If I was on the Martha Tabram inquest jury…

[Belloc]

If I’d been on the jury at the inquest into the death of Martha Tabram, I’d have had some questions.

Henry Tabram, Martha’s estranged husband, deposed:
"I used to give her 12s a week. I did that for three years, and since then I used to allow her a few shillings. As she was living with a man I did not think it was my place to support her. She had been living with a man for the last 10 years. The man is outside now. I have not seen her for the last 18 months."
(The Star, 24 August, 1888)

My questions to Henry would be:
“In what ways did you support the two sons you had together?”
“Did you pay her no support at all for the past 18 months?”
“How do you know what the man she lived with looks like?”

Ann Morris, Martha’s sister-in-law, deposed:
“I knew the deceased, and last saw her alive on the Monday Bank Holiday, about eleven o'clock at night, going into a public house - the "White Swan." She was alone at the time, but I didn't follow her in, and I saw no more of her after that.”
(The East London Observer, 25 August, 1888)

My questions to Ann would be:
“Why were you on the streets of Whitechapel so late?”
“How long did you stand outside the White Swan after Martha went in?”
“Who was with you?”

[Abby Normal]

If I’d been on the jury at the inquest into the death of Martha Tabram, I’d have had some questions.

Henry Tabram, Martha’s estranged husband, deposed:
"I used to give her 12s a week. I did that for three years, and since then I used to allow her a few shillings. As she was living with a man I did not think it was my place to support her. She had been living with a man for the last 10 years. The man is outside now. I have not seen her for the last 18 months."
(The Star, 24 August, 1888)

My questions to Henry would be:
“In what ways did you support the two sons you had together?”
“Did you pay her no support at all for the past 18 months?”
“How do you know what the man she lived with looks like?”

Ann Morris, Martha’s sister-in-law, deposed:
“I knew the deceased, and last saw her alive on the Monday Bank Holiday, about eleven o'clock at night, going into a public house - the "White Swan." She was alone at the time, but I didn't follow her in, and I saw no more of her after that.”
(The East London Observer, 25 August, 1888)

My questions to Ann would be:
“Why were you on the streets of Whitechapel so late?”
“How long did you stand outside the White Swan after Martha went in?”
“Who was with you?”

why? to what purpose?

[Belloc]

The questions to Henry Tabram are intended to determine to what extent, if any, he contributed to the parenting of their two sons and to their financial well-being. If he didn’t make any significant contribution, this might explain some of the things Martha did.
The questions to Ann Morris probe the credibility of the witness. At the best of times, it seems improbable that a 58-year-old widow, who one newspaper described as “a very respectable woman”, would be strolling around Whitechapel as midnight approached. Given the rowdy conditions in the streets on that particular evening (as described by John and Louisa Reeves) because of the bank holiday, it seems even more unlikely. If there was someone walking with Ann, wouldn’t it be helpful for the jury to hear from the other person too?