In the aftermath of the murder of Annie Chapman, several women came forward to give accounts of meetings with sinister strangers in the neighbourhood where the murder had occurred.
One of these was a young woman who had encountered a man that got her suspicious, to say the least, and gave her cause for concern in the Queen's Head pub on Commercial Street.
The Fife Herald published the following account of the encounter:-A representative of the Press Association, in pursuing his investigations in the same district on Sunday night, heard the following statement made in the presence of the police.
The informant, he says, was a woman named Lyons, of the class commonly known as unfortunates or fallen ones.She stated that at about three o'clock on Saturday afternoon, she met a strange man in Flower and Dean Street, one of the worst streets in the East End of London. He asked her to go to Queen's Head public house at half past six and have a drink with him.Having obtained from the young woman a promise that she would do so, he disappeared but was present at the house at the appointed time.While they were conversing, Lyons noticed something really strange, and odd about that situation. There was a large knife in his right-hand trousers pocket. Lyons signalled another woman and called another woman's attention towards the astonishing fact.A moment later, Lyons was startled by a remark in which the stranger addressed her. "You are about the same style of woman as the one that's murdered," he said. "What do you know about her?" asked the woman, to which the man replied, "You are beginning to smell a rat. Foxes hunt geese, but they don't always find 'em." Having uttered these words, the man hurriedly left. The strange reply and the knife made Lyons suspect him to be the alleged killer. So she decided to follow him.
Lyons followed that man until she reached somewhere near Spitalfields Church. The light of the gas lamps fell on Lyons, and the man managed to notice her shadow. Having been alerted to her presence, the man stood still for a while and turned around to face Lyon. Seeing that the strange man turned around and looked at her, she was startled for a moment or so. She stepped a step behind, for just in case he ran for her. The man, realising the fact that the woman was behind him, he turned his face on the road and ran swiftly into Church street, and was lost from sight.
While i was studying the case through,I too uncovered a noteworthy fact in this story is that the description of the man's appearance is, in all material points, identical with the published description of the unknown and, up to the present undiscovered, Leather Apron."Apparently, this man was known to try to extort money from them by pulling out a knife and threatening to "rip them apart" unless they handed over what cash they had made in the course of their nighttime activities. My good friend, Will says, one night when he was walking down the alley, he saw a guy aggressively holding a woman. He was pushing her against the wall. The woman was afraid and scared. The man was demanding money from her. When will got closer, the man ran away.
Following the investigation of this possible suspect, on 10th September, the police arrested a guy called John pizer, who was also known as Leather Apron. At that time, he was arrested only as a suspect in the murder of Polly Nichols. Pizer was arrested by Police Sergeant William Thicke. Pizer was a Polish Jew who worked as a bootmaker in Whitechapel and was believed by Thicke to have committed a slew of minor assaults on prostitutes.
Although the investigating inspector in the early days of the Whitechapel Murders had stated that "there is no evidence whatsoever against him", many locals suspected Pfizer was the killer. Pfizer was later cleared of suspicion when it was realized that he had alibis for two of the murders. He'd been staying with relatives at the time of one of the canonical five murders and was talking with a constable while witnessing a raging fire on the London docks at the time of another murder.Having known Thicke for years, Pizer claimed that he had been detained by Police as a result of Thicke's animosity towards him, rather than any substantial evidence. Although he did have one prior conviction for a stabbing offence, there wasn't any concrete evidence that would suggest Pizer was the Ripper. As a result, the case against him was dropped.
On 11th September, when some workers were working near Grosvenor Road, Pimlico near the river Thames.While working, they noticed a strange object sticking out of the mud. Frederick Moore went in to check the object only to find a woman's right arm. The arm was then taken to the mortuary, where doctor Thomas Bond and his associate Dr Charles Hebbert performed an examination. The examination revealed that the victim was a white female between the age of 20 to 25 years. The arm was removed with precision and reflected the work of an expert. A tourniquet was used to stem the flow of blood. But due to a lack of information, the case was somewhat left behind.
On 13th September 1888, London police arrested a man called Jacob Isenschmid, at his home on Milford Road in the Holloway neighbourhood. The arrested man was a butcher.A couple of days ago, on 11th September, two Whitechapel doctors had denounced him because of his strange habits, suggesting he could be the killer who was operating in the region. In the first attempted arrest, authorities were greeted by Isenschmid's spouse, since he was not present at the time.Even more convincingly, the complaint of the doctors would result in the suspect's own wife's statements. The woman alleged that two months ago, her husband had left their home and only returned sporadically without any notice. She stressed that he had a violent and ungovernable character and used to carry large and sharp knives on him - even when it did not require to practise of his trade. She also claimed that he had threatened to kill her once.Apparently, the butcher had normal behaviour until the previous year, when the failure of his business plunged him into serious depression. The following year, still in that state, he would become aggressive, committing wild attacks against women in the area.It was learned that Isenschmid had undergone prolonged hospitalisation in a psychiatric hospital because he suffered from severe psychiatric disorders. Medical reports found him completely demented, and examining forensics diagnosed him as insanely dangerous. After his arrest, the justice ordered that he be imprisoned in a mental institution, and was referred to the hospital on Fairfield Road.As soon as his arrest reached the ears of the press, the version that, without a doubt, the prisoner was a fierce criminal, and that the savage mutilations inflicted on the bodies were due to his mental disorders.
With sensational headlines, the newspapers reported on the apprehension of the offender who was nicknamed "The Whitechapel Killer" at that time, and made sure that the killer of the prostitutes was none other than "The Crazy Butcher".
A little before 6 am on the day of the murder , John Davis, an elderly resident of 29 Hanbury Street, came downstairs, walked along the narrow passageway, and opened the back door. He was frightened to see the brutality of the scene. He began to shout and gather people around the neighbourhood.
Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper published his inquest testimony on Sunday, 16th September, 1888:-John Davies, a carman, employed at Leadenhall Market, and who had lodged at 29, Hanbury-street for a fortnight, deposed:-
"I occupy 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 11.
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 backyard.
The house faces Hanbury-street, with one window on the ground floor and a front door at the side leading into a passage that 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. Anyone who knows where the latch of the front door is could open it and go along the passage into the backyard.''
Coroner "When you went into the yard on Saturday morning, was the yard door open or shut?"
Witness "I found it shut. I cannot say whether it was latched - I cannot remember."
Coroner "Will you describe the yard?"
Witness "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 5ft. 6in. high."
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."
On the next hearing, the Examination resumed:
John Davis: "There was a little recess on the left. From the steps to the fence is about 3ft. 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 woodshed. The clothes were very disarranged.
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 case maker, of Hanbury-street. I do not know their names, but I know them by sight."
Coroner "Have the names of these men been ascertained?"
Inspector Chandler "I have made inquiries, but I cannot find the men."
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."
Coroner "Your work is of no consequence compared with this inquiry. You must find these men out, either with the assistance of the police or my officer."
On the third hearing, the Examination resumed:
Jon Davis continues:"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 I did not re-enter the house.
As I passed, I saw constables there."
Coroner "Have you ever seen the deceased before?"
Witness "No."
Coroner "Were you the first down in the house that morning?"
Witness "No; there was a lodger named Thompson, who was called at half-past three."
Thomas Eade appeared as a witness at the inquest into the death of Mary Nichols when it resumed on Monday, 17th September 1888.
Strangely, his testimony would seem to be more pertinent to the murder of Annie Chapman than to that of Mary Nichols, but, for some reason, he was a witness and Mary Nichols's inquest.
The Pall Mall Gazette published his brief testimony in its next day's edition:
Thomas Eade stated that on Saturday, September 8, he was going down the Cambridge-road, towards Whitechapel- road, when he saw a man who attracted his attention, as he was holding his arm stiffly.As he moved his arm, the witness saw the blade of a knife sticking out of his trousers pocket.A witness told some men of what he had seen, and then followed the man for some distance, intending to give him into custody, but he lost sight of him.He looked like a mechanic and was about 5 ft. 8 in. in height and thirty-five years of age. He wore a dark brown jacket, a pair of white overalls, and a double-peaked cap. He had dark whiskers and mustachios."
Albert Cadosch lived at number 27 Hanbury Street. According to him, he heard something or someone falling against a fence. Based on his reports, Annie may have already been dead when Elizabeth Long claimed to have seen her in the street outside 29 Hanbury Street.
The Morning Post published the inquest testimony of Albert Cadosch
on Thursday, 20th September, 1888:-
I live at 27, Hanbury-street. My occupation is that of a carpenter; 27 is next door to 29 Hanbury Street.
On Saturday, the 8th of September, I got up about a quarter-past five in the morning. I went through the yard of my house to the far end of the yard farthest from 29. It was then about 20 minutes past five.
As I returned towards the back door, I heard a voice say "No" just as I was going through the door. It was not in our yard, but I should think it came from the yard of No. 29.
I went indoors, but I came back again into the yard about three or four minutes afterwards and proceeded to the end of the yard.
On coming back, I heard a noise which sounded like a fall against the fence, which divides my yard from that of 29. It seemed as if something seemed to touch the fence suddenly.
The Coroner:- "Did you look to see what it was?"
No, sir. I then went into the house and from there into the street to go to my work. It was about two minutes after half-past five as I passed Spitalfields church.
By A Juryman: I informed the police the same night after I returned from my work.
The Foreman: "What height are the palings?"
About 5ft. 6in. to 6 ft.
The Foreman: "And you didn't have the curiosity to look over?"
No. sir, I did not as it is usual for people to be in the yard next door. They are very early risers.
The Foreman: "Is it usual for thumps against the palings?"
They are packing-case makers, and now and then, there is a great case that goes up against the palings.
By The Coroner: I did not see any man or woman in the street when I went out. I did not see Mrs Long, one of the witnesses here today. I saw a workman passing by on the other side."
Another witness to the story,
Eliza Copper was a fellow resident of Annie Chapman at the lodging house at 35 Dorset Dorset Street. She later stated that she had known Annie Chapman for fifteen months, although their relationship shortly before Annie's death had, evidently, not been a cordial one.
Interestingly, there are mentions in the newspapers of September 1888 that - along with another resident of 35 Dorset Street, Elizabeth Allen - Eliza Cooper had given crucial information to the police regarding a potential suspect.
She said:
"I lodge at 35, Dorset-street, Spitalfields. I have done so for the last five months. I knew Chapman.
I had a quarrel with her the Tuesday before she was murdered. On the previous Saturday, she brought Mr. Stanley into 35, Dorset Street. She came into the kitchen and asked the people there to give her some soap. They told her to ask, "Liza." She came to me, and I opened the locker and gave her some.
I afterwards asked for the soap, but she did not return it. We quarrelled, and we went out to the Ringers public-house and continued the quarrel. She slapped my face and said, "Think yourself lucky. I did not do more."
I struck her in the left eye, I believe, and then in the chest.
I afterwards saw that the blow had marked her face.
I last saw her alive on Wednesday night. She was wearing three rings on the third finger of her left hand. They were all brass.
The Coroner: "Has she ever had a gold wedding ring to your knowledge?"
Witness "No, not since I have known her. I have known her for about 15 months. She is associated with Stanley, "Harry the Hawker," and several others.
On 22nd September, Thomas Eades was recalled for the second day of the inquest.
A woman called Rosetta Anderson claimed that on the evening of Wednesday, 19th September 1888, she had encountered a "curious and mysterious man" on her doorstep.
Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper carried the story of her encounter in its edition of Sunday, 23rd September 1888:-
On Thursday morning Rosetta Anderson made a statement to the effect that on Wednesday evening a "curious and mysterious man," as Mrs Anderson herself describes him, placed himself on her doorstep, looked around him, and behaved in such an eccentric manner that she thought he was a maniac.
He intently watched every woman as she passed, but, observing that he was himself an object of suspicion, he suddenly darted out of sight up a court nearby.
Mrs Anderson believes that this man was the murderer.
His appearance in almost every respect answered the description of the foreigner seen talking with the deceased woman,Annie Chapman, in Hanbury-street on the morning of her death.
The police are investigating the matter.
Strange to say, his appearance tallies somewhat with that of the man already alluded to."