Includes bibliographical references (p. [297]-340) and index.
Contents
Edison on the witness stand -- Early sparks -- The inventor -- Light -- Electricity and life -- "Down to the last penny" -- Wiring New York -- The hanging ritual -- The Death Penalty Commission -- George Westinghouse and the rise of alternating current -- The electrical execution law -- "A desperate fight" -- "Criminal economy" -- Condemned -- Showdown -- The unmasking of Harold Brown -- Pride and reputation -- The electric wire panic -- Designing the electric chair -- The conversion of William Kemmler -- The first experiment -- After Kemmler -- The end of the battle of the currents -- The age of the electric chair -- The new spectacle of death.
