Friday, May 6, 2016

BY HOOK OR BY CROOK...

That’s the first thing I thought of when I saw this lovely old shepherd cradling one of his lambs…and although I knew that “by hook or by crook” means “by any way possible,” I had no idea what shepherds actually used crooks for; a crook looked like a pretty worthless implement to me.

Boy, was I wrong.
Turns out, their purpose is threefold: shepherds uses crooks to carry newborn lambs back to their rightful mothers when confusion reigns in the lambing pen (they cannot touch the lambs themselves, or the mothers will reject the babies due to the scent of humans); they use the blunt end of the crook to prod sheep along the way whenever they are driving them; they hook strays around the leg or neck to drag them back into the fold where they belong.


 My trusty 1902 Sears, Roebuck and Company catalog had a shepherd’s hook for sale—a metal one that fit snugly over a pole (you supplied the pole).
The Montana Shepherds’ Crook was “the best and strongest crook that has ever been placed on the market.” It consisted of a pear-shaped loop with rounded curves on the inside to prevent hurting the sheep. Thousands (they say) were in use in the United States.
          Cost?
          A mere seventy-three cents.
And there was, of course, a Bo-Peep Crook, which was the same as a Montana, but lighter.
For the ladies, I guess; for the shepherdesses.

There was more equipment, too: three different styles of shears—the Western, the Eastern, and the Celebrated Burgon & Ball’s (each in three different lengths of blade); two equally disgusting jars of salve (for those “worrisome nicks”); there was fleece detergent and a sheep dip (for “vermin”).


The best item, though, was the Montana Special Sheep Shearing Machine, “…considered one of the best by a great many of the large sheep growers throughout the United States and Australia.” It had a large wheel, mounted on a solid post; an enclosed gear in a fixed frame that ran the cutters.
          
So, one man turned the wheel, the other sheared the sheep; they got the job done, all right – by hook or by crook!


  

15 comments:

  1. Thanks for an informative post. I wasn't aware of the many uses of a shepherd's crook. I knew wild animal mamas won't take care of a baby that's been touched by humans, but I didn't know that applied to domestic animals - such as sheep - as well.

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    1. I didn't either, Gail! I was so completely wrong about a lot of that stuff...learn something every day!

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  2. Well I never they say you learn something new everyday, and I certainly did today. Thank you for such an interest and informative post. I’m very envious of your 1902 Sears & Roebuck it must be full of wonderful thing.

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    1. It's a gem, indeed, Barbara. I use it a lot, mostly for writing historical fiction -- I can see it, learn about it, imagine using it...

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    2. Now I'm just plain jealous! :)

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  3. Very interesting Deb, Barbara is right, you learn something new every day, especially at Sepia Saturday.

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    1. I've said that, too, Dara -- Sepians are amazingly knowledgeable creatures; I love reading the various posts!

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  4. Very interesting. My maiden name is Cruickshank and my Cruickshank ancestors were Scottish sheep farmers, so perhaps the name came from using crooks - or perhaps they just had bad legs. It's quite frequently misspelt Crookshank :-)

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    1. Oh, how interesting! The derivation of words constantly surprises me; seems very possible that your Cruickshanks knew what they were talking about!

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  5. That’s really interesting; I had no idea that’s what the crook was used for. Good to know that Little Bo-Peep was catered for!

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    1. I'm glad to know I wasn't the only one who didn't have a clue...nice to know that Bo-Peeps crook was lighter, eh?

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  6. Those old catalogs are a source of interesting items, I thought the crook was for decoration, as it turns out much more practical than just decorum.

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    1. I found a lot of later catalogs that showed a crook as an item of decoration -- and there's a multi-pronged plant hanger thingie that's called a crook!

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  7. Al last we know what the crook was used for. Interesting facts. I never knew that a shearing machine existed that was driven by hand.

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    1. I didn't either, Bob. I was kind of amazed, too! I have a pair of those old sheep shears, but I'd never seen a hand-powered shearer until now!

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