Derek, actually it was George Westinghouse quoting Nikala Tesla to Thomas
Edison
Thread hi-jack of a sorts.
Edison then having the "bright" idea (no pun intended, but it's a decent one) of using A.C.
current to provide for a more humane method of execution, reasoning that his (
Edison's) DC electrical distribution systems were less dangerous then Westinghouse/Tesla'a A.C. systems, coining the phrase "electrocution" in the process, thus inventing the
electric chair, first used at Auburn Prison, in upstate NY and using A.C.
current as it's method. Many dogs and supposedly one elephant got to "help" in the perfection of the design, so to speak.
WiKi has a descriptive story to tell, just not good to read before a meal.
Good examples of the
knife switch as seen in the OP photo in film lore is "Young Frankenstein" and "The Green Mile", among others.
For the young ones reading, a terrific
book on the earliest days of electrical systems is "Empires of Light:
Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World".
And, NO, I'm not old enough to remember any of this first
hand.
