The last of the martinets desire to wield the cane (5)

I believe the answer is:

swish

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'wield the cane' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.

'the last of the martinets desire' is the wordplay.
'the last of' says to take the final letters.
'desire' becomes 'wish' (wish is a kind of desire).
The last letter of 'martinets' is 's'.
's'+'wish'='SWISH'

'to' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for swish that I've seen before include "Smart, fashionable" , "Sound of cane" , "Classy" , "Impressively smart" , "Stylish (sl.)" .)

I've seen this clue in The Irish Independent.

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