The Hawaiian gazette., 1896-10-16
WIELDERS OF THE
Birch ROD.
How School Children Are Bro't
Into Line.
CUSTOMS OF OTHER COUNTRIES.
still Holds to Old Fashioned
Merhods-GiIls Whipped a Well as
Boys-German Floggiug Done by
'.Blue Man'' With Ancient MASK.

''Blue Man, with Ancient Mass.
Pupils beginning school this month
oil better appreciate their teachers
and the educational laws of this coun-
try when they learn of the punishment
applied to misbehaving and inattentive
children in the schools of foreign lands
say the Washington Star. Corporal
punishment in our schools is practical
ly at an end, except, perhaps, in a few
districts of states where laws have
never been passed forbidding such pro-
cedure. Commissioner of Education
Harris, Uncle Sans chief adviser on
school matters, says that great
change has lately been wrought in
our methods of school discipline at
is clear that with frequent and severe
corporal punishments," says he, 1T is
next TO impossible to retain genuine
respect for law. Only the very rare
teacher can succeed in this. Punish
ment through the sense of honor has
therefore superseded, for the most
rod"
Reports of authentic authorities who
have inspected the disciplinary meth
DDS in England and other foreign coun-
tries state that the English school,
master of today uses the rod almost
as unsparingly as he did century ago.
Recently futile attempt was made
to pass bill through the British par
lament forbidding the infection of
physical pain by teachers, except with
the birch rod, upon children below six
teen years of age. This unsuccessful
bill also provided that no master or
employer should strike an apprentice
or servant
HOW THEY DO 1T IN ENGLAND.
The English school inquiry commits
sion recently investigated the differ
ent means of punishment in vogue in
different shiTes. In some no assist
ant teacher is permitted to fog a
child, the distinction being reserved
for the head master. In other places,
besides fiogging. the penalty for lying.
swearing, insolence and moral offense,
fines and stoppages of pocket money
are imposed. Sending to bed' is the
favorite punishment in most of the
English girls schools
The rod in present use in Winchester
School, one of England's most import
ant public schools, is composed of four
apple tree twigs set in a wooden ham
die. 1t is kept in repair by two mem
bers of the junior class, who are APP
pointed rod makers" by the project
While thrashing boy the wielder of
this rod wears a cap of the mortar
board design. This custom has been
in vogue in Winchester School since
before the discovery of America At
Elton School, another of Englands
foremost public educational institu-
tions for boys, the flogging parapher-
MALTA consists of block made to rep
resent two steps and long bushy
switch of birch. The victim kneels
upon the block, after appropriately
arranging his garments. Not only
young boys are thus handled in these,
the highest public school in Great
Britain. but youths as old as many
of our naughty eollegians in their
freshman or even their sophomore
years. Not long ago boy of eighteen,
who, at his fathers orders, refused to
be tiogged, was expelled.
Besides the birch and apple-twig,
switches, other instruments of torture
applied to bad school boys in England
are the rule and spatula. The latter
commonly called the Jonathan" is a
large circular disk of wood, having
five or more holes bored about the
center and mounted upon handle.
Needless to say, the holes raise painful
blisters upon the area of application.
In many English schools for boys a
punishment known as ''horsing" was
in vogue not many years ago. One
miscreant was made to sit upon the
back of another astride, both being
logged at the same time.
THEY WHIPPED THE GIRLS.
In schools for girls and young ladies
in England, even within the memory of
our grandparents, the rod was unspar-
ingly used. The whipping outfit for
the fair sex included the rattan, the
birch, the whip of whalebone and the
punishment blouse. The latter was
short garment made without sleeves
and very low in the neck, front and
back. For some offenses young la
dies were made to disrobe themselves
in the school room and to don this
costume previous TO being whipped in
the presence of their schoolmates. In
laTer davS Eu1Ifch GIRLS 14-ara r-Is,,-,o5