Greyfriars Herald special flogging edition 3: The musical side to flogging

Posted by Traditional School Discipline July 02, 2021

Greyfriars Herald special flogging edition 3: The musical side to flogging

You never know whether a fellow possesses musical talent or not until you see him flogged. You can then tell what sort of a singer he is – treble, bass, baritone, and so forth. Many a great singer has been “discovered” in this way. I have no doubt that Signor Caruso, when he was a small boy, was ordered by his schoolmaster to touch his toes. On hearing his yelps of anguish when the cane came down, the master probably remarked: “My boy, you will be a famous tenor when you grow up!” – Another extract from the Greyfriars Herald special flogging edition: read online or download free-of-charge here.

The Musical Side of Flogging

By Claude Hoskins

(The Mad Musician of the Shell)

You never know whether a fellow possesses musical talent or not until you see him flogged. You can then tell what sort of a singer he is – treble, bass, baritone, and so forth.

Many a great singer has been “discovered” in this way. I have no doubt that Signor Caruso, when he was a small boy, was ordered by his schoolmaster to touch his toes. On hearing his yelps of anguish when the cane came down, the master probably remarked: “My boy, you will be a famous tenor when you grow up!”

At Greyfriars we have many fine singers who hide their lights under a bushel.

Billy Bunter received a public flogging the other day, and during the castigation he rendered the following ditty, in a beautiful treble:

“Mercy, sir! It’s dreadful pain!

Please, I’ll never do it again.

Give me no more strokes – yaroooo!

I’ll tell my pater, if you do!”

Billy Bunter’s vocal efforts were truly delightful! Yet he isn’t even in the school choir!

Another talented singer whose great gifts were brought to light during a flogging is Bolsover major.

Bolsover has a deep bass voice, and he sang splendidly on this occasion. I should love to hear him sing “Asleep in the Deep” or “Drake Goes West.” I’m sure he would make a sensation.

Yet another brilliant singer is Skinner of the Remove. Whilst being birched a short time back, he went up the scale, as if taking part in a music lesson.

It is impossible in cold print to convey an idea of what it sounded like; but the refrain was as follows:

“Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh!

Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh!

Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh! Oh! Oh!”

Some fellows haven’t got a note of music in them. Vernon-Smith, for instance,. In his wild days, when he was flogged six times a week, on an average, I often expected him to burst into song. But no! The Bounder never used to make a murmur.

The same remark applies to Harry Wharton, Bob Cherry, Mark Linsley, and a host of other fellows. They receive their floggings in silence, and one may listen in vain for a note of music.

When Napoleon Dupont is flogged, he sings the Marseillaise. When David Morgan gets a dose he renders Men of Harlech. Micky Desmond sings something to the effect that “over the dim blue hills strays a wild river.” And Ogilvy, the Scot, always gives a delightful rendering of Annie Laurie.

I suppose some of you had never connected flogging with music until you read this article. But now you know that flogging and music are allies.