It should be remembered, however, that small boys of that era expected to be sent away to school at age 7or 8.
Most had an older brother or relative, who would certainly have left the little boy in no doubt that school could be a spartan, cheerless, and painful experience.
Schools were proud of the ‘hardness’ of their regimes.
It was supposed to be character-building.
It should not be forgotten either, that along with the disadvantages, came many advantages, in sports, making friends, academic achievement, and social and business leverage in later life.
Many people nowadays are aghast that a loving parent could countenance sending a beloved little son to these hothouses of fear and pain.
There is a tendency, all too understandable, for people to apply the standards and attitudes of their own time, to times past.