The cane

 

The cane has been the favorite punishment implement in English schools from the Victorian period, (Queen Victoria reigned between 1837 and 1901), when it replaced the birch rod, until now. The main reason for the replacement was preserving the teenagers modesty, because the cane can be effective over clothing, while the birch has to be applied over the naked skin. (The modification was not so favorable for the kids, because the cane was frequently applied without clothing, making the punishment more severe). It can be and was used also on the hands.

 

 

But, what the cane is? First of all, it is not a cane. The canes, as the bamboo, are hollow and rigid and can break or split, producing edged borders that can cut the skin.

 

The punishment cane is made from the stem of a family of climbing palms of the genus Calamus from India, the rattan, which, resembling a cane, is not hollow, but it is filled by a tight bundle of longitudinal fibers. That is why it is more flexible, dense and strong than the actual canes.

 

There are many kinds of rattan, the one usually used for punishment canes being the Kooboo, very flexible. Also used are the Dragoon, more dense and rigid, (and more severe) and the Malacca, even when this last is too rigid and has too many knots to be adequate (it was highly regarded for making walking canes).

 

 

For school or domestic punishments, a straight rattan section with no knots or with the knots sanded down was used. Its length was between 30 to 36 inches (75 to 90 cm) and with a diameter from ¼ to ½ inches (6 to 13mm). Longer and thicker canes were used for judicial canings, about 4 foot long and ¾“ thick. The famous cane used for punishment in Singapore was 50” (1.30m) long and 1.5 cm thick.  

 

The school canes are classified by length and thickness. You will find terms as “junior”, for the shorter and thinner, adequate for minor faults or younger kids, “senior”, longer and thicker for elder youngsters and “reformatory”, for correcting serious misbehavior.

 

The traditional school cane is crooked at the end resembling a walking cane. There's no reason that I know for that, even when it helps for hanging it, in full display of the pupils, to remind them of what could happen to naughty children.

 

Usual punishments at school could be on the hands or on the buttocks.

 

On the hands, the punishment used to be one to three in the left hand (o right, for lefthanders) or for serious punishment, three and exceptionally four at each hand.

 

On the buttocks, even when the traditional English way of counting cane lashes (or “cuts”, as they are called) is in batches of six (“six of the best”), the usual punishments were from three for minor faults to 8 for more important breaches of discipline (in exceptional occasions the count could go up to twelve). Of course, a furious teacher could hit a lot more, and on the back or on any part of the body, but that was beyond the regulations.

 

As the cane is more effective if it falls on tensed buttocks, the punishment was given with the culprit bent over the teacher’s or headmaster desk, or without support, with the punished bent with his/her hands on the knees or the ankles.

 

The pupil was not tied, and had to bear the punishment without moving, showing acceptance of the punishment and control of himself. If the pain made him move, some additional lashes were added to the count. Only in extraordinary circumstances, if the culprit did not submit to the chastisement, or could not control himself, another teacher or pupil was called to help holding him.

 

 

The punishment could be delivered at the moment, making the punished bend over the desk in front of the class and thrashing him, or taking him to the corridor, where it could not be seen by his classmates, but could be heard by them and by other classrooms in the same corridor. It could be more formal, sending him  to the headmasters office for his chastisement, as was used for more important faults. In case of serious offences, it could be given in front of the whole school, in a formal meeting.

 

The punishment at the headmasters office was usually very formal. The culprit was reprimanded, then he was ordered to bend over, and then the headmaster raised his coat, and also the shirttails were tucked up for preventing them cushioning the blow, and only then he was flogged.

 

The punishment in the buttocks was more frequently given to the boys, the girls being beaten on the hands, but it was not always so.

 

Physical punishments were banned in 1987 in the British state owned schools and in 1998 in the privately owned schools (called “public” in England, as opposed to “private” education given at home by tutors).

 

Canes (or similar rods) are still used in many countries, (specially in Africa) for school punishments.

 

As a judicial punishment instrument, as we have said, longer and thicker canes are used, actually walking sticks. The punishment suffered in Singapore in the ´90s by Michael Fay (four cuts for damaging a car) has been very famous, because he was an US citizen, but the cane is being used in several other countries, especially in the Muslim ones (it was the favorite instrument of the Taliban).

 

 

A lash from a judicial cane cuts the skin, leaving permanent scars. After a 15 or 20 cuts punishment the punished cannot walk, and must stay in bed for several days. It is used for punishing crimes like alcohol drinking, extra-marital sex, and even listening to music.  

 

Caning was also a traditional judicial punishment in the East, as shown by many photos from the beginning of the XX century, like this one from Korea.

 

 

This position, with the culprit lying on a low bench (or on the floor) was also commonly used.

 

The bamboo cane is used for severe punishment of criminals, sometimes intentionally split at the end for wounding the flesh.

 

If you are an adult, see also the article on caning techniques

 

Published: 01/15/03

Rev: 12/09/03