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Show Kill by Electrocution the m u Only Humane tlOCK Execution V J 'By DR. E. A. SPITZKA. Eminent Drain SpcclatUI. I """""1 HE history of electrocution covers a period, of only 20 years. It wns first introduced in New York in 1888. In its opera-V opera-V tion, tho electric current, is turned on and reduced and in- (gflffit creased alternately. Prom seven to ten amperes pass through fii a body. Tho time consumed in strapping is about 45 seconds, W jtl and in 00 to 70 seconds tho victim is shocked to dctah. Con-anjUp Con-anjUp sciousncss is blotted out instantly. In only two cases qf those fflr 1 hnvo observed was there respiratory effort after the current IhJ was turned on. A post mortem examination of the body reveals much interesting phenomena. There is a rising in the temperature, in one case aa high us 1291. degrees P. Tho lungs are devoid of blood and weigh six or seven ounces avoirdupois. Tho blood seems to be under a chemical change and is of a dark brownish hue, sometimes almost black, and it rarely coagulates. On the nervous cells there is no apparent effect, although thero is a molecular change. I have witnessed a number of hangings at Moyamcnsing prison, and would recommend a reading of Oscar Wilde's poem, "Ballad of Heading Jail," to illustrate the unpleasantness of the dancing feet in air. The preparations in hanging are about as quick as in electrocution, but the heart beats for some time after the drop, usually 13 minutes. And there is a spasmodic movement of the body after tho shock of the drop, duo to a partly conscious effort to stop tho choking, lasting for about one and a half minutes. |