When the convicts had finally satisfied themselves, we were left, still tied to our beds with blood and semen oozing from our battered rears. David sobbed himself to sleep as did I. My last recollection was that of Liam's cry of relief as he was finally released from the cramped and awkward confined of the pillory.
In the morning David and I were assaulted by a few of the men who apparently did not find our encrusted backsides unappealing and were then released and allowed to clean ourselves.
After breakfast, David and I were returned to the barracks whilst the remainder went to work. As he departed, Dutch told us to "put on a good show" and others alluded to what they intended for our soon to be swollen backsides that evening.
David was not in a mood for conversation and nor was I as we pondered the damage and pain that the prison strap would do and the agony of the repeated rapes the previous night. I felt particularly isolated since I knew that McAlister could not even visit us before the sentence of the Court was administered
David and I prepared ourselves as best we could but when the footsteps of the warders approached the barracks where we waited our stomachs started churning with fear and our legs turned to jelly. At one point I thought I would have to be carried to the place of punishment.
The door opened and the warder summoned us. Our wrists were placed in chains and we were led firmly along the corridor and into the sunshine and the dais upon which we were to be beaten.
During the past few months, the dais had been altered somewhat on McAlister's instructions and now sported a flogging block which was designed to keep the victims buttocks as widespread as possible. It was a clever device because, unlike the triangle, the frame of which prevented the end of the cane or strap from reaching around the thighs, this block gave free access to that tender part of one's posterior.
We were led onto the dais a few minutes before the scheduled time for the noon parade and joined two other fellows who were waiting for their punishment. One was suspended by chains, indicating that he was for the cat while the other, a much younger fellow, was clearly awaiting the cane or the birch. We were kept under guard and stood some little distance from the block.
Our destination was a menacing piece of furniture which resembled a sloping capitalised "T" set upon a solid block of timber which was about two thirds the size of the top. The top of the device had rings attached to the furthermost corners of the "T" where the hands of the offender would be secured and the bas of the block had similar rings to which the offender's legs would be secured. Once bent over and secured, the prisoner's head was at about the same height as his groin, his arms stretched as far as possible, his legs spread as wide as possible and the buttocks exposed to the maximum extent possible. Padding had been placed at the base of the "T" because this was where the captive's weight rested during punishment.
I had seen the block used for canings and could testify to its ingenuity. I had seen stripes from the cane reach into the innermost parts of a prisoner's backside and the birch tear at the nether hole of a victim which was exposed almost like a bullseye.
As we stood waiting, the parade ground started to fill with convicts and guards as well as members of the public who were allowed to view the administration of the Court's justice. Women as well as men were permitted to attend such occasions which only served to heighten the embarrassment of any prisoner who was to be caned, strapped or birched upon his or her naked backside.
Finally, Major McAlister and Captain Finch arrived with the Master-at-Arms and his loyal lieutenant in tow. McAlister avoided my eyes as he took his seat, I think because he was genuinely concerned about my predicament.
David was not watching the officers arrive but was scanning the crowd and he noticeably stiffened when his eyes fell upon the figure of his father standing in the crowd. I looked at David and then followed his eyes and saw a tall man standing there at the back of the congregation with a grim face. I knew he expected David to comport himself in a dignified fashion as his punishment was delivered. I knew also that McAlister would expect no less of me but I also knew that it was difficult to be dignified as one's backside was well and truly beaten.
The order of punishments was according to age and it was the young man standing beside David who was dealt with first. He shook slightly as he was led to the block, his pants lowered and then his limbs secured. He was a convict who had been charged with being insolent to a guard and had been awarded a dozen strokes if the cane for his troubles.
The first "crack" of the cane was not targeted at the lad's backside but landed on the cross bar of the triangle. The executioner then inspected the end of the cane and, apparently not satisfied, landed a second blow which had the desired effect. The tip of the cane, perhaps the last three inches or so, was now fragmented and would tear more effectively at the lad's skin.
Taking up his position, the executioner awaited the signal from the Master-at-Arms and then proceeded to lash the target with incredible power. Within a few strokes the lad was crying out for mercy but the beating continued unabated. The executioner changed sides at the sixth stroke in order that each buttock cheek might feel the full effect of the split end of the cane. The seventh stroke was a little short, quite deliberately, and the lad howled as the tip of the cane caught his nether hole with full force. The following strokes lacerated his backside without mercy and when the punishment was completed the lad was shaking and crying and had to be assisted in restoring his trousers.
David went to the block without any sign of fear. He looked rather gorgeous as he was strapped into position and I was embarrassed by the reaction in my groin to the display.
The executioner waited until David's sentence was announced and then fetched the strap. On the pretext of checking David's wrist bindings, he walked in front of David with the strap dangling in front of David's face. As David saw the instrument which would soon be lacerating his buttocks, he instinctively clenched his buttocks as best he could much to the amusement of the assembly. Course cries of advice to the execution came from the crowd, each more lewd than the one which preceded it.
Finally the moment arrived and I watched as the strap described a wide arc and crashed down on David's rear. Four strokes later, David had still not emitted any sign of his pain. Resolved to break David's stoical disposition, the executioner changed his technique and rather than following through with each stroke, stopped the forward motion of his arms before the strap reached its target. The effect was immediate as the end of the strap whipped into David's backside with a sharp "crack" from the leather.
David's resolve melted at that instant and his tears and cries could no longer be contained. His buttocks danced to the tune of the strap as it was snapped into them and he struggled in vain to get some movement as if to avoid the blows. Tightly secured, his dance of pain could not be eased. His buttocks swelled as the lashing continued but the executioner was expert in his trade and did not draw blood. With the final blow, David was quite limp from exhaustion and his backside was a mass of bright red tissue which would soon turn to blue-black and purple bruises.
David looked totally miserable as he was unstrapped and took quite some time to bend down to retrieve his trousers. Through teary eyes he looked at me as I was led forth to receive the same treatment.
As my trousers were lowered, my semi erect state brought crude comments from the onlookers which added to my embarrassment - a condition which was soon obscured by the fire in my backside as the first of twenty four strokes arrived. While I was no stranger to such harsh treatment, the pain still took my breath away. As the rhythm of the beating was established my mind fogged with pain and my senses became numb. The pain built and built with each of the measured blows and my sobs turned to cries for pity as the end was reached.
As I restored my dress and returned to my position beside the two still sobbing boys, all I could think of was the injustice and malevolence which had brought me to this position.
The man to be flogged was duly stripped and tied into position. I took little notice of his pain and suffering, keeping my eyes fixed to the floor and trying to will the searing pain in my backside to ease. Occasionally my concentration was broken by a spray of blood from the cat but it was not until the flogging was completed that I looked at the limp figure hanging from the triangle. Convicted of trying to escape, the man had received six dozen lashes. His back, from his shoulders to his thighs, was now a mass of blood, barely recognisable as human flesh.
When the parade was dismissed, David and I were taken to Barracks Four. David was immediately placed in the pillory in preparation for his caning that evening whilst I was allowed to wash my face and then was taken to the reception centre. To my delight, McAlister was there waiting for me. Being in the company of the warders, McAlister showed no affection towards me but explained that there was a review of David and my convictions under way and that he expected the outcome within a week or so. In the interim he said, David and I were to be assigned to light duties within the prison laundry, just in case a miscarriage of justice could be demonstrated.
McAlister's brief visit raised my spirits even though I had not been able to hug him or even touch him. When I returned to the barracks I rushed to David and told him of McAlister's news, which also raised his spirits somewhat. I spent the afternoon applying a piece of wet blanket to his swollen backside in order to relieve the pain and swelling as much as was possible.
When the other convicts returned Dutch immediately inspected David and my backsides and noted that they were nicely swollen and gave me a slap on mine to test its tenderness. After dinner, the procedure of the previous evening was repeated except that this time it was David who received the blows.
I had great sympathy for David who was already crying as we entered the dormitory but there was nothing I could do to help him. David's screams of pain and the "swish" and "crack" of the cane were the only sounds that filled the room. Blood soon trickled down David's right leg, indicating where the greatest damage was being done and, oddly enough, it was that blood which saved him from the unwanted favours of the men that night - his arse was so bloodied that no one fancied. the notion of raping him. He lay on his bed and looked into my eyes through his tears as Dutch and several of the others had their way with me. Having been beaten so severely, my swollen backside needed only the slightest pressure to bring forth a searing pain and the combination of forced entry and thrusting against my buttocks was as great an agony as I had known from McAlister.
For more than a week, David and I provided _s_e_x_ual outlets for our fellow convicts. Neither of us was strong enough to resist the nightly onslaughts.
EPILOGUE
After we had spent eight days in the prison, word arrived that our convictions had been overturned and we were released. David's father had disowned his son, which left David in an invidious position since he had no job. I persuaded McAlister to hire David to assist with the office work and although David provided competition for Robert McAlister's attention, Robert and I became as one in our private lives.
We remained at Port Macquarie until the Gold Rush began in the State of Victoria. McAlister and I, accompanied by David, Jim and the former Captain Finch made our fortunes during those frantic years. We now reside on the substantial parcels of land granted to the Major and the Captain so many years ago. From our balcony, James and I can see the top of the prison, perched on the hill above the port. We cannot hear the barbaric punishments being meted out at the prison but the sounds of the cane or strap and the cries of the victim can be heard nonetheless as James, from time to time, considers that either David or I deserve to be punished. James has lost none of his abilities to inflict pain, nor has he lost that magical capacity to make reconciliation such a wonderful experience.
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