How Brown's Nifty Fifty

[Howard Brown]

1. There is no evidence that he practiced black magic.

2. There is no evidence that he met Lord Lytton in 1863 as Stephenson claims.

3. There is no evidence that he met Lord Lytton in 1860 as has been claimed by the two authors of books on the man. There's no evidence he EVER even met Lytton.

4. There is not a single reference to Stephenson knowing Madame Blavatsky prior to the Lucifer article commissioned by the gargantuan Theosophist.

5. There is not a shred of evidence that Stephenson indulged in occultism on his own.

6. There is not a shred of evidence that he indulged in occultism with others.
.
7. There is not a shred of evidence that the story of his encounter with a "witch" in the Italian hills is anything more than a plagiarism of an 1836 Lord Lytton work.

8. That Stephenson went to the Cameroon a full decade before the first Brit stepped foot in that area ( 1875) is false.

9. That the "bloody box of ties" indeed were blood stained. There's no proof,obviously,that blood was the liquid which stained these alleged ties.

10. That Stephenson was "arrested" "detained" or questioned for anything involving him in any capacity in the WM.

11. That W.T.Stead "believed him to be the veritable Ripper" really means that W.T. Stead would employ Stephenson during the same time he felt he was the Ripper to write TWO articles in 1889 for the Pall Mall Gazette. A tongue in cheek comment turned into a "fact".

12. That Stephenson ever stepped foot in India is not proven and probably another lie told by Stephenson.

13. That Stephenson ever stepped foot in America is not proven and probably another lie told by Stephenson.

14. That Stephenson "fulfills" ANY of the points that Melvin Harris used to determine how Stephenson "fit" the stereotypical "sexual serial killer". Nothing in Stephenson's known history shows this whatsoever.

15. That Stephenson "converted" back to Christianity due to the efforts of Victoria Woodhull is false. That Stephenson used the alleged "occultist" name of Roslyn Donston when married in a Christian church in 1876 and even PRIOR to this ( 1872) indicates nothing to claim Stephenson "broke" with Christianity in the least.....

16. That Stephenson killed his wife is false.

17. That Stephenson had a "medical degree" is false. Stephenson actually claimed to have TWO degrees during research done on him..both times without any evidence whatsoever.

18. Contrary to the cover of the most recent book on RDS, there is no evidence he was a "Satanist".

19. That no one knew what Stephenson was doing while in the London Hospital for 134 days is false. The man who jokingly said he felt RDS was the veritable Ripper is the reason this is false. Letters from Stead & Stephenson were seen by George Marsh in late December 1888.

20. That Stephenson could traipse the London streets at night or even during the day from July 1888 to early December 1888 is proven false.

21. That Stephenson faked his illness ...a fact conjured up in light of the fact that the original rationale for Stephenson entering the London Hospital was found in error.

22. That Stephenson "fled" the Hospital on December 7th,1888 is false. Stephenson signed out. Had the police needed him for anything and had he been "looked" for,it flies in the face of reason that he would venture to see Inspector Roots in that very same month....and gave the police his correct address.

23. That Stephenson had a bolthole on Leman Street is unproven.

24. That Stephenson hailed from a wealthy family is incorrect. Middle income is more like it.

25. That Mabel Collins and Vittoria Cremers "believed" he was the Ripper is unproven regarding the former lady and ridiculous in the latter woman.

26. Evidence that "Sudden Death" refers to some gambling term used in the 19th Century hasn't been provided.

It does refer to a term used in the game of "solitaire".

27. That Stephenson was up to no good in 1868 when shot in the thigh by Thomas Piles,since the latter was reputed as a smuggler is unproven.

28. That Stephenson contracted venereal disease which led to his dismissal from Customs House in late 1868 is unproven. Likewise that Stephenson ever had venereal disease is unproven.

29. That his penchant for drawing little triangles with his fingers,fastidious cleaning of his person,lack of appetite and other quirks make him anymore sinister than anyone with OCD is unproven.

30. That he witnessed or turned a blind eye to a Chinese man being killed in the USA. Redundant,since there is no proof he ever left Britain after 1861.

31. That he spent 15 months...in America,once again... looking for a man who jilted his second cousin.....second cousin !! ...and brought back a handkerchief with the "victims" blood.

32. That Stephenson admitted to being the Ripper ( see page 214 of the True Face ) is false.

33. That Stephenson's pronouncement that Dr.Morgan Davies was the Ripper ever resulted in a serious inquiry into Dr.Davies,once more showing how little the police took his word in the matter of the WM.

34. That he also killed an African witchdoctor ( redundant,since he never went to Africa ).

35. That within "JTR,Black Magic Rituals" on page 247...the statement that Mabel Collins was first attracted to Stephenson from his December 1st,1888 letter is false. The liason began after Collins first read his pieces in 1889 and while he was in the London Hospital for the second time....and for chloralism. This may be found in Mystical Vampire,written by Ms.Kim Farnell,a Collins biographer.

36. That Stephenson bankrupted Mabel Collins is false. Collins became bankrupt due to the Cheap Books Movement,again within the book by Ms.Farnell, a Collins biographer.

37. That Collins and Stephenson were "lovers" is unproven. Stephenson did not live under the same roof as Collins in Southsea ( see the O'Donnell Manuscript).

38. In the chronology in JTR BMR...on page 247,it is mentioned that Cremers visited Southsea...and saw that Cremers ( the author meant Collins) was living with Stephenson in March 1889. This is false. Cremers came back to England in 1890 .

39. That Stephenson came up with the original name of the Pompadour Cosmetic Co. is unproven. In the future,there may be more on this firm....so stay tuned.

40. That Stephenson described himself as "unmarried" on the Hospital register in mid 1888 has now been corrected to show it stated, "married" by the letter "m"... There is no status for unmarried,as that classification does not exist at the LH.

41. That Stephenson beheaded anyone ( see The True Face of JTR ) is baseless.

42. That Stephenson was "suicidial" prior to meeting Virginia Woodhull.

43. That Mrs. Woodhull was a former prostitute as promulgated by the two authors is now known to be false.

44. That he was ever in HMS Coast Guard as he mentioned on the 1871 census.

45. That he was ever a practicing or non-practicing physician as mentioned on the 1881 census.

46. That Stephenson did NOT write any hoaxed letters is some sort of fact,when in fact,its not. No one can say for sure.

47. There is any evidence of a ritual involving the organs of dead prostitutes which Stephenson mentions in the December 1st, 1888 article in the Pall Mall Gazette....yet.

48. That he had anything to do with the death of Edmund Gurney or even knew the man. Gurney committed suicide in Brighton in 1888, prior to RDS leaving for London.

49. That there is anything within the Roots Report which casts suspicion on Stephenson as a viable suspect.

50. That we will ever know whether the police did anything regarding the deposition supplied by George Marsh on December 24th, 1888, as far as an investigation into the claims Marsh made about Stephenson.

Anyone interested in the Donston-as-Ripper Hoax, please contact me at

donston1888@aol.com

or Mr. Michael Covell,Esq. at

mcebe@hotmail.co.uk

for future discussion on this element of the Whitechapel Murders.

Thank you.

Howard Brown
www.jtrforums.com

[Tom_Wescott]

Thank you Howard for taking the time to provide a concise list such as this. Now whenever you're asked again (and you will be!) for your views on D'Onston, you can just post this link.

However, I personally feel that in at least some of your points above the word 'proof' would be more accurate instead of 'evidence'. For instance, Vittoria Cremers writing that D'Onston would perform a ritual before entering a room is, in fact, evidence that such an event occurred, although it doesn't constitute proof. D'Onston stating that he himself met Lytton is in fact 'evidence' that this occurred, but not proof.

When you write 'there is not a shred of evidence that he engaged in occultism with others', I would say that's an accurate statement, because I don't recall a source close to him claiming he had done so (unless one wants to count his strange African tales). But I don't feel it's accurate at all to state 'there is not a shred of evidence that he engaged in occultism on his own', when in fact he said he'd done so himself AND Vittoria Cremers wrote that she witnessed this.

Would you agree with this or do you feel I'm being too nitpicky?

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Sam Flynn]

Hi How,

Reading your post, the phrase "box of ties" leaped out. Has anyone in the past attempted to link that tenuously with the "Box of Toys" letter? Just curious.



<borderline-plagiarism_disclaimer>

If anybody else, at any time, has advanced a similar question, I am happy
to state, in good faith, that the thought occurred to me independently.

</borderline-plagiarism_disclaimer>

[Howard Brown]

Thanks for the replies,guys.

First of all Sam:

Believe it or not, Tom Wescott's article on Ripper letters and a possible connection to Stephenson which appeared in an old Ripperologist ( Number 56, November 2004 ) Magazine..."Have You Seen The Devil?"....mentions the very plausible idea that Stephenson could have written a letter or two to the police or press anonymously or "as" Jack The Ripper. In fact, its why I feel that IF the police as its stated ( Dec.30th,1888, PMG) went to the London Hospital AFTER Stephenson left there on December 7th to investigate a letter written to an East End philanthropist, it might have been from Stephenson, but not necessarily to Stead...and not as an investigation into Stephenson-as-Ripper.

Chris George has also added his views on this subject ( damn it if I can find the reference at this moment ! ) and they along with Tom's speculations are worth examining.

This reference to "box of toys" and "box of ties" has popped into my old noggin,Sam...but you get full credit for mentioning it first.

Tom:

This 50 is only the majority and by no means the totality of the facts that could be presented here.

However, I personally feel that in at least some of your points above the word 'proof' would be more accurate instead of 'evidence'. For instance, Vittoria Cremers writing that D'Onston would perform a ritual before entering a room is, in fact, evidence that such an event occurred, although it doesn't constitute proof. D'Onston stating that he himself met Lytton is in fact 'evidence' that this occurred, but not proof.

We aren't positively sure that Cremers even wrote the Cremers Memoirs,Tom. For the sake of argument, lets assume that she did.

The gesture of making triangles might well be a sign of OCD...as much as a ritual. True,it appears to be something on the order of a ritual. It might have been a bit of showmanship as well. A ritual what or of what is the question,Tom.

Stephenson's liasing is first mentioned as occurring when he came back from Paris before he went to fight ( another unproven "fact"...# 51) with Garibaldi. This would be in 1860.

He also states,as has been mentioned several times,in Borderland...to have met him when he was 22....the only time he specifies an age.

For him to state he met him, isn't really evidence, but a declaration. There is no proof he did,because there is no tangible evidence that he did other than his word....word that has him meeting him on two different occasions.

When you write 'there is not a shred of evidence that he engaged in occultism with others', I would say that's an accurate statement, because I don't recall a source close to him claiming he had done so (unless one wants to count his strange African tales). But I don't feel it's accurate at all to state 'there is not a shred of evidence that he engaged in occultism on his own', when in fact he said he'd done so himself AND Vittoria Cremers wrote that she witnessed this.

Tom....look at the cover of the book, JTR,Black Magic Rituals...or ask Ivor if he practiced the occult...on his own..as Ivor portrayed him performing in the "Is It Real?" documentary....or in the 1988 Centennial program where Harris had some old man portraying RDS chopping up innards in a bowl....alone.

I'd like you,whenever possible, to point out the specific incident(s) where he is alleged to have practiced the occult....and not in an article. Cremer's recollections have already been touched on.

No, its not nitpicking at all to counter anything regarding Stephenson....either way. Its all to the better understanding of this individual.

Thanks for replying....and again, show me the reference of him practicing the occult outside of an article.

The counterclaim to him practicing with others is a good one Tom and one made too hastily by me. Scratch it and add the one (Garibaldi,above ) to keep it at 50.
************************

MY APOLOGIES !

To those who have contributed to the list whom I neglected to mention in the first post on this thread. Sorry about that !!!!!.

Graham Wilson, Spiro Dimolianis, John Savage, Robert Linford, Mark Franzoi,Mike Covell, and Nina Brown.

[Tom_Wescott]

Thanks for the kind words about my old D'Onston essay, Howard. If ever I wrote a speculative piece, that was it, but it was a lot of fun to write. As for D'Onston being under investigation for having written the 'Dear Boss' letter, I'd say it almost certainly was him. Although I theorized that Stead may have been the recipient back in '04 I've since learned that it was a revered who received the letter. This fits in perfectly with D'Onston who was in regular contact with men of the faith for his ongoing research into the gospels.

Regarding our minor disagreement over what constitutes evidence versus proof, I guess it's semantical. I personally feel there is evidence he practiced black magic and think that if some slight rewording were done on your list you'd have a very powerful thing there. But as it is, someone reading your list and THEN reading the sources would likely come away thinking you were wrong, even if you were not.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Howard Brown]

Thanks for the kind words about my old D'Onston essay, Howard. If ever I wrote a speculative piece, that was it, but it was a lot of fun to write. As for D'Onston being under investigation for having written the 'Dear Boss' letter, I'd say it almost certainly was him. Although I theorized that Stead may have been the recipient back in '04 I've since learned that it was a reverend who received the letter. This fits in perfectly with D'Onston who was in regular contact with men of the faith for his ongoing research into the gospels.

You wouldn't be referring to MacAuslane,would you?

Regarding our minor disagreement over what constitutes evidence versus proof, I guess it's semantical. I personally feel there is evidence he practiced black magic and think that if some slight rewording were done on your list you'd have a very powerful thing there. But as it is, someone reading your list and THEN reading the sources would likely come away thinking you were wrong, even if you were not.

Again,as I mentioned before,at your leisure, please provide an example of black magic practice by Stephenson.

Can we honestly say he practiced it in Africa...since he didn't really go?

Can we say he practiced it by using the Borderland article of 1896? None of that is factual,its all fictional.

Even the 1906 French book..the name of which escapes me at the moment, which mentions the "famous thaumaturgist", can't be included,since thats ( thaumaturgy) not black magic.

Other than the one instance of making a triangle with his fingers for Cremers...and lets assume that he did do that for the sake of argument...does that constitute black magic ? Cremers does not mention Stephenson practicing black magic,seeing him perform black magic, or anything remotely close to black magic in those memoirs. Collins called him a "wonderful magician", which for all intents and purposes may have meant he knew how to concoct potions for whatever usage considering that he may have studied chemistry under Allan back in the late 1850's. It makes far more sense to assume he knew rudimentary chemistry,since he was involved in the Pompadour Cosmetique firm in the early '90s....

I placed the list here for questions such as those you bring up and I'm glad you did.

If anyone,and I am not being sarcastic with you personally,is in need of sources,its incumbent on those who promote him to show proof or evidence...and most of all sources. So far,they never have.

Again,in closing, if you have an example,instead of a personal feeling that he did, then please provide it.

The effects of hearing that he was an occultist, a black magician, a sinister dude, over and over and over have created this atmosphere where even the big guys like Begg,Evans,Odell,Rumbelow,all of 'em Tom....mention that Stephenson was any or all of those things mentioned when there has never been proof of it. They don't do it to fool anyone or say he was any of these things to trick people...but they have been practically raised on the notion that he was ever since they got into the field or first heard of Stephenson years ago. It became an article of faith that he was one or more of those labels mentioned.. They don't believe he was the Ripper and some don't consider him even a suspect.

But the fact is, is that if you and I keep hearing something over and over again and we are basically indifferent to it, we invariably repeat what we've heard simply from osmosis or in an offhanded way...since its not that important to us anyway.

It IS important to those who promoted him that this sort of mantra be kept alive and by demonstrating,which I am sure I have as Mike Covell and others are as well, that he was NOT any of the things the Donston Hoaxers claimed he was, this list assists people in seeing that Stephenson was foisted onto the field simply to add another name to the list of suspects.

We should remember that this list is only one of three seminal aspects of the demolition of Stephenson as a bona fide suspect after Dec. 26th,1888.

The first is that Stephenson as Spiro found out 18 months ago...was in the Currie Ward...a fact NOT found in any of the three books promoting him. The nail in the coffin came from Mike Covell, who found out firsthand that one could not traipse the streets of London if residing in that ward. Further proof,as I am sure you know, of him living there is the October 16th letter to the police. If he was unable to get out of the Hospital, then the game is over for him.

The second is the one I figured out. That being that Harris assumed RDS was 'too sick" to continue after the Kelly murder and checked himself in the LH afterwards. That of course was incorrect. What Harris did was assume the role of armchair doctor and gave his diagnosis over the qualified professionals of the London Hospital in the followup to the Ripper File. The "faked neurasthenia" claim is baseless.

The third is this list of random pro-declarations countered by myself and others. These include everything from George Marsh up to today, when we still see attempts being made in the media to promote,without sources,the notion that Stephenson was not only a suspect for more than two days....but the Ripper himself.

Thanks for the questions and comments,Tom. I appreciate them.

[Magpie]

The gesture of making triangles might well be a sign of OCD...as much as a ritual. True,it appears to be something on the order of a ritual. It might have been a bit of showmanship as well. A ritual what or of what is the question,Tom.

Hi How

I think I was the one who pointed out that D'onstan's "rituals" sounded more like someone suffering from OCD than an actual occultist. I suggested (not mentioned in the list) that when caught in one of these rituals by Cremers, perhaps D'onstan created a romantic tale of occultism to make his compulsion seem more intriguing and glamourous.

[Magpie]

Not that it's important, but most practioners of "Black Magic" don't recognize the term anyway--they simply practice "Magic".

It's the Wiccans, and "White Magicians" who divide Magic into "Black" and "White" in order to claim a moral high ground...

[Howard Brown]

Dear Mag:

Yes you did state that as well as did Maria Giordano at one point on another Forums thread. It sounds plausible that like the little boy caught going through the cupboards looking for cookies, the little boy offers an alternative reason for why he is in the cupboard. Cremers doesn't mention anything about him practicing magic nor does she discuss him describing what he does when he "did" practice that mumbo jumbo nor does she comment on what Collins saw or heard or witnessed. Its all down to him being well versed on the subject and little more. There isn't any proof he was involved in the practice other than this one lone instance of making little triangles over a door. No cauldrons...no cats....no organs...no robes...no incantations...nothing. Its akin to tossing salt over your shoulder to ward off bad luck. Some Satanist.

As you well know,Kevin, there are several links to Stephenson with "religious" characters....even Tom has mentioned this in his previous posts.

Let me demonstrate how propaganda works in this instance,if you will:

Lets pretend that Stephenson had never been heard of prior to today.

Lets look at the whole of the material that exists on him....delineate all the references....categorize them....and take the tangible,affirmable and sourced references and discuss them. We would be discussing the man as if he were a quasi-religious individual who had a keen interest in not only "tales of the supernatural" but of occult practices he has read about.

Yet no one would ever actively push for him as being the Ripper based on this premise...that being he was a quasi-religious scholar, ill in a hospital, and yet somehow managing to elude the confines and commit the "perfect murders". True, dummies like myself used to consider that it might be plausible that someone with the attributes given to him in the past could perform these feats, but after time one finds that nothing that was generated in the minds,not facts,of the authors when they put out their books is accurate in describing him.

I maintain that we have been looking at Stephenson from the absolute opposite and incorrect angle,so to speak, and instead of looking at a man who as Tom Wescott and Chris George and maybe even others as well have theorized, could have written anonymous,crank and bizarre letters as "Jack The Ripper" or with another nom de plume while firmly entrenched in the LH.

It is not surprising that the ONE absolute that Harris and his protege insist upon, when discussing their pet "suspect" is that they are in unison in dismissing this very idea... that Stephenson may have written letters other than the ones we are aware of. Ask yourself why.

Very simply, and in direct contrast to the material Tom, of all people who I usually wind up arguing with at some point, had provided in that article in the Rip as well as Chris George's views.....is that if Stephenson DID write letters from the hospital that we are unaware of, it would give further proof of him being in the hospital at the time of one or more of the murders outside....and in a facility of which he could not leave on his own volition. This possibility would be "bad for business" for the pro-Donston argument. Both Harris and Edwards KNOW he was in the Currie Ward by virtue of the October 16th letter...and despite my requests to discuss this with the latter, which are typically avoided, it is a fact. A concrete fact that this man was in a place of no insy outsy.

Ask yourself WHY if Stephenson had wanted to commit murders with the hospital serving as a bolthole, he would have "faked" his ailment and accepted the Currie Ward as the place for his temporary residence and NOT a room with easier access to the outside,if indeed this possibility presented itself at all in any scenario. The answer is that he didn't fake his complaint and he was sent to the area that the professionals of the Hospital determined best suited for the perpetuation of his health.

But because we as a community have been bombarded by all the baseless,sourceless,contrived,speculated,mantras of "sinister" "occultist" "Satanist" "black magician"....ever since Crowley and those alleged...alleged...ties....we have looked at Stephenson with a jaded and from an incorrect starting point.

[Doctor X]

. . . and nice podcast with Mike Covell as well.

--J.D.

[Howard Brown]

Dear Doctor X:

Mike came off really well on the first podcast, where as I really didn't. I wish I could do it all over again....but JMenges is hesitant at forking over another 2,000 dollars to me. He's cheap. They're cheap in Kansas. I should have stayed in theatre. But now I'm committed to the life o' pods.

Thank you for the nice remarks and allowing me to take a potshot at the tyrant who runs www.rippernet.com who thinks my demands for my own dressing room for the program are "too much for the budget". Robert MacLaughlin has a ceiling fan in his dressing room and all I have is a window out onto Rochelle Avenue. Life isn't fair,is it Doc?

[Doctor X]

I enjoyed it! Podcasts are nice things to download and listen to when you are exercising, wandering the streets and screaming at children, and disposing of remains, especially when you cannot find your ABBA tapes. . . .

I was told there is going to be a series of "reviews" of the cases, so I look forward to more of them.

Yours truly,

--J.D.

[jmenges]

Mr. Brown,

I have warned you once before (you may have been too hopped-up on your own ego to recall) that public discussion of your employment contract with rippercast is forbidden (refer to Vol. IV; pg.254; para.7-10; sec. 10.3.2; DD). As far as your constant request for a ceiling fan, as I have repeatedly explained, if you were from Canada you would require such environmental cooling mechanisms in order to sustain your normal body temperature in the dressing room. Since the check I send to you is addressed c/o Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, I assume you are not in Canada. Unless your real name is Thomas Neil-Howard Brown Cream?

Now get back to work.

JM

And Mike, the solid gold toilet you requested is on its way.

[Howard Brown]

Mr. Brown,

I have warned you once before (you may have been too hopped-up on your own ego to recall) that public discussion of your employment contract with rippercast is forbidden (refer to Vol. IV; pg.254; para.7-10; sec. 10.3.2; DD). As far as your constant request for a ceiling fan, as I have repeatedly explained, if you were from Canada you would require such environmental cooling mechanisms in order to sustain your normal body temperature in the dressing room. Since the check I send to you is addressed c/o Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, I assume you are not in Canada. Unless your real name is Thomas Neil-Howard Brown Cream?

Now get back to work.

JM

And Mike, the solid gold toilet you requested is on its way.
__________________________________________________ __

Comrade Himmler-Beria:

You should know me well enough by now to know that its impossible for me to get too hopped up on my ego.

The cooling mechanisms as you refer to them...were requested to blow out the odors emanating from Mr. Covell-Buttmunch's ( nice work in copping the toilet,Mike...who did you have to schtup for that perk?) "dressing room". I know some feel that having livestock in their dressing rooms before the program "reduces stress" ( Thats what Mike claims the sheep are for ) and I'll accept that.

From now on, expect nothing less than a menopausal male prima donna at all times on the show...and my questions to the expert and special guests will be ones such as " Have you ever heard of Jack The Ripper, dude?" or " Didn't this Jack The Ripper guy kill some women in Florida once or something like that?"

Fair warning to the Paymaster.

[jmenges]

Those questions would be a step above your maiden effort on the show, when all you could say to Mr. Covell's many excellent points was something like "Wow, British accents are soooo cool. Huh, Huh, Huh."

JM