Foreword

Seán Fitzgerald and his son twisting a two-ply bogdeal rope at their home, Tooreens, Waterville, Co. Kerry in 1955. NMI In memory of Frank and May

If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything Mark Twain

When they fall out they offer a straw to break to putt an end to all friendship. On the contrary they offer a straw to breake in earnest of a bargain to confirm it. Thomas Dineley, 1681