http://www.boingboing.net/2006/11/30/armtrapping_firealar.html
Quoten 1938, Modern Mechanix magazine ran an article on a new design for a fire-alarm box. It had an arm-hold trap built in that held the alarm-puller in place until the fire department arrived -- the idea was to lock prank-alarm-pullers in place (of course, if you were dumb enough to pull an alarm during a fire, you were horribly trapped alive in the flames until you succumbed to immolation or asphyxiation).
I love how the models always smile, even when showcasing something that'll kill them if they ever used it for its intended purpose.