Originally posted by Joshua Rogan
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As an aside, D. J. Leighton is a useful source, but as I tried to express on Howard's site, his facts should be double-checked, which is difficult because he often doesn't give his sources.
I am also convinced he has given Druitt a false alibi.
From Montague Druitt: Portrait of a Contender, p. 110.
"On 3 and 4 August he played for the Gentleman of Bournemouth against the Parsees, a visiting Indian touring side. A couple of days later he played for the Gentleman of Dorset against the same opposition [ie., the Parsees]. The following weekend on 10 and 11 August he turned out for the Gentlemen of Dorset against Bournemouth at the end of the latter's cricket week."
If Druitt had actually played the Parsees down in Dorset or Hampshire a couple of days later (August 6th) it would almost certainly have given him an alibi for the Tabram murder (not that Macnghten attributed that murder to MJD).
In reality, the movements of the Parsee team is well-documented and they played up in Norfolk on August 6th. Druitt did not play for either side, nor does he have any known association with that club.
In fact, there is no mention of the Parsees playing the Gentlemen of Dorset anytime around that date, so it seems as if Leighton somehow got his wires crossed.
Leighton elsewhere states that Druitt was in the 'West Country' on October 1st--the day after the double-event, but again gives no source for this claim (p. 116). I find this extraordinary had it been true. The only Druitt I could find in court that day was James Druitt, an uncle. (There was also a James Druitt who was a cousin).
So Leighton appears to have given Druitt two dubious alibis.
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