From Hell
Abberline A surgeon, to be specific. The killer removed the victim’s uterus and it’s attachments.
Sir Charles My God. He’s out of his mind.
Abberline That’s very astute of you, sir.
Sir Charles I don’t appreciate sarcasm, Inspector.
Abberline I’m sorry, sir. I meant nothing by it.
Sir Charles You already have a surgeon at your disposal.
Abberline I need a man with a strong stomach and a sober mind. The police surgeon has neither.
Sir Charles No. Request denied.
Abberline Why?
Sir Charles Are you questioning my decision?
Abberline No, sir. I simply want to know why.
Sir Charles There’s already too much nonsense and gossip in the press. You start consulting doctors, and all sorts of wild notions will be printed. No-one else is to see the bodies.
Doctor 1 It is my honour, to present this unique medical phenomenon. Until last week, Mr Joseph Merrick. . .
Doctor 2 John Merrick.
Doctor 1 I beg your pardon. Mr John Merrick, was an attraction at a sideshow. Now he’s being cared for at England’s leading hospital. And with your generosity we will be able to continue to do so. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr John Merrick. Turn around.
Woman It should have been killed at birth.
Doctor Good health.
Attendant That will be the last one, Your Royal Highness.
Dr. Ferral . . . a gift from God, a psychotic patient.
Abberline Pardon me, sir. Are you Dr. Ferral?
Dr. Ferral I am, yes.
Abberline I’m Inspector Abberline, assigned to Whitechapel.
Doctor Oh, my lord. You’re the Ripper case. Am I right?
Abberline Yeah.
Doctor Jolly good. You’ve come to the perfect place. We’ve got butchers aplenty here.
Abberline I see. Well, I could certainly use the expertise of someone like yourself to help solve this case. They tell me you’re the best young surgeon in London.
Dr. Ferral Really? I don’t see how a reputable surgeon could know anything about it. This country’s overrun with foreigners, Orientals. Socialists, trying to stir things up against our monarchy. That’s, who you should be pursuing, don’t you think?
Sir William Excuse me. You don’t belong here, do you? I’m afraid Dr. Ferral suffers from the surgeons malady.
Abberline And what’s that, sir?
Sir William Want of feeling. He knows everything about anatomy and nothing about the soul. How may I assist you, Inspector?
Abberline Well, forgive my ignorance, sir, but, erm, are you a surgeon?
Sir William I was. Unfortunately I suffered a brain seizure six months ago.
Abberline Sorry to hear that, sir.
Sir William Yes, these days I limit myself to teaching. So you see, I’m accustomed to answering questions, Inspector.
Abberline Well, sir. Could you tell me what sort of a knife this would be?
Sir William I think you mean to draw a Liston knife. It’s named for Liston who was a surgeon in the Crimean War. Because there was no anaesthetic on the battlefield he had to carry out his amputations very quickly. Er, do you, by any chance, have the police surgeon’s report available?
Abberline Yes, I do, sir.
Sir William May I?
Abberline You must keep this confidential.
Sir William Of course.
Abberline There you go, sir.
Sir William Thank you. Hmm. Yes. Wouldn’t someone have heard their screams?
Abberline Not if he cut their throats first.
Sir William Yes. Then how can you be sure they wouldn’t react to seeing the Liston knife?
Abberline Grapes. He offers them grapes first.
Sir William Ah.
Abberline Grapes are very tempting.
Sir William Yes, of course. They’d gobble them up, wouldn’t they?
Abberline And he might offer them a drink to ease them down. A drink laced with laudanum.
Sir William How do you know that?
Abberline I found a sprig of grapes on both victims bodies. And I smelled the laudanum on their lips.
Sir William Laudanum is a derivative of opium. Apart from doctors and addicts not many would recognise it. How long have you chased the dragon, Inspector? Well, these should help with the headaches. And, erm, opium leeches minerals out of the body, so I’ve also given you a tonic. That’ll help to restore your appetite.
Abberline Thank you very much, sir. I’m a fool.
Sir William Oh, I don’t think you’re a fool. Far from it.
Abberline I ought to have known, sir, that you’re physician ordinary to the Royal Family.
Sir William Well, yes, it’s certainly an honour, but then it’s an honour bestowed on many doctors. Now, about our friend here. I can tell you this much, he cut their throats from left to right. Therefore, he’s right-handed. Excuse me. He had to slice through four layers of tissue, and up to an inch of subcutaneous fat. After that, he entered the abdominal cavity, so he would’ve had to use more than just merely the Liston knife. Perhaps he was carrying a portable amputation kit similar to this. What do you think?
Abberline Is it possible, sir, that the killer is an educated man? Perhaps someone who studied medicine, but who is not, in fact, a surgeon himself?
Sir William The intestines are simple enough, but, er, the uterus? The liver especially, very hard to locate, unless you know what you’re doing. And he was working quickly in the dark. I had held out hope that this, this, monster was a veterinarian, or a furrier, ar an especially well-educated butcher. No, I must admit, if I were you, I’d look for someone with a thorough knowledge of human anatomy. Damn him.
Woman Want me to suck it? I can suck the Thames dry. Don’t be frightened, dearie.
Queen Victoria How far advanced is our grandson’s malady?
Sir William Er, no lesions have appeared, ma’am. There is some neural damage, a slight trembling of the right hand, but I’m hopeful, more than hopeful, that treatment will arrest the disease.
Queen Victoria He seems, to us, to be suffering greatly in his mind. Is the disease affecting his emotions?
Sir William Yes, well of course, his mood is depressed because of, the news of the diagnosis. But that should improve as he regains his strength.
Queen Victoria You are a true physician, Sir William. In all ways, you attend to the health of our empire. We are grateful.
Sir William Thank you, ma’am.
Abberline If this is the beginning of a five-pointed star.
Withers Like the bloody Jewish star.
Godley Withers! The Inspector is talking, which means you are what?
Withers I’m listening, sir.
Godley Yes.
Abberline This area, would form a likely point. I want double shifts, within these streets until further notice. And don’t only worry about Jews and butchers. You stop anyone suspicious, including well-dressed gentlemen. And by the way, Withers, the Star of David has six points.
Godley Right, once more into the breach dear friends. Dismissed.
Ripper Why have you called me here?
Netley It’s just. It’s just, you say three more have to be killed. I can’t take it, sir. It’s everywhere. It’s in all the papers. I’m just a simple chap, sir. I’m not a great man like you. I just don’t know where I am at, anymore.
Ripper There, there, Netley. I shall tell you where we are. We are in the most extreme and utter region of the human mind. A radiant abyss, where men meet themselves.
Netley I don’t understand that. I don’t understand, sir.
Ripper Hell, Netley. We’re in Hell.
Mary Let me go! Get your hands off me!
Godley Sorry about that, Inspector. She’s madly in love with me, although she hides it well.
Abberline You said McQueen killed your two friends. So what you doing here?
Mary Oh, I see. Women are butchered right and left in your district and you can’t do piss about it, and I’m the fool?
Abberline We’re watching them. Can’t arrest them without evidence, so we watch them. What else can we do?
Mary I’ll testiry. If you keep meself and me friends alive. I’ll testify.
Abberline To what, precisely?
Mary That McQueen said he’d cut me unless I pay him a pound a week.
Abberline No.
Mary What do you mean, no? You asked me to testify. Are you worried I’ll let you down? I won’t. I promise I won’t.
Abberline You testify against McQueen, maybe he goes in for a year or two. But his boys, they’ll take their revenge on you and your friends. I can’t let you do it.
Woman It’s your round this time!
Mary I confess, I have an appetite. One day, I’ll be a great big, round woman with a skinny little man for a husband.
