The Washington times., 1923-03-16
URGED
EXPERIMENTS
On C.O'VV||CTS
Modern Scientists Opposed !
Tanpering With Lives Of
Condemned Men.
~ MARGERY REX.
Written for Cosmopolitan News SER

Written for Cosmopolitan News Services
NEW YORK, March .16. Should
the condemned criminal be used
for scientific experiments?
Would such procedure he: use
full, not only. as a. measure for
further scientific studies, but also
as q crime deterrent?
AT the centenariea of Louis
EFasteuTs great French hactefiolo-
gist and OF DIR. Edward Jenner,
Ediacoverer of vaccinat ion, recently
|celebrated. the SUI gestion arose
that still greater discoveries for
hunlanityss benefit might be made
over as subjects for experiment.
Pasteur is said to have favored
this procedure, proposing such a
measure to influential persons In
terested in his work.
Condemned Men Vaccinated.
Jenrer, under the orders of King
George III, Of England. vaccinated
six criminals under a death sen
tence. These survived the ex,
peifence. and the royal family then
set the precedent for vaccination.
Louis XVI, Of France, watching
his chateau, at Versailles, said two
men under death sentence should
have been put into 1t to see If
they could bring it safely to earth.
"A criminal, of course, has 9
right to his life, uIitan1pered with
until the day on which the State
says he must dis in the prescribed
manner, whatever it happens to be
hanging or electrocution. Though
he is first deprived OF liberty and
finally of life, during the interim
he is housed, clothed, fed and left
unmolested. Suicidal attempts are
carefully guarded against, il such
ia tendency is revealed. The con
demned man must be saved so that
he may be killed lawfully.
Opposes Experimentation.
Scientific experimentation upon
his body would no doubt arouse a
great public cutlery. even though
the victim were willing to help
science and humanity in that way.
and even though the same public is
willing to have him die in the chair.
DIR. Justin Herold, professor of
legal medicine, medical department
of Fordharn University, says he is
nnalterably opposed to the idea:
'sJenner lived in the latter part
of the eighteenth century. Today,
In our advanced stage of science,
we use animal experimentation.
ct would be unnecessary. cruelty
so. We can arrive at our conclu-
sions without experimenting on con.
.demned criminals. and without TAX
ing action that might mean their
DEATH. Animal experimentation sui.
fices. We don't need human sub
jects."
Many persons have d perfect hor.
ror of the idea Of injecting germs
into a human being for purposes
Of studying disease and effecting
cures. It is possible many Grim
inals who are not deferred by the
prospect of death by electricity or
by a from twenty to life" prison
sentence might not like to run the
chance of being inoculated with
typhoid or pneumonia germs.
Regarded As ImpraeticabIe.
Experimentation would work Sc.
we're penalties upon the rare cases
of the wrongfuIly convicted, and
in general the idea Is regarded as
impracticable. DIR. Herold believes
it would not deter crime in the
slightest degree.
mo form of punishment has
deferred crime 50 far" he said.
when we used to hang people
In the Tombs years ago 1t was use
less as an object lesson. 1t never
prevented others from doing the
very things for which their pre-.
decessors had been hanged.
To-day the electric chair doesn't
stop murder" the physician argues.
I'm fact, It is on the increase. Why?
We don't know. Personally, / have
no theory to explain 1t away"
Jenner Bitterly Attacked.
Still, when Edward Jenner first
put out his discovery of vaccine.
ton, about 1898, there was a ter
rifle hostile reaction which has
not altogether ceased even today.
His professional ASSOCIATES got all
upset about what they regarded as
wild and dangerous idea, though
he first inoculated his own son
with coWpox as an experiment.
he was bitterly attacked but proved
his sincerity and lack of mercenary
spirit, which raised him in public
opinion. Finally parliament gave
him gtant with which to carry ON
hls work. and the frightfuI disease
OF smallpox has practically been
eliminated.