The fabulous hillside snee in Farmer In the Sky

[Roger Christenson]

Just finished re-reading Farmer In The Sky for a discussion in the facebook Heinlein forum. I wondered what is the fabulous hillside snee ("It stayed level; apparently is could adjust its legs, like the fabulous hillside snee."). Chuck Coffin found a reference indicating it was from Dr. Seuss ("But Honda engineers seem to have been reading a Dr. Seuss book when they designed their "hillside snee" clutch. The "hillside snee" was an animal that grazed on the side of a hill
and its downhill legs were longer than its uphill legs. If frightened
by something attacking it from the front, the hillside snee could only escape by jumping into its own mouth and turning itself inside out...?")
Does anyone know what Dr. Seuss book it's in or where I can find a picture of a snee? Thanks.

[Roger Christenson]

Here's the passage in Farmer In The Sky:
https://books.google.com/books?id=syUZDp_JKpwC&pg=PA53&lpg=PA53&dq=fabulous+hillside+snee&source=bl&ots=5iW9Us3INl&sig=QaHoQ1oSb2nVRwc6vzopxEjNfvw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjv8OzOjoPMAhUL3WMKHeYTA18Q6AEIHTAA#v=snippet&q=hillside%20Snee&f=false

[MajorOz]

Dunno 'bout Dr. Seuss....

But, in Wyoming we used to (talkin' 40's and 50's, here) regale the tourists with stories of our "left hand and right hand" cattle....bred to eat their way "this way or that way" around the mountain.

....then, of course, there was the jackalope....

[lal_truckee]

Close relative to the Sidehill Snipe, each of two types noted for having
one long and one short leg. As a Boy Scout initiation hazing the older
boys would sit the Tenderfoot scouts out to catch a right-handed Snipe
in a gunny sack, with instructions to face clockwise on the hill, as the
left handed Snipe tasted bad.
Variations on the theme include left and right handed monkeywrenches and
screwdrivers. AFAIK skyhooks only came in one chirality.

Since Farmer In the Sky started as a serialization in the Boy Scout
magazine, I bet there's a link. Possibly a "correction" made by an
editor? Or maybe it's a regionalism - Snipe could be the Western
version, Snee the Eastern? I'd have to consult Patterson to determine
where Heinlein was living when writing Tenderfoot In Space.

[Rhino]

On 2016-04-10 11:38 AM, lal_truckee wrote:
> On 4/9/16 10:31 PM, Roger Christenson wrote:
>> Just finished re-reading Farmer In The Sky for a discussion in the
>> facebook Heinlein forum. I wondered what is the fabulous hillside
>> snee ("It stayed level; apparently is could adjust its legs, like the
>> fabulous hillside snee."). Chuck Coffin found a reference indicating
>> it was from Dr. Seuss ("But Honda engineers seem to have been reading
>> a Dr. Seuss book when they designed their "hillside snee" clutch. The
>> "hillside snee" was an animal that grazed on the side of a hill
>> and its downhill legs were longer than its uphill legs. If frightened
>> by something attacking it from the front, the hillside snee could only
>> escape by jumping into its own mouth and turning itself inside out...?")
>> Does anyone know what Dr. Seuss book it's in or where I can find a
>> picture of a snee? Thanks.
>>
>
> Close relative to the Sidehill Snipe, each of two types noted for having
> one long and one short leg. As a Boy Scout initiation hazing the older
> boys would sit the Tenderfoot scouts out to catch a right-handed Snipe
> in a gunny sack, with instructions to face clockwise on the hill, as the
> left handed Snipe tasted bad.

I remember a Cheers episode where the gang sent Frasier out on a snipe
hunt. As I (vaguely) recall, he returned hours later without realizing
that they were putting him on. And he was the intellectual in the group :-)

> Variations on the theme include left and right handed monkeywrenches and
> screwdrivers. AFAIK skyhooks only came in one chirality.
>
> Since Farmer In the Sky started as a serialization in the Boy Scout
> magazine, I bet there's a link. Possibly a "correction" made by an
> editor? Or maybe it's a regionalism - Snipe could be the Western
> version, Snee the Eastern? I'd have to consult Patterson to determine
> where Heinlein was living when writing Tenderfoot In Space.

--
Rhino

[Roger Christenson]

On Saturday, April 9, 2016 at 11:31:38 PM UTC-6, Roger Christenson wrote:

Thanks. I remember about Snipes and Jackalopes.

[djinn]

I grew up in Georgia, I knew about snipe hunts, but never heard of snee. Maybe because much of Georgia is pretty flat.

[Tony]

djinn wrote:
> I grew up in Georgia, I knew about snipe hunts, but never heard of snee. Maybe because much of Georgia is pretty flat.
>

I lived in Albany, GA, for about 8 years as a kid. Joined the cub Scouts
and Boy Scouts there and learned about snipes but not snee.

My dad was stationed at Turner AFB from 1958 to 1966 until SecDef Robert
McNamara pretty much threw the USAF out of Albany and turned the base
over to the USN who left in a couple of years.

I think McNamara had his own version of a snipe hunt going!

[djinn]

I was over at Waynesboro or at Marietta. Both hot.
Lived near Dobbins AFB/NAS Atlanta/Lockheed-Georgia. Globemasters,Hercules,Starlifters,Galaxies, Crusaders,Neptunes and blimps, but no Snipe.
Never did catch one of the little bastards. :-)

[Luminaria]

Was browsing through old threads today, and this just tickled me to no end. Especially finding the old Google Books scanned version of the original article - wow, what a strange new world that has such things in it, eh?

Much as I love the jackalopes, snipes, and Dr. Seuss theories, I have to wonder, do you think maybe he just knew someone NAMED Snee and was having a bit of fun at their expense, in a cute little Boys Life story? If you Google Snee - guess what? Yeah, people are actually NAMED that... poor wee things... Kind of like being named Smoot, wouldn't you think? LOL I mean, really, you read Heinlein's stuff, and every so often, you see it, that smirk - you know what I mean...

Lis

[Puppet_Sock]

On Sunday, April 10, 2016 at 1:31:38 AM UTC-4, Roger Christenson wrote:

[snee?]

http://www.sciway.net/sc-photos/charleston-county/snee-farm.html