months". Tanner stated Stride had been a "very quiet" and sober woman. Tanner said that, although Stride had Swedish heritage, she had "[spoken] English as well as an English woman". Stride had informed her that her husband and children had drowned in the 1878 Princess Alice paddle steamer sinking. Charwoman Catherine Lane also testified she knew Stride as a Swede named Long Liz whom she had known for about six months. Lane said Stride had informed her shortly before her death that she had "had a few words" with her partner, and that this was the reason she was again taking residence at Flower and Dean Street. Stride had given Lane a large piece of green velvet as she left the lodging-house before her death, asking Lane to "mind" the garment until she returned. On 3 October, Michael Kidney formally identified Stride's body, stating the two had been in a relationship for "nearly three years". He added that they had occasionally separated because of Stride's heavy drinking, although she inevitably returned to him. Medical testimony Dr Phillips testified that the cause of death had been "undoubtedly the loss of blood from the left carotid artery and the division of the windpipe." He firmly believed Stride had been "seized by the shoulders and placed on the ground, and that [her] murderer was [kneeling to] her right side" when he had inflicted the wound to her throat. Conclusion The inquest into Stride's murder lasted five days, with the final day of hearings being adjourned until 23 October. This final day of the hearing saw three witnesses testify—all of whom provided testimony confirming the identity of the decedent. At the conclusion of this final day of hearings, coroner Baxter stated his belief that Stride had been attacked in a swift, sudden manner, with her death undoubtedly being a homicide, and no known circumstances being available which could reduce the crime to one of manslaughter. The murderer could have taken advantage of the checked scarf Stride was wearing to grab her from behind before slitting her throat, as had earlier been suggested by Phillips. Baxter, however, thought the absence of a shout for assistance and the lack of obvious marks of a struggle indicated that Stride had willingly lain down on the ground before the wound had been inflicted. Stride was still clenching a packet of cachous in her left hand when she was