Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-01-09

Exists-How Miss Hall Would Put Her Ideas Into Operntion-yiew of Boston Man. Miss Anna Hall of Cincinnati, who attracted much attention some months ago by advocating q painless death for persons helpless in the grasp of extreme age and those suffering from incurable disease that must soon terminate life or frightful injuries that mean death after period of excruciating pain, has evolv- ed a scheme for putting her ideas into operation, says q Cincinnati dispatch.
 Miss Hall states that her theories have been much misunderstood, for she does not believe iE the promiscuous use of potions and poisons to end misery, but she does believe any one who de- sires to have the agonizing pain of fatal illness or accident terminated by the use of anaesthetics should have the privilege of so electing and have his wishes respected.
 Miss Hall advocates having a board of physicians of not less than fifteen years experience act as the intermedi- aries between life and death One of her beliefs, she says, is that person should have the right to specify in writing, attested by two witnesses, that he wishes to be aided into eternity when the end shall be approaching and the agony of death comes upon him. of this person and if satisfied the end is near hasten it's progress by gently ap- plying some anaesthetic to render the patient insensible to pain and cause death. s. {, Dr. Charles Eliot Norton of Cam D bridge, Mass, has written letter tc Miss Hall indorsing her idea, in whicf. he says:
 Setting aside all doubtful cases, no right thinking man would hesitate to give dose of laudanum sufficient to end suffering and life together to the victim of an accident from the tortur ing effects of which recovery was im possible, however many hours of mis cry might be added to conscious life by stimulants or surgical operations. Nor should reasonable man hesitate to hasten death in the case of mortal disease-sucll. for example, as cancer. when it has reached the stage of in cessant severe pain and when the pa tient desires to die. The prolongation of life in such q case by whatever means is mere criminal cruelty.
 Or take another instance, that of an old person whose mind has become n chaos of wild imaginings productive of constant distress not only to the suf. ferer, but to all who live with and at tend him. The plain duty in such a case is not to prolong but to shorten life"
 |. Miss Hall was prompted to take up, her theory by the death of her mother, Mrs. Murcey Hail. widow of Dr. John Hall. arctic explorer. Mrs. Hall suf- fered for weeks from cancer of the stomach before death ended her agony, and Miss Hall says she can never .eradi- cate from her memory the thought of her parents suffering.
 T pleaded with the doctor to end the death struggle in which she lay for twelve hours.' said Miss Hall, and begged him to give her something to end it all, but he said we would both go to the penitentiary if he did. l offered to sign statement relieving him of all responsibility, but he said she did not feel it.
 Why, the most frightful illustration of Dante's inferno could not be more horrible than the terrible agony depict ed on the face of my dying mother. When begged that it be ended was told l was a thousand years ahead of the age I was forced to watch it with out moving hand. but shall labor that others may be spared such ordeals. { Electrocution is legalized murder. but ! persons in the last stages of cancer. l consumption. lockjaw or diabetes ! should have the chance of being assist. [ ed into another world, and physicians 1 should perform the act of assistance"
 Attorney General Herbert Parker of Boston recently said that sound philos- ! ophy underlay the suggestion that all I hopelessly insane or fatally injured l persons should be killed to hasten sur | cease of pain or misery. but it was too , much to hope that it could ever he put . into practice. says a Boston dispatch. i
 Discussing the theory of Miss Anna . Hall of Cincinnati. with which pr. Charles Eliot Norton of Cambridge agrees. Mir. Parker said:
 The whole spirit of the law Is an- tagonistic to such a suggestion. It would be directly opposed to the popular spirit. begotten possibly of the old say ing. While there is life there is hope Personally. however. I am convinced there is profound wisdom in the sug- gestion. If We had the courage to live up to the conviction it would undoubt- Idly be for the great good of humanity. It would certainly diminish much hu- man suffering. But it does seem al- most impossible to reconcile the theory to present day legislation.
 ''It Is in theory sound aud philosoph- ical but in practice it would indeed he