Maker hooks were long, thin shafts of spiceplastic, ranging in length from 1.35 meters to 2.1 meters, and in diameter from 1.0 to 1.47 cm, differing no doubt according to the size of the beast and the degree of skill of their users. At one end of the shaft was bonded a plastccl hook, barbed at the tip and having a radius of curvature of from 10.6 to 12 cm. The opposite end was molded to fit the grip of the user and then roughened to a coarseness of 28 grit. Their use of maker hooks brings the boldness of the Fremen into sharp focus. After activating a thumper to summon a 372 giant maker, the bookman (first mounter) stood aside from the approaching worm As the maker went by, the bookman inserted one hook beneath the leading edge of one of the sandworm's rings, and the other hook at a slightly lower point on the next ring The bookman braced himself back on the hooks, rolling upward with the worm as it rotated away from the threat of sand entering the gap opened by the two hooks Once up, the hookman and followers steered the worm by opening gaps down one side of the beast, prompting it to roll away from Ihe gaps, to prevent s>and getting in Hooks were important in the rremen culture A youth who had been first up was entitled to his own hooks, it was one important badge of adulthood Some investigators believe that young men earned their Fremkits one piece at a time, and that maker hooks was the foundation of the Fremkit "collection " A hook that had never failed was thought to be especially lucky, and its owner was granted special respect Also, when a hookman missed an attempt, that boded bad luck for the tribe or group for die rest of the day Further refertBce: FREMKIT MALKY, ERUM (13632-13724) Ixian Ambassador to the God Emperor's court for more man two decades (13690-13712) Erhn Malky ranked as the one member of his people, other than his "niece, ' Hwi Noree, successful in achieving intimacy with the Lord Leto He reached this level of familiarity not only because of hts efforts toward it, but because of a unique combination of personality dnd experience which predisposed him toward such a role Born to Piter and Charmaine Malky, both members of the ruling body known as the Inquisitors of Ix, Erhn Malfcy was exposed from his earnest years to the Byzantine mtn cacies of hum politics He demonstrated his intuitive understanding of the process when at age ten, he suggested the trulv Machiave! lian scheme which resulted in the ouster of three senior Inquisitors and the appointment of ms mother Charmaine as the body s effec live leader Though the prodigy s contribution to this takeover (known in Ixian histories as the "Coup of 13642 ') was not acknowledged until several years after the deaths of both his parents, rumors of his part in the coup spread to every sector of Ixian government shortly after its success The young Malky was sought out by those many yea