In which the tawse goes missing… again
Posted by Abel on 18 Mar 2008 at 07:02 am | Tagged as: Other Stuff
One interesting side-bar to our Beamish visit was the tale of the stolen tawse. At the front of the schoolroom, behind the teacher’s desk, hung a long, black, three-tailed strap: not too ferocious-looking (compared, say, to my XH Lochgelly), but heavy enough to do the job. How authentic, I thought to myself, starting to imagine its lifetime of correcting young ladies in some north-eastern school.
Sadly, on closer inspection, it tuned out not to be an original artefact, but a rather more modern version. (They have a wonderful room elsewhere in the museum full of horse leathers. Does their saddler also turn his hand to other traditional crafts, I wonder? And if so, please can I have his address?)
Still, despite its inauthenticity, one of our party plucked up the courage to ask the ‘teacher’ about the implement. (It could never happen, but that small gleam of hope no doubt lurked in her mind: maybe, just maybe, he could be persuaded to demonstrate its use). He tugged at it – and showed that it was firmly tied in place.
“It’s our fifth this year,” he explained. “People keep stealing them.”
I was too shocked, I must confess, to say a word. The thoughts of what might happen to a young lady found to have stolen a tawse during a school trip to Beamish only came later. And I’ve not been reflecting since on how often schoolmasters’ implements must have been stolen over the years, and the consequences for the offenders once caught. Honest.
PS The idea of returning later in the year in costume, pretending to be museum staff and shocking fellow visitors, has a certain appeal: “Daddy, why is that lady lifting up her skirt and bending over? Why does that man have a stick in his hand?” “It’s called the cane: they used it to punish naughty girls in those days.”
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I’ve lost count of how many times I have been accused of hiding implements in my own home. I’ve never hidden one once. He just forgets where he stashes them. Maybe it is the same story here. Teachers can lose implements too you know.
My father in law tells the story of stealing the strap when he was at school. The children took it and then cut it into dozens of pieces.
But I’ve a story for you, a bit unrelated but you can improvise with the ending:
I was at school today, at the music school. A music teacher came out of the office when he spotted a boy.
“Stephen how did the chapel service go?”
Stephen laughs nervously.
“Well it sounded a big odd without the oboe…”
Teacher: He forgot! How could he forget?”
Stephen: laughs nervously again
Teacher: Don’t worry. Leave his punishment to me. I know how to punish him…
Well supposedly the book most commonly stolen is the bible… I guess the irony of certain thefts are sometimes lost on the thieves.
I’m very confused as to why anyone would want to *steal* a tawse…I do have slight tendency to gather ’souvenirs’ from memorable occasions…but stealing a tawse- surely that would just mean you were making it very easy for someone to punish you if you got caught.
*Thinking it about it would suit some people on this website perfectly!*
And Rob I pity the poor oboeist. I mean it’s hardly his fault if he forgets to come in becaues he was gossiping/drunk?!
Chloe: I had to put it into a kinky thought too - not reflect on the fate of the actual oboeist. It’s a school that takes responsibility *very* seriously and everything runs to military timing so I have no doubt that he was left to feel exceedingly guilty about the ‘no show’. I’m sure it won’t be the end of the road for him though. You are only allowed in the music school if you are part of the music program (instrument or choir). My son tells me that the reason why so many boys are involved in music in the school is because the new music school has the only toilets in the school you would want to use!!