KENGCHI
Back in 1924 Kengchi was a little Kingdom, very remote, bordering on
Burma and Siam. The only access was by riverboat, and that was slow. I was
supposed to report to a bank in Rangoon to take up my duties at the beginning of
the month - Trainee duties, really, and I had enough time in hand to go up river
to visit an old school friend of mine, whom I hadn't seen for six years. Rob
Hallet owned one of the largest plantations. Managed it, really - His wife
actually owned it.
I arrived at Hallet's plantation a little after four in the afternoon. The
bungalow was a large, spacious place, comfortable, beautifully furnished, and
set in a grove of trees.
Once cleaned up from my journey, I found myself seated in a deep chair in
the veranda with a scotch and soda in my hand and was soon made to feel welcome.
The setting was lushly tropical, with lots of tall dark trees, those in the
distance rising from the steamy vegetation of the forest floor, and brilliant,
oversized flowers, crimson and yellow, purple and white - indeed, every colour
of the rainbow, scattered in a wild profusion of colour around the bungalow.
The Monsoons were recently over, and as the Sun sank low the sky became a
magnificent panoply of purple and mauve shot with gold and Cerulean blue, topped
by towering white clouds. It was superb!
Hallet's wife Caroline seemed to want to know all about me, and positively
plied me with liquor served by keenly attentive servants. They were mostly
young, with a preponderance of women, which surprised me a little, and the male
servants seemed to defer to the female, which surprised me a lot. This was
certainly not normal in that part of the world.
As we chatted I surreptitiously studied my hostess. Caroline had that
combination of raven-black hair and very white skin sometimes seen in Irish
women, and eyes of deep violet that seemed to penetrate all one's defenses and
read one's innermost mind without divulging any secrets of their own. She had a
delicate, sensual face, and somehow, a very formidable face. This was not a
woman one would want to cross. Her body was lithe and supple, with a small
waist surmounting womanly hips, and uptilted, beautifully formed breasts. I
decided that Hallet was a lucky man, then hurriedly glanced over at him, hoping
he hadn't caught me studying his wife. He gave no sign of having noticed
anything, for which I was profoundly grateful.
Hallet and I were old school friends, and we talked about those days.
We'd both been on both ends of cane and the birch far more than our share of
times, and we talked about floggings given and received. Rob talked freely in
front of his wife, who didn't seem to mind a bit. Quite the contrary, if fact,
which spared me a good deal of embarrassment. Somehow the conversation got
around to disciplining the servants, and the use of corporal punishment.
Caroline was very much for it, and I found myself agreeing with her. And then
she said something that made me look up. She said, "When a manservant is to be
punished, I like to have a maidservant administer the correction, and I like to
watch. The punishment is keener that way. Women may not be as strong as men,
but they have an instinct for cruelty. A whipping from a woman will be worse
than one from a man. And not just whippings, either - any punishment. It seems
to arouse their libidos, too. I've noticed that after punishment the woman
often takes her victim to her room for the night."
"Some of your girls are ravishing. I would think some men might consider a
night with one of them well worth a whipping!" I remarked.
Rob laughed. "You're right, you know. Some of them do, I'm sure. I've had
them do something quite deliberately, and then ask if Shar Mei could be the one
to administer the punishment. She's the one who showed you to your room this
afternoon. She's a little vixen with the cane, that one. Really has them
howling! But she always takes them to her room for the night afterwards, though
I'm told she ties them to her bed, and does things her way."
"Rob, really! You shouldn't tell John things like that. Heaven knows what
he'll thing about us! And anyway, Shar Mei isn't the only one, by a long shot.
I think it's endemic in Kengchi - cruelty, I mean. Well, sexual cruelty,
anyway. John, I beg you not to say a word of this to anyone! We've no proof,
and if it ever got around, people would say the most awful things about us.
Promise?"
"I promise. I'll never breathe a word, or even hint about it, you have my
word. Besides, I don't see anything very wrong with it. It's rather colourful,
really. Sort of sexy. But I do think you're putting me on a bit. I can't
imagine that lovely demure little lass really making anyone howl."
Rob laughed. "Can't you? Ha! She's a little demon with the whip, that
one. Works them over very slowly and carefully. She likes to start with the
strap, then apply twelve or fifteen with the cane, and then go to work with a
little tapered leather whip. She doesn't like to hurry a punishment. She'll
take two hours, sometimes even longer, especially with a good-looking man, and
at the end of it the poor devil is eating out of her hand."
"You said some men seemed to want it. Sounds a bit fierce to me."
"She always starts and ends with kisses and - well, you know what I mean.
They're randy as hell when they go to the post."
"And gloriously tired out the next day, I imagine. She sounds like quite a
woman!"
Caroline had been looking at me hard. "Well, John, I hope we haven't
shocked you. This part of the world is a bit different from what you're used
to."
"Shocked me? Good lord, no! Not a bit. It takes more than that to shock
me. I suppose it's intrigued me."
Rob replied to that, "It's an intriguing subject. No one wants to admit it,
but it is, just the same. People are just afraid to say so, which is sheer
hypocrisy! But let 'em get a glimpse of the song-huitt, and they're all eyes
and stuttering! And the women are worse than the men."
"That's because the song-huitt is a woman's whip, darling," Caroline said.
"It looks very elegant and svelte, John, and, of course, it looks as though it
hurts like the very devil, which it does. It's a wicked little thing, all
covered in red silk, with three little tasseled lashes at the end that wrap
round and sting like scorpions."
Bob looked at his watch. "Oh my Lord, it's almost five o'clock! Look,
will you excuse me if I leave you for a while? I have to catch the boat to
Rangoon at 7:30, and I still have to pack. I'll send in Shar Mei with the
switch if you like. Would you like to see it?"
I glanced at Caroline, uncertain of my ground. She seemed to know just
what I was thinking, and answered for me, "Yes, darling, he would, I'm sure."
"See you at dinner, then" And with that he was gone.
Caroline laughed, "Intrigued you? Now, come on, be honest. It's excited
you a little, hasn't it? Mmmm?" She was looking at me with those violet eyes,
and I blushed, which I hadn't done in years. She laughed again at this, and
pressed me, "Now please don't be all shy and ashamed. There's nothing to be
ashamed of. Everyone's interested, you know. They're just afraid to say so."
Her eyes dropped to below my belt, just for an instant, and I knew there
was no use pretending. I muttered something facetious about "bringing out all my
masochism", and she laughed charmingly. "Shar Mei has a way of doing that! Ah,
here she is. Shar Mei, the Tuan would like to see the song-huitt, and some of
the other things, too. Mr. Hallet will be leaving for the station directly
after dinner. Perhaps you could get them out to show after that?"
Shar Mei dropped into a deep curtsy, her eyes downcast, the very picture of
demure modesty. "Yes, Madam. I make everything in readiness to show honored
guest. He like I show him only whipping things, or other torments, too? "
"That's up to Mr. Fox, here. You must ask him."
"Sir, may I show you things for correct wrong-doings here in Kengchi? They
most interesting, I assure you, and are taking very little of your valuable time
- or very much, if you were much curious." Her eyes were at once polite and
provocative, and she seemed to be sizing me with out appearing too obvious about
it. I caught Caroline's eye, and agreed to see them all. Shar Mei spoke again,
to Caroline. "Shall I bring them to the drawing room, Madame, or perhaps to his
room. Or your room?" She looked at me again, a little more boldly - perhaps
because I was getting very randy, and it was starting to show. She said
something in Burmese to Caroline, who answered in the same language. With
another sidelong look at me, she left the room.
Caroline smiled and said, "Well, it's all set, John. After Rob leaves,
I'll take you to the punishment hut, and Shar Mei will show you around. It's no
trouble - it's being used this evening anyway. Shar Mei has to cane one of the
laundry girls. She was caught stealing clothes and selling them in the next
village. Tissah's getting two whippings a week for a month. Come to think of
it, would you like to see it? I can easily have Shar Mei postpone the
punishment until after we arrive."
"You mean see the whipping? Well, I, ah..... Well, yes! Yes, I would like
to watch! I've never seen a whipping."
"Marvelous! I was hoping you'd say that. I have no patience with people
who get all holier-than-thou. But you must promise not to even whisper this
outside this plantation. It is to be our secret. Do you promise?"
"Of course I do! I'd never so much as hint of this. Never!"
"Do you swear to it? On your honour as a gentleman?"
"I swear it, on my honour. I will keep anything I see or hear entirely
secret, and never let on to anyone. Good enough?"
"You're a dear! Incidently, Tissah has a darling little bottom! Not that
I thought that'd interest you." She looked at me roguishly, then glanced down
and saw irrefutable evidence of my arousal. "Perhaps you'd be willing to help
Shar Mei administer the punishment. Hold her down, perhaps. Or even cane her
or strap her a little yourself! Would you? I really think whipping should be
done between sexes, don't you?"
"Yes. And, ah... yes, I'd love to."
"Marvelous! I think we're going to get along famously." She gave my
hand a little squeeze.
