That photo reminds me of the mower I grew up with. During WW2 due to petrol rationing my father converted it to electric with a sizeable electric motor from an industrial sewing machine. It had a rudimentary On/Off clutch and took off fast with the rear roller skidding :-)
What really jogged my memory was the exposed chain system. My father religiously removed any safety features on anything in his workshop as they just got in the way of maintenance or adjustments. One learned to be careful with tools......
