Exodus 5:13-19

And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw.

Taskmasters hasted ... officers ... beaten. Since the nearest fields were bared, and the people had to go further for stubble, it was impossible for them to meet the demand by the usual tale of bricks. 'The beating of the officers is just what might have been expected from an Eastern tyrant, especially in the valley of the Nile, as it appears from the monuments, that ancient Egypt, like modern China, was principally governed by the stick (Taylor). The mode of beating was by the offender being laid flat on the ground, and generally held by the hands and feet while the chastisement was being administered.' (Wilkinson's 'Ancient Egypt') (Deuteronomy 25:2).