The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1881-05-12
Torturing By Electricity.


According to a dispatch from Geneva,
Russakof and Jaliboff, the killers of the
Car. have been mercilessly put to tort
ure in the presence of General Loris
Mellkoff. Russakoff was electricized bv
powerful batteries and forced by the in
toleftible agony he suffered to answer
the questions put to him.
Park Benz the scientific expert,
says: 'The idea of torturing criminals
by electricity is not original with the
Russians. 1t is a British invention, and
was first sugg ested, about five years ago,
by an English mechanical journal, in
commenting upon the execution of
criminals by electric shock instead of
by hanging. The English writer wanted
to do away with the cat O nine tails,
which is administered in England to
garroters and other criminals of certain
classes, and use the electric battery, as
he somewhat grimly expressed it, so as
to produce absolutely indescribable tort
ure (unaccompanied by wounds or even
Bruises thrilling through every fibre of
such miscreantS. There was an Amer
lean inventor who had design for in
flicting this species of punishment. He
fitted brackets of iron on the arms and
thighs of the criminal, and placed in
them wet sponges. When connected
with current of electricity the shock
would by this system pass through the
legs and shoulders and avoid the vital
parts of the body.
1.-The torture inflicted by electricity
is Of two kinds-by contraction of the
muscles at rapidly recurring intervals
and by burning withsparks. The tort
ures OF old days, when not done by fire
or compression, were the straining and
tearing asunder of the muscles. Of this
kind were the rack, ''scavenger's daugh-
ter" and the cages of Louis XIV, in
which man could not stand up or lie
down. The electric shock. exactly re-
verses these conditions. 1t produces an
enormously rapid contraction in the
body of the muscles at very short inter-
walls. The degree of pain produced is
about the same. The force of the cleo
tricity has to be nicely graded, as a too
powerful shock would numb or kill a
man.
&c The other method is by condensing
number of intermittent sparks on the
Hesh. This burns the skin and at the
same time produces contractions of the
muscles. If put to the side of the jaw
1t would make every tooth ache
A distinguished surgeon of whom
questions were asked concerning the
machine said: &c The best way to ex-
plain it is to give you actual experience;
then you will know exactly how it feels
Here is Faradic induction coil. pull
out this tube a little way. Now, let me
place this electrode to your hand.
There"
cop exclaimed the inquirer, as a
tingling, thrilling sensation ran through
every finger, and his hand closed in an
involuntary grasp. .--
''Does it hurt3'' asked the doctor
"a little" 4r stiE nv
"Wel, we'll try again. Now, you
see, pull this tube further out. again
touch it to your hand and-'' p
"Whoopr' shouted the victim; stake
it away!' The feeling was as if the
hand was crushed in vice. Every
nerve ached and trembled with pain.
THAT hurt, did it? Why that's
nothing. Here's something of a very
different sort"
He fastened to one wire small wet
sponge, and to the other wire something
like a paint brush, with the brush part
made of one wire. He put the sponge
IN the VISITORS hand and then touched
the back of the hand with the wire
brush. The pain was unbearable. The
surface of the skin was scorched and
the muscles of the hand were contract
ed in violent manner.
That is called the electric scourge,''
said the doctor. g Ii it were dark you
could see sparks fly from each wire
Imagine the effect if the electricity were
ten times more powerful.
' Gould any man bear that torture?'
g l think not; any man would con-
fess under it, but it is a question what
confidence could be placed in such a
confession. A man would confess any,
thing to escape the agony"
g What would you compare the pain
top
8" 1t would be the same as burning
alive"
Would it injure the man.
" No-not unless the pain drove him
insane. If the battery was too power
full it would kill at once. Applied to
some parts of the body the scourge
hurts more than on other parts. "-New
York San.