Palm punishments

Yes, it's in the book too. The chapter is called 'Amy's Valley of Humiliation' in which she is caned on the hand for breaking a school rule about bringing pickled limes to class. Why anyone would want a pickled lime I can't imagine!

When I was in elementary school sometimes teachers would smack kids on the palms with a ruler. Never with a paddle and of course no one had ever heard of a cane this being an American school. A ruler would not be dangerous like a heavier implement.
Readers of To Kill A Mockingbird will recall that Scout got the ruler on her hand from her teacher on her first day of school- and she didn't see it coming. And of course she did get spanked by her uncle for fighting, something that did not make the movie.

I agree with those who think hand caning is cruel, mainly because of the likelihood of injury. There's also a class aspect to the punishment as it was used primarily on lower-class children or servants. And as has been noted, the bottom is so well padded and suitable by comparison.

She was spanked not for fighting, but because her opponent claimed she had used the word whore and the uncle believed it. At lest until after her spanking when he discovered that she didn't know that word and wanted to know what it meant.

It's a shame that the first draft of that novel (Go Set A Watchman) was published after the success of Mockingbird.

Goodgulf
Its true she used the word whore but she also punched out her nasty cousin. He had called Atticus a nigger lover-fighting words in the South of that time.
When her uncle heard her side of the story he was ready to give her cousin a thrashing,it sounded like.

Thank Leslie for your mention. The hand is the great invention of all time. It should only used to administer spankings. Do not ever harm or damage the tool that made us human. Best wishes. Regards, nite

One of the interesting things about that fight is that the character's cousin was based off the author's childhood friend - Truman Capote. Truman would grow up to be someone who openly lived in a way that (at times) could have gotten him lynched in some places in the South.