Those letters

[Addy]

Hi all,

I remember reading somewhere that the letters were from her mother. I do think Barnett said this because he had to read her letters to her. I've also read that they came from her brother, so I suppose there is confusion over this. (to put it mildly)

I also wonder if any letters arrived for her after her death and if so, for how long? As none of her family was present at the funeral, it could be an indication that they really didn't know that she was dead.

Greetings,

Addy

[kensei]

Limehouse, I would assume that her accent was not unusual enough for anyone to have remarked upon. Perhaps it was very close to standard Irish, as she's been portrayed in film.

On the letters, it makes me wonder- who claimed Mary's few possessions after her death? Does anyone know that? If the police gathered everything up as evidence, what would have become of it, including the letters?

[Limehouse]

I know I keep saying this (on various threads) but has any comment been made in any witness statements tha MJK had an accent? It is said that she had been in London a few years, but surely if she had been raised in Ireland or Wales she would have had an accent? If she was raised by Irish parents, partly in Ireland and partly in Wales she would definitely have had at least a trace of an Irish accent with perhaps some Welsh overtones. Surely her accent would have been a good clue as to her origins? In all the books I have read, I have never seen a reference to her accent. None of the women or men interviewed seem to have commented on this.

[lynn cates]

scrutiny

Hello Dave. Yes, food for thought. About all we "know" is Barnett's story--and it does not hold up to scrutiny too well.

Cheers.
LC

[Cogidubnus]

I'm not sure whether assumptions are being made about the origin of letters MJK was receiving...I believe McCarthy said she received letters...what did Barnett have to say? McCarthy might well have no way of knowing where the letters came from...Barnett on the other hand might...

The reason I ask the question is that at this time, many Post Offices still applied a simple "Killer" frank to the stamp, which bore no reference to a town of origin...it was simply a set of bars with a number therein (my own stamp collection, alas, contains hundreds of these - I say alas because they are worth far less than the CDS handstamps - which contain the postal town of origin and a date)...Do we know for certain these letters came from Ireland?

How unfortunate for us that this murder took place in England, and perhaps concerned postmarks from Ireland, rather than Scotland - owing to a well known murder there in 1857, (google Madeleine Smith), Scottish postmarks were modified from that time onwards...a practise which was only gradually introduced in England...

Food for thought?

Dave