Warren Commission (04 of 26): Hearings Vol. IV (of 15)United States. Warren Commission
History
Warren Commission (04 of 26): Hearings Vol. IV (of 15)
United States. Warren Commission
Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963 -- Assassination; Oswald, Lee Harvey
Mr. STOMBAUGH. No, sir; the string is just common white cotton string.
It is found in most stores throughout the country, and used for, well,
many uses. There is nothing distinctive about the string itself which
could be traced as to manufacturer or any definite use it was made for.
Mr. EISENBERG. Any distinctive accidental markings on it?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. No; I found none.
Mr. EISENBERG. What kind--was it tied in a knot?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. Yes, sir; it was tied in a granny knot, and also a bow
knot.
Mr. EISENBERG. Could you illustrate that for us? You are holding up a
piece of string?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. This is another piece of string, not the original.
Mr. EISENBERG. Not the original.
Mr. STOMBAUGH. A granny knot is a common knot, tied with two simple
thumb knots. It is a very hard knot to open as opposed to the boy scout
knot, or the square knot rather, which is tied in this manner. This
knot is very easy to open because all one has to do is to pull one free
end of it and the other free end slides out.
Mr. EISENBERG. You are referring to the so-called "boy scout" knot?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. It is actually not a boy scout knot but a square knot.
Mr. EISENBERG. And you tie that left over right, right over left, is
that the formula?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. Yes; left over right and right over left.
Mr. EISENBERG. How do you spell that, by the way?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. G-r-a-n-n-y.
Mr. EISENBERG. The granny knot, Mr. Stombaugh, is this a common or an
uncommon knot?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. It is a very common knot. I believe that knot is tied
more than any other knot because it is right over right, right over
right, and it is usually used by people wrapping packages who want it
tied securely so the package will not come open.
Mr. EISENBERG. Did you say there was also a bow knot?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. Yes, sir.
Mr. EISENBERG. Could you illustrate that?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. This is the type of knot we use when we tie our shoe
strings. It is made by forming a loop with the one free end, and
wrapping the other free end around it and pulling it through.
Mr. EISENBERG. Is that a hard or an easy knot to slip out, Mr.
Stombaugh?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. This is very easy, because you just take one of the
loose ends and pull it and the knot falls apart.
Mr. EISENBERG. What was the relationship between the granny knot and
the bow knot?
Mr. STOMBAUGH. I don't know. I have seen this numerous times, on
numerous different occasions when one would either tie a granny knot or
a square knot and follow it up with a bow knot. The granny knot would
be to secure the package so it would not come loose. The bow knot is a
temporary knot tied by one who wants the string to come off easily.
Now why they would tie a granny knot and follow this up with a bow knot
I don't know, unless they had some long loose ends which they wanted to
slacken up, shorten up, rather, so as they would not be hanging down.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account