Is It My Round, Gents 'n' Lassies?

[BooksbyBJThompson]

Hi Booksby,

I think I may be able to answer some of your questions for you:

Where did he work? Self-employed
Did he work? Arguably
What hat did he wear? Hat questions are a little ambitious for your first post
Did he have more than one? Very ambitious for your first post (how much have you had already?)
Did he have a favourite publican or did he do the rounds? Goodness me, your ambition knows no end!
Could he hold his liquor? My eyes are popping out on their stalks
Did he do drugs? Now we're cooking with gas - arsenic and strychnine
Was syphilis what diseased his mind? Very probably
How did he carry his knife on his person? In a small package
Was there any person in his life who feared he may be the Ripper? His best mate George probably wondered occasionally
Did he have a wife? Oh yes. At least one
A mother? Definitely at least one
A child? Loads, apparently
And ultimately what was the cause of his roiling rage at women that birthed his psychotic break and had him lash out? Not getting his leg over with the missus

Honestly, you're welcome. Hang around, though - there's a lot more I can fill you in on (but could we avoid the hat questions?).

Mine's a Jack Daniels Fire, by the way.

Sláinte,

Ike

Wow!
And here all I was doing was thinking out loud til the barmaid arrived! :-O

Okay, I'll play... ;-)

- Self-employed, huh? Was he quite well off?
- hats - Hey, they were the muscle cars of the 1880s. He has to have a favourite and if he's doing okay, probs has more than one. Tell me your thoughts on types or hasn't that JD kicked in yet? ;-)
- "package" - are "we" (royal we, here) still sticking to that newspaper wrapped deal? C'mon, that's too lame even for me. One measley knife. Why a package? Was there more than one? And no, don't be tellin' me about Tabram's 38 + 1 wounds to suggest two knives. ;-)
- "George" - now who might that be?
- kids - How are we certain he was able to have sex? Oftentimes, men who lash out like this can only ejaculate with bloody violence.
- wives - any alive during that year? What happened to them?
- a leg over - No, can't be that pedestrian. You need normal sex, you hire a street woman. You don't slice, dice and julienne them like a hawker of Ginsu knives.

Hats - now that I know hats push your buttons, I may up their mention. I'm like that. ;-)

[Iconoclast]

I could claim to be a man of few words but I don’t think that you’d go for that one

Hold on, John Wheat’s was only one word longer than mine.

Tee hee, Sir Herls - you win the award because you included the whole of Booksby's OP!

[Herlock Sholmes]

(Sir) Herls, man, you've just won the 'Longest-Quotation-for-Least-Actual-Reply' award for 2022 and it's not even October, mate - good work!

Ike

I could claim to be a man of few words but I don’t think that you’d go for that one

Hold on, John Wheat’s was only one word longer than mine.

[Iconoclast]

Welcome to Casebook Barbara.

(Sir) Herls, man, you've just won the 'Longest-Quotation-for-Least-Actual-Reply' award for 2022 and it's not even October, mate - good work!

Ike

[Iconoclast]

Hi Booksby,

I think I may be able to answer some of your questions for you:

Where did he work? Self-employed
Did he work? Arguably
What hat did he wear? Hat questions are a little ambitious for your first post
Did he have more than one? Very ambitious for your first post (how much have you had already?)
Did he have a favourite publican or did he do the rounds? Goodness me, your ambition knows no end!
Could he hold his liquor? My eyes are popping out on their stalks
Did he do drugs? Now we're cooking with gas - arsenic and strychnine
Was syphilis what diseased his mind? Very probably
How did he carry his knife on his person? In a small package
Was there any person in his life who feared he may be the Ripper? His best mate George probably wondered occasionally
Did he have a wife? Oh yes. At least one
A mother? Definitely at least one
A child? Loads, apparently
And ultimately what was the cause of his roiling rage at women that birthed his psychotic break and had him lash out? Not getting his leg over with the missus

Honestly, you're welcome. Hang around, though - there's a lot more I can fill you in on (but could we avoid the hat questions?).

Mine's a Jack Daniels Fire, by the way.

Sláinte,

Ike

[BooksbyBJThompson]

Thank you, Sir Herlock!

[Herlock Sholmes]

Hi, All.
The name's Barbara Thompson and I'm new to the place. I thought I'd have a look-in, grab a pint at this lovely Casebook drinking establishment, and introduce myself.

I'm like all of you, I would imagine, having had knowledge of the Whitechapel murders since I was a wee tyke. It might have been the first murders to which I was aware, and although I grew up and life continued, those grizzly slayings remained as a low frequency hum threading their way through my years.

For no obvious apparent reason, the case recently jumped to the forefront of my mind and I've found myself here, in this vast warehouse of knowledge, not having a clue as to why.

I am a literary novelist - 20th century historical -- and article writer by trade, but I have no aim to write a book on the case. Realistically, it would take me years to digest all this data before I ever felt I could contribute a decent work.

So, why am I here?
*takes another sip of her Guinness*

Maybe because the world has been going to hell in a handbasket and the Ripper case is one of the few status-quo standards left salvaged from a past life that was once stable and free of fear and worry.

Maybe to tread through yesteryear's dark and dank alleyways is an adventuresome quest -- the thrill of taking risks without the risk taking itself.

My late father was a Constable in the RCMP -- Royal Canadian Mounted Police -- so I harken from a cop's world, and as such, I have little use for coincidence or conspiracy. Rumour and innuendo make me grin. And Tell-All books are rife with all the above, fact-finding achieved anywhere but there.

To begin my Ripper quest, I've been binge-listening to the Rippercast, using Google Maps to virtually walk all the streets, measuring sight-lines and examining horizons, then as now.

The stench, the noise, of Whitechapel 1888 has to come from my writer imagination, and is too easily done. I've learned the difference between cobbles and setts, where the main pubs sat and many of the escape routes Jack had on offer.

The one thing I do know is that I'm not looking to adopt a pet suspect and miraculously solve this case. If you put a knife to my throat I'd say Jack is still a complete Unknown, not any of the suspects currently ID'd.

Streets, locales, the geography of the Ripper, intrigues me more. His ability to know the ins and outs of his killing grounds.

Questions like:
Where did he work?
Did he work?
What hat did he wear?
Did he have more than one?
Did he have a favourite publican or did he do the rounds?
Could he hold his liquor?
Did he do drugs?
Was syphilis what diseased his mind?
How did he carry his knife on his person?
Was there any person in his life who feared he may be the Ripper?
Did he have a wife?
A mother?
A child?
And ultimately what was the cause of his roiling rage at women that birthed his psychotic break and had him lash out?

Maybe, at the core, we all are here for fairly baseline reasons, if we are being honest with ourselves...
Men, to find and protect.
Women, to know and to avoid.

It's not 1888 Whitechapel which worms its way into our minds and takes us hostage. Maybe it's the dark and dank alleyways of the here and now, knowing full well the Ripper has never truly died, and can cast his shadow upon us all, wherever we live, whatever air we breathe, on this very night.

*sliding a tray of newly poured pints over to your table as a thank you for allowing me into this rarefied space*

Cheers, mates!
Nice to be in your good company.

When we leave the Casebook pub tonight, can we leave in a group?
I don't want to walk home alone...
;-)

Welcome to Casebook Barbara.

[BooksbyBJThompson]

Thank you c.d. and John.

Tequila slammers, Ms Diddles!!!
Omg, haven't done that since college! LOL!

[Ms Diddles]

Hi Barbara!

Nice to meet you!

Excellent opening post.

I'll join you in an espresso martini (then we hit the tequila slammers!!!)

Welcome aboard!

[John Wheat]

Welcome to the Casebook Forums Barbara.

[c.d.]

A very nice first post, Barbara. Welcome aboard!

c.d.

[BooksbyBJThompson]

Hi George, great to meet you!

As of late, I'm an espresso martini gal - a perfect symbiosis of what I like to coin hot and cold drugs -- coffee and cocktails -- but when I'm writing, it's Guinness. No time to eat while pounding the keys, so Guinness is like a meal.

I already have a list of questions... but I'll read ad nauseum on here, first, and practice my ducking maneuver before posting.

[GBinOz]

Hi Barbara,

Welcome to the madhouse. You share your name with my beautiful wife.

Guinness you say - nectar of the gods. As Al suggests, you may need something stronger if you participate on this forum for very long. My poison of choice is single malt whisky, preferably from the highlands.

Cheers, George

[BooksbyBJThompson]

Hi Al!
Great to make your acquaintance.

Yes, I had thought about donning a Kevlar vest and helmet... I'm afraid someone will critique my name on here if I don't offer a direct url source as proof, much less a factoid on the case. ;-) I believe I'll be far more a reader of late than a poster, but I am of Northern Irish descent, so I'm sure my mouth will eventually get me into harmless trouble.

And yes, the Mounties always get their man.
My childhood... picture cop boot camp for kids.

Back in my dad's heyday as a Constable -- 1930s, 40s -- he would "visit" the known perps on his patch EVERY SINGLE DAY, a nice little chat it would be, so nice they'd eventually move on to less harassing pastures. He basically annoyed them away. LOL! But that was when it was a pride of honour to retire, never having shot your weapon, using your brain over brawn. Today, it's a far different world.

Thank you again for that warm welcome!

[Al Bundy's Eyes]

Hi BJ, welcome to the never ending pub brawl that is casebook. You may find yourself switching from pints to something harder before you know it!

RCMP eh? Those guys strike fear into the hearts of miscreants everywhere, nevermind if your in their jurisdiction.