Aaron or not

[Natalie Severn]

Returning to the theme of whether or not Anderson had identified the Ripper and the man he had identified as the Ripper was Aaron Kosminski,John Littlechild told Sims, the journalist and writer friend of Macnaghten, that "Anderson only "thought" he knew."
And this appears to fit with the FACTS.
For if Anderson really knew who the Ripper was, then Macnaghten,Abberline and the Commissioner of the City Police, Henry Smith,would also have known,presumably?And since both Smith and Macnaghten wrote autobiographies .after 1910 ,in neither of which do we find either saying the Ripper case "was solved",then we have to ask ourselves why they would want to hide from the public such a fact-more especially when revealing that the case was solved would also be solving a nagging mystery as to whether the Ripper might still be alive.Such a revelation would bring public gratitude rather than incrimination so why hide it? Philip Sugden says in the " Complete History of Jack the Ripper" that it looks like what they were actually doing was intentionally "distancing" themselves from Anderson"s "addle headed nonsense".
And Macnaghten ,Smith and Abberline were not the only ones who didnt perceive the case as in any way "solved".
Thomas Arnold Superintendant of H division spoke of the murders as "unsolved" in 1893.Edmund Reid who served in H Division as Head of CID, spoke of the last of the murders as having been committed on Frances Coles,in February 1891 and Frances Coles was murdered AFTER Kosminski"s committal to Colney Hatch.
Later in 1903, Arnold also dismissed Macnaghten"s DRAFT account of "three suspects" which had been re-served by Griffiths as "full of inaccuracies".
And even this same Macnaghten,writing up his OFFICIAL report in 1894 states:
" MANY HOMICIDAL MANIACS WERE SUSPECTED BUT NO SHADOW OF PROOF COULD BE THROWN ON ANY ONE" so the case was definitely NOT solved by 1894.

[Jeff Leahy]

Thanks for that Chris,

I did not a quick search and found a copy of the letter posted by Stephen Ryder.

http://forum.casebook.org/showthread.php?t=506

There is also some interesting discussion on the subject.

you would appear correct about the date. Many thanks.

Jeff

[Chris]

As a matter of interest do we know if the 'Crawford' letter was dated? and when it was received?

No, it isn't dated. It's a letter of introduction, written by the earl of Crawford and addressed to Anderson, to be presented personally to him by the unknown woman.

[Observer]

I think the holes in their accuracy have been apparent for a long time.

On this particular statement, Sagar and Cox are credited with somewhat similar claims. Cox says that after a suspect was put under observation the crimes ceased; and a report of Sagar's reminiscences says that the series of atrocities came to an end when a suspect was committed to an asylum.

Accuracy being the operative word. We can't get into the mind of Donald Swanson, but it could well be that Swanson writing in the marginalia sometime after 1910 realised that Coles was not a Ripper victim. His statement would then lie true. Likewise with Cox and Sagar, could they have realised that Kelly was the last Ripper murder?

all the best

Observer

[Jeff Leahy]

As a matter of interest do we know if the 'Crawford' letter was dated? and when it was received?

For some reason I have it in mind that it was after the Kelly murder.

[Chris]

Are we starting to punch holes in the veracity of the Swanson marginalia?

I think the holes in their accuracy have been apparent for a long time.

On this particular statement, Sagar and Cox are credited with somewhat similar claims. Cox says that after a suspect was put under observation the crimes ceased; and a report of Sagar's reminiscences says that the series of atrocities came to an end when a suspect was committed to an asylum.

[Observer]

That's not quite right - the marginalia say that there were no more murders after the "identification".

But of course that claim is problematic in any case, because of the murder of Frances Coles, after Aaron was sent to Colney Hatch.

My mistake Chris, and as you say that statement is problematic anyway, in as much that the Cole murder was considered at the time to be the work of Jack the Ripper. Are we starting to punch holes in the veracity of the Swanson marginalia?

all the best

Observer

[Chris]

The fact that the Echo's suspect was aware he was being watched before and up to the 20th October flies in the face of the statement allegedly made by Swanson in his annotations, namely that once the suspect knew he was being watched, no other murders of the Jack the Ripper variety happened in London.

That's not quite right - the marginalia say that there were no more murders after the "identification".

But of course that claim is problematic in any case, because of the murder of Frances Coles, after Aaron was sent to Colney Hatch.

[Observer]

Hi

The fact that the Echo's suspect was aware he was being watched before and up to the 20th October flies in the face of the statement allegedly made by Swanson in his annotations, namely that once the suspect knew he was being watched, no other murders of the Jack the Ripper variety happened in London. Of course the Kelly murder took place after this time.



all the best

Observer

[Jeff Leahy]

This last aspect is interesting if the suspect is Aaron Kozminski, and it has been suggested he may have been accused by a relative, such as for example his sister Matilda. The "Earl of Crawford" letter to Robert Anderson may in fact relate to Kozminski. This is the only letter in Sir Robert Anderson's surviving correspondence at the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Department of Duke University. It reads:

"I send you this line to ask you to see & hear the bearer, whose name is unknown to me. She has or thinks she has a knowledge of the author of the Whitechapel murders. The author is supposed to be nearly related to her, & she is in great fear lest any suspicions should attach to her & place her & her family in peril."

As Stephen Ryder writes: "The natural conclusion, at first, is that this letter may relate to Anderson's suspect, thus explaining his reasoning behind keeping it among his correspondence." This indeed may be the case, and the letter seems to fit Kozminski, especially in that the author is a woman, "nearly related" to the suspect, and that "she is in great fear lest any suspicions should attach to her & place her & her family in peril."

Rob House

Good morning Rob, Chris and all

Just a couple of quick points as i have a lot of work on today. I'd always understood that the Earl of Crawford letter had been used by Druit proponants rather than Kosminski. However given the recent Farquenson/Druit conection that my have changed their position?

I just wondered why you beleive a low class polish jewish family might write to the Earl of Crawford?

Also, and I guess this is rather presumtuous, but is it possible to display some kind of map the illustrates the Batty street, Berner St, Greenfeild street conection? Visuals always help.

Of course bringing Kosminski into the intestigation at a much earlier point in the investigation would make some sense.(as it does Druit).but as Chris pionts out..how did he shake his observere's at the kelly murder..and would they not have gone straight to his door following it?

And what sought of time frame are you suggesting? Given the identification and Kosminski's dog incident?

Lots of questions I'm afraid..still its the most interesting observation on the subject in well, I cant remember when...many thanks to you both

Jeff

[Natalie Severn]

It has to be remembered that large numbers off suspects were seen by the police-even with regard to Sgt Thick"s "Leather Apron" .Many were released but some they did keep under watch for varying lengths of time,both by City Police and the Met.

[Chris]

Obviously, there are some difficulties with the idea that these reports relate to Aaron Kozminski.

Yes, the Kelly murder is clearly one.

Others are that Anderson's account obviously suggests that [Kozminski] didn't become a suspect until after the house-to-house enquiry, which hadn't concluded at the time of the earliest of these reports.

Also, if the police really had a "clue" that they considered particularly important at this time, it would be surprising that it wasn't specifically mentioned in Swanson's report on the Stride murder, dated 19 October. Though that report does include a reference to continuing enquiries concerning alleged suspicious persons.

[Observer]

Hi Christine

Of course we still have the problem of Kosminski being released and allowed to walk a dog and various other inconsistencies.

Also if the individual was aware that he was being watched on or near the 20th October, would he murder Mary Kelly on the 9th November?

all the best

Observer

[Christine]

All this starts to fit very well with the Swanson marginalia claim that the Jewish witness did not wish to testify against a fellow Jew. No one could be 100% certain of an identification under those circumstances and rather than ascribe trivial motives to Lawende or Schwartz (assuming that it was one of these two) we can well imagine that the witness was hoping not to start an anti-Semitic riot.

And given that by this time the suspect (Kosminski?) was in a hospital and not ever likely to be released again, and that a public trial would surely cause a riot of some sort, and that the outcome was not guaranteed, especially if the witness backed down, I can see the police deciding to let well enough alone.

Of course we still have the problem of Kosminski being released and allowed to walk a dog and various other inconsistencies.

[Chris]

It may also be worth posting a couple more brief extracts from the Echo, which seem (to me) to suggest that the earlier report of a foreigner whose residence was being watched may have been separate from the story of the Batty Street lodger.

THE POLICE ACTIVITY
This morning the police in the Eastern district reported that no arrests had been made during the night. Several suspected localities are being watched night and day, and, indeed, it may be said that within a wide area around the scene of the murders there is scarcely a rood of ground that is not under surveillance.
...
THE SUPPOSED CLUE
The supposed clue on which the police are now working is said to relate to a man living in the locality, but not to the visitor to Batty-street. The inquiries are not sufficiently advanced to enable them to make an arrest, even should their suspicions ultimately prove to be well-founded.
[Echo 18 October; from transcript at http://www.casebook.org/press_report...18881018.html]

There is a clue upon which the authorities have been zealously working for some time. This is in Whitechapel, not far from the scene of the Berner-street tragedy, and the man is, indeed, himself aware that he is being watched; so much so, that, as far as observation has gone at present, he has scarcely ventured out of doors.
[Echo 20 October; from transcript at http://www.casebook.org/press_report...18881020.html]

Of course it's difficult to disentangle the various press stories from one another, particular as the same newspaper sometimes seems to print variants of the same story as if they were two separate stories. Obviously, there are some difficulties with the idea that these reports relate to Aaron Kozminski.