Sound the Alarm
I was very interested in the Collectors story on sleigh bells (February-march 2021). Yes, many are beautiful and often of pride to the owner who kept them well polished. Believe me, that was no easy task! But bells were not meant to be ornaments, they were an important safety device. Travelling along snowy roads, visibility was often compromised. Winter storms, high winds, and the long, dark hours of winter limited visibility to a very short distance. Sleighs gliding on snow-packed roads gave little signal of their presence until they were virtually head to head or tail to tail to one another. A horse or horses running at full speed would be likely to run into an approaching horse, or into the back of a slower moving sleigh almost before its presence was even noticed. The sound of sleigh bells alerted a driver he was not alone and indicated the type of sleigh approaching. On cutter
sleighs, the bells were usually a sequence of small bells mounted directly on the harness. You might describe the sound as tinkling. Heavier sleighs with large brass bells attached to the shafts of the sleigh rang out loud. Our large sleigh had six bells on each shaft sending a distinct warning to others. Should the sleigh be drawn by a team, the bells were attached to the centre pole. Each set of bells had a distinct sound and drivers could usually identify the approaching sleigh before it came into sight.
On the narrow, snowy roads, some places with snowbanks on either side, sleighs meeting or passing could be a very tricky operation. Knowing a meeting or passing was inevitable, both drivers would seek an appropriate spot, according to the type of sleigh approaching, to pull over and give way to meet. The silence of the bells on the sleigh stopping to wait would indicate to the other driver that there was a possible meeting place to pass ahead. He would then approach slowly and oer thanks as he went by.
Yes, while bells primarily served a purpose, they were also a joy to hear, and admire, glittering in the winter sunshine. Beverley Prud’homme, Rawdon, Que.