Press Reports - A Cloaked Gentleman

[Jibby Reznor]

Hello,

I am looking for press reports that bore the idea that the Ripper was a gentleman, long coat, top hat etc. Any ideas as to where i can find such evidence would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Jibby

[Mike Covell]

Hows about here, http://www.casebook.org/press_reports/
There is a calander search, text search, newspaper search and everyfink!

I love the press reports section, it's a place I spend many hours!!

[kensei]

The cape, top hat, and doctor's bag is an entirely fictional image. A basic reading of witness accounts paints a picture of a man in his late twenties to early thirties dressed in a plain dark overcoat and a peaked or deerstalker cap. I rather get the mental picture of a cheap, shabby version of Sherlock Holmes.

Then of course there is the Astrakan Man seen by George Hutchinson, which I know is a matter of great controversy but which I do believe was the Ripper and that he was in disguise that night, knowing by then that he was the most hunted man in the world and needing to alter his past appearance.

[Ben]

Hi Kensei,

Then of course there is the Astrakan Man seen by George Hutchinson, which I know is a matter of great controversy but which I do believe was the Ripper and that he was in disguise that night

That would rather defeat the purpose of a "diguise" for me. Think of the rumours that had been doing the rounds at the time of the Nichols and Chapman murders - Leather Apron, the imagine of a sinister Jew, a conspicuous outsider, someone who exuded an external menace, possibly a well-dressed doctor. He honestly thought the best disguise was a costume that not only incorporated all those features, but was guaranteed to attract attention of the worst kind?

[kensei]

Hi Kensei,



That would rather defeat the purpose of a "diguise" for me. Think of the rumours that had been doing the rounds at the time of the Nichols and Chapman murders - Leather Apron, the imagine of a sinister Jew, a conspicuous outsider, someone who exuded an external menace, possibly a well-dressed doctor. He honestly thought the best disguise was a costume that not only incorporated all those features, but was guaranteed to attract attention of the worst kind?

I've heard that argument before and it does have merit. But if we assume that Jack was blessed with freakish luck which he certainly seems to have been, then perhaps it's not a given that he was particularly smart. Anything is possible. I believe Astrakan was the Ripper mainly because he was the last person seen with Mary Kelly. If that is indeed true, then he was most lucky that the most notorious serial murderer in history did not go down at the blade of some two-bit Spitalfields mugger.

[Mascara & Paranoia]

I think that the Astrakan character is an utter fabrication.

Wouldn't others have seen someone dressed like that in Whitechapel, and not just necessarily in Miller's Court?

[Ben]

But to attire one's self and behave in a manner that not only incorporated elements from other witness accounts AND all the outlandish ripper-related rumours that had been in circulation since the start of the murders, but was also guaranteed to attract the worst possible attention from the worst possible people in the worst possible area would have required some suicidal stupidity that far surpassed that of a "not particularly smart" person.

I believe Astrakan was the Ripper mainly because he was the last person seen with Mary Kelly.

Not if Hutchinson lied, and simply invented "Mr. Astrakhan" to deflect suspicion away from himself. Let's face it, if Hutchinson needed a fictional suspect for that purpose, he couldn't have done much better than the paint-by-numbers iconic image of the ripper, with the obligatory black bag and sinister Jewish countenance. The police discarded Hutchinson's "Astrakhan man" as a possible ripper sighting, or else their subsequent reports, interviews and memoirs would make no sense.

Best regards,
Ben

[Glenn Lauritz Andersson]

I believe Astrakan was the Ripper mainly because he was the last person seen with Mary Kelly.

"Astrakhan man" most likely didn't exist but was a complete invention, based on different characters appearing in news reports about previous Ripper murders (red neckerchief, newspaper parcel etc). One can say many things about Hutchinson but he obviously was a frequent reader of the tabloids.

All the best

[kensei]

I think that the Astrakan character is an utter fabrication.

Wouldn't others have seen someone dressed like that in Whitechapel, and not just necessarily in Miller's Court?

People dressed like that did occasionally appear in the East End as men with money came to dabble in a little vice. But if your question is referring to the night of the Kelly murder in particular, the answer would be yes, but how many of them would have said anything? Perhaps all the murders had more witnesses than we know about. The skulking characters of the East End were rarely the kind to "get involved."

[Ben]

People dressed like that did occasionally appear in the East End as men with money came to dabble in a little vice.

No, I'm afraid that's equally mythical, Kensei.

Check out the thread entitled "Toffs in Spitalfields", and I'm sure you'll discover that the evidence for any opulently or osentatiously-attired men in the district was effectively zero. Prostitution was everywhere in London, and it made no sense for anyone with money and connections to single out one of the worst slums in London for that purpose.

[kensei]

Let's face it, if Hutchinson needed a fictional suspect for that purpose, he couldn't have done much better than the paint-by-numbers iconic image of the ripper, with the obligatory black bag and sinister Jewish countenance.

Best regards,
Ben[/QUOTE]

Hutch didn't describe a black bag, but a small parcel carried under the man's arm with a strap or odd bit of string wrapped around it (which one might imagine contained knives). But apart from that, I acknowledge that everyone has made very valid points on this supposed man of "shabby genteel" appearance, i.e. not a rich man but someone with once expensive clothes that were getting worn out. I'd just like to say that anything is possible. I also apologize for diverting this thread away from Jibby's original question. Anyone have any more relevant press articles for Jibby?

[Glenn Lauritz Andersson]

Hutch didn't describe a black bag, but a small parcel carried under the man's arm with a strap or odd bit of string wrapped around it (which one might imagine contained knives).

A man with a wrapped newspaper parcel appeared in connection with the Stride murder and was mentioned in the press.

All the best

[Fisherman]

Absolutely, Glenn - and by PC Smith, no less: " a parcel approximately 6 inches high and 18 inches in length. the package is wrapped in newspaper."

The best,
Fisherman

[Ben]

Hutch didn't describe a black bag, but a small parcel carried under the man's arm with a strap or odd bit of string wrapped around it (which one might imagine contained knives).

Thanks for that, Kensei. I meant parcel, of course.

It's pandering to the same visual stimulus, though. The small black bag or parcel that's "tightly grapsed" and of small dimensions - as though screaming from the rafters "He's got a knife!" - when superadded to all the other, over-the-top "suspicious" elements of his appearance, result in a sort of unsutble paint-your-own ripper, and his appearance was timely if Hutchinson needed some form of distraction away from his own loitering antics near the crime scene.

But now I really will get accused of diverting threads, so I'll embrace your suggestion and draw a discreet veil over that tangent!

Best regards,
Ben