Browse:"CHANNEL DE WORLD" (Volume 5, entries 10604–13458)/Part 28
"CHANNEL DE WORLD"
Volume 5, entries 10604–13458. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
1 listed entry is unavailable here.
Entries
Entry 12764
To bring husband back the root doctor has the woman write the man a letter, address envelope, put on stamps, but leaves it open so that he can insert his medicine, seal envelope, and personally mail it. This was a very common practice everywhere. Somewhere in HOODOO, in Savannah[?], my contact man feared the money he was sending home to his wife would not reach her. A root worker I had just interviewed went through a ceremony with the letter to ensure its safe arrival.
Entry 12765
Two roots crossed and buried in front of door gave pains in feet of victim crossing; in this case he becoming paralized. [Wilmington 271:6+85.]
Entry 12766
Roots 3: devil's-shoestring, bitter apple, John de Conkah - mix with 4 substances: black pepper, cayenne pepper, salt and sulphur: then name it, sweep it, and man'll leave.
Entry 12767
You know - well, dis about - about Adam-an'-Eve. You see Adam is two buttoag [2 root bulbs attached] rep resent two buttons - is locy buttons. I don't know exactly what harm in dem but dey says dey is locy but- tons, Adam-an'-Eve. Well you get dem an' get dis John de Conkah - says dat lucky - and somepin like rattlesnake master.
(Rattlesnake master?)
Yes, sir, is round I think. Dere's [also] sweet root, it's de ost stringy- lookin' root. See, you drink dat, dat's medicine. Jes' Ltke aaybody's got a pain in his stock [stomach?] dat ease de pain. Well, dat's all I know what dat intended for. Dat suppose be for medicine. I know black root and white root, dat's for colds. You cut dem up together, see and bile dem and see, you make medicine outen dat. Rhubarb and some kind of...
Entry 12768
(Well, how do you get them out with prickle feet?)
De prickle feet is shaped jes' like my hand [demonstrates]. See how my hand is shaped. All right, you shape it sompin like dat an' she [root] got a bobble [bump] on top. (What?) See, dem little ball. All right. Sometimes you find 'em wit three balls, sometimes dey come out wit one. She got a face in it. An' yo' picks de teeth out. Yo' cut it in half. Don' let de stingers hit chew because dey sticks in yo' finger an' yo' have to pick at it all day long tryin' to git one out - half hour to git one stinger out. An' yo' cuts dat [root] open an' set 'em on [in] de bes' whiskey yo' got an' give it to eny person if dey got a cat [dog] in 'em. She'll pass 'em out. If she got a rat in her, dat bring it out. If it in yore haid, it come through yuh mouth - mouth, nose an' ears. Can't nowhow stay in 'em no less dan ten minutes aftah yo' git dat medicine. Comes right out of 'em.
(What is this prickle feet? A plant or a fish?)
Dat's a plant, dat's root. [Charleston, S. Car., (519), 614:1.]:
Entry 12769
(What do they do with that if they get hold of your blood?)
Dey kin git a hold of yo' blood an' have yo' kind of paralyzed; or have your blood stuffed, by taking it an' putting it in a certain place. An' yo'll have to use prickle feet an' bloodroot an' blackroot to run dat bad blood back, an' to run dat evil blood what de [they] wanna put dat stuff in. (What do they do with your blood, if they get hold of it?) Oh, dey cud take dat blood an' have silver plate put in it [put your blood in a silver plate]. By dat's chure blood an' yo' drawin' out de silver plate, an' yo'll have someone near, close to yuh, to give dat blood back to yuh, after yo' done draws it wit de silver plate. To have plates to be drawin' in yo', some of yo' close relatives.
(How can you get that blood back in you, then?)
They drink it. (And how do you fix these plates up to get that bad blood out of you again? How do you fix those roots up?) Well, you take de prickle feet an' yo' set it in whiskey. Yo' take de blood- root an' yo' set 'at in whiskey - right on de prickle feets. Yo' set de black- snake root right on de prickles feet root, an' drink it three spoonful a day.
(That gets the bad blood out of you?)
Take de bad blood out. (Well this fellow that gets your blood, what does he do to make it bad blood?) Set it in a silver plate. After he set it in de silver plate, de blood draws in de silver plate. Den he begin to scrape. Put hot water on dere, a little water, an' it draws dat back an' it start back to yuh by some kind of drink yo' use. Yo' best friend will give you dat. He cannot give it to yo', 'cause he cannot git to yuh. After he git dis blood, he'll have to git someone else to git to yuh.
Entry 12770
Well, a person take dat - sometime dey got rattlesnake [dust] in it, rattlesnake dust an' graveyard dust. If yo' step across it, it run in yuh. See, den dat becomes - grows - forms other rattlesnakes [in you]. So de king of de woods to do all dat work, is prickle feet - jest as I give it to yuh.
(That is to get that out.)
To get that out.
Entry 12771
Now, it's hard fer yo' to get de dead man's bone, but if yo' kin git de deadman's bones, yo' goin' to use dis thing out de woods what chew call de pickle [prickle] feet too. Wal yo' goin't' git dat deadman's bone out de [graveyard] an' yo'll take dat an' take it to yo' house. Yo' goin' scrape dat. Now yo've got sompin ag'in me. Yo've got sompin ag'in me. Yo' don't want nobody to git next to yo'. Yo' goin' to take one scrapin' of dat bone an' scrape it fer yo'self fust [first]. Yo' fust part in dat scrapin' yo' will bind 'em down to yo'. (Well, what do you do after you scrape that? What do you do with that scrap- ing?) De fust part of de scrapin', yo' keep dat.
(What do you do with the rest of it?)
When yo' want to scatter it, scatter it out do' de no't an' de so't. Dat to hold yo' enemy from yo'.
(What do you do with that prickle feet then?)
Dat prickle feet - dat prickle feet is de devil. Dat prickle feet hold yo' from start to finish. Yo' kin use dat prickle feet to de no't', to de s'ut', to de west - any way yo' wanta use it; but chew Wanta handle it wit care.
Entry 12772
Yo' wanta git a job from de boss. Yo' take dat prickle feet an' yo' make chew a small bag an' take an' put nine drops of Hearts Cologne an' drap it in yore hand. Rub yore prickle feet befo' yo' go. An' when yo' go to de boss, yo' go to him wit it in yore hand - talking to him. An' when yo' gits through talkin' to him, yo' cast yore hands out like dat [demonstrates] an' he can't do no mo' den say yes.
[Remember, you rub prickle feet only after you have removed the prickles.]
(How do you use this prickle feet?)
Yo' go in de woods an' git dat - go in de woods an' git dat prickle feet. Yo' cook dat prickle feet. Yo' kin cook it or yo' kin use it dry. Or yo' hn pinch off a little piece an' rub it [demonstrates]. (Do you rub it with that liquid, too? Do you rub them together or [leave them] separate?) Yo' kin rub it. After yo' git it - it's about dat long [demonstrates]. Yo' kin pinch off a little bit of piece, a little piece of it, an' yo' kin rub it in yore [demonstrates] han'. An' whenever yo' gotta go, yo' git dat nine drops of Hearts Cologne an' rub it in yore hand like dat, de whole tine dat chew talkin' to dis man. Want dis job. He will talk to yo'. An' quick as yo' done open yore hand, dat odor done hits his face, yo' see. Understand? Well, he gotta say yes.
Entry 12773
[The following title is one of the finest things in HOODOO. Here we have a professional root doctor telling us how and where to find roots in the woods. A little of the supernatural surrounds the search. Moreover he assumes the author wants to become a doctor! Let me say here, as I have probably said elsewhere, at no time did I ever pretend to be or say I wanted to become a doctor. Always I was collecting material for a book, a usable manual describing these things for other persons. Never was there any pretense. We keep things in the natural world as far as I was concerned. The rite following this one, by the same doctor, should also be read.] Now, dat's if yo' don' know nothin'. All right, yo' go to de fo'k of de road. Yo' got dat prickle feet wit chew. Yo' wants to git nex' to a lotta folks in town. Yo' wants to be a "doctor"? Yo' wants to know how to grab medicine out de woods? Well, to know how to git medicine out de woods, you go to de fo'k of de road an' take chure prickle feet wit chew. Well, now it will come to yuh plain. Go across heah an' take up a certain piece of root. Show yuh exactly what it is. Go across out in de road, de fork of de road. Yuh go an' pick up jes' whatever yuh go to look for an' it will be sompin dere leads yo'. Yo'll come back to de fo'k of de road an' sompin will come to yo' ag'in an' tell yo' to go to yo' right when yo' go to your right yo'll pick up de nex' thing yo' knows: maybe a lobelia, hippo or five-fingah [grass] or de seven seams[?] grass or de blacksnake root. Yo' goin' pick it up. Well, yo' bring dat out but chew gotta learn den what to do wit dat thing. Dere be sompin teach yo' befo' yo' git back dere what yo' does wit it.
(I see. Well tell me how to use these things.)
Entry 12774
If I wanta harm yuh - if I wants tuh harm yuh, I'm goin' show yuh de way I'd harm yuh. Now, ah've got somepin dat ah wants to git nex' to yo' fo'. Ah'll come to yore house an' sit down an' talk wit chew today. Dat to git de sense to see what chew, yuh notice me about, if yo' don' notice me too much. Den tomorrah when ah come back, ah bring my dose [mix- ture] what I wants to git nex' to yo', an' sprinkle it in yore house. An' de day what chew got - understand, dat what chew got. When ah leave yo' house, [you] will always wanta see me all de time.
(Well, what sort of dose would you fix up?)
Well, ah'll fix up sompin wit lobelia and hippo - lobelia and hippo root. [This may be my only example of Hippo, the name of the blood flower from the Bahamas.] Now ah git blacksnake powder or rattlesnake powder an' tie yo' up.
(Rattlesnake powder?)
Rattlesnake powder an' tie yuh up. Yo' take dis rattlesnake powder - yo' take it an' bring it wit chew out de Woods an' yo' put one knot in it. Git de blacksnake-shoestring [he means] de devil's-shoestring. Tie dat together an' ah've got chew.
(What is this blacksnake root that you tie up?)
Blacksnake root? Blacksnake root supposed to conkah anything yo' start after, an' rattlesnake powder...
(Rattlesnake powder?)
Rattlesnake powder, dat's a big bush grows about dat high an' grows about dat wide [demonstrates]. Yo' kin take it - yo' kin go to de woods an' take it an put it in yore yard or plant it in yore flowers. But it's no good heah to yuh, yo' gotta git it out de woods. Git chew five-fingah grass. It grows about dat high [demonstrates]. Yo've seen snake's tongue, ain't chew? Well it jes' like a snake's tongue. It grows about dat high [demonstrates], from de ground an' it spread out jes' like a snake's tongue.
(Well, what do you do with that five-finger grass?)
Yo' take dat an' bring it to yore house an' conkah anybody dat chew wanta come by. Anything dat come to yo' mind to do, yo' kin do it. Yo' don't miss nuthin.
Entry 12775
[Letter "s" in this long CHANNEL DE WORLD division begins perhaps with the largest sentence in HOODOO:] They say, if yo' take the Twelve Apos- tle's names like I told joo, an' write 'em on a piece of paper, or each Apostle's name on a sage leaf, an' have the Apos- tle's names on another piece of paper, fold them toward joo all the time, an' keeps 'em in your pocket an' have 'em whensomever yo' go for a job, they say he'll [you will] more than apt to be lucky. [For sage leaves and court see also No.9117-9137, some of which also contain 12 Apostles, v.4.]
Entry 12776
Git sage an' put it in de fo' corners of yo' place of business, dat'll draw customers. [Waycross 1775:15.]
Entry 12777
Well, yo' have St. Peter in yore house. St. Peter, he's a good saint, see. [Put his picture or small statue] right ovah yore do'. That's luck fo' yo'. [Algiers 2900:3.]
Entry 12778
Well, tell yo' how you do that. Now, if you got a woman and you want her, say. Now, you and her drink out de same cup. And you'll drink out dis cup and you take yore tongue, and when you drinking in dis cup, you might slobber in de cup, and she [her lips touch cup] or sompin like that. Yo'll throw it up [into air]. She gain that [goes up into air]. Well, she is crazy about chew den. [Two lips coming together, or kissing, used to be called swap- ping spit, an Irish expression according to my wife who was half Celtic Irish, half German.]
Entry 12779
Ah heard you could take - get some kind of oil and stuff and use like that, and then, if anybody [in the game] had any wager in dere against you, or you was playing against wager or somepin like dat, why you could take dat. Take a frog - use a toadfrog and carry 'em in dere, and take that salt and pepper and sprinkle it.... [Here I turned off machine but decided to continue.]
(How do you...)
[You are having bad luck because someone:]
Done went to somewhere and got somepin stronger than what you got dere - Luck.
(What do you do with that frog?)
You put him in your pocket.
(I see. And what about the salt and pepper?)
You take that salt and pepper and sprinkle it around in your house where you playing at.
(I see. That's to break up that wager.)
Wager that luck against you.
(That weight [luck] against you.)
Entry 12780
An' ole lady, she'd dead now, she tole me if a person ever git shoo [gets you] by [bad mouth or cunjure], not to say anything at all to them. Go to work and git me a pocketful of table salt and go to de gate where dey crosses over, ev'ry night and morning, and jis' throw dat salt across dere before de sunrise, and say de Lord's Prayer for 5 times. Soon as dat person goes over dere dey can't harm you.
Entry 12781
First day of each month buy new box of salt, hold in right hand and throw in every corner, all four corners of the world, [throw in the 4 directions oa throw into 4 corners of room or 4 corners of house] nobody can harm you. [Informant got this in New Orleans, went there with lady friend for 3 days.]
Entry 12782
Salt in left shoe gives you bad luck. [Avoid this by looking into shoe before putting it on.] [Richmond 335:4.]
Entry 12783
If visitor is going to cause trouble, throw salt in front of him be- fore he enters door. [This is unusual, rare, but certainly possible.] [Memphis 1569:1.]
Entry 12784
If you throw salt into unwelcome person's departing tracks, he will never return. [Wilmington 189:5+85.]
Entry 12785
To be effective buy 1 pound of new salt, sprinkle behind unwelcome guest from where he was sitting to outside, then sweep out. [Old Point Comfort, Va., by Ediphone.]
Entry 12786
To keep undesired visitor away, sprinkle salt in the yard where it can be seen and he will not come in. [Hampton, Va., by Ediphone.]
Entry 12787
Salt merely thrown in direction person lives will keep him or her away - how long? [Ocean City, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12788
After you throw salt behind unwanted guest, sweep 9 times with new broom. [Fredericksburg, by Ediphone.
Entry 12789
Unwanted visitor will not return if after his departure you wash the doorstep with a pound of salt in water. [Presumably this should be new salt and kept ready for the occasion.] [Fredericksburg, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12790
Throw salt behind departing person and say, "Joo go an' nevah come back." [Wilmington 111:10+85.]
Entry 12791
Keep unwanted person away by throwing salt behind him and sweeping it out. [Wilmington 113:3+85; Petersburg, 423:3; Fredericksburg, by Ediphone; everywhere.]
Entry 12792
Salt behind departing guest without sweeping. [Petersburg, Va. 427:1; Richmond, 297:4; Hampton, by Ediphone; Newport News, 498:5; Mobile, 908:2.]
Entry 12793
"Have you some salt an' sprinkle it all on him. Get back aroun dere, jis' keep it fallin' off. Dat hecklin' him an' he cain't win nuttin gami bling." [Little Rock 1469:7.]
Entry 12794
"Jis' like I was settin' somewheres playin' a game, somebody sprinkle salt on me, thats bad luck." [Richmond 318:12.]
Entry 12795
If you wear salt and pepper in heels of shoes, no one can harm you.
[Washington, D. C., 1813:3.]
Entry 12796
If people gwine put down somepin for you, you put salt and red pepper in your shoes...you step over it, it won't do you no harm. [Vicksburg 1010:6; Little Rock, 1463:16.]
Entry 12797
You take salt and red pepper...sprinkle this place an' they can't do you no harm. [Vicksburg, 1057:13.]
Entry 12798
Burn salt and pepper in the stove every evening at 6 o'clock and read a Psalm against person trying to harm you. [Washington, D.c., 807:6.]
Entry 12799
Teaspoonful each of salt, red pepper, and black pepper, if eneies in your house; runs them out. [Washington, D. C., 838:2.]
Entry 12801
Get choo a bran'-new broom an'...salt...when dey go out yo' jes' take some in your han'...an' throw it so it will hit 'em as dey go out. An' take de broom an' sweep, dey won't come back. [Mobile 886:2.]
The printed instruction contains ellipses; omitted wording is not supplied.
Entry 12802
Throw salt behind departing person, sweep 9 strokes, and he will not return. [Mobile 890:4.]
Entry 12803
With new package of salt, sprinkle it behind departing visitor, say, "I don't want so-an'-so here at mah house." Sweep as far out as possible.
[Mobile 942:1.]
Entry 12804
They throw salt into house when they leave, sweep it out of house, and tell them [unknown new renters] to keep out. [Mobile 877:1.]
Entry 12805
As a protection against conjure, wear salt in left shoe. [Snow Hill 2:2.]
Entry 12808
You have the idea that they put somepin down, you jis' git some salt, sprinkle it over it...it will kill it. [Jacksonville 785:4.]
The informant describes getting salt when something is thought to have been put down, followed by an attributed sprinkling and kill-it claim.
Entry 12809
Even if you have no suspicion of conjure outside your home, sprinkle salt outside to be on safe side. [Petersburg, first visit, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12810
Salt sifted about your yard in the morning kills anything put dowD overnight. [Fredricksburg, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12811
I have heard an old lady say that along about sundown that, if one should go out to the front door and throw out a handful of salt, no evils will approach that house over the night. [Berlin, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12812
If an evil person comes in your house, go to the back door with salt in your hand and throw the salt over your right shoulder with your back turned to the door, and don't look back [at back door] to keep from having bad luck.
[Fredericksburg, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12813
If someone is living in the house with you and you want that person to leave, throw salt behind him and sweep it behind him for 9 mornings. wll- mington 106:9+85.]
Entry 12814
Throw salt under person's doorstep to make him move. [Petersburg, 2nd trip, 421:1.]
Entry 12815
To sprinkle salt in a person's house causes fussing in that bouse.
[Baltimore 43:3.]
Entry 12816
Take salt, jis' table salt and throw it all around the steps, and that will make confusion. [New Orleans 1158:7.]
Entry 12817
If a person come to yore house an' yo' don' want 'em dere no mo' [they] said yo' take [shake?] some salt down behin 'em an' dey said dey'll stay away. [Fayetteville 2527:18.]
Entry 12819
If you put salt in a bag and lay it over the top of the door, that will keep the law away. [Richmond 375:2.]
Entry 12820
Bathe your feet in hot water with salt and ammonia an' nothin [no conjure] can bother you...if you walk on there. [New Orleans 1365:6.]
Entry 12821
If you put salt and pepper under the chair on which visitor will sit, then when he leaves throw salt and pepper behind him, he will not return. [St. James, black community or Eastern Shore of Maryland, by hand.]
Entry 12822
Throw salt and cayenne pepper after departing person and say without his hearing you, Go out. Do this on 3 visits. [Newport News 500:1.]
Entry 12823
If a person is unwelcome, throw salt and cayenne pepper behind him and he will not return. [Petersburg, 424:2; Norfolk, 493:7; Fredericksburg, by Ediphone; Richmond, 290:4; Wilmington, 195:6+85.]
Entry 12824
Throw salt and red pepper behind unwanted guest and sweep. [Norfolk 431:5.]
Entry 12825
After an undesirable guest, sweep out salt and pepper and wish he does not return. [Richmond 325:4.]
Entry 12826
Behind undesirable departing guest throw salt and pepper and sweep.
[Wilmington 116:12+85.]
Entry 12827
Behind unwanted guest throw new salt and new cayenne pepper, and sweep with new broom. [Wilmington 79:3+85.]
Entry 12828
Under chair on which undesirable guest sits throw salt and black pepper and sweep it out after him. [Wilmington 74:1+85.]
Entry 12829
Sweep behind departing person, then sprinkle salt and pepper all over the floor and doorstep. [Fredericksburg, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12830
Bury a small package of black pepper and salt at steps to keep away undesirable visitors. [Fredericksburg, by Ediphone.]
Entry 12831
To separate man and woman, mix black pepper and salt and put it in her window sill. [Norfolk 494:2.]
Entry 12832
"Sprinkle salt and pepper around there at twelve o'clock at night, and they claim when they walks through this, they gets their feet hurtin'. They eventually leave there [their home] completely." [Richmond 459:1.]
Entry 12833
When they leave [your house], take salt and pepper, follow them to gate, drop these behind them, then sweep the house, and they won't come again.
[Memphis 1559:12.]
The item describes sweeping after a departure-related sequence and attributes a future non-return consequence to it.
Entry 12834
Sprinkle salt and pepper about house at midnight. After the occupant walks over this, his feet will begin hurting and he will move. [Richmond 335:1.]
Entry 12835
Salt and pepper are sprinkled near house as a protection. [Deal Island 24:1.]
Entry 12836
To protect yourself, sprinkle salt and pepper at the door. [Peters- burg 429:9.]
Entry 12837
As a protection, salt and black pepper are sprinkled in the house.
[Wilmington 165:5+85.]
Entry 12838
Protect yourself by wearing salt and pepper in your shoes. [Deal Island, Md., 18:2; Wilmington 175:3+85; Petersburg, 422:8; Norfolk 426:4; Elizabeth City 511:4.]
Entry 12839
Salt and red pepper are worn in left shoe for protection. [Wilming- ton, 168:8+85.]
Entry 12840
Make a ring of salt and pepper completely round the outside of your house for protection. [Norfolk 466:4; Deal Island, informant 123, cyl. 34.]
Entry 12841
Pepper and salt thrown outdoors brings peace to the house. [Wilming- ton 200:3+85.]
Entry 12842
The informant did most of the following rite in pantomine: He mixed salt and pepper, divided it into 3 piles, dug 3 small trenches going straight out from the door and parallel to each other, put one pile of this mixture in each trench, and covered it with the words, "Go devil." No evil person can cross over those trenches. [Wilmington 148:2+85.]
Entry 12843
As a protection against evil, wear 3 ingredients in your shoes: pep- per, fish salt, and burnt alum. [Fredericksburg, by Ediphone.]