The suspect of "Jenny"

[Chris Scott]

Newcastle Weekly Courant
12 October 1888

[Supe]

Chris,

The story evidently received a fair amount of notice because it appeared in the East London Observer of October 13 verbatim except that the reference to the doctor was excised. I remembered "Jenny's" story in the ELO because I had used that quote in an article I wrote three years ago. In the same issue is the apochryphal tale of Kate Eddowes telling a casual ward superintendent she had returned to London to earn the reward for fingering the Ripper.

Don.

[Chris Scott]

Hi Don
Many thanks for that information
I wondered how much the tale had in common with the earlier Leather Apron accounts but the reference to him having been a doctor does set it apart somewhat.
Unfortunately I dont have access to the St George infirmary records or I would have attemtped to see if there were any inmate at the time named Jenny
Regards
Chris

[Tom_Wescott]

This sounds very much like Charles Le Grand. He was foreign, 40 years old, carried a big stick, would extort and attack prostitutes in the street, and basically fit Jenny's picture to a 'T'. This article could easily refer to him. Sadly, there were probably a number of men who fit this behavior.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Cap'n Jack]

So, Tom, you dear fellow, you posit that whilst Le Grand was fully employed by the Whitechapel Vigilance Commitee to help protect the 'unfortunates' on the street, he was instead running around with a big stick and whacking them over the head to extort just exactly 'what' from them?
A farthing?
At least you always give me a laugh.

[Tom_Wescott]

Absolutely, and you know that he was engaging in precisely this behavior in 1887.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Jeff Leahy]

miss post

[Mike Covell]

The following appeared in the Birmingham Daily Post, October 10th 1888.

[Chris]

The following appeared in the Birmingham Daily Post, October 10th 1888.

A similar report, including the detail about the man having been a doctor, appeared in the Star of 10 October:

http://www.casebook.org/press_reports/star/s881010.html

[Tom_Wescott]

The following is from the Morning Advertiser of Oct. 2nd, 1888:

James Henderson, 22, a well-dressed young man, described as a tailor, of Woodland-street, Dalston, was charged with assaulting an unfortunate woman named Rose Goldstein, by striking her on the head with a stick, and further with threatening to "rip her up."-The prosecutrix, whose head was surgically bandaged, appeared weak from loss of blood. She said that at about one o'clock on Sunday morning she was proceeding along Dalston-lane, on her way home, when the prisoner made overtures to her, which she resented. He then struck her on the back of the head with the buckhorn handle of his walking-stick, causing the blood to flow freely, and rendering her partially insensible. He said, "I will rip you up the same as a few more have been done."-Ellen Barber, a friend of the prosecutrix, deposed that she saw the two walk down a street, and almost immediately heard cries of "Murder!" and "Police!"-Constable 330 J said he saw the prosecutrix bleeding very much. She went to the German Hospital, where her head was dressed.-The prisoner, who spoke with a Scotch accent, said "so far as he knew" he did not strike the woman. The woman followed him about, and when he pushed her away she screamed.-Mr. Smith thought the assault proved. It was not because this class of women were unfortunate that they were to be knocked about. He should inflict a fine of 40s., or one month's imprisonment.

The Evening News of Oct. 2nd was not happy at all with how the magistrate handled the case and rightfully so. Here's what they had to say:

We cannot congratulate Mr. Horace Smith, the magistrate presiding over Dalston Police Court, yesterday, upon his views as regards the due adjustment of punishment to offence. A young man named Henderson was charged before him with assaulting an unfortunate woman named Rosa Goldstein, and threatening to "rip her up, the same as a few more had been done." The prosecutrix, "who appeared with surgical bandages about her head and seemed weak from loss of blood," stated that on Saturday night she was going home when the prisoner made proposals to her, which she refused, when he struck her three times on the head with the buckhorn handle of his stick, causing blood to flow freely, and rendering her partially insensible.

So far as can be gathered from the published report of the case there was practically no defence, save that the prisoner was under the influence of liquor at the time, and Mr. Smith proceeded to give his sentence: "If it had not been that you were drunk," he told the prisoner, "and may not have known exactly what you were doing, I should have dealt very severely with you." As it was, however, the merciful magistrate considered that the offence was not "wilful wickedness," and contented himself with imposing a fine of forty shillings, or a month's imprisonment. If this misplaced leniency does not prove a direct incentive to others to go and do likewise, it will be surprising.

Of course, this is probably not the same guy, but I thought it interesting that he was hitting a prostitute over the head with a cane and saying he'd 'rip her up' just like 'Jenny' said her guy was.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott