Browse:Graveyard Dirt as Poison (Volume 1, entries 655–656)
Graveyard Dirt as Poison
Volume 1, entries 655–656. Source context: THE DOCTORS AT WORK: REPORTS FROM LAYMEN → DOCTOR AND DOCTOR: TWO OPPOSING SYSTEMS OF THOUGHT. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 655
[Poison, then, is any substance charged with evil intent, often assisted by the Word of God or magic rite. Some substances are unnaturally though not toxicologically poisonous - the most deadly of all being graveyard dirt:] I heard a church member said dere's a ole man in de church where he were a member - he ain't got much confidence in 'em now 'cause dey did dat - ole man da'd [that would] git mad at anybody at church; you know, he'd fall out with 'em. Well, he'd go to de graveyard an' reach his han' as far in dere as he could, an'.he'd git some dirt jis' off, jis' as near de coffin as he could, an' wrap it up, [and] bring it on back. Well, he'd put it in somepin thin, cheesecloth or somepin or othah, an' put it in each pocket, in his coat pocket. An' so he'd go to church, you know, until de preacher git to preachin', you know, an' dat de people git to shoutin', why he jis' git to shoutin' an' go right aroun' near dis person [he's 'mad with], you know, an' fis' let dis dus' - it would jus' fly so it'll, a 'hole lot of people would inhale it, an' dey'd git so sometimes dey'd git to coughin'. Well, dey say, if you git enough of it, it'd kill 'em. [Wilmington, N. Car., (215), 208:1; Darien. Ga..1896.1
Hyatt's opening definition of poison is editorial framing. The informant introduces a church member's report and later says 'dey say'; the toxicity and death claims remain source-reported. The final printed citation is incomplete.
Entry 656
And this ole man - he died a sinnerman, but he had played cards up until about one o'clock that night and he was found dead in bed the next morning. So - I don't know what they kin do with it - but when we went to the cemetery to bury this man, there were three women out there, out here in Calv'ry cemetery.
(Calvary cemetery.)
There was three women out there and each one of these women had a cigar box. But there's people visits the cemetery all the time and nobody pays no mind, so - but these women was not presentable to be at the funeral, or out there expecting the funeral or anything, they Was slack and slouchy. So, right where I was standing the undertaker came and snatched these boxes from 'em, and say, "What do you wanta do? kill everybody in Norfolk!" Well, then the people began to - I looked myself - he'd taken these boxes and each one of these boxes had dis dirt in it. Said [someone] you had to get dirt from a sinner man's grave to do ever what was to be done. I don't know what it was.
(I see - they were trying to get some of this dirt.)
Yes, they had it.
The eligible evidence is the narrator's account of dirt in boxes; the later sinner-man grave claim has unresolved attribution.