During her last year of college, Sophie Richardson has become lazy and surly. Mr Forbes has decided that he has to do some thing about it. She is warned that if she comes bottom of the class in the fortnightly reports she will be beaten. At the end of the second week, the inevitable happens. He soundly thrashes her in the hope that her work will improve. But two weeks later she is back and he beats her again. In week six, little has improved and the inevitable happens again. But in week eight her work has improved; the cane has had another success. (CA44)