0 comments/ 7257 views/ 3 favorites A New Broom Sweeps Clean By: JASONSHOMOEROTICA A Homoerotic Story By Jason Land FOREWORD This story covers a two year period in the life of one, Dr. Andrew Waterlow, a brilliant Oxford classist who turns to school teaching as a profession, but who who is finally appointed, aged only thirty, to a research professorship at the University of Oxford. Depending on context, he is variously referred to in the text as the Headmaster, Dr. Waterlow, Waterlow and Andrew. His friend, colleague and ultimate his life's partner, is Mr Jeremy Foster, referred to also as Jeremy. Andrew and Jeremy are both gay. CHAPTER 1 The Chairman, Colonel Douglas Hartley MC (retired) was incandescent with with rage. He was addressing a meeting of the Governors of Rigby College, a small English public school located in the town of Market Ditchfeild in rural Lincolnshire. In spite of the peculiar spelling of Ditchfeild, with the "e" before the "i", the name was, nevertheless, pronounced 'Ditchfeeld'. Just how this inversion of the two letters had come about, was lost in the mists of time, for no one had any explanation for this anomaly. But to get back to the meeting, the reason why the Colonel was in such a rage was that Rigby College was in an utter mess; in fact it was in the process of slowly collapsing. Some five years previously the then Board of Governors had allowed itself to be sold a bill of goods by a new "reforming" Headmaster, full of modern ideas, who after five years with bis newfangled ideas, had succeeded in reducing the school to a shadow of its former self. The problem had started in 1918, just after the Great War, in which several of the school's younger masters had lost their lives. The then Headmaster, who had been overdue for retirement before the war in 1914, had soldiered on until until the Armistice in November 1918 and had then suddenly died, leaving the school not only bereft of many masters, but also of a leader. Finding themselves with a serious staffing problem and seduced by the ideas of a gentler, less rigorous, less formal and less structured approach to education of the sons of upper class families who sent their offspring to such private boarding schools, the then Board of Governors had appointed this man, Dr. David Baldwin, to the post of Headmaster. Dr. Baldwin had then gone on to recruit the urgently needed new staff, essentially men who agreed with his "new style" approach to education, to make up for the decimations of the war. This new team had then proceeded for a period of five years to run the school into the ground by practising their "new ideas". And it was this present state in which the school now found itself which had brought the Chairman to the boiling point. It has to be said that Colonel Douglas Hartley MC (retired) was a man whose temper had a very short fuse. He was a pompous, arrogant, belligerent, old style soldier, who acted as though he were still commanding a regiment and treated everyone around him as an underling. He rode roughshod over anybody and everybody, and his fellow governors, who were all men of a certain age, allowed themselves to be swept along by the Colonel and his ideas. He ran the Board Meetings as if he were addressing a bunch of schoolboys and his co-governors simply allowed him to do so. But to be fair to the man, on this occasion he had every reason to be angry. He had been called in, as an outsider, to replace the previous Chairman of the Board, who when faced with the problems now confronting the school had "retired due to ill health". Colonel Hartley had accepted the post but a few months earlier on the strict condition that he be given a free hand to correct any problems he found in his assessment of the school. His assessment now finished, he was making a formal presentation of his findings to his co-governors, several of whom were complicit in the decisions which had led to the present well nigh catastrophic state in which the school now found itself. Several of the board members would, frankly, have preferred not to be present at this meeting: they sat there in complete silence. "Gentlemen, do you realise the parlous state into which this school has fallen thanks to five years of the totally misguided policies of the present Headmaster, Mr Baldwin and, I might add, his acolytes, the four housemasters whom he appointed. Rigby is a relatively small school, but until the end of the war, we had an academic record and reputation vying with the best: Eton, Winchester, Harrow or Rugby. Pro-rating our performance to our size, we were the equal of any of these major schools. We sent many of our boys to Oxford and Cambridge and made regularly placements in the British Civil Service, in particular to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Several of our old boys have reached Cabinet rank in the government and I am proud to say that many old Rigbyans are in senior positions in the administrations of the possessions of the British Empire around the world. In a word, gentlemen, we had a reputation of which we could be justly proud." Even as a newly appointed Chairman, the Colonel, as he spoke, already identified himself completely with the school and its pupils. He used the words "we" and "our pupils" with such conviction, that an outsider would have thought he had been wedded to the school all his life. And in spite of his recent appearance on the Board of Governors, it was precisely this sense of conviction that allowed him to sweep his fellow governors along with him: he was the complete master of the situation. If anyone was going to get anything done to improve matters at the school, then it was the Colonel, by sheer force of his personality. "And where are we today? Well I will tell you exactly where we are: at the bottom of the league of minor public schools of this country. Just look at our results. In the last academic year only one boy went to Oxford and not one to Cambridge; our entry into the Civil Service was minimal. And, even more serious, looking at the enrolment figures for the coming year starting this September, we are lacking more than twenty boys from our normal intake. In a word, gentlemen, Rigby School has become a laughing stock; word has got round and parents are sending their offspring elsewhere. This is the disastrous situation in which we find ourselves today." "So much for the academic record; but what about the school itself and its pupils? Well, gentlemen, I can tell you that I was astonished to see the lack of order into which the running of the school had been allowed to slip. As far as I can tell, there is practically no discipline of any kind, due to the "modern" thinking of the present Headmaster, who feels that each boy should be given the liberty to develop his own talents and character in his own time. So there are no sanctions, either physical or intellectual, imposed on the boys, who, as far as I can see, are more or less free to do exactly as they please. They are allowed to come and go to classes as they wish; tests and internal examinations are non-existent; they may dress as they wish and, as far as I can see are free from any form of constraint. In a word, gentlemen, the boys are being educated in a sort of Shangri La. Little wonder that after five years of this, we see the dismal academic figures I have just presented to you To sum up the whole catastrophic situation the the laissez-faire attitude of the Headmaster and his acolytes made the cardinal mistake of giving the boys that fabled inch and they, of course have taken a mile. This cannot go on: things have got to change!" When the Colonel had finished his harangue, here was complete silence from the other Governors, until one brave soul ventured to ask what the Colonel thought the solution was. "The solution, gentlemen, is quite simple; the present Headmaster and the four Housemasters, whom he appointed, have got to go and replacements have to be found, replacements I might add, who have a more traditional approach to educating boys from our upper class families, for it is from just this stratum of society that our pupils are drawn. An entirely new team must be put into place; rules must be written and enforced by the strictest discipline as has always been the tradition at public schools in this country. The cane and the birch will be reintroduced into the daily life of the school, for words alone will not quell a load of miscreant youths. In short, the school must re-adopt the teaching methods and profile which have stood the test of time in all our public schools and indeed, which were in force here until this disastrous "educational experiment" was embarked upon by the present Headmaster." "But, Mr Chairman, to be clear, are you suggesting that we discharge the Headmaster and the four housemasters?" asked one of the governors. "Unless you have a better suggestion, I do not see any other way: they have to go; so, either we terminate their contracts, in other words dismiss them, or they resign, which I suppose is another option. Resignation, would, I suppose, help them save face. But let us be under no illusions: they all have to go!" "But, do you not think that under a new Headmaster, the housemasters might be persuaded to adapt themselves to the new approach?" "Frankly, no! Lock, stock and barrel, all of them have got to go; we need a new start: these five men, Mr. Baldwin and his four likeminded housemasters, have together brought this school to its knees and I have not the slightest compunction in telling them to go. And, gentlemen, so that we all understand one another clearly, the dismissal of this "gang of five" if I might describe them thus, is a non-negotiable condition of my continued membership of this board: either they go or I do. I trust I have made my position clear to all of you so that as we embark upon this salvage mission, there are no misunderstandings among us." The Colonel spoke as a man who is used to being obeyed and after a moment's silence, the board agreed with his conditions; they really had no idea what they were going to do without someone to lead them. But, there was nevertheless an undercurrent of feeling that they had appointed a leader, but did he actually know where he was leading them. CHAPTER 2 The Colonel had given a great deal of thought to the momentous staffing changes he proposed the Board to make. "Gentlemen , now that we have an agreement as to now we are going to proceed, allow me to give you my thoughts on the matter, for I have already spent considerable time thinking about the difficult situation in which we find ourselves. Clearly we cannot simply dismiss the five masters in question without having replacements available to take over immediately, for the school cannot function five men down, so to speak. We are now in August and the new academic year will being in early September, and so I am afraid that we shall probably have to endure another year comparable to those we have just experienced. In other words we shall have to look on helplessly, whilst the school continues on its downward path. I see of no solution for the coming academic year: the die, alas, is already cast." "My plan, however, is simple in concept but may be more complicated to carry out. We will, as a matter of upmost importance, immediately begin the search for and appoint a new Headmaster to take over the running of the school at the very latest a year from this September. We need to secure a suitable person as soon as possible and we shall have to face the fact that we shall have to pay him his salary well before he himself occupies the Headmaster's study. It will then be up to him to find the four persons who will replace the present housemasters. It is essential that we find and appoint the new Headmaster as soon as possible, as he will need time to find the replacements, who themselves will, in all probability already be occupying posts else were, which will be tied to certain terms of notice." "So, gentlemen, the best scenario I can see, is that we find the new Headmaster before the end of this year and that he be appointed as of January 1st next year, or even before if he is free. But he must have enough time to find four new colleagues before the start of the academic year one year from now. Once we are certain that we have the five new men on our staff, then we shall give notice to the present Headmaster and his four colleagues. I will not go into the alternative scenarios which can be envisaged if all does not go according to plan and will leave that to your imagination. So, gentlemen, do we or do we not agree that this is the best way forward? If anyone else has a better idea, then now is the time to voice it, otherwise words as the marriage ceremony says: hereafter forever hold your peace." The Board of Governors unanimously gave its approval to the plan outlined by the Chairman. One member then posed the critical question, asking how the declared aim was to be achieved. "Well gentlemen, we could, of course, advertise for a new Headmaster in the appropriate press, which may not be a bad idea if we wish to have a selection of candidates to choose from. However, quite by chance an old army colleague of mine also happens to be on Board of Governors of another school similar to ours: Cumbria Academy, situated near the town of Kendal in the Lake District. In a conversation I had with him recently, totally unrelated to our problem, he happened to mention that the second master of that establishment, which I gather is highly regarded as a bastion of old style teaching methods and values, and where discipline is very strict, is looking to move upwards into a headmastership in another school, by way of advancing his career." "This man, called Andrew Waterlow, a D.Phil from Oxford, no less, is himself a classicist, and was the leading light in his year at Oxford. I gather that had the Oxford examiners been in the habit of listing the degrees in order, he would have have been placed head and shoulders ahead of his fellow students. He then went on and completed, within two years, a course for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, normally a three year course and I understand that his D.Phil dissertation was considered remarkable: something about the influence of ancient Greek democratic thinking on pagan Rome; goes way above my head, I have to say, but then that's neither here nor there is it? Anyway, he was offered a three year research fellowship at St. Tristan's College, Oxford, which he turned down, preferring instead to become a classics teacher at the Cumbria Academy, which is where he has been teaching for the last five years. He is rather young for the post of a headmastership, but, by all account is a brilliant teacher and a first rate administrator, so much so that two years ago, aged only twenty-six, he was named Assistant Master. I understand, academic brilliance apart, that he is an excellent teacher and, most important from our point of view, he is a strict disciplinarian, who is not afraid to wield the cane. I can well understand that such a person is now seeking preferment, and I wonder whether we should not, at least talk to him and see what we think." Of course, the opportunity to appoint a man who appeared to come with such stellar academic qualifications and five years experience in a similar school to Rigby appealed enormously to the entire Board of Governors and the upshot was that the young man was invited down for a preliminary discussion. The Colonel, of course, led the interview, and explained exactly what the present situation at Rigby was and how the school had been allowed to sink so low. "So Dr. Waterlow, if we were to offer you the post of Headmaster of Rigby it would be a real challenge for you to pull matters back from the brink of disaster. You appreciate that not only yourself as Headmaster would be new, but that you would have four new Housemasters, the senior staff, if you wish, but with an undercurrent of other masters who will probably resent your appointments and wish to avoid change. Your job would be to change completely the misguided policies introduced by the present Headmaster and to knock the school back into shape: the classic shape of a medium sized English public school; quite a tall order, I think; do you see yourself up to the task?" Of course, Dr. Waterlow, eager to move up the academic ladder and become a Headmaster, declared, as would have anyone else in his position, that he could certainly meet the challenge. And so, the matter was left that both parties would consider the matter further. The Board of Governors was, on the whole very favourably impressed by Dr. Waterlow and finally decided that, subject to a further interview and a closer check, they would offer him the post. The Colonel decided that it would be wise to see firsthand exactly what sort of an establishment the Cumbria Academy was, and so he arranged a full day's visit there for himself and two other board members. As Dr. Waterlow had declared his intention to seek a higher post, there was no problem with this and his present superior, the Headmaster of the Cumbria Academy welcomed the visitors with open arms. What the visitors saw, was a well-run school with a good academic record, similar to that which Rigby had formally enjoyed and so the afternoon was to be spent in final discussion with Dr. Waterlow, at which, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the Colonel had the permission of the Board to offer him the post. CHAPTER 3 It was after lunch and the Colonel and is two co-governors were ensconced with Dr. Waterlow in his study. The Colonel noticed with a certain degree of satisfaction that over by the door was standing a large cylindrical oriental pot, of the type often used as a repository for walking sticks. However, the sight of a number of canes poking out of this receptacle filled the Colonel with hope that here was possibly a man who believed, as did the Colonel quite fervently, in the power of the cane to inculcate good manners and behaviour into the pupils, with a view to turning them into young gentlemen. The discussion turned as to how Dr. Waterlow would set about recruiting the four new housemasters, critical to the regeneration of Rigby, when it was was interrupted by the ringing of the doorbell. Like many master's studies, the door was equipped on its outside with two lights: one red for engaged and one green for enter. If neither light was burning, then visitors simply rang the bell and waited until the green light came on to enter the room. "Oh dear, gentlemen; do forgive me; I am afraid I had completely forgotten that I had an appointment with two boys who are in need of correction. Am so sorry, it just slipped my mind. Let me tell them to come back later." As he rose to open the door to the two miscreants who were standing waiting outside, the Colonel stopped him. "Dr. Waterlow, please let the boys in and continue as you had planned. We shall be interested to see how you deal with punishments here in the Academy, for as you know, corporal punishment has been banned at Rigby for the past five years. In fact, not to mince words, its absence is one of the main reasons why the school is in such a mess at present. So, please go ahead; it will be instructive for us to see your methods. I might add, Dr. Waterlow, that belonging to the "Old School" as we three clearly do, we are all totally in favour of corporal punishment as one of the key components, indeed probably the absolute key method of keeping order and maintaining discipline in a school. So, please do not hold back on our account; deal with these boys as if we are not here. We shall be interested observers," Two obviously first year boys entered the room looking very, very nervous: a typical reaction to a summons to the master's study. "So, Jarvis and Mawdsely, you two are in Latimer House, I believe." A New Broom Sweeps Clean A very timid, "Yes sir." "Do you know why I have summoned you here?" "No sir, not really." "But you are aware that as new boys this term, you have broken two of the schools golden rules, are you not?" Jarvis then spoke for both of them. "Well, sir, we did go down into town yesterday afternoon after classes, if that is what you mean." "That boys, is precisely what I mean. I saw the two of you myself, walking down the high street, looking into shop windows. Why did you go down town, when you know that for new boys such as you are only allowed down town on Saturday afternoons and for a period of two hours only?" "Well sir, we really did not realise that we were breaking the rules; we just wanted to see what the town was like; to look around the shops a bit; we truly did not do any harm." "And did your looking turn into purchasing?" "Well sir, only a little bit: we each bought a boy's magazine from the news agent's." "I see. So you went into, strictly against the school rules and made some purchases, but your disregard of the school rules goes much further, doesn't it?" The two boys looked totally bewildered, for they clearly had no idea of what other rule they had broken. "No sir, we didn't do anything else other than what we have just told you; honest to god we didn't! We just went into town and each bought a magazine; that's all, sir, nothing else." "And where were your caps? I do not recollect seeing that you were wearing your school caps. You surely know that whenever you are outside the school premises, the rules require that you wear your caps at all times and that you raise them to anyone you happen to meet whom you know. Did you not know that?" "Oh sir, we just forgot to take our caps with us. It was just forgetfulness, that is all, we really were not intending to break the rules; it was must one of those things which happens." "So, boys, let us be quite clear; Knowing full well that you were breaking the rules, you went down town and additionally, also knowing that the wearing of caps was obligatory, you did not wear your caps. Is that correct?" The two boys were now clearly in a very nervous state, not knowing what was coming and wondering what they could do to escape from what had become, for them, a nerve-wracking experience. "Yes sir, we did know, but it was just that we are new here and we just wanted to see what the town was like, sir and the caps, well we just forgot them. It was not intentional at all sir. We'll never do it again sir, will we Mawdsley?" "Well boys, I have to tell you that the rules of this school are there to be obeyed; to be obeyed by all boys of all ages and the fact that you two are new boys this term is no excuse for your behaviour. You were both aware of the rules and you chose to break them and for that I am afraid you have to be punished. If I allow you go without punishing you, then others will be inspired by your bad example and will be tempted to do the same; and that, let me tell you will lead to chaos, utter chaos. I am a great believer in the adage, "Give a boy an inch and he will take a mile". Well you two, by your actions, have tempted fate and been caught and that inch, which you took by your by your actions yesterday, will not be allowed to turn into a mile; in fact, it will be completely erased, like a misspelled word." By this time the two lads were truly looking very frightened indeed and wondered what was going to happen to them. "Are you going to put us in detention, sir?" asked Jarvis. "Detention, Jarvis, in my experience, is rarely a deterrent. No I am not going to put you in detention; I am going to beat the pair of you. Turn round, both of you and look over there by the door and tell me what you see there? Well let me spell it out for you: a selection of canes just waiting to correct errant youths such as you two." Oh sir, please don't cane us, sir. I have never been caned before." pleaded Mawdsley as he went on, "Does it hurt, Sir?" " Mawdesly, I should have thought that a boy of your intelligence would have realised that you have just asked a very silly question. Of course it will hurt boy! That is precisely the object of the exercise" "Yes sir, I understand that it will hurt, but will it hurt a lot?" "Mawdsely, stop asking stupid questions and give me a minute to select a suitable cane and then you will find out for yourself first hand." Dr. Waterlow went across to his cane repository and withdrew a long, thin cane of a dark mahogany colour, very shiny, very pliable and about half an inch thick. He sat down behind his desk with the two boys standing trembling in front of him, wondering what the next few minutes held for them, for they had no clear idea of how the cane was used at Cumbria College. They found themselves in the position of countless other boys at public schools throughout the country, boys who stood before their headmaster waiting for the punishment and were unable to do anything to avoid what was about to happen. But wait they did, as Dr. Waterlow had no intention of curtailing this little drama, for he had rightly sensed that the Colonel and the Board of Governors of Rigby, were looking not only for academic attributes in their new Headmaster, but also for a strict disciplinarian, a man who in the previous century would have been described as a martinet. And in Dr. Waterlow they had found their man, for like many a school master, he found considerable erotic pleasure in beating boys' arses, a fact which he divulged to no one. "This cane, boys, was given to me by my predecessor on his retirement. He used it in this school for nearly twenty-five years and since his departure, I have used it regularly for the past five years. It is a totally unique implement, as it has taken on with age, a patina and colour both of which are most unusual and it has retained its amazing flexibility for over thirty years. It is my very favourite cane, to which I am attached in the same way as one is attached to very comfortable pair of old shoes. Each time I use it, I feel completely at ease as I know exactly how it will perform. Just think boys, this cane has been used on over six hundred different boys over the thirty years of its life and it is still as good as new. So, boys, you are about to experience a moment in history and join the ranks of those who have felt the therapeutic effects of this very cane over the past thirty years. But enough talk as we now must get down to some action!" The two boys were now in such nervous state, that the Colonel feared one or both of them might wet themselves. "Do you cane both our hands or or just one?" asked Mawdesly. "Hands? Who said anything about hands? Hands are caned in state schools; Cumbria Academy is a public school and public schools beat buttocks; hands are totally out of the question. So, you first Mawdsley, just step up to this low chair drop you shorts and underpants and bend across the back. Stick your buttocks high so that I can apply the cane correctly." "Oh sir, you are not going to beat our bums bare, are you sir? Please sir, I don't think I can stand it." "Beating of bare bums, as you so graphically express it, is the standard method of punishment here at the Cumbria Academy. The cane is always applied directly to the the naked buttocks of the miscreant, in this case you. So I suggest you hold your tongue now and prepare yourself for the pain which you are certainly going to experience. Keep perfectly still until I tell you to get up. I am going to be lenient with both of you, very lenient, in fact, as you are both new boys. But even thought your misdemeanours are relatively minor, I cannot let them go unpunished. Taken together your two infractions merit twenty-four strokes of the cane, but as I have decided to be lenient, I will give each of you just twelve cuts." "My god," thought the Colonel to himself, "This man is exactly what we are looking for: he calls twelve strokes across the naked arse lenient; here is someone who is not frightened to lay it on and keep boys in order: Waterlow is a man after my own heart." Dr. Waterlow approached Mawdsley and surveyed the boy's two hemispheres, which were totally unblemished virgin territory. Gently tapping a few times across the boy's buttocks he finally brought the cane down with a hard whack just below the bottom of the boy's back. Then he systematically applied the next ten strokes with staggering precision, one parallel to the other, ending with the eleventh stroke at the top of the boy's legs. The flexibility of the cane, so vigorously applied by a man who was clearly a master in the art, ensured that both cheeks were totally striped with the cuts. Finally, like a baker signing off on a loaf of bread, he applied the last cut diagonally across the others, joining them together. Poor Mawdsley was in absolute agony from the first stroke on and howled loudly as stroke followed stroke. By the time the master had finished with him, the poor boy was in a flood of tears and his arse was a mass of artistically applied red bruises. "Up you get, Mawdsely and stop whining now; take your punishment like a man. (That time honoured exhortation which brought no comfort whatsoever to the unlucky recipient of the beating). You next, Jarvis, come on lad, look lively. Let's see you bare bum, as your friend calls it; come on, lad, get over the chair." How Jarvis felt, having witnessed the so- called "lenient" beating which his friend had just undergone, we shall never know. Suffice it to say that when he stood up from the chair a few minutes later, his arse was a testimony to the precision and artistry of the caning ability of Dr. Waterlow. "Now boys, get your clothes back on and cut along to your next class. You two will be the heroes of your dorm. Tonight when your school mates see the magnificent picture I have painted on your bums: they are works of art in their own right: something two can be proud to show off to your class mates!" The two lads left, still in tears, massaging their buttocks, which surely felt as if they were on fire. The lads had had a real roasting for their misdemeanour. As they left his study, Dr. Waterlow added the encouraging remark: "You may find that your housemaster will want to see you on this same matter, as you have let down only the school but Latimer House as well." The colonel said: "Well, Dr, Waterlow, I have to say that we were all very impressed by the way you handled those two boys. You were quite right, of course to give them a good beating, for even though their offences were not very serious, to have let them escape without punishment would have been a cardinal error: the beginning of the end. To have overlooked that inch those two lads took in breaking the rules and going into the town, would quickly have allowed it to turn into the proverbial mile; it would have been the thin end of the wedge. Well done indeed, sir to nip such infractions in the bud. Now that the boys have seen what happens to rule breakers, I am sure that they will be much more careful in future. And may I say, sir, how much we all admired your mastery of the cane: such accuracy and such force. That pair of miscreants went away well and truly chastened and I am sure that they will think hard and long before they break any more rules." "Well, Colonel, as a strict disciplinarian in charge of all discipline at this school I have had a lot of practice over the past five years." replied Dr. Waterlow. "Now sir, my colleagues and I are very satisfied with your qualifications and capabilities and in spite of your young age, we have the pleasure to offer you the post of Headmaster of Rigby School which we hope you will accept." Dr. Waterlow was, of course, delighted that he had been offered the post, which he accepted. He was also pleased to see that the Colonel and his colleagues had been duly impressed by his prowess with the cane and that they strongly endorsed the use of corporal punishment, as he intended to see that its use at Rigby became a regular feature of school life. The fact of the matter was that Dr. Waterlow, like many others in his profession, enjoyed thrashing boys' backsides. But he had another proclivity, which was not at first sight apparent; Dr. Waterlow was a homosexual. CHAPTER 4 Dr .Waterlow left the Cumbria Academy at the end of the year. His old colleagues at the Cumbria Academy wished him luck in his new post and congratulated him on his early accession to the post of to the level of Headmaster of a public school at the early age of twenty-eight. He left Cumbria with only one possession: the faithful favourite cane which he had inherited from his predecessor. The boys of Rigby would soon have the pleasure of learning of its efficacy as he had every intention of ruling Rigby with a rod of iron. As Dr. Waterlow was leaving, the Headmaster of Cumbria Academy remarked to his new Assistant Master, Dr.Waterlow's replacement that he hoped that Rigby knew what they were doing. His colleague replied: "Oh, Headmaster, never fear, Waterlow will sort them out; he is an excellent disciplinarian and a great organiser. Believe me, sir, that speaking as one of his admirers and now as his successor, I think he is a hard act to follow; the school is losing a good man." "I know, I know," replied the Headmaster, "It's not that that I am bothered about. It's the other thing!" "Oh, I see exactly what you mean, Headmaster. But they have had lots of time to size him up, so caveat emptor, I say: let the buyer beware. And, Headmaster, if you would permit me to say so, Dr. Waterlow is always very discreet." At this remark, the Headmaster looked intently at his new Assistant Master, said nothing, but raised an internal eyebrow! Had he replaced like with like, he wondered. So even though his colleagues had known of the sexual orientation of Dr. Waterlow, not a whisper had reached the Colonel and his Board of Governors. Immediately prior to Dr. Waterlow's arrival at Rigby, by the middle of December, the Board of Governors, felt sufficiently sure of itself to dismiss the present incumbent, Mr Baldwin. A Board meeting was convened and Mr. Baldwin was summoned. The Colonel did not beat about the bush as to the purpose of the meeting. He informed Mr. Baldwin in no uncertain terms, that the Board had decided after five years of his mismanagement, given the present parlous state of the school, that it was time to have a new person take charge. The Board had, therefore, decided to give Mr. Baldwin the three months notice as per his letter of engagement, to vacate the post of Headmaster at the end of March. Mr. Baldwin was, naturally indignant at the way he was being treated and attempted to defend his record. The Colonel cut him short: "Headmaster, just look at the state the school is in. There is no discipline, the academic results are abysmal and, sir, to cap it all, we have a serious fall in the demand for places for new boys. You sir, with your modern methods and laissez-faire attitudes, have brought this institution to its knees. Your time, sir, is over: you have to go. Now, if you wish, we are willing to allow you to resign: ill health, family problems: you know the form. So, sir, it's up to you. Do you wish to resign, or do we give you written notice? Decide! Decide now!" The Colonel delivered the above remarks in his most authoritative and intimidating manner and Mr. Baldwin decided to save face and resign. "Mr Baldwin, the Board accepts your resignation, which you will put in writing by tomorrow morning and deliver into my hands. Now, as per your letter of engagement, your resignation is also subject to three months notice, which you are obliged to give to the Board, However, if you wish, the Board will allow you to leave immediately and will, of course, pay you your salary for the next three months, until the contractual end of your employment with this school. In a word sir, you will be free to leave at the end of this month. The Board feels that it will be in the best interests of all concerned if you vacate the Headmaster's quarters by December 31st. So, Mr. Baldwin, I suggest you spend the rest of the month clearing out your things and vacate the premises by the end of the year. In convincing the Board to act in the way it had and more or less forcing Mr. Baldwin to go immediately, the Colonel had, in fact, played a master stroke: he had got rid of Mr. Baldwin, allowing the new Headmaster, Dr. Waterlow to take charge in January. They had a long way to go, but at least they had installed the new broom earlier than anticipated. True, Dr. Waterlow, by virtue of his youth and as a newcomer charged to change the status quo, would face sever opposition from members of "the old guard", but at least they were on the right road and Waterlow could start to stop the galloping rot, with which the school was infested, nine months earlier than expected. The next major problem was the recruiting of the new housemasters and the dismissal of the old acolytes of Mr. Baldwin. Until they were gone, the school could never be truly reformed and set on an even keel again. The Colonel wondered if the existing housemasters saw the writing on the wall: only time would tell. CHAPTER 5 Dr. Waterlow arrived at Rigby in early January. As a bachelor, he had, with the permission of his old Headmaster, left his furniture in his school lodgings at the Cumbria Academy until such time as they could be brought to Rigby and installed in the Headmaster's quarters, which, by the way, in the tradition of the old English public schools, were very spacious; far more than he as a bachelor really needed. So, with a few personal effects and his beloved cane, he installed himself in the local hotel for a few days until his furniture arrived from Cumbria. The spring term stared on January 6th, and the boys arrived from their Christmas holiday the day before. No one, not even the existing masters, had been told of the change of leadership of the school and so, the Colonel decided that he would convoke all the masters to a Board Meeting and inform them them of the change in leadership and introduce them to their new Headmaster. "Gentlemen, thank you all for coming here today at such short notice. The reason for this meeting is to tell you that the Board of Governors, after a detailed appraisal of the performance of the school over the past five years, decided that a change in leadership was necessary. At the end of December the old Headmaster, Mr. Baldwin resigned and has left the school. It is with great pleasure that I would like to introduce to you the new Headmaster of Rigby School as of January 1st this year, Dr Andrew Waterlow. Dr. Waterlow is a classicist, educated at Eton College and Oxford, where he graduated with the highest honours. He subsequently obtained the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Oxford, but then decided that teaching was his future and he has, for past five years, been the Assistant Master at another public school of which the name will be familiar to all of you, I am sure: the Cumbria Academy." "So gentlemen, I am sure that I can count on all of you to give your full support to Dr.Waterlow in his new post. Thank you for your attendance and good day to you all." Holding to the maxim "Discretion is the better part of valour", the Colonel deemed it wiser not to mention the fact that the Board thought that the present teaching staff had done a terrible job and that the school was almost on its knees, thanks to the mismanagement by Mr. Baldwin. He also did not ask for any questions from the assembled staff. He simply gave them the facts, thanked them for their attention and left. In a word, they had to take it or leave it; any of the present staff must have wondered if the writing was already on the wall for them too. A New Broom Sweeps Clean The assembled staff had listened to the Colonel's somewhat brief announcement in stunned silence. No one had ever heard of Dr. Andrew Waterlow, yet here he was, younger by far than even the youngest member of the present staff and in charge of everything and everybody, them included. A twenty-eight year old whippersnapper in charge of men twice his age; well that was a pill which was hard to swallow. But swallow it they had to! Dr. Waterlow began: "Gentlemen, allow me to say that I appreciate that my sudden presence among you is a surprise and, I suspect, a shock to all of you. Not to mince words, Rigby School is in a bad way, gentlemen. Our academic standing had fallen so dramatically that we were longer able to fill all the first year entrance places we had on offer for the start of the present academic year; thus our first year classes are down in numbers. I am afraid that the demand is not there, for we appear to have become a sort of pariah among the smaller public schools. Clearly we cannot go on like this and I look to all for you to help me put our house in order again. I shall in the next few days have individual meetings with each of you. Meanwhile, I shall see all of you on the platform on January 6th at the first full assembly of pupils of the spring term, when I shall have some important announcements to make concerning the changes to the running of this school which I propose to implement immediately. Change is often difficult to accept, but changes are necessary and will be introduced; I feel sure that I shall be able to count on your support. Thank you, gentlemen, for your attention.| And following the Colonel's example he then left. Dr. Waterlow had done a great deal of work before the meeting described above. He had carried out a complete review of the way the school, had been run for the past five years and had come to the conclusion that the problem was only partially due to the poor quality of the teaching. But the the main problem was the fact that under the previous Headmaster, the boys had been allowed to do, more or less what they liked. There were no longer any internal monthly tests to monitor the boys' progress; boys were allowed to miss classes for the flimsiest of reasons. Boys were allowed a freedom of dress which took away the identity of the school; Rigby had an official dress for its pupils, but in the interest of allowing the boys "to find their own way in their own time", Dr. Baldwin had allowed the boys to dress as they saw fit; ties were not tied or even not worn: short sleeved shirts were worn with no jackets; caps were abandoned: shoes were not cleaned; socks were not pulled up; gym and games had become optional and competitive games among the houses had been completely abandoned. All in all, the school and its pupils were a sloppy mess. At the teaching level, Dr. Waterlow was appalled to discover that all sense of decorum had, in fact, been thrown to the winds: few, if any, of the teaching staff wore gowns in front of their classes and some of the masters appeared in casual clothes before their pupils, often tieless and sometimes smoking in front of the boys they purported to be teaching. But finally, and this seemed to Waterlow to be the crucial point, there were no sanctions of any kind which could be brought to bear on the boys. There were no detentions, no deprivation of liberties and privileges and corporal punishment had been totally banned by Mr Baldwin as a barbaric practice. All this was now to be changed. Dr. Waterlow, wearing cap and gown, walked onto the stage at the first school assembly of the spring term; all the teaching staff was already there, awaiting his arrival. As was then the custom in English public schools, the majority of which were essentially protestant, the assembly was centred on a hymn, a prayer and a text for the day, taken from the Bible. The Headmaster then made any announcements for the day. As Dr. Waterlow appeared, a buzz went through the assembled boys, who had only just heard that they had a new Headmaster. Dr. Waterlow looked behind himself and noticed that only a few members of his staff were, correctly dressed and only four teachers were wearing a gown. He stepped to the lectern, put his mortar board on the desk and said, "Good morning boys. I am your new Headmaster. My name is Andrew Waterlow: Doctor Andrew Waterlow. After prayers this morning I shall have many things to say to you, as a result of which the first class this morning for all boys is cancelled." The boys were all agog with the announcement of a new Headmaster and many of the senior boys, who were in the upper sixth form and were young men themselves, were astounded by the youth of their new mentor: Dr. Waterlow was an athletic- looking youthful man, who at first sight appeared hardly older than the final year pupils. "Well, boys, I have to tell you that the rule-free ambience under which this school had been run for the past five years has come to an end; and that end is today: right now! I have never in my life seen such a badly turned out set of public school boys than I find myself looking at today. Gentlemen, your appearances are a disgrace to this school, a disgrace to the town in which we are located and a disgrace to yourselves, that you have allowed yourselves to adopt and accept such slovenly appearances. A public school education is a privilege granted to but few boys and is aimed at turning out young men who will be gentlemen in every sense of the word and a credit not only to their school, but to their king and and country, into whose service many of them have traditionally entered. Looking at you boys today, I am sorry to say that I see none of this in you. However, it is my job to pull this school up from the depths into which it has sunk over the past five years, by its boot straps, which is precisely what I intend to do. And so, starting today, things at Rigby are going to change: to change dramatically." "Now, as a start you will all wear the approved school uniform every day from now on, You will all wear a clean shirt, clean socks and clean underwear every day and you will at all times wear a tie, correctly knotted. You will all shower every evening before retiring and every morning before dressing for the day. You will all clean your shoes every day and see that they shine brightly at assembly; I expect to be able to see m face in them. At least once a month, you will each have your hair cut in a short style, by at the school barber's shop which will be open every day. And you older boys in the upper sixth will start to shave, as I will not tolerate any facial hair on any boys of this school; and do not even think of trying to grow a moustache. So much for your appearances. You will all have one week as from today in which to make yourselves ship-shape and woe betide any boy who does not heed my warnings, for if you are found delinquent, you will be punished; that is not a threat boys, but a promise and a promise which will be kept. Do I make myself clear?" The Headmaster paused for a moment and then said, "Your silence, boys, is deafening me! Do I make myself clear?" There was a slight pause and then a ragged "Yes" with a vague "Sir", which sounded like an afterthought "When I ask you if I have made myself clear, the correct response, from all of you is "Yes, Sir!" and I want to hear it loud and clear. It is quite obvious that your manners are as slipshod as your appearances. Therefore, please take note: when a master, any master, asks you a question and you answer, your answer always, and I repeat, always concludes with "Sir". So, once again let me ask you if I have made myself clear." This time the boys, having realised that they were now dealing with a different kettle of fish than previously, replied with a resounding "Yes, Sir!" "As of this term, games and physical training will be compulsory. I propose to instituted inter-house rivalry on the sports field where rugger and cricket will be re-introduced. For boys who have no aptitude for ball games, then cross-country running will provide the necessary exercise. There will be no slackers; all of you will be involved regularly in vigorous physical exercise." "This school is located within walking distance of the town centre and it is important that all of you, when in town, conduct yourself with a sense of decorum appropriate to your class and to boys attending a public school. You will always wear the school uniform, even when the weather is hot and all of you will always wear your school cap, which you will raise to any adult you know and should happen to meet whilst in town. First and second form boys, will be allowed to go into town only on Saturday afternoons and for a maximum period of two hours. Older boys may go into town in their free time, but no boy and I mean no boy, whatever his age, is allowed to enter a public house. Smoking, both on and off the school premises is strictly forbidden. Any boy who breaks either of these rules will be severely punished." "Now, most of you have spent your days at Rigby with no sanctions of any kind imposed upon you; you have been allowed more or less to do as you wished. In fact, you are a classic mass case of boys who were given an inch and have taken the proverbial mile. It will be clear from my earlier remarks that this idyllic situation has now come to an end. And therefore, to enforce what is henceforth to be a life regulated by rules and discipline, I propose to introduce certain sanctions, which will be brought to bear on any boy who oversteps the mark. As of one week from today, the cane and the birch will be re-introduced into regular use at Rigby. Now most of you will never have had the doubtful pleasure of being thrashed with either of these implements, but let me warn you here and now, that any boy, whatever his age, who oversteps the mark, is disobedient and is a miscreant, will be beaten. I particularly want to emphasise that all boys will qualify for corporal chastisement, as certain schools no longer cane of birch their sixth formers, considering them to be young gentlemen. I do not subscribe to this philosophy, so all of you have now been warned; the rod will not be spared on any boy who misbehaves. Do I make myself clear?" "Yes, sir" rose loud and clear from the assembled boys. "Now, none of your present masters has for the past five years had the opportunity to beat an errant boy, although I am sure that several of them would have liked to do so. Masters will issue punishment slips, which will be placed in a box outside my study. Each evening, boys who have been given a punishment slip will stand and await their fate outside my study, immediately after the last class. In addition, each of the four housemasters will be authorised to cane boys from their house. Make no mistake, any boy who is re handed a punishment slip, will be caned: there will be no discussions or pleas or mitigating circumstances; you will enter my study and leave with a very painful posterior. And woe betide any boy who does not appear promptly for punishment, for I shall have the pleasure of acquainting his posterior with the delights of the birch. " "Finally, let me announce that I have decided to set up a Court of Prefects: senior boys, who will act almost as junior teachers and will have the right beat their younger classmates. There will be sixteen prefects in all, four from each house, one of whom will be named House Captain. Additionally, I will personally nominate a Head Boy so that the full complement of prefects will be sixteen in all. All boys will address any prefect by his surname and proceeded by the title, Mr. and will defer to him in all conversations using the word, sir. Finally, let me be quite clear, the prefects will be the eyes and ears of the teaching staff when classes are finished for the day and they will have the absolute authority to maintain order among you. And that, I think, gentlemen, is all I have to say for the moment. You may regain your classes for the second period of this morning." As the Headmaster stepped down from the dais, a wave of whispering rose from the assembled boys, above which a lone voice, tinged with sarcasm and incredulity, said, "Are you serious?" There was a sudden hush and the hall fell into deep silence: you could have heard that proverbial pin drop. Dr. Waterlow stopped and turned and said, "Step forward the boy who just said that; quick about it now, as I will know who spoke. Here was a long pause and finally a senior looking boy stepped forward. "Whom do I have the pleasure of addressing?" asked Dr. Waterlow. "Butterfield, Sir, upper sixth science." "Well, Butterfield, just run along and wait for me outside my study and I will give you the opportunity to test the seriousness of my remarks today. I shall be there in five minutes so you will not have long to wait." CHAPTER 6 Dr. Waterlow threw open the door of his study and indicated to Butterworth that he should enter. He, himself, went and sat behind his desk and left Butterworth standing in front of him, of him clearly very nervous. "So, Butterworth, how old are you?" "Eighteen, Sir." "And why did you make the remark you did after my presentation before the school? Did you think that I was just talking a lot of hot air and had no intention of making the changes I outlined? Just look at yourself, boy; you are an utter disgrace; have you no pride in your appearance or self-respect? Just ask yourself what people think when they look at you. Well I can tell you what they see: they see a dirty looking, ill dressed, ill-kempt youth, who looks more like a down and out than a boy at what was once a prestigious public school. You, sir, are a prime example of what this school has become. You are a living proof of why change is necessary if we are to survive in the coming years." "Sir, the previous Headmaster..." "I do not want to hear about the previous Headmaster or what he said or thought or did. His wreckage, which I see all around me as I look about the school, speaks volumes of the damage he did. Frankly, the only good thing about him, as far as I can tell, is that he is now "previous" rather than "present". I am the present Headmaster, boy, and things will now be done my way. Is that clear?" "Yes, sir. Sir, I am very, very sorry for what I said; I really didn't mean it: it just slipped out; and I have taken note that a week from today, the new rules will come into play and I really will obey them; really I will, sir. Sir, I really am sorry." 'Butterfield, I think in your case, I can make an exception about the rules and bring the date of commencement of the new regime forward to today. I see no reason for you to have to wait to "enjoy" the pleasures of the new system, so I propose to give you access to it now: right now, in fact! Look upon it as an early harvest of what you have just sown. You will be able to act as my ambassador, to your classmates, and tell them that indeed the new Headmaster is serious and you will be able to show them your arse to prove it. Step over to that chair, there, boy and bend across the back." "Oh, please sir, you are not going to beat me, are you sir?" "Indeed I am, Butterworth; indeed I am; so quick about it boy; over the chair and let me see your buttocks ready for punishment."| Butterworth went over to the chair and with some reluctance bent across the back. His pants pulled tight across what was clearly a well formed muscular pair of buns. "Stand up Butterworth. I just told you to show me your buttocks and what you have shown me is the seat of your trousers; drop your trousers and underpants and bend over the chair again boy." "Oh, please, sir, you are not going to cane my bum bare, are you sir? Please sir, not that; it will hurt too much. And besides sir, I think it's indecent that you want me to take off my trousers in front of you." "I will decide what is indecent, Butterworth. Let me tell you, boy, there is nothing at indecent about having your buttocks thrashed naked. I should have made it clear in my address, this morning, that, in this school, whenever the cane is used, it will always be administered to naked flesh." "Oh please, sir, couldn't you make an exception just this once, sir. I really am sorry for what I said...." "Butterworth, just stop bleating on and wasting your breath. I am going to beat you and I am going to apply the cane to your naked arse, boy, So just accept that that is what is about to happen and make the best of it; you are not the first boy, nor will you be the last to find himself facing a very painful interlude. As I said at the assembly this morning, these things are not negotiable." The Headmaster went across to his oriental pot where he kept all his canes and withdrew his favourite: the one he had been given by his predecessor at his old school. He gave it a few swishes through the air and then turned his attention to Butterworth's muscular arse, which was just crying out to be flogged. The Headmaster looked upon the virgin territory which he was just about to violate with his cane and thought to himself that Butterworth had one of the most attractively beatable pair of buttocks he had ever seen. True, Butterworth merited a thrashing for his impudence, but Dr. Waterlow could, nevertheless, not suppress the inner, sadistic satisfaction that roasting the boy's backside would give him. "I should just tell you, Butterworth, that you are in what might well be described as a privileged position; you are the first boy to be caned by me as Headmaster of this school and you are about to have a taste of my very favourite cane, which has probably made contact with more than six hundred backsides of what I will call, "lucky" boys over its thirty year life. So, you can be sure you are getting the absolute best that I can offer; you are not, in any way, being short changed out of what is your due! Now, boy, count each stroke as I administer it. I am giving you eighteen cuts in all as I want you to take a very clear message in the form of a very picturesque pair of buttocks back to your class mates. I want you to be able to say to them with some conviction, that the new Headmaster, does, in fact, mean what he says and look here lads: here is the proof." And with that, Dr. Waterlow, who was a past master at the art of wielding the cane, gave poor Butterworth the hiding of his life. Butterworth tried in vain to hold his tears, but the pain was just so searingly intense that he was howling after the third stroke and by the time the beating was over, tears were flowing like a river. "So, Butterworth, there you are. As you have now experienced firsthand that, I am, in fact, quite serious, shake my hand and thank me for correcting you and go and bear the glad tidings to your classmates. You have an excellent set of "battle scars" to flaunt before them. You will be the hero of the day, which may give you some small consolation for the caning you have just received!" As the beating had progressed, Dr. Waterlow had become increasingly aware that he was getting harder and harder and that he would soon reach a sexual climax if he did not finish quickly and get rid of the boy. So, as soon as the door closed behind Butterworth, he turned the key in the lock, went into his bathroom and jerked himself into a quick orgasm; a climactic moment of sexual relief was accompanied by a huge quantity of thick, creamy cum. Dr. Waterlow was certainly in peak sexual form, of that there was no doubt at all. This, his first beating in his new post, had suddenly brought home to him with a vengeance, the homoerotic nature of what he had just done. It is quite common for acts of punishment to be accompanied by homoerotic arousal; both the recipent and the giver frequently experience erections and emissions of sperm. But never had Dr. Waterlow had such an intense feeling as he had had today, which made him acutely aware of the need to find himself a sex partner to satisfy his sexual needs; this was the number one priority in his private life, as the sex urge just does not go away. A New Broom Sweeps Clean Meanwhile, the unfortunate Butterworth, whose cock had also risen to the occasion during the beating and was now was also leaking a little pre-cum, limped back to his class and sat down at his desk with some difficulty. The teacher taking the class looked at him with a certain sympathy and indicated that if he wished he could move to the back of the classroom and remain standing, for which gesture Butterworth was infinitely grateful, for the pain of the cane was still intense. At the morning break, his classmates clamoured around him to find out what had happened. "Listen guys; just take a look at this." And he dropped his trousers and underpants to show his class mates his richly striped arse. "Guys, you had better believe that this Headmaster is for real; he means what he says and, boy, does he know how to lay it on with the cane; I'm still in bloody agony; my arse feels as though it is on fire. My advice to you all; watch your step; otherwise you'll get the same. And, guys, what he forgot to tell us this morning, was that all beatings are on the bare bum: eighteen strokes he gave me! I get the impression too that the "classic six of the best" is for the birds; I reckon twelve is the minimum he'll dish out and he really seems to enjoy his work; frankly, guys, I don't think it can get much worse than this. Talk about a cold bloody shower after the look-warm Baldwin era; this is fucking ice cold water into which this guy is throwing us. So, yes, things are changing and changing fast and we had all better learn and learn quickly, otherwise life is going to be very painful for all of us. I reckon that we are moving into a phase where the cane will reign supreme and there will be a hell of a lot of sore arses." So much for the wisdom according to Butterworth: and there was a great deal of sense in what the lad had just said. Of course, what he did not know was that things could get worse. The cane was going to "reign supreme" as Butterworth poetically put it; but what he and the others did not realise was that the dreaded birch was hovering on the horizon: the birch, one of the most painful of all forms of corporal punishment; and yes, Dr. Waterlow had every intention of using it. The old adage, "Spare the rod and spoil the child" was to become the unwritten motto of Rigby School. CHAPTER 7 The Court of Prefects was created and functioned as the main enforcer of out-of-class discipline in the school. Dr. Waterlow, in his efforts to bring back a sense of dignity and hierarchy into the school, decided that the prefects should each wear a mortar board to set them apart from their fellow students. Three prefects were appointed from each of the five houses constituting the school and the senior prefect from each house was nominated House-Captain, The Head-Boy, named Jonathan Lightfoot, who had been personally elevated to the post by the Headmaster, had the additional distinction of wearing a mortar board with a gold tassel. As the Headmaster pointed out to the prefects, when they were in town, the cap rule applied equally to them. And so the prefects, when outside the school premises always wore their mortar boards, which they quickly saw as a mark of real distinction. The Headmaster warned them that in spite of their elevated status, the prefects were subject to the same rules as every other boy in the school: they too had to abide by the rules, which they were, in fact, also appointed to enforce: no one was above the law! The Headmaster also reiterated his remarks from the first assembly; prefects would henceforth address each other by their surnames only and would be addressed by the other boys with the style Mr. preceding their surnames and deferentially as "sir". Each prefect had his own study bedroom but the Head-Boy, in keeping with his superior status, was accorded a suite of two rooms: a study and a separate bedroom. In terms of the hierarchy established, the Head-Boy had almost the status of a master and the other prefects, whilst addressing each other with their surnames, had always to defer to him and address and refer to him as Mr. Lightfoot and use the deferential "sir" whenever appropriate. Thus in the Court of Prefects, Dr. Waterlow had created strict hierarchical structure, plain for all to see, in which the pecking order was clear. The Head-Boy was top dog: the House Captains came next and the other prefects were in third place. Of course, the prefects revelled in their superior status, which allowed them to lord it over the other boys, including their own classmates. They had been given the authority and they had eve intention of using it to the full. Like all boys in the English public school system, where beating was accepted as part of daily life, they took great pleasure in seizing upon every minor infraction to beat any miscreant. Dr. Waterlow, himself a great believer in the merits of corporal punishment and himself a regular arse beater, nevertheless tempered the enthusiasm of the prefects by limiting the number of strokes they could administer to a boy on any one occasion to six: the classic, "six of the best" which figured so graphically in the stories in the boys' magazines of that period. But, as might well be imagined, the prefects practised caning cushions and pillows until they all had fine tuned their techniques to the peak of painful perfection. It was amazing just how much pain they managed to pack into those six permitted strokes. And, in the first few months of under the new Headmaster, when the shock of the new regime was still being felt, there was a daily parade of six or so boys before the Court each Monday and Thursday evening after supper, where the cane descended mercilessly on the naked arses of the miscreants; many were the boys who went to bed nursing a glowingly painful arse. Dr. Waterlow looked on in satisfaction as he saw that the prefects had managed to tame the worst habits of the hitherto undisciplined boys. His ideas were yielding fruit: things were improving. But the pressing problem for the Headmaster was the replacement of the "old lags" as he saw them, the four housemasters who were still in charge of the four houses and who, in spite of paying lip-service to the new regime, still, dragged their feet and, in a passive sort of way, hindered progress. In much the same way as fate had intervened for the Colonel in his search for a new Headmaster, so it was also for Dr. Waterlow. He himself, a product of Eton and Oxford, was a member of the C&O gentlemen's club in London's Pall Mall, a club whose membership was exclusively reserved for graduates of those two prestigious universities. Cambridge and Oxford. In London one day at the club, he met, by chance an old school friend of his from his Eton days and the two men sat down to lunch together, to reminisce over times past. Waterlow told his friend the saga of Rigby School and what he was doing as Headmaster to pull it out of the mire into which it had sunk. Jeremy Foster, for that was the friend's name, told Waterlow, that he was at a bit of a loose end; foot loose and fancy free, was the way he put it. Like so many men of his background, in those now long gone days, he was what was known as a "gentleman of private means", another way of saying that he had sufficient income so as not to have to work to earn a living. By those who knew anything about anything, it was commonly referred to as "coming from old money", a much admired quality among a certain stratum of English society. In fact, Dr.Waterlow himself was of the same ilk; he did not need to work as he too was independently wealthy, but he enjoyed the life he had chosen as a school teacher. In fact he enjoyed the ability to indulge, in all legality, his penchant for administering corporal punishment on adolescent boys. And a public school, in spite of its misleading name was far from the public eye and was also a refuge for men of his sexual bent, Well, it transpired that Jeremy had been acting as an unpaid service teacher at a number of public schools: a teacher who temporarily replaces a permanent teacher who for some reason is briefly unable to carry out his work. The upshot was that Jeremy, bored with his life, had found a certain fulfilment in this job and wondered whether he might not take up teaching as a fulltime profession. So Waterlow told him of the saga of Rigby School and his search for four new housemasters. "Well, Andrew, I may well be able to help you. Listen; I get my temporary assignments through an agency which specializes in supply teachers for public schools: sort of the crème de la crème of temporary staff so to speak. Now, I know for a fact that a number of guys, all with educational backgrounds similar to ours, are looking for permanent jobs at the moment. It might well be that you could find the answer to your problem there. And, the great advantage for you, that I can see, is that all of these fellows would be available more or less immediately, as they are not tied to any one job for long. Now, while we are at it, I wonder if you might consider hiring me for one of the vacancies. I'm as free as a bird a bit bored with life and tied to no one. I find that I have quite enjoyed my recent foray into teaching, and as I have nothing more pressing to do at the moment, it might be fun to become a permanent master at a decent school. Where is Rigby, by the way?" "Oh it's at a place called Market Ditchfeild in rural Lincolnshire about twenty miles from Lincoln." "What a coincidence; I used to know it well, Spent a lot of time there in my Eton days during the long vacations, as my family has some good friends there: the Mornington-Crosbys; Andrew, you surely remember Charlie Mornington-Crosby; he was a year ahead of us at Eton and although he beat my arse something rotten, he and I hit it off together and became good friends, so much so that I was often houseguest at their pile near Ditchfeild: Mornington Hall; do you know it? But when we left Eton, he went on to Cambridge and I, like you to Oxford, and we just lost touch. Charming market town, Ditchfeild, as I remember it; peculiar spelling though, as I recollect: "E" before "I" and all that business!" "Jeremy, you may have put me onto a good idea. Let's explore the potential availability of staff as soon as possible, for this is, at the moment, my most urgent problem; I absolutely must get rid of these four laggards as they are a drag on everything I am trying to do at Rigby at the moment. But there is a constraint, in that the four who have to go are still teaching, if you can call it that and so I need to replace them with men who can take over their subjects as well as step in as housemasters. So, I need a mathematician, a historian, a chemist and a French teacher. Let's see what your agency has available." "Listen Andrew, as far as French is concerned, I am your man, as my degree is in French, language and literature, and, if I say so myself, I did quite well as I took first class honours in the finals at Oxford. Why not leave it with me for a few days and let me sound out the field?" "Now, how long are you staying in town? I thought we might catch up on a few things together. I seem to remember we had a rather good relationship together in our last year at Eton. Looking back on things now though, I wonder how we lost touch when we both went up to Oxford; different colleges and different subjects I guess." "What I remember vividly, Jeremy, of our last year at Eton, was our being caught "in flagrente delicto" in the showers by the games master. You had your cock up my arse and were deep into rogering me when old Commander Smithson caught us. I remember vividly our standing there naked, being told to bend over, still dripping wet, in the shower room and his giving us a dozen or so whacks across our arses with that leather taws thing he kept hand most of the time. Then he hauled us of, just in our gym strips, barely dry to the Headmaster, who lectured is on the sins of such lewd and unbecoming behaviour. My god, looking back on it now, how he went on, before he bent us over the birching block and treated our bare arses to a twenty stroke roasting. My god, Jeremy, how could anyone ever forget that? It was the worst beating, among many, I might add, that I ever took at Eton. That was the only time I ever felt the birch. I was caned countless times by both teachers and older boys, but that birching was something very special. I am intending to re-introduce the birch at Rigby, by the way, as a sort of, "Sword of Damocles": the ultimate sanction, to hold over the boys." Jeremy laughed and said," Well, we both seem to have survived and emerged at the end of the day intact; great days they were! But let me ask you this, Andrew. Did that birching cure you of your sexual bent or not. Did it, as I am sure the Headmaster hoped, put you on the righteous path to becoming a good and "normal" male? You know the old fart was such a hypocrite, as he was well aware that several members of his teaching staff were fervent practitioners of anal sex. "Do as I say, not as I do," was much the ethos of the school." "Oh, come on, Jeremy; stop talking tosh; you know as well as I do, that you cannot change a man's sexuality by beating him; it's something which is an integral part of his makeup. Most guys like women and want to fuck them but some guys, like you and me, prefer sex with another man. Under the benighted legalisation under which we live in this country, promulgated by a set of legislators in Westminster, many of whom themselves indulge in the very acts they are legislating against, guys like us live under the constant threat of imprisonment if caught in the act. So the keyword to our our behaviour is discretion, discretion and more discretion; do not get caught it's as simple as that!" "Do I take it then that you would not be averse to a little "relaxation" with me before you catch your train back to Lincoln this evening? Look, Andrew I'm staying here tonight and have a room booked; we have three hours and frankly nothing would give me greater pleasure than to renew, for old times' sake, my acquaintance with your hole and I guess, if I read you correctly, that my feelings might be reciprocated." "Fuck you, Jeremy! You do have a pompous way with words; why do we beat about the bush all the time? Why don't we just say what we mean in simple English? So come on, let's go to your room and see if we still know how to fuck each other after so many years. Lord knows, we had enough practice at school and sex is much like swimming: once you can, you never forget!" And that is exactly what these two old school friends did. For Andrew it was a heavenly experience to lie in bed with an old friend and for each of them to be able uninhibitedly to indulge their sexual fantasies on each other. It was a perfect end to what had been a very fruitful chance meeting and, as it turned out to a long term relationship. CHAPTER 8 On the train back to Lincoln, Andrew Waterlow reflected on the entirely unexpected results of his visit to London. His chance meeting with his old school friend, Jeremy Foster, had opened up a whole raft of new possibilities; he might, with a bit of luck, resolve at one stroke, so to speak, all his staffing problems and be quit of the last of the "old guard". Also, if he appointed Jeremy as head of French, then he would have a like minded friend close to hand, with the prospect of a stable sexual relationship with a guy he truly liked and with whom, when still at school, he had spent many happy hours fucking butt. The time he and Jeremy had spent in bed together earlier that afternoon, dispelled any fears he may have had that they had been too long apart. It was as if their school days relationship had ended just yesterday; it was a sublime reawakening of a forgotten relationship and as far as he could judge, Jeremy was just as enthusiastic about it as he was. All in all it was a very alluring and tempting prospect. He would await Jeremy's enquiries with impatience; as he said to himself, "Tempus fugit! Time flies; have to get on with things; I have to put the house in order." The next day he called in the school head grounds man, whom he had ordered to get the old cricket pitch in order for the coming summer months. The pitch had been left to its own devices for several years, as the previous Headmaster had killed all competitive sports stone dead and so it needed a great deal of regular work to bring it back into a playable condition. But he also decided to sound out the grounds man on the possibility of making a series of birches, for he really had no idea whom else to ask. Canes were easy, as they could be ordered from the supply house, but birches had to be made regularly and kept in water, for the fine twigs from which they were made soon dried out. "Well sir," said the grounds man, I could help you out I suppose, although I have never actually made a birch in my life, but in the old days, the days before Mr Baldwin that is, it was always Mr. Gresham, the head gardener who was asked to make such things. I think, sir, that perhaps in the interests of staff harmony, you might ask him about it first, sir and then if he declines and does not fancy taking it on again, I'll be happy to try my hand; can't be too difficult can it? Anyway , sir, all power to you for putting some order back into this place; it's not, of course for me to say, sir, but I reckon there's nothing like a bit'o stick, is there sir, to keep the lads in order; and well, sir, if you bring back the birch, well that'll be sort of icing on the cake, sir." An inappropriate analogy thought the Headmaster as he said: "You say if I bring back the birch; do I gather that the birch was in use in this school prior to Mr Baldwin's arrival?" "Oh, certainly sir. The old Headmaster, Mr. Baldwin's predecessor that is, dead and gone these past three years, was a great believer in it. It was just Mr. Baldwin with his new fangled ideas that banned it: and the cane too, sir; and just look where that has got us!" Andrew called in Mr. Gresham, the head gardener, who declared himself delighted to hear that the birch was to be brought back and said that nothing would please him more than to become again the purveyor of this splendid implement. "I remember in the old days, before the arrival of Mr Baldwin, I used to make made three or four birches a month, as the old Headmaster set great store by them. He used to tell me that if you wanted to give a boy a truly memorable beating, then nothing at all equalled a well made and well soaked birch. But just remember sir, I know it's called a birch, but I actually made it from hazel twigs, which are much more resilient and I gather that those who know about such things, believe the hazel twig version to be even more painful than the true birch. Anyway, sir, the old Headmaster used to call my birches the Rolls Royce of corporal punishment implements and he used them regularly. He was a great believer, sir in the saying, "Spare the rod and spoil the boy", as I suspect you too are, sir. But I must not chatter on, sir, as I have a lot of work still to do; but just one thing, sir, before I forget; will you want the birching stools brought back into the school? The old Headmaster had one in the little room of his study and the other in the birching room proper." "You mean that we have two birching stools in store somewhere? But certainly, let's have them both brought back and put into use again. Where are they, by the way?" "Well sir, they are safe and sound in the garden barn, where I keep all my tools and fertilizers and what-not. They are still in perfect condition. The old Headmaster bought them from a professional manufacturer of such and they have restraining straps for both wrists and ankles and they are also adjustable to suit different heights of lads; they really are the best that money could buy. I'll get them moved back later in the week, sir and I'll put them in their old places unless you tell me otherwise, sir. You know, Mr Baldwin told me to throw them away, but I somehow thought that they might come in again sometime in the future, so there you are, sir, I was right, wasn't I? Oh, and I'll put the special soaking pails back with the stools; I kept them as well, you see, sir." A New Broom Sweeps Clean "You certainly have come up trumps, Mr. Gresham. Now, can you make me two samples of your handiwork by this time next week?" "I'll try my best, sir. Just leave it to me." Dr. Waterlow sat back in his chair and felt utterly contented. All he needed now was good news from Jeremy and with that he could feel very satisfied with the results of his efforts since his arrival a few brief weeks earlier. A week later, Jeremy was in contact with Andrew to tell him that there were at least six teachers potentially available for him including two chemists, two mathematicians and two historians. "What I suggest, if you are agreeable, is that we get these fellows over to the club and you can interview them and see what you think. They are all London based at the moment and they are all either Eton or Winchester and Oxford or Cambridge, so you are looking at applicants who are all out of the top drawer. And, Andrew my friend, I hope you will set me on as your French teacher, as I am rather keen on the idea." All went according to plan and Andrew was able to select three suitable candidates, one of whom was single, the other two of whom were married; and he did take on Jeremy as the French teacher and housemaster of the fourth house. It must be said that the housemasters' quarters at Rigby were almost as generous as those of the Headmaster, so there was no problem in accommodating married teachers and their families. Each candidate came and spent a day at Rigby and met the Board of Governors, as Andrew needed their approval for any engagements; in the event, there were no problems and offers were made and accepted and letters of engagement were signed, sealed and delivered by all four candidates. As Jeremy had said, the great advantage of engaging supply teachers was their more or less immediate availability. Andrew Waterlow met with the Colonel and the Board of Governors to decide how to tell the four present housemasters that their services were no longer required. As ever, the Colonel did not beat about the bush. "Gentlemen, as our four new staff members are available immediately I think that best approach is to get rid of these four hangovers from the Baldwin era immediately and get the new men installed forthwith, so that Dr, Waterlow can get on unimpeded with his resuscitation - I think that is perhaps a good word for what he is attempting to do - programme." One of the Board asked, "Are the four existing housemasters aware that we are proposing to replace them or not?" "I neither know no care whether they know or not," replied the Colonel. "I have checked the terms of their contracts and we are obliged to give them three months' notice of our intention to terminate their engagement. Moreover, gentlemen, there is no obligation whatsoever, to terminate at the end of a term nor even to start the three month period at the beginning of a calendar month. So, gentlemen, we are free to tell them to go whenever we wish!" Dr. Waterlow now intervened. "Gentlemen, I think it is in the best interests of the school if we terminate the contracts of these four teachers as soon as possible and that we allow them to leave...; no, that we insist that they leave, immediately, to avoid having them around, dragging their feet for another three months. So, as they are all resident in the school, I suggest that we give them one month from date of notice in order to allow them to find alternative accommodation: only one of the masters is married, so I see no great problems." "Well, then," said the Colonel, "If we are all agreed, then I suggest that we get on with it. I will take it upon myself to announce the glad tidings to the four men in question; I leave it to you, Waterlow, to liaise with our four new staff members about the exact dates of their arrivals." And so it was that the whole question of the purging of the last remnants of the Baldwin era was accomplished. Dr. Andrew Waterlow sat back in his chair and felt very satisfied with what he had achieved in the two months since his arrival. CHAPTER 9 With the new staff and the vigilance of the Court of Prefects and the exhortations of the new Headmaster, things began rapidly to improve at Rigby. The setting up of competitive sports team from the four houses coupled with the introductions of close monitoring of the boys' performances across all classes on a monthly basis had a rapid effect on the general standards and morals of the school; a little rivalry on the sports field works wonders with the boys. Boys became proud of their appearances and most of them started to take to heart the Headmaster's comments about their self-respect. The use of the cane, especially by the Court of Prefects had been accepted as part and parcel of a public schoolboy's life by most of the boys and those who were summoned for punishment accepted it with good grace. It has to be said the application of the cane to a boy's naked buttocks for even the most minor of offences had had an enormous effect on the behaviour of most boys. But, as ever, there remained a small hard core of lads who regularly flouted the regulations and went out of their way to be disruptive. Dr. Waterlow considered what he should do to break the persistent recalcitrance of certain boys, who seemed to accumulate beatings on a monotonously regular basis. The gardener, Mr. Gresham had, true to his word, reinstalled the two birching stools, one to the side room off the Headmaster's study and the other to the Punishment Room. He had also made several birches, which to date had never been used. So, the Headmaster decided that he would add another string to the bow of punishment options which could be visited upon the boys. It was the Monday morning assembly and after the usual formalities, Dr. Waterlow addressed the boys: "As you all know, and as many of you have actually experienced, the cane, since its introduction by me at the beginning of term has proved invaluable in maintaining order and dignity in this school. What you may not know is that the school secretary, makes a detailed record of the name and date a boy is beaten and by whom and for what offence. This is a somewhat onerous exercise as many different members of staff, including myself, your housemasters, the head boy and the prefects, all have regular recourse to the cane. And so, I have an exact record each week of the names of the boys who have been thrashed, a record which I have been studying intently and which has thrown up some interesting facts." "Certain boys seem to have an uncanny ability of of attracting the attention of the cane to their buttocks: the cane is akin to a bee being attracted to a flower: such boys are what we might classify as "serial offenders". It is evident that the boys in this category are intent on disrupting the smooth running of the school and that the odd taste of the cane does not deter them from their chosen path of petty anarchy. Therefore, as of now, any boy who is caned more than twice in any one week- and several boys are - will automatically qualify for a birching, a punishment which I shall administer personally. But let me go further; in case this threat of an additional beating is not enough to set the errant offenders on the right path, any boy who receives two birchings in a month, will automatically qualify for a birching in front of the entire school, which I will personally administered at the assembly on the first Monday of the following month. And, one final thing; any boy caught breaking any school rule whilst he is in the town and seen by the general public, down town, will automatically be referred to me for an immediate birching. I will not allow the good name of the school to be ruined by the actions of a few errant boys." "Now, most you will never have experienced the birch, but let me tell you now, that it is easily the most painful of all forms of corporal punishment used in public schools: I speak from personal experience of my own school days at Eton, where the birch was, and I believe, still is, the ultimate instrument of correction. Believe me boys you do not want to know! So, all of you, you have been warned; if you wish to avoid having a very sore backside, watch your step; toe the line and hold fast to the rule!" Dr. Waterlow then added sardonically: "I notice, Butterworth that you have on this occasion refrained from asking me "if I am serious"; a very wise decision young man: very wise indeed!" So, there it was; the boys had been warned officially; the only question to be answered was who would be the first to expose his naked arse to the ministrations of the dreaded implement. As it happens, the answer was soon forthcoming. Dr. Waterlow was sitting alone in his study one Saturday afternoon when he received and irate telephone call from one of the shopkeepers in the town centre. Mr Robertson kept an open fronted green grocery store and as such displayed a selection of his produce directly on the pavement. It transpired that four boys from the school had pilfered a few apples and run off laughing when chased by the shopkeeper, who had not managed to catch them. "Really, Headmaster, I do think that as a public school you should keep your boys in order. This type of behaviour is not what one expects from upper class boys at a public school, where I thought they were being taught to behave as young gentlemen. In my opinion, what they need is a really good thrashing." concluded Mr Robertson. "And a really good thrashing is what they will get; you can be assured of that, once we determine who the miscreants are. Did you by any chance recognise any of them or did you notice what colour of school caps they were wearing?" "Well, sir, to be honest, I only caught a view of the back of them as they were running off and as I do not recollect that they were wearing any caps. I know they were from Rigby, though, as I recognised the school blazer; but no, they were all bare headed: no caps at all. The one thing I did notice was that one of them had flaming red hair: a real carrot colour it was: very distinctive as one seldom sees such a head of hair." "Thank you, Mr Robertson; you have told me all I need to know. Rest assured that I shall identify all four boys and that they will all be severely punished; not only did they steal from your shop but they also, from what you tell me, broke a cardinal school rule, that all boys must wear a cap when down town, with the prefects wearing a mortar board in lieu of the normal cap. I can tell you now, that the boy with the red hair is a young tearaway by the name of Fergus Campbell. He has the distinction of being the only red headed boy in the school at present. Leave the matter with me and I will come back to you once I have identified the other three lads." "Well, sir, I'm real glad that you are taking the matter so seriously. I wondered about pressing charges against them with the police, but that's a bit difficult when I don't actually know their names. Anyway, sir, I'll leave the matter in your capable hands and look forward to your call." "Thank you very much again, Mr. Robertson; we certainly don't want the police involved. As I said, leave the matter with me and I'll be back to you shortly; don't worry; the boys will not escape punishment and I can tell you that they will all rue the day they ever even saw your shop. Goodbye, Mr Robertson!" It was now late Saturday afternoon and the boys would all be assembled again for supper around seven o'clock that evening. Dr. Waterlow and the housemasters normally ate with the boys on Saturday evenings: it was a more formal occasion than during the week and the masters all sat at high table on a slightly raised platform. As the meal ended, Dr. Waterlow rose from his seat and said: "Fergus Campbell, please step to the front and stand before me at high table." Campbell, with his mop of flaming red hair, stepped forward and did as he had been bidden. He was already looking very nervous. "Campbell, I have it from a reliable source, that you and three other boys from this school were down town this afternoon and that you were seen not to be wearing your caps. Moreover, I understand that the four of you stole some apples from a green grocers shop owned by a Mr.Robertson and that when called out to you you all ran away laughing. Tell me boy and I shall know if you are lying, is what I have heard correct or not?" By this time Campbell was looking very sheepish and could hardly face the Headmaster who fixed him with an unblinking stare. There was a long silence. "Speak up boy: yes or no; is what I have heard correct or not? I am asking you a very simple question to which there is a very simple answer. So which is it, boy? Yes or no? Come on, boy, speak up." Campbell was now trembling like a leaf as he answered: "Yes, sir, it is true, but..." "Campbell, I did not ask you for an explanation of your behaviour and I wish to hear no buts. Now, answer me the following; are the other three boys who took part in this disgraceful incident here in this hall?" "Yes, sir." "Then Campbell, I will not ask you to name your errant friends, but I want the three boys in question to step up here and stand beside Campbell in front of me. Come on boys, look snappy; you are all in deep trouble and it will get even worse if any of you do not come forward right now." There was a moment's silence and then slowly and with considerable reluctance three other boys joined Campbell in front of the Headmaster. "So, I see we have here, Wilkinson, Paul and Gregson-Lewis." Andrew Waterlow had a remarkable memory and prided himself that he could name every single boy in the school on sight. "So boys, do you all agree that what I heard about your behaviour in town earlier today is correct? Speak up now. Yes or no?" There was a faint reply of "Yes, sir" "You four boys have broken two cardinal rules of the school: you went without caps into town and then you stole from a shopkeeper." "But it was only a few apples, sir. It was nothing very important." said Gregson-Lewis. "Gregson-Lewis, it matter not what you stole; the fact is that you did steal from Mr.Robertson's shop and by that act you all became thieves. Now to the rest of you boys assembled here this evening, let me inform you all, that I view this misdemeanour very gravely and these four boys in front of are going to be severely punished for their actions, which can and will in no way be tolerated . Their actions are not those befitting boys from this school. Do I make myself clear? So any of you who have similar idea in your heads, I suggest you clear them out right now." "As for you four boys, I will see you all in my study, later this evening at 8-30. I expect you to be on time and wearing only your gym kit: shorts and vest and no underwear. You will learn then what is in store for you in the near future. As for the rest of you boys, I suggest you reflect on the new disciplinary measures I announced at assembly recently, for they are about to be put into action. As our friend Butterworth once asked, "Are you serious?" Well, as he found out to his cost, I was; and let me reaffirm to you all now, that I still am! You are all dismissed." "My god, Andrew," said his friend Jeremy who had sat at high table that evening, "You really put the fear of god into those four lads." "My dear Jeremy, it was completely intentional: a piece of theatre. What this school needs is a tightening of the discipline and these four lads with their action are worth making an example of. They broke two cardinal rules and therefore they have to suffer the consequences, which I can tell you they are going to find very, very painful. But, look here, Jeremy, as all four boys are, in fact, from your own house, I think it would be appropriate if you were to assist me this evening in punishing them. "My dear Andrew, nothing would give me greater pleasure. I haven't whacked a single arse since taking over as housemaster and I would be delighted to help you with whatever you have in mind; and if I know you, it will very probably be an interesting evening for both us and the boys; a rather painful one for them. I suspect." "Excellent! Be at my study by about eight, which will give us time to discuss just how we are going to deal with these boys; I'd like to make make it a memorable occasion for them, one which they will not quickly forget, but one which equally, they would rather never have experienced." CHAPTER 9 Jeremy arrived early at Andrew's study that evening. "What have you in mind for these four lads? I guess from your instructions as to their attire, that we are going to beat a lot of butt evening and I have to say, given what they have been up to, these lads thoroughly deserve it. "They certainly do and let me tell you they are going to leave here this evening with their arses on fire. Let's say that I believe in striking whilst the iron is hot; their misdemeanour is fresh in their minds so I think it most appropriate that they should have a souvenir of it imprinted on their backsides. You know, Jeremy, they have broken two cardinal rules of which the theft from Mr Robertson's shop is by far the more serious. And so I think they merit not one, but two really good beatings: once for going down town without their caps and once for the theft". "So, what I have in mind is to give each of them a memorable caning, naked arse of course, this evening and then to tell them that they will be punished for the theft on Monday evening. But I intend to leave the sting in the tail; to let them stew in their own juice, so to speak, which will make them think twice about other larcenous escapades. I shall tell them that they will be punished again on Monday evening for the theft from Mr. Robertson's, but with no details as to what the punishment will be. Then, in front of the whole school at the Monday morning assembly, I will announce that these four boys, in view of the grave nature of their offence, will be birched that same evening. That way the whole school will realize that I was deadly serious in my remarks about the reintroduction of the birch and its use." "And so, Jeremy, you may accuse me of killing a fly by pulling its wings off, but I think that these four boys have provided the opportunity for me to show that I am truly serious about pulling this school out of the mess in which I found it. Corporal punishment will be used and any infraction will lead to a caning. But before the boys arrive, let's just discuss what we a going to do to their arses here tonight. I know that they deserve to be beaten, but there is no reason at all why we too, as upholder of the rules, should not get some personal satisfaction from what we are going to do. I am not such a hypocrite as to deny that I do, myself, get a certain sadistic pleasure from dishing out punishment, and in particular, from beating adolescent boys' naked arses. When the cane descends on a nicely rounded rump, I can tell you that the crack it makes it to my ears as agreeable as that of the cricket bat hitting the ball for a six. Don't get me wrong, Jeremy, I never have and never will beat a boy for no reason just to satisfy my own base desires, but if reason exists, as is at present the case, then why should we not try to enjoy it. After all, with the added enthusiasm which the pleasure of a job well done brings with it, we can probably give the boys arses a better beating." "I have to say, Andrew, that I share your views totally. Like you I get a certain personal satisfaction in inflicting pain on a deserving miscreant. So, Headmaster, it's your call. What exactly have you in mind for this evening?" "Well, I have a couple of ideas which I would like to bounce off you. Each lad is going to be given twelve strokes of the cane across his naked arse. I always can naked, bare bum as the lads often call it, and twelve strokes is basically my standard tariff. I have never subscribed to the traditional idea of "six of the best' as in my view six cuts are totally insufficient to leave the recipient with an arse which he feels is on fire. So I habitually I give a minimum of twelve cuts, which, when evenly applied allow me to cover the entire rump with weals across both cheeks, from the bottom of the back to the top of the legs. I might add, if a boy merits a beating, then he must feel real pain; I do not subscribe to a few light taps as some masters do; when a boy leaves my study after a beating, he knows than his arse has been roasted to perfection. In a word it's got to be painful for him, otherwise we are wasting our time."