1 00:00:15,316 --> 00:00:35,796 Speaker 1: Pushkin. Some one is watching Polly Nichols. He's skilled at 2 00:00:35,876 --> 00:00:39,036 Speaker 1: keeping his distance and at remaining just out of sight. 3 00:00:40,636 --> 00:00:44,796 Speaker 1: He follows her dog darkening streets. He knows which shops 4 00:00:44,876 --> 00:00:47,996 Speaker 1: or pubs she enters. He knows what work she does, 5 00:00:48,276 --> 00:00:51,516 Speaker 1: and when she leaves to return to her lodgings. He 6 00:00:51,596 --> 00:00:55,396 Speaker 1: knows where she lives, and most importantly, he knows who 7 00:00:55,516 --> 00:01:00,076 Speaker 1: she's been living with. He inquires about her in the neighborhood, 8 00:01:00,676 --> 00:01:03,676 Speaker 1: but he does so subtly, in a way that won't 9 00:01:03,756 --> 00:01:18,556 Speaker 1: raise any alarm, that won't give away his presence. I'm 10 00:01:18,596 --> 00:01:23,636 Speaker 1: Hallie ribbin Holt. You're listening to Bad Women. The Ripper retold, 11 00:01:24,396 --> 00:01:27,396 Speaker 1: a series about the real lives of the women killed 12 00:01:27,436 --> 00:01:30,636 Speaker 1: by Jack the Ripper and how we got their stories 13 00:01:31,156 --> 00:01:39,876 Speaker 1: so wrong. One side, money plenty, and friends too by 14 00:01:40,196 --> 00:01:49,796 Speaker 1: the score. Then fortune smiled upon me. Now one pass 15 00:01:50,076 --> 00:02:06,436 Speaker 1: my time anney, and not to have her seems to loney. 16 00:02:07,276 --> 00:02:19,996 Speaker 1: I'm com free. London's Fleet Street and its network and 17 00:02:20,116 --> 00:02:25,996 Speaker 1: narrow tributaries, was a hive of activity. The so called 18 00:02:26,116 --> 00:02:31,276 Speaker 1: Street of Ink was home to authors, printers, newspapermen and booksellers, 19 00:02:31,316 --> 00:02:36,316 Speaker 1: every profession dependent upon the written word. Charles Dickens himself 20 00:02:36,356 --> 00:02:39,956 Speaker 1: frequented these byways, first working as a shoeshiner and then 21 00:02:40,036 --> 00:02:45,396 Speaker 1: scribbling away in nearby rooms in workshops. All along that thoroughfare, 22 00:02:45,796 --> 00:02:50,396 Speaker 1: cylinders turned, belts moved, gears clicked, and wood as type 23 00:02:50,396 --> 00:02:54,196 Speaker 1: and ink pressed against paper. It's here that Edward Walker 24 00:02:54,316 --> 00:02:58,636 Speaker 1: plied his trade as a blacksmith. He fashioned metal parts 25 00:02:58,636 --> 00:03:02,356 Speaker 1: for the printing presses. He and his wife, Caroline also 26 00:03:02,516 --> 00:03:06,236 Speaker 1: lived nearby, amid the warren of crumbling old buildings with 27 00:03:06,396 --> 00:03:11,396 Speaker 1: leaking roofs and rotting floors. In their cramped and ramshackle dwelling, 28 00:03:11,796 --> 00:03:16,796 Speaker 1: on August twenty sixth, eighteen forty five, they welcomed a daughter, Polly. 29 00:03:18,276 --> 00:03:21,356 Speaker 1: The printing presses of Fleet Street offered Polly, her parents, 30 00:03:21,556 --> 00:03:25,876 Speaker 1: and her two brothers a humble yet steady existence. Edward's 31 00:03:25,916 --> 00:03:29,556 Speaker 1: wages as a blacksmith were constant but low. As a 32 00:03:29,596 --> 00:03:31,956 Speaker 1: skilled tradesman whose income was better than that of a 33 00:03:31,956 --> 00:03:35,076 Speaker 1: bricklayer or a dock worker, one might think the family 34 00:03:35,116 --> 00:03:39,076 Speaker 1: would have enjoyed a comfortable life. Instead, they would have 35 00:03:39,116 --> 00:03:42,196 Speaker 1: inhabited no more than two or three rooms, each about 36 00:03:42,236 --> 00:03:45,196 Speaker 1: eight by ten feet in size. They would have cooked 37 00:03:45,236 --> 00:03:48,436 Speaker 1: on a fire in their hearth and relieved themselves in 38 00:03:48,436 --> 00:03:51,716 Speaker 1: a chamber pot in the corner of the room. It 39 00:03:51,876 --> 00:03:54,916 Speaker 1: was not uncommon for the entire family to share a 40 00:03:54,956 --> 00:04:00,916 Speaker 1: single bed. Privacy was almost unheard of. Nevertheless, Edward put 41 00:04:00,956 --> 00:04:03,396 Speaker 1: a few pennies aside to send his children to school. 42 00:04:04,036 --> 00:04:07,236 Speaker 1: Schooling would not be compulsory until eighteen seventy six, and 43 00:04:07,356 --> 00:04:11,476 Speaker 1: Polly was unusually literate. We're all working class girl. This 44 00:04:11,556 --> 00:04:14,436 Speaker 1: was one of the few advantages conferred by proximity to 45 00:04:14,476 --> 00:04:19,236 Speaker 1: Fleet Street. Many dwellings here black plumbing, so residents scooped 46 00:04:19,316 --> 00:04:22,716 Speaker 1: up dirty, stagnant water from puddles for cooking and cleaning. 47 00:04:23,036 --> 00:04:26,596 Speaker 1: Block chimneys and poor ventilation trapped heavy sulfur at coal 48 00:04:26,676 --> 00:04:30,796 Speaker 1: smoke and rooms, which contributed to a host of respiratory illnesses. 49 00:04:31,556 --> 00:04:36,236 Speaker 1: Diseases such as bronchitis, dysentery, cholera, and typhus were ripe, 50 00:04:36,476 --> 00:04:40,796 Speaker 1: especially in the warmer months, when the stench also became unbearable. 51 00:04:42,436 --> 00:04:44,956 Speaker 1: Polly was not yet seven years old when her mother 52 00:04:44,996 --> 00:04:47,996 Speaker 1: began to display the symptoms of what appeared to be flu. 53 00:04:48,756 --> 00:04:52,716 Speaker 1: It began with a cough, which eventually grew worse, and 54 00:04:52,916 --> 00:04:56,316 Speaker 1: as the illness settled in her lungs. Her dreadful racking 55 00:04:56,636 --> 00:05:05,596 Speaker 1: became blood laced. At this time, tuberculosis went by the 56 00:05:05,676 --> 00:05:09,836 Speaker 1: name of consumption. The sufferer was simply assumed by the 57 00:05:09,916 --> 00:05:14,556 Speaker 1: disease and wasted away its bacterial infection that attacks the 58 00:05:14,636 --> 00:05:18,636 Speaker 1: lungs and is spread by coughs and sneezes. Antibiotics hadn't 59 00:05:18,716 --> 00:05:22,356 Speaker 1: yet been invented, and malnutrition and physical exhaustion, which were 60 00:05:22,436 --> 00:05:25,436 Speaker 1: part of working class life, enabled the disease to take 61 00:05:25,476 --> 00:05:29,716 Speaker 1: hold with ease. Consumption was a death sentence, and it 62 00:05:29,796 --> 00:05:34,796 Speaker 1: quickly claimed Polly's mother. At this time, people didn't entirely 63 00:05:34,836 --> 00:05:39,436 Speaker 1: understand how tuberculosis spread, and so women who usually nursed 64 00:05:39,476 --> 00:05:42,036 Speaker 1: the ill often caught it and passed it on within 65 00:05:42,076 --> 00:05:45,836 Speaker 1: their families. This was almost certainly how Polly's youngest brother 66 00:05:45,916 --> 00:05:49,596 Speaker 1: contracted the disease. He quickly followed his mother to the grave, 67 00:05:51,356 --> 00:05:54,036 Speaker 1: although she was still a child herself. The loss of 68 00:05:54,076 --> 00:05:58,036 Speaker 1: her mother propelled Polly into a position of responsibility within 69 00:05:58,116 --> 00:06:02,796 Speaker 1: what was now a household of three. Every Victorian household 70 00:06:02,836 --> 00:06:05,916 Speaker 1: needed a woman to cook and clean. Men who were 71 00:06:05,956 --> 00:06:08,316 Speaker 1: expected to go out and earn a wage did not 72 00:06:08,476 --> 00:06:12,796 Speaker 1: lander the baked the bread at the same time, Polly 73 00:06:12,796 --> 00:06:16,876 Speaker 1: found herself in an unusually fortunate position. Unlike most working 74 00:06:16,876 --> 00:06:20,436 Speaker 1: class households, her family was now small, and once her 75 00:06:20,436 --> 00:06:23,276 Speaker 1: elder brother was old enough to enter the workplace, there 76 00:06:23,276 --> 00:06:26,716 Speaker 1: were two male earners and only three mouths to feed. 77 00:06:27,596 --> 00:06:30,756 Speaker 1: This situation allowed Polly to continue her schooling into her 78 00:06:30,756 --> 00:06:34,316 Speaker 1: early teens. It also helped to cement a strong bond 79 00:06:34,356 --> 00:06:37,596 Speaker 1: between Polly and her father, one which would last until 80 00:06:37,636 --> 00:06:42,036 Speaker 1: her murder. Living a short walk away from Polly's home 81 00:06:42,436 --> 00:06:45,636 Speaker 1: was a man with a broad, sunny face and light hair. 82 00:06:46,556 --> 00:06:49,476 Speaker 1: We know nothing about their courtship, but we do know 83 00:06:49,596 --> 00:06:54,196 Speaker 1: that just before Christmas eighteen sixty three, William Nichols proposed 84 00:06:54,196 --> 00:06:57,716 Speaker 1: to the blacksmith's daughter. They were married a month later 85 00:06:57,876 --> 00:07:06,356 Speaker 1: at Saint Bride's Church. Planned parenthood did not exist for 86 00:07:06,476 --> 00:07:10,236 Speaker 1: the nineteenth century working classes. Married couples didn't get to 87 00:07:10,316 --> 00:07:13,596 Speaker 1: choose when they wanted to start a family. The making 88 00:07:13,636 --> 00:07:17,476 Speaker 1: of that family began on the wedding night. Whether a 89 00:07:17,476 --> 00:07:20,556 Speaker 1: couple was as comfortable as Queen Victoria and Prince Albert 90 00:07:20,756 --> 00:07:24,476 Speaker 1: or penniless. A woman's entire duty in life was to 91 00:07:24,516 --> 00:07:28,356 Speaker 1: marry and then to make and look after children. So 92 00:07:28,756 --> 00:07:32,236 Speaker 1: life as a wife and mother began for Polly immediately. 93 00:07:33,276 --> 00:07:36,196 Speaker 1: She bore her first baby just under eleven months after 94 00:07:36,236 --> 00:07:40,516 Speaker 1: her wedding. Unfortunately, this child died after a year and 95 00:07:40,636 --> 00:07:45,196 Speaker 1: nine months, but other pregnancies and berths followed at regular intervals. 96 00:07:46,636 --> 00:07:50,956 Speaker 1: Each child stretched William's earnings further. The expanding Nichols family 97 00:07:51,196 --> 00:07:53,596 Speaker 1: had been sharing a home with Polly's father and brother 98 00:07:54,676 --> 00:07:58,196 Speaker 1: due to a housing shortage. The combined incomes of three 99 00:07:58,276 --> 00:08:01,116 Speaker 1: male wage earners was still not enough to pay the 100 00:08:01,196 --> 00:08:06,476 Speaker 1: rent on spacious, clean family accommodation. Instead, they were forced 101 00:08:06,516 --> 00:08:09,876 Speaker 1: to make do with the usual cramped, noisy, and unhealthy 102 00:08:09,956 --> 00:08:13,796 Speaker 1: living quarters. But then William and Polly learned of a 103 00:08:13,876 --> 00:08:17,436 Speaker 1: new housing initiative. It looked as if this might solve 104 00:08:17,476 --> 00:08:22,476 Speaker 1: all of their problems. In eighteen sixty two, the American 105 00:08:22,556 --> 00:08:26,756 Speaker 1: expat philanthropist in financier George Peabody had wished to give 106 00:08:26,836 --> 00:08:29,556 Speaker 1: something back to the people of his adopted city of London. 107 00:08:30,356 --> 00:08:33,076 Speaker 1: He chose to gift the princely sum of five hundred 108 00:08:33,076 --> 00:08:37,436 Speaker 1: thousand pounds to London's poor and needy, nearly five hundred 109 00:08:37,476 --> 00:08:41,356 Speaker 1: million dollars relative to the wages of today, my object 110 00:08:41,436 --> 00:08:44,556 Speaker 1: being to ameliorate the condition of the poor and needy 111 00:08:44,596 --> 00:08:48,636 Speaker 1: of this great metropolis, and to promote their comfort and happiness. 112 00:08:49,476 --> 00:08:53,916 Speaker 1: Peabody was himself from humble beginnings in Massachusetts, but by 113 00:08:53,916 --> 00:08:56,556 Speaker 1: the end of his life he had amassed a vast fortune. 114 00:08:56,596 --> 00:09:00,556 Speaker 1: With no obvious air, he decided to erect apartment buildings 115 00:09:00,596 --> 00:09:04,476 Speaker 1: all over London. But Peabody's gift to London's working classes 116 00:09:04,756 --> 00:09:08,196 Speaker 1: came with strings attached. He'd only housed the poor who 117 00:09:08,316 --> 00:09:16,076 Speaker 1: displayed moral character and good conduct as a member of society. Essentially, 118 00:09:16,116 --> 00:09:19,436 Speaker 1: Peabody's gift was only for the worthy poor, those whom 119 00:09:19,476 --> 00:09:23,636 Speaker 1: he judged to lead a morally upright life. Peabody was 120 00:09:23,756 --> 00:09:27,196 Speaker 1: very keen, and his trustees were very keen to make 121 00:09:27,276 --> 00:09:30,396 Speaker 1: sure that you didn't attract people who seemed to want 122 00:09:30,556 --> 00:09:35,196 Speaker 1: something for nothing. Historian Sarah Wise is an authority on 123 00:09:35,436 --> 00:09:39,276 Speaker 1: nineteenth century social history and on how the Victorians classified 124 00:09:39,516 --> 00:09:43,596 Speaker 1: some poor people as more deserving than others, people who 125 00:09:43,636 --> 00:09:48,236 Speaker 1: could show that they were sober and quiet and kept 126 00:09:48,236 --> 00:09:52,396 Speaker 1: themselves of themselves, that they understood the importance of cleanliness. 127 00:09:52,676 --> 00:09:55,196 Speaker 1: The people they didn't want were those who they considered 128 00:09:55,196 --> 00:09:58,676 Speaker 1: to be loafers, people who had no intention of earning 129 00:09:58,716 --> 00:10:01,836 Speaker 1: their own living for themselves, or of even trying to 130 00:10:01,876 --> 00:10:06,556 Speaker 1: do so. Habitual drunkards were disqualified, as was anyone who 131 00:10:06,636 --> 00:10:09,436 Speaker 1: had been entangled with the law. Having more and four 132 00:10:09,516 --> 00:10:12,116 Speaker 1: children was frowned upon. And while you had to be 133 00:10:12,196 --> 00:10:15,116 Speaker 1: able to afford the rent at the Peabody buildings, you 134 00:10:15,236 --> 00:10:19,076 Speaker 1: also couldn't have too great of an income. Entry requirements 135 00:10:19,076 --> 00:10:23,556 Speaker 1: were narrow and the admissions process rigorous. The trustees would 136 00:10:23,556 --> 00:10:25,876 Speaker 1: have called at the Nichols home, where they would have 137 00:10:25,876 --> 00:10:29,196 Speaker 1: found William, Polly and their three children dressed in their 138 00:10:29,196 --> 00:10:33,556 Speaker 1: Sunday best, the rooms swept and tidy. There would have 139 00:10:33,596 --> 00:10:37,476 Speaker 1: been no indication of low morals or alcoholism, and William's 140 00:10:37,556 --> 00:10:40,996 Speaker 1: employer would have endorsed him as an industrious family man. 141 00:10:41,676 --> 00:10:44,836 Speaker 1: The Nichols application was successful, and the family took up 142 00:10:44,876 --> 00:10:49,236 Speaker 1: residence in an apartment or flat at number three Stamford Street. 143 00:10:49,876 --> 00:10:53,596 Speaker 1: They now had four rooms all to themselves and access 144 00:10:53,596 --> 00:10:57,716 Speaker 1: to all kinds of modern conveniences, including laundry facilities, a 145 00:10:57,836 --> 00:11:02,076 Speaker 1: stove to cook on, and a working indoor toilet in 146 00:11:02,156 --> 00:11:05,516 Speaker 1: the basement or the ground floors. You had the baths, 147 00:11:05,516 --> 00:11:08,476 Speaker 1: which was a real step forward, so you could have 148 00:11:08,636 --> 00:11:12,396 Speaker 1: any amounts of baths that you wanted totally for free. 149 00:11:12,436 --> 00:11:16,516 Speaker 1: That was all included in your rents. Unfortunately, these were 150 00:11:16,556 --> 00:11:19,476 Speaker 1: cold water bath facilities, but that would have been seen 151 00:11:19,476 --> 00:11:22,636 Speaker 1: as absolute luxury because there was always that struggle to 152 00:11:22,716 --> 00:11:25,836 Speaker 1: obtain good clean water in which to do anything, let 153 00:11:25,876 --> 00:11:28,956 Speaker 1: alone to wash on a daily basis. There were other 154 00:11:28,996 --> 00:11:32,516 Speaker 1: innovations at these buildings too, things like rubbish shoots to 155 00:11:32,596 --> 00:11:35,676 Speaker 1: keep trash away from the living quarters. So it really 156 00:11:35,756 --> 00:11:38,436 Speaker 1: was kind of at the forefront of what the Victorians 157 00:11:38,436 --> 00:11:42,356 Speaker 1: called sanitary science. Everything possible was built in to make 158 00:11:42,436 --> 00:11:46,036 Speaker 1: sure that the residents could keep themselves and the block 159 00:11:46,116 --> 00:11:49,716 Speaker 1: as clean as possible. Communal spaces were to be kept immaculate, 160 00:11:50,076 --> 00:11:52,876 Speaker 1: Corridors and steps were to be swept every day and 161 00:11:52,916 --> 00:11:56,796 Speaker 1: washed every Saturday. There was a perceived connection between moral 162 00:11:56,836 --> 00:12:01,476 Speaker 1: purity and physical cleanliness. It was believed that peabodies residents, 163 00:12:01,516 --> 00:12:05,316 Speaker 1: inspired by their own well scrubbed bodies and fresh smelling clothes, 164 00:12:05,356 --> 00:12:08,556 Speaker 1: would wish to maintain their surroundings and keep them free 165 00:12:08,556 --> 00:12:13,676 Speaker 1: of filth. William and Polly surely felt a sense of 166 00:12:13,836 --> 00:12:16,996 Speaker 1: pride they were moving up in the world. Their new 167 00:12:16,996 --> 00:12:21,636 Speaker 1: apartment marked a contrast with their previous and wretched living conditions. 168 00:12:22,156 --> 00:12:27,636 Speaker 1: The private sector allowed very poor people to make their 169 00:12:27,676 --> 00:12:30,556 Speaker 1: living in a wide range of ways which would be 170 00:12:30,596 --> 00:12:35,476 Speaker 1: absolutely unthinkable in any philanthropic block. So all sorts of 171 00:12:35,596 --> 00:12:40,276 Speaker 1: really smelly, unpleasant industries, such as chopping up bits of 172 00:12:40,316 --> 00:12:43,436 Speaker 1: old horse to make cats meat, all sorts of fish smoking, 173 00:12:43,556 --> 00:12:47,356 Speaker 1: actually very high skilled artisan trads that involved banging and 174 00:12:47,476 --> 00:12:52,556 Speaker 1: hammering and varnishes and polishes and flames or machinery. Peabody 175 00:12:52,596 --> 00:12:57,516 Speaker 1: housing offered the Nichols family peace, quiet and cleanliness, but 176 00:12:57,596 --> 00:13:00,916 Speaker 1: there were also strict rules that the worthy poor had 177 00:13:00,956 --> 00:13:03,756 Speaker 1: to follow. You had to agree to either have been 178 00:13:03,876 --> 00:13:07,116 Speaker 1: vaccinated against smallpox or that you were going to be 179 00:13:07,676 --> 00:13:10,636 Speaker 1: No hanging out of your laundry your own room. Children 180 00:13:10,676 --> 00:13:14,236 Speaker 1: can't play on the stairs or corridors. No dogs, no lodgers, 181 00:13:14,316 --> 00:13:20,876 Speaker 1: no trading, no intemperance or disorderly behavior. Intemperance meant indulgence 182 00:13:20,916 --> 00:13:24,276 Speaker 1: in alcohol. Apparently that was immediate notice to quit. The 183 00:13:24,356 --> 00:13:27,556 Speaker 1: gas goes off at eleven PM, and you can't put 184 00:13:27,636 --> 00:13:30,956 Speaker 1: wall paper or any pictures up in your home. But 185 00:13:30,996 --> 00:13:34,236 Speaker 1: the Peabody buildings didn't suit everyone. There was a real 186 00:13:34,356 --> 00:13:38,196 Speaker 1: love of color and music and joy amongst every section 187 00:13:38,236 --> 00:13:40,876 Speaker 1: of the working class, and many of them may have 188 00:13:41,076 --> 00:13:45,036 Speaker 1: just psychologically thought, no, I can't hack this. Those who 189 00:13:45,156 --> 00:13:48,276 Speaker 1: could hack it were said to quickly acquire decent habits. 190 00:13:49,036 --> 00:13:52,236 Speaker 1: People like to be as good as their neighbors, remarked 191 00:13:52,276 --> 00:13:56,356 Speaker 1: the superintendent of Polly and William's building, and although the 192 00:13:56,436 --> 00:13:59,836 Speaker 1: move to the Peabody buildings significantly improved the Nichols family's 193 00:13:59,916 --> 00:14:03,636 Speaker 1: quality of life, William's salary was stretched further by the 194 00:14:03,716 --> 00:14:07,476 Speaker 1: arrival of a fourth child. This financial strain meant that 195 00:14:07,556 --> 00:14:11,116 Speaker 1: in eighteen seventy seven the family was forced to downsize 196 00:14:11,156 --> 00:14:15,276 Speaker 1: and exchange their four room apartment for a three room one. 197 00:14:15,796 --> 00:14:18,316 Speaker 1: Their new abode was next door to a woman named 198 00:14:18,396 --> 00:14:22,596 Speaker 1: Rosetta Walls. Rosetta had married a ship's cook. He spent 199 00:14:22,676 --> 00:14:25,316 Speaker 1: more time at sea than with Rosetta, and the pair 200 00:14:25,356 --> 00:14:29,116 Speaker 1: had drifted apart. She earned an income as a charwoman 201 00:14:29,236 --> 00:14:32,516 Speaker 1: or a cleaning lady, and by also picking up odd jobs. 202 00:14:33,436 --> 00:14:35,836 Speaker 1: In eighteen seventy eight, when Polly gave birth to a 203 00:14:35,916 --> 00:14:40,556 Speaker 1: fifth child, a son, Rosetta stepped into a sister. The 204 00:14:40,636 --> 00:14:44,756 Speaker 1: two households shared walls, a toilet, and a sink. The 205 00:14:44,876 --> 00:14:48,396 Speaker 1: doors were always open, which fostered a sense of intimacy 206 00:14:48,436 --> 00:14:53,396 Speaker 1: between the two families. We cannot know exactly when or 207 00:14:53,476 --> 00:14:57,796 Speaker 1: why the arguments between Polly and William began. Perhaps the 208 00:14:57,956 --> 00:15:02,316 Speaker 1: new closer quarters, larger family, and greater financial pressures all 209 00:15:02,396 --> 00:15:06,436 Speaker 1: played a role. William Nichols asserted that his wife suddenly 210 00:15:06,436 --> 00:15:10,156 Speaker 1: began drinking excessively and that this was the source of 211 00:15:10,196 --> 00:15:17,076 Speaker 1: their strife. Polly's father, Edward, would offer another explanation. William 212 00:15:17,156 --> 00:15:22,316 Speaker 1: Nichols had begun an affair with Rosetta Walls. Perhaps Polly 213 00:15:22,396 --> 00:15:26,196 Speaker 1: was exhausted and suffering from postnatal depression. Perhaps she was 214 00:15:26,276 --> 00:15:29,676 Speaker 1: jealous of Rosetta Walls. Perhaps both were true, and she 215 00:15:29,796 --> 00:15:33,276 Speaker 1: just turned to alcohol to lighten these burdens. We cannot know, 216 00:15:34,076 --> 00:15:38,356 Speaker 1: But on March twenty ninth, eighteen eighty, Polly was finally 217 00:15:38,436 --> 00:15:42,116 Speaker 1: tired of arguing. She handed her children over to their 218 00:15:42,156 --> 00:15:45,436 Speaker 1: father and walked through the gates of the Peabody Buildings, 219 00:15:46,036 --> 00:15:51,556 Speaker 1: never to return. Everything about Polly's life was about to change. 220 00:15:52,436 --> 00:16:02,916 Speaker 1: She could not begin to imagine what was coming. The 221 00:16:03,036 --> 00:16:11,676 Speaker 1: Ripper retold will be back in a moment. Polly's decision 222 00:16:11,756 --> 00:16:15,116 Speaker 1: to walk out on her husband in eighteen eighty, possibly 223 00:16:15,196 --> 00:16:18,876 Speaker 1: because he was seeing another woman, was an unusual one. 224 00:16:19,516 --> 00:16:22,596 Speaker 1: Most of the time, memen leave if they're being beaten 225 00:16:22,596 --> 00:16:25,876 Speaker 1: to a pulp Historian Ginger Frost is witty and straight 226 00:16:25,876 --> 00:16:30,556 Speaker 1: talking and an expert on Victorian family life. Sometimes they 227 00:16:30,556 --> 00:16:32,716 Speaker 1: will leave if he's not providing. There really is no 228 00:16:32,796 --> 00:16:35,676 Speaker 1: reason to stay. If he's a poor provider, or he's 229 00:16:35,756 --> 00:16:38,236 Speaker 1: drunk all the time, or he gambles all the money away. 230 00:16:38,636 --> 00:16:40,356 Speaker 1: If you're not being provided for, that's what the man 231 00:16:40,396 --> 00:16:42,236 Speaker 1: brings to the table. If he can't bring that, there's 232 00:16:42,236 --> 00:16:45,236 Speaker 1: no reason to stay. Walking out on your children, as 233 00:16:45,276 --> 00:16:49,076 Speaker 1: Polly did, is even less common. That is very rare. 234 00:16:49,196 --> 00:16:52,116 Speaker 1: Most women don't want to leave their children. They just stay. 235 00:16:52,196 --> 00:16:54,756 Speaker 1: They put up with it. That's the main response of women. 236 00:16:54,916 --> 00:16:57,156 Speaker 1: It's the men who usually leave. So it is a 237 00:16:57,156 --> 00:16:59,516 Speaker 1: bit unusual for a wife to walk out, especially if 238 00:16:59,556 --> 00:17:02,076 Speaker 1: they have children together. We discussed what might have been 239 00:17:02,076 --> 00:17:05,516 Speaker 1: behind Polly's decision to leave, including the credibility of William 240 00:17:05,556 --> 00:17:08,516 Speaker 1: nichols claim that his wife was an alcoholic. There are 241 00:17:08,596 --> 00:17:11,996 Speaker 1: lots of nons here. I think if he's right now, 242 00:17:12,236 --> 00:17:13,996 Speaker 1: this is self serving, So you never know if what 243 00:17:13,996 --> 00:17:16,196 Speaker 1: he's saying is true. It could be that she was 244 00:17:16,276 --> 00:17:19,756 Speaker 1: drinking and that he removed all the drink and wouldn't 245 00:17:19,836 --> 00:17:23,036 Speaker 1: let her have it, and so she had classic alcoholism, right, 246 00:17:23,036 --> 00:17:26,796 Speaker 1: you start trading everything you care about for the drug choice, 247 00:17:27,236 --> 00:17:29,596 Speaker 1: and so that could have happened, but there's no way 248 00:17:29,596 --> 00:17:31,956 Speaker 1: to know. I find those kinds of arguments by husbands 249 00:17:32,156 --> 00:17:34,236 Speaker 1: so self serving. I have trouble believing them, but I 250 00:17:34,236 --> 00:17:38,156 Speaker 1: guess sometimes they can't be true. I think it's possible, 251 00:17:38,236 --> 00:17:40,516 Speaker 1: but I think then you have to take into account 252 00:17:40,596 --> 00:17:44,156 Speaker 1: her father's side of the story, which is she and 253 00:17:44,196 --> 00:17:47,436 Speaker 1: her husband were arguing and it was because he was 254 00:17:47,756 --> 00:17:51,516 Speaker 1: carrying on with the woman next door, but she left. 255 00:17:51,716 --> 00:17:53,796 Speaker 1: They could both be true. He could have been carrying 256 00:17:53,796 --> 00:17:55,796 Speaker 1: on and she took to drink because of that. I 257 00:17:55,836 --> 00:17:59,716 Speaker 1: think this may remain a mystery. I don't think we're 258 00:17:59,716 --> 00:18:01,796 Speaker 1: ever really going to get to the bottom of this, 259 00:18:01,916 --> 00:18:05,156 Speaker 1: other than to speculate, because you know, as with any dispute, 260 00:18:05,156 --> 00:18:07,556 Speaker 1: there are always two sides, and the one thing that 261 00:18:07,596 --> 00:18:09,756 Speaker 1: we're not hearing in all of this, and I think 262 00:18:09,756 --> 00:18:12,716 Speaker 1: this is true of all five victims, and it's true 263 00:18:12,796 --> 00:18:16,356 Speaker 1: in any murder case, really is the one person we 264 00:18:16,436 --> 00:18:19,276 Speaker 1: don't hear from is the person who was killed. Yeah. 265 00:18:19,316 --> 00:18:22,396 Speaker 1: The victim is always silent, yes, And the easiest way 266 00:18:22,396 --> 00:18:25,316 Speaker 1: to get someone off is to make the victim the villain. 267 00:18:26,396 --> 00:18:30,956 Speaker 1: Polly suffered financial, social, and emotional consequences for walking out 268 00:18:30,996 --> 00:18:34,476 Speaker 1: on her family, striking out on her own. She had 269 00:18:34,556 --> 00:18:38,316 Speaker 1: few choices. Ideally, she would have been expected to live 270 00:18:38,316 --> 00:18:40,996 Speaker 1: with relatives, or she could try to make ends meet 271 00:18:41,076 --> 00:18:44,436 Speaker 1: with grueling physical labor such as domestic service or work 272 00:18:44,556 --> 00:18:48,516 Speaker 1: in an industrial laundry. But whatever she chose, she faced 273 00:18:48,556 --> 00:18:51,716 Speaker 1: an empty existence in a society where a woman without 274 00:18:51,716 --> 00:18:55,556 Speaker 1: a family or a husband was viewed with deep suspicion. 275 00:18:56,636 --> 00:19:00,676 Speaker 1: Such a woman was an aberration and invariably also assumed 276 00:19:00,716 --> 00:19:06,116 Speaker 1: to be sexually immoral. Culpability did not matter to Victorian society. 277 00:19:06,436 --> 00:19:10,716 Speaker 1: If a woman left her family, she had failed. We 278 00:19:10,876 --> 00:19:14,836 Speaker 1: cannot underestimate Polly's internal license of shame. At this point, 279 00:19:15,596 --> 00:19:19,516 Speaker 1: she had lost her home, a husband, her dignity, and 280 00:19:19,676 --> 00:19:23,436 Speaker 1: her very reason for being. There was no way of 281 00:19:23,516 --> 00:19:27,436 Speaker 1: severing ties to William and starting afresh either. For a 282 00:19:27,436 --> 00:19:32,076 Speaker 1: woman of police class and means, divorce was practically impossible. 283 00:19:32,476 --> 00:19:35,956 Speaker 1: The English did not have divorce until eighteen fifty seven. 284 00:19:36,156 --> 00:19:38,916 Speaker 1: You could get separated by the church before that, but 285 00:19:38,956 --> 00:19:41,436 Speaker 1: it was not a divorce. You could not remarry. After 286 00:19:41,516 --> 00:19:44,676 Speaker 1: eighteen fifty seven, they did have secular divorce, but they 287 00:19:44,756 --> 00:19:46,916 Speaker 1: limited it in a number of ways, and it was 288 00:19:46,996 --> 00:19:49,596 Speaker 1: very expensive. There was only one court and it was 289 00:19:49,636 --> 00:19:52,636 Speaker 1: in London, so if you had witnesses then you had 290 00:19:52,636 --> 00:19:55,276 Speaker 1: to pay their expenses to come in. There were court 291 00:19:55,356 --> 00:19:59,076 Speaker 1: fees and solicitor's fees for this as well. And it 292 00:19:59,156 --> 00:20:03,436 Speaker 1: was gendered. That gendered aspect of divorce was all about 293 00:20:03,476 --> 00:20:06,516 Speaker 1: a double standard between men and women. So men could 294 00:20:06,516 --> 00:20:09,516 Speaker 1: divorce for a single act of adultery of their but 295 00:20:09,676 --> 00:20:13,716 Speaker 1: women had to have adultery and another ground, a ground 296 00:20:13,796 --> 00:20:20,476 Speaker 1: such as cruelty, desertion, incest, bigamy, or my personal favorite, bestiality. 297 00:20:20,836 --> 00:20:23,276 Speaker 1: The other thing to remember about English divorce was that 298 00:20:23,316 --> 00:20:27,196 Speaker 1: it required what they called clean hands, which meant that 299 00:20:27,236 --> 00:20:30,396 Speaker 1: the petitioning party that wanted the divorce could not have 300 00:20:30,436 --> 00:20:33,876 Speaker 1: committed a matrimonial offense themselves. So for the most part 301 00:20:33,916 --> 00:20:36,596 Speaker 1: it was a compromise. It was a compromise between people 302 00:20:36,676 --> 00:20:38,676 Speaker 1: who didn't want women to be able to sue at all, 303 00:20:38,756 --> 00:20:41,396 Speaker 1: who wanted divorce to be only for men, and those 304 00:20:41,436 --> 00:20:43,956 Speaker 1: who argued that there should be equal grounds between men 305 00:20:43,956 --> 00:20:46,236 Speaker 1: and women, so they did a compromise between those two. 306 00:20:46,276 --> 00:20:48,516 Speaker 1: They allowed women to sue, but it was harder for 307 00:20:48,556 --> 00:20:50,676 Speaker 1: women to sue. And this was, of course, if you 308 00:20:50,756 --> 00:20:54,356 Speaker 1: had money. If you didn't have money, how would you 309 00:20:54,396 --> 00:20:59,276 Speaker 1: effectively end your marriage. For the most part, working class 310 00:20:59,316 --> 00:21:02,516 Speaker 1: people simply walked away. They divorced with their feet. There 311 00:21:02,556 --> 00:21:04,876 Speaker 1: was no way to do it legally unless they somehow 312 00:21:04,916 --> 00:21:08,716 Speaker 1: came into a fortune. Respectable society simply did not cater 313 00:21:08,836 --> 00:21:12,996 Speaker 1: to men and women who are openly separated. Separation was 314 00:21:13,076 --> 00:21:16,116 Speaker 1: judged to be a living death because married couples who 315 00:21:16,116 --> 00:21:18,956 Speaker 1: split apart could never fully move on with their lives. 316 00:21:19,236 --> 00:21:23,996 Speaker 1: Any future relationship would be considered adulterous. After Polly walked out, 317 00:21:24,516 --> 00:21:28,316 Speaker 1: William's bond with Rosetta developed and she effectively became an 318 00:21:28,356 --> 00:21:33,036 Speaker 1: adoptive mother to his children. However, as their extramarital relationship 319 00:21:33,156 --> 00:21:37,116 Speaker 1: directly contravene Peabody's rules, the couple was forced to find 320 00:21:37,156 --> 00:21:42,556 Speaker 1: another home. Any time that their irregular situation got exposed, 321 00:21:43,036 --> 00:21:46,716 Speaker 1: they were going to face consequences social more than legal consequences. 322 00:21:46,876 --> 00:21:50,436 Speaker 1: It's not illegal what they're doing, it's just socially problematic. 323 00:21:50,596 --> 00:21:53,076 Speaker 1: What I find is people who live together but were 324 00:21:53,076 --> 00:21:55,716 Speaker 1: not married, almost all of which are adulterous because they 325 00:21:55,716 --> 00:21:58,676 Speaker 1: can't get divorced. They bump along, okay, they can tell 326 00:21:58,676 --> 00:22:01,356 Speaker 1: their neighbors they're married, they act like husband and wife. 327 00:22:01,516 --> 00:22:04,596 Speaker 1: It's when they run into trouble when it gets exposed, 328 00:22:04,836 --> 00:22:07,196 Speaker 1: because no matter how long you've lived together, no matter 329 00:22:07,196 --> 00:22:08,916 Speaker 1: how much you love each other, no matter how much 330 00:22:09,156 --> 00:22:11,156 Speaker 1: of your children, you are not married in the eyes 331 00:22:11,196 --> 00:22:13,596 Speaker 1: of the state, and the state will treat your children 332 00:22:13,636 --> 00:22:16,916 Speaker 1: as illegitimate children, which means they don't have a legal father. 333 00:22:17,036 --> 00:22:18,876 Speaker 1: They don't even really have a legal mother. She's just 334 00:22:18,956 --> 00:22:22,116 Speaker 1: responsible for supporting them. There's far more consequences for the 335 00:22:22,156 --> 00:22:24,796 Speaker 1: working class woman, but the man is not without them. 336 00:22:25,116 --> 00:22:28,876 Speaker 1: For her part, Polly faced not only degradation, but also 337 00:22:29,116 --> 00:22:32,636 Speaker 1: abject poverty. The work available to women at the time 338 00:22:32,756 --> 00:22:35,836 Speaker 1: was deliberately designed to pay less than a male wage, 339 00:22:36,076 --> 00:22:40,036 Speaker 1: because women were intended to be dependent on men. Ironically, 340 00:22:40,356 --> 00:22:43,596 Speaker 1: Polly's only hope of securing an income was to prove 341 00:22:43,716 --> 00:22:47,796 Speaker 1: she was completely destitute and to enter her local workhouse. 342 00:22:51,396 --> 00:22:59,636 Speaker 1: The ripper retold will be back in a moment. Few 343 00:22:59,676 --> 00:23:04,196 Speaker 1: places were more feared or reviled than the workhouse. This 344 00:23:04,316 --> 00:23:08,516 Speaker 1: austere and foreboding institution was funded by taxes or rates, 345 00:23:09,116 --> 00:23:12,436 Speaker 1: and offered accommodation and basic rations to those who are 346 00:23:12,516 --> 00:23:16,996 Speaker 1: unable to support themselves. Men perform tasks such as stone breaking, 347 00:23:17,596 --> 00:23:21,036 Speaker 1: Women did laundry work, prepared food and picked oakum the 348 00:23:21,196 --> 00:23:24,716 Speaker 1: arduous process of separating out fibers from old ship's ropes 349 00:23:24,756 --> 00:23:28,956 Speaker 1: to sell them on. One of the primary functions of 350 00:23:28,956 --> 00:23:32,556 Speaker 1: the workhouse was to humiliate those who relied upon it, 351 00:23:33,316 --> 00:23:37,356 Speaker 1: regardless of their circumstances. The old, the infirm, the sick, 352 00:23:37,556 --> 00:23:42,716 Speaker 1: the abandoned, and the able bodied were treated with equal disdain. 353 00:23:43,716 --> 00:23:47,916 Speaker 1: In the workhouse, Polly could expect to experience constant hunger, 354 00:23:48,356 --> 00:23:52,996 Speaker 1: frequent illness, and broken sleep. Beatings and bullying at the 355 00:23:53,036 --> 00:23:56,316 Speaker 1: hands of both staff and by fellow inmates were common. 356 00:23:57,076 --> 00:24:01,116 Speaker 1: Restricted access to water, exposure to rats, light, and contaminated 357 00:24:01,156 --> 00:24:05,676 Speaker 1: food ensured that inmates regularly suffered from diarrhea and infections. 358 00:24:08,196 --> 00:24:11,436 Speaker 1: These grim conditions, well known to those outside the workhouse walls, 359 00:24:11,756 --> 00:24:15,756 Speaker 1: were partly about deterrence. They highlight the Victorian belief that 360 00:24:15,796 --> 00:24:20,636 Speaker 1: poverty was somehow a choice, a question of moral deficiency 361 00:24:20,916 --> 00:24:24,636 Speaker 1: as much as one of material lack. Inmates were judged 362 00:24:24,676 --> 00:24:28,556 Speaker 1: to be lazy and immoral. Paupers refused to do honest 363 00:24:28,596 --> 00:24:33,396 Speaker 1: work and had to be broken into submission. When Polly 364 00:24:33,436 --> 00:24:37,236 Speaker 1: approached Lambeth Union Workhouse, she would likely have been fearful, 365 00:24:37,556 --> 00:24:40,396 Speaker 1: aware that once she passed through its gates she would 366 00:24:40,396 --> 00:24:43,796 Speaker 1: be tainted. However, it was only with the approval of 367 00:24:43,796 --> 00:24:46,556 Speaker 1: the workhouse guardians that she would be able to secure 368 00:24:46,676 --> 00:24:52,356 Speaker 1: regular alimony or maintenance payments from William. The legal basis 369 00:24:52,396 --> 00:24:54,596 Speaker 1: of it is that the rape payers are supporting her 370 00:24:54,636 --> 00:24:57,236 Speaker 1: when her husband should be, and so she would go 371 00:24:57,276 --> 00:25:00,396 Speaker 1: to the workhouse and then they would basically sue him 372 00:25:00,596 --> 00:25:03,036 Speaker 1: to get the money for her maintenance from him, and 373 00:25:03,156 --> 00:25:05,796 Speaker 1: they could bring a criminal case against him for a 374 00:25:05,876 --> 00:25:08,796 Speaker 1: non support of his wife. But usually all you had 375 00:25:08,836 --> 00:25:11,036 Speaker 1: to do will send a letter to the husband and 376 00:25:11,076 --> 00:25:14,116 Speaker 1: say we or the guardians of this parish, and we're 377 00:25:14,236 --> 00:25:16,676 Speaker 1: supporting your wife and you should be supporting your wife, 378 00:25:16,756 --> 00:25:19,876 Speaker 1: so we expect you to remove her or to repay 379 00:25:19,916 --> 00:25:22,716 Speaker 1: us for her maintenance. And at that point he has 380 00:25:22,756 --> 00:25:25,676 Speaker 1: to decide how to respond to that. Usually men would 381 00:25:25,716 --> 00:25:28,596 Speaker 1: offer money. They would say I can pay this much, 382 00:25:28,916 --> 00:25:31,036 Speaker 1: and lots of times the parish would take the deal. 383 00:25:31,276 --> 00:25:32,956 Speaker 1: I can't afford six shillings a week, but I can 384 00:25:32,996 --> 00:25:36,236 Speaker 1: afford three. They'll take the three, usually to help offset 385 00:25:36,276 --> 00:25:40,036 Speaker 1: the money. Even after the court started giving women maintenance payments, 386 00:25:40,236 --> 00:25:42,476 Speaker 1: getting the men to pay it was what was hard. 387 00:25:42,596 --> 00:25:44,796 Speaker 1: A man could even if you arrested him and he 388 00:25:44,836 --> 00:25:47,716 Speaker 1: was found guilty, he'd get a couple of months in jail, 389 00:25:47,796 --> 00:25:50,156 Speaker 1: and then he'd be out and the debt is wiped 390 00:25:50,236 --> 00:25:52,916 Speaker 1: clean by the jail sentence, and then you'd start the 391 00:25:52,956 --> 00:25:56,076 Speaker 1: process over, but you never get the money. Securing maintenance 392 00:25:56,116 --> 00:26:00,076 Speaker 1: from William was far from easy. Polly had to claim desertion, 393 00:26:00,596 --> 00:26:03,836 Speaker 1: and the guardians regarded women who declared themselves deserted with 394 00:26:03,996 --> 00:26:09,516 Speaker 1: profound suspicion. Upon entrance, Polly underwent a verbal exam nation 395 00:26:09,956 --> 00:26:12,876 Speaker 1: from one or more officials to determine whether she was 396 00:26:12,956 --> 00:26:17,516 Speaker 1: worthy of aid. Their questions prodded and probed, and were 397 00:26:17,636 --> 00:26:21,796 Speaker 1: steeped in judgment. They began by asking her her full name, 398 00:26:22,196 --> 00:26:28,196 Speaker 1: her age, address, and her marital status. Then the questions escalated, 399 00:26:28,436 --> 00:26:30,796 Speaker 1: do you have any relatives who are legally bound to 400 00:26:30,836 --> 00:26:35,996 Speaker 1: support you? What is your husband's name? How many children 401 00:26:36,036 --> 00:26:41,636 Speaker 1: do you have? Are they legitimate? That last question was 402 00:26:41,716 --> 00:26:44,676 Speaker 1: designed to mortify Polly and prompt her to reveal the 403 00:26:44,716 --> 00:26:49,436 Speaker 1: embarrassing details of her marriage breakdown. Next, William Nichols was 404 00:26:49,476 --> 00:26:52,396 Speaker 1: made to account for himself. He was interviewed by the 405 00:26:52,436 --> 00:26:57,076 Speaker 1: official handling Polly's case. Nichols likely told him that Polly 406 00:26:57,156 --> 00:26:59,556 Speaker 1: was not a deserted wife at all, but that their 407 00:26:59,596 --> 00:27:04,116 Speaker 1: marriage ended because of her drinking. He had a vested 408 00:27:04,156 --> 00:27:08,796 Speaker 1: interest in sullying her name. The official was unconvinced, however, 409 00:27:09,196 --> 00:27:11,876 Speaker 1: and he compelled William to pay five shillings per week, 410 00:27:12,356 --> 00:27:16,916 Speaker 1: a pittance which Polly then collected from the workhouse. When 411 00:27:16,916 --> 00:27:19,036 Speaker 1: a marriage breaks down in the working class, it's hard 412 00:27:19,076 --> 00:27:22,196 Speaker 1: on both because the man can't afford two households. So 413 00:27:22,236 --> 00:27:26,036 Speaker 1: if he's supporting his wife, his legal wife, and another woman, 414 00:27:26,196 --> 00:27:28,836 Speaker 1: almost no working classman can afford that. They can barely 415 00:27:28,836 --> 00:27:32,516 Speaker 1: get by with one household. So unless she can make 416 00:27:32,516 --> 00:27:34,836 Speaker 1: her own money, or unless she hooks up with someone else, 417 00:27:34,916 --> 00:27:37,316 Speaker 1: unless she ends up living with another person, that is 418 00:27:37,356 --> 00:27:41,196 Speaker 1: not a viable financial situation for either party. If William 419 00:27:41,196 --> 00:27:44,036 Speaker 1: could prove that Polly was living with another man, that 420 00:27:44,156 --> 00:27:47,716 Speaker 1: she was someone else's financial problem, he could wriggle free 421 00:27:47,756 --> 00:27:50,556 Speaker 1: of his obligations to her for a time. It seems 422 00:27:50,596 --> 00:27:53,596 Speaker 1: Polly had taken up with another man, and it was 423 00:27:53,636 --> 00:27:57,556 Speaker 1: around this point that William Nichols engaged the spying services 424 00:27:57,596 --> 00:28:02,956 Speaker 1: of a private eye. Private investigation agents regularly advertised in 425 00:28:03,036 --> 00:28:07,876 Speaker 1: London's newspapers. Procuring evidence for divorce cases was always listed 426 00:28:07,916 --> 00:28:13,476 Speaker 1: prominently among the services offered. Private detective offices conducted by 427 00:28:13,516 --> 00:28:18,996 Speaker 1: Messrs Cameron and Co. Divorce and all confidential cases investigated 428 00:28:19,116 --> 00:28:24,316 Speaker 1: with secrecy and dispatch by experienced detectives. Evidence collected and 429 00:28:24,436 --> 00:28:27,836 Speaker 1: witnesses found for any law cases and their evidence taken, 430 00:28:28,516 --> 00:28:37,516 Speaker 1: foreign languages spoken and translated. A spy followed Polly, watching her, 431 00:28:38,116 --> 00:28:42,116 Speaker 1: asking about her in the neighborhood, obtaining the necessary evidence 432 00:28:42,116 --> 00:28:47,836 Speaker 1: and presenting it to William, who promptly ceased his payments. Eventually, 433 00:28:47,836 --> 00:28:51,076 Speaker 1: William was summoned to the magistrate's court to explain himself. 434 00:28:51,556 --> 00:28:55,796 Speaker 1: He was prepared and produced his proof. Polly denied that 435 00:28:55,836 --> 00:28:58,476 Speaker 1: she was living with another man, but the judge sided 436 00:28:58,516 --> 00:29:03,076 Speaker 1: with William and absolved him of his financial responsibilities. In 437 00:29:03,116 --> 00:29:06,596 Speaker 1: all probability, Polly's relationship with the other man had ended 438 00:29:06,596 --> 00:29:09,796 Speaker 1: by this point. If it hadn't, would not have found 439 00:29:09,796 --> 00:29:14,436 Speaker 1: herself destitute when William's five shilling payments were terminated. If 440 00:29:14,436 --> 00:29:17,556 Speaker 1: she had another viable means of supporting herself, such as 441 00:29:17,596 --> 00:29:21,156 Speaker 1: sex work, as it has been suggested, she would not 442 00:29:21,196 --> 00:29:23,956 Speaker 1: have had to surrender herself once more to the stony 443 00:29:23,996 --> 00:29:29,516 Speaker 1: embrace of Lambeth Union Workhouse. Over the next few years, 444 00:29:29,916 --> 00:29:32,916 Speaker 1: Polly was in and out of the workhouse. At one 445 00:29:32,956 --> 00:29:35,916 Speaker 1: point she went to live with her father, brother, his wife, 446 00:29:35,996 --> 00:29:40,356 Speaker 1: and their five children in their small home. She reportedly 447 00:29:40,396 --> 00:29:43,116 Speaker 1: spent a lot of time at the local pub, and 448 00:29:43,236 --> 00:29:48,036 Speaker 1: her drinking cost arguments. According to Edward Walker, his daughter 449 00:29:48,116 --> 00:29:51,116 Speaker 1: did not stay out particularly late, and nor had he 450 00:29:51,156 --> 00:29:56,396 Speaker 1: ever heard of her conduct being, as he said, improper. Nevertheless, 451 00:29:56,516 --> 00:30:00,916 Speaker 1: in eighteen eighty four, Polly's behavior apparently rendered home life impossible. 452 00:30:01,796 --> 00:30:04,436 Speaker 1: She thought she was better by herself, her father said, 453 00:30:05,156 --> 00:30:08,876 Speaker 1: so I let her go. At this point, Polly had 454 00:30:09,116 --> 00:30:12,276 Speaker 1: either a husband nor a family at her side. She 455 00:30:12,476 --> 00:30:16,316 Speaker 1: was alone, with little possibility of supporting herself and placing 456 00:30:16,316 --> 00:30:19,836 Speaker 1: a roof over her own head. In the following years, 457 00:30:19,876 --> 00:30:24,156 Speaker 1: she oscillated between the workhouse, temporary lodging houses or doss 458 00:30:24,196 --> 00:30:29,716 Speaker 1: houses and the cold cobblestones of the streets. In eighteen 459 00:30:29,796 --> 00:30:32,956 Speaker 1: eighty seven, she was sleeping rough one of an estimated 460 00:30:33,076 --> 00:30:37,716 Speaker 1: seventy thousand homeless people in London that year. The experience 461 00:30:37,876 --> 00:30:41,956 Speaker 1: was a miserable one. Women like Polly who found themselves 462 00:30:41,956 --> 00:30:45,156 Speaker 1: without shelter would even expect to become the victims of 463 00:30:45,236 --> 00:30:49,516 Speaker 1: sexual violence. But this is not the point in our 464 00:30:49,556 --> 00:30:53,076 Speaker 1: story where Polly meets her end. As had been the 465 00:30:53,076 --> 00:30:57,076 Speaker 1: case throughout her life, there were choices and opportunities before her, 466 00:30:57,476 --> 00:31:01,276 Speaker 1: and events that altered her trajectory. In the spring of 467 00:31:01,316 --> 00:31:03,996 Speaker 1: eighteen eighty eight, the workhouse found her a job as 468 00:31:03,996 --> 00:31:07,076 Speaker 1: a domestic servant. This was part of a scheme to 469 00:31:07,116 --> 00:31:11,876 Speaker 1: rehabilitate inmates. She was dispatched to the Cowdrees, a Baptist 470 00:31:11,916 --> 00:31:15,196 Speaker 1: couple who lived in a large house surrounded by gardens 471 00:31:15,276 --> 00:31:19,516 Speaker 1: and trees. Polly arrived on May twelfth with nothing more 472 00:31:19,556 --> 00:31:22,956 Speaker 1: than the clothes on her back. Missus Cowdrey supplied her 473 00:31:22,956 --> 00:31:29,276 Speaker 1: with various necessities, including shoes, a decent bonnet, a night dress, caps, pinafores, 474 00:31:29,436 --> 00:31:33,076 Speaker 1: and hair combs. After all, no middle class mistress wanted 475 00:31:33,036 --> 00:31:36,596 Speaker 1: to her maid to appear ragged before visitors. In her 476 00:31:36,636 --> 00:31:39,556 Speaker 1: first week with the Cowdrees, Polly gathered the courage to 477 00:31:39,596 --> 00:31:42,276 Speaker 1: write to her father, who was now living with her 478 00:31:42,276 --> 00:31:44,956 Speaker 1: eldest son. I just write to say you will be 479 00:31:44,996 --> 00:31:46,916 Speaker 1: glad to know that I am settled in my new 480 00:31:46,956 --> 00:31:49,916 Speaker 1: place and going all right up to now. My people 481 00:31:49,956 --> 00:31:52,356 Speaker 1: went out yesterday and have not returned, so I am 482 00:31:52,436 --> 00:31:56,676 Speaker 1: left in charge. It's a grand place with trees and gardens. 483 00:31:56,716 --> 00:32:00,796 Speaker 1: Back in front all has been newly done up. They 484 00:32:00,836 --> 00:32:03,636 Speaker 1: are teetotalers and very religious, so I ought to get on. 485 00:32:04,556 --> 00:32:07,196 Speaker 1: They're very nice people, and I have not much to do. 486 00:32:08,476 --> 00:32:10,996 Speaker 1: I do hope you're all right, and the boy has work, 487 00:32:12,276 --> 00:32:17,916 Speaker 1: so good bye for the present. Yours truly, Polly answer, 488 00:32:17,956 --> 00:32:22,316 Speaker 1: so please and let me know how you are. Polly's 489 00:32:22,316 --> 00:32:25,436 Speaker 1: experiences at the Cowdreyes would have been more comfortable than 490 00:32:25,516 --> 00:32:28,876 Speaker 1: life sleeping rough or at the workhouse. She had the 491 00:32:28,956 --> 00:32:31,356 Speaker 1: use of the garden, eight three meals a day, and 492 00:32:31,516 --> 00:32:36,156 Speaker 1: wore clean clothes. But perhaps she was also lonely, marched 493 00:32:36,156 --> 00:32:39,116 Speaker 1: to chapel by the religious Cowdrees and shamed for the 494 00:32:39,196 --> 00:32:42,236 Speaker 1: life that she had thus far led. There was no 495 00:32:42,356 --> 00:32:45,516 Speaker 1: other servant with him to chat or share jokes. And 496 00:32:45,596 --> 00:32:49,036 Speaker 1: separated from her family. The days and nights may have 497 00:32:49,076 --> 00:32:54,676 Speaker 1: seemed painfully empty, whatever the reason. For a second time 498 00:32:54,716 --> 00:32:58,116 Speaker 1: in her life, Polly made the decision to walk out. 499 00:32:59,156 --> 00:33:02,156 Speaker 1: In July eighteen eighty eight, she took her new belongings 500 00:33:02,196 --> 00:33:07,596 Speaker 1: with her and simply disappeared. This time she ended up 501 00:33:07,676 --> 00:33:14,036 Speaker 1: in Whitechapel Jack, the Rippers Hunting Ground. In six weeks time, 502 00:33:14,636 --> 00:33:17,796 Speaker 1: she would be dead and her story would cease to 503 00:33:17,836 --> 00:33:22,956 Speaker 1: be her own. Society would pick at her carcass, breaking 504 00:33:22,956 --> 00:33:26,236 Speaker 1: over not only the grim details of her demise, but 505 00:33:26,396 --> 00:33:30,876 Speaker 1: also linking her murder to the supposed depravity of her existence, 506 00:33:31,916 --> 00:33:53,236 Speaker 1: because in the end, bad women get what's coming to them. 507 00:33:53,276 --> 00:33:55,316 Speaker 1: Bad women. The Ripper Were Told is brought to you 508 00:33:55,396 --> 00:33:58,916 Speaker 1: by Pushkin Industries and me Hallie Ribbinhold, and is based 509 00:33:58,916 --> 00:34:02,036 Speaker 1: on my book The Five. It was produced and co 510 00:34:02,156 --> 00:34:04,916 Speaker 1: written by Ryan Dilley and Alice Fines, with help from 511 00:34:04,916 --> 00:34:08,996 Speaker 1: Pete Norton. Pascal Wise Sound designed and mixed the show 512 00:34:09,316 --> 00:34:12,916 Speaker 1: and composed all the original music. You also heard the 513 00:34:12,996 --> 00:34:16,996 Speaker 1: voice talents of Soul Boyer, Melanie Guttridge, Gemma Saunders, and 514 00:34:17,116 --> 00:34:20,636 Speaker 1: rufus Wright. The show also wouldn't have been possible without 515 00:34:20,676 --> 00:34:24,316 Speaker 1: the work of Mia La Belle, Jacob Weisberg, Jen Guerra, 516 00:34:24,716 --> 00:34:30,276 Speaker 1: Heather Fane, Carlie Migliori, Maggie Taylor, Nicole Morano and Daniella 517 00:34:30,356 --> 00:34:34,796 Speaker 1: Lacane were special thanks to my agents Sarah Ballard and 518 00:34:34,876 --> 00:34:35,516 Speaker 1: Ellie Kron