One of the reasons that the name Jack the Ripper is still so commonly known to this day is because of the many letters received by the police force in charge of the murders’ investigation, the Scotland Yard, and how they affected the search for Jack the Ripper. It began on September 24th, 1888, when the very first letter was received by the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Charles Warren (Colby-Newton). This letter stated that the writer was the killer and they were giving themselves up, which was dismissed as the obvious hoax it was (Colby-Newton). However, what came next would spark the start of a phenomenon purely unique to this case. Received three days later was what is known today as the “Dear Boss” letter, written in a very haughty tone and said to be …show more content…
Barely three days after this letter was received, two more women were murdered, by the names of Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes (Casebook). The “Dear Boss” letter resurfaced during the investigations of these murders, and caused skepticism among the police, and they did not have much choice but to look it over again (Jack). There were a few lines that seemed a little bit too “prophetic” to just be a hoax like originally imagined (Jack). The letter’s saying that the supposed killer wanted to “get to work right away” suggested that this letter truly could have been written by the killer, as since then two more murders had occurred (Jack). As well, there had been a threat to “clip the ladys ears off and send to the police officers” which it seemed had indeed been acted upon, as Catherine Eddowes’ earlobes had been mutilated during her murder (Jack). In hopes that this letter could help them on their seemingly hopeless case of catching the murderer, the police released this letter to the public, and it would be this which gave Jack the Ripper an essential part of his legacy (Jack). After its release, something of a new pastime began nationwide