'The tingle o' the tawse'

The tawse is a leather strap with its business end cut into a number of tails (usually two or three). The tawse may be applied to the palm of the hands or the buttocks. If the latter, it may be applied over clothing, but to be fully effective it should be applied to the bare flesh. Unlike the cane, a leather strap can be safely applied to the hand: it will hurt but not injure, and six of the very best can be safely inflicted upon a schoolboy's palms.

The tawse is associated with Scotland, just as the cane is with England, and has been employed in domestic, educational and judicial contexts. Incidentally, in Scotland the tawse is more commonly known as the belt. Many Scottish saddlers used to make tawses but the best implements were undoubtedly manufactured by the firm of John Dick & Sons of Lochgelly, a small town about 12 miles north of Edinburgh. Later the firm moved to nearby Cowdenbeath.

The famous Lochgelly tawse began with a saddler named Philps who started making tawses for his son and daughter who were both teachers. These proved so effective that other teachers soon wanted to own a Lochgelly and the business quickly expanded. The firm eventually passed in to the hands of the Dick family and remained with them for three generations until they ceased trading in 1984. At one time the firm was selling 70 or 80 tawses a week and also had a thriving export trade.

The Lochgelly tawse

The Lochgelly tawse boasted a number of features which made it a very effective instrument of punishment:
1) The saddler used a particularly heavy and dense leather.
2) The tawse was very well designed. Some saddlers made their tawses too long, which made them difficult to use effectively. The Lochgelly was just the right length.
3) The Lochgelly was available in a number of weights (light, medium, heavy and extra heavy) and with two or three tails.
5) Lochgelly tawses were ferociously painful and were accordingly dreaded by pupils. Even the lightweight model could inflict an incredible amount of pain with just a few deftly aimed strokes. Six of the best with a heavy Lochgelly was an agonising experience that the unfortunate recipient would certainly not want repeated in a hurry!

A collector of school tawses reports that 'I have specimens of the full range of Lochgellys and a large number of tawses from other Scottish saddlers. Some saddlers made pretty good belts but none of them equalled the Lochgelly.'

John Dick originally made tawses for the school and domestic markets. Later he decided to concentrate on supplying schools, and a teacher's registration certificate was required to buy one of his straps. Other saddlers then moved in to meet the very considerable domestic demand, for many Scottish homes kept a tawse handy. Pity the poor Scottish lad who got his hands belted at school, then had his bare behind belted at home!

School regulations

Here is a sample of official regulations for the use of the belt in Scottish schools:

1) The punishment should be inflicted in front of other pupils in order to act a deterrent.
2) The pupil should be called to the front of the class and told to hold out one hand, palm uppermost, and supported by the other hand. This makes it more difficult for the boy to move his hand away during the infliction of the cuts.
3) If the teacher is inexperienced he should hold the belt midway along the handle to give better control. Otherwise, the belt should be held towards the end to maximise its swing.
4) Prior to each stroke the tails should be rested lengthways on the pupil's upturned palm. This allows the teacher to judge the stroke.
5) The belt should be drawn back over the teacher's shoulder and brought down on to the pupil's palm with some force, so that the tails strike the fingers and palm.
6) If more than one stroke is to be given, the pupil should be briskly ordered to 'swap hands!'. When the pupil offers his other palm the second stroke should be given, once again with force, and this process should be repeated until the allotted punishment has been completed.