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 Standard, dated 13 November 1888, quoted the Home Secretary Henry Matthews as stating:

  The failure of the police, so far, to detect the person guilty of the Whitechapel murders is due, not to any new reorganisation in the department, but to the extraordinary cunning and secrecy which characterise the commission of the crimes.

  Surely such a cunning murderer would disguise himself if only for the following reasons: several murders were to be committed in a public place so there was a high risk of being seen. He would not wish to be recognised if disturbed on the job or if seen in the company of a victim minutes prior to her murder. He would wish to dress in an attire to throw people off his true occupation or class (i.e. dress to give the appearance of a sailor or clerk so that the police would look for a different person), to blend in with his surroundings more easily. If caught later no witness could identify him. He could clean up more easily, go to ground minutes after each murder and change from the disguise into his own clothes thus no blood on his person.

  If we work on the supposition that Jack killed Eddowes between the police beat times of 1.30am and 1.41–42am then ideally she should have been murdered by 1.35–36am. Thus evidence must be shown that the killer was in the company of Eddowes just prior to 1.35–36am. We do have such evidence. I believe it possible that she was dead and being mutilated by 1.36am.

  We are very fortunate that we can place Eddowes on the scene some minutes previously, because she was last seen between 1.33am and 1.35am with a suspect (a 29-second walk from where the body was found) at the entrance to Mitre Square. If seen at 1.33am the victim could have been dead by 1.34am. Two minutes for the mutilations and the killer could have left at 1.36am. This would have left him five to six minutes to spare.

  If seen at 1.35am Eddowes could have been dead by 1.36am and Jack could have fled the scene by 1.38am. This would give him three to four minutes before the scene was checked again at 1.41–1.42am. I have used the basis of my times on the written evidence of both Levy and Lawende.

  Clocks and watches in 1888 were mechanical and, if not properly maintained, they had a tendency to run either fast or slow. So, if Lawende’s watch and the clock in the club were running a minute or two slower they could have seen Eddowes a minute or so sooner than 1.33am.

  Dr Brown believed the mutilations took at least five minutes to perform. However, because the killer was working at great speed, the mutilations could have been achieved in less time. Dr Sequeira thought it would only have taken three minutes. From my own experiences of gutting thousands of livestock on piece work, before the industry was mechanised as it is today by ECU standards, and of observing others, the killer could well have achieved his task in two minutes. Dr Iain West, forensic pathologist at Guys Hospital, London, recently stated that in his opinion the mutilations took about two minutes.

  Question. What type of surgeon could work in poor light at speed in such conditions?

  Answer. One with experience in adverse or battlefield conditions.

  Although it was dark, Jack could see well enough to cut very fine symbols into the victim’s eyelids and face. Dr Brown believed that the killer had sufficient time or he would not have nicked the lower eyelids. The speed at which the killer worked could be attributed to the fact that he knew he had to leave before the crime scene was checked at 1.41–42am. Precise timing and speed on this site were of the essence.

  When we turn to the motive for the crimes, again misconceptions seem to be the order of the day. It is interesting to note that Dr Brown stated that there was definitely no sign (as in the other cases) of any sexual connection. In other words there was no conclusive medical evidence to support the theory that the motive for murder was of a sexual nature.

  Professor Jeremy Coid, forensic psychiatrist, recently stated of the murders, ‘there’s nothing in terms of the evidence available at that time which shows without a doubt that these crimes were committed by somebody in a state of sexual arousal. There weren’t actually objects inserted into the body; there was no evidence of semen at the scene of the crime.’

  Coroner Wynne Baxter, presiding over the inquest on Chapman, stated that the desire to possess the missing organ had been the object of the attack and the theft of the two rings was an attempt to disguise the true motive which was simply to obtain her womb. So what use could be made from the missing organs?

  At the time of the murders, an unknown American doctor was doing the rounds of certain hospitals with the intention of obtaining wombs to illustrate his lectures. Dr Brown wrote, ‘the parts removed would have no use for any professional purpose’. No one would deliberately achieve infamy while searching for specimens, and then kill five prostitutes to obtain two wombs when they could have purchased them legally.

  Dr Brown was of the opinion that the killer had a great deal of medical knowledge to have removed the kidney and considerable knowledge of the positions of organs in the abdominal cavity and how to remove them.

  Let us take into account the beat times at Mitre Square, the precise timing which had to be involved on the part of the killer, the boldness by which it was all achieved and the elaborate surgery performed at speed in such conditions. Added up, these indicate that the killer must have planned in advance, was cool, calculating, bold, was not perturbed by danger and had a great deal of experience in surgery. It is obvious that he needed the body parts or he would not have taken them. They were more than just trophies. Not enough thought has gone into why he took them.

  One avenue which was never explored by the police of the day, mainly due to their ignorance of it, was occult ritual murder, including the doctrine that certain organs should be removed from murdered harlots, killed at pre-arranged sites, which were to be located at the four points of the compass. Certain organs could be made into holy candles for use in an occult ritual, while other organs could be made into potions for use in the occult.

  Sergeant Jones found three boot buttons, a thimble and a mustard tin containing pawn tickets for a man’s shirt and John Kelly’s boots lying beside the body. It would help to know whether or not the items were placed in a neat and deliberate fashion.

  The killer cut a line into each of Eddowes’s eyelids. He also cut two symbols into her cheeks (^ ^). I was told by an investigator with 30 years’ experience (who should have known better) that the marks on the face of this victim could have been caused by her falling over! (She was laid down by the killer.) My answer to such a remark is that the victim may also have stabbed herself twice in the face with a potato peeler moments before her murder!

  The two marks in question are occult symbols, which were placed by the killer for a purpose. The two brass rings taken from Chapman’s fingers also have significance in the occult. Metal is removed from contact with the skin so that certain forces or energies called upon to aid the killer will not be interfered with by their conductive properties.

  When a Mason takes his oath he is symbolically stripped of such metal objects as rings and watches. It is believed that a similar ritual went back to the initiation into the temple in Egypt. Once stripped of all metal, a rod was placed on a particular spot on the body and a small charge of energy was passed through the rod. A Mason’s oath is simply mentioned here as an example.

  Many secret societies, including occult groups, believe in unseen forces or energies. My suspect belonged to one such group if not more. I simply wish to point out that certain societies share certain beliefs in relation to certain doctrines. In fact, I can see why Masons are concerned that certain knowledge should not get into the wrong hands for it can be abused by unscrupulous people.

  My beliefs, and those of the general reader, on the subject of black magic or the occult are neither here nor there. What matters is the fact that many individuals involved in voodoo, the occult or black magic do believe in such mumbo jumbo, for many it is a form of religion and some commit murder because of such beliefs. Such murders continue to happen up to the present day as will be shown later.

&nb
sp; The man that Schwartz saw attacking Stride was not her murderer. Neither was he the same man that killed Eddowes. Not unless he went home, sobered himself up and took a 10-minute crash course on how to approach a woman without attacking her first.

  Dr William S. Saunders was a doctor of medicine, Fellow of the Chemical Society, Fellow of the Institute of Chemistry and public analyst of the City of London. He received the stomach of Eddowes from Dr G. Brown. It had been sealed and had not been interfered with. The stomach and the contents had been examined for poisons of a narcotic nature. There was not the slightest trace of any poison or narcotic. In fact none of the victims was either poisoned or drugged. No evidence however slight has ever been produced to show otherwise. Despite this fact and taking into account the police and medical evidence available, some individuals still persist in believing otherwise.

  Others erroneously assume that the killer would have been covered in blood after performing his operations on any of his first four victims. It would also be incorrect to deduce that blood would have soiled his clothing to a high degree when he hid the body parts on his person. Jack the Ripper was no novice when it came to operating and he knew how to avoid being soiled with blood under such circumstances.

  He knew that, if he asphyxiated his victims prior to cutting their throats and before mutilating the corpse, such action would eliminate the problem of blood. He dealt with his first four victims as a slaughterman would deal with cattle. The principle is the same and so are the end results.

  I have gutted hundreds of animals in a single shift and at the end of the day I may have had a few smears of blood on my whites. When working with livestock, after the correct procedures have been observed, it is far from a bloody job. In fact, it is surprisingly blood-free after the initial blood-letting stage.

  Vital organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and pancreas are not bloody to handle. A small film of fluid and a smear of blood would be the limit. The vital organs removed from the victims would be no bloodier than what you would buy from a butcher. However, any appendages also taken could be soiled with other matter. Such items would need to be handled more carefully.

  A kidney taken from a person or animal could be placed straight into a pocket without blood visibly soaking through the pocket and appearing on clothing. All Jack the Ripper had to do was to wipe his hands after working and, if he were wearing dark clothing, any spots of blood would be difficult to see. It would just be a matter of wiping any spots away. In fact, my suspect stated this to be the case.

  Distances in relation to Mitre Square, Aldgate. Victim denoted by ‘+’

  He also smoked a pipe so could quite easily have placed any body parts he took in a waterproof tobacco pouch before concealing them about his person. In fact, he need not have wrapped them in anything. If the latter had been the case then a possible slight smear of matter could have appeared inside a pocket or wherever the item was hidden.

  Photograph showing access and distance from Mitre Square to Aldgate High Street, looking down Mitre Street

  It would be misleading to maintain that Jack the Ripper worked in a blind and uncontrolled frenzy while killing and gutting his victims. When performing such fast work, concentration, control, ability and precision are of the essence. The operations performed on the victims were carried out in a professional manner, which was evident in the work.

  We have two missing periods of time, which indicate that Jack went straight to ground after killing Stride and Eddowes. The question of these missing times has never been explained satisfactorily. More often than not, like other aspects of the case, they have been passed over as a mystery. The first missing time relates to where Jack went on leaving Berner Street and before he reached Mitre Square.

  It has been incorrectly assumed that Jack went straight to Mitre Square, picking up a victim on the way, after leaving Berner Street. I left the site of Dutfield’s Yard at 12.55am and walked at a very fast pace to Mitre Square via Commercial Road and Aldgate High Street. This is one of two possible routes Jack took. The other route is no longer possible to travel due to redevelopment. I stopped at the old prostitute’s church, St Botolphs, Aldgate, for two minutes to reconstruct Jack’s timing.

  In 1888 prostitutes congregated outside the church, which was a well-known area for soliciting prostitutes. While prostitution was not illegal, loitering for that purpose was. To overcome this problem the prostitutes would keep on the move by walking around the church.

  It would make sense for Jack to pick up Eddowes in the vicinity of the church in Aldgate High Street which was only 46 yards from Duke Street which led into Mitre Square. He is only in the company of this victim for several minutes. It would also make sense for Jack to arrange to meet both Stride and Eddowes on site due to the measures taken to catch him. Stride was seen waiting around for some reason and in the process she was heard to turn down a potential client.

  It should have taken Jack no longer than two minutes to pick up a prostitute in Aldgate if he did not agree to meet with Eddowes on site. On leaving the church Jack should have been at the entrance to Church Passage (now St James Passage) with Eddowes between one and two minutes later. Thus, he would be in her company for only a minimum amount of time.

  I reached the entrance to Church Passage from Berner Street in just under 12 minutes. The time was nearly 1.07am. But Jack was not seen at the same place until about 1.33–35am. He certainly was not talking to Eddowes at the entrance to the passage for nearly 26–28 minutes, neither did he spend the missing time looking for a prostitute. Nor would he have gone into a pub to pick up a victim. So where did he go on leaving Berner Street and before reaching Mitre Square? I believe that he went to ground at a bolthole halfway between Berner Street and Mitre Square to alter his appearance, owing to the fact that he was seen at Berner Street.

  The second missing time relates to where Jack went on leaving Mitre Square and before he went to Goulston Street. When Eddowes was murdered it was incorrectly assumed that the killer proceeded to Goulston Street where he wrote the message on the wall and left the piece of the victim’s apron to show evidence that the writer was the killer.

  Map showing the route which I believe the killer took from his second bolthole in Leman Street to write the chalked message and to drop off the piece of the victim’s apron in the doorway at Goulston Street, which is marked ‘X’ on the map

  Mitre Square to Goulston Street is a walk of less than ten minutes, so the writing on the wall and the apron piece should have been on site no later than 1.55am if the murderer had gone directly to Goulston Street from Mitre Square. According to the police, the writing was not on the scene at 2.00am, nor was it on site at 2.20am, when the beat constable passed the spot. PC Alfred Long found it at 2.55am. PC Long was most adamant that the writing and the apron piece were not on site prior to 2.20am.

  Some time between 2.20am and 2.55am Jack the Ripper wrote the message in Goulston Street. So it stands to reason that the killer went elsewhere on leaving Mitre Square. I believe that he went to his bolthole near the centre, which he could reach quite quickly after murders two, three, four and five.

  The doorway at Goulston Street. Entrance to numbers 108–119, Wentworth Model Dwellings, Goulston Street. The lack of certain detail in relation to the crimes leaves a lot to be desired. For example no record exists of which doorjamb the killer left his message on, or where precisely on the doorjamb the writing was located. In his letter to the Home Office, Warren never mentioned these facts. Neither did Detective Halse. However, I believe the message was written on the right doorjamb, as one would face it from the street. The killer being right-handed would, I presume, stand in the cover of the entrance when writing the message on the doorjamb

  Photo courtesy of Richard Whittington-Egan

  Two alternative drawings of wall, stairs and writing

  The Goulston Street Graffito

  I believe that the chalked message was written on the black brickwork of the doorjamb at the entrance to Wentwo
rth Model Dwellings. It was not written in the inside of the stairwell as stated by some writers on the subject.

  Detective Officer Daniel Halse stated: ‘I and Detective Hunt went on to Goulston Street and the spot was pointed out to me where the apron was found. I saw some chalked writing on the black facing of the wall.’

  I believe it is possible to deduce the following from the given facts:

  1. One uses a black background if possible when writing with chalk, and the only black background available to the killer was on the doorjamb.

  2. It is usual practice to place a message in a position where it can be viewed by the maximum number of people. If written on the doorjamb then the message would have been viewed by people in the street or by those leaving and entering the building. If the message were in the stairwell then fewer people would have seen it.

  3. The manner in which the message was laid out suggests that the killer had limited space on which to write his message. The only limited space available was on the black brickwork of the doorjamb at the entrance to the building. I do not believe that the killer carried chalk on his person at all times. Therefore I view the message as not being written on the spur of the moment but rather planned well in advance of the murder.

  4. If the message was written on the wall inside the stairwell then it is most probable that it would have appeared on the wall in a similar fashion as shown (previous page left). If written on the black brick doorjamb then it would have appeared as copied by the police (previous page right).