The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-12-21
CHLOROPORM AND ELECTRICITY.


DEATH-rHE CAPITAL PUNISHMENT DEBATE
CONTINUED
In reply to q recent medical correspondent. who
disapproved of trying to kill criminals by cleo
tricity and advised tying their heads into air-tigh
bags together with sponges saturated with chlor
form. fellow physician submits the followir
argument. which bristles with the sharp point
usually incident to professional controversy
To EDITOR OF THE HERALD
Your correspondent. cdr. NJ. in advocating Il
the fact that many involuntary deaths have be
caused by the use of this agent. and therefrc
argues its applicability to the execution Of crimina
That chloroform will kill has been repeates
proved. but the manner in which 1t destroys Life
the subject of much controversy.
HOW cHLoRoFoRM KILLS.
Paralysis Of the heart. aphn9a or sufocation.,
what the French term ''sideration. are the tn
more common forms of its action. 1t IL universa
admitted by all writers on the subject that III
several conditions can only be produced by
To produce the required absorption. which may
great small. depending Otter upon idiosy
this very factor. time. that the greatest objection
this agent lies. careful examination OF the vario
medical authorities and journals has failed to pl
duce a single were death was instantaneous
IT'S SLOW AND UNCERTAIN OPERATION
DR.. Taylor, an eminent British authority. in a
work poisons reports nine cases in which def
occurred within two minutes from the common
marks that these cases may admit OF explM
tion from the fact that there existed in
ehioroform in small, doses. proved |. T,
the remarkably small amount administered
in each case. He further states that from two t.
ten minutes is required to produce Inconsistencies
as the time varies with age. temperament ana
habit. DR.. Stevenson found that in more than two
hundred of its administration adults not
usually rendered insensible until after lapse OF
eight minutes and that in the case Of two persons
it produced scarcely any effect It was further
found habitual use of the agent and intemper.
ance induced tolerance which materially length
ness. In the crimean war the vapor was
administered 10000 times. with only
is ssns.y to o5sss
Inconsistencies rapidly possible. very little
be- prodnced reasrdina death from ths sdminis
tration OF this drug goes to prove that variable
periods of time elapse before the blood becomes
charged with the vapor. Considering this fact
established it is only necessary to point out the
many obstacles to the accomplishments Of this con-
diton to satisfy any one that nhalatons Of chloro
form vapor will not fulfil the conditions required Of
CONSEQUENCES OF THE BAG.
The fact must be taken into consideration that the
criminal is an unwilling subject. "Dr NJ" sd-
which is sponge saturated with chloroform. Every
surgeon knows that attempts to produce rapid an
@sthetization will cause choking and sufocating
sensation. There is perfect consciousness,
but the patient often violently rebels. which
action is to certain extent out of his CON-
bity is the admitted first stage Of the action Of
the agent. and is In which many accidents liza
epileptic seizures often brought on. and many
other conditions which materially interfere with the
stood saying these conditions are invariable
but do affirm that they possible and probable.
and undoubtedly would occur in . large number Of
cases.
ErFEcrs OF ELxcrRIcIrY NOT coNJEcrunAI.
To turn to 'Dr. Ms" specific statements. 1t IL
curious to note that he begins by being Eat
loss'' what to reply to the assertion that the
effect of chloroform is not the on
on piles up evidence to prove it's uncertainty.
This is rather fiat standardization. Again he
conjecture. I submit that it is not conjecture
that people have been killed by lghtning not
conjecture that animals have been Killed BY par.
ticular form OF spark and not conjecture that
sons receiv powerful discharge have experienced
the most potent effects 1t certainly appears that
the matter lifted entirely out of the region of
probability. Because electricians know the power
OF the discharge and do not kill themselves other
people by it. aud because physicians do kill sixteen
people year with chloroform- that any argument
explain how these victims killed. He could
not do without giving the results of post-mortem
examinations, and wherever such examinations
have been made of persons dying under chioroform
the fact has almost invariably been proved that they
suffered with diseases Of the heart or lungs per:
the chloroform.
| DEATH By TIGERS SNAKES AND SWALLOWING THE
cdr. NJ" moreover. makes tho nero fact of these
| people having died his ground work. This is as
logical length For instance chloride Of nitrogen ID
one of the most fearful explosives and osmic acid
BY any have
India. 10000 people are killed by tigers and
snakes. Therefore tigers and snakes are the best
means OF execution and had better build arena
further. CDR. NJ" will doubtless admit that . man
can be killed by dividing his spinal cord with tenv-
tome; also that this not done and has been
done. But he also doubtless knows that numbers Of
lodging under the CLOTHS while swsliowing There.
FORE rather than use the tenotome It n better 70
give the criminal dinner. tickle him while he IL
eating. mako him laugh, cause him to swallow the
wrong way and let him choke
| HoRRoRs CONSCIOUS DYING.
| "Dr. M" admits and the fact Is abundantly
| proved. that two minutes, even q longer time.
may eapse before the criminal dies. Let 'Dr. M"
try to realize the horror of resstess death creeping
OIL. Does he not know that person drowning or
falling. even dreaming, often crowds the remin-
isSences may be OF lifetime extending over
OF the strong arguments against hanging is tho
agony endured by the victim during the quarter
any physical torture so poignant as mental agonyf
And what greater anguish Is there than that which
with impending unnatural doathf Is this not en-
phasixed by the fact that natural death by old
y q III ~ s
tain. the beasts of prey innict no suffering their
victims. DIR. Livingstone describes his feelings when
in the paws of a lion. although badly wounded. a.
rather pleasurablc and quiet than otherwise.
Reasonable evidence has been adduced to show that
sns m,ho Se' out e
the criminal to die slowly two minutes.
ms A 10 ns Ss
tried ON the lower animals and the matter reduced
to a certainty before actually employed to execute
duced that will kill heifer even
a strong mastif. do not think any experimental
wants to try experiments by actual execution-s
which savors altogether too much OF the
callow graduate of tho Medical College. Respect
fully. GEORGE II. BENJAMIN. N. u.