“we had a old European reebbe who walked around with a wood hanger and used it on anyone…. Verbal abuse was a daily occurrence with many of the rebbaim .”
Now I understand why most Jews in Europe 100 years ago were OTD. From an early age, being frum had no joy, just pain and suffering. It seems that punishment was very cruel, and it at the will of a capricious bad hearted person. And that was from someone supposedly on your side.