St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-08-07

Another Of the commissioners was like
wise much interested, and had much
knowledge of electrical matters. Hence,
naturally. the suggestion of capital
punishment by means Of electricity re-
ceived close attention. The deterrent
effect of capital punishment by
various modes, from the days when
as many as 100 offenSes war
ranted death, to the present day, was
studied as basis of deduction. So
careful was the quest Of the commits
sion, that comparison was made in its
report between the morals of a New
England colony in 1850, when seventeen
offenses (among them obstinacy of chill
dren) were punishable with death, and
the present time, when the usual meth
dds prevail in what is now the state of
Massachusetts. Each of the thirty-four
methods OF causing death judicially,
which have been employed since his
for possible suggestions in the line of
the commissions duty. The reasons
why the great list of thirty-four death
methods in the past have been reduced
to five, which are in vogue to-day. were
reduced to conclusions, of which the
chief are:
First-That the effort to diminish the
increase of crime by the indiscriminate
application of capital punishment to
various offenSes, involving different
grades of moral turpitude: or, i'll other
words, by the enlarging of the number
of offenses to which capital punishment
is made applicable, has proven failure.
Second-That any undue or peculiar
severity in the mode of inficting the
death penalty neither operates to lessen
the occurrence of the offenSe nor to pro-
duce deterrent effect.
TO the method of hanging to cause
death the commission objected, finally,
because:
1st. Of the demoralizing effect of
giving stlmulants to the condemned i'm
mediately before execution.
ID. The incidental danger of an at
tempt to commit suicide and of some
subsequent horrible scene, instances be-
ing cited in which a wound in the
an avenue for respiration after the drop
had fallen and while the condemned
swung in the air.
Sd. Resistance OF suffering by the
offender.
4th. Unskillfulness or brutal indif-
ference of the executioner.
5th. Misconduct of the bystanderS.
9th. Sympathy of the bystanders oc-
casioned by the great age or other per-
sOnai circumstances, of the condemned.
18th. Complication of the process
caused by supposed necessity OF ex-
ecuting more than one person at one
time.
The commission, in view of all, con-
Guided that the time had come when a
radical change should be effected, and
the commissions research narrowed its
choice to four methods of judicial kill
ing:
l. Electricity. X
2. Prussic acid, or other poison.
8. The guillotine.
4. The garrote.
Upon these the commission invited
expression of opinion from supreme
court and county judges, district attor-
neys and sheritfs throughout the state,
the final result being these recommen-
dations to the legislature:
1St. That the present method of in
flicting the death penalty be abolished,
and, as a substitute, that current of
electricity of sufficient intensity to
destroy life instantly be passed through
the body of the convict.
I'd. That every such execution take
place in state prison, to be designated
by the court in its judgment and death
warrant, and that the time Of the exc
cution be not fixed by the court, except
by designating period within which it
shall take place.
Sd. That after execution a post
norton examination of the body be
made, after which dissection, or burial
without ceremony in the prison grave
yard. with sufficient quicklime to insure
Immediate consumption of the remains.
The report OIL the commission was
submitted to the legislature of 1888, and
a bill embodying the above recommends
arions was presented in the house, the
same to become operative January l,
1890. 1t was passed in 1883. -