Caned Or Strapped/Tawsed On Hands?

[strictuncle]

Hi



At my Secondary school in the 60's I was caned once on the hand. I got two strokes on each hand and it hurt a great deal. I remember it made me cry. Unfortunetly for me my dad spanked me for being caned at school. The pain in my hands lasted longer than dad's spanking! The canings I got on my backside where 4 strokes in the 3rd year, and 6strokes in the 5th tear. Both hurt a lot but nothing like the hand caning in the first year. It is hard to find anyone who is willing to hand cane these days. I visited a master once who did and he was very good brought teas to my eyes again.

[Mikey963]

I went to Catholic schools pre war. At the elementary school each teach had a cane. All were women. We were always caned on the hands. It was a commonplace for the teacher to cane the whole class for the most trivial of reasons (?) Hands were usually bruised as the teachers caned very hard.
At eleven I was sent to a secondary school run by Jesuits. The used a ferula which legend had that it was made of a piece of whale bone coated with rubber. I doubted it as obtaining a piece of whale bone would be difficult enough and coating it is rubber is a dangerous procedure. So, years later I wrote to the Jesuit Information Centre at Farm Street London asking about the ferula. I was informed that ferulas were made of Gutta Percha, a hard flexible rubber, easily obtained in those times – golf balls were made of Gutta Percha. They beat out hands with the ferula. Having hands beaten with a ferula was known as having ferulas. Beating boy’s hand with a ferula was known as giving ferulas.
There was a sliding scale. Boys of 11 and 12 got six (three on each hand) boys of 13 and 14 got nine (five on hand and four on the other) boys of 15 and 16 got twelve (six on each hand) and sometimes 18 (nine of each hand}.
The pain was agonising and lasted all day. On waking the next morning my hands were still throbbing and aching for the previous day. Of course the beaten hands swelled up. After having had my hands beaten in the morning they were still so swollen at five o clock when I want home by train that I could not open the big brass train carriage doors handle.
The ferulas were given at the mid morning break, mid-day break and end of school by a Jesuit Scholastic. The teacher would order boys ferulas by writing out a ‘bill’ during he course of the lessons. Boys took their ‘bills’ and joined the queue out side the empty class room where the Jesuit Scholastic was giving the ferulas. There were alwayslong queues.
What offences earned such a dreadful punishment? Well there was two hours written homework every night except on Saturday – yes we went to school on Saturday morning – when there were four hours written homework. Up to fourteen years of age getting half the homework wrong automatically earned ferulas. Over forteen getting a quarter homework wrong earned ferulas. In addition was also unlimited leaning homework. There was always Catechism learning, poetry learning and Latin grammar learning every night. Additionally subjects studied during the day had learning homework with them but the teacher would not hear boy reciting their homework learning until the next time had that subject again. Of course not all the boys in the class would have to recite their learning homework but there usually about eight or nine boys who had to do it. Learning homework had to be word perfect other wise ferulas.
My life was absolute misery. I longed for death. I attempted suicide three times. My parents were far from sympathetic. In their eyes the Jesuits were men of God. They could do no wrong. I was very fortunate to be able top go to such a school.
I hate Jesuits they assaulted us the insulted us, scorned and ridiculed us. It was physical and psychological assault all day every day. Is it any wonder I still hate Jesuits?
The hands are the most sensitive m after the tongue part of the human body. It is cruel, very cruel, to beat the hands. So what kind of person would beat a boy’s hands?

John Lindsey[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=ferula;7660]Hi, Great to read about your experience with ferulas. I too went to a Catholic School in Enfield run by the Jesuits. Yes we were beaten on the hands on a regular basis. 12.20pm and 4.05pm usually in Room 3 administered by a Jesuit or Master. The max number for 3rd year boys (13/14 year olds0 was 6 but 8 for 4th &5th years ( 15/16). The Jesuits either gave 3or 4 very loud strokes rapidly on one hand and then on the other - extremely painful, leaving the hands very hot, swollen and the stinging took hours to wear off; sometimes bruises were left! One Master made the boys hold up their arms so that they were either side of the body - the hands now at shoulder height. He would then give the 1st ferula aiming at the thumb area and then walk across to the other hand and give the 2nd (5 or 6 seconds later). He would then walk back to give the 3rd stroke - so if you had 8 ferulas this method of delivery would take about 40 seconds from start to finish. Long drawn out and very painful! He certainly appeared to enjoy it! There were at least 20 boys getting ferulas every day! As you say the ferula was a ferocious method of punishment.
I'll write more later - but it would be good to hear from you John and anyone else with similar experiences. Cheers, Mike