GALVANISING OF A MURDERER'S CORPSE.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1363, 2 October 1883, Page 4

GALVANISING OF A MURDERER'S CORPSE.

Uhdeb die heading “ Suspended Animation/, the Yorkshire Post publishes a letter signed A. Allison, M.D., in which the writer says— When apparent death supervenes from strangulation, or noxious gases, a judiciously directed galvanic experiment will, if anything can, restore the activity of the vital functions. This wonderful agent now takes its place among the ministers of health and life in cases of suspended animation. In extreme cases the surgeon will require to expose cer* tain vital nerves, in order that* the phrenic cord may be acted upon by the metallic conductors of the battery. If we place this risk of the operation in competition with the glory of success, the former will weigh as nothing with the intellectual and humane. During my life in Glasgow, before the passing of the Anatomy Act, several executed criminals were sent to the university within fifteen minutes from the time of being cut down. On one occasion the body of C-ydes* dale, the murderer, was subjected to a series of galvanic experiments upon the brain and nervous system. Several gentlemen t ere present concluded that for the loss of blocd m removing the atlas vertebra, life might have been restored, as Murdoch fail d to discolate the neck of his victim. The thief who suffered along with him was seized with violent convulsion*, caused by fracture of the neck. From this we infer that the deep Harwood drop, of Bft to lift,, with fracture of the neck, is a desecration which ought not to be tolerated. The exclusijn of atmospheric air from the lungs, as in drowning and simple strangulation, is the proper line of practice in such ruses. The narcotism £ reduced by undecartoniaed blood upon the loud points to an easier death than thft produced by fracture of the redundant drop, Persons who have been res ued from drowning in a state of incipient death describe the sensation to be painless. At the risk of becoming sensational, I must revert to the case of Ciydesdale in illustration of the value of galvanism is cases of suspended animation. This murderer, while under galvanic excita tion, ruse up, rolled his eyes about,"andstruck at the bystanders and nearly overturned one Dr Ure s assistants. During the galvanic ordeal full laborious breathing commenced, and was continuous with the electric ditcharges. Every muscle of the countenance was tnrown into fearful action, and ghastly smiles united their hideous expressions in the murderer’s face—surpassing the wildest expressions of an actor. He seemed to point t> the different spectators, some of whom t ought he had come to life, and one gentleman fainted. The practical deduction in favor of galvanism is to utilise the force as a therapeutic agent. Miners who are exposed to the action of noxious gases, and persons who frequent bathing quarters, ought to have easy access to the action of galvanism as a means of saving life in cases of d o vning cr other cases of asphyxia,—N Z Herat 1.