In 1914′s “The adventures of Kathlyn” by Harold MacGrath, our heroine is the daughter of a great hunter, Colonel Hare. She sails to Calcutta to visit him, and becomes embroiled in a complex plot in which she is required to marry some local ruler, but refuses his advances. She is “led to a cell in the palace prison, whose walls she had but a little while ago viewed in passing, and thrust inside”.

By amazing coincidence, she finds that her father is also in prison – in the very same cell!

Meanwhile, her local suitor appeared before his council of ministers, who agreed to have her flogged. But he…

… went about the matter leisurely. He ate his supper, changed his clothes and dallied in the zenana for an hour. The rascal had made a thorough study of the word “suspense”; he knew the exquisite torture of making one’s victim wait

For the time being his passion for Kathlyn had subsided. He desired above all things just than revenge for the humiliating experience in the ceil; he wanted to put pain and terror into her heart. Ah, she would be on her knees, begging, begging, and her father would struggle in vain at his shackles. Spurned; so be it. She should have a taste of his hate…

Two should hold her by the arms while the professional flogger seared the white soft back of her. She would soon come to him begging. He had been too kind. The lash of the zenana, it should bite into her soft flesh. He would break her spirit and her body together and fling her into his own zenana to let her gnaw her heart out in suspense.

Accompanied by torch bearers, servants and the professional flogger, he led the way to the cell and flung open the door triumphantly. For a moment he could not believe his eyes. She was gone, and through yonder window!

Thank goodness for the valiant officer of the raj who had rescued our damsel in distress, dear readers, for I know we would all have hated to have to read the description of her actual punishment…