DE MOULIN BROTHERS & CO., GREENVILLE, IL.
LIFTING AND SPANKING MACHINE
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This unusual item is a device that was used for initiating candidates or potential members of various fraternal organizations ( Masons , Odd Fellows, etc ) . This particular item came from an Odd Fellows Lodge in Iowa . It was manufactured by De Moulin Brothers & Company of Greenville , Il . c. 1909 . It is a wooden platform, four inches tall , 20 inches wide and 34 inches long . The paddle is solid wood and can be removed . The handles are cast iron . It is in excellent condition with what appears to be the original fringed , rug like cover on top of platform . The item is fully functional . According to the original De Moulin catalog page its use is described as follows :
With this machine the candidate cannot kick his own pants while wearing them , but can have them spanked where his mother used to apply the sole of her slipper , by simply testing his strength . The position in which he places himself causes a little strain in the seat of his pants , which is not objectionable , as it pulls up all the slack when he pulls up on the handles . Just about the time he gets well started lifting , a trigger is automatically released , which causes the spanking paddle to spring into place and strike him on the kazabo , at the same time exploding a 32-calibre blank cartridge with a loud report . That is not all ; there is also an electric motor concealed under the platform of the machine , which is operated by clock work that turns on a good current of electricity at the same time the paddle hits his pants . The sensation can better be imagined than explained .
Patent July 31, 1900 and May 4 , 1909 ( DETAILS ) . These dates are stamped on the bottom of the platform . There is also a label on the bottom which is present but worn away in the centre .
More information , including scans of the original patent applications
DeMoulin Bros Paddle ( MEMBERS )
DeMoulin Bros . 1930 catalog available at the Phoenix Masonry Museum . www.phoenixmasonry.org
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