The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1890-08-09
THE hEMjiLER EXECUTION.
Ahe shorif of tho County ,Jotu. IN tt,,,t,

~Ho S"dhty ootu5 iii AttaCft
Ing DIR. Spitzka. r.
BUFFALO, N. y, August S.-The wrsr.
gle over tho Kemmler execution cor.
tinues. i375.sa iii!
Tho attack made by Dr.. spi,xka, os
New York, 'of Dr.. Dauiels, of this city,
created considerable Of sensation here
where Dr.. Daniels is held iii hirh re.
interviews were had with a number Of
.ne witnesses from this city who st.
tehded the kemmler electrocutiou omd
an a co!ncIded in the opinion tlat Dr
spltzka had made Il fatal mistake in S;a
eSan1 eS.,aha.e OF the time required for the
Sheriff jenkins was very outs,oken.
ho said: The Kemmler execution
huu IL been properly managed. wonit
judgment" ''''u'' AZ my
:, ,,,M no was responsibe for the bad
maanagement?" he was asked.
"Dr. Spitzka. The Warden was not
willing to rely upon his own ;a,iVment
IN the application OF the current He
said to tho doctors: Now, ycntlc,,an n'
you know much better than I do how
.ons 'he current ought to be adminis.
tefed.' DR.. Spitzkn, who assumed to
SPEAK tor everybody, declared briskly
;4a1 thfee seconds wonld do the work
VII. Durston thereupon insured ii II
"oulu ne safe to. turn the curren. off il,
ten or hlteen seconds, and Dr.. Spilzkn
answered by reailirming his former dpc'
lalatlon. When tho current was trrnnL
on the chest heayed and the whole holy
s.iuened out, but quickly settled bnck
SniIzio iH lne m cnalr apparently lifeless. Dr.
sp,'Isa ,1n * Immediately appealed to Ours
.on M 70 have the current turned or
mthlcn, as you know, was done Mt the end
"a seventeen seconds. Suddenly We
me.e ; horrltied o'see the chest move
louo%ea by what appeared to be decr
ana Iaeo'ed respiration. The current
was again turned on, and the rest Won
know; believe that if the current Ini
1een kepton for proper time at first
the execution would have bren n comr
plete success." lI90s - = - .o't'
Or. George E Fell was asked what ha
thought Of the criticism made hv Ed;sne I; No
ors. ~ sue manner oi conducting the electric
curTent IT 70 the body of Kemmler.
= tnlhk ne ls wrong; all wrong"
promptly said the Doctor. "a current
passed directly to the brain DESTROYS Mi
CONSEQUENCES. Acurrent passed throuph
Ine pooy may or may not destroy con-
seriousness. | know this to be go from
uy own experience. Ihave taken heavy
snocks through the hands myself which r.
Gonid not have taken through the brain
= nave known cases wherc one .ido oe
the brain would be affected and th..
,, o1nef not affected atlall by curren.s trs-
;nn ;vers'ng tne body. Tho power OF ieoI-
n;H auH would be benumbed on one
s,ue, sly. and yet remain active on the other
Inc application OF electrodes to th.
neao and base Of the spinal column in
sufed ttio currents travelsinp the sn;no
aud acting directly on the serve ccntor,
aud the brain. Consciousnoaa wonld hs
annulled. Should the carrent be wal
anu insufficient to kill outright. thr ma,,
would not be tortured. A currant gpnt
Through the body might, unless Il wa,
ol exceedingly high vo tage. but Dar,lv
.e;a. uGauano Inc brain, and sufficient con-
seriousness would remain 10 receive tha
sensation OF pain. The method of ~ an
phcation which was employed / brlier.
" oe tue most certain and 30 tho mo,t
humane" I3," :" ~ '"o most ihost
!; VI. Fell also emphatically said that ho
d1lsagreed with auy one Who sa;d ,,ae 10
hemm!er was not killed by ,he frat
snoek. s.aI. II that shock had been of higher
voltage or longer continued there wonla %
not have been the muscular contructio,,s
OF the diaphragm which resemhln%
Dreaming. ) he execution was impe,ipct
only :nl because Of mechanical diiIicrltit. :.
~, dne remedy lay not in the application Of If
electricity to the conGemned, but in iha
generation and conduction OF tho current