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Topsy The Elephant




Because Topsy was so violent, her owners decided to put her to death. A proposal of Hanging was abandoned after the American Society For The Prevention Of Cruelty To Animals protested. The elephant was offered a carrot poisoned with Cyanide , but did not eat it. Later, Thomas Edison suggested Electrocution , using the Westinghouse Alternating Current system of electricity transmission, which Edison, a backer of Direct Current , argued was more dangerous than DC. The ASPCA found this suggestion acceptable, viewing electrocution as a more humane form of killing. Electrocution killed Topsy quickly. Edison recorded the execution with a motion picture camera, and showed his film to audiences around the country as part of his unsuccessful attempt to discredit AC.

A memorial for Topsy was placed in the Coney Island Museum on July 20 2003 .


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