Browse:FOLK MEDICINE (Volume 1, entries 963–1706)/Part 10
FOLK MEDICINE
Volume 1, entries 963–1706. Source context: THE DOCTORS AT WORK: REPORTS FROM LAYMEN. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
1 listed entry is unavailable here.
Entries
Entry 1684
If yo' got de toothache, yo' see, yo' go where de lightnin' struck a tree on de no'th side. If yo' have de toothache or de neuralgia, yo' go where de lightnin' struck dat tree on de no'th side, git a splinter an' pick dat gum - dat leaves yo'.
Entry 1685
Weli, if it wus struck wit de lightnin' - if yo' have toothache yo know, yo' take [a splinter from] the root of it an' picks yore tooth until yore teeth bleed where de teeth 'gin on top [pick the gum], den bo' a hole an' put it [splinter] in de tree. Dey say dat will cure yo' tooth.
(What tree do you put that in? You don't go back to the same tree?)
De tree dat de lightnin' struck, yo' kin put it in dat tree, or yo' kin put it in anothah one, it doesn't make no diff'rence.
Entry 1686
Ah heard whut hit about but hit will do yo' good. Yo' take a splinter from a tree whut struck by lightnin' an' trim it off clean an' pick yore teeth wit it, an' go to a 'simmon tree an' cut it off 'bout dat long an' split de 'simmon tree an' drive it in - drive de splinter in dere where yo' pick yore teeth with it for de toothache. An' drive dat splinter in dere an' tie a string around it an' let it stay dere, an' dat stop yore teeth from achin'. Dat's all ah heered about it.
Entry 1687
It's fine fo' toothaches.
(That wood from a tree struck by lightning?)
Yes.
(What do you do at first, now?)
Yo' git that piece of that timber that's been struck by de lightnin' an' git de blood from round de tooth, somewhere near de tooth dat aches, an' carry that to a tree, a oak tree, de no'th side of it, an' pull de bark down an' put that blood in there an' shove it back up, an' that kills yore toothache.
Entry 1688
Ah said a tree struck by lightnin', if yo' don't want dat person no way 'bout chure home - to stay 'way from dere. Now, yo' kin go tuh dat tree an' yo' kin git chew three chip offa dat tree, an' yo' [take] one an' put it ovah yonder ovah dat do' ovah dere, one put chere, an' one put chere, an' he won't be able tuh come dere. He'll steer an' go on right on 'cross - he won't come disaway, he go right on disaway. Well, dat's all ah heered about a lightnin' tree. (You put the three chips in a row going to your house? The three right in a row?) Dat's right.
Entry 1689
Ah heard that if yo' wanta keep anybody from hurtin' yo' with roots, tuh go to a lightnin'-struck tree an' cut yo' off a piece of it an' don't let it touch de ground until yo' git ready tuh put it in de ground. Be sure yo' hold it whilst yo' cut it an' don't let it hit de ground. An' cut chew off fo' splinter, split chew fo' stakes of it an' carry dem home with yo' an' drive dem fo' stakes to de fo' corners of yore house, an' dere won't be no danger of nobody puttin down any roots or anything roun' yore place to hurt chew.
Entry 1690
Ah've heard dat chew - jes' like if yo' want tuh do somepin other, anything dat chew wanta do, why yo' kin go to a thunder-strucken tree an' git jesta chip off dat tree, an' yo' take it an' go to de fo'ks of a road, where de roads crosses, an' yo' stick it down dere, an' when yo' stick it down dere, jest like if yo' wanted a person dat done somepin to yo', yo' call his name three times an' say, "In de Name of de Father, Son an' Holy Ghost, let not dis trouble come upon me." Well, now dat's all ah've heard about dat.
(You can do almost anything you want to by doing that out there?)
Yassuh. (You can tell them to leave or you can tell them to stop bothering - you can tell them almost anything? That the idea?) Yassuh.
The informant reports a chip from a lightning-struck tree placed where roads cross, naming someone three times and a spoken request against trouble. Two interviewer questions broaden the proposed purpose and receive affirmative answers; those prompts and the informant's limited hearsay remain explicit.
Entry 1691
Ah'm gon'a tell yo' - yo' wanta know whut would yo' do to keep 'em from harmin' yo'. Well, yo'll git in a path or road dat come from yore do'. Yo'll dig a hole wit chure tablespoon and when yo' dig that hole, yo'll go an' take a aig - any kind of a hen aig, jes' long as it a aig, and den yo'll take two sticks of a lightnin'-strike tree - yo' know what ah mean, an' yo'll nail them down on each side of that aig - wit dat aig down in de hole. [This is a mock burial - the egg a body and the two sticks the headboard and footboard of a grave.] An' then yo'll take yo' some physic salts, an' yo'll take that physic salts an' sulphur an' bluestone an' make a powders of that, an' yo' kin put it down dere where that aig is, an' yo' set it down an' kiver it up. De parties who dat yo' say, or anybody who yo' think will harm yo', why then when yo' done put dat down, yo'll curse it. An' when yo' curse it yo' jes' kick at 'em, and den go turn yore back - don't nevah look back. Now, that's the story of that as fur as ah know. Well, now if a man walk ovah that and if yo' do lak that, it causes me, if ah aim tuh do yo' some harm - all of that will come back to me.
Entry 1692
Git brimstone an' den git - dere's somethin' grows in de woods dey call Indian turnip or Indian potatuh [jack-in-the-pulpit] - it looks lak a.
(I know - kind of like a potato?)
Yes. Well, dey takes that an' goes in de woods where de lightnin' strike a tree - if it's a dead tree it's all right an' if it's a green one, jes' so de lightnin' strike it an' scatter de splinters, de splinters jes' fly in diff'rent directions. Dem splinters will go in diff'rent directions an' den yo' must take dem splinters after yo' pick up 'em an' den burn 'em till yo' git de ashes, an den compound dat 'tater up wit it an' put dem two together an' sprinkle dat roun' de house. Well, he can't come up there.
(That is if anybody is trying to put anything down for you - harm you.)
Yes - dat'll change his mind, that will kill it, he can't come ovah it.
(That will kill what he puts down?)
Yessuh, he jes' can't come ovah it.
Entry 1693
[Although lightning-struck wood is used for cures and protection, it can also be dangerous:] It's bad luck tuh burn it - de tree struck by lightnin'.
Entry 1694
If yo' use de wood of a lightnin'-striked tree - if yo' use de wood, de lightnin' Would strike yore house.
Entry 1695
If yo' walkin' by yo'self at night, jes' stick 'em back of yore ear - de matches. Dey say dat will keep anything from scarin' yo'. Dat's all ah hear about matches. (Just one back of each ear?) Yessuh, behin' each ear.
Entry 1696
See, lak de haid of de bed, takes de matches an' cross 'em, dey cross 'em jes' lak dat up undah de pillah an' go on tuh sleep. Dat supposed tuh drive spirits away if de spirits are worryin' yo' when yo' kilt someone.
Entry 1697
Yo' take de matches if yo' goin' anywhere in de night an' scared - jes' take dem matches, take two, an' stick one right in yo' haid. Put de strikin' part dis way [demonstrates]. (You take the sulphur part and set it in your head over your forehead - right up through your hair.) An' dat will cross [demonstrates]. (You make a cross.) [The match in the hair crosses the match held in the mouth.] An' put one in de mout' an' go anywhere yo' wants - yo' won't be scared atall an' nuthin won't bother yo', not a thing.
Entry 1698
If they gets holt of your hair and you want to prevent the misery and ev'ry what they have, you'll cross those matches in your haid. You wear that, or either put sulphur in the mole of your head, and it will kill that out. Wear the sulphur in the mole of your head.
(How do you cross those matches in your head?)
You'll put one this way and one this way - just make a cross through your hair, right in the mole of your head.
(Just use two matches?)
You kin use three. [This is the double-cross as well as the Trinity.]
(Three.)
Entry 1699
They take and cross three matches in the haid - that's if you got a headache.
Entry 1700
Ah heard of 'em takin' nine matches, if yo' have a severe headache. Yo' take nine matches an' yo' cross them nine matches an' yo' put 'em diff'rent places - jes' diff'rent places in yore home, an' if it's anyone causin' yo' tuh have that headache or that pain, or anything yo' might have, in nine hours or nine days dey'll appeah dere.
Entry 1701
Say, if you got headache and you done taken things to cure it and it don't cure it - so, you see, they got two color matches in a box. You see, you take a red match - you know them red p'ints, and you take a blue one. Well, you put one in your hair like this, and you put the other one like that - see, you cross 'em in your hair.
(Like an "x" - like a cross?)
Just like "x" - and you wear it in your hair for nine days and then your head- ache begin to pass off.
Entry 1702
[Lightwood in Southern United States means pine, often the Georgia or long-leaf pine (Pinus palustris Mill). Lighters are small pieces of pitch-filled pine used in starting a fire; these coming from a lighter pine or lightwood tree. Iighters appear somewhat frequently in other rites but rarely in cures and protection.] Take some lighters. You get them from offen the north side of a pine, you know, the lighter pine, lightwood, and make splinters of it. [Except in this rite, lighters come from any side or part of the pine.] Chew make nine and dig a hole. You.get these sticks, now, offen this pine and you get it offen the north side and you take and make nine splinters of it. You make 'em so many inches long, just as long as you wish. Make notches in them just as many as you wish to make, you see. Most in general you just make nine. And you dig a hole such a depth, I think round about twelve inches or eighteen in the ground. Then you cross them and make your wish.
(How do vou mean cross them?)
You put 'em across like that in the ground.
(Like a rail fence?)
Yeh, like a rail fence - only they're sticking in the ground though. You stick 'em down and cross 'em like that. That's to purwent anyone from inter- fering with you around this home.
Entry 1703
Now yo' take a woodpecker - now, he'll git up an' he'll peck a hole in a tree. Well now, yo' take dat sap [wood peckings] - dat inside whut he pick out dere, yo' take dat an' yo' kin powder it up an' yo' kin use hit fo' sickness. Yo' take dat wood he peck out dere an' yo' carry it home an' yo' keep it in a box or somepin, an'. it's lak if you have a toothache, yo' take one splinter[iil of dat, pick yore teeth until it bleeds. Well, yo' take dat blood den an' yo' wipe it on a silk piece of cloth. After yo' wipe it on a silk piece of cloth, yo' take dat little silk piece an' carry it an' put it in de fire - kinda put it right under de grate [under a brick] in de fireplace. When yo' put it under dere yo' speak two words, say, "Stay till." Don't nevah say nuthin else. Jest say, "Stay till, stay till [doomsday]." Well, now dat cures de toothache on yo'.
Entry 1704
A wood louse is good fo' yallah ja'ndice. Yo' take nine wood louse an' put it in sweet milk an' feed it to de person an' dat kill de yallah ja'ndice.
Entry 1705
A wood rat. You can take that rat's skin and dry it and make him eat it and that'll stop him from wetting the bed. [The more usual folklore remedy is eating a mouse prepared many ways (Nos. 6308-6309); similar cures being a head louse eaten (No. 6306), or drinking tea from "white droppings of a dog" (No. 6302) - FACI,2ed., 1965, p.289.] [New Orleans, La., (855), 1352:6.] [What is a hand? A hand is a magic helper, an object or act, which aids a person in obtaining a desire. Aladdin's lamp was not a hand because anyone could rub it to activate the indwelling spirit. Quite otherwise a hand concerns known user - it being dressed, powered for him alone, usually toward a single purpose.] [We have already examined many hands: the Black Cat Lucky Bone (pp.74-97); healing hands in Cure and Protection (pp.4lO-519); divining hands in Diagnosis (pp.165-217), particularly the talking hand, Jack (pp.190-193). Talking hand reminds me that hand has other names, among them - toby, guide, shield, roots, mojo, jomo (transposition of syllables in mojo), and hoodoo bag.] [Of interest are what I name battery hands - those that lose strength and must be recharged or they weaken and die. Recharging is called feeding and substances fed are whiskey, perfumes, urine and other liquids. Spirits do not eat solid food. A spirit of course never dies; it merely deserts its temporary dwelling place. Similarly, desertion happens to a lost hand - some informants believing the hand returns to its maker!] [A hand can become a fetish, even a part of oneself. Most instructive here are living hands - the unfortunate chicken (No. 205, p.58), and the two wandering snakes (No. 239, p.66.]
Entry 1706
An' ah got somepin right chere now in mah pocket - course ah'll show it to yo'. [He shows it.] (What do you call that?) Ah couldn't tell you exactly. (It's wrapped up in a piece of cloth with rubber [elastic band] around it - like a little bag.) Yes sir, an' yo' tote that in yore right pocket an' anything yo' go in you will be successful - 'fore yo' git there yo'll know it: if it on yore mind to don't do that, don't do it; if it on yore mind to do it, go ahead an' do it an' yo'll be successful.
(Do you know what's in the bag?)
No sir, ah don't know.
(You bought it from somebody?)
Yes sir.
Bag is the interviewer description; the informant says he cannot name the object exactly or identify its contents.