‘Blind Man’s Buff,’ by John Tenniel

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Blind Man’s Buff

John Tenniel

1888

Wood engraving by Swain

John Tenniel

Punch (22 September 1888): 138.

This is one of Tenniel’s withering satirical attacks on the incompetence of the police as they sought to catch the killer, had no clues and were as helpless as a child with a blindfold: an effective visual metaphor. The hoodlums standing around the officer could all be responsible for the crimes, but cannot be seen, and enjoy mocking the helplessness of the law. This subversive situation was a source of deep anxiety for the authorities. [Commentary continues below.]

Visualizing Horror: Illustrations of Jack the Ripper and his Victims

At this point it was believed that the Ripper had already killed four women: Emma Elizabeth Smith, Martha Tabram, Mary Ann Nichols and Annie Chapman. The first two were eventually discounted, but on 30th September 1888, a week after this cartoon appeared, the grim tally rose to four as Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes were murdered on the same night; this atrocity was dubbed the ‘double event.’ Clearly, the blindfold was still in place, and would remain so until the final homicide, of Mary Kelly, took place on 9th November. Indeed, the blindfold has never been removed, despite the many post-mortem investigations.

Image scan and text by Simon Cooke. [You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the site and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]

Created 29 May 2025