Jack-the-Clipper

In the year 1888 the Whitechapel district of London was being terrorized by a brutal serial killer preying on prostitutes, who are among the most vulnerable among us. The unknown murderer was called Jack the Ripper. Other nicknames included "The Whitechapel Murderer" and "Leather Apron." He was never apprehended.

Some fourteen years later, in 1914, New Orleans had its own version of the miscreant who was running around the city terrorizing schoolgirls, albeit not as brutally. The following report appeared in the New Orleans States:

           Three New Orleans girls have fallen victim to Jack-the-Clipper, who
            was abroad Friday, snipping the plaited locks of young schoolgirls.
            Many other girls were said to have lost their hair, but are suppressing
            it because of the resultant unpleasant notoriety. Superintendent
            Reynolds has detailed special officers to watch for the miscreant,
            who has been operating mostly on street cars and in moving-picture
            theatres.
            It is not thought that any hair dealers are guilty, for the tresses were 
            slashed but a few inches from the end, while the guilty parties had an
            opportunity of cutting off two or three feet of hair.

One week later the same newspaper reported this story:

           Since stories have begun to appear in the papers regarding the
           unmentionable thief who has been cutting off hair, New Orleans girls
           have come to realize that they wear wealth on their heads. Not only
           that, but they are taking great pains to guard it.
           A chattering group of school girls boarded a car Thursday at the
           corner of the Sophie B. Wright High School. Thick braids of black,
           brown and golden hair hung down their backs. As soon as they had
           found seats, giggling stopped long enough for them to reach round
           with the trained precision of a comic opera chorus and bring their
           braids to the front and tuck them carefully in the front of their coats.
           One whose hair wasn't long enough to reach worked with her
           refractory curls until she had them all safely tucked from sight in
           the crown of her hat.

His fetishism apparently satisfied, Jack-the-Clipper disappeared as suddenly as he had appeared on the scene. However, during the years 1921 to 1923 a new epidemic cropped up. Bobbed hair was coming into fashion. This new evildoer invaded boudoirs and lopped the tresses into rough-cut bobs. It should be noted here that the victims were all young women who wanted nothing more than to be "thoroughly modern," but who had been forbidden to adopt the new style by old-fashioned  parents or husbands. Perhaps feminism was alive and well in the earlier part of the last century. And maybe Jack-the-Clipper was a convenient scapegoat .

I found this charming little story in Gumbo Ya-Ya: Folk Tales of Louisiana.

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FLEX YOUR MUSCLES
Writing Prompt:
What is the worst thing you would do if you knew you could get away with it? Write about it.

Southern Writers Magazine: A Review

Fiction. Nonfiction. Poetry. There's something for everyone in the May/June issue of Southern Writers Magazine. While I was paging through it I ran across some names familiar to me. 

Jessica Ferguson, past president of the Bayou Writers Group in Lake Charles, Louisiana, of which I am a member, spotlights Louisiana writer Vicki Allen. She is the author of four books, two of which are on reading lists at local Louisiana high schools.

James R. Tate, a member of BWG, is in the Good Reads by Southern Writers column along with his book, Blood Bias, a thriller set in Texas.

Sherry Perkins, current president of the Bayou Writers, interviewed Viggo Mortensen about his poetry. Yes. Aragorn himself. When he's not running around Middle Earth he's writing beautiful poems. Check out the interview on page 22, where he dispenses advice for aspiring poets.

Several other articles caught my eye. There was advice on when to use the word "that" and when to leave it out. Something I've long struggled with. Book Proposal Boot Camp by W. Terry Whalin had excellent tips. C. Hope Clark tells you how to build your platform. Are you ready to start your memoir? Check out Kimberly Rae's piece, Your Story, on page 27.

There are quite a few other informative articles inside. I would say you need to get your own copy and look them over. You'll be glad you did.

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FLEX YOUR MUSCLES

Writing Prompts

Write a story or poem using these words:

     Chimes

     Thunderhead

     Fade

     Swirl

     Winged