9th November 1888 Robert Anderson made a telephone call from Whitechapel to Scotland Yard whilst Dr. Thomas Bond was examining the corpse in Millers Court.

Regards,

Simon

[Monty]

Another little snippet of possibly relevant info I discovered today - from a PO of 27 January 1888 - was that there was a horse drawn "despatch cart" which left Bethnal Green Police Station four times a day, carrying correspondence to Scotland Yard.

Assuming that this was how Inspector Spratling's report was transmitted, the relevant cart for our purposes commenced its journey at Arbour Square Police Station at 10:45am. Travelling at seven miles per hour, it reached Bethnal Green Police Station (via Bow Police Station) at 11:24am (stopping for 3 minutes) before reaching Scotland Yard (via Leman Street Police Station) at 12:15pm. Allowing for the mail to make it's way through to the clerk at the Executive Branch at either 12:30pm or 12:50pm, depending on one's point of view, this would make sense and would mean that Spratling must have completed his report by 11:24am. On that basis, the search he referred to in his report must have been carried out before that time. Thinking about it, it certainly makes sense that Spratling, who was clearly on duty at 4:30am, is very unlikely to have been writing reports during the evening as he must have gone off duty at some point during the afternoon. The last cart, incidentally, left Bethnal Green at 9:27pm (arriving Scotland Yard at 10:15pm).

Hey Dave,

You kinda pre-empted my reply.

My book, Capturing Jack the Ripper (plug, plug), 'Tecs' chapter, page 103, footnote 27, I refer to a later Police Order dated 20 March 1888, which cited H divisions HQ (Leman St) Despatch Timetable.

Leman St - 8.12 am, 11.42 am, 5.42pm and 9.42pm (with 3 min turnaround).

I was hoping to post a copy of the orders however my PCs hard drive has gone kaput (I'm on my phone) and in for repair, so alas I cannot. When I get it back, I shall.

Anyway, as I said, you have pre-empted me, and I support your post above.

Monty

[Simon Wood]

Hi David,

Excellent information. Thanks.

This is Casebook at its best.

Regards,

Simon

[David Orsam]

Another little snippet of possibly relevant info I discovered today - from a PO of 27 January 1888 - was that there was a horse drawn "despatch cart" which left Bethnal Green Police Station four times a day, carrying correspondence to Scotland Yard.

Assuming that this was how Inspector Spratling's report was transmitted, the relevant cart for our purposes commenced its journey at Arbour Square Police Station at 10:45am. Travelling at seven miles per hour, it reached Bethnal Green Police Station (via Bow Police Station) at 11:24am (stopping for 3 minutes) before reaching Scotland Yard (via Leman Street Police Station) at 12:15pm. Allowing for the mail to make it's way through to the clerk at the Executive Branch at either 12:30pm or 12:50pm, depending on one's point of view, this would make sense and would mean that Spratling must have completed his report by 11:24am. On that basis, the search he referred to in his report must have been carried out before that time. Thinking about it, it certainly makes sense that Spratling, who was clearly on duty at 4:30am, is very unlikely to have been writing reports during the evening as he must have gone off duty at some point during the afternoon. The last cart, incidentally, left Bethnal Green at 9:27pm (arriving Scotland Yard at 10:15pm).

[David Orsam]

From the few characters on the stamp that can be made out, and from other date stamps in the file, I believe that the stamp probably says:

METROPOLITAN POLICE

31 AUG 1888

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

This needs to be corrected. The C.I.D. stamps say "METROPOLITAN POLICE" across the top but I have discovered that the Executive Branch stamps say "RECEIVED IN". So the stamp must actually read:

RECEIVED IN

31 AUG. 88

EXECUTIVE BRANCH

An example is below (from MEPO 3/2897, from which, incidentally, I learn that the "D" in Inspector William D Davis stands for "Dominic"):

[David Orsam]

Thanks again David, my suggestion about the time first was when took you to be saying it was a real rarity.

I agree that if it's not so rare then it's far less likely to have been after midnight. The other thing I've been considering is that Superintendent Keating added a postscript to Inspector Spratling's report which says: "It has since been ascertained that the dress bears the marks of Lambeth Workhouse". Now, James Hatfield gave evidence about the police finding the Lambeth Workhouse mark and Inspector Helson telling him to cut that portion of the dress out. The timing is a little vague but this appears to have happened in the morning (and Helson said he went straight to the mortuary upon hearing of the murder at 6:45am). So it does look like the report was written by Spratling earlier rather than later in the day. Perhaps the answer is that he carried out his searches earlier than he thought - between 10-11 - and completed his report then.

[GUT]

Thanks again David, my suggestion about the time first was when took you to be saying it was a real rarity.

[David Orsam]

Thanks for that last bit David, it actually took me by surprise when you said it was rare.

Well the vast majority of those I have seen do not include a time. So I would still say quite rare - subject to anything Monty has to add - but clearly it is done occasionally.

[David Orsam]

Could the time have been written first and then the stamp placed over it?

I'm thinking not because I seem to be finding more examples of the same thing, with a time inside the stamp. Check out #49 above in case you missed it and I think it is worth me posting another one. Looks like it represents a time (of 7.20) - on 14 Feb 1888 - but I'm not sure what is going on with the numbers in the corners. I might leave that for Monty. This is from MEPO 2/210:

[GUT]

Well mainly just trying to work out what the time actually is due to legibility issues.

I had wondered aloud why someone even bothered to write the time in but now I have found another example (and it's possible I have also found one or two more from a Commissioner's Office stamp) I realise it is probably less rare than I had thought.

Thanks for that last bit David, it actually took me by surprise when you said it was rare.

[David Orsam]

I've only dipped in and out of this thread.

Are you querying the date and time stamps?

Well mainly just trying to work out what the time actually is due to legibility issues.

I had wondered aloud why someone even bothered to write the time in but now I have found another example (and it's possible I have also found one or two more from a Commissioner's Office stamp) I realise it is probably less rare than I had thought.