The Diary—Old Hoax or New?

[Iconoclast]

https://www.amazon.com/Diary-Jack-Ripper-Chilling-Confessions-ebook/dp/B009RRZNZE/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=james+maybrick&qid=1564852440&s=gateway&sr=8-1

That is the one that I want to read, right?

I also read and enjoyed the book on the trial of Florence Maybrick "Did She Kill Him?

c.d.

P.S. As for the start of a relationship, my hopes weren't up real high to begin with so no problem.

Hi c.d.,

I'd recommend the following as the seminal works on the scrapbook:

The Diary of Jack the Ripper, Shirley Harrison, 1993, Smith Gryphon
Jack the Ripper: The Final Chapter, Paul Feldman, 1998, Virgin
Jack the Ripper: The American Connection, Shirley Harrison, 2003, Blake Publishing Limited
Ripper Diary: The Inside Story, Seth Linder, Caroline Morris, & Keith Skinner, 2003, Sutton Publishing Limited
The Maybrick A to Z, Christopher Jones, 2008, Countyvise Limited
25 Years of the Diary of Jack the Ripper: The True Facts, Robert Smith, 2017, Mango Books.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Rootin' Tootin'

[Sam Flynn]

Oh Lord, I knew I would regret getting involved in this discussion. Now if Maybrick stated that he wrote the diary to impress Jodi Foster (I think the Americans will get that reference) then I would absolutely conclude that it is fake. However, I am not aware of millions of undercover grammar police that secretly listen and record every conversation (much like Santa's elves) and list first instances of expressions being used.

It's all about the probabilities of when a word/phrase (a) came into use; (b) started to spread; (c) became popular; and (d) - optional - if/when it mutated to mean something else (then repeat a-c for the mutated word/phrase). And not just ONE word/phrase, but three or four used by the same person in the same short document, the combined probability of which makes it even less likely that the Diary was written before the first half of the 20th Century.

However, I am not aware of millions of undercover grammar police that secretly listen and record every conversation (much like Santa's elves) and list first instances of expressions being used.

You don't need the grammar police, as the principle is perfectly simple and the logic is sound. Try it yourself by using Google Books to track down more recently popular words like "reboot", "viral" or "meme". And, speaking of viral and memes, bear in mind that new words/ideas spread far, far more quickly now than they did before the advent of radio in the last century, and can get popular with millions of people within a very short time.

[Sam Flynn]

Is this incident in the diary because if not its omission would seem a much stronger argument against it authenticity than the use of a few phrases?

The violent argument with Florrie isn't mentioned in the Diary, although it does suggest that Florie, her Whore Master (Brierley) and Maybrick being at the Grand National. I say "suggest", because the relevant passage is rather woolly - doesn't even say "Frequented the Grand National..." - however, there's absolutely no reference to the argument or the beating he gave his wife later that evening.

PS: The "few phrases" aren't primarily relevant to the Diary's authorship or authenticity, but they are relevant to when the Diary was written.

[c.d.]

My memory is not good on this but I seem to recall from the book "Did She Kill Him?" that Maybrick and Florence had a violent argument on the evening of the Grand National horse race in which she confronted him with her knowledge of his mistresses and he most likely told her that he was aware of her extra marital affair as well. He also hit her at this time.

Is this incident in the diary because if not its omission would seem a much stronger argument against it authenticity than the use of a few phrases?

c.d.

[c.d.]

This could be the start of a great relationship, c.d. (although there is a Mrs Iconoclast so don't get your hopes up too much).

Which book are you thinking of ordering from Amazon (I may want to get it too)?

Rootin' Tootin' Six-Gun Ike

https://www.amazon.com/Diary-Jack-Ripper-Chilling-Confessions-ebook/dp/B009RRZNZE/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=james+maybrick&qid=1564852440&s=gateway&sr=8-1

That is the one that I want to read, right?

I also read and enjoyed the book on the trial of Florence Maybrick "Did She Kill Him?

c.d.

P.S. As for the start of a relationship, my hopes weren't up real high to begin with so no problem.