The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-08-28
THE G|LLOT|NE
IN DISREPUTE
France May Abandon Capital
Punishment Altogether
HISTORY OF THE WIDOW
Electricity May Take the Place of the
Knife in Surgery-Lady Aviator
Shocks French Town With
Her Dress
HISTORY OF THE WIDOW

Paris, August 27-(Special.) 1.-THE gull
lotine must 60" That is it must go If
the socialists and the Partisan mob can
bring 1t about, for the same class that
in 1893 sent to 1.-THE Widow the best
blood in France is now clamoring for
the abolition of the fatal knife, and back
of them is the powerful socialist party
which generally gets what it goes after.
So it is not unlikely that the guillotine
will go and with it capital punishment in
France.
For 10 years up to a year and half
ago. the guillotine gathered dust In M.
Deibler's workshop. The hereditary ex
ecutioner retained his office. He still
received his nominal salary $1,000 and pos
sibly drew the additional allowance of
$4,000 for keeping his tools in order. But
during that period his extra fee of $40
for each execution was lacking. No
heads were ordered off anybody's Shout
ders. 1t was believed that France, like
ITALY, was done with capital punishment.
But 1t was during that period that the
apache curse in Paris terminated and
grew more fruitful year by year. AT
length in Jauary, 1909, the capture and
band against whom many murders OF
peculiar sayagery were proved, resulted
in popular demand for M. Deibler to
bring forth his dusty guillotine and cut
off those four despicable heads The
whole of northern France as well as the
Parisians and heAople of Belgium,
mited demanded the restoration of the
guillotine. Death to the assassins Long
live Debler!'' was the popular cry. Now
1t looked as though not only the gu1llo-
tine but Deibler's hereditary occupation
would soon become thing of the past.
The official title of this functionary is
Monsieur de Paris Even during the
revolution, when the guillotine went on
its travels through many provinces 1t
was always Monsieur de Paris" who es-
corted 1.-THE Widow and directed her
grisly operations. Since about the year
! 1870 the office of public executioner has
remained in the Diebler family. For
almost 200 years, from 1884 to 1S47 the
dynasty had but name Samson.
During the interregum between the
last Samson and the first Diebler there
were two headsmen, each without family
and without fame. They were mere
stopgaps, named respectively Heindrich
and Roche.
In all there were six Sansons, who con-
tinued the succession unbroken, from
father to son, as did the kings of feudai
times.
The Samson headsmen dynasty owed its
foundation to the circumstance of the
first Samson, an ardent young artisan,
falling in love with the daughter of the
herdsman of Rouen. He was wont to
say he married himself to the scaffold.
He was summoned to the capital. and
became Monsieur de Paris" He left a
diary in which he confessed that his
Job filled him with horror. He had hor-
ribe dreams, and was afraid to be alone
at night. But he died full of years, leav-
ing a son, Charles Samson H., being
executioner by hereditary, suffered from
no such qualms. It was Samson II. who
executed the celebrated French thief Car
touche. This was no stroke of the axe,
either, for Cartouche was broken on the
wheel, and so powerful was his frame
that II blows were required This In
strument was invented by DR.. Guilotin, an
ardent republican, who foresaw that no
one arm other than wise could lop off
the heads that were soon due to fall. He
guaranteed that the machine would soon
|. do its work neatly at a single stroke.
! 1t was tested a murderer with such
success that 1t Immediately surplanted the
old fashioned axe Samson V. was the
great Samson of the Red Terror. He
took off more heads than all the other
Sansons put together. At times the
work was heavy, when the mob was
demanding the heads of all aristocrats as
well as those of the royal and noble
families, that he had to call two of his
uncles to his assistance. 1T was he that
executed Nine. Roland, Charlotte Corday,
Danton and Robespierrs.
The latest surgical sensation is an an
nouncement introducing electricity as a
substitute for the knife. Instead of
being cut off with pain the grangrened
limbs will fall off miraculously. amputat-
ing themselves. High frequency currents,
which have found such marvellous appli-
cations in the therapeutics, will perhaps
revolutionize shortly the whole of sur
pgery." 1T have been able with the pow
erful apparatus says Prof d'Arsonval,
ito pass into the bodies of animals high
frequency currents capable of raising
their bodies to very high temperature
without any action on their sensibility or
muscular contractiblity being noticeable.
These animals appeared to feel nothing.
The colorific effect resulting from the
passage of the current was such that the
hinder members were in few minutes
literally roasted. 1t is extraordinary
added the professor 1.-The animal mani
tested no pain; but few days later the
limbs dropped off, leaving perfectly cica-
tried stumps"
A lady aviator with the curious name
of Mile. AbulSaia. is in constant conflict
with the mayor of Etampes, In which
town, or rather outside which town, she
flies Mr. Mayor is stckler for what he
considers propriety in dress. What may
be suitable in the air does not bef1t the
earth. Every day Mile. Abukaia put on
knickerbocl1ers and overalls to fly. AS
long as she flies, well and good, and the
mayor of Etampes has noVght to object.
But she must come to earth some time.
and, as there is no dressing accommoda-
ton on the aviation field just outside the
town, she has to go home still wearing
knickerbockers. This shocks Mr.. Mayor.
Every day Mile Abukaia flies. and every
cav as she re-enters the highly respecta-
BILE city of Etampes in rational dress, an
official deputed by Mr.. Mayor at the
boundary takes a summons out against
her for being improperly clad.