A couple of turns with the thumbscrew will suffice to get out of a boy of that age everything he knows.
"By Pike and Dyke: A Tale of the Rise of the Dutch Republic"
G.A. Henty
They spoke of Antonoff, who was subjected to the thumbscrew, had red-hot wires thrust under his nails, and when his torturers gave him a little respite he would scratch on his plate cipher signals to his comrades.
"Looking Seaward Again"
Walter Runciman
There seemed a ton-weight upon his heart, which a mighty sigh could lift for an instant, but not remove; and he was in the act of heaving a second such sigh, as he languidly opened the door-expecting to encounter Mr. thumbscrew, or some of his myrmidons, who might not know of his recent settlement with his landlady.
"Ten Thousand a-Year. Volume 1."
Samuel Warren