Iuka reporter. (Iuka, Miss.) 1888-1894, 1890-01-09
NEW MODE OF EXECUTION.
The Use of Carbonic Oxide as a
Humane Substitute for Hanging.

Humane Substitute for Hanging.
DR.. Samuel w. Abbott, Secretary OF
the Mass achusetts State Board Of
Health, contributes to the Boston Med
ical and Surgical Journal an interesting
paper relative to substituting for hang
ing some better and more humane
method of inficting the death penalty.
In the present state of scientific know
ledge of the effects of electricity upon
the human system, DIR. Abbott is not
prepared to accept it as the best substi-
tute on hand, saying of experiments
which have been made: SIT would APP
pear from the result that their are
serious hindrances to the adoption of
the subtle agent" Without consider
ing the main question as to whether
some other method should take the
place of hanging, DR.. Abbott says that,
if a change is desirable, sin carbonic
oxide we possess such an agent, which
has the property of destroying life rap
idly and painlessly when properly ad-
ministered."
He refers to the writings of DR.. B. W.
Richardson, of London, who, several
years ago, brought the method to public
notice for the destruction of small domes-
tic animals, such as dogs and cats, and
especially to DIR. Richardson's state
ment that 1000 such animals had been
destroyed in London in few months
previous to the doctors article on ''The
Painless Extinction of Life" DR.. Alb
bolt says carbonic oxide may bemade
from charcoal at small cost or it may be
obtained more cheaply still from the
street mains or any coal and water gas
company.
Water gas he considers preferable to
coal gas, since it contains from four to
five times as much carbonic oxide, and
would therefore be more rapid and fa-
tai in it's action. He says:
can atmosphere of from twenty five
to thirty per cent. of carbonic oxide, as
In the case of water gas, or, still better,
one Of so per cent. or more, as may be
made from charcoal, would undoubt-
eddy destroy human life in less than two
minutes without pain"
He has himself used mixture of
about per cent, with air, with perfect
success in destroying small animals in
from one to two and one-half minutes
without the appearance of pain.
DIR. Abbott goes on to show that the
apparatus for an execution may be of
the simplest and most inexpensive kind,
feet square and seven feet high, a
tightly fitting door, an aperture for ad-
hitting gas pipe of liberal size for APP
plying rapid supply of gas under ordi-
nary pressure from the street mains,
and smaller aperture to allow the ex-
pulsion of the air. If higher percent
age of carbonic oxide is desired small
char coal furnace would be required for
generating it and storing it temporarily,
as in the case of DR.. Richardson's lethal
chamber. OF this method DIR. Richard
son says: Compared with other meth
DDS of extinguishing animal life, such
as hanging, drowning, poisoning by
prussic acid, shooting, stunning, the
lethal method stands far ahead on every
ground of practical readiness, certainly
humanity.
In summing up, DR.. Abbott claims
for carbonic oxide the advantage OF
painless death, rapid action and econ
omy. In respect to the second point,
he says: cts action should not be con-
founded with the slow action of small
percentages of gas, such as is illustrated
by the accidental deaths often occurring
! i'll hotes. These almost invariably
happen by exposure to the gas escaping
from mere pipe hole or slit in the gas
burner, which consequently forms but
one per cent. of the air of the apart
ment and destroys life slowly" In re-
gard to economy he says that the cost
of the wooden box would be but trife,
and the expense of rs or 100 feet of gas
scarcely worth mentioning when com
pared with the expensive apparatus re-
qlired for an electrical execution.