Why Hawksbee?

Francis Hawksbee also known as Francis Hauksbee the Elder. Hawksbee was the first to investigate the luminosity of mercury which was known to emit a glow under barometric vacuum conditions.

 Hawksbee discovered that if he placed a small amount of mercury in the glass of his modified version of Otto von Guericke's generator, evacuated the air from it to create a mild vacuum and rubbed the ball in order to build up a charge, a glow was visible if he placed his hand on the outside of the ball. This remarkable discovery was unprecedented in the seventeenth century. This glow was bright enough to read by. This effectively became the basis of the gas-discharge lamp, which led to neon lighting and mercury vapor lamps. 

Thats Why.