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Greetings all,
In Francis Tumblety’s 1893 autobiographical pamphlet, A sketch in the Life of Francis Tumblety, he mentioned the reason why he wrote it (page 3),
…The bitter persecution, venomous assaults and impudent curiosity which, when balked, becomes malevolent, aimed at the writer from the reptile section of the public press, justify the assumption that the authors of such attacks can only be likened to serpents and similar crawling nuisances and absolute lack of foundation, have almost deprived me of the wonder capacity. But far from reducing me to the other miserable level, such rascally endeavors to subvert an honest reputation have only filled my mind with contempt. I have been too much engrossed with larger themes than matters of mere personal discussion to justify myself from malignant and, I trust, palpably mendacious newspaper assaults. Yet, absurd and farcical as these are in one sense, as slightly as they appeal in general to intelligent readers, it may be that there are some who have been influenced by their iteration and the fact that their victim has remained silent. At the urgent request of friends, therefore, I hence concluded to offer the best refutation of them, the testimony of an honest, upright and useful life, which has been cordially recognized by eminent personages in this and other lands alike in its social and professional relations.
Francis Tumblety was clearly referring to newspaper articles reporting him being implicated in the 1888 Whitechapel murders. For example,
DECEMBER 04, 1888 - New York tribune
DR. TUMBLETY ARRIVES IN NEW-YORK.
DETECTIVES KEEPING THEIR EYE ON HIM-HIS ARREST IN LONDON HAS EXCITED PEOPLE HERE SOMEWHAT.
Doctor Francis Tumblety or, as he is known in England, Twomblety, is in New-York. He was arrested on suspicion of being implicated in the Whitechapel butcheries. When the French steamer La Bretagne arrive at her pier on Sunday, two of Inspector byrnes’s men were in waiting there, and followed the large, dignified-looking man, who was driven in a cab by the shortest way to Mrs. mcNamara’s boarding house, No. 79 East Tenth-st...
So, what was Tumblety claiming to be ‘absurd and farcical’? It was the US newspapers claim that Scotland Yard implicated him in the Whitechapel murders and NOT Scotland Yard’s claim that he may be involved in the murders. By late December, most newspapers were rejecting the idea of him being the killer, yet they still commented on him being suspected by Scotland Yard.
When we compare this 1893 claim by Tumblety to an earlier claim of his, we see a revealing contradiction. Francis Tumblety was interviewed by a New York World reporter in early February 1889; just two months after his escape from English authorities AND four years earlier than the above autobiographical pamphlet. The article states,
Dr. Francis Tumblety, the celebrated Whitechapel suspect, after two months silence has given his version of why he was accused of being Jack the Ripper. He says it was owing to the stupidity of the London Police, … He is preparing a pamphlet defending himself and giving a history of his life…
"My arrest came about this way," said he. "I had been going over to England for a long time-ever since 1869, indeed-and I used to go about the city a great deal until every part of it became familiar to me. I happened to be there when these Whitechapel murders attracted the attention of the whole world, and, in the company with thousands of other people, I went down to the Whitechapel district. I was not dressed in a way to attract attention, I thought, though it afterwards turned out that I did. I was interested by the excitement and the crowds and the queer scenes and sights, and did not know that all the time I was being followed by English detectives." "Why did they follow you?"
"My guilt was very plain to the English mind. Someone had said that Jack the Ripper was an American, and everybody believed that statement. Then it is the universal belief among the lower classes that all Americans wear slouch hats; therefore, Jack the Ripper, must wear a slouch hat. Now, I happened to have on a slouch hat, and this, together with the fact that I was an American, was enough for the police. It established my guilt beyond any question."
Notice the change of story. Instead of blaming the US papers for the absurd accusation, Tumblety blamed Scotland Yard. Interestingly, he commented upon the up-n-coming pamphlet, but after four years the goal of the pamphlet changed from countering Scotland Yard’s assertions to countering the US newspapers’ assertions. This change is quite significant, because it deals with the specific issue of whether Tumblety was implicated by Scotland Yard for the Whitechapel murders or not. Significant is that the change was from blaming Scotland Yard to blaming the US newspapers and not the other way around. If he truly was being absurdly accused by US papers and not by Scotland Yard, then why did he not state this from day one (just as his 1893 pamphlet claims and what a number of ripperologists claim)?
Or, could the US newspaper claim be merely a product of Tumblety fine-tuning an obvious deception? In February 1889, again just two months after his escape out of England, Tumblety had no idea what Scotland Yard’s publicity move on him would be. He didn’t know if they were going to deny him being a suspect, stay silent on his status (what they did), or publically announce him being a suspect that got away. By 1893, Tumblety realized Scotland Yard was staying silent on the subject. If Tumblety continued to blame Scotland Yard as he did in the earlier interview, he would have to admit he was considered a Whitechapel murders suspect –a far more difficult position to be in order to allow his pamphlet to convince the readers he deserves a respectable reputation.
Sincerely,
Mike
In Francis Tumblety’s 1893 autobiographical pamphlet, A sketch in the Life of Francis Tumblety, he mentioned the reason why he wrote it (page 3),
…The bitter persecution, venomous assaults and impudent curiosity which, when balked, becomes malevolent, aimed at the writer from the reptile section of the public press, justify the assumption that the authors of such attacks can only be likened to serpents and similar crawling nuisances and absolute lack of foundation, have almost deprived me of the wonder capacity. But far from reducing me to the other miserable level, such rascally endeavors to subvert an honest reputation have only filled my mind with contempt. I have been too much engrossed with larger themes than matters of mere personal discussion to justify myself from malignant and, I trust, palpably mendacious newspaper assaults. Yet, absurd and farcical as these are in one sense, as slightly as they appeal in general to intelligent readers, it may be that there are some who have been influenced by their iteration and the fact that their victim has remained silent. At the urgent request of friends, therefore, I hence concluded to offer the best refutation of them, the testimony of an honest, upright and useful life, which has been cordially recognized by eminent personages in this and other lands alike in its social and professional relations.
Francis Tumblety was clearly referring to newspaper articles reporting him being implicated in the 1888 Whitechapel murders. For example,
DECEMBER 04, 1888 - New York tribune
DR. TUMBLETY ARRIVES IN NEW-YORK.
DETECTIVES KEEPING THEIR EYE ON HIM-HIS ARREST IN LONDON HAS EXCITED PEOPLE HERE SOMEWHAT.
Doctor Francis Tumblety or, as he is known in England, Twomblety, is in New-York. He was arrested on suspicion of being implicated in the Whitechapel butcheries. When the French steamer La Bretagne arrive at her pier on Sunday, two of Inspector byrnes’s men were in waiting there, and followed the large, dignified-looking man, who was driven in a cab by the shortest way to Mrs. mcNamara’s boarding house, No. 79 East Tenth-st...
So, what was Tumblety claiming to be ‘absurd and farcical’? It was the US newspapers claim that Scotland Yard implicated him in the Whitechapel murders and NOT Scotland Yard’s claim that he may be involved in the murders. By late December, most newspapers were rejecting the idea of him being the killer, yet they still commented on him being suspected by Scotland Yard.
When we compare this 1893 claim by Tumblety to an earlier claim of his, we see a revealing contradiction. Francis Tumblety was interviewed by a New York World reporter in early February 1889; just two months after his escape from English authorities AND four years earlier than the above autobiographical pamphlet. The article states,
Dr. Francis Tumblety, the celebrated Whitechapel suspect, after two months silence has given his version of why he was accused of being Jack the Ripper. He says it was owing to the stupidity of the London Police, … He is preparing a pamphlet defending himself and giving a history of his life…
"My arrest came about this way," said he. "I had been going over to England for a long time-ever since 1869, indeed-and I used to go about the city a great deal until every part of it became familiar to me. I happened to be there when these Whitechapel murders attracted the attention of the whole world, and, in the company with thousands of other people, I went down to the Whitechapel district. I was not dressed in a way to attract attention, I thought, though it afterwards turned out that I did. I was interested by the excitement and the crowds and the queer scenes and sights, and did not know that all the time I was being followed by English detectives." "Why did they follow you?"
"My guilt was very plain to the English mind. Someone had said that Jack the Ripper was an American, and everybody believed that statement. Then it is the universal belief among the lower classes that all Americans wear slouch hats; therefore, Jack the Ripper, must wear a slouch hat. Now, I happened to have on a slouch hat, and this, together with the fact that I was an American, was enough for the police. It established my guilt beyond any question."
Notice the change of story. Instead of blaming the US papers for the absurd accusation, Tumblety blamed Scotland Yard. Interestingly, he commented upon the up-n-coming pamphlet, but after four years the goal of the pamphlet changed from countering Scotland Yard’s assertions to countering the US newspapers’ assertions. This change is quite significant, because it deals with the specific issue of whether Tumblety was implicated by Scotland Yard for the Whitechapel murders or not. Significant is that the change was from blaming Scotland Yard to blaming the US newspapers and not the other way around. If he truly was being absurdly accused by US papers and not by Scotland Yard, then why did he not state this from day one (just as his 1893 pamphlet claims and what a number of ripperologists claim)?
Or, could the US newspaper claim be merely a product of Tumblety fine-tuning an obvious deception? In February 1889, again just two months after his escape out of England, Tumblety had no idea what Scotland Yard’s publicity move on him would be. He didn’t know if they were going to deny him being a suspect, stay silent on his status (what they did), or publically announce him being a suspect that got away. By 1893, Tumblety realized Scotland Yard was staying silent on the subject. If Tumblety continued to blame Scotland Yard as he did in the earlier interview, he would have to admit he was considered a Whitechapel murders suspect –a far more difficult position to be in order to allow his pamphlet to convince the readers he deserves a respectable reputation.
Sincerely,
Mike
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