My interest in this arises not only from the fact that I share the same views as most of your women readers on the proper place of males in society, but also since I am a professional corsetiere with 37 years of experience in the trade, and during this time have supplied corsets for many male clients. Because of my particular interest in the use of corsets as a means of training, corsets for men, and for children - just as much as girls - have become something of a speciality of mine. I therefore thought your readers night he interested to hear of my experience in this field, with particular reference to the corseting of boys, which
I regard as an essential feature of their proper upbringing and training.

I am now over 50, so was brought up in the days when corsets were a normal part of every woman's dress, and girls were generally made to start wearing them at the age of 12 or 13, usually coinciding with their having to start wearing stockings, and therefore suspenders, as a compulsory part of their school uniform. In those days, corsets for boys were not unknown either, many mothers believing that all children, boys just as much as girls, needed the support of corsets as their figures started to develop.

I discovered this when I started work as an apprentice in a corsetiere's shop. I also discovered to my surprise that the clientele comprised of grown men too. During the war, of course, there were few young men about, so our adult male customers consisted mainly of men over 40, a few of whom ventured into the shop themselves, but more usually had corsets bought for them by their wives, or else women brought their husbands in to he fitted, in which case they were always attended to by Madame herself. With boys it was different, and we girls were allowed to attend to them. They were invariably brought in by their mothers, and I remember being very amused seeing them being measured, fitted, laced-up, and generally being treated just
like girls to their obvious embarrassment and confusion. Often they were dressed somewhat girlishly particularly as far as their underwear was concerned, and occasionally one would he brought in actually dressed as a girl, and when this happened we had strict instructions not to comment on this, but to treat him exactly as we would any other girl, even to the extent of calling him 'Miss' and remarking on his pretty dress and figure.

Gradually, I came to realise that many men who wore corsets were obliged to do so by their wives as a token of the submissive role allocated to them. I found myself fascinated by this idea, and indeed when some years later I started business as a corsetiere myself, many women wanting corsets for their husbands spoke quite freely to me of this purpose, and sought my advice on the most suitable style, materials, boning and general severity of the corsets which were needed to provide suitable discipline for them.

Over the years, of course, the styles of corsetry have undergone enormous changes as fashions, modern materials, and social customs have had their effect. In my view, modern style garments do very little for the female figure, and still less for the figure or discipline of a male. Their light weight and virtual absence of boning make them generally unsuitable for all except the lightest of figures, and I do not therefore normally advise them for men. For young girls and children, including boys, they can serve as a first introduction to being corseted, particularly since they are, in general, pretty and feminine, in preparation for firmer corseting
later.

There is, however, still a demand for the traditional firm corset made of batiste, collar cloth or heavy satin nylon, with strong boning and busk fastenings, and whilst these days this is the type worn mostly by older women, they are, in my view, the only type suitable for men. They may he laced or not according to preference, though in general I find women prefer laced ones for a man, so they can regulate the discipline.

With adult males tight lacing of course imposes greater discipline, and certainly helps to ensure the wearer feels well confined and submissive. In terms of actual TRAINING it cannot do a great deal however, as with an adult his figure is too firmly set. Tight lacing will certainly give him a small waist which some women, including myself, find attractive, but, to maintain this in a grown male, corsets must always he worn.

With a boy, however, provided he is put into corsets young enough, regular tight lacing will actually TRAIN his figure as it develops so it remains attractive afterwards, in just the same way that a girl whose figure has been trained in corsets while she is young will probably have a good figure all her life. This is just as true now as it was in my own time, and I attribute my own good figure now, at 52, to the fact that I was corseted tightly by my mother at the age of 13, and that throughout my teens I had regular and strict corset training.

Working as a young girl for a corsetiere of course gave me little choice in this. On arrival at the shop each morning I was immediately put into what Madame called 'working corsets'. These were medium length, heavily boned corsets coming just above my waist and these were laced tightly, though not excessively so, to make sure my figure was attractively shaped. This, naturally enough, Madame considered important for a girl working in a corsetiere's shop or workroom. In addition to this, for an hour each evening before going home, she made me wear, instead of my 'working corsets', what we called a 'Demoiselle' corset. This was much more severe, and was in fact a Victorian style corset designed for strict figure training, and for the hour
my waist was laced in to 17 inches. Madame said this was not only good training for my figure, it was also intended to give me experience of what really tight lacing felt like, as if I were to become a corsetiere myself one day, it was important to have had the experience.

In fact, although like most girls (and boys) I disliked the feeling of tight lacing at the time, I gradually became accustomed to it and later came to appreciate its value. As a result I now have no hesitation in  recommending firm corsets, and lacing, for children when my opinion is sought.

                                                                          Corset Training

At present I am supplying corsets for eight children, of which five are girls, and three are boys, whose mothers have decided on corsets for them for discipline or figure training reasons. Two of them, one boy and one girl, although they wear different clothes at school and in public, at home, their mother has always dressed them identically either as girls or as boys, and the children like this. Both now have laced corsets so their mother can train their figures the same way, so they can continue to wear the same clothes for as long as possible. Their mother likes them this way and maintains that while they are still children they should he treated, as much as possible, alike.

Indeed I make very little distinction between boys and girls when corseting them. Before the age of about 13 their figures are similar, and in addition, at this age being corseted makes a boy feel somewhat girlish, and I believe this is important in training him to be well behaved, submissive and obedient.

There is no doubt corsets have this effect on a boy. Many boys, and indeed many girls too, that are brought to me to be corseted are somewhat rebellious and difficult at first. Once they are in corsets however, this resistance seems to fade and they become demure and much more amenable to their mother's wishes. This applies even in the case of a male, by treating him as one would a girl, and by making him wear, say, a pretty pantie girdle and perhaps a girl's slip or knickers under his ordinary clothes. The girlish feel of these starts to teach him that defiant masculine ways are not acceptable.

Normally, I recommend a good elastic pantie girdle for both boys and girls. This introduces them to the feel of having their figures under some, albeit at that stage, quite gentle control. and serves to accustom a boy to the idea that corsets are to become a regular part of his dress. A girl's pantie girdle, despite it being tight at the front and between the legs, is in fact perfectly suitable for a boy provided he has his penis positioned upwards pressed back against his tummy, where of course it is held secure by the tightness of the girdle itself, or by a special strap attached for the purpose. Many feel this is desirable anyway for a male, and some are made to wear a pantie girdle for this purpose alone.

It is best if the girdle is worn all day, though for a male this is sometimes difficult to insist on. I usually recommend it is worn at night too so he becomes accustomed to the feel of it for as many hours as possible each day.

A stricter corset can then be introduced, later on. This should he a firm, non-elastic, corset although it can have elastic panels just at the two sides for comfort, but the essentials are that it is well boned and that it fits tightly at the waist and hips. For preference it has suspenders too, even for a male as these attached to stockings help to keep the corset neat round the bottom edge and prevent it rucking. Properly fastened suspenders also act as an additional discipline as they impose a certain restriction when sitting or stooping, and this enhances the overall 'corseted' feeling a male needs to have and get accustomed to. I normally provide four suspenders for each leg on the corsets I supply, to ensure they have this discipline round their thighs. At night he can he made to wear a pantie girdle which could be tighter than before and preferably boned.

The corsets should be on the lines of the 'Demoiselle' corset I had to wear as a girl, the essentials being that they are long, coming well above the waist at the top and well down the thighs below and that they are heavily boned to provide the proper discipline. Back lacing is always best, and enables the corset to have a strong front busk fastening, and again I recommend eight suspenders.

                                                                         Gentle Lacing

Lacing can he gentle at first while the child gets accustomed to the greater discipline of the corset, but it is surprising how quickly a male adapts to tight lacing when this is introduced. Of the five girls I mentioned that are among my present clientele, three have been laced for only 3 to 7 months and all now have delightfully tiny waists, and the young one is made to sleep in her corsets with her waist laced in to 17 inches.

Of the males, one is corseted this tightly too, and his wife is delighted with his progress and tiny girlish waist which she shows off by making him wear girl's dresses with tight fitting bodices, a shaped school girl gym tunic, or little skirts with elastic waist bands and a tight leather belt. He is totally submissive to this discipline and accepts it as a normal thing now. The boy and girl twins I mentioned earlier are now just starting to he laced and the male seems to have accepted being corseted the same as his sister, perfectly happily and, his mother tells me, even tries with his sister as to who has the smaller waist after they have both been laced up.

The other two are both younger and are still in pantie girdles, the male incidentally being made to wear girls' clothes at home as part of his training to grow up a submissive male. He has three older sisters who are being trained in the opposite role. They are not corseted therefore and are encouraged to treat their brother with proper female superiority, because he is a boy and yet he is dressed as a girl.

Let me, in conclusion, just say that in my experience corsets can play a decisive role in the proper training of males to be nicely subdued and demure, and remain submissive and respectful to members of the female sex. In addition, a boy's figure can he trained in corsets like a girl's to give him a tiny waist and nicely shaped figure which many women find attractive in a man. For men, the enforced wearing of corsets emphasises their subservient role and helps to make them feel properly submissive to women, though for this their corsets must be strict and a discipline to wear.

I hope these comments will he of interest to your male and female readers and I will write again if so.

Yours sincerely,