Six of the best

 

See also the article on history and description of the cane

 

Again and again in these pages, we've said that there is not such thing as a “right way” of doing things, but regarding a good caning, there is at least an approved way. Of course, is not mandatory, but is the elegant and “professional” way of caning, developed along the years by the English headmasters, headmistresses, tutors and governesses.

 

The cane

The traditional English cane is the rattan one described in The cane, but these techniques can be used with any rod.

 

Commonly used are the branches of willow, hickory, hazel, pear, quince and tamarind.

 

A good cane can be made from wicker, with characteristics similar to the rattan, if somewhat less dense.  And Mónica says: "I was playing with a wicker rod, and it surprised me how well it reacts when just wet with tap water. It gains weight and becomes terribly flexible.  Then I've let it soaking in water all night, but with just two thirds submerged, leaving the "handle" dry. With that I've got a rigid handle with a flexible end, making kind of a whip."

 

And she tells us "Did you try mulberry? There are ones in which the branches grow downwards, in the shape of an umbrella. They have amazing weight, flexibility and density. They hug closely, and the points don't break. (gracias, Mónica).

 

Never use an actual cane (the hollow stalks of several plants, bamboo among them). They can split and hurt seriously the punished. They are used in judicial punishments (where the purpose is hurting the subject) because of that.

 

Nowadays you can find canes made of plastics. They say (we didn't test them) that the lucite or acrylic ones can break (and most plastics when breaking end with nasty edges) , solid teflon is very severe and that the best material is delrin. Also the Lexan ones (polycarbonate) could be good. If you can get them, you could use those.

 

We think that the fiberglas or graphite rods used for fishing could be worth a try. In the fishing stores you can get what it is called  "blanks", tapering rod sections used for making canes.  They come in several thicknesses.

 

The riding crop

There are two main types of riding crops.

 

 

The traditional has a leather slapper attached to the point.

The slapper's attachment point is hard, and makes it dangerous for its use as a cane. You should hit only with the slapper.

 

The modern ones, with a cloth-type covering

end in a loop with an attached "popper" of the same material.

In these ones there is no hard attachment point, and can be used as severe canes.

 

Effects of the cane

The cane leaves unmistakable marks, which depend on the force of the blows.

 

At impact, the cane leaves a white mark (more visible on darker skins) that in seconds develop to a pink mark. If the cut is stronger, the borders will be darker, marking finally two parallel lines, the “train tracks”. The two “rails” can be from a dark pink to raised purple welts, which the next day will be black, and that will turn to a rainbow of colors before disappearing. If the blow was savage, the skin will be so stretched that it will break at the borders, leaving actually two red wounds. The red marks will disappear in hours, the purple ones in one to three weeks, and the wounds can leave the skin scarred for life.

 

The pain of the impact can be felt in two different stages: first, a dull pain when the cane hits the skin, and after a few seconds, a more acute pain, a burning sensation that originates deep inside, spreads all over the buttocks and increases with time, that has been compared to a hot oil burn (I never burnt myself with hot oil, so I can’t know) or to being branded with a red hot metal rod (idem, but I can tell you, a cane cut really hurts).

 

Also, the pain is not immediate. It increases with time, reaching its peak some seconds after the impact.

 

A good “caner” waits a few seconds between cuts, so that the next one arrives when the first is at its peak.

 

The pain is cumulative, but not linear. It seems to increase with each cut until the third or so. The rest of the blows just maintain the pain at its peak, making the ordeal longer.

 

And six is not just the double of three, it feels as many times more. That’s why the school punishments, depending on the age of the culprit and the seriousness of the fault, increased slowly, from three to four, five or six, and in special circumstances, to eight to twelve. I’ve heard about “twice nine”, eighteen given in two installments with some rest in a corner in the middle, but I don’t know if they were actually delivered or is just fantasy.

 

For judicial punishments, it could be more severe, until thousands given by fifties every fortnight for several years, sometimes with a cane and sometimes with a whip.

 

If welts are raised, the canned will not be able to sit, at least comfortably, for several days. In a judicial punishment, given with a thick and long cane by a strong man, usually cutting the skin, the receiver could be bedridden for a week.

 

Published: 02/03/03

Rev: 08/22/03; 09/19/03; 11/03/03; 07/26/04; 08/12/04