Fig. 22.—Suicide of Prince Condé. (See page [763].)
In one of the experiments of Faure[828] a large dog was hung, his feet touching the ground. For five minutes he was quiet, breathing without difficulty. He then tried to release himself, but instead tightened the knot; he made still greater efforts to release himself, became comatose and fell, apparently dead, at the end of ten minutes; was really dead in twenty-eight minutes.
In incomplete hanging the upper limbs may have any position; the lower limbs are disposed according to the position of the body (Cases 1, 10, 18, 19, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 37, 43, 50, 56).
Faure[829] made many observations on dogs which he killed by hanging. He describes the results as follows: The dog remains quiet usually twenty to thirty seconds, sometimes eight to ten minutes; then becomes violently agitated, the body being thrown forward and backward so powerfully that it bounds to a great height; the head is in motion; the jaws parted; the feet extended and flexed; sometimes brought up to the mouth and neck, trying to remove the obstruction; the inside of the mouth is violet-colored; tongue blackish, livid, may be bitten, often falls backward; the teeth are ground together; the eyes sometimes protrude; conjunctivæ congested; urine and fæces discharged. The agitation lasts two to five minutes, and then the dog gradually becomes quiet. Toward death, however, the agitation is renewed but in a different way; the fore feet are raised and put forward, the tongue often has a peculiar spasm, the chest is raised, the eyes drawn back into the orbits, pupils contracted; all of this is over within two seconds. Such paroxysms may be repeated half a dozen times. In dying, the eye oscillates from side to side and the pupil dilates. The heart beats some time longer.
Francis Bacon records that he knew a man who wanted to find out by experience if there was any suffering in hanging. He placed the cord around his neck and stepped off a bench, intending to step back again, but became immediately unconscious and would have died but for the opportune arrival of a friend. He said he saw a light before his eyes.
Treatment.
The first indications obviously are to let the subject down, and remove all constriction of neck and chest. Artificial respiration should then be used, and this may be assisted by the vapor of ammonia to the nose and tickling the fauces. If the body is warm, cold affusions may be applied to the head and chest, and galvanism may be used.
If the body is cold, apply warmth. Friction of the limbs aids in restoring warmth. If the subject can swallow give stimulants; these may also be used by rectum. Venesection may be required to relieve cerebral congestion or distention of the right heart and pulmonary circulation.