Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1909-03-25
BIGGEST LAUNDRY BILL,
New Workers. Pay $1,oo0,ooo
Every Week for Wash.
Electric Chair May be Abolished ne.
cnuse OF Man who DeRcs n City's
Baby Crop Now worth $4,000,
900 ABnuaIiy-Pedestriau
Versus Horseman.

New York March 1s-The distinction
Of paying the largest bill on record I'M
doubtcdly belongs to this city. Every
week the members OF Father Knic,er-
bocker's extensive and expensive family
expend more than $l.ooo,oo0 for having
their clothes washed, or an annual
amount almost equal to the interest on
the national debt Not only in it's cost,
but IN all It's other aspects az well, the
cty's weekly wash is tremendous. More
than 1000 persons are engaged in
laundering as regular business, work
ing in more than LEGO laundries IN ad-
dition to these there are other persons
some $4,000 In number who do in their
own homes washing or outside day
workers. The articles of clothing handled
every week would provide for n good
sized army. The largest item is made up
Of collars. about IS o0o. o0O Of them. Hand
kerchiefs number about 5000 900, shirts
100000 sheets 100000. napkins ZOO, G00
while other articles bring the total far
above 50000,oOo pieces to be washed each
week. Their area ii Is estimated is equal
to all that part OF the city below Four
teenth street, and II stuug on single
clothesline they would extend from New
York TO Chicago The 5000 oo1 clothes
pins necessary for the hanging out of
such wash would If laid end to end.
| reach 500 miles, and the million cakes
| of soap usel would fiji a good-sizcd
office building Water to an amount suf-
| ficient to float twenty of our largest
warships is only another incidental to
| this laundry bill
| A HUMAN ELECTRIC WONDER
Discussion concerning the use o, the
| electric chair as tho medium of inflict-
ing the death penalty on criminals CON
| victed Of murder in the first degree has
broken out again. 1t has been asserted
in tho past ny some well-known au-
thorties that electrocution did not really
cause death. a statement which they
offered to prove provided the body of
man who had undergone the penalty
be turned over to them for resuscitation
Immediately after It's inf'iction. All sorts
OF reasons were advanced in substantial
ton OF this claim but nothing ever came
Of II on account OF the refusal of the
authorities TO allow the carrying out of
the experiment Two recent events
however. have served to reopen the
whole matter and to make possible abol-
ishTent of the electric chair. The first
Of these happenings was the failure
last week Of the electric current
TO cause death until nearly six
minutes had expired. while only n few
days ago at a private gathering n man
voluntarily subjected himself to cur
rent OF 100 volts under the same condl-
lions as those by which 1t is applied at
Sing Sing. There were no III results al
though the current was kept on for more
than minute. the subject of the ex-
pertinent sitting unmovsd. During that
time his assistant touched various parts
of his body With an alcohol soaked
handkerchief which Immediately burst
into flame. The man who thus deaed
death has no explanation Of his mmuni-
ty simply saying that he had discovered
his ability to take heavy electric shocks
Physicians who watched the experiment
have no explanation either and they
arc anxious TO have II repeated Mean
while there would seem to be at least
one man in the State who could commit
murder with irnpunity. since the only
legal means OF Furnishing him would IN
his case be without effect.