THAMES - A SUPPOSED BURGLAR. - John Leary, 41, was charged with being found on enclosed premises for the purpose of committing a felony. - Constable Soper, H Division, said that about 12.30 on Monday morning he was with Constable King, when they heard a noise at the rear of No. 36, New-road, Whitechapel, as of a door being rattled. They also noticed a light in the yard, and witness went to the front of the house, to see if there were any others. Finding there were none, he returned and helped King to get on the wall. Witness aroused the occupier, and found prisoner in the yard. - Constable King deposed that he saw Leary with a knife, which he dropped on catching sight of witness. The accused was known to the police, and had been previously convicted. - Mr. Saunders sentenced prisoner to three months' hard labour.
STATE OF WHITECHAPEL. - George Sullivan, 30, was brought up for threatening to stab Mrs. Ellen Jansen, staying with her mother, at 42, St. George-street, E. - Prosecutrix said that between ten and eleven o'clock on Saturday night prisoner came into the house - a beer-house - and asked to be served. He behaved in a suspicious manner, and witness would not serve him. Sullivan was walking up and down the bar, and witness told him not to annoy the customers. He had a long knife in his hand, and threatened to stab her. Prisoner went out, and she followed him. She found him in a public-house, when he said, "You can't lock me up. I've only just come out of Colney Hatch. I was there two years." Witness gave him into custody. - Mr. George Stacey, relieving officer, who happened to be in court, said he knew prisoner well. He had been in all the asylums in and around London. - Mr. Saunders remanded the accused. - Hans Bube, a well-dressed German, was charged with assaulting Elizabeth Jennings, of 37, Duckett-street, Stepney. - Prosecutrix said that about 12.30 on Saturday night she was walking along Harford-street, on an errand, when the accused came up, caught hold of her arm, which he pinched, and said, "Come along with me, my dear." Witness was frightened, and screamed. She stood by a young man whom she knew, when prisoner followed, and she ran into the road. He came after her, but saw another lady approaching, whose shawl he grasped. Several men seized him and detained him until the arrival of a constable, who took him into custody. - Constable 150 E deposed that when he arrested the accused he said he did not mean anything. The man was under the influence of drink. - Prisoner, through an interpreter, said he accosted Jennings by mistake. She screamed and ran away, and he followed to give an explanation, when he was detained. He did the same to the other woman. - A witness for the defence, named Webb, stated that he saw the prisoner just touch the women. They screamed, and a mob of men got round the accused, calling him "Jack the Ripper." - Mr. Saunders observed that the defendant had frightened the women, and that at a time when they would easily be frightened. He would be fined 40s, or one month's hard labour.
At Worship-street Police Court, yesterday, Mary Hawkes, eighteen, who gave an address in Gun-street, Spitalfields, and James Fordham, twenty-one, a painter, refusing his address, were charged before Mr. Montagu Williams with having been concerned with others in assaulting Carl Edwin Hellman, and robbing him of a purse containing £4 and of a pair of trousers. - The prosecutor's evidence was taken through M. Karamelli, interpreter. Hellman, who is a Swede, described himself as a student. Late on Saturday night he was in the neighbourhood of Whitechapel the worse for drink, and got into the company of some women, one of whom he accompanied to Thrawl-street, Spitalfields, whence he was taken into a common lodging-house in Flower and Dean-street. Having paid the deputy for a "double" bed, he found fault with it, and the woman then left him. Almost immediately she did so four or five men rushed in, seized him, and threw him on the bed, where he was held down by the throat and robbed of his purse and his trousers. He was then taken from the room and thrust down the stairs. He was screaming very loudly then, and just as he was thrown downstairs Police-constables Wright and Dennis, H Division, burst in at the street-door. It seemed from the evidence of a Mr. Percy Carton, ship's steward, that he and a friend had noticed the prosecutor being pulled down Thrawl-street by the women, and had informed the constables. Directly they passed the lodging-house in Flower and Dean-street they heard screams, and when they entered the house the men who had been attacking Hellman vanished. The police said the deputy was not to be found, and they were shown by the prosecutor the room in which he had been robbed. It was explained that these apartments are merely divisions of a very large room, the partitions not reaching to the ceiling, so that it is possible, by mounting a table or short ladder, to look over the top into the next "room." Police-constable Wright did that, and saw the prisoners in bed. They seemed to be asleep, but he made the woman open the door. She was then seen to be trying to shuffle something out into the next "room," and the article being picked up proved to be the prosecutor's trousers. She denied all knowledge of them, and so did Fordham; but when the latter got out of bed the prosecutor said he was one of the men who had attacked him. When the bed was searched the purse was found, but with only £1 10s in it. A handkerchief belonging to Hellman was also discovered, and he said he believed Hawkes to be the young woman who took him to the lodging-house. Fordham asserted that he had been in bed two hours, and knew nothing of any robbery. Carton stated that Fordham was out in the street watching the women and the prosecutor, and had even spoken to him on the matter. He left, and the witness and his friend saw him enter the lodging-house where ten minutes later the complainant was heard screaming. The magistrate having elicited the above details, said he would have the deputy of the lodging-house attend to explain some of the proceedings there. He had previously expressed his opinion of these lodging-houses, and here was a case in point. The police must inquire into the case and bring up the deputy. The prisoners he ordered to be remanded.
The Central News says the Metropolitan Police last night made an arrest through the instrumentality of the manager of a London clothes cleaning establishment near Holborn. The same news agency adds the following: "Last Wednesday afternoon a man called at the shop between twelve and two o'clock in the afternoon with two garments - an overcoat and a pair of trousers - to be cleaned. They were both blood-stained; the coat was especially smeared near one of the pockets, and there were large spots of blood on various parts of the trousers. The manager was away at the time, and his wife took charge of the clothes; the owner of the garments said he would call for them on Friday or Saturday. The woman called her husband's attention to the blood stains, and he communicated with the Metropolitan Police, who, having examined the garments, took them to Scotland-yard. Since then two detectives were secreted on the premises, awaiting the stranger's return. Friday and Saturday passed by without his calling, but last evening he entered the shop a few minutes before closing time. A detective-sergeant and a companion seized him without much ceremony, and he was taken straight to Leman-street Police-station. Meanwhile the prisoner accounted for the presence of the blood-marks by the assertion that he had cut his hand. It is stated, however, that his explanation was not altogether consistent, as he spoke of having cut himself last Saturday, and then, as if recollecting himself, said he had also cut his hand previously. He further stated that he had had the garments by him, at his lodgings, for two or three weeks, but he refused to give his address. The prisoner is of good physique."
On inquiry at Leman-street Police-station at midnight it was stated that no person suspected of participation in the Whitechapel murders remained under arrest.
The Press Association states; "We are officially informed that Sir Charles Warren, the Chief Commissioner of Police, has made arrangements for the employment of bloodhounds to track the murderer in the event of any further persons being found murdered under circumstances similar to those in the cases which have recently occurred in Whitechapel. An instruction has been issued to the police that they are not to remove the body of the victim, but to send notice immediately to a veterinary surgeon in the south-west district, who holds several trained bloodhounds in readiness to be taken to the spot where the body may be found, and to be at once put on the scent. No details as to the plan which will be followed are given. The plan of operations will, to a great extent, depend upon the circumstances of any particular case in which the aid of the bloodhounds may be called into requisition."
The following opinions are those of Mr. A. E. Knowles, who for many years was employed in America and in Great Britain in detective work. Mr. Knowles was a member of the Pinkerton private inquiry combination of New York, whose services are frequently retained by the Government of the United States, and subsequently he had a successful experience in the detective department of the Glasgow police. Latterly, having virtually retired from business, he has been resident in the metropolis, with which he is thoroughly familiar. Mr. Knowles, as an expert in criminal investigation, is convinced that the Whitechapel murderer is insane, because of the absence of motive and of the character of the mutilations which he perpetrates. That he is a coward is evidenced by the class of victims chosen, and the fact that these women must have been in a state of drink at the time of their death. The manner in which the culprit has eluded notice, and the way in which he guarded against suspicion both before and after the murders, shows that he is possessed of considerable intelligence, probably the cunning of the lunatic. The assassin must have means at his command by which he is enabled to change his abode, personal appearance, and dress at pleasure. Time has been wasted in looking amongst the rags of Whitechapel for him, and the step which should have been taken at the outset was to have sent information to every railway station and port within reasonable distance of London immediately after the first murder was reported. By these means every passenger out of the City on the Sunday would have been scrutinised. The police lost their opportunity at the time of the Hanbury-street murder. Had they adopted the same precautions as prevail now the man would have been captured. The murderer, Mr. Knowles believes, is not now in the East of London, and, the hue-and-cry being so great, he doubts his presence in England. Great precautions are necessary, as during a period of panic the imitative faculty is strong, as already shown by the commission of a similar crime at Gateshead. There are circumstances which justify the inference that the Whitechapel murderer is respectably connected, living alone in chambers, or possibly with a relative - and if the latter it cannot be expected that a mother or sister would hand him over to justice, but would do all she could to get him out of the country. Ten or twelve years ago a case occurred in America in which two children, both girls under fourteen, were found murdered. They were enticed from the streets at different times and their throats were cut. One body was thrown into a garden and the other into a piece of waste ground. The author of the crime could not be discovered. A little girl was sent out as a decoy, and was watched meanwhile by detectives. For days nothing occurred, but at last a man to whom suspicion pointed drew near. The success of the stratagem was marred, however, by the fear of the detectives that he might kill the girl before their eyes, and they dared not hide themselves. The individual suspected made off, but he was "shadowed," and his address and connections were discovered. Owing to the political system prevailing the chief of the police could not be induced to issue a warrant, as, legally, there was absolutely no evidence. In England the man would have certainly been detained for inquiries. Every effort to interview him failed, and his family sent him out of the country, it is alleged, to avoid further inquiry. Mr. Knowles thinks that the English detective system might be reinforced by a small body of well-paid, well-dressed men of good education and proven intelligence, and of not more than 5ft. 7in. in height, as a person over that stature attracts attention. Mr. Pinkerton, in choosing his staff, invariably gives the preference to short men. Detectives need not of necessity be policemen.
Writing upon the question of the reform of the detective organisation an officer who has had many years' experience in the Metropolis and City of London forces, as well as in the borough police and county constabulary, says: "It would be well for the Home Secretary to have at command the entire control of a select and distinct detective force, members of which could at any moment be dispatched to any part of the kingdom, and be answerable only to the Government for their duty. If possible, they should be the pick of the police, because men trained in police service have a knowledge of criminals and their ways. They should be of good education, for education cannot fail to master subtlety in the long run. The ordinary detective may possess tact, which, in common cases, makes him useful; but in important matters clear judgment, guided by the powers that education alone can give, is essential. In this branch of the service should be enrolled men of proved integrity. It would be worth the cost to the nation to pay such a force in proportion to its standard as a high-class and intelligent body, at liberty to attend anywhere. The Secretary of State should not stand alone in this particular department, for all who have held that office have not been alike. Lord Cross and Sir Wm. Harcourt were eminently able directors on criminal subjects. Men like them are not always at the helm - political changes remove them - and they may be succeeded by persons of less energetic temperament."
The funeral of the victim of the Mitre-square tragedy took place yesterday afternoon. In the vicinity of the City mortuary in Golden-lane quite a multitude of persons assembled to witness the departure of the cortége for the Ilford cemetery. Not only was the thoroughfare itself thronged with people, but the windows and roofs of adjoining buildings were occupied by groups of spectators. The procession left the mortuary shortly after half-past one o'clock. It consisted of a hearse of improved description, a mourning coach, containing relatives and friends of the deceased, and a brougham conveying representatives of the press. The coffin was of polished elm, with oak mouldings, and bore a plate with the inscription, in gold letters, "Catherine Eddowes, died Sept. 30, 1888, aged 43 years." One of the sisters of the deceased laid a beautiful wreath on the coffin as it was placed in the hearse, and at the graveside a wreath of marguerites was added by a sympathetic kinswoman. The mourners were the four sisters of the murdered woman, Harriet Jones, Emma Eddowes, Eliza Gold, and Elizabeth Fisher, her two nieces Emma and Harriet Jones, and John Kelly, the man with whom she had lived. As the funeral procession passed through Golden-lane and Old-street the thousands of persons who followed it nearly into Whitechapel rendered locomotion extremely difficult. Order was, however, admirably maintained by a body of police under Superintendent Foster and Inspector Woollett of the City force, and beyond the boundaries of the City by a further contingent under Superintendent Hunt and Inspector Burnham of the G Division. The route taken after leaving Old-street was by way of Great Eastern-street, Commercial-street, Whitechapel-road, Mile-end-road, through Stratford to the City cemetery at Ilford. A large crowd had collected opposite the parish church of St. Mary's, Whitechapel, to see the procession pass, and at the cemetery it was awaited by several hundreds, most of whom had apparently made their way thither from the East-end. Men and women of all ages, many of the latter carrying infants in their arms, gathered round the grave. The remains were interred in the Church of England portion of the cemetery, the service being conducted by the chaplain, the Rev. Mr. Dunscombe. Mr. G. C. Hawkes, a vestryman of St. Luke's, undertook the responsibility of carrying out the funeral at his own expense, and the City authorities, to whom the burial ground belongs, remitted the usual fees.
Yesterday Mr. John Troutbeck, coroner for Westminster, opened an inquest on the remains of the woman discovered in a vault of the new police office on the Thames Embankment on Tuesday last. Assembling at the mortuary in Millbank-street, the jury were sworn, and viewed the remains there, afterwards adjourning to the Sessions House, Broad-sanctuary, where the evidence was taken.
Frederick Wildborn was the first witness examined, and he said: I live at 17, Mansell-road, Clapham Junction, and am a carpenter employed by Messrs. Grover and Sons at the New Central Police Office at Westminster. On Tuesday last I was at the buildings, and my work took me to all parts of the place during the day. At six o'clock on the morning of the previous day I had occasion to go to the vaults to find my tools, my labourer having taken them there on the Saturday. I then noticed what I took to be an old coat thrown on one side. It was lying in the corner of a recess. It was very dark there, even in the middle of the day. I could not find my tools - my labourer having, in fact, already removed them. In the evening at 5.30 I went once more to the vaults, and I then noticed the parcel again. There was no smell, not in the least. I drew my mate's attention to the parcel, and struck a wax vesta to look at it.
The Coroner: Was that the first time you had noticed it particularly? - Yes; but we did not know what it was, and came away.
Did you report the circumstance? - Not then. I saw the parcel again the next morning. About one o'clock Mr. Brown, the assistant foreman, came down to where I was at work, and I then informed him of what I had seen. We both went and looked at the parcel, and we thought it seemed curious.
Was it opened in your presence? - No.
Were you in the vault on the Saturday? - I was not there for a week before.
When you were last there did you perceive anything unusual? - No.
Did your labourer say anything to you about it? - No. I heard of the discovery of a body about three-quarters of an hour after Mr. Brown had seen the parcel.
Did the parcel remain in the same position from the Monday until you drew Mr. Brown's attention to it? - Yes; when I lit the match was the first time I had noticed anything particular. There was some débris in the place.
Has this vault been used for putting your tools in for any length of time? - For some weeks until the last three weeks. I always placed my tools there from Saturday to Monday, because I considered them safer there than in the locker. I have not noticed any similar parcel before.
No one carrying such a parcel? - No.
Is there any difficulty in getting to the vault? - Yes, to a stranger.
By the Jury: There is a hoarding all round the buildings. Each time I had to strike a match in order to see the parcel. I got to the vault not by means of a plank, but of a compo floor. I was not at the works at all from the Saturday to the Monday. When I saw the parcel first I thought it was a workman's old coat.
George Budgen deposed: I live in Salisbury-buildings, Walworth, and am a bricklayer's labourer, in the employ of Messrs. Grover. I was in this vault last Tuesday afternoon, just before three o'clock. I went there because my foreman, Mr. Cheney, told me there was a parcel there, and I was to examine it. I looked at it, and found that the top was bare, and the rest wrapped in some old cloth, but could make nothing of it. I thought it was some old bacon at first. I took hold of the strings around it, and dragged it into the light and cut the strings, three or four in number. On opening the old wrappers I saw that the parcel contained part of a human body.
How long before had you been in the vault? - Not for a long time. I had no occasion to go there.
Had you ever seen the parcel before? - No. I took a lamp down; without it I should not have been able to see anything. It was as dark as the darkest night. The police afterwards took charge of the remains.
What was said to you when you were sent to the vault? - The foreman only asked me to go and see what the parcel was.
Thomas Hawkins, detective, A Division, said: About twenty minutes past three on Tuesday afternoon last Mr. Brown came, to the King-street police-station, and from what he told the inspector I was despatched to the new police buildings. In one of the vaults I observed some human remains, wrapped in a piece of dress material and tied with string. I went to where the men told me the parcel had been found, and saw two pieces more of dress material. I left a constable in charge of the body while I went to the station, and also reported the discovery to Dr. Bond, who soon arrived at the spot. I directed all the witnesses to come to the station, where their statements were taken down. I fetched Detective-Inspector Marshall, who came at five o'clock and took charge of the body.
What did you notice about the vaults? - They were very dark, so dark that it was impossible for a stranger to reach them without artificial light. The body was lying across a trench.
Frederick Moore, being sworn, stated: I live in Great Peter-street, and am a deal porter. About a quarter to one on Sept. 11 I was standing outside the gates of No. 113, Grosvenor-road - a deal wharf where I work - when my attention was called by a few workmen looking over the Embankment to something which was lying in the mud of the river near the sluices from Millbank Distillery. The men said they thought the object was an arm, but I did not think it was. However, a ladder was obtained, and we then found that it was an arm.
Was it wrapped in anything? - Nothing.
Was there any string round it? - Yes, round the upper part. I put the arm on the timber, and gave information to the police.
You had not seen the arm before? - No.
And you do not think it was there the day before? - I could not say.
William James, Constable 127 B: About 12.45 on Sept. 11 I was on duty on Grosvenor Embankment, when my attention was called to the arm by the last witness, and I conveyed it first to the police-station, and subsequently to the mortuary.
Did you find any other remains? - No. I was on special patrol on the Embankment for a week afterwards, but saw nothing else on the mud.
Charles William Brown: I reside at 5, Hampton-terrace, Hornsey, and am assistant foreman to Messrs. Grover, at the new police offices, Whitehall. The works are shut off from the surrounding streets by a hoarding about 7ft high.
How many entrances are there? - Three; two in Cannon-row and one on the Embankment. There are gates at the entrances as high as the hoardings.
How long have these vaults been completed? - Three months.
Who was admitted to the works besides workmen? - No one, unless they had business.
Was any one kept at the gates? - No.
So that any person who chose could walk in? - There was no one to prevent them. On Saturdays, all the gates are locked up, except a small-one in Cannon-row.
Is there a watchman there? - No.
Who are left on the premises at night? - No one. The small gate in Cannon-row is secured by a latch, and it is not everybody who can undo it.
Is there any watchman outside? - No.
What were the approaches to the vaults? - A road made of planks laid two abreast. Once down in the vaults it is very dark. The floors have to be laid there and the drains put down. Carpenters were at work there the week before the discovery.
Did you observe anything about the state of the locks on the following Monday morning? - No.
Did they look as if they had been forced? - I did not notice.
Do you think previous knowledge was required to get to the vaults? - Yes, I do. I first saw the parcel about half-past two o'clock on Tuesday afternoon. I had been in the vaults on the Monday, but had not noticed any smell. I was there in the dark. On Tuesday the first witness called my attention to the parcel. He struck a light, and I saw in the corner what looked like an old coat with a piece of ham inside. I procured a lamp, and the parcel was afterwards got out and opened.
By the Jury: Tools have been stolen on the works. I do not think it possible that any one could have lowered the parcel from Richmond-mews.
Mr. George Cheney: I live at 23, Berwick-street, Wandsworth Bridge, and am a foreman of bricklayers at the new police buildings. On Tuesday afternoon last Mr. Brown led me to this parcel, and on our striking a light we examined it, but could not make out what it was. We obtained a lamp, and removed the parcel to daylight, when we saw the remains of a woman.
How long before that had you been in the vault? - Not since it was finished three months ago.
Had you seen the parcel before anywhere else? - No.
Ernest Edge, a general labourer, living in Peabody's-buildings, Farringdon-road, deposed: I was in this vault on Saturday week at twenty minutes to five in the evening, going there to get a hammer to nail the door of a locker. I struck a match, but nothing was in the vault then. I went across the trench, where we were measuring on the Friday. On the Saturday I was in the very corner where the parcel was discovered on the Tuesday.
There was no parcel there on the Saturday? - No. I might have been near the vault on the Monday; I certainly was on the Tuesday.
The vault leads to nowhere? - No.
Are workmen constantly in the vault during the day? - Almost every day they go there to look for things. On the Saturday I locked up after everybody had gone, and left everything secure. As to the gate, which opens with a latch, I left that in the usual way. I am sure it was shut. To open the gate it was only necessary to pull the string.
By the jury: The string would not attract the attention except of persons who knew about such buildings.
Mr. Thomas Bond: I am a surgeon, and reside at the Sanctuary, Westminster Abbey. On Oct. 2, shortly before four o'clock, I was called to the new police buildings, where I was shown the decomposed trunk of a body. It was then lying in the basement partially unwrapped. I visited the place where it had been discovered, and found that the wall against which it had lain was stained black. The parcel seemed to have been there for several days, and it was taken to the mortuary that evening, and the remains placed in spirits. On the following morning, assisted by my colleague, I made an examination. The trunk was that of a woman of considerable stature and well nourished. The head had been separated from the trunk by means of a saw. The lower limbs and the pelvis had been removed in the same way. The length of the trunk was 17 inches, and the circumference of the chest 35½ inches and the waist 28½ inches. The parts were decomposed , and we could not discover any wounds. The breasts were large and prominent. The arms had been removed at the shoulder joints by several incisions, the cuts having apparently been made obliquely from above downwards, and then around the arm. Over the body were clearly defined marks, where string had been tied. It appeared to have been wrapped up in a very skilful manner. We did not find marks indicating that the woman had borne any children. On opening the chest we found that the rib cartilages were not ossified, that one lung was healthy, but that the left lung showed signs of severe pleurisy. The substance of the heart was healthy, and there were indications that the woman had not died either of suffocation or of drowning. The liver and stomach, kidneys and spleen were normal. The uterus was absent. There were indications that the woman was of mature age - twenty-four or twenty-five years. She would have been large and well nourished, with fair skin and dark hair. The date of death would have been from six weeks to two months, and the decomposition occurred in the air, not the water. I subsequently examined the arm brought to the mortuary. It was the arm of a woman, and accurately fitted to the trunk; and the general contour of the arm corresponded to that of the body. The fingers were long and taper, and the nails well shaped; and the hand was quite that of a person not used to manual labour.
Was there anything to indicate the cause of death? - Nothing whatever.
Could you tell whether death was sudden or lingering? - All I can say is that death was not by suffocation or drowning. Most likely it was from haemorrhage or fainting.
Can you give any indication of the probable height of the woman? - From our measurements we believed the height to have been 5ft 8in. That opinion depends more upon the measurements of the arm than those of the trunk itself.
Was the woman stout? - Not very stout, but thoroughly plump; fully developed, but not abnormally fat. The inference is that she was a tall, big woman. The hand was long, and was the hand of a woman not accustomed to manual labour.
Did the hand show any sign of refinement? - I do not know that a hand of that kind is always associated with any refinement of mind or body, but certainly it was a refined hand.
Mr. Charles Alfred Hibbert, assistant to Mr. Bond, deposed: I examined the arm on Sept. 16. It was a right arm, and had been separated from the shoulder joint. It measured 31in in length and was 13in in circumference at the point of separation, the wrist being 6½in round, and the hand 7½in long. The arm was surrounded at the upper part with a piece of string, which made an impression on the skin, and when it was loosened there was a great deal of blood in the arm. The hand was long, and the nails small and well shaped. It was the hand of a female. There were no scars or bruises. The arm had apparently been separated after death.
Did the arm seem to have been separated easily? - The operation was performed by a person who knew what he was doing - not by an anatomist, but by a person who knew the joints.
Had the cuts been done by a very sharp knife? - They were perfectly clean. I found that the skin cuts of the arm corresponded with those of the trunk, and that the bones corresponded likewise. The same skill was manifested in both instances. The work was not the work of the dissecting-room - that was obvious. A piece of paper was shown to me as having been picked up near the remains, and it was stained with the blood of an animal.
Was there the mark of any ring on the finger? - No.
Inspector Marshall, of the Criminal Investigation Department, said: About five o'clock on Oct. 2 I went to the new police buildings on the Thames Embankment, and in the basement saw the trunk referred to by previous witnesses. The corner from which it had been taken was pointed out to me, and I saw that the wall was a great deal stained. Examining the ground I found the piece of paper alluded to by the last witness, as well as a piece of string, apparently sash-cord. Dr. Hibbert handed me two pieces of material which had come from the remains. I at once made a thorough search of the vaults, but nothing more was discovered. On the following morning, with other officers, I made a further search of all the vaults, but nothing more was found nor anything suspicious observed. The piece of paper spoken to forms part of an Echo of Aug. 24. Dr. Hibbert handed me a number of small pieces of paper found on the body. They are pieces of the Chronicle, but I cannot yet establish the date. It is not of this year's issue. With respect to the dress it is of broché satin cloth, of Bradford manufacture, but a pattern probably three years old.
Is it a common dress? - It is made of common material. There is one flounce six inches wide at the bottom. The material could probably be bought at 6½d per yard. I have examined the hoarding round the works.
Is it possible to get over it? - There is a place in Cannon-row where a person could easily get over, but there is no indication of anybody having done so. The latch which has been referred to is not likely to have been noticed except by a person acquainted with buildings. The string with which the parcel was tied was a miscellaneous lot. One piece is of sash-cord, and the rest is of different sizes, and there is also a piece of black tape.
Did you form any opinion as to how long the parcel had been where it was found? - From the stain on the wall I certainly thought several days, but the witness Edge told me he was sure it was not there on the previous Saturday.
Edge being recalled repeated his assertion that the remains were not in the vault on the Saturday, as they were discovered in the very place where he looked for the hammer.
The Coroner: Do you think it possible that the parcel was there without your seeing it? - I am sure it was not there.
The inquest was adjourned for a fortnight.
SIR. - Will you kindly allow me in your columns to reply to many correspondents who have desired to be informed of the best way to befriend the poor women in Whitechapel, Spitalfields, and the neighbourhood, whose miserable condition has been brought before the public so prominently by the late murders.
I was for ten years rector of Spitalfields, and I know full well the circumstances of these poor creatures, and have been constantly among them by day and by night. A night refuge has been proposed, and it was natural it should suggest itself as a means of benefiting the class. In my judgement it would serve no good end, and I earnestly hope nothing of the kind will be attempted. I am sure it would aggravate the evil. It is not the fact that many of these women are to be found in the streets at night because doors are closed against them. Another night refuge is not required. It would attract more of these miserable women into the neighbourhood, and increase the difficulties of the situation. But what is needed is a home where washing and other work could be done, and where poor women who are really anxious to lead a better life could find employment. There are penitentiaries and there are mission-houses into which younger women can be received. The public generally are little aware of how much good work has been done of late among them. But for the older women, many of whom have only taken to their miserable mode of earning a living in sheer despair, and who would gladly renounce it, we have not the home, and it is of the utmost importance one should be provided. It would in its management differ from the ordinary penitentiary.
If entrusted with means to provide such a home I would gladly take the responsibility of conducting it, in conjunction with the clergy and others, who are only too anxious to see it established. It has oftentimes saddened my heart to be unable to assist the older women, and to save those who were hopelessly falling into a life of sin. Such a home would be a fitting addition to the "Court House," the home for younger penitents at Walthamstow, which bears the name of Mrs. Walsham How, and was founded by her in the time of my predecessor, the present Bishop of Wakefield. If anything is to be done it should be done at once. Two thousand pounds would enable the experiment to be tried, and I have no doubt at all of its being a success.
Pray allow me space to say to ladies who have been moved to devote themselves to work in these parts that I should be delighted to hear from such and to advise them where their services are most required and how they can best give effect to their charitable intentions.
It is my bounden duty to use my position and experience to turn to the best account the painful interest that has been excited by the late events in the East-end. - I am, your obedient servant,
SHELTER FOR DOCK LABOURERS. - Mr. Samuel Montagu, M.P., yesterday introduced a deputation to Colonel Martindale, general manager of the London and St. Katherine Docks, in reference to the provision of shelters for dock labourers while waiting for employment. The deputation included the Rev. T. Greatorex, Mr. C. Davis, Dr. Hanfield Jones, and other gentlemen who have interested themselves in the welfare of the labouring classes in the East-end of London. Mr. Montagu pointed out that the ladies of the Church Extension Society were willing to supply penny dinners to the men if the necessary arrangements could be effected. Colonel Martindale, in reply, said he fully sympathised with the labourers at the docks. The company had about 1,000 men, selected from the casual workers, who were employed at a weekly wage, whether there was work or not. Then there was a second class, to whom yearly tickets were granted, and they were taken on when there was work to be done in preference to the casual labourer. As regards the provision of shelter inside the docks, it must be remembered that there was property to the value of millions on the company's premises, and it was very undesirable that they should have inside the dock walls a number of men who had nothing to do. If, however, the deputation would formulate a scheme by which men could be provided with shelter out of the streets, and practically at the same time outside the docks, he would submit the matter very carefully to the directors. He desired to say that, so far from the dock labourers being the scum of London, as had been asserted, the officials of the company found them, as a whole, sober, respectable, and hard-working men. Mr. Montagu said that a scheme would be prepared for presentation to the directors at an early meeting.
THE PEOPLE'S PALACE. - Among the attractions at the People's Palace in Mile-end-road this week is a well-arranged and excellent exhibition of sporting and other dogs, which, both in numbers and in quality, will bear favourable comparison either with the previous show in the same place or with any one of a similar character held elsewhere. There are upwards of 450 entries, divided into fifty-seven classes. These include nearly every kind of dog, from the small pug lying on a soft, silk-embroidered cushion, to the deerhound and massive St. Bernard. It is noticeable, however, that there is no class set apart for bloodhounds. Considering recent events, and the criticisms which have been passed upon the utility or otherwise of the bloodhound, a few examples of the breed would undoubtedly have been subjects of interesting inspection. Notwithstanding their absence, the show is in every respect a good one, and highly creditable to its promoters. For instance, among the prize-winners in the St Bernard classes - each of them a magnificent animal - are such well-known dogs as Miss Carrie Dutton's Plautius, Dr. Inman's Isolde, and Mr. Shiloock's Rustic. Five very good Great Danes were shown, and it took Mr. Gresham a considerable time to make up his mind as to which was the best of the lot, but ultimately he decided to award the premier place to Mr. Bryan's Zota, whose price is put down in the catalogue at £1,000. I the deerhound class Mr. H. Barry jun.'s Tuath Barry took the first prize, and among greyhounds a similar honour was carried off by Mr. Clarke's Chips. There is a remarkably good show of fox terriers and pugs, and it would appear that residents in the east part of London have a marked predilection for these two classes of dogs. The trustees of the palace did well to institute special local classes for exhibitors residing within the School Board divisions of the Tower Hamlets and Hackney. Upwards of fifty entries were obtained, consisting chiefly of fox terriers, bulldogs, and diminutive pugs, and many of them are high-class specimens of their kind. The judges were Mr. Norris Elze, Mr. J. A. Doyle, Mr. F. Gresham, Mr. G. R. Krohl, Mr. M. Wooton, Mr. L. P. C. Astley, Mr. Berrie, Mr. J. H. Salter, Mr. G. Raper, Mr. C. H. Lane, and Mr. J. H. Ellis. The exhibition will remain open to-day and tomorrow.
Mr. John Troutbeck, coroner for Westminster, yesterday opened an inquest upon the remains of the woman found in a vault of the new police office on the Embankment. Several of the workmen in the employ of the contractor who is making the alterations in the buildings gave evidence as to the discovery of a parcel containing the trunk of a female, and other witnesses spoke to the finding of a woman's arm in the Thames. Dr. Bond said this arm corresponded with the body, which he thought was that of a woman twenty-four or twenty-five years of age, large and well-nourished, with fair skin and dark hair. The hand was evidently that of a person not used to manual labour. He added that death had taken place six weeks or two months ago, and that decomposition had occurred in the air, not in water. The inquiry was adjourned.
It is reported that last night the police made an arrest in connection with the East-end crimes, to which at first considerable importance was attached. The police authorities at Leman-street, however, do not appear to have regarded the case as a serious one, for at midnight no one was detained in custody at that station.
Sir Charles Warren, it is stated, has decided on the employment of bloodhounds in the event of any more murders similar to those which have recently occurred in Whitechapel.
Yesterday the remains of Catherine Eddowes, who was assassinated in Mitre-square, Aldgate, early on the morning of Sunday, the 30th ult., were buried in the City Cemetery at Ilford. The funeral was attended by several of the relatives of the deceased and by a large crowd of the poor of the East-end.
Mary Hawkes, aged eighteen, and James Fordham, twenty-one, were brought before Mr. Montagu Williams, at Worship-street, yesterday, charged with being concerned with others in robbing a Swede, named Hellman, of £4 and a pair of trousers. It appeared that the prosecutor was inveigled by women into a lodging-house in Flower and Dean-street, where, it is alleged, he was almost immediately set upon by four or five men and robbed. The magistrate ordered a remand.
A determined attempt to murder an "unfortunate" was made last night in the Avenue Wagram. A young man went to a place of bad repute with a woman about eleven o'clock, and after the two had been together in a room for about a quarter of an hour loud cries of "Murder" rang through the house. Shortly afterwards the woman rushed downstairs holding her hands up to her throat, from which blood was spurting in streams. The owner of the house immediately ran out for the police, locking his door after him, and the would-be murderer was captured as he endeavoured to escape through a window. The woman had, it appears, robbed her companion, who took out a large knife and gashed her throat. The "unfortunate" was conveyed to a hospital, where a cannula had to be put in her windpipe in order to enable her to breathe. Her condition is considered precarious.
