A Moustache Too Big to Hide?

[caz]

IIRC, Tumblety theorists have suggested in the past that MJK may not have been a ripper victim - and that would have been a convenient way round the possibility that he wasn't free to kill that night.

IMHO he'd still be one of the weakest lady killer suspects if it was ever categorically proved that he had the opportunity.

Love,

Caz
X

[jmenges]

The extravagant and eccentric look of Astrakhan man is somewhat reminiscent of Tumblety, but even that comparison is scraping the barrel.

In 1888 he was no longer dressing in the ostentatious manner of his younger years, and by the mid-1890s onwards he’s reported to have looked downright shabby, like a homeless person.

JM

[Lewis C]

The only person ever seen (allegedly) with a victim of the Ripper who comes anywhere near the physical traits of Tumblety, would be Astrakhan man.

The extravagant and eccentric look of Astrakhan man is somewhat reminiscent of Tumblety, but even that comparison is scraping the barrel.

Apart from Astrakhan man, nobody else omes close to sharing the attributes of Tumblety, who would have stood out like a sore thumb.

But seeing as I don't believe a word Hutchinson said, then that goes to rule out Tumblety completely for me.

The real Ripper was someone that you wouldn't have taken a 2nd look at; totally average looking IMO.

I'm glad that you said that that comparison is scraping the barrel, because in addition to the point that JM made, I doubt that anyone would have thought that Tumblety looked Jewish.

[Lewis C]

It wasn’t “thoroughly debunked” RJ, as all Barat did was provide evidence to create enough doubt. It’s not categorical. It didn’t prove he wasn’t incarcerated.

What classifies as debunking seems to die hard in Ripperology too.

In my humble opinion.

Hi Jay,

I don't think that RJ was saying that the possibility of Tumblety being incarcerated at the time of MJK's murder has been debunked. I think he was saying that certainty that he was incarcerated at that time has been debunked. Certainty, or at least very near certainty, is what would be needed to eliminate him as a possible suspect.

I do have a couple of questions though. In the examples that David Barrat gave, were any suspected of being Jack the Ripper? If not, I would say their cases weren't identical to Tumblety's. Also, if Tumblety was out of jail at the time and suspected of being the Ripper, wouldn't the police have been watching for him?

I wouldn't favor eliminating him as a suspect, but I think he's very much a longshot, about like Francis Thompson.