Evening star., 1924-01-22
To the Editor Of The Star;

Your editorial OF the 18th instant
entitled "Electrocution in the Dis
trict" will meet with general ap-
we should have a more humane way
OF inflictinG the death penalty upon
criminals than by hanging. We all
want that. Even those who are op-
posed to capital punishment If they
cannot have their way, will welcome
something more humane than hang
ing.
But why eIectrocution? Have We.
made no progress in science since
electrocution first went into effect, in
New York state, thirty-five years ago?
Why should we not. for the District
OF Columbia, inquire what is the
most humane way OF killing human
beings and adopt that? 1t Is singular
that the guillotine. the rope. the elec-
trio chair and the firing squad have
been reserved for man, while the pet
animals are put out of existence
painlessly and humanely and without
expense. by the smoke box, gas. anes-
thetics, the hypodermtc or touch of
cyanide on the tongue.
Your editorial states, truly, thai
many times the most shocking spec
tacles have been enacted upon the
gallows. If any one believes that the
electric. chair Is free from such hor-
rible spectacles, let him read the tes-
tinony OF the witnesses to the cleo
trocution of kemmler, the first
victim in New York. published in the
Electrical World. New York, and the
Becker. as published in the New
York Times July 81. 1915. the day
following Beckers execution.
One thing in your editorial strikes
me as being inaccurate. You say
that New York adopted electrocution,
that other states followed suit and at
present electric execution is the rule
throughout the United States with
very few exceptions. take the
Eyelopaedia Britannica as authority
sive. the states which had adopted
electrocution were New York u8s8),
Ohio (1S96), Massachusetts (1s9S),
New Jersey (1906). Virginia G90s)
and North Carolina, G910). Unless
able speed since that time the states
which have adopted electrocution are
still small minority. 1 have not
checked this up, but I note from the
news items. Of the present month an
ana that two victims are to be exc
cuted by gas in Nevada:
It is also quite possible that some
OF the states which have adopted
electrocution have followed the
COURSE which we are now pursuing
reminds one Of the game of follow
the leader" We want something
more humane than hanging; New
York adopted electrocution and It
must be more humane. A bill is in
troduced in Congress and receives
the immediate approval Of the Dis
trict Commissioners. It is reported
favorably by the Senate committee
and passed In the Senate without dis
cussion-aIl with the best of inten-
humane than hanging, but without
any inquiry whatever as to whether
we have not better and more humane
methods at hand.
on the history Of electrocution which
Is familiar to those who were inter-
ested in the developments in the field
Of electric lighting and power in the
eighties. and which others who are
interested may familiarize themselves
reported in the electrical Journals
between the years 1886 and 1889 and
by the evidence taken in the case of
Kemmler versus Charles H. Durston,
warden Of Auburn prison, i'm the
county court of Cayuga county, N. Y,
in Kemmler's effort to break the
electrocution law on constitutional
grounds and save his life.
This point Is. that electrocutton In
New York state was brought about
by a life and death struggle which
was going on between the Edison
Electric Light Company Of New York
and tho Westinghouse Electric Conn
many of Pennsylvania at the time
when a committee Of the New York
assembly was fnvestigating+ substi-
tutes for hanging. Had. this investi-
cation taken place a. few years be-
fore this struggle commenced: or
fev years later, when the contestants,
or their successors. got together and
pooled their patents II is probable
that electroeution would never have
been adopted.
Stated as brifiy as possible; the
Edison Company In its advertisements
Of the day claimed to own the patents
on the incandescent lamp and all ap-
purtenances for incandescent. light
ing and it operated with low tension
direct current. harmless to- human
life. with this low tension, how
aver, not over 220 volts, it's current
could not be distributed far from its
central stations:
The alternating current of dis
trgbution was patented in 1885 (de-
scribed in the Electrical World vol.
s.. page 271l and acquired by West
inehouse. With this system. current
could be generated and transmitted
ionf distances at high tension, over
small wires, aud transformed down