I certainly think some parts of the history of the cane are better known than may have been true of the paddle, but I think an examination as extensive as that which has been applied to the paddle in this forum, might yield very interesting results. Generally I encounter in various places, claims along the lines of “The cane superseded the birch in English schools during the Victorian period, possibly because it allowed for greater modesty in punishment” but very little to back that up. It’s further back than I’ve really gone in my own research, but it is something I have on my list to look into at some point.
I can, to set the ball rolling, give reference to the classic book Tom Brown’s Schooldays by Thomas Hughes, written and published in 1857, but generally held to depict Rugby School in the days Hughes had attended it between 1834 and 1842 (and including as Headmaster, Doctor Thomas Arnold who held that role from 1828-1841). The oldest text I have found includes numerous references to the cane but I have never been able to confirm that that was not altered from references in the earliest editions. If it was not, it is interesting, given that these references would come from the very beginning of the reign of Queen Victoria.
There is also ‘The Marshall Case’ of 1835 involving Thomas Arnold which provides additional evidence that the cane was in use at Rugby at that time – a year and a half before Victoria took the throne, making the “Victorian origin” idea of the cane odd – briefly, for those who have not heard of it, Nicholas Marshall was expelled from Rugby in November 1835 when he refused to accept a caning from a Praesposter (Prefect) breaking the cane in two. It’s notable that part of the controversy about the case related to the fact that he was also struck with a Blackthorn walking stick after the cane was broken and this was considered an inappropriate instrument – but the cane had been appropriate, meaning that by 1835, it’s use at Rugby was accepted and non-controversial rather than any sign of it being new. However, in another case that also caused controversy a couple of years earlier (‘The March Case’ which was loosely fictionalized in the recent Tom Brown’s School Days starring Stephen Fry as Doctor Arnold, and which many people complained was not from the book), the birch was used.
The cane became common in the UK, Netherlands and Denmark, countries that colonised areas where rattan was grown, in the early 19th Century. The use of the cane then spread to other places under their influence.
I have not looked for any documentary evidence, but rattan provided a robust, consistent and effective alternative to birch and willow switches that had been in use since Roman times. They were inclined to break easily and often lacerated the skin.
For those unfamiliar with the rattan cane, a typical example weighs little more than an ounce and needs little strength to deliver it with considerable velocity. Although it causes an intense sharp pain, it rarely causes deep bruising. When applied directly to the skin, such as on the hands, the cane’s smooth surface does not scratch.
Our New Zealand colleague has made a major and valuable contribution, not only to this forum but also to a number of other sources of information on the internet. His research is some of the best you will find on the subject of corporal punishment.
Unlike some others, he does not accept assertions without evidence or jump to unjustified conclusions. Of all our contributors he is perhaps the last person you could accuse of having a narrow view.
Your initial comments in this thread might be considered rude by some of us here, but we are happy to share factual information if that is what you are looking for.
There has been a lot of posts on this site recently about the paddle. This is because we here in the UK are not familiar with it, here it was usually the cane or the slipper. The slipper was NOT a house slipper, but a plimsoll. I do not know if you have plimsolls in the US, but they are a light type of trainer with a rubber sole, and a canvas top, used in school gymnasiums, that is unless the gym RSM wanted everyone bare foot. A lot of gym RSMs wanted everyone barefoot and in shorts only, no underpants, except girls, who were usually in a top and knickers, but had women teachers. The slipper could sting quite a bit, but it was not drastic, it was more of a warning to behave or else ! I said we are not familiar here in the UK with the paddle, but I did once get a couple of whacks, or swats, with a paddle. The music teacher had one, but he was the only person I knew of to have one and use it. Before he whacked me he chalked a swastika on it, so I had a couple of Nazi insignia on my trousers after. It stung quite a bit more than the slipper normally did, so I should imagine anyone in the US getting more than two with a bigger paddle would certainly know about it. I was quite happy to get a couple of whacks, as that was me fired from the choir. I was never really enthusiastic singing the minstrel boy to the wars has gone, instead of reading music and playing instruments which I did in my previous school, which was supposed to be a beyond hope secondary modern school.
As you are an American, I can well understand your interest in the cane, as it was not normally used in recent times in the US. There have been references on SCP about it being used in the US a long time since. Something we have heard of here, but do not have any experience of, is the hickory stick. Is a hickory stick stiff or supple, like a rattan cane ? I do not know why, but your original post asking a simple and straight forward query, seems to have resuscitated the SCP Gestapo. Here on this site you will notice there is a preponderance of post about boys being caned by men. You may think of it initially as a MM flagellation site, but carry on reading the posts you will find other things.
At least going off what has been posted on SCP about the US, you in America include girls as much as boys as the recipients of school corporal punishment. We in the UK are probably not as forward as the US in the equality of the sexes on this particular subject.
The normal welcome garlands were not put out for you on your arrival, even though this site has been very quiet of late, so I shall welcome you to this site. Post again, and do not be put off by some comments that lack southern hospitality.