George Wood was a scissor smith, based in 1787 in Pea Croft. His mark was a wavy line and a cross. Little is known of his life apart from three facts. First, his wife died on 15 September 1788. Second, he was Master Cutler in 1791. Third, he was mercilessly pilloried as a ‘fool and ignoramus’ by the local satirist, Joseph Mather, in his songs ‘Hallamshire Haman’ and ‘Sancho’. The reason for the attack was Wood’s role in a strike of the scisso....