I strongly advise against trying to bend a cane as it damages the stem. Rattan canes don’t usually “split”, although they sometimes break or become weak close to the point where they are held, particularly if a backswing is used before the downstroke. The only way a cane would split or become hairy at the […]

A typical example of a crook handled secondary school cane might be about 32″ long and 10mm in dimeter. It would be possible to flex it and bend it to a fair degree without it splitting. The tip was sanded to avoid cutting when it was used. Some canes could split or become “hairy” at […]

In the 1960’s Messrs Jacobs, Young and Westbury of Haywards Heath produced around 15,000 school canes each year. In addition they held a contract to supply canes to the Inner London Education Authority up to, I think, the 1970’s. Their canes carried no makers stamp but their contract ones had the initials ILEA branded into […]

Reactions would include “running on the spot”, cupping hand to mouth and blowing into it, shaking hand violently, yelps of “Aowww” and “Ooya”, deep intakes of breath, puffing and panting, squeezing hand shut and drawing the hand to the chest with eyes closed struggling to suffer the pain. A number of schools can give reports […]

I’m not so sure about a less “severe” form of CP but certainly less “serious”. I’m not sure if you’ve seen my previous posts on this subject so, to clarify, I don’t treat “serious” and “severe” as synonymous. The slipper can hurt a lot and the cane does not, necessarily, hurt more than the slipper. The […]

As for flexibility, perhaps you could clarify the position for me? I have seen rattan school canes flexed to a half moon shape, but it may be that the degree to which one of these canes could be flexed depended on the diameter of the cane in question. It would perhaps be reasonable to expect […]

The canes were made from rattan with the nodules and tips carefully cut and sanded. Crook handles were formed by steeping one end of the straight cane in a vat of hot water for a day until it softened. It was then bent over a large diameter rounded length of wood and tied in position […]

A typical example of a crook handled secondary school cane might be about 32″ long and 10mm in dimeter. It would be possible to flex it and bend it to a fair degree without it splitting. The tip was sanded to avoid cutting when it was used. Some canes could split or become “hairy” at […]

A prefect was sent to tell the Headmaster who arived very quickly with 4 members of staff. All had their belts with them. The doors were barred, silence demanded and the pupils were ordered to form up in lines.a. The Headmaster, Deputy Head and teachers stood at the top of the hall in front of […]

Perhaps it did derive from a domestic situation where the use of a carpet slipper in parental chastisement was not uncommon in the 20th century. The school item was simply a thicker, heavier version of the same implement. I can see how a gymshoe could give a strong sting if soundly applied, but I would […]