Annie Chapman - Wife, Mother, Victim: The Life & Death of a Victim of Jack The Ripper

by Covell, Mike

  The Daily Telegraph, a London based newspaper, featured the following, dated September 11th 1888,

  THE WHITECHAPEL MURDER. INQUEST AND ARRESTS. A REWARD OFFERED. In the course of yesterday several apprehensions were made of persons suspected of complicity in the Whitechapel murders, and the excitement in that part of London showed few signs of abating. Generally the men apprehended were able to give satisfactory accounts of themselves. A good deal of interest was caused by the report that “Leather Apron” had been arrested. By common consent on the part of the women of the locality a man who bears this nickname has been believed to be guilty of at least two of the four murders which have recently happened in Whitechapel. He has been repeatedly described by women who have asserted that they have been accosted by him; but it is by no means certain that all the complaints refer to the same individual. So much has been talked about “Leather Apron” in the neighbourhood, that many persons who had never previously heard of his doings appear to have accustomed themselves to the idea that they had actually seen him. It is not unreasonable to suppose that in a district where cabinet and shoe makers constantly wear such aprons more than one man may have been called by the name which has lately produced so much terror in and around Spitalfields. It was stated in The Daily Telegraph yesterday that the police had certain information about a man known to them as “Leather Apron” which it was not politic to divulge. The appearance, manner of life, and characteristics of the person in question were familiar to one of the local officers, who recollected him as having been a denizen of Whitechapel for many years. Some details of the man's past history, according to many householders, do not bear description. One gentleman yesterday stated that he had had reason to thrash “Leather Apron” some four years since, and several stories are told attributing to him shameful conduct; but those people who had most reason to rejoice that a “pestilent fellow,” as they described him, had been apprehended, were careful to add that in no case of annoyance to women had he been detected in offering violence to them such as had been attributed to the perpetrator of the Whitechapel murders. Further, those who were more or less familiar with his ways of life inclined to the opinion that he was of too weak a frame, and too cowardly a nature, to commit such aggravated assaults as those which had been perpetrated upon the bodies of Mary Nicholls and Annie Chapman. The police authorities, however, determined that a “Leather Apron” should be apprehended, and it was left in the hands of Detective Thicke to carry out the order. This officer has the reputation of being a highly intelligent member of the force, and one well acquainted with the East-end. These advantages, however, for several days served him in but little stead. “Leather Apron” had disappeared from his old haunts, and he was reported to have been seen south of London Bridge and also in Leather-lane, and other parts of the metropolis with which he was familiar. Early yesterday morning information was received which gave a clue to the supposed offender's whereabouts. Accordingly at a quarter to nine Sergeant Thicke proceeded to Mulberry-street, Commercial-road East, which is a quarter principally occupied by foreign workers in tailoring, bootmaking, and slipper making. Large numbers of the stage shoes worn in Continental as well as London theatres are made here. The two-storey houses of brick are let out to many persons, but there is an air of industry about the place, and the residents appear to be earning fairly good wages. At No. 22 Mulberry-street, lives a Mrs. Piser, an old woman of seventy. She is step-mother to John Piser, the alleged “Leather Apron,” and his married brother Gabriel, who lives at the house. It is stated that John Piser did not reside at his step-mother's, although he frequented the street. He appears to have slept at common lodging-houses, and picked up a living at the slipper trade, at which he was an adept. He was not in regular employment, but two men who have occasionally given him work testify to his good character as a workman. One of these, a Mr. Cohen, says that Piser put in an appearance in Mulberry-street on Thursday last, and remained there without showing any signs of uneasiness. He read the papers closely, for he was an active politician. Piser, some of his friends say, was aware that he was supposed - rightly or wrongly - to be “Leather Apron,” and that there was a strong feeling growing up against him. On Friday night, at ten o'clock, he was seen in the street, and Mr. Cohen again met him on Saturday morning, when his appearance betrayed nothing of a suspicious character. Piser himself opened the door when Detective Thicke knocked, and it is said that he turned very pale when he recognised the officer, whom he had encountered on a previous occasion, and that he exclaimed, “Mother, he has got me,” or used words to that effect. The detective told him for what purpose he came, but put no questions, and Piser offered no explanation, and made no resistance. He was led to Leman-street Police-station unperceived until close to the door of the station, when the cry was raised “Leather Apron!” and, as usual, there was a hostile demonstration. When interrogated the police admitted that they had arrested him, but the day passed without the prisoner having been charged. It was reported on some show of authority that the man had been confronted with witnesses, who failed to recognise him as the character they had known, and it was rumoured that he had been released, much to the satisfaction of his co-religionists, who refuse to believe that a man of Piser's intelligence could be guilty of such ferocity. In the expectation that Piser would return to Mulberry-street a mob not altogether friendly gathered to give him a reception, but they waited for his appearance in vain, for Piser remained at Leman-street Police-station at the hour when it was published abroad that he had been discharged. Upon searching his effects five knives were found, and of these the police took possession; but they were of the pattern used by boot finishers, and are without handles, consisting of curved blades of steel, eight inches long, sharpened at one end, but not to a keen edge. A man of Piser's class usually owns five or six of these tools. A “clicker” is also furnished with a much more formidable instrument, having a hafted blade about five inches long and half an inch broad, curved like a foreign dagger, with a sharp saw-like edge, but apparently not much stronger than an ordinary pocket knife. Piser would not have possessed one of these weapons. His relatives, when questioned about the incident, gave a few meagre particulars. The step-mother says he is thirty-five or thirty-six years of age, and had been at her house since Thursday. He was unmarried, and not very bright in his intellect. He was always welcome, but he was never asked where he had been when he came. The sister declared that Piser was not a man to commit murder, and she was accustomed to trust her children to his charge. He had been ill, and was treated at some hospital, and was afterwards sent to a convalescent home. She had never heard of the name of “Leather Apron,” but of course he wore one occasionally. Mr. Nathan, the father of Mrs. Piser, jun., had given the man work. Both women above-mentioned are positive that Piser came home at half-past ten on Thursday night, and had not left the house since. He lost his father some sixteen years ago. Piser is a dark man, of slight build, with small moustache, and side whiskers, and his hair is turning grey. There is no foreign accent about his talk, and it is said that he was born in England. Piser is not able to do heavy work by reason of physical infirmity. The owner of a public house in the street says he has known Piser for twenty-six years. It has been stated that the police were, on the result of their inquiries, prepared to release Piser, but that the man was reluctant to face a crowd of his antagonists. At a late hour last night the man Piser, or “Leather Apron,” was still detained at Leman-street Police Station. The police meanwhile are actively engaged in prosecuting their inquiries with respect to his recent proceedings, as to which apparently a good deal remains to be cleared up. It is not yet possible to say whether Piser is the “Leather Apron” who is believed to have perpetrated the recent outrages, but his remarkable likeness to the suspected individual is held to justify the most searching investigation. Whether, however, Piser will be brought before a magistrate to-day is regarded as exceedingly problematical. In the meantime Pigott, who was arrested at Gravesend and brought to the Comme
rcial-street Police-station, has been sent to the infirmary, where he will be kept under close observation. Throughout yesterday a number of conflicting reports were in circulation as to the arrests of various individuals. Among other things it was asserted that Piser had been discharged from custody, and that the real “Leather Apron” had been arrested and brought to Bethnal-green police-station. On inquiry this statement proved to be altogether without foundation. It probably originated in the fact that some man of questionable appearance was brought to the Bethnal-green Police-station on Sunday night, but was discharged early on Monday morning, as there was no ground for believing that he had any connection with the Whitechapel tragedies. The truth is that public feeling in the district is so excited that any circumstance, however trivial, is magnified into an event of importance. All day yesterday the police-stations were surrounded by crowds of people, anxious, if possible, to learn “something fresh” about the results of the detectives' work. There was naturally a good deal of excitement when the arrest of Piser, the alleged “Leather Apron,” was announced, but the conflicting rumours which were subsequently published with reference to further arrests created a good deal of confusion in the public mind. The scene of the latest murder was yesterday still visited by large numbers of people, while groups of men and women hung about the street corners discussing the details of the tragedy. As for the police, they have been inconveniently worried by inquiries, while they have also received a good deal of gratuitous information, which has, unhappily, proved of little value. Last night, at a late hour, there were still a few idlers around the police-stations, but there are signs that the excitement of the last three days is gradually waning. A meeting of the chief local tradesmen in Whitechapel was held yesterday, at which an influential committee was appointed, consisting of sixteen well-known gentlemen, with Mr. J. Aarons as the secretary. Last evening they issued a notice stating that they will give a substantial reward for the capture of the murderer or for information leading thereto. The movement has been warmly taken up by the inhabitants, and it is regarded as certain that a large sum will be subscribed within the next few days. The proposal to form district vigilance committees also meets with great popular favour, and is assuming practical form. Meetings were held at the various working men's clubs and other organisations, political and social, in the district, at most of which the proposed scheme was approved and volunteers enrolled. Sir Charles Warren resumed his duties at Scotland-yard yesterday morning, and during the day conferred with some of the chief officials. About the hour that Piser was arrested in Whitechapel a telegram was received at Scotland-yard notifying that a very suspicious character had been taken into custody at Gravesend. The man was arrested on Sunday night by Police-constable Vellensworth “on information received,” in the Pope's Head Tavern in that town, and his appearance and demeanour somewhat justified the course taken. He gave the name of William Henry Pigott, and seemed to be about forty years of age. He was in a very dirty state, which he explained was due to his having tramped from London. Upon his clothing were many stains, apparently of blood, and his shirt was torn and dirty. The forefinger of his left hand was badly wounded, and he had other suspicious marks about him. On being pressed Pigott showed considerable trepidation, and trembled constantly, either from fear or from the effects of drink. He admitted that he was in Whitechapel on the Saturday morning, not far from the scene of the murder, and that he had an altercation with a woman, in the course of which his finger was bitten. Detective-Inspector Abberline, of Scotland-yard, proceeded to Gravesend, and on seeing the prisoner was struck with his resemblance to the man who entered the Prince Albert public-house in Whitechapel on Saturday morning, in company, it is said, with the murdered woman, and of whom a description had been issued by the police, on information supplied by Mrs. Fiddymont, the landlady. Pigott was removed, under police escort, to London, and not long after his arrival it was ascertained, practically beyond doubt, that he slept at a common lodging-house in Whitechapel on Friday last. Pigott's condition did not improve during the journey from Gravesend, and when he arrived, in custody of Inspector Abberline, at Commercial-street Police-station, he was in a state closely resembling that of a man recovering from delirium tremens. He had assumed a sullen demeanour, and refused to speak a word to anybody. The first official to examine the prisoner was Dr. Phillips, the divisional police surgeon. The stains on the man's clothing were closely investigated by means of the microscope, and pronounced to be blood. His boots were taken off and subjected to a minute examination, with the result that they also were declared to be stained with blood, the traces of which the long walk from London to Gravesend had failed to efface. At a quarter-past two the prisoner was placed among a number of other men, and Mrs. Fiddymont and other witnesses who had noticed the mysterious customer at the Prince Albert Tavern, were called in, and one after another, inspected the row of men drawn up before them. Not one of the witnesses was able to identify Pigott as the man wanted. A short while later the man was examined by the divisional surgeon and pronounced to be a lunatic. A certificate was made out that he might be sent to a lunatic asylum and kept under observation. At the Working Lads' Institute, Whitechapel-road, yesterday morning, Mr. Wynne Baxter opened an inquiry into the circumstances attending the death of Annie Chapman, a widow, whose body was found horribly mutilated in the back yard of 29, Hanbury-street, Spitalfields, early on Saturday morning. The jury viewed the corpse at the mortuary in Montague-street, but all evidences of the outrage to which the deceased had been subjected were concealed. The clothing was also inspected, and subsequently the following evidence was taken. John Davies deposed: I am a carman employed at Leadenhall Market. I have lodged at 29, Hanbury-street for a fortnight, and I occupied the top front room on the third floor with my wife and three sons, who live with me. On Friday night I went to bed at eight o'clock, and my wife followed about half an hour later. My sons came to bed at different times, the last one at about a quarter to eleven. There is a weaving shed window, or light across the room. It was not open during the night. I was awake from three a.m. to five a.m. on Saturday, and then fell asleep until a quarter to six, when the clock at Spitalfields Church struck. I had a cup of tea and went downstairs to the back yard. The house faces Hanbury-street, with one window on the ground floor and a front door at the side leading into a passage which runs through into the yard. There is a back door at the end of this passage opening into the yard. Neither of the doors was able to be locked, and I have never seen them locked. Any one who knows where the latch of the front door is could open it and go along the passage into the back yard. When you went into the yard on Saturday morning was the yard door open or shut? - I found it shut. I cannot say whether it was latched - I cannot remember. I have been too much upset. The front street door was wide open and thrown against the wall. I was not surprised to find the front door open, as it was not unusual. I opened the back door, and stood in the entrance. Will you describe the yard? - It is a large yard. Facing the door, on the opposite side, on my left as I was standing, there is a shed, in which Mrs. Richardson keeps her wood. In the right-hand corner there is a closet. The yard is separated from the next premises on both sides by close wooden fencing, about 5 ft. 6 in. high. The Coroner: I hope the police will supply me with a plan. In the country, in cases of importance, I always have one. Inspector Helson: We shall have one at the adjourned hearing. The Coroner: Yes; by that time we shall hardly require it. Examination resumed: There was a little recess on the left. From the steps to the fence is about 3 ft. There are three stone steps, unprotected, leading from the door to the yard, which is at a lower level than that of the passage. Directly I opened the door I saw a woman lying down in the left hand recess, between the stone steps and the fence. She was on her back, with her head towards the house and her legs towards the wood shed. The clothes were up to her groins. I did not go into the yard, but left the house by the front door, and called the attention of two men to the circumstances. They work at Mr. Bailey's, a packing-cas
e maker, of Hanbury-street. I do not know their names, but I know them by sight. The Coroner: Have the names of these men been ascertained? Inspector Chandler: I have made inquiries, but I cannot find the men. The Coroner: They must be found. Witness: They work at Bailey's; but I could not find them on Saturday, as I had my work to do. The Coroner: Your work is of no consequence compared with this inquiry. Witness: I am giving all the information I can. The Coroner (to witness): You must find these men out, either with the assistance of the police or of my officer. Examination resumed: Mr Bailey's is three doors off 29, Hanbury-street, on the same side of the road. The two men were waiting outside the workshop. They came into the passage, and saw the sight. They did not go into the yard, but ran to find a policeman. We all came out of the house together. I went to the Commercial-street Police-station to report the case. No one in the house was informed by me of what I had discovered. I told the inspector at the police-station, and after a while I returned to Hanbury-street, but did not re-enter the house. As I passed I saw constables there. Have you ever seen the deceased before? - No. Were you the first down in the house that morning? - No; there was a lodger named Thompson, who was called at half-past three. Have you ever seen women in the passage? - Mrs. Richardson has said there have been. I have not seen them myself. I have only been in the house a fortnight. Did you hear any noise that Saturday morning? - No, sir. Amelia Palmer, examined, stated: I live at 35, Dorset-street, Spitalfields, a common lodging-house. Off and on I have stayed there three years. I am married to Henry Palmer, a dock labourer. He was foreman, but met with an accident at the beginning of the year. I go out charing. My husband gets a pension, having been in the Army Reserve. I knew the deceased very well, for quite five years. I saw the body on Saturday at the mortuary, and am quite sure that it is that of Annie Chapman. She was a widow, and her husband, Frederick Chapman, was a veterinary surgeon in Windsor. He died about eighteen months ago. Deceased had lived apart from him for about four years or more. She lived in various places, principally in common lodging-houses in Spitalfields. I never knew her to have a settled home. Has she lived at 30, Dorset-street? - Yes, about two years ago, with a man who made wire sieves, and at that time she was receiving 10s a week from her husband by post-office order, payable to her at the Commercial-road. This payment stopped about eighteen months ago, and she then found, on inquiry of some relative, that her husband was dead. I am under the impression that she ascertained this fact either from a brother or sister of her husband in Oxford-street, Whitechapel. She was nick-named, Mrs. Sivvy," because she lived with the sieve-maker. I know the man perfectly well, but don't know his name. I saw him last about eighteen months ago, in the City, and he told me that he was living at Notting-hill. I saw deceased two or three times last week. On Monday she was standing in the road opposite 35, Dorset-street. She had been staying there, and had no bonnet on. She had a bruise on one of her temples - I think the right. I said, “How did you get that?” She said, “Yes, look at my chest.” Opening her dress, she showed me a bruise. She said, “Do you know the woman?” and gave some name which I do not remember. She made me understand that it was a woman who goes about selling books. Both this woman and the deceased were acquainted with a man called “Harry the Hawker.” Chapman told me that she was with some other man, Ted Stanley, on Saturday, Sept. 1. Stanley is a very respectable man. Deceased said she was with him at a beer-shop, 87, Commercial-street, at the corner of Dorset-street, where “Harry the Hawker” was with the woman. This man put down a two shilling piece and the woman picked it up and put down a penny. There was some feeling in consequence and the same evening the book-selling woman met the deceased and injured her in the face and chest. When deceased told me this, she said she was living at 35, Dorset-street. On the Tuesday afternoon I saw Chapman again near to Spitalfields Church. She said she felt no better, and she should go into the casual ward for a day or two. I remarked that she looked very pale, and asked her if she had had anything to eat. She replied, “No, I have not had a cup of tea to-day.” I gave her two-pence to get some, and told her not to get any rum, of which she was fond. I have seen her the worse for drink. What did she do for a living? - She used to do crochet work, make antimacassars, and sell flowers. She was out late at night at times. On Fridays she used to go to Stratford to sell anything she had. I did not see her from the Tuesday to the Friday afternoon, 7th inst., when I met her about five o'clock in Dorset-street. She appeared to be perfectly sober. I said, “Are you going to Stratford to-day?” She answered, “I feel too ill to do anything.” I left her immediately afterwards, and returned about ten minutes later, and found her in the same spot. She said, “It is of no use my going away. I shall have to go somewhere to get some money to pay my lodgings.” She said no more, and that was the last time that I saw her. Deceased stated that she had been in the casual ward, but did not say which one. She did not say she had been refused admission. Deceased was a very industrious woman when she was sober. I have seen her often the worse for drink. She could not take much without making her drunk. She had been living a very irregular life during the whole time that I have known her. Since the death of her husband she has seemed to give way altogether. I understood that she had a sister and mother living at Brompton, but I do not think they were on friendly terms. I have never known her to stay with her relatives even for a night. On the Monday she observed: “If my sister will send me the boots, I shall go hopping.” She had two children - a boy and a girl. They were at Windsor until her husband's death, and since then they have been in a school. Deceased was a very respectable woman, and never used bad language. She has stayed out in the streets all night. Do you know of any one that would be likely to have injured her? - No. The Coroner (having read a communication handed to him by the police): It seems to be very doubtful whether the husband was a veterinary surgeon. He may have been a coachman. Timothy Donovan, 35, Dorset-street, Spitalfields, said: I am the deputy of a common lodging house. I have seen the body of the deceased, and have identified it as that of a woman who stayed at my house for the last four months. She was not there last week until Friday afternoon, between two and three o'clock. I was coming out of the office after getting up, and she asked me if she could go down in the kitchen, and I said “Yes,” and asked her where she had been all the week. She replied that she had been in the infirmary, but did not say which. A police-officer stated that the deceased had been in the casual ward. Witness resumed: Deceased went down in the kitchen, and I did not see her again until half-past one or a quarter to two on Saturday morning. At that time I was sitting in the office, which faces the front door. She went into the kitchen. I sent the watchman's wife, who was in the office with me, downstairs to ask her husband about the bed. Deceased came upstairs to the office and said, “I have not sufficient money for my bed. Don't let it. I shan't be long before I am in.” How much was it? - Eightpence for the night. The bed she occupied, No. 29, was the one that she usually occupied. Deceased was then eating potatoes, and went out. She stood in the door two or three minutes, and then repeated, “Never mind, Tim; I shall soon be back. Don't let the bed.” It was then about ten minutes to two a.m. She left the house, going in the direction of Brushfield-street. John Evans, the watchman, saw her leave the house. I did not see her again. Was she the worse for drink when you saw her last? - She had had enough; of that I am certain. She walked straight. Generally on Saturdays she was the worse for drink. She was very sociable in the kitchen. I said to her, “You can find money for your beer, and you can't find money for your bed.” She said she had been only to the top of the street - where there is a public-house. Did you see her with any man that night? - No, sir. Where did you think she was going to get the money from? - I did not know. She used to come and stay at the lodging-house on Saturdays with a man - a pensioner - of soldierly appearance, whose name I do not know. Have you seen her with other men? - At other times she has come with other men, and I have refused her. You only allow the women at your place one husband? - The pensioner told me
not to let her a bed if she came with any other man. She did not come with a man that night. I never saw her with any man that week. In answer to the jury witness said the beds were double at 8d per night, and as a rule deceased occupied one of them by herself. The Coroner: When was the pensioner last with deceased at the lodging-house? - On Sunday, Sept. 2. I cannot say whether they left together. I have heard the deceased say, “Tim, wait a minute. I am just going up the street to see if I can see him.” She added that he was going to draw his pension. This occurred on Saturday, Aug. 25, at three a.m. In reply to the Coroner, the police said nothing was known of the pensioner. Examination continued: I never heard deceased call the man by any name. He was between forty and forty-five years of age, about 5 ft. 6 in. or 5 ft. 8 in. in height. Sometimes he would come dressed as a dock labourer; at other times he had a gentlemanly appearance. His hair was rather dark. I believe she always used to find him at the top of the street. Deceased was on good terms with the lodgers. About Tuesday, Aug. 28, she and another woman had a row in the kitchen. I saw them both outside. As far as I know she was not injured at that time. I heard from the watchman that she had had a clout. I noticed a day or two afterwards, on the Thursday, that she had a slight touch of a black eye. She said, “Tim, this is lovely,” but did not explain how she got it. The bruise was to be seen on Friday last. I know the other woman, but not her name. Her husband hawks laces and other things. John Evans testified: I am night watchman at 35, Dorset-street, and have identified the deceased as having lived at the lodging-house. I last saw her there on Saturday morning, and she left at about a quarter to two o'clock. I was sent down in the kitchen to see her, and she said she had not sufficient money. When she went upstairs I followed her, and as she left the house, I watched her go through a court called Paternoster-street, into Brushfield-street, and then turn towards Spitalfields Church. Deceased was the worse for drink, but not badly so. She came in soon after twelve (midnight), when she said she had been over to her sister's in Vauxhall. She sent one of the lodgers for a pint of beer, and then went out again, returning shortly before a quarter to two. I knew she had been living a rough night life. She associated with a man, a pensioner, every Saturday, and this individual called on Saturday at 2.30 p.m. and inquired for the deceased. He had heard something about her death, and came to see if it was true. I do not know his name or address. When I told him what had occurred he went straight out, without saying a word, towards Spitalfields Church. I did not see deceased and this man leave the house last Sunday week. Did you see the deceased and another woman have a row in the kitchen? - Yes, on Thursday, Aug. 30. Deceased and a woman known as “Eliza,” at 11.30 a.m., quarrelled about a piece of soap, and Chapman received a blow in the chest. I noticed that she had a slight black eye. There are marks on the body in a similar position. By the Jury: I have never heard any one threaten her, nor express any fear of any one. I have never heard any one of the women in the lodging-house say that they had been threatened. At this stage the inquiry was adjourned until tomorrow (Wednesday). The above chart exhibits the locality, a little to the north of Whitechapel-road, within which, during the last nine months, four women of the unfortunate class have been foully done to death; and also shows the precise spot where each murder was committed, indicated by a dagger and a numeral. Figure 1, with the symbol mentioned, marks the ground in the vicinity of Osborn-street and Wentworth-street where, last Christmas week, the body of a woman was found with a stake or iron instrument thrust through her. The identity of this woman still remains in obscurity, and the event created little or no sensation, the crime being attributed to a drunken brawl with some of the lawless ruffians who infest the purlieus of Whitechapel. Dagger No. 2 denotes the place, near the corner of Wentworth-street and Commercial-street, where the second of this series of horrible tragedies occurred. On Aug. 7 - scarcely more than a month ago - the body of a woman named Martha Turner, aged thirty-five, a hawker, was discovered lying dead on the first-floor landing of some model dwellings known as George-yard-buildings, Commercial-street, Spitalfields. No fewer than thirty-nine stab wounds were discovered on the corpse of this unfortunate woman, and it was suggested at the inquest that some of them had been done with a bayonet. A verdict was returned of “Wilful murder against some person or persons unknown.” Reference was made during the inquiry to the similarity of the crime to that previously mentioned, and from this date feelings of mingled terror and indignation prevailed among the inhabitants. Figure 3 indicates the spot in Buck's-row, where, in the early hours of Friday, Aug. 31, was discovered the shockingly mutilated body of Mary Ann Nicholls. The latest in the sanguinary catalogue of East-end crimes, the murder of Annie Chapman - the precise locality of which, in Hanbury-street, is indicated by the number 4 - has been described in yesterday's Daily Telegraph. It will be noted that the dotted line marks the course of the railway which runs underground, and the plain line that which is above the level road. Two men were arrested yesterday in connection with the murder of Annie Chapman, in Hanbury-street, Whitechapel, at an early hour on Saturday morning. John Piser, alleged to be the “Leather Apron” so often referred to, was taken at the house of his step-mother in Mulberry-street, and was conveyed to the Leman-street Police-station, where a hostile demonstration was made by the mob as he entered. Among his effects were found five knives such as might be used in his calling of slipper-maker, and also a much more formidable instrument with a curved blade five inches long. The second arrest was effected in a tavern at Gravesend. The man gave the name of Pigott, and as upon his clothing were found many blood-stains he was detained and conveyed under escort to Commercial-street Police-station. Here he was examined by several witnesses who, however, failed to identify him as the man wanted. The divisional surgeon pronounced him to be a lunatic, and he will be removed to an asylum and kept under observation. An inquest on the remains of Annie Chapman was opened by Mr. Wynne Baxter, coroner, at the Working Lads' Institute. Evidence was given by John Davis, who discovered the body, by Amelia Palmer, who had known the deceased for five years, and had for a time lodged in the same house, and by Timothy Donovan, the deputy, and John Evans, the night watchman of a common lodging house in which the deceased often stayed. The inquiry was adjourned till to-morrow. Last night, as the result of a meeting of the tradesmen of Whitechapel which was held earlier in the day, a notice was issued offering a substantial reward for the capture of the murderer or information leading thereto. A subscription list has been opened, and the movement is being warmly taken up.