This thing is solid brass minus the screw and blade which are steel.

My first thought was some type if wick cutter but that doesn't seem right.

7" long

I want to say I've see this before.

More pics.

Your last pic shows the blade canted to the side, so that a right handed person could engage something? and pull it through the blade, possibly cutting a piece of leather if a curve was desired?  A pistol grip cutter would do a more uniform job on a straight cut.

I thought we had one of these before too. I can't remember what it was for either. To open oysters or clams??

 I also thought clam opener.

I had thought about a button hole cutter, but the blade might be too long.

We did have one before. I think(always a dangerous thing), that it's for killing chickens.

Mike

The one that sold on the 2017 spring "wrenchingnews" auction included documentation on it's role as an expeditious chicken killer (instead of slashing the neck arteries, just crush the brain stem ) --
"0530. Unmarked - - 8" cast aluminum pliers like tool. Identified by markings on one found in the original box as a Humane Chicken Killer made by W. J. Fisher &: Son's of St. James, Man. Canada and Independence, Missouri. Patented was granted May 25, 1937 to William John Fisher and I assume his sons: William Alred Fisher, Alvin Clarence Fisher, Evans Fisher and Victor Hubert Fisher all of Tyvan, Saskatchewan, Canada. According to the patent the pliers is used to pierce the brain of the soon to be Chicken McNuggets thus causing instant death. Excellent, like new. " 

That is cool cool!

Found this picture on the web. It looks like the one "jaw" is supposed to be jammed into the chicken's mouth..?

Wow wow wow.

You guys are really something, thank you! The breadth of knowledge here.

Chickens, I can't believe that's what it is! Never would've guessed.  I better not show the wrong people.

Clams, now that would be perfect if the angle was tweaked.

Seems to me you're going to have an extremely unhappy chicken when you try and jam that thing between his beaks. I think you would see a lot of feathers and chicken "do do" flying around during that operation...not to mention all the squawking.

It would be simpler to use the two nails and a hatchet method, IMHO.

Mike

We always wrung their necks.
True story- I spent 4 years in Tanzania, East Africa, 1965-1969, and often I would buy a chicken at the local market and feed it for a week or two, then have the houseboy kill, pluck, and cook it. He was Muslim, so the proper method was to kill it in a Halal method. Once I showed him how we did it at home and he was almost driven wild by the neck breaking, chicken running around with no head,  and blood everywhere.
He almost refused to cook it!

It does not seem as humane as a swift chop of an ax like my grandfather used.

Hardly seems humane compared to a quick hatchet chop.

Amazin', some of the stuff out there.