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Topping Hutchinson - looking at his son's account

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  • Ben writes:

    "I somehow suspected (knew) that the "whatever" approach wouldn't last long."

    Should make you happy, Ben. It would not be much fun if you were the only one laying out the text on the threads, would it? Or? Come on, now, Ben; really...!

    "with respect, Fisherman, if people keep disagreeing with you, is there really much point in re-stating the original argument?"

    Nope - but when they do not even understand what I am saying, I am not opposed to such a strategy.

    "Which would be a step in the right direction ..."

    Which COULD be a step in the right direction. Or not.

    "it should be observed that her comparion carried a quart can of ale into room #13, so it is likely that Kelly indulged further even after being observed in an intoxicated condition by Cox at 11:45pm."

    ...and it should equally be observed that people have been making all sorts of theories about what there was inside the can - most say beer, some say a knife and so on.
    Beer is a credible guess, but still a guess. It is also a credible guess that the can was full - but still a guess. It is also a credible guess that Blotchy would treat Kelly to the credible beer - but still a guess. And when it comes to just how much of the credible beer he was willing to let Kelly have, it´s hard to say how credible ANY guess would be, wouldn´t you say?
    So no, we cannot rule Hutch out on this account.

    "t depends what you're attempting to convey. If your argument is basically that we shouldn't rule out all improbable scenarios because, eventually, one of those improbable scenarios will end up being the correct one, then perhaps you're right on statistical grounds. Unfortunately, in this case, I don't see the improbable scenario of Toppy mentioning Lord Randolph Churchill as an Astrakhan-comparison ending up as the correct explanation."

    ...which is why it is good that I did not stick with "whatever" - if we leave the thread to yourself only, Ben, there is no telling what would happen. No, wait a minute, I´ll rephrase that ...

    "It really isn't a question of me "not taking kindly" to suggestions such as the one Jane posited. She raises a good point in that, perhaps the only thing the original Hutchinson and Toppy/Reg had in common was a propensity to economise with the truth."

    Oh, I think we can bank on a whole lot of other commonalites, from collar size to occupation. I am not even opposed to the idea that they both spent the evening of November 9 1888 in the same fashion and in each other´s company. Why, they even write in the same fashion!

    Fisherman
    Last edited by Fisherman; 06-12-2009, 02:57 PM.

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    • Ah, I see..

      THE Maniacal. You find THEM wherever you find a public forum, and many other spots besides, I find. Kana'im, if you will. But each to their own! Ben, I think your coincidence can hardly be such, but do you know what it means? Is it the case that it could be accounted for with a multiplicity of solutions? How do you decide which to favour? And now, a sandwich. Jane x

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      • Should make you happy, Ben. It would not be much fun if you were the only one laying out the text on the threads, would it? Or? Come on, now, Ben; really...!
        It does, Fish, don't get me wrong.

        These Hutchinson threads are pretty hypnotic, though, aren't they? One dies and another is instantly resurrected.

        Seriously though. I'm pretty sure people understand perfectly what you're saying. They just can't agree, or at least I can't.

        Beer is a credible guess, but still a guess.
        Condisdering it was described as a "quart can of ale", I'd also say it's the safest guess. I doubt very much that he'd carry a nearly-empty can home. Chances are he'd down whatever remained unless the remainder still constituted a fairly hefty amount. Similarly, I find it a wee bit unlikely that her male companion would scoff all the beer without sharing it with his temporary host.

        But I agree that none of this "rules Hutchinson out".

        There's certainly nothing wrong with belivieng Cox over Hutchinson, though, as the police clearly did.

        ...which is why it is good that I did not stick with "whatever" - if we leave the thread to yourself only, Ben, there is no telling what would happen
        Well, I wouldn't post on my own, Fish, if that's what you mean.

        I am not even opposed to the idea that they both spent the evening of November 9 1888 in the same fashion.
        With Toppy tucked up in bed in Warren Street, contemplating tomorrow's plumbing job and last night's ice-skating session, while Hutchinson smiles thinly as he hangs up his coat in a 6d-a-night cubicle in the Victoria Home, knife and innards secreted therein?
        Last edited by Ben; 06-12-2009, 03:33 PM.

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        • Good for you Jane.
          I don't contribute much to this thread but i do read it.
          It's good to see a new face wading in instead of Ben and Fish knocking lumps out of each other all the time..bravo girl...!!

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          • Ben:

            "They just can't agree, or at least I can't."

            Thanks for pointing to the possible distinction!

            "But I agree that none of this "rules Hutchinson out".
            There's certainly nothing wrong with belivieng Cox over Hutchinson, though, as the police clearly did."

            The first statement is true. The second; well we don´t know that, do we? If the police were wrong, then there suddenly is ample reason not to go along with their thoughts.

            "I wouldn't post on my own, Fish, if that's what you mean."

            I take comfort in that.

            "With Toppy tucked up in bed in Warren Street, contemplating tomorrow's plumbing job and last night's ice-skating session, while Hutchinson smiles thinly as he hangs up his coat in a 6d-a-night cubile in the Victoria Home, knife and innards secreted therein?"

            There never was any suggestion that Toppy suffered from schizophrenia, Ben! And he clearly tells us that he was never even admitted into the Victoria on the night in question...

            Fisherman

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            • Hi Jane,

              I've been trying to find a post that best sums up my sentiments on that subject, and this was the best I could come up with for now:



              All the best,
              Ben

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              • Munch munch..Hello Barry..

                I'm wading in? Oh dear! Look before you leap, eh? Still, in for a pfennig..Jane x

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                • Fish,

                  If the police were wrong, then there suddenly is ample reason not to go along with their thoughts.
                  Given that the contents of Hutchinson's statement "engender a feeling of sceptisim", I'm inclined to the view that the police were able to seperate the wheat from the chaff successfully on this occasion.

                  And he clearly tells us that he was never even admitted into the Victoria on the night in question...
                  True, of course! The "smiling thinly" bit would have occured mid-morning when snoozing off the night's excesses, at a time when most other men (including Toppy!) would have been at work.

                  All the best,
                  Ben

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                  • Nah you are doing well....holding your own well against those 'Hutchinson nutters'...
                    Enjoy your sarnie..

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                    • Choke...

                      An Ice-Skating Plumber?! No!

                      I think that might be skating on thin ice....

                      But tell me, if he fell in, would be be plumbing the depths?

                      I think I should go now.

                      Jane x

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                      • Barry:

                        "Hutchinson nutters"

                        It´s "Hutchinson NOT-ters", actually.

                        Ben:

                        "The "smiling thinly" bit would have occured mid-morning when snoozing off the night's excesses, at a time when most other men (including Toppy!) would have been at work."

                        X´cept the latter was out of work, of course. And the former. Simultaneously, even. Not only that, they were out of THE SAME work too.

                        Fisherman
                        Out for the moment - "THE MOMENT", that is, Ben!

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                        • haha thats a good one Fish..hats off to you on that one...

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                          • X´cept the latter was out of work, of course
                            Dunno about that, Fish. Toppy was a "plumber, who was rarely, if ever, out of work", not an unemployed labourer who was formerly a groom.

                            Out for the moment - "THE MOMENT", that is, Ben!
                            So see you in ten minutes, then?

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                            • Hi Fisherman.

                              In an earlier post I stated it as my belief that Hutchinson could not have seen Kelly on Dorset Street as claimed because in subsequent statements to the press he claimed that Kelly was only a little tipsy at the time of their alleged encounter. In response, you cast doubt on this interpretation both by raising doubt as to the veracity of Mrs Cox’s account and suggesting that Kelly could have sobered up in the two hours following the Cox/Kelly encounter.

                              To begin with, the claim that Kelly was very drunk on the evening under scrutiny was echoed by several witnesses, not just Cox, each of whom remained steadfast under cross-examination at the Kelly inquest hearing. As such, there remains little room for doubting that Kelly was indeed extremely intoxicated when encountering Mrs Cox shortly before midnight.

                              As for the possibility that Kelly somehow sobered up in the interim period separated by the Cox and supposed Hutchinson encounters, this would be highly unlikely under normal circumstances. What must be borne in mind here, however, is that Kelly entered her room shortly before midnight accompanied not only by Blotchy, but more alcohol. And the notion that Mary Jane, who at this point in her life was clearly alcohol-dependent, passed up the chance to share in the pail of beer is so unlikely as to be almost nonexistent. Hence my contention that she was blind drunk at the time of the alleged Hutchinson encounter, and yet Hutchinson was unaware of it – the only possible explanation for which, I would suggest, is that Hutchinson did not meet Kelly on Commercial Street as he claimed in his police and press interviews.

                              Regards,

                              Garry Wroe.
                              Last edited by Garry Wroe; 06-12-2009, 03:41 PM.

                              Comment


                              • Originally posted by Ben View Post
                                Yes, very possibly, especially if he hadn't actually seen Kelly in the company of a client that night.
                                I wouldn't know about "especially", Ben. It strikes me that, if he'd really been there - mysterious client or not - he'd have been able to pronounce more emphatically on her state of intoxication, instead of "She didn't seem drunk to me... a bit spreeish".

                                And the omission of any mention of Lewis's arrival remains a problem. One would have thought that, if Hutchinson wanted to consolidate the notion that he really WAS there, he'd have had everything to gain and nothing to lose by mentioning Lewis. (He'd already admitted to keeping a watch on the Court, remember.) However, the best we get is the rather vague account of his seeing a policeman passing by Commercial Street at a safe distance, and a man entering "a" lodging-house somewhere along Dorset Street.
                                Kind regards, Sam Flynn

                                "Suche Nullen" (Nietzsche, Götzendämmerung, 1888)

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