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Earliest disapproval of masturbation
The masturbation belt, an expression of hysterical opposition to selfish pleasure
Many measures were tried to stop boys (and men) as masturbators. Where pious exhortation
failed sterner tactics
had to be adopted. The most trivial of these were to ensure that boys slept with their hands
tied, even adults were
counselled by William Acton to adopt the "common practice" of sleeping with the hands tied.
Milton suggested
a chastity belt. S. G. Vogel had advocated infibulation, i.e. inserting a silver wire through the
foreskin, in his
"Unterricht fur Eltern" (1786): such a practice was in fact adopted. Comfort has
quoted a paper by Yellowlees
- "I was struck by the conscience-stricken way in which they submitted to the operation on
their penises. I mean
to try it on a large scale, and go on wiring all masturbators..." If a recalcitrant mental patient
tore out the wire,
he should simply be tied up. Milton also suggested blistering the penis with red mercury
ointment; and
cauterisation of the spine and genitals were recommended as late as 1905. The most severe
cure for masturbation
of a man was surely the penile amputation inflicted on a Texan towards the end of the
nineteenth century (R. D.
Potts, "Texas Medical Practitioner," 1897-8, Vol. 2 p 7).