This one is from the "Detroit News" advice column "Experience," by "Jane Lee," on September 10, 1948. Four comments:
1. The movie she refers to was probably "Look for the Silver Lining," with Gordon MacRae and June Haver giving us one of the all-time great marital spankings.
2. That must have been one hell of a dinner party.
3. Notice how she insinuates the word "bottom" into her letter, getting it past the censors.
4. Jane began her answer by assuring the readers that she had contacted the woman and that the letter was for real.
GROWN WOMAN SPANKED BY HUSBAND AT HIS WHIM
Wife had been accustomed to spankings, even into adulthood, in parental home
Dear Jane: I am writing this sitting on the softest pillow in the house. I can't get into a girdle and get dressed because I am still on fire from the latest spanking I had from my husband last night. I am mortified. A grown woman spanked like a child! I would rather die than tell my friends.
Two things led up to it. One is a movie we saw recently in which a husband spanked his wife. The other is that my mother is a strict disciplinarian who never could wait until company had gone to spank us. She spanked me until I was way past 16 and still spanks my younger brothers and sisters. On our last visit Mother spanked sister in the presence of everyone because she made a remark Mother considered "fresh." The real reason was she wanted to show Jack how strict she is.
Mother asked Jack whether or not I am a good wife. More or less jokingly he replied that he is a hen-pecked husband. Before I knew what happened, I was over the arm of the chair and Mother spanked me with the tennis shoe bottom she always uses on the bare skin. She gave Jack the tennis shoe bottom and told him from now on it is up to him; a big he-man ought to be able to spank it out of me.
Since then he spanks me every time we have a spat. It stings fiercely as he is much stronger than Mother. There is little I can do about it as he weighs almost twice as much as I and is all muscle. Yesterday I bit and scratched when he spanked me. He only spanked harder, so here I am much the worse for it.
Yesterday's spat began because he brought home a half-dozen pairs of raw-hide shoe laces. He wanted me to braid them into a switch that he will use on me and I may use on the kids when they come. Making it is an admission that he has a right to spank me, but here I am making it to avoid another spanking on top of this one.
He is otherwise a wonderful husband. I don't want to have the law on him or leave him. I am trying to humor him because I think he is just trying to be smart. I am hoping he will get over it. In the meantime, I wish I could do something to make him stop.