Jack the Ripper Black Magic Rituals--Satanism, the Occult, Murder...The Sinister Truth of the Doctor who was Jack the Ripper

by Ivor Edwards

  ‘The cuts must have been caused by a long-bladed knife, moderately sharp, and used with a great deal of violence. No blood was found on the breast, either on the body or clothes. There were no injuries about the body until just about the lower part of the abdomen. Two or 3in. from the left side was a wound running in a jagged manner. The wound was a very deep one, and the tissues were cut through. There were several incisions running across the abdomen. There were also three or four similar cuts running downwards, on the right side, all of which had been caused by a knife which had been used violently and downwards. The injuries were from left to right, and might have been done by a left handed person. The same instrument had caused all the injuries.’

  The swollen face and lack of blood indicate asphyxiation. Vital organs were attacked indicating that the killer knew exactly where they were located. Polly Nichols was identified by Ellen Holland. She was buried at Ilford Cemetery on 6 September 1888.

  At 3.15am, PC Neil had walked past the spot where Nichols was to be found at 3.40am and all was clear. At 3.30am, Mrs Lilley apparently heard the murder. At 3.45am PC Neil found the body. Nichols was killed 15 minutes after the beat PC passed the spot at 3.15am, and 15 minutes before the spot was checked again by the beat PC at 3.45am, thus leaving her time of death at 3.30am, exactly in the middle of the beat times.

  Three slaughtermen, named Britton, Mumford and Tomkins, employed on the nightshift by Messrs. Harrison Barber & Coy in Winthrop Street gave a satisfactory account for their time. This was partly corroborated by a policeman on night duty. A night watchman named Patrick Mulshaw was employed by Whitechapel board of works in Winthrop Street. He saw nothing suspicious and heard no one. With all the police activity in the area why was the killer not seen?

  The killer simply checked the police beat times. He was one step ahead. He picked the time and he also picked the place. If Mrs Lilley had put her head out of her window and had looked into Bucks Row, she would have seen nothing, for the murder took place in the stable alcove, which was not visible from the cottages.

  The sites were checked many times from Monday, 16 August 1993 to Friday, 6 February 1998.

  Bucks Row Revisited

  The board school building has been converted to apartments, but the wall from the school to the old stable is still intact with its original pier. In 1888 the stable entrance was narrower and deeper than in later years. Two cottages next to the stable were demolished and a wall with two small windows replaced them. The East Pier was knocked down but the West Pier where the murder took place was not moved.

  The row of cottages are gone, replaced by new flats which reach from the site of the old stable to the Brady Street end. The old pub and several cottages in Brady Street still existed in 1993, but are now gone. The road is very narrow at the Brady Street end. The complete length of Winthrop Street is only wide enough for a horse and cart.

  The victim on this site was found with her head facing east and her feet in the corner of the alcove facing west. Her left arm was touching the stable door and it was in line with her body. The body was found in the alcove and not in the gutter, neither was it found on the pavement in full view.

  I stood a person in the corner of the pier in this alcove. From the board school end of Bucks Row this person could not be seen from the pavement. Neither would he have been seen from the Brady Street end on the same side of the road. Walking towards the alcove on the pavement where the old cottages once stood I could not see the person in the alcove.

  If a man and a woman were in the alcove I would not have seen them. This experiment was conducted during daylight hours. Knowing the exact position in which the body was found, it would have been impossible to see the killer at work from either end of the approach to the stables (on the same side as the stable). The alcove was not in sight of the cottages as many have stated to be the case.

  Plan of Bucks Row

  Bucks Row 1998. ‘X’ marks the murder location from the old Essex Wharf. The depth from the outer edge of the brick pillar shown to the stable door was about 19–20 inches, which gave good cover for a couple standing in the corner. ‘W’ marks the entrance to Winthrop Street from Bucks Row. ‘F’ marks the footbridge leading from Woods Dwellings into Winthrop Street

  The man who found the body was walking in the direction of Court Street from Brady Street. He stated that he did not see anything until he was level with the alcove and he was on the opposite side of the road, a distance of 10 yards. He also stated that he thought the body was a tarpaulin. At the time of the killing, 3.30am, any person looking down the road from either end or looking out of any window in the row of cottages would have seen nothing.

  Bucks Row, now Durward Street, Hanbury Street, Berner Street, now Henriques Street, Mitre Square and Dorset Street (now without a name) were all filmed, photographed and measured with a surveyor’s wheel, and distances were timed.

  To give an indication of how close this site is to the London Hospital, via Woods Dwellings, it takes about 1 minute and 58 seconds to walk the 176.1m. I have walked all the distances and measured them. Brady Street is located east of the board school at the end of Bucks Row. From the end of Bucks Row (at the Brady Street end) to the murder spot it is 121.6m.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  THE SECOND VICTIM

  SATURDAY, 8 SEPTEMBER 1888, SPITALFIELDS

  Alias: Annie Sivvey

  Age: 45

  Profession or calling: Prostitute

  Height: 5 feet

  Hair: (wavy) dark brown

  Eyes: Blue

  Nose: Thick nose

  Mouth: Two teeth deficient in lower jaw

  Complexion: Fair

  Marks or Peculiarities: On person portion of an envelope stamped ‘Sussex Regiment’ dated 23 August 1888

  Dress: Black skirt and jacket, striped petticoat, crepe bonnet

  BORN ELIZA ANNE SMITH, Annie Chapman was a prostitute who plied her trade at night in Spitalfields. This victim was a carbon copy of Polly Nichols (victim one) in terms of their backgrounds. Both were turned out on to the streets for having no money. For want of a bed (4d) they both lost their lives.

  Chapman was also wearing a brown bodice and lace-up boots. This victim lived in west London until moving to Windsor in 1881. She had two daughters and a crippled son.

  One daughter died in 1882. Chapman had left her family and moved back to London, because her habits, as with Nichols, broke up her marriage. In 1886 she was living at No. 30, Dorset Street, then she moved to Crossinghams lodging house at 35, Dorset Street (opposite Mary Kelly, victim five, who lived in the rear of No. 26). It was at this address that she was living with a man named Jack Sivvey. Medical evidence shows that she was dying of diseases to the brain membranes and of the lungs.

  On 7 September, at 11.30pm, she was seen in the kitchen at Crossinghams by the lodging house deputy, Timothy Donovan. At 12.12am on 8 September, William Stevens, a lodger at Crossinghams, saw her in the kitchen. Later, between 1.30am and 1.45am, Donovan asked for her rent money. She replied, ‘I haven’t got it, I am weak and ill and have been to the infirmary.’ She then left, asking that a bed be kept for her.

  John Evans, the night watchman at Crossinghams, saw her go into Paternoster Row towards Brushfield Street. At 4.45am John Richardson went to 29, Hanbury Street to check on security. He sat on the steps leading to the back yard and trimmed a piece of leather off his boot, and he observed no sign of the body of Chapman. He left at about 4.48am. At around 5.30am a woman named Mrs Darrell, also referred to as Long, saw Annie with a man aged in his 40s standing on the pavement near No. 29, Hanbury Street.

  The man was taller than Chapman and he was wearing dark clothes and a deerstalker hat. He was heard to say to Chapman, ‘Will you?’ to which she replied, ‘Yes’. Mr Cadosch, a young carpenter resident of No. 27, Hanbury Street (next door to No. 29), stated that about 5.30am, he went into the yard of his house when he heard a woman’s voice cry out, ‘No!’ Shortly afterwards he heard a bump against the fence
dividing No. 27 and No. 29 where the victim was later found. Mr Cadosch heard no more and left for work.

  If Mrs Cadosch had spawned a more inquisitive child and he had looked over the fence, the killer’s greatest fear would have been realised – he would have been caught on the job, and you would not be reading this book. No one would have heard of Jack the Ripper. No. 29, Hanbury Street had 17 people living in it. The passage and the yard were both used as a haunt by local prostitutes and their clients.

  A print from the Illustrated Police News showing John Richardson trimming leather from his boot at the scene of crime prior to the murder

  John Davis, carman, a resident of No. 29 went into the yard just before 6.00am and found the victim. The body was lying on its back, level with the fence, with the head near to the back steps of the house. Her intestines were placed over her left shoulder. Dr George Bagster Phillips was called at 6.20am and arrived at 6.30am. The inquest was held on 14 September 1888. Dr Phillips, describing the scene of crime, wrote:

  29, Hanbury Street, looking west towards Commercial Street (1967). The entrance to the murder site is the door marked ‘E’

  Photo Courtesy of Stewart Evans

  Hanbury Street looking east towards Brick Lane, circa 1967. No. 29, Hanbury Street is located at the point marked ‘A’

  Photo courtesy of Stewart Evans

  The same view today taken from Commercial Street

  The scene of crime in the rear yard of 29, Hanbury Street.

  The left arm was placed across the left breast. The legs were drawn up, the feet resting on the ground, and the knees turned outwards. The face was swollen and turned on the right side. The tongue protruded between the front teeth, but not beyond the lips. The tongue was evidently much swollen. The front teeth were perfect as far as the first molar, top and bottom, and very fine teeth they were. The body was terribly mutilated. The stiffness of the limbs was not marked, but was evidently commencing. The throat was dissevered deeply; that the incisions through the skin were jagged, and reached right round the neck. On the wooden paling between the yard in question and the next, smears of blood, corresponding to where the head of the deceased lay, were to be seen. These were about 14 inches from the ground, and immediately above the part where the blood lay that had flowed from the neck.

  Dr Phillips was of the opinion that there were indications of anatomical knowledge which were only less indicated in consequence of haste. He believed the murder weapon to be such an instrument as a medical man used for post-mortem purposes. ‘The whole of the body was not present, the absent portions being from the abdomen. The mode in which these portions were extracted showed some anatomical knowledge.’

  The post-mortem examination was made by Dr Phillips at Whitechapel Workhouse Infirmary Mortuary in Eagle Street on Saturday. The post-mortem stated:

  Protrusion of the tongue. There was a bruise over the right temple. On the upper eyelid there was a bruise, and there were two distinct bruises, each the size of a man’s thumb, on the forepart of the top of the chest. The stiffness of the limbs were now well marked. There was a bruise over the middle part of the bone of the right hand. There was an old scar on the left of the frontal bone. The stiffness was more noticeable on the left side, especially in the fingers, which were partly closed. There was an abrasion over the ring finger, with distinct markings of a ring or rings. The incisions into the skin indicated that they had been made from the left side of the neck. There were two distinct clean cuts on the left side of the spine. They were parallel with each other and separated by about half an inch. The muscular structures appeared as though an attempt had been made to separate the bones of the neck.

  Dr Phillips was of the opinion that the breathing of the deceased had been interfered with prior to the cause of death. He omitted further details of the mutilations, which would distress the jury and public alike.

  Cause of death was due to syncope, or failure of the heart’s action due to loss of blood, caused by severance of the throat. A Metropolitan Police report from CID, Scotland Yard, dated 19 September 1888, by Inspector F. G. Abberline, included the following: ‘The deceased was in the habit of wearing two brass rings (a wedding and a keeper) these were missing when the body was found and the finger bore marks of their having been removed by force.’

  A print from the Illustrated Police News showing Dr Phillips pronouncing life extinct on Chapman.

  On 19 September, Dr Phillips was recalled to give evidence in relation to the after-death mutilations omitted from his evidence on 14 September. Phillips and coroner Wynne Baxter were both of the opinion that the court should be cleared of women and boys, due to the nature of the evidence.

  Reporting restrictions were placed on the press for the same reasons. In essence the evidence noted that the victim’s intestines had been partially removed and placed on Chapman’s shoulder, and that her uterus, the upper portion of her vagina and most of the bladder were entirely removed. He noted that the work was probably completed by an expert (no adjacent organs were damaged during the attack) and the knife must have been 5–6in in length. In closing this portion of his evidence he noted that the way the knife had been wielded pointed to knowledge of anatomy.

  It is quite obvious from the medical evidence on this victim that she was asphyxiated before death. Also, the evidence points to the perpetrator being a medical man. As with Nichols, this victim was also killed in a corner, the only difference here being that her head was in the corner, the opposite placement of Nichols. We know by Cadosch’s evidence that the killer did not surprise Chapman as he had wished to do. Before he had a chance to get her into a corner and get behind her, she became fearful and shouted ‘No!’

  Cadosch stated that he heard a bump against the fence after he heard her cry out. I don’t believe the killer had sexual relations with this victim on site, or any other. There is no medical evidence to show that sex took place. Firstly, Chapman was attacked and rendered unconscious; bruising to her face, a protruding tongue and a lack of blood at the scene all indicate that she was unconscious before her throat was cut.

  She was then placed down on her left side with her head by the back door steps. The killer placed himself behind the victim and cut her throat twice, left to right. The blood flowed away from the killer. Splashes of blood were found on the fence near the ground, which would seem to confirm this. The appearance of the muscular structures was due to the excessive force used to cut the throat and not by any attempt at decapitation.

  It took no more than two minutes for the killer to perform the mutilations. If anyone believes this to be nonsense, I’ll simply state that many years ago I was employed by FMC (Fresh Meat Company) and I have gutted thousands of pigs, sheep and cattle. I have timed myself when gutting a cow with the suet and certain vital organs removed and achieved the task in four minutes. That includes sorting out the items, emptying the stomach contents, cleaning the tripe, cutting away the pancreas, then washing it in cold water, folding it in a neat and deliberate fashion to await freezing.

  The slaughter gang in which I worked was on piece work. We learned to work very quickly for great speed was of the essence. It is easy to tell if a worker is experienced or not. If done correctly there is no damage to items taken or remaining. The doctor’s report on Chapman mentioned no damage done to the remaining parts.

  A surgeon is trained to feel for symptoms on a patient. To some extent he could work by touch alone, therefore a surgeon could work in poor light but a slaughterman would not be trained in the same manner and would not be able to work at speed in the dark. It was said by one of the doctors working on the case that a slaughterman would have no difficulty in locating the organs in such circumstances. Talking from experience in such matters, the man who committed these murders was certainly no slaughterman.

  Dr Phillips stated that the weapon used by the killer was such as used by surgeons in post-mortems, which is not surprising. It would be expected of the killer to use the correct tool for the job. After
all it was the tool of his trade. I would not use a surgeon’s knife for gutting a cow any more than I would expect a surgeon to use a gutman’s knife on a corpse.

  No. 29, Hanbury Street has been demolished to make way for a brewery.

  All measurements are from victim to victim and not from any surrounding area.

  O/S MAPS 1873,1880,1894,

  Victim No. 2. +-------------930 yards----------------+ Victim No. 1.

  Corner of yard Corner of alcove,

  29, Hanbury Street Bucks Row

  CHAPTER FIVE

  THE THIRD VICTIM

  SUNDAY, 30 SEPTEMBER 1888, WHITECHAPEL

  Alias: Known as Long Liz

  Age: 45

  Height: 5ft 2in

  Profession or calling: Prostitute

  Hair: Dark brown and curly

  Eyes: Light grey

  Nose: Thin

  Complexion: Pale

  Mouth: Upper teeth missing in front

  Dress: Old black skirt, black crepe bonnet, old long black jacket trimmed with fur, small bunch of flowers on right side, consisting of maidenhair fern and a red rose. Two light serge petticoats, white stockings, white chemise with insertion in front, side-spring boots, coloured striped silk handkerchief worn around the neck

  ELIZABETH (SOMETIMES ELISABETH) STRIDE was born in Torslanda, near Gothenberg, Sweden in November 1843. Her maiden name was Elisabeth Gustafsdotter. In 1865 she was registered as a prostitute in Sweden but moved to London in 1866. She married John Thomas Stride in 1869, giving her maiden name as Gustifson of 67, Gower Street.