Why did Macnaghten deny Cutbush as a serious suspect?

[Chris Scott]

Some details about William Race
A possible record of his death is recorded in Durham in 1914 of a William Race aged 60 but this is not certain.

William Nixon Race

Birth:
Name: William Nixon Race
Year of Registration: 1855
Quarter of Registration: Jan-Feb-Mar
District: Auckland
County: Durham

1861:
South Road, Bishop Auckland, Durham
Head: George Race aged 32 born Butterworth - Coal miner
Wife: Isabella Race aged 28 born Sunderland
Children:
John aged 8
William aged 6
George aged 5
Jane A aged 2
Lancelot aged 1 month
All born in Bishop Auckland

1871:
Craddock Street, Bishop Auckland
Head: George Race aged 42 born Lynesack - Coal miner
Wife: Isabella Race aged 38 born Bishop Auckland
Children:
John aged 18 - Coal miner
William aged 16 - Labourer in Ironworks
George aged 14 - Shoemaker's apprentice
Jane Ann aged 11
Launcelot aged 9
Isaac aged 7
Isabella aged 4
Elizabeth aged 10 months
All born in Bishop Auckland

Marriage:
Stockton, Durham 1875
Married Georgina Esther Gornall


1881:
68 Hargwyne Street, Lambeth
Head: William N Race aged 26 born Southchurch, Durham - Police constable
Wife: Georgina E Race aged 27 born Bishop Auckland
Children:
Arthur N aged 4
Jane E aged 2
Both born Bishop Auckland

1891:
22 Fleming Road, Newington
Head: William N Race aged 36 born Auckland, Durham - Inspector of Police
Wife: Georgina E Race aged 37 born Bishop Auckland
Children:
Arthur N aged 14 born Bishop Auckland
Jane E N aged as born Bishop Auckland

1901:
Shire Hall Road, Sutton at Hone, Dartford, Kent
Head: William Race aged 46 born Auckland - Under foreman and Clerk, Chemist
Wife: Georgina Race aged 47 born Bishop Auckland
Child:
Jane aged 22 born Bishop Auckland
Father in Law: John Gornall aged 70 born Auckland - Tailor

[Robert]

Yes Chris, it seems as though they did try to establish his movements - for two and a half years before! I don't see how this could be done for anyone, unless they were abroad, in prison etc, or perhaps had a night job where they had to sign in and out and the records were still extant. Maybe the police simply asked Kate and Clara "Do you remember him being out on those particular nights?"

There seems to be something strange here, for Macnaghten's account reads almost as if Kate and Clara were trying to pin the crimes on Thomas, whereas in the Lloyd's article Clara is gallantly defending him.

[Stewart P Evans]

Sun's Informant

A reading of the press reports suggests that Race had earlier tried to convince his superiors that Cutbush was the Ripper but that this was not accepted by them as there was no evidence.

It would appear that Race had nursed this idea since he arrested Cutbush in 1891 and had kept up with Cutbush's state in the asylum. It would also appear that Race had kept Cutbush's knife as 'evidence'. Frustration getting the better of him as he was getting nowhere with his theory with his colleagues Race resorted to the press. He must have been the Sun's early informant under an anonymity agreement when they pursued their own investigation. This would explain the facts as we know them.

Race seems to have had a real 'bee in his bonnet' over this theory.

[Chris Scott]

To go back to Macnaghten's own words it would seem that his "denial" of Cutbush as a suspect, if the document can be read as such, is based in his mind on a simple lack of evidence. He writes:
"He is said to have studied medical books by day, and to have rambled about at night, returning frequently with his clothes covered with mud; but little reliance could be placed on the statements made by his mother or his aunt, who both appear to have been of a very excitable disposition. It was found impossible to ascertain his movements on the nights of the Whitechapel murders."
He seems to be saying that both the unreliability of family evidence and the lack of knowledge of his movements at the time of the murders (which suggest that this had indeed been investigated) could not provide a sound basis for a case against Cutbush.

One question - how much, if any, of the police records regarding investigations into Cutbush has survived?
Regards
Chris S

[Robert]

Thanks for the Race material, Stewart.

[Stewart P Evans]

Inspector Race

It looks suspiciously as if Inspector Race spoke out of turn in 1894 and was never forgiven by his senior officers.

The arrest of Cutbush was a success story for Race and although Cutbush was too mentally ill to stand trial he was incarcerated for the rest of his days. Thus great kudos would attach to Race should he be able to convince everyone that in putting away Cutbush he had effectively locked up 'Jack the Ripper.' In disclosing any information he had, in his official capacity, to the press he would be committing a disciplinary offence and incurring the displeasure of his superiors.

The evidence indicates that this was the case for he was overlooked for future promotion (and an increased pension) despite a good arrest record. His Superintendent recommended him for promotion several times but 'through some unknown reason' he never heard anything further. This worried him greatly. In the police force you simply do not upset your senior officers.

In December 1897 he went on the sick list, his condition apparently exacerbated by the death of his 21 year old son and through the indifferent treatment of him by the force. After an honourable career he was 'reduced without any fair trial' and was invalided out with a small pension of 16s. 3d. per week in the summer of 1898. He had served 17 years 11 months.

[Stewart P Evans]

Portrait of Race



Portrait of ex-inspector William Nixon Race, Metropolitan Police.

[Stewart P Evans]

Inspector Race

There was a brief mention of Cutbush in Race's potted biography published when he retired in 1898 -

[Jake L]

Thank You, Stewart - much appreciated, as always!

It seems that Reynold's News pretty much lifted the 1st article from Leader. Without the follow-through, of course..

The Yard official referred to....I wonder...would "head official" with a "10-year old child" (provided that it's not merely a figure of speech) be MacNaghten?

/jake

[Stewart P Evans]

'Hung Up'?

Hi Stewart
Let's not get too hung up on the artificial organized/disorganized or psychopath/schizophrenic dichotomies.
Take Adolf Hitler. He may have been sane, but he obviously had a screw loose in a way that Goering, say, or Goebbels didn't. He murdered millions, yet as far as I know there is no record of his having personally shot, stabbed or even punched anyone during his political career. However, he had an amazing ability to connect with his irrational side. Before meeting a foreign statesman whom he wanted to intimidate, or making an important speech to the German nation, he would work himself up into a lather so that, at the crucial moment, he could tap into his inexhaustible reserves of rage and resentment. At such moments, were we seeing the real Hitler, or was it an act? The question seems almost without meaning.
Now imagine that instead of committing suicide, Hitler had been captured, judged insane and placed in an asylum. Unless his mind found a way of escaping into a catatonic dreamworld, I suspect he would have been a very disorganized and violent patient indeed.

I'm not 'hung up' on anything, let alone psychological profiling. I was addressing points made by others with points made by Macnaghten - not conclusions (which I am not qualified to come to) drawn by myself.

[Stewart P Evans]

The Morning Leader

Here's a better copy of the small one above -

[Robert]

Hi Stewart

Let's not get too hung up on the artificial organized/disorganized or psychopath/schizophrenic dichotomies.

Take Adolf Hitler. He may have been sane, but he obviously had a screw loose in a way that Goering, say, or Goebbels didn't. He murdered millions, yet as far as I know there is no record of his having personally shot, stabbed or even punched anyone during his political career. However, he had an amazing ability to connect with his irrational side. Before meeting a foreign statesman whom he wanted to intimidate, or making an important speech to the German nation, he would work himself up into a lather so that, at the crucial moment, he could tap into his inexhaustible reserves of rage and resentment. At such moments, were we seeing the real Hitler, or was it an act? The question seems almost without meaning.

Now imagine that instead of committing suicide, Hitler had been captured, judged insane and placed in an asylum. Unless his mind found a way of escaping into a catatonic dreamworld, I suspect he would have been a very disorganized and violent patient indeed.

[Stewart P Evans]

The Morning Leader

The Morning Leader first ran its story on 13 February 1894 and on the 15 February the final story -

[Stewart P Evans]

'Restates'

Stewart, were a long campaign but I smell victory.
As you know my work was already in the review print run prior to Nick Warren's article about Cutbush in 1993.
Just thought I'd correct that one.

AP, unfortunately there is no ultimate victory in Ripperworld. What is there to correct regarding what I said about Nick Warren's essay of April 1993 in Ripperana? It was the most detailed account of Cutbush's escapades at that early date and your book had not been published at that time. And, as pointed out in the A-Z, "A. P. Wolf restates the case against Cutbush in Jack the Myth without adducing new evidence."

[Jake L]

Hi all,

So all we are left with is the scenario that a mentally ill inmate of an asylum was being claimed to be the Ripper by a single sensationalist newspaper.

I take it this refers to the liberal newspaper, The Sun.

When I came across the reports (here and here ) of Inspector Race going to the papers with his suspicions re Cutbush (see earlier thread), I assumed that Insp Race was the source for the Sun's story.

Apparently I was mistaken - seems it was not so.

According to the Sun (19th Feb, 1894 -the last installment of the Cutbush exposé) and Reynold's News of the previous day, we have Insp. Race going to The Morning Leader (T.P. O'Connor's "other paper"), not the Sun. With other papers such as Lloyd´s & Reynolds News (the truly "yellow" papers of the day) running with this story (getting Broadmoor mixed up with Dartmoor in the fray), it seems the Sun had to rush for print:

"We had this information for months in our office, for months the representatives of the paper have been searching for witnesses, examining them, often finding them only after weeks of patient labour. It was not our intention to have published the story for some weeks to come, but on Monday night I was called out to the Lobby of the House of Commons by two of my staff, to tell me that a portion of our information was to be offered to two morning papers. I am glad to say, for the credit of journalism, that The Morning, a Conservative contemporary, refused to have anything to do with a discovery the credit of which belonged to another office; in other quarters the taste and the honour were not so delicate as we had anticipated, and there was consequently nothing for it but to stop up all night and bring out The Sun as a morning paper at five o'clock instead of an evening paper at the usual hour."
- The Sun, 19th Feb Editorial

In other words, we have two papers going out with the story -the Sun with it's own investigative bit and Morning Leader with Insp Race - at the same time (plus others following suit).

It is interesting that the first part of the article is an interview of Henri Labouchere, who as the proprietor of "The Truth", it seems, was no stranger to exposés, libel cases - and hoax busting (as in the Parnell case).

It is also worth noting that although Labouchere's verdict is "at best circumstantial", the Sun included this in the report.

The other interesting bit is that MacNaghten's account of the knife doesn't quite seem to tally with the other accounts. Too many knives, one would suppose...

I guess that we'll never know what it was that transpired (in Broadmoor) in 1894 that made Race go to the press.

What would really be useful is to see what Insp. Race actually said in the Morning Leader, in other words see the article before making any sort of conclusions as to the Sun story. A great one, I might add...but I'm a pessimist by nature

/jake