Six of the Best: Canes and Caning by Mitch Kessler - aka SirAdam      "There is a good deal more to caning than one person simply hitting someone else with a stick." A cane can be used mildly, even sensually, by a reasonably skilled and self-controlled Caner. But the mystique and the appeal of The Cane, as opposed to any number of other long thin things you can hit with, is that it is used for intense, deliberate and severe corporal correction of miscreants. Psychologically, it can be highly fetishized and formal. Physically, it places great demands on the Canee’s resolution and fortitude. For the caner it is almost an equally challenging exercise in concentration, technical skill, and psychological dominance. Negotiation      It is fairly traditional for formal caning scenes to be conducted without a safeword. Once the canee has agreed to a certain number of strokes, that is the number that must be endured ... regardless. As a result, caning is probably one of those practices that benefits from a good deal of discussion (negotiation) beforehand, and the “permission” to discuss it afterward. First the issues of “how much pain” and “how much marking” need to be resolved. Equally important is the issue of, “who are we and why are we doing this?” Is this a punishment scenario, an ordeal, or a demonstration of skill for one participant and fortitude on the other? Is caning going to be used to punish actual misdeeds? Are there strong feelings or values concerning a sense of “youthful victim” found in so much of caning literature and fantasy?      It’s also worthwhile to explore what happens after the actual caning. Is the canee to be left in place (enjoying an endorphin euphoria, one hopes) ?... required to dress and depart (as in boarding school scenarios)? ... or when the scene ends, is there to be “aftercare” such as cuddling, nurturing, or sex? The Sensuous Caning      To use a cane mildly, employ a a tapping technique, powered by the wrist alone. The actual sensation can be described as “sharp,” “stinging” or “focused.” It’s severity will vary based on the strength of the taps, their frequency, and how close together they land. As much as there can be an objective definition of what is “mild” and what is “severe,” the dividing line for canes may be that a love tap is silent, but a stroke you can hear is one you’ll really feel! A mild blow will not bend the cane, either on impact or while traveling to its target. Used full-force, the cane is usually applied only to the buttocks, but these lighter taps may be used on almost any part of the body without too much anxiety about damaging tissues or relationships. Targets that are usually considered “off-limits” for whips and floggers, such as the palms, soles, or calves can be explored. Even the back and chest can be hit, within reason. The Real Thing      A “Proper Caning” is a completely different matter. One stroke “of the best” feels like a knife edge of fire and lightning that blots out every other thought and sensation. As the initial blaze fades, an aftershock - still sharp, localized, but with a bit of dull achiness - begins to sink in, feeling as if the stripe runs clear to the bone and beyond. Then the stroke fades to an afterglow some may find almost pleasant, others, almost endurable. he second is the same ... only more so. And so on, until the full quantity is completed. Significant marking by each and every stroke is to be expected, and breaking of the skin is not unlikely. The sensation of the cane is such that a single dozen, or even “six of the best,” is usually entirely sufficient in most people’s reckoning. A caning of 24 strokes is sometimes referred to as “the Military Caning” and is a serious ordeal in anyone’s estimation.      This does not mean, however, that a “Proper Caning” scene need be short, either objectively or subjectively. In fact, prolonged anticipation, elaborate preparation, and resolute cooperation by the Canee are important elements in a fully-realized traditional caning. In the Victorian educational setting, boys “sent down” for caning might wait several days before presenting themselves and a memorandum of their wrongdoing to the senior educator who would actually chastise them. When used as authentic behavior modifying punishment, the anxiety and expectation brought on by the promise of caning for misbehavior, might be felt almost as keenly as the actual strokes.      In consensual erotic practice, some people will increase pain tolerance with a spanking, flogging or paddling before the caning. It could be purely a matter of mental preparation ... it might be endorphin release ... sexual arousal could be raising the pain threshold ... or the impact and subsequent engorgement may actually desensitize the nerves ... it seems paradoxical but it does work.      A preparation ritual is not uncommon, often utilizing aspects of the traditional school canings. Sometimes the offense for which the punishment is being administered is described, the punishee may be required to fetch and present the cane in a particular manner and kiss or otherwise show “it” respect and gratitude before presenting it (again in a prescribed manner) to the caner. Bared Bottoms      Schoolboys might be caned “trousers up” OR “trousers down, with the tails of their jackets and shirts pinned up and out of the way. This process of securing the excess clothing is what is known as “taking up.” What it provides in convenience and modesty the “trousers up” style of caning has practical and aesthetic drawbacks. Aesthetically it deprives Caner of agreeable sights, first of the bared bottom, and then the development of an even row of neatly spaced cane-strips. Practically, the punishee is less likely to take excessive damage if the Caner can see the effect of each “strike” as it happens. In addition, the formal “taking down” of trousers and/or knickers adds, in this context, at least the potential for feelings of humiliation and powerlessness. Once “pinned up” and “taken down” the punishee is “bent over.” The more extreme the bend (grasping the ankles, for example) the more effect the cane cuts will have. Bending also exaggerates the curve of the bottom, for the Caner’s visual pleasure, and limits the the punishee’s ability to minimize the blow by clenching the muscles of the buttocks. The bent-over position also assures that the cane will not land above the tail bone where it might conceivably do some damage. Some caners will insist on nearly impossible perfection in positioning - arched back, buttocks presented, legs straight, head up, shoulders back - both before and during the caning. Lapses of posture may be a cause for increasing the number of strokes, or may form the basis for verbal harassment and humiliation. This, of course, adds to everyone’s enjoyment of the encounter.      Once bent over, the punishee may be required to endure a period of waiting for the first strike. The caner may sweep the cane through the air a few times for the sake of the sound, or so that the punishee can feel its “wind,” and hear its characteristic noise. The punishee very quickly learns the difference between the sound of the cane being merely swished through the air, and the hiss of the final approach.      To increase the anticipation some Caners will require that the punishee request each stroke and count the cane strokes either as they fall, or before each stroke is delivered. At the same time the caner may intensify the anticipation either by holding the cane away from the target entirely, or touching it lightly it to express growing impatience with the “cowardly delay.”      In addition the canee may be required to count each stroke according to a prescribed formula: ONE Sir (or Ma’am, or Miss) Thank you Sir, May I have another, Sir ... losing count or miscounting can be a “reason” to start over, or “earn” the subject another caning at another time. It is worth remembering that these tricks, formal counting, posture correction, lecturing, etc., not only add to the ritual and psychology of the caning ... they also can be used to control the pace of the caning. The caner wants to allow enough time between strokes to let the canee enjoy the full benefit of each stroke while at the same time recovering enough to be able to accept another. This is necessary for the same reason that a blow from a cane is called a “strike” or a “cut” - the sensation has a certain amount in common with the effects associated with lightning and swords.      A Proper Caning is an ordeal, an exercise in significant pain. A skilled practitioner with quality materials can soon have a canee cherishing every stripe on their body - and coming back for more.

.