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I just posted this on the forums and thought I'd share it here for anyone interested.
I've tried and failed to find a logical answer to this question, so I thought I'd share and see if I'm not missing something obvious.
According to Timothy Donovan, the deputy of 35 Dorset Street in 1888, Annie Chapman last spent the night at his house on Sunday, Sept. 2nd, leaving on the morning of Monday, Sept. 3rd. He did not see her again until Friday, September 7th. She asked him to trust her for the cost of her bed, as she did not have the money. He refused, and she left the house around 1:35 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 8th. She stated that since Monday she'd been to the infirmary. Two days earlier, she'd told the same thing to Amelia Farmer. On the day of her return to 35 Dorset Street, on the 7th, lodger William Stevens spent time with Annie in the kitchen. He watched her handle a bottle of medicine, a bottle of lotion, and a box of pills that came apart. He also saw her pick up a portion of envelope and put the pills in it.
When Annie's body was found, the pills in the envelope piece were there, but the bottles were missing. It appears that they are in the possession of Timothy Donovan as he's able to read the labels out at the inquest (or else possesses an eidetic memory). This would make perfect sense if Annie had left the clunky bottles at the house, fully expecting to shortly return, as she, in fact, expressed she would. But this is not what Donovan says.
'Timothy Donovan, deputy at the lodging house, 35 Dorset Street, stated that after the deceased left on Monday last he found two large bottles in the room, one containing medicine, and labelled as follows: ‘St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. Take two tablespoonfuls three times a day.’ The other bottle contained a milky lotion, and was labelled ‘St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. The lotion. Poison.’' - Morning Advertiser, 10th September 1888
C.I. Swanson refers to William Steven's signed statement in his September 15th report -
‘I know Annie Chapman as a lodger in the same house, I know that on Friday 7th inst the day before the murder she came into the lodging house and said she had been to the hospital, and intended going to the Infirmary the next day. I saw that she had a bottle of medicine, a bottle of lotion and a box with two pills and as she was handling the box it came to pieces, she then took out the pills and picked up a piece of paper from the kitchen floor near the fireplace and wrapped the pills up in it.’
Stevens, who fetched a beer for Annie and appears to have spent time with her, says she went to the 'hospital' and not the infirmary, which might appear to be the case. But you'll notice that Donovan is stating he has been in possession of the bottles since Monday the 3rd. I've not found any evidence that Annie went to the hospital prior to this date, or if she did, I can't understand why she'd leave the bottles at the house with medicine still in it only to travel to the hospital to get more medicine. If Annie had left her bottles at the house on the night of the 7th, why didn't Donovan just say so? He's explicit that he found the bottles in her room on the second floor, but Annie had no money and had not taken out the room. She may have gone into her old room and left her bottles, but why? And why would Donovan say she'd left them on the 3rd?
I don't know that there's a pat answer for this. It's just one of those niggling things that won't leave me alone until I write it out.
Yours truly,
Tom Wescott
I've tried and failed to find a logical answer to this question, so I thought I'd share and see if I'm not missing something obvious.
According to Timothy Donovan, the deputy of 35 Dorset Street in 1888, Annie Chapman last spent the night at his house on Sunday, Sept. 2nd, leaving on the morning of Monday, Sept. 3rd. He did not see her again until Friday, September 7th. She asked him to trust her for the cost of her bed, as she did not have the money. He refused, and she left the house around 1:35 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 8th. She stated that since Monday she'd been to the infirmary. Two days earlier, she'd told the same thing to Amelia Farmer. On the day of her return to 35 Dorset Street, on the 7th, lodger William Stevens spent time with Annie in the kitchen. He watched her handle a bottle of medicine, a bottle of lotion, and a box of pills that came apart. He also saw her pick up a portion of envelope and put the pills in it.
When Annie's body was found, the pills in the envelope piece were there, but the bottles were missing. It appears that they are in the possession of Timothy Donovan as he's able to read the labels out at the inquest (or else possesses an eidetic memory). This would make perfect sense if Annie had left the clunky bottles at the house, fully expecting to shortly return, as she, in fact, expressed she would. But this is not what Donovan says.
'Timothy Donovan, deputy at the lodging house, 35 Dorset Street, stated that after the deceased left on Monday last he found two large bottles in the room, one containing medicine, and labelled as follows: ‘St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. Take two tablespoonfuls three times a day.’ The other bottle contained a milky lotion, and was labelled ‘St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. The lotion. Poison.’' - Morning Advertiser, 10th September 1888
C.I. Swanson refers to William Steven's signed statement in his September 15th report -
‘I know Annie Chapman as a lodger in the same house, I know that on Friday 7th inst the day before the murder she came into the lodging house and said she had been to the hospital, and intended going to the Infirmary the next day. I saw that she had a bottle of medicine, a bottle of lotion and a box with two pills and as she was handling the box it came to pieces, she then took out the pills and picked up a piece of paper from the kitchen floor near the fireplace and wrapped the pills up in it.’
Stevens, who fetched a beer for Annie and appears to have spent time with her, says she went to the 'hospital' and not the infirmary, which might appear to be the case. But you'll notice that Donovan is stating he has been in possession of the bottles since Monday the 3rd. I've not found any evidence that Annie went to the hospital prior to this date, or if she did, I can't understand why she'd leave the bottles at the house with medicine still in it only to travel to the hospital to get more medicine. If Annie had left her bottles at the house on the night of the 7th, why didn't Donovan just say so? He's explicit that he found the bottles in her room on the second floor, but Annie had no money and had not taken out the room. She may have gone into her old room and left her bottles, but why? And why would Donovan say she'd left them on the 3rd?
I don't know that there's a pat answer for this. It's just one of those niggling things that won't leave me alone until I write it out.
Yours truly,
Tom Wescott
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