Littlechild Ltr Survey Complete - Absent Bias?

[Jonathan H]

Tom, you're succumbing to a reductionist tendency, very prevalent here.

Anderson said he knew the name of the reporter.

Macnaghten claimed he was the one who tracked down the hoaxer.

Sims in 1888 was sure it was a reporter's hoax from day one.

Littlechild named the reporter, and his cohort, to Sims.

Unless a source contradicts all that, we know the probable name of the hoaxer(s).

Unless you are a person so imbued with a bias against the contemporaneous police that they are allowed to know nothing about anything to do with Jack the Ripper ...

[Stewart P Evans]

Style

I'll say this for the last time.
Historical methodology teaches us that the Littlechild Letter must be seen in context in terms of who wrote it, to whom, and when?
eg. You have to measure against what we know Sims had already written about 'Jack the Ripper'.
Mike is right -- bias by some is as thick here as London fog when it comes to the American suspect.

Jonathan, I like your style, I really do.

[mariab]

There is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that 'Best' wrote the 'Dear Boss' letter, or that there is any truth in his tale. In fact quite the contrary.

What I suspect about people pushing Best as a candidate for the “Dear Boss“ letter is that they refer to the Andrew Cook book, which apparently mentions Best without revealing his source for this, AKA the none too accurate and often inventive Nigel Morland. If any new evidence for Best exists besides the references above, could someone please name it?

[Fleetwood Mac]

I'm surprised anyone needs a survey.

The following is clear from the letter:

1) He was a suspect in Littlechild's mind.
2) He was a very likely suspect in Littlechild's mind.
3) Dr T was up near the top of the pile, but not alone, there were other 'favoured suspects'.
4) He goes on to explain why he feels he's a very likely suspect.
5) And the reasoning is weak, extremely weak, nowhere near enough to be convincing.

The following is not clear from the letter:

1) Whether or not 'amongst the favoured suspects' means this is his own opinion, or the consensus within police corridors.

Evaluating DR T's status from that letter alone:

1) He was among Littlechild's favoured suspects.
2) The reasoning is shockingly poor, and suggests the logic of a by gone age, which I suppose it was.

[Jonathan H]

To Fleetwood Mac

Yes, that is one possible interpretation of the Littlechild Letter, but it is also, arguably, uncovincing in its central thrust that the ex cop was indulging in a personal, homophobic opinion.

This is because Littlechild, Sims and Tumblety are being interpreted by you completely outside of the relevant historical context -- plus it is infused with a modernist, politically-correct tut tutting -- rendering this assessment sterile and reductionist.

[lynn cates]

proclivities

Hello Jonathan. On the other hand, do you think it likely that suspects were chosen, in part, on grounds of non-mainstream sexual proclivities?

Put another way, would Druitt, Kosminski or Tumblety have been named as suspects sans their "different" sexual behaviours? (Of course, this assumes that MJD was such.)

Cheers.
LC

[mklhawley]

I'm surprised anyone needs a survey.

The following is clear from the letter:

1) He was a suspect in Littlechild's mind.
2) He was a very likely suspect in Littlechild's mind.
3) Dr T was up near the top of the pile, but not alone, there were other 'favoured suspects'.
4) He goes on to explain why he feels he's a very likely suspect.
5) And the reasoning is weak, extremely weak, nowhere near enough to be convincing.

The following is not clear from the letter:

1) Whether or not 'amongst the favoured suspects' means this is his own opinion, or the consensus within police corridors.

Evaluating DR T's status from that letter alone:

1) He was among Littlechild's favoured suspects.
2) The reasoning is shockingly poor, and suggests the logic of a by gone age, which I suppose it was.

Thanks to the Special Branch ledgers, we know that Scotland Yard hired a private detective agency to assist in the Whitechapel killings. The fact that Scotland Yard always used the Pinkerton Detective Agency before and after the killings, William Pinkerton himself was at Scotland Yard at the beginning of the killings, and Abberline, Littlechild, Walter Dew (and other Scotland Yard investigators) were hired by the Pinkertons to work for them after their police service makes it clear the ledgers most likely referred to the Pinkerton Agency.

On 18 November 1888, the first US paper commented upon Francis Tumblety (or Kumblety as they referred to him), and on 19 November William Pinkerton was interviewed on Tumblety from Chicago. Pinkerton’s information about Tumblety was in amazing detail making it surprising that Pinkerton recalled his Tumblety experiences from ten years ago. It seems more plausible that he had discussed Tumblety within the last few months with someone, i.e., Scotland Yard.

Pinkerton's words just might reveal what caused Scotland Yard to take Tumblety seriously, since he may have been Scotland Yard's American source in knowing Dr T's history. Note what Pinkerton said (The Chicago Daily Inter Ocean, 20 November, 1888),

“And what did people who came in contact with the doctor think of his general character?”

“People familiar with the history of the man always talked of him as a brute, and as brutal in his actions. He was known as a thorough woman-hater and as a man who never associated with or mixed with women of any kind. It was claimed that he was educated as a surgeon in Canada [where Inspector Andrews went in order to investigate Tumblety] and he was said to have been quite an expert in surgical operations. I have not heard his name mentioned in ten years.”

“And what do you think are the probabilities of his being the man who committed the Whitechapel murders – murders committed, apparently, without any object in view? Do you consider that the Doctor was insane?”

“Yes, I do. I think a man guilty of such practices as those I have referred to must be insane; and Dr. Hammond – Surgeon General Hammond – some time ago, when asked as to whether or not he thought that the Whitechapel murderer was an insane man, said that when the murderer of those women was discovered he would undoubtedly be found to be a woman-hater and a man guilty of the same practices which I have described, and Twombley, or Tumblety, as being guilty of, and that such men were crazy and as likely as not to murder women.”



It seems Pinkerton’s last paragraph supports Fleetwood Mac’s claim (at least some of it) and notice that this was based upon a nineteenth century professional medical opinion suggesting Scotland Yard was using the tools that they had available in an appropriate manner. Notice, though, this was not the only reason for suspecting Tumblety as I’m sure there were multitudes of gay or bisexual men in the East End. Keep in mind, there was a significant homosexual subculture in Victorian England, as evidence by the Cleveland Street Scandal the following year and Littlechild’s private investigation of Oscar Wilde years later. Notice that Pinkerton talked about Tumblety being brutal and being a ‘thorough woman-hater’ (just as Littlechild characterized him) AND Tumblety suspected of having surgical expertise. Lastly, Tumblety himself admitted not only of being in Whitechapel during the killings but was caught wearing an American Slouch Hat, which he claimed that’s what caused him to be a JTR suspect. It looked as though the puzzle pieces were beginning to fit.

Sincerely,
Mike

[Simon Wood]

Hi Mike,

"Thanks to the Special Branch ledgers, we know that Scotland Yard hired a private detective agency to assist in the Whitechapel killings"?

Could you please elucidate this fact.

Regards,

Simon

[mklhawley]

Hi Mike,

"Thanks to the Special Branch ledgers, we know that Scotland Yard hired a private detective agency to assist in the Whitechapel killings"?

Could you please elucidate this fact.

Regards,

Simon

Hi Simon,

Spiro's book. It's awesome.

Mike

[Simon Wood]

Hi Mike,

How does Spiro elucidate this fact?

Regards,

Simon

[ChrisGeorge]

I'm surprised anyone needs a survey.

The following is clear from the letter:

1) He was a suspect in Littlechild's mind.
2) He was a very likely suspect in Littlechild's mind.
3) Dr T was up near the top of the pile, but not alone, there were other 'favoured suspects'.
4) He goes on to explain why he feels he's a very likely suspect.
5) And the reasoning is weak, extremely weak, nowhere near enough to be convincing.

The following is not clear from the letter:

1) Whether or not 'amongst the favoured suspects' means this is his own opinion, or the consensus within police corridors.

Evaluating DR T's status from that letter alone:

1) He was among Littlechild's favoured suspects.
2) The reasoning is shockingly poor, and suggests the logic of a by gone age, which I suppose it was.

Hi Fleetwood Mac

Taking the last part of your statement:

Evaluating DR T's status from that letter alone:

1) He was among Littlechild's favoured suspects.
2) The reasoning is shockingly poor, and suggests the logic of a by gone age, which I suppose it was.

-- I would agree that Littlechild was saying that his opinion was that Dr. Tumblety was a major suspect. But whether he was a major suspect for the whole of the Yard is not clear, and he probably was not or else we might have heard more about him before 1995. It's not enough to think as Mike does that Littlechild must have been privy to discussions about the suspect. More likely he knew that Tumblety was under investigation and was detained at the right time to have been suspected to be the murderer.

I also do think that you are correct that Littlechild's arguments display "the logic of a by gone age" but that can be said about each of these former police officials' written opinions or reported opinions. It applies to Macnaghten, Anderson/Swanson, Littlechild, and Abberline.

Each of these former Scotland Yard men expresses a certainty about a suspect but then provides faulty information or make assumptions that we know are not true or gives opinions not based on facts:

Druitt was a doctor as was Ostrog, and Druitt was nailed by some unknown family information which can't be disclosed (presumably the family knew Druitt was not a doctor but Macnaghten is ignorant of the fact that he was not a doctor, retired or otherwise); Jews never give up their own and the suspect knew he was recognized by the witness (a big whoo whoo on that but were Anderson and Swanson wrong about the episode or confusing Kosminski with another attempted identification involving some other Jew or the Gentile sailor Thomas Sadler?); Tumblety was thought to have committed suicide and the murders stopped; Chapman went to America and the murders ceased in England but began in the United States instead. On and on.

There is always this "clincher" in their accounts which proves that the man could have been the murderer. But the information that they are giving out is fragmentary and riddled with errors. What they are essentially doing is telling us such and such is true and persuasive while talking with their thumb on the scales. That is cheating.

Best regards

Chris

[mklhawley]

Hi Simon,

On page 189, Spiro mentions the 2002 discovery of the 1888-1892 MP Special Branch index books and mentions details of the Whitechapel murders and discusses the 'U.S. detective agency' involvement on a certain case. He also talks about the case involving the plot to assassinate Balfour.

Mike

[mklhawley]

Hi Fleetwood Mac

Taking the last part of your statement:

Evaluating DR T's status from that letter alone:

1) He was among Littlechild's favoured suspects.
2) The reasoning is shockingly poor, and suggests the logic of a by gone age, which I suppose it was.

-- I would agree that Littlechild was saying that his opinion was that Dr. Tumblety was a major suspect. But whether he was a major suspect for the whole of the Yard is not clear, and he probably was not or else we might have heard more about him before 1995. It's not enough to think as Mike does that Littlechild must have been privy to discussions about the suspect. More likely he knew that Tumblety was under investigation and was detained at the right time to have been suspected to be the murderer.

Hi Chris,

It's not that I just think it; it's based upon evidence. Firstly, the Special Branch ledgers show Littlechild's department was involved with the Whitechapel murders and the Irish Tumblety lived next to some Irish Nationalists in NYC. Also, note the following report. It's funny they did not comment upon his Whitechapel involvement but they did his Irish involvement. Just as Jonathan has stated, you seem to be minimalizing this.



Mike

[Simon Wood]

Hi Mike,

Here is a verbatim extract from Lindsay Clutterbuck's June 2002 thesis based upon the ledgers.

"The proposition that there was a possible Irish suspect for these murders is not as incongruous as it seems. At least one book, "The Lodger" (Evans and Gainey, 1995) is based on a Home Office memorandum relating to this idea and there are more relevant entries in the Chief Constable's Register. It does not corroborate their theory but does enable an outline to be constructed of a intriguing story involving an extreme Irish nationalist who is suspected of being "Jack the Ripper", an alleged plot to assassinate the Secretary for Ireland, Balfour, and the activities of a private detective agency. However, it is a digression from the thrust of this research and regretfully it cannot be pursued appropriately here."

Other than this Clutterbuck states that "requests for assistance in the USA were not made to other "state" police forces but to a private company; the Pinkerton National Detective Agency.

Where is it written "that Scotland Yard hired a private detective agency to assist in the Whitechapel killings"?

Regards,

Simon

[mklhawley]

Hi Simon,

You are absolutely right and the 'hired specifically for the Whitechapel murders' it does not say. Thanks for keeping me honest. Does that negate the probability Pinkerton discussed Tumblety with Littlechild, a man he hired just a few years later? No. Pinkerton was an American private detective, Tumblety the suspect was American, he'd be the perfect person to ask.

Mike