New York's Jack the Ripper

When Jack the Ripper stopped his murder spree without being caught, people were left wondering where he went. When a prostitute in NYC is murdered and mutilated, the Chief of Detectives is under a lot of pressure to find the killer. Did Jack the Ripper go to NYC? 

Plus! A special reading of The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe just in time for Halloween.














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Transcript

Matthew: 0:00

macabrepedia deals with dark subject matter and may not be suitable for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised.

Marissa: 0:09

August 31 through November 9 1888, the bodies of five women are discovered dead and mutilated in the White Chapel district of London. First on August 31, the body of Mary Ann Nichols was found with her throat cut twice, and her bowels protruding from her body. Her vagina had been stabbed twice, and she had other smaller incisions over her abdomen. One week later, on September 8, the body of Annie Chapman was found with two similar cuts across her neck. Her abdomen had also been sliced open and two chunks of her flesh had been cut away and placed on her shoulders, her uterus and parts of her vagina and bladder had been removed. Then, on November 30th, the bodies of two women were found. Elizabeth stride was discovered around 1am with a single cut across her neck, but no other mutilations. Just 45 minutes after that body was found, though, the corpse of Catherine Eddowes was found. Her throat had likewise been cleanly cut, but her bowels had been removed and slung over her shoulder. Her left kidney and part of her uterus had been removed, and the killer had cut up her face. Her nose had been cut off, Her cheeks were both slashed, and little vertical incisions were on each of her eyelids. A triangle had been carved on both of her cheeks pointing upwards toward her eyes, and parts of her ear had been severed, and we're now recovered, wrapped in her clothing. Then on November 9, Mary Jane Kelly's body was found with her neck slashed down to the bone. Her body had been extensively disavowed. Her uterus, kidneys, and one of her breasts were found lying beneath her head, and her other organs were found beneath her feet. Parts of her abdomen and her thighs were on a bedside table and her heart was missing. Her face had also been sliced repeatedly hacked up to the point where she was unrecognizable. Jack the Ripper was never identified. Perhaps the most scary part of this is that it was never brought to justice. The Ripper made an imprint on the world with these crimes and the fear of where he'd strike next was still in the hearts of those reading about it in the newspapers and whispering about it in the market. Join us as we add another entry into this our macabrepedia.

Matthew: 2:34

Hello and welcome to macabrepedia a marriage of true crime and the truly bizarre sounds today like I know this one. We're doing Jack the Ripper?

Marissa: 2:44

Nope.

Matthew: 2:46

Okay, then that. I feel like that opening was a little out of place. What are we doing then?

Marissa: 2:50

Well, it's a little related. Right? So, April 24, at 91. There's room 31 of the East River Hotel in New York City, which was a rundown and filthy establishment. Police discover the mutilated body of a 57 year old actress and prostitute named Carrie Brown. She was nicknamed old Shakespeare. Her habit of quoting the bard during drinking games.

Matthew: 3:14

Then she got out of the bathtub and then kept kiss Jack Nicholson. Oh, no, no. That was a shining. Yes. movie reference for the upset.

Marissa: 3:24

Police discovered that she had checked into the hotel the night prior sometime around 1030 11pm with a man and her body had been discovered the next morning by a guy his name was Fitzgerald. He had been asked to clear the floors for the morning.

Matthew: 3:39

like Madonna. He's just Fitzgerald. Just Fitzgerald. That's all we got. Nice. Yeah,

Marissa: 3:44

we'll share action. Yeah, he's not that important, but

Matthew: 3:48

just enough to only have one name. Yeah. And that the only important people do that.

Marissa: 3:53

That's true. This is true. So because of the way the room was set up, Fitzgerald had to open the door all the way against the bed before he could actually get in there and look over at the bed. That's when he saw Shakespeare naked below the shoulders on the bed. Shakespeare. Okay, so that's her nickname. Shakespeare Harry Brown. So her clothes and the bed covers were tangled above her and around her head and around the side of the bed. Her feet face the door. And her head was actually centered on the pillow like she just laid down. But there was blood everywhere. Blood on the bed on the floor. fingermarks smeared and blood on her thighs. Her body was twisted and our guts had been pulled out onto the bed. The bloody handle of a weapon that had been used for the disempowerment, which was a knife was stuck under her thigh.

Matthew: 4:43

Just the handle.

Marissa: 4:45

Know the whole thing but you can see the handle. Oh yeah. Fitzgerald then fled the room philosophy here Fitzgerald, and the hotel shut down for the day as the police took over. Once the coroner got there, he removed the clothing that had been wrapped around her head and he discovered that there were perfectly marks around her throat. And this woman had been strangled to death. It also appeared that the murderer had cut off a large chunk of abdomen from the spinal column around to the lower abdomen, just like a big hunk and taking that with him because it was not in the hotel room.

Matthew: 5:15

It's probably probably good he and you refer back to our cannibalism

Marissa: 5:20

work. And on the left hip the killer had carved into her flesh making across these wounds and the fact that she'd been a prostitute by trade. The tabloids took this and just ran with it, asking has Jack's Ripper moved to America? So the Ripper murders had taken place in London from mostly 1888 through 1891. There's some debate there were six that were definitely Ripper murders, and there are a few that are probably not that still get reported as related to it. Probably copycats. And the body of Francis Cole, who at the time was believed to be a ripper victim, but not now. She had been found in February of 1891. So that was just a couple months before this before they found Carrie brown murdered and mutilated like this. But it was actually very unlikely that this was the work of Jack the Ripper, which police discovered soon. For one, the mutilations had been carried out really clumsily. And with with Jack the Ripper, they were almost surgical like skill when he cut up and mutilated them right. But the media ran with it didn't matter since it was juicy and sensational. And it was just a bit scary to think that the Ripper had crossed the sea. sensationalism.

Matthew: 6:31

Yeah, absolutely. That's, that's 1891 Clickbait.

Marissa: 6:36

Absolutely. So when the 1888 murders and White Chapel were happening, the New York Chief of Detectives Thomas Burns had boasted at the time that they would have caught Jack the Ripper within 36 hours if he'd been killing in New York City. He also said that Scotland Yard had failed at their jobs. They did a really bad job at this. Byrnes made it a point of saying New York police were better than Scotland Yard. Basically.

Matthew: 6:59

That's a that's probably probably pretty bald. I feel like around that time, there was probably a quite quite a few murders happen in in New York City at this. Yeah.

Marissa: 7:07

I'm not as famous as Jack the Ripper. Maybe not all linked like that. Yeah. So when a murdered prostitute, though, turned up dead and mutilated in their backyard. The Press wasted no time reminding burns of his words. So facing embarrassment, as well as this murder they had to solve the hot was on for New York City detectives to catch this murder. And soon,

Matthew: 7:29

I mean, within 36 hours that would that wouldn't even be enough to like, have like a lot of bodies like piling up. Like, that's a pretty bold statement. I mean, there's plot probably, at that time when he made that statement, there was probably daily daily murders that were happening that were not solved.

Marissa: 7:50

Absolutely. You know, that were there are now you know,

Matthew: 7:52

there's no I mean, that would mean that guy pretty bold. I feel like he's gonna He's gonna eat those words.

Marissa: 8:00

So they started they're investigating. One person said that they saw Carrie Brown had brought a man with her to the East River hotel the night before. There was an assistant housekeeper. Her name was Mary Minitor. And she said that she saw them and she described the man that she saw with her. So she said that the guy was probably the same specific but she said he was about 32 years old. That's quite specific. And foreign. She said he might have been German, said he's probably around five foot eight and slender, long, sharp nose heavy moustache that was maybe blonde. He had a dark brown coat on black trousers and old dented Derby hat.

Matthew: 8:39

He was he was definitely a 32 year old German man he may or may not have had a mustache. Yeah,

Marissa: 8:46

probably lawned maybe. She also mentioned that a man known as Frenchie number one was also staying in the hotel that night in room 33 directly across from room 31. So it's a lot of generalizations and possibles with this description. But she admitted that she did not really get a good look at him. The housekeeper said that he'd stayed behind Carrie Brown went or Shakespeare when she was booking the room and seemed like he was trying to stay hidden. She didn't have that much to go on. But the police were determined. The chief detected had boasted that the New York City police would catch Jack the Ripper within 36 hours. And so he kind of had to live up to this in a way right? Yeah,

Matthew: 9:24

my real my real question is, is a housekeeper gets the first and last name Fitzgerald doesn't. The guy who found it?

Marissa: 9:32

Yeah, no. All right. Yeah. Okay. So they call somebody for this murder within 32 hours. Hey, Bo, on the night before the murder, an Algerian man who was known as Frenchie number two. This is not my description. He was seeing with Carrie, the man was seen aggressively speaking with the victim around 8pm And afterwards, they went to Greek George's place which was like a place to drink and they had some old And they drank some booze. There. They were seen arguing and it was suggested that they leave the bar. And then Frenchie number two threatened to cover. There's a lot of bumping down in this scenario. And then they left and seem to be friendly again for a while. They went to another establishment at that point, and they drink some more. And they got really loud again, and the brightest of that place was an Irish woman. And she told them to get out. And it said that she had a strong right arm and she was building away a baseball bat. Get out of here, right? Go home. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here, right? Yep. An hour later is when they were seen to enter the East River Hotel, which the last place that Carrie Brown was seen alive. So nobody saw Frenchie number to actually leave the hotel. But later it was discovered that he had left very early the next morning about 6am He went home changed his clothes and then he disappeared. Frenchie number to live with his cousin. Not this these are these are nicknames I'm not giving this is not my words. But Frenchie number one. Yeah. So I'm also gonna tell them apart. Right. So when the inspectors questions, some women who knew Carrie Brown, he was mentioned as a person who could be of interest here. They took Frenchie number one into custody, which is a cousin. Yes, we're just gonna call him fringy. From now on, he wouldn't speak except to admit that he'd been staying in the room across from room 31 which was room 33. The night of the murder, but he wouldn't say anything more about his cousin. The detectives, like thought that he was pretty dumb. He didn't speak great English. And the things that he did say convinced them that they were looking for the right guy. Hmm. They knew that Frenchie number two was born in Algeria. He had a French accent, hence the name. He matched the description that the housekeeper had provided and that he was known as a real tough manly man.

Matthew: 11:48

Except he isn't German.

Marissa: 11:51

Yeah. Her description was not the best. Maybe he just moved to the city a few months prior. And he'd been shown around introduced to the city by his cousin, friend number one. In fact, his time in New York City lined up pretty good, but the time since the last White Chapel murder, believed to be Jack through perspective. So a couple months after that, there's enough time to cross the ocean and get settled somewhere else. Yeah, sure. So they're looking for French cars in French and so chief detected Thomas burns. He does not believe that this murder has any connection to Jack the Ripper. He dismisses that completely. He says for one, Carrie Brown had been strangled, and Jack the Ripper slit the throats of his victims, not to mention the sloppy work with cutting her up. And of course, she doesn't really want to have Traktor apprentice at

Matthew: 12:37

all. I also don't think that it has anything to do Jack the Ripper?

Marissa: 12:41

Not very likely. No. And then something happens while they're searching for his cousin. He

Matthew: 12:47

comes up dead. And then shortly thereafter, there's another murder that would have cleared the whole thing. No, keep guessing cousin. That was the end of

Marissa: 12:57

it. All right. No. So though Frenchie number two matches the housekeeper's description pretty good. And he's new to town, and he was familiar with the woman who died. They realize that the man they currently have in custody, Frenchie number one may be of greater interest than they thought he had been staying in the room across the hall from the murder that night. So Frenchie, or his name was Amir Ben Ali, which I'm going to be calling him Amir from now on. But he also had a couple of aliases. His name was Frank shurlock, or George Frank. It's the same guy, several names associated with him. So he was staying at the hotel for one. As I mentioned, he was staying in the room directly across from where the murder took place. Also, when the inspectors were investigating the crime scene, they said they found a trail of blood leading out of the door of the hotel room, and when they followed the blood trail that led them across the hall to room 33.

Matthew: 13:53

What was his reasoning for being in the hotel that this murder happened where his cousin was supposedly going with just seems a little,

Marissa: 14:03

never saw reason at all? It's a really sketchy Hotel. People probably know prostitutes take their guys, right,

Matthew: 14:09

but that's what I'm saying. If she was if this was her place that she normally went to, and this dude is renting a room across the hall like, thinking Dang, that should have been the first thing like, if this dude has a moustache, regardless of its color, he should have been number one.

Marissa: 14:24

I'm gonna say a lot of guys had mustaches, I'm sure. Anyway, they found the blood trial. They also found in the room, bloodstains on a chair, a blanket and blood on the bed. They had a mirror in custody already. As I said, when they searched him. I don't know why they didn't do this earlier, but they found that they had. He had large blood stains on the bottom half of his shirt, as well as a bloody bloody handprint. on the shoulder of his shirts. His socks were super bloody, and though Amir's hands had been washed, they scraped the underside of his fingernails. They examined it microscopically and they found that it was human blood.

Matthew: 15:00

I like to think that they are questioning him and you can like in the background if this is a show you just hear the drip. Yeah. And they're like grilling him about the his cousin and then all of a sudden they they turn around they're like, Wait a second. Why are you covered in blood? Explain that, sir. Good. Good job, NYPD.

Marissa: 15:22

They're questioning him at this point. And they want to know about the blood. Or Amir rambled on a bunch of stories amounting to him getting out of jail recently and getting blood on himself accidentally. This guy's he's in jello. Wiseman doesn't

Matthew: 15:36

understand the American customs, right?

Marissa: 15:38

I guess. I don't know.

Matthew: 15:40

Just you get out of jail, and you pour blood all over yourself? Yeah.

Marissa: 15:45

They did look into all of the stories that he had told them. But most were either not true entirely, or they were mostly not true,

Matthew: 15:51

including Sigfried in the dragon.

Marissa: 15:55

Yes, sure. He

Matthew: 15:57

takes a bath. It takes it takes a bath and dragon's blood and becomes indestructible except for where a leaf fell on his back.

Marissa: 16:05

Now that sounds like Achilles though with the river sticks. Yeah, well,

Matthew: 16:09

but that's I'm trying to go back to the German thing.

Marissa: 16:12

None of these explanations are true at all. They can't find any truth in them. They decided this man, he must have killed Carrie Brown. Amir was very well known in the Fourth Ward area, he was known to have a bad temper, and the women who knew him stayed far away from him. He'd been arrested before for assault. So they knew that he had a temperament of a potential murderer. And two of the witnesses that they question said that Amir had a knife similar to the one they had found on the body. So what they do, they charged him with murder, of course, and they appointed a mere legal counsel. The firm that represented him him that represented him was Levy, friend and house. These were three young lawyers who were dismissive of the police's case, saying that it would be easy to prove that he was innocent, soaked head to toe in blood. Yeah. The trial took place July 1891. Amir rejected the claims that he was the guilty party from the start. He his legal team did not get to communicate with him as freely as they wanted to. But they did mention that they believed his innocence. And they did not believe that he was a stupid man. Amir took the stand in his own defense, like his broken English did not help his case. He just kept saying, I was something like, I did not know her. I did not kill her. And that's about it.

Matthew: 17:27

Yeah, let the truth stand on its own. Yeah,

Marissa: 17:31

exactly. So the jury, the jury in the case heard the evidence that was brought against him. This was mostly circumstantial, except for the blood and they returned just two hours later with a guilty verdict. He was sentenced to life in prison. This was interesting though, because if you're going to get convicted of murder in the first degree at the time, you would be sentenced to die. Yeah. But they did not seem to think he deserved to the jury while they found him guilty they found him guilty of murder in the second degree. So that carried the sentence of life in prison which seems to suggest that they had some doubt about his guilt

Matthew: 18:09

Well, I mean murder was murder and second degree like crime passion kind of thing sort of like a premeditated murder

Marissa: 18:15

right so murder in the first degree versus murder in the second degree murder in the first degree is usually premeditated like you planned it out you plan to kill this guy or kill this woman right murder in the secondary degree is typically not premeditated so it could be a crime of passion you know something that they did not plan prior so not quite as serious

Matthew: 18:37

Yeah, that's like somebody getting getting mattered Haven't you know spontaneous murder but still bad? Yeah, but I feel like if you're gonna take a chunk of the person with you I feel like he got a little bit beyond murder in the second degree. I mean, like even if you don't plan I mean I there's probably another probably another another crime that's associated with like corpse mutilation or something like that. But I'm thinking if you're if you're taking somebody apart and taking chunks of them with you or whatever, then I feel like that should be I mean, I'm just the guy has if the dude if the dude did it he's got big ol chunk of her meat somewhere.

Marissa: 19:19

We don't know what happened this chunk I mean, it's a weird like detail.

Matthew: 19:24

I just I feel like if they're gonna say murder in the second degree, I mean, I can I can make an I can make a case as to how that could have happened. But it also seems like if if he's going to mutilate the corpse and it's more than just a crime of passion. So anyways, what happens to us while he's in prison, some another murder happens, and then he's released and then he goes out to seek vengeance.

Marissa: 19:48

Now, but that would be cool. No, no happens. You would think, though, that this was the end of it, or what you just said, but this was not the case. So this this guy they had dumped him New York City's Jack the Ripper, he does go to prison. And this might have been the end for him. But in 1902, which was actually more than a decade after he was put away, new evidence came to light.

Matthew: 20:12

The choco meat was found. That would be

Marissa: 20:15

disgusting a decade later. And truly doubt of his guilt hadn't always existed. As I said, in some way, since the beginning, Amir insisted that he had been framed by the chief of detective burns. And you know why it doesn't make it does make a little bit of sense. I mean, the guy had a lot of pressure on him, the media was saying, Hey, you said you'd catch Jack the Ripper in 36 hours. What are you up to? If you haven't caught somebody by now? Right?

Matthew: 20:38

The best thing to do in that case is blame a foreigner. Yeah.

Marissa: 20:43

Yeah, that's pretty much the case here. So he insisted that he had been framed and a journalist who worked for the New York Sun believed him. The journalist was named Jacob Reese, and he was one of the first newsmen who had arrived at the scene of the murder of Carrie brown. So he had actually been there. And he had seen no trail of blood going to Amir's room, right. So he believed that Amir was innocent. So Amir went had gone through the appeals process over the years. None of these resulted in him being released though, he became really depressed. He spent his life locked behind bars for a crime that he insisted he did not commit. He was actually moved to the New York State asylum for for insane criminals that Matewan Reese continued to try to help him here though, even when his defense lawyer told him Can you just stop as he was better off being crazy in the silence,

Matthew: 21:37

the truth must live on? Well, that is

Marissa: 21:41

what journalists typically believe. And that's what this guy believe right in recent built up his reputation as a journalist, and he ended up converting some important people to the cause of freeing Amir. They got a well respected New York attorney to represent him. And they found a man named George Damon, who signed an affidavit stating that his servant had been away from home the night of Carrie Brown's murder, and he had come home the next day. And later, George Damon's maid had found a Key to Room 31 at the East River hotel, and blood stained clothing.

Matthew: 22:15

And a big old chunk of meat.

Marissa: 22:19

Every dust by now, but now he didn't find a chocolate

Matthew: 22:22

when the person found the key to the room

Marissa: 22:25

was in the barn, maybe the pigs ate it. The servant had disappeared shortly after this. So nothing had been investigated, and he had left the country. And so they never followed up on that. He had actually turned this evidence into authorities at the time, but nobody had, as I said, investigated it. So now but nobody now knew what had come up this evidence. But they did have the statement that he swore that he saw this he found it based on this evidence and Reese stating that he had not seen a trail of blood at the crime scene. Reese was successful in helping Amir and the conviction was overturned de Yeah, Amir was granted a full pardon, and he left prison a free man nearly 12 years after he entered it better than life. But they never actually found the servants. They never came to the conclusion as to who who actually murdered Carrie and where he was at he probably just got away with it.

Matthew: 23:25

No, clearly. So that will do it for this week's entry into the macabrepedia and today we are doing something a little bit different we are doing a Halloween special could be trick could be a treat. Who knows? You can let us know with feedback on social media or email as always, but today we are what are we? What are we doing today?

Marissa: 23:53

I'm doing a reading of the tell tale heart by Edgar Allan Poe.

Matthew: 23:57

I love that story.

Marissa: 23:59

It's the first one I remember of Poe actually. I think I read it in middle school. So this one stuck with me. So anyway, the tell tale heart. True. Nervous very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and I am. But why will you say that I'm mad. The disease has sharpened my senses not destroyed, not dealt them. Above all was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. heard many things in hell. How then am I mad? hearken. And observe how healthily how calmly I can tell you the story. It is impossible to say how first the idea into my brain. But once conceived, it haunted me day and night. object there was none. Passion there was none. I loved the old man. He had never wronged me. He had never given me insult for his gold. I had no desire. I think it was his eye. Yes, yes, it was this one of his eyes resembled that of a vulture pale blue eyed with a film over it. Whenever it fell upon me my blood ran cold. And so by degrees very gradually, and made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever. Now this is the point you fancy me mad. Mad Men know nothing but you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded with what caution with what for sight. With what to dissimulation I went to work. I was even kinder to the old band than during the whole week for I killed him. And every night, about midnight, I turned the latch of his door and opened it. Oh, so gently. And then, when I had made an opening sufficient for my head, I put in a dark lantern, all closed, close so that no light shone out, and then I thrust in my head. Oh, he would have laughed to see how cunningly I thrusted in. I moved it took me an hour to place my whole head within the opening so far that I could see him as he lay up on his bed. What would a madman have been so wise is this and then when my head was well in the room, I undid the lantern cautiously. Oh, so cautiously, cautiously, for the hinges creaked, I undid it just so much that a single thin Ray fell upon the vulture, I. And this I did for seven long nights, every night just at midnight, but I found the I always closed and so it was impossible to the work for it was not the old man who faxed me but his evil eye. And every morning when the day broke, I went boldly into the chamber, and spoke courageously to him, calling him by name and a hearty tone, and inquiring how he had passed the night. So you see, he would have been a very profound old man and D to suspect that every night just at 12 I looked in upon him while he slept. Upon the eighth night, I was more than usually cautious and opening the door. A watches minute hand moves more quickly than did mine. Never before that night had I felt the extent of my own powers of my sagacity. I could scarcely contain my feelings of triumph. To think that there I was, opening the door, little by little, and he not even to dream of my secret deeds or thoughts. I fairly chuckled at the idea, and perhaps you heard me before he moved on the bed suddenly, as if startled. Now, you may think that I drew back, but no, His room was as black as pitch, the thick darkness, for the shutters were closed, fastened through fear of robbers, and so I knew that he could not see the opening of the door, and I kept pushing it on steadily, steadily. I had my head in, and was about to open the lantern when my thumb slipped upon the 10 fastening, and the old man spring up in the bed, crying out who there. I kept quite still, and said nothing. For a whole hour I did not moving muscle. In the meantime, I did not hear him lie down. He was still sitting up in the bed listening, just as I have done, night after night, hearkening to the death watches in the wall. Presently I heard a slight groan. I knew it was the groan of mortal terror. It was not a groan of pain, or of grief. Oh, no. Who was the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with all? I knew the sound well. Many a night just at midnight, when all the world slept, it has welled up from my own bosom, to deepening with its own dreadful echo, the terrors that distracted me. I say I knew it well. I knew what the old man felt, and pitied him. Although I chuckled at heart. I knew that he had been lying awake, ever since the first slight noise when he had turned in the bed. His fears had been growing ever since growing upon him. He had been trying to fancy them causeless but could not. He had been saying to himself, it is nothing but the wind and the chimney it is only a mouse crossing the floor, or it is merely a cricket with which has made a single chirp. Yes, he has been trying to comfort himself with these suppositions but he had found all in vain, all in vain, because death, and approaching him had stocked with its black shadow before him and enveloped the victim. And it was the mournful influence of the unperceived shadow that caused him to feel although he never saw nor heard to feel the presence of my head within the room. When I'd waited a long time, very patiently, without hearing them lie down. I resolved to open a little, very, very little crevice in the lantern. So I opened it. You cannot imagine how stuffily stealthily until that last, a single damn Ray, like the threat of a spider, she shot from out of the crevice and full upon the vulture eye. It was open, wide, wide open and I grew furious As I gazed upon it. I saw it with perfect distinctness all adult blue, with a hideous veil over it that chilled the very marrow in my bones. But I can see nothing else at the old man's face or person, for I had directed the ray as if by instinct, precisely upon the damn spot. And now Have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is but over acuteness of the senses. Now, I say there came to my ears a low, dull, quick sound, such as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I knew that sound well to it was the beating of the old man's heart, in increased my theory as the beating of a drum stimulate the soldier into courage. But even yet I refrained and kept still. I scarcely breathed. I held the lantern motionless. I tried very, very steadily, I could maintain the RE up on the eye. Meantime, hellish tattoo of the heart increased. It grew quicker, and quicker, and louder and louder every instant. The old man's terror must have been extreme. It grew louder, I say, louder every moment do you mark me Well, I have told you that I am nervous so I am, and now at the dead hour of the night amid the dreadful silence of that old house, so strange noises as excited me to uncontrollable terror. For some minutes longer. I refrain and stood still. But the beating grew louder, louder. I thought the heart must burst. And now a new anxiety sees me. The sound will be heard by neighbor, the old man's our had come with a loud yell, I threw up in the Lancer and leaked into the room. He shrieked once only once. In an instant I dragged him to the floor and pulled the heavy bed over him, and then I smiled giggly, to find the deed so far done. But for many minutes, the heartbeat on was a muffled sound. This, however, did not fix me. It would not be heard through the wall, and link that did cease. The old man dead. I removed the bed and examined the corpse. Yes, he was stone stone dead. I placed my hand upon the heart and held it there in many minutes. There was no pulsation. He was stone dead. His I would trouble me no more. If still you think me mad, you will think so no longer when I describe the wise precautions I took for the concealment of the body. The night waned, and I worked hastily, but in silence. First of all, I dismembered the corpse. I cut off the head and the arms and the legs. I then took up three planks from the flooring of the chamber and deposited all beneath the scantlings. I then replaced the board so cleverly so cunningly, that no human eye not even his could have detected anything wrong. There was nothing to wash out no stain of any kind, no bloodspot whatsoever. I had been too wary for that. A tub had called all Well, when I had made an end of these labors, it was four o'clock still dark. As the bell sounded the hour, there came a knocking at the street door. I went down to open it with a light heart for whatever now that fear there insert three men who introduced themselves with perfect suavity, as officers of the police. A shriek had been heard by a neighbor during the night, suspicion of foul play had been aroused. information had been lodged at the police office, and they, the officers have been deputed to search the premises. I smiled, for what had I to fear. I bade the gentlemen Welcome. The shriek, I said, was my own in a dream. The old man I mentioned was absent in the country. I took my visitors all over the house, I made them search search Well, I lead them at length to his chamber. I showed them His treasures, secure, undisturbed. In enthusiasm of my confidence, I brought chairs into the room and desired them here to rest from their fatigues, while I myself, in the wild audacity of my perfect triumph, placed my own seat upon the very spot beneath which reposed the corpse of the victim. The officers were satisfied. My manner had convinced them. I was singularly at ease. They sat and while I answered, surely they chatted familiar things. But ere long, I felt myself getting pale and I wish that they were leave. My head aches, and I fancied a ringing in my ears, but still, they sat and still chatted. The ringing became more distinct, it continued and became more distinct. I talked more freely to get rid of the feeling, but it continued and gains definitiveness until at length, I found that that noise was not within my ears. No doubt I now grew very pale. I talked more fluently and with a heightened voice yet the sound increased and what could I do? It was a low, dull, quick sound. Much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I guessed for breath and yet the officers heard it not. I talked more quickly more vehemently but the noise steadily increased. I rose and argued about trifles, and a little high key and with violent gesticulations but the noise steadily increased. Why would they not be gone? A pace the floor to and fro with heavy strides, as if excited to Fury by the observation of the men, but the noise steadily increased. What could I do? I found I raid I swore. I swung the chair upon which I'd been sitting, and I graded it upon the boards, but the noise arose overall and continually increased, grew louder, louder, louder and still, the men chatted pleasantly, and they smiled. Was it possible they heard not? Almighty God? No, no, they they heard they suspect they knew. They were making a mockery of my horror. This I thought and this, I think, but anything was better than this agony. Anything was more tolerable in this division. I could bear those hypocritical smiles no longer I felt that I must scream or die. And now again, harc louder. Louder. Louder. Villains. I shrieked, dissemble no more. I admit the deed tear up the planks here. Here is the beating of his hideous heart. And that was the tell tale heart by Edgar Allan Poe.

Matthew: 36:39

Read by Marissa,

Marissa: 36:41

read by me it's Halloween. It's a little different than than you're used to obviously. But we thought like it would be a little bit pickier that way.

Matthew: 36:54

Yeah, absolutely. It's definitely a little more fun to put something like this in there. But we appreciate you sticking around for this portion of the podcast if you did if you didn't Oh well. But tell us what you thought. As always, you can reach us at all of our social medias. On Twitter and Facebook, we are macabrepedia. And on

Marissa: 37:20

Instagram or macabrepediapod you can also reach us at our email macabrepediapod@gmail.com on the show notes.

Matthew: 37:28

And if you are listening to us on any of the apple W's leave us a comment and five star review please, that does help us get noticed. So we appreciate you doing that notice on this but you do yeah and also you know share it if you think it's fun. The podcast as a whole find a favorite episode that you think might be fun for your friends and spread the word. But as always, thank you so much and join us next week as we add another entry to this our macabrepedia