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The Legend of Jack the Ripper Ch 9
Israel Schwartz told investigators that he had seen Stride being attacked outside Dutfield's Yard at approximately 12:45 a.m. by a man with dark hair, a small brown moustache and approximately 5 feet 5 inches in height. According to Schwartz, this man attempted to pull Stride onto the street before turning her around and shoving her to the ground. As Schwartz had observed this assault, Stride's assailant shouted the word "Lipski" either to Schwartz himself or to a second man who had exited the club amidst this altercation and lit a pipe. Schwartz did not testify at the inquest on Stride, possibly because he was of Hungarian descent and spoke very little, if any, English. At approximately the same time, Stride was seen by James Brown rejecting the advances of a stoutish man slightly taller than her in the adjacent street to Berner Street. A note in the margin of the Home Office files on the case points out that there was sufficient time for Stride to meet another individual between her death and the latest sightings of her.
No money was found on or near Stride's body. This indicated that her money could have been taken during or after the altercation witnessed by Israel Schwartz, or by her murderer if it were not the same person. It seemed she had willingly entered Dutfield's Yard and had either encountered her murderer within or had walked there with the person before being attacked.
Mrs Fanny Mortimer, who lived two doors away from the club, had stood in Berner Street to listen to the communal singing at about the time Stride had been murdered, but had not seen anyone entering the yard or heard anything amiss. Mortimer did see a man with a shiny black bag race past, and this was reported widely in the press. However, one of the club's members, Leon Goldstein, identified himself as the man Mortimer had seen and he was soon eliminated from the inquiry.
But there was something rather unusual about this day. Possibly because, the murderer could not finish the job with Elizabeth Stride. The killer was not satisfied, and since his hunger was not met, he killed another one. The same day at 1:45 am Catherine Eddowes's mutilated body was found by PC Edward Watkins at the southwest corner of Mitre Square, in the City of London, about 12 minutes walk from Berner Street.
Earlier in the night of the 29th, PC 881 Edward Watkins of the City Police had just been informed by his beat Sergeant to work left-handed. With 17 years of experience, Watkins fully understood this request. In order to throw criminals and prostitutes out of track who may have been timing and watching a Policeman's beat, beat constables were sometimes ordered to work left-handed. This meant that instead of his usual right turns, Watkins had to make left turns. The beat constable had no prior warning of this until he was just about to go on patrol. So, once instructed and noted on the list by the beat Sergeant, Watkins stepped out into that chilly night of September 29th 1888 fully equipped with his Bulls-eye lantern on and fixed to his belt. Starting near the St James Place entrance of Duke Street, he patrolled briefly north, towards Bevis Marks, before turning left into Heneage Lane. Strolling down the Lane at the regulation 2 and a half miles per hour, Watkins would have been on the lookout for anything suspicious. Checking the many shops and dwellings were secure before turning left onto Bury Street. Barely had he joined this street before he took a right into Creechurch Lane. Just before coming to the Church of St Katherine Cree he would have paid particular attention to the recently constructed warehouses on his left. Upon passing the church Watkins took another turn left into the far wider and brightly lit Leadenhall Street. Again, as he walked, he would be checking the offices and shops in the street and eyeing any loiterers as he passed the Aldgate pump. After taking a glance up Aldgate, Watkins then turned sharply left into Mitre Street. Passing No 40 Mitre Street, the sailcloth-making premises of Andrew Lowson as he went on his way, he would then pass by Copeland & Co, Oil and Provision Merchants of No 4 on his right. George Clapp, the care keeper at No 5 Mitre Street was on the premises along with his ill wife and her nurse as Watkins strolled by, continuing past the empty cottage and coffee rooms at numbers 6-7 and reaching the picture frame shop at 8-9 Mitre Street. The PC was now approaching Mitre Square upon his right.
Just before he edged around the picture frame-making shop belonging to Mr Charles Taylor, Watkins looked briefly up and down Mitre Street. Then he entered Mitre Square, checking that Mr Taylor's side door was still locked as he passed. Turning to the right and skirting his way around this dim place, he had checked that the back of the shop was secure as well as perhaps checking that the shutters were fastened. He was now in the darkest corner of Mitre square and no doubt he would have had his Bullseye lantern on and open as he checked the wooded gate of the Heydemann and Co storage yard. Maybe Watkins cast a glance up at the back window of 5 Mitre Street Co, where George Clapp would soon be retiring to bed in almost an hour. Next to the Heydemann & Co yard stood one of the four large warehouses that dominated the square, the warehouse of Horner & Co, Chemical Goods Sundriesmen. Watkins patrolled slowly along this building, again checking the entrance and then the loading bay doors before arriving at Church passage. This passage started wide in Mitre Square but narrowed dramatically from 18 feet to only 5 feet in no space at all. If Watkins were to walk along the passage he would have ended up on Duke Street. However, Watkins would have been fully aware that the security of this passage belonged to fellow beat Officer City PC 964 James Harvey. A brief look up the passage, as he stood almost under the gas lamp, he then would turn left.
Watkins' beat now brought him to the second warehouse in the square. The Kearley & Tonge warehouse and counting house were a mixture of storage and office space. Another large structure, it was one of two buildings Kearley & Tonge, wholesale grocers had in the square. As Watkins came to the entrance of this warehouse he would on any other night, between the hours of 1 and 2 am, have stopped to speak to the warehouse night watchman and ex-Metropolitan Police Constable George James Morris. This was not an unusual occurrence. It would have been part of Watkins's duty to know the night watchmen on his beat just in case he was needed. In return, the Nightwatchman became the Constable's eyes and ears when the beat PC was not in the area. There would have been periods in the beat when the Policeman and Nightwatchman liaised and discussed if anything untoward had happened whilst the Constable completed his beat, maybe over a pipe or cuppa. Watkins...
No money was found on or near Stride's body. This indicated that her money could have been taken during or after the altercation witnessed by Israel Schwartz, or by her murderer if it were not the same person. It seemed she had willingly entered Dutfield's Yard and had either encountered her murderer within or had walked there with the person before being attacked.
Mrs Fanny Mortimer, who lived two doors away from the club, had stood in Berner Street to listen to the communal singing at about the time Stride had been murdered, but had not seen anyone entering the yard or heard anything amiss. Mortimer did see a man with a shiny black bag race past, and this was reported widely in the press. However, one of the club's members, Leon Goldstein, identified himself as the man Mortimer had seen and he was soon eliminated from the inquiry.
But there was something rather unusual about this day. Possibly because, the murderer could not finish the job with Elizabeth Stride. The killer was not satisfied, and since his hunger was not met, he killed another one. The same day at 1:45 am Catherine Eddowes's mutilated body was found by PC Edward Watkins at the southwest corner of Mitre Square, in the City of London, about 12 minutes walk from Berner Street.
Earlier in the night of the 29th, PC 881 Edward Watkins of the City Police had just been informed by his beat Sergeant to work left-handed. With 17 years of experience, Watkins fully understood this request. In order to throw criminals and prostitutes out of track who may have been timing and watching a Policeman's beat, beat constables were sometimes ordered to work left-handed. This meant that instead of his usual right turns, Watkins had to make left turns. The beat constable had no prior warning of this until he was just about to go on patrol. So, once instructed and noted on the list by the beat Sergeant, Watkins stepped out into that chilly night of September 29th 1888 fully equipped with his Bulls-eye lantern on and fixed to his belt. Starting near the St James Place entrance of Duke Street, he patrolled briefly north, towards Bevis Marks, before turning left into Heneage Lane. Strolling down the Lane at the regulation 2 and a half miles per hour, Watkins would have been on the lookout for anything suspicious. Checking the many shops and dwellings were secure before turning left onto Bury Street. Barely had he joined this street before he took a right into Creechurch Lane. Just before coming to the Church of St Katherine Cree he would have paid particular attention to the recently constructed warehouses on his left. Upon passing the church Watkins took another turn left into the far wider and brightly lit Leadenhall Street. Again, as he walked, he would be checking the offices and shops in the street and eyeing any loiterers as he passed the Aldgate pump. After taking a glance up Aldgate, Watkins then turned sharply left into Mitre Street. Passing No 40 Mitre Street, the sailcloth-making premises of Andrew Lowson as he went on his way, he would then pass by Copeland & Co, Oil and Provision Merchants of No 4 on his right. George Clapp, the care keeper at No 5 Mitre Street was on the premises along with his ill wife and her nurse as Watkins strolled by, continuing past the empty cottage and coffee rooms at numbers 6-7 and reaching the picture frame shop at 8-9 Mitre Street. The PC was now approaching Mitre Square upon his right.
Just before he edged around the picture frame-making shop belonging to Mr Charles Taylor, Watkins looked briefly up and down Mitre Street. Then he entered Mitre Square, checking that Mr Taylor's side door was still locked as he passed. Turning to the right and skirting his way around this dim place, he had checked that the back of the shop was secure as well as perhaps checking that the shutters were fastened. He was now in the darkest corner of Mitre square and no doubt he would have had his Bullseye lantern on and open as he checked the wooded gate of the Heydemann and Co storage yard. Maybe Watkins cast a glance up at the back window of 5 Mitre Street Co, where George Clapp would soon be retiring to bed in almost an hour. Next to the Heydemann & Co yard stood one of the four large warehouses that dominated the square, the warehouse of Horner & Co, Chemical Goods Sundriesmen. Watkins patrolled slowly along this building, again checking the entrance and then the loading bay doors before arriving at Church passage. This passage started wide in Mitre Square but narrowed dramatically from 18 feet to only 5 feet in no space at all. If Watkins were to walk along the passage he would have ended up on Duke Street. However, Watkins would have been fully aware that the security of this passage belonged to fellow beat Officer City PC 964 James Harvey. A brief look up the passage, as he stood almost under the gas lamp, he then would turn left.
Watkins' beat now brought him to the second warehouse in the square. The Kearley & Tonge warehouse and counting house were a mixture of storage and office space. Another large structure, it was one of two buildings Kearley & Tonge, wholesale grocers had in the square. As Watkins came to the entrance of this warehouse he would on any other night, between the hours of 1 and 2 am, have stopped to speak to the warehouse night watchman and ex-Metropolitan Police Constable George James Morris. This was not an unusual occurrence. It would have been part of Watkins's duty to know the night watchmen on his beat just in case he was needed. In return, the Nightwatchman became the Constable's eyes and ears when the beat PC was not in the area. There would have been periods in the beat when the Policeman and Nightwatchman liaised and discussed if anything untoward had happened whilst the Constable completed his beat, maybe over a pipe or cuppa. Watkins...
