Sir George Arthur Jugged

SIR GEO. ARTHUR JUGGED.
THE POLICE THOUGHT THAT HE WAS THE WHITECHAPEL MURDERER.

Dangers of "Slumming" in the East End of London - The Little Baronet Held Until He Had Sent For Friends to Establish His Identity, When He Was Liberated with Profound Apologies.

Copyright, 1888, by The Press Publishing Company (New York World).
[SPECIAL CABLE DESPATCH TO THE WORLD.]

LONDON, Nov. 17. - The most intense amusement has been caused among all classes of the London world by the arrest last week of little Sir George Arthur on suspicion of being the Whitechapel murderer. Sir George is a young Baronet holding a captaincy in the regiment of Royal Horse Guards, and is a member of most of the leading clubs in town. He is also a well-known amateur actor, and was a great friend of the late Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany. Since the past few weeks the old mania for "slumming" in Whitechapel has become fashionable again. Every night scores of young men who have never been to the East End before in their lives prowl around the neighborhood in which the murders were committed, talking with the frightened women and pushing their way into over-crowded lodging-houses. So long as any two men keep together and do not make a nuisance of themselves the police do not interfere with them. But if a man goes alone and tries to lure a woman of the street into a secluded corner to talk with her he is pretty sure to get into trouble. That was the case with Sir George Arthur. He put on an old shooting coat, a slouch hat and went down to Whitechapel for a little fun. He got it. It occurred to two policemen that Sir George answered very much the popular description of Jack, the Ripper. They watched him, and when they saw him talking with women they proceeded to collar him. He protested, expostulated and threatened them with the vengeance of royal wrath, but in vain. Finally, a chance was given to him to send to a fashionable Western Club to prove his identity, and he was released with profuse apologies for the mistake. The affair was kept out of the newspapers. But the jolly young Baronet's friends at Brook's Club considered the joke too good to be kept quiet.
Sir George is quite a figure in his way in London. He is a son of the late Sir Frederick Arthur, who was an influential man in his day. Sir George was conspicuous on the turf a few years ago and was intimately associated with the dowager Duchess of Montrose. He then turned his attention to theatricals, and when the Bancrofts produced "Fedora" they allowed Sir George to appear as the corpse.
There is a report tonight that he is going to Monte Carlo for a few weeks.

Another arrest was that of a man who gave the name of Dr. Kumblety, of New York. The police could not hold him on suspicion of having been guilty of the Whitechapel crimes, but have succeeded in getting him held for trial at the Central Criminal Court under the special law passed soon after the "Modern Babylon" exposures. The police say that Kumblety is the man's right name, as is proved by letters in his possession from New York, and that he has been in the habit of crossing the ocean twice a year for several years.
A score of other men have been arrested by the police during the past week on suspicion of being the murderer, but the right man still roams at large, and everybody is momentarily expecting to hear of the death of another victim.
The large sums offered for the capture of the fiend have induced hundreds of amateur detectives to take a hand in the chase. But it is all of no avail. Mr. Leopold Rothschild has offered an income of $10 a week for life to the man who gives information which will lead to the arrest and conviction of the assassin.

Source: The New York World, Sunday November 18, 1888