Browse:HANDS: MAGIC HELPERS (Volume 1, entries 1704–2402)/Part 6
HANDS: MAGIC HELPERS
Volume 1, entries 1704–2402. Source context: THE DOCTORS AT WORK: REPORTS FROM LAYMEN. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 2104
Bluestone, some blueing.
(Is that the blueing you was with?)
Yeah, blueing. Bluestone, brown sugar and scrub your floors first, and den take dat and put it in dat water and rinch your floor. Rinch your floor with it after you mop it, and sweep dat water out de door - all de time, all de time. Ev'ry morning git up and take dat blueing Water and bluestone and brown sugar and make it up and scrub your house. Get you some ensums [incense] and burn dem in dere and den de people be comin'. [Rinch = rinse.] You could be on dat corner and I could be on dis one and if you gittin' all de trade down dere and I ain't gittin' none here, I kin go down dere and stop you from gittin' anything. If de people is comin' by me gwinin' dere, I'll stop 'em from comin' by me. Dey won't never git no further den here. Dey ain't never gwine down dere cus I'm goin' stop 'em on dis end, you see, I'm goin' stop 'em. I'm goin' go out dere and cross 'em out in de road, you see. And when dey get to dat mark, dey goin' - instead of goin' on dey goin' turn and come in here, you see, all de time.
(I see. What sort of a mark did you put in the road?)
Well, I'd go out dere and draw me a mark and take me some.
(What kind of mark did you put?)
I'd just go out dere and draw just a straight line cross de road, just about dat deep, and take me some lucky powder and some lucky mojoo and put it right down in dat and put it on a little piece and put it right down in dat little trench and cover dat right back up, right where de people walk right by. Well, when he git dere he ain't gwine by, he gonna come in here and he ain't got no How come? See, the other fellah be dere and you be down dere, come to argue - how come he ain't gittin' no trade. Ah done took your trade, you see. [Lucky mojoo here is a perfume.]
Entry 2105
A king snake, git his hide yo' know an' skin 'im. Take his hide an' make yo' a underwearing belt out of it - make it jest lak yo' make a money belt. Dey say if yo' put a dollah in dat belt or any piece of paper money - yo' jes' put it in dere an' wear it, dey say if yo' gamble, don't care how much money yo' lose, when yo' git back to dat dollar yo' goin' win in de game. Long as yo' kin keep dat dollar in cir- culation yo' won't nevah lose it when yo' wear it in dat belt. When yo' quit yo' jes' put it right back in dat belt.
Entry 2106
If ah got silver money, ah counts mah silver, but ah hardly evah counts mah pennies - but ah keeps mah silver money specially separate from mah pennies. Well now, ah go tuh trade if ah got pennies. Why ah'll take mah pennies an' use 'em all as fur as ah has tuh go, but ah nevah mix mah pennies wit mah silver money.
Entry 2107
Well, fo' instance, if yo' would give a woman a dollah, papah money an' if she didn't want chew tuh have any money at all, she would take dat dollah an' she would burn it to ashes. An' aftah she burn it to ashes she would open de palm of her han' an' she would blow it; an' yo' see, she would blow dat money in de othah han'. Dat's de same Way de money would go an' yo' would nevah be able tuh keep any - yo' will nevah be able to keep any.
Entry 2108
[This hand I picked up from my colored porter on the Pennsylvania Rail- road between Chester, Pa., and Baltimore, Md., while on my way to collect hoodoo in Fredericksburg, Va. Later I would duplicate this trick by gathering up a May Day rite on the Mississippi River while ferry- ing between New Orleans and Algiers (see No. 986, p.381.] I just happen to be there in this bootleg place - a man goes around sometimes to get a drink - and I noticed pennies nailed across the door. There was a hole right in the center [of each penny]. I guess there was about four pennies. I asked them what that was and they said that was to keep the police away. That was during Prohibition at Tampa, Florida.
Entry 2109
Take a penny an' drive it down in de front of yo' do' an' everybody come ovah dat penny - take a manhead penny an' drive it down in de front of yo' do' where everybody has tuh come in an' ovah dat penny an' yo' have good luck.
(What kind of good luck?)
Selling whiskey or any kinda luck yo' wants. Jest any.
(Just take a penny with a man on it?)
Yes, a manhead penny.
Entry 2110
Jes' in a small business. Like havin' a house. Yo' know like dese houses are. Yo' kin put a Indian heah, penny wit de face pointin' tuh de street, de head on dere wit de face pointin' toward de street, an' a horseshoe ovah de do', an' dat'll draw 'em.
(Draw trade. What kind of a house did you say?)
In any kinda house where dey operatin' - it draws business, sellin' things.
(Selling liquor.)
Entry 2111
[Use a penny fo' luck.
(How would you do that?)
Well, yo' kin take an' drill yo' a hole right in de center of it an' drive it in de center of yo' do' - inside of yo' room. Let de head of it be facing inside an' wet fo' nine mornings wit Hearts Cologne an' that will bring yo' luck.
(Well, what kind of luck?)
That's fo' luck fo' winning money on games.
Entry 2112
Take two pennies an' nail 'em right up to de bottom of de do'sill - yo know, under dat crosspiece.
(Under the sill of the door?)
Yes sir, under de sill of de do'. Dat's lucky to yo', too - two pennies, two rusty pennies.
(That's to bring in trade to the house?)
Yes sir.
Entry 2113
To fix chure house up kinda lak if yo' wanta keep de police an' any- thing out dere. Yo' take a Indian head penny - take two Indian head pennies an' set 'em in de face of yore do' [demonstrates]. (You put one on the right side of the door and one on the other side of the door.) Yassuh.
(Which door do you do that at?)
De front do' - de way dey comes up, dey way dey comes in front.
(That keeps the law away.)
Entry 2114
Drive a penny right in de center [sill] of yo' do' - drive one or two pennies, one in de front do' an' one in de back do'.
(What would that do then?)
Well, dat have - yo' go to de chinaman an' he got some stick, good luck stick. Put dat in yore house an' yo' light dat at twelve a'clock in de day. Dat law won't come to yore house. [Good luck stick = joss stick.]
(That will keep the law away?)
Yeah.
Entry 2115
If yo' bootleggin' an' yo' wants tuh have a plenty customers - when de customers come to yore house yo' jes' offer them a drink of whiskey an' after yo' offer dem dis drink of whiskey, yo' take an' put the sulphur up undah this glass they use an' let it sit there about an hour, an' then yo' take it an' wash it out an' after yo' wash it out an' rinse it out, yo' sit it back there an' yo' git two Indian head pennies an' nail one at yore front do' an' one at chure back do', an' yo'll always have customers. (Now here's the glass that he has used. You put some sulphur in' the glass or under the bottom?) Undah the bottom of the glass.
Entry 2116
Take a penny an' nail a penny down to each one of yore do's, den take it an' drive it down wit one dese little keen nails. Take an' drive dat down les' as fur as yo' kin undah de edge of dat do' - dat front do', an' dey said dat brings luck. An' one up ovah de top.
(One up over the top of the door, too?)
One up ovah de top an' one down to de foot.
Entry 2117
Nobody can hear us? [This root doctor, a good one, a woman, was evi- dently nervous. Either I nodded or turned off my machine for a moment.] Well, yo' take yore pennies an' yo' put dem down in yore do'way. Yo' take three pennies an' put it down in yore do'way an' that would keep de officers from de house, if yo' was selling whiskey round de house.
Entry 2118
Yo' git pennies in de odd year like 17 or 13, somepin lak dat, an' yo' git three of 'em an' yo' put one to de front do' an' one to de back do' an' one in between where they have to cross ovah de pennies, an' it will keep the law away.
(Where do you put them at the door?)
In de center on the carpet strip.
(Down at the bottom?)
Yes sir.
Entry 2119
If yo' wanta engain [gain] customers - if yo' engain customers - jes' lak ah'm runnin' a business, want customers to come mah way, nail a penny to that [front] do' an' nail one to de back do' an' nail one tuh de back post as yo' go out down de step. An' yo' engain customers.
(You put it right in the center of the door?)
Right in de center of de do'.
(Down on the floor.)
Nail dat penny heah.
(On top or underneath?)
De haid up - de penny, dere's a haid on it. Nail it right in de center of de do' dere...that is luck an' that keeps them [the law] away, too.
Entry 2120
If the law's comin' to yore house, you take you seven pennies an' drive holes in 'em an' nail one up ovah every do' yo' got - it jest 'cordin' to how many do's yo' got. But don't nail none up ovah no windah but chure front windah. Nail one up ovah every do' yo' got an' dat would keep de law down.
Entry 2121
Wearin' seven pennies roun' yore neck, dat's good luck tuh bring folks money. Yo' kin take an' bo' a hole - drill a hole in 'em. Ah got a little gold piece heah now. It not a gold piece but it a piece dat look lak a gold piece dat ah wus wearin'. [I evidently looked at it.]
Entry 2122
Say dey take, to bring 'em to yore house, dey will take nine pennies an' put 'em at de front part dere house, an' dat'll keep company dere all de time, an' dey comin' in.
(Where do you put these nine pennies?)
Right out to de front of de do', dey bury 'em in de ground.
(You bury them in the ground. All together?)
Yo' bury dem in de ground all together. Dat keep people coming.
Entry 2123
A person dat is runnin' a gamblin' house - well, yo' take a person dat is runnin' a house, dey is de boss of dat house, see. Well, lak dey Want money to stay in dey home, see - jes' lak if yo' comin' in tuh gamble, see, an' de person want dat money tuh stay in de home. Well, nachur'lly, dey'll git a can of potash an' yo' dig a hole right tuh yore front steps. Well, yo'll put one can of potash down an' yo'll take nine pennies an' sew it up into a little bag an' into sulphur, an' yo'll leave dat on top of dat can of potash an' yo' cover it. Well, dat brings luck into yore home. No policeman kin do yo' no harm. De money'll still be in yore home, see. An' then yo' take some of dat potash an' yo' po' it into a basin of watah an' yo' go round to eve'y one of yore room windah an' throw it up an' let dat watah dreen down, see. Well, jes' lak dat watah dreen down de people'll be comin' in. Well, jes' lak dey come in, well, dat money's leave into yore home. (Just a moment. You throw this water on the windows. On the outside or the inside?) On the outside an' let it dreen down.
Entry 2124
An' a penny, yo' take a penny and cut a penny half in two, if you wanta be lucky wit money. Yo' take a penny an' cut it half in two and put one-half in yo' left pocket and leave de other half home, and yo' goin' be lucky den in get- ting money in any kind of business yo' go at. Dat's luck - ah've test dat out that's 'streme luck.
Entry 2125
Fo' good luck, take one penny an' cut it into fo' parts an' take two parts off de head part an' put it in yore hair - jest in a little band crost yore head jest lak [demonstrates] - let it come down 'long heah, an' wear it jes' long as yo' have plenty good luck.
(What do you do with the other two parts of the penny then?)
Jes' throw dem away - dey's no good.
(You cut two parts of the penny. Indian head penny?)
Indian head penny, yes sir. (And you wear one part at one side of the top of your head and one at the other side, and you hold them there with a band. That is for luck. Any kind of luck?) Any kind of luck.
Entry 2126
Now, if yo' tryin' tuh hol' a place an' somebody don't want chew tuh stay in dat place, yo' take yo' ten [eleven] nails an' yo' nail 'em in yo' do'- sill an' den put dat do'sill [door saddle] on top of 'em an' put chew one penny an' nail dat one penny down. Nobody can't cause yo' tuh move or do anythin' else wit chew dere.
(You put ten [eleven] nails in a row under the saddle of the door?)
Right undah dat do'sill.
(And also a penny under there - nail it down.)
Nail one [nail] through de penny.
(You nail one of the ten [eleven] through the penny?)
No, de 'leven one through de penny, but let de 'leven - let de penny be in de middle an' have five on each side.
(But you use eleven nails?)
Dat's right. But de ten nails is substantial [necessary structurally], but dat penny is fo' protection becus it's got a image on de haid watchin' fo' yo'. [The ten nails merely hold the removed saddle in place. A symbolist could see them as the ten fingers of the human hands, meaning a guarding hand (hand) on each side of the concealed hand - the nailed penny. For nail as hand, see margin-title later.]
Entry 2127
An' travelin' agin. An' a poah person ain't got nuthin, yo' kin take copper - yo' know, a penny an' bury that in a rich person's track in de fo'ks of de roads an' that makes them come from bad tuh good. Dey'll be successful.
Entry 2128
[A few prices for hands have already been given - here are more:]
I had one man make a hand for me once. He tole me he was going to make me a lucky hand and he charged me $50 for it. As long as I had that hand he claimed I'd always be lucky. I was lucky for about three weeks and luck began to change with me. I'd paid him for his hand then. So I went to see what was in this hand. And I began to look. And there was some black pieces of stuff that looked like lodestone, and a whole lot of hair, it looked like horse's hair, and some clay, red blood it looked like, all wrapped up nice in two pieces of rag and sewed over again with a piece of canvas bag. I paid $50 for that. The canvas bag was grey and the rags was black. I was supposed to put that around my neck and keep it over my heart. Wear it all the time, even at night. You keep that hand so no- body can fix you, and you will always be lucky.
Entry 2129
My wife was sick all the time and she came there to the house and when I came in she wanted to sell me a hand. She said I could get a job any time. So I bought the hand from her. It was nothing more than a piece of red flannel made in a bag and some kind of hair. It wasn't no count. I paid a dollar and a half for it. She told me to carry that in my pocket and if I wanted a job to ask for it and I would always get it. That's what she told me. I didn't do it.
Reported purchase price of a dollar and a half. The narrator calls the hand no count and says I didn't do it. The source specifies no coin, banknote or money-attraction purpose and establishes no employment result.
Entry 2130
I knew a mans once, he gwine to a man to git in de gamblin' game. He gi' de man ten dollahs an' de man gi'd him 26ç back, an' he wear a penny in de left shoes an' de quarter he had all cut up, he keep dat in his pocket. De penny he wear it in his shoes.
(And what did he do with that 25c?)
Keep dat in his pocket - see, he had it all jes' scratch up.
(That was all he had to do? What did he do that for?)
Yes, say dat wus luck fo' gamblin'.
Entry 2131
[I must emphasize Silver here, because the silver coins of the United States of America in the 1930's and 40's contained silver and were in hoodoo and witchcraft magic objects - see Silver in Diagnosis, Pp.204-208; in Cure and Protection, Pp.484-493. Not every bag hand held a dime or silver piece but many of them did.] Staht [start] dat right from a dime. Yo' use a dime. Yo' kin do dat from a dime to a dollah. Yo' go tuh work an' yo' git chew a halfa pint of de very best gin Ziquor dat chew kin git holt of. Take a sewin' thimble an' yo' po' a sewin' thimble fulla Hearts Cologne into dat halfa pint of gin Ziquor an' dat 'mount of money, if it's a dime, from a dime on up to a dollah, lak yo' let it soak dere ovah night into dat half pint of gin liquor. An' yo' put dat into yore right pocket an' yo' go befo' de boss de next mawnin'. De re'lly fac' about it, suh, yo' may have tuh make 'bout three trips. Yo' may make three trips befo' he make any oath - befo' he give yo' de job.
Entry 2132
They get a dime from a rich man - and he went, who he went to I don't know, and take it to a woman. And she taked it and put it in a little bag and put some other stuff in - what all she put in there I don't know - and give him, I think it was eight verse out de Bible, to read that ever' mornin', and go down and let the man see him and that he would hire him. A man told me that.
Entry 2133
Yo' kin take a silver dime an' a piece of bluestone an' a piece of alum, an' yo' kin take a small piece of saltpeter, an' yo' put that together an' wear that. That's good fo' good luck.
(In gambling?)
Yes sir.
(What would you put that stuff in?)
Wrap it up in a piece of cloth.
Entry 2134
Take a silver dollar and scrape the, yo' know, the United States things off it an' sew it up in a sealed cloth, an' dat gives yo' good luck.
(Luck for what?)
Most anything.
Entry 2135
Git some ole money, ole silver money. Take that and tote it in de pocket. Dey say the law can't ketch you.
Entry 2136
Fo' luck in gamblin' yo' use de John de Conker. Yo' take dat an' yo' kin put it in a bag an' yo' put chew a little steel dust in dere an' put chew 45 cents - two dimes an' a 25 cents piece, nuthin wit even money. See. An' put dat in a bag an' wear it in yore pocket. An' yo' take any high [smelling] perfume an' yo' 'noint dat wit dat, wit dat perfume. It seems lak yo' would give de man a ambition, an' give him dose silver [pieces], an' when he bet he bet always right until de othah fellah dat is playin' wit chew - understan', he beats him so many times until he lose ambition, see. An' he be a certain amount loser thataway an' he will always play. When he first start losin' he plays tuh win, when he find out he's losin' he plays tuh ketch back. An' he gits so far around de fellah, he beat him so much until he jes' lose all ambition.
Entry 2137
At a certain time of de moon - new moon dey call it, three days befo' an' three after, they git up ever' mornin' befo' sunrise an' look towards de east, an' they will speak a few words in prayer an' their luck will come to 'em that way. Now I tried that once on a numbah ah wanted tuh play an' it came lak ah said.
Entry 2138
You can buy oil at the drug store called moving oil - confusion oil they call it, and you sprinkle in front of the door in the night, you know, slip around and do in front where they pass, and that will make them move in a certain length of time. They get a disturbance in the house and they will move. Moving oil or confusion, either one of them.
Entry 2139
Yessuh, it's called a moving powder. Ah've seen it used. Ah nevah used it mahself but ah've seen it used. Sprinkle it aroun'.
Entry 2140
Yessuh, they say you kin take this here moving powder and sprinkle it around the house. That will make you move.
Entry 2141
You go to the drug store an' you git the powder called movin' powder. An' when you git the brown powder [moving powder], an' then you git the movin' lickrish [moving liquid] - it's green. You mix that lickrish an' that powder together into a bottle an' shake it well; an' ev'ry time you shake it, well, you pass 'em a curse over it. An' then you go to work an' sprinkle that at their do' an' they're bound to leave home.
Entry 2142
If you have a friend that's visitin' your neighbor that you Want to make move, well you go to a cemetery and you gets some dirt off a grave. And you go to the drug store, dey got water they call war water, and you get oil they call moving oil. You mix them three together as a powder. You give it to your friend that visits in that house and sprinkle that house through and through. In a couple of days they will move.
Entry 2143
Yo' git dis little ole mullein dat grow in de yard - mullein, you've seen it. Well, yo' git dis mullein and slip it under yore rug - under each corner - de fo' corners. Dey kin walk in, it kin be dere but dey can't find it.
(What can't they find?)
Dat whiskey.
(That will keep the law from finding it?)
Dey kin come dere but dey can't find it.
Entry 2144
Nail 'em, somepin lak dat - lak yo' nail a person when dey passin' by lak dat. Take nine nails an' put 'em all round in de ground an' cuss 'em. Any time yo' nail, de nail hurt 'em an' de blood poison will kill 'em. (What would you do with those nails?) Stick 'em in de ground - jes' make yo' a round ring all round yore house when yo' think dat he [policeman or enemy] goin' come by. See, yo' drive dese nails into him an' blood poison him - his flesh.
(You drive the nails in a circle.)
The informant describes a round ring of nails around the house. Circle is a local arrangement reading; poisoning and death remain source claims.
Entry 2145
Ah seen 'em nail nine in each do', jis' like yo' comin' in de front - nine dere, nine in de middle an' nine heah an' nine back. Dat keep de policemen away.
(Nine nails right down into that door?)
Nail 'em in a cross in each door [demonstrates]. (In the saddle of the door - down where you walk over - nail them in the form of a cross.)
Entry 2146
Some people say they use nails to keep the police - that's another thing they say to keep the police away an' keep yore enemies out.
(How do they do that?)
They nail one ovah each windah an' talk to it jes' whatevah yo' want it to do, an' ah think yo' dress it with - befo' yo' nail it ovah each windah. Yo' make yo' up some sulphur - sulphur is a thing goes 'bout with ever'thin', an' a little graveyard dirt, an' yo' dress this nail. An' if you can, go write on it whut yo' want it tuh do. Yo' nail one ovah each windah an' one ovah de do', an' they say there's nuthin kin come ovah there.
Entry 2147
Just like in this precinct where there Capt. Barrett[?]. You gotta get the captain's name, you gotta get the lieutenant's name and you gotta get the Sergeant's name. You gotta get three names. You gotta write them names down, you see. And in your place of business if they come there, you put it right under your counter, you see. And you gotta add a little sugar to that three times a week. You see, that'll keep peace and keep 'em under control. But you gotta have their names. If you don't have their names, you can't do nothing. But you gotta have the head official names, not the police on the beat because he don't do nothing unless he's instructed to. But the head officials s they gotta have. I had that place there and everybody's there and everybody is paying $10 a week, but I was running the place myself and I say, "Well, I'm not running this for no dago [Italian], I can't afford to pay." They tell me, "Well, we know you's all right - go ahead and do the best you can." Well, I run that three years and they tore the place down. Got trapped all right, but got trapped by the Prohibition people not by the police. Not me. People worked there. I did excellent business down there, but I was good with the precinct.
(When you pass up, you handed this money over to the police?)
Well, you supposed to give the police ten dollars a week. Everybody else was doing it. But I was giving them $20 a month. See, I wasn't giving them no $10 a week, because I was running it myself - couldn't afford it. I was making money all right but you don't have to let them know that. They used to come by there and get quarts of whiskey, you know, for nothing and I used to treat them some kind of way. Well, they give me a break. Got raided there once. That was by the Prohibition department. Well, I couldn't do nothing with them.
(They wouldn't take anything?)
Well, if I'd a been there - you see, I know the under cover agent, you see, but the guy who was working [for me] supposed to know him and didn't know him, and he come in and he sold him liquor. See. Well, after they got the counts on him they raided place, but they didn't take me - they'd taken him. Well, I had another boy in the place. I was renting him and letting him stay there and he took sick and they took care of him in the hospital, and after he had them Prohi- bition spotters come around the place, and I told him, I say, "I don't want these fellows coming around my place." Cause he had dogs and as a matter of fact they wanted him training the dogs, see. Well, I made him move. He goes on to the post office and told Mr. Lazell[?] that the place wasn't [what it was supposed to be]. See. Well, I used to work over at the office for Mr. Lazell.
(Who were you working for when you did this?)
Wm. J. Burns - Judge Barnes' Detective Agency.
Entry 2148
Jes' write it on a piece of papah, jes' write their name down, put it on a piece of papah an' flush de toilet. Dat'll make dere water run an' dat'll give 'em a runnin' mind.
Entry 2149
Lak if he say, "Ah'll hire yo' maybe two-three days." An' when he git chew in dere, yo' find out whut his name is an' then when he tell yo' his name, yo' say lak dis to yoreself. Yo' don't have to let him know an' neither his wife. De way yo' do, yo' turn, look east. Course ah gits five dollars fo' dis. Ah don't tell ev'rybody dis one. All right, we look east lak dis an' jest say, "De Lord is mah shepherd."
[Hard to hear - she turns from microphone. After a while I hear myself say:]
(Will you say that toward me. I didn't hear some of the words. I don't hear Very well.) [See Introduction for my hearing.] All rightee, all rightee. Yo' look east, yes, an' yo' say, "De Lord is mah shepherd, de Lord is mah shepherd, de Lord is mah shepherd." [Three times.] An' then yo' say, "My Lord, my Lord, hast thou forsaken me? My Lord, my Lord, has thou forsaken me? My Lord, my Lord, has thou forsaken me? Three times. An' then yo' say, call his [boss's] name, and say, "Lord, have mercy upon Sech-an'-sech-a-one. Peace be still, he know not what he's doin'. Lord, have mercy upon Sech-an'-sech-a-one. Peace be still, he know not what he's doin'. Lord, have mercy upon Sech-an'- sech-a-one, he knows not what he's doing." [Three times.] An' he will begin to keep you on dat job.
(He will keep vou on the job?)
Yes sir, yo'll stay dere.
Entry 2150
You get your boss's name, you take bottle of sweetened water - sweet - sweet - sweet - and you put your boss's name in there and your name, and you take it and you shake it up: [This is the magic rite of shaking.] Ev'ry now and then you think about that and you shake - shake it up. Now, you go and do that this morning. All right. You say, well, I'm going down this morning - you done fixed the bottle - I'm going down this morning and see what my boss say. Well, your boss - you going - maybe you'd have it in your pocket and - not too large - just big enough so when you be's talking to your boss, you be having it like this - swinging it - swinging your hand - shaking it - just like that [demonstrates]. Well, you'll get him - spirit up - you get his interest. He may start up like that and want to say - it look like he want to say something and he don't want to. You just keep - shaking it - shaking it - shaking it. And after while he will say, "Oh, come back tomorrow." You go on home and do that same thing, the same way, and the boss done give you a job.
Entry 2151
If yo' know de boss name, yo' git chew a piece of High John de Conker root an' put dat same cayenne peppah an' salt in it 'fore yo' leave home, an' says, "Name, son-of-bitch, ah have to have a job. Ah want mah job back." An' yo talkin'to de root. An' den put it in yore pocket an' go on down dere an' he say, "Come heah, John, go tuh work. What's de matter? Where yo' been?"
Entry 2152
(You get the boss's name?)
An' write it down, see. Well, yo' bring it home an' yo' take salt an' sugah an' sprinkle it ovah dis piece of papah whut choo got de boss's name on it... an' wear it in yore shoe fo' nine days, an' jis' keep a-goin' back, back tuh him. An' git chew some of dis heah oil of clover an' oil of bergamine [bergamot] an mix it togethah, an' Jockey Club perfume an' mix it together. [Three perfumes.] Git chew some root dey call John de Conker. See, aftah yo' got his name in yore shoe, well, yo' put dat oil of clover an' oil of bergamine wit dat Jockey Club perfume. Dat Jockey Club perfume keeps dat oil of clover and oil of bergamine from smellin' an' yo' sprinkle it on yo'. An' den yo' have dat John de Conker vine or root in yore mouth an' yo' chew it well, an' when yo' walk up to 'im talkin' about jobs, see he'll git de influence of dat odor, an' den yo' be jis' spittin jis' lak yo' chewing tobacco, an' yo' keep a-goin' dere an' event'lly he'll give yo' a job.
Entry 2153
You take the boss's name and write it nine times and fold it to you, and wear it in your left shoe under the - you know, under the strip in your shoe. Fur that makes the boss patient, you know, puts his mind on you, and it will natch'ly, if the boss get his mind on you, he's considerin' you fur work or fur raise of salary. Something that confuses the boss's mind in your favor.
Entry 2154
I don't know how to get him to give you a job, but I know how to hold a job.
(All right, how's that?)
Well, I use his name the same way. I write his name down nine times. I write my name down nine times across the other way. [A cross is made with the names.] I fold it to me, each time I fold it I make a wish, and I wear it down in the sole of my shoe.
(What shoe are you wearing that in?)
I'm wearing it in the lest shoe - in the left, I wanta say.
(The left shoe, I see. That's to hold your job?)
Yes, sir.
Entry 2155
You can take a piece of paper about that square, about that round, and write his name on it three times and yourn. Take the inner sole of your shoe up and put [it] down there and wear it in your shoe. You have heard people say, "I got you under my feet." That's what they mean - "I got you under my feet."
Entry 2156
He likes her and she don't like him, he can take and write her name nine times backward and wear it in his left shoe with a silver dime and that will cause her to be wanting him all the time. See, he can make her like him with his - with her name, cause he got her in his shoe, she can't help herself.
Entry 2157
One I lived with about six years - the first girl I lived with - she had my name writ all kind of ways, and cinnamon and sugar wearing in the bottom of her shoe. That's for peace.
(How do you mean she had your name written all kinds of ways?)
She had it seven diff'rent ways, cause I looked at seven diff'rent ways - Thomas Keeler, Thomas Keeler, Thomas Keeler, Thomas Keeler - just cross, cross. And had cinnamon and sugar wearing in the bottom of her shoes. When I found it I was just setting on the side of the bed, you know, and I picked up her shoe. I and her used to fight quite a whole lot.
Entry 2158
Well, if you want to make 'im love you, you take their name and you write 'em on a piece of brown paper - write it nine times, backwards. And then after you write it nine times backwards, you take it and you fold it [toward you] into that name, and you take that name and you get you a bottle of holy water. You know what holy water is, huh?
(Yes.)
You take that bottle of holy water and put that thing down in there and you do like this - just shake it before you put it in there. And after you put it in there, you set it up in the north corner of the house where nobody can't see it, in the dark. And they'll fix you with that.
(What will happen to you?)
Well, you can't - you'll love him just better than ever.
Entry 2159
Some women wear it in nations sacks or in a sack. That's for money. (What kind of sack?) Little sacks dey wear around you called nations sacks.
(Where do they wear them?)
Wear it around their waist.
(What do they wear these sacks for?)
You kin keep yore money in it - keep yore lucky stuff in it. [The term nation sack was well known in the Memphis area, less known in New Orleans and Mobile. It was unknown along the East Coast - Maryland through Florida. See an excellent account of this article in my interview with The Nation Sack Woman.]
Entry 2160
Take de chicken aig an' let de aig dry until - yo' break.de aig an' aftah it dry, yo' use dat yallah. Wear it in a little bag dey call a nation bag an' sew it up with white thread an' let de person wear it. [In the New Orleans area, which includes upriver Memphis, some Women wear a concealed bag or sack containing one or more objects: good-luck piece, hand, article to hold man, money, just about anything. I never saw one of these bags. My impression before World War II was that formerly they had been frequently used but were becoming old-fashioned, scarce. Women, of course, have known treasure bags for centuries. The reader may recall the French widow who carried her husband's ashes about her neck! Nation bag or sack was unknown by this name on the East Coast during my collecting days.] [I have left this old comment despite the preceding, newer one.]
(What do you do that for?)
Dat's tuh keep 'em in a home, tuh keep 'em from movin'. Yo' take dat yallah of an aig an' sew it in a little sack an' wear it, an' de person dat tryin' tuh make 'em move.cain't do 'em any harm. Whenevah dey have any intention tuh do anything to yo', why dat'll take an' relieve 'em - dat pertection from yore enemies. Take de yellah of an aig.
(You have to let.that egg dry first.)
An' den take it an' put it in a little bag an' sew it an' wear it on yore person.
Entry 2161
Hull de peelin's offen de red onion lak dat an' yo' kin tote 'em in yore nation sack an' dat brings luck to yo'.
Entry 2162
Put nine needles round yore neck.
(Tell me the whole story. How would you do that?)
Well, now dey tells me - yo' know, they said dey git nine needles an' put 'em on a string an' then git a stopper an' stick 'em down in there, yo' know, tuh keep it from stickin'. They tell me that brings luck on in yore house. (Where do you keep this?) Let 'em hang down - let 'em extend from - put 'em on a string yo' know an' then take yo' a stopper an' stick de point of it down dere - let 'em extend right down dere [demonstrates].
(Hang down to the middle of your stomach. What do you do that for?)
That's to bring luck in yore house.
Entry 2163
I went to a man once - my husband went away - an' he fixed up a little red [flannel] ball, an' he tole me to go to the front door fis' before sunrise an' take nine needles jis' one at a time for nine mornin's, an' stick in that ball an' he'll return. He'd been gone away two years an' I hadn't heard from him, an' inside of six mont' time he did come back. [Red ball symbolizes heart.]
Entry 2164
Yo' kin take a needle - two needles, charcoals an' red flannel wit some other graveyard dust an' put whiskey on it an' dat will give you good luck.
[Three ingredients are in the sack; whiskey feeds it.]
(Good luck in what particularly?)
In gambling.
Entry 2165
Yo' kin take yo' nine eye needles an' iron nails, put it in a vial, bottle, an' put it up in de chimley corner - hang it up de chimley an' no law or nuthin wouldn't come dere to 'sturb yo' atall.
(What else do you put in that bottle? You said before.)
chamber lye, iron nails an' eye needles. Put in one dose vials about dat large. [Urine in chimney, needles and nails are well-known protective devices against witches. Eye needle - informant does not mean the normally used qoldeye needle of hoodoo - is very unusual, meaning it is not the eyeless needle for knitting.]
Entry 2166
They take two needles an' some black peppah an' put it in a bag an' put it under the front do', one in the front an' one in the back do', in a red flannel bag, an' that keeps the law from the front an' back.
Entry 2167
Ah've known 'em to take needles, if yo' got a case in co't. Yo' kin put a dime right dere right up in yore head dat - de dime right in de mole [mold] of yo' haid, an' yo' put a needle like dat [demonstrates], an' a needle heah, a needle dere, a needle dere.
(You put the needles around that dime.)
Around dat dime.
(Four needles.)
Uh-huh.
(Like a cross over that dime.)
Uh-huh.
(These four needles - each one is pointing to that dime.)
Yes.
(The needles in the shape of a cross.)
Uh-huh. An' dey ain't nuthin - dey couldn't handle de case to save dey life. [If the prisoner has hair enough to conceal this hand, the practical way of using it would be to sew a cloth cover over the dime, so that the needles could be held better in place. The four needles - over that dime or around that dime - form a tick-tack-toe figure either by chording the dime or by squaring the cir- cumference of the dime; in the former each needle is twice bisected by the dime, in the latter the dime is a circle inscribed in the central square. The needles are pointing toward and away from the dime at the same time. If the four needles points are staggered - point, head, point, head - they will point toward the four corners of the world, making a crown. A crown of thorns? A symbolist could find heaven and earth in this design. How many crosses are there?]
Entry 2168
I've heard it said, if you want de boss man to hold you on a job, dat always go to 'im in a humble way; an' if you went to 'im in a humble Way, he might turn you off, but if you jis' keep a-goin' fer nine days, an' after nine days he'll take you on. [Nine days is a frequent time formula.]
Entry 2169
Yo' go to a white oak tree an' git de root of it, right up close to de root. (Any side of the tree?) No suh, de no'th side of it. Take a white cloth an' wrap it [root] up in a lil piece of cloth, an' take a lil small piece [of root] yo' know far [large] enough to do anything, an' put it up ovah the do' where yo' gotta go past in an' out, an' dat's luck. Dat's fo' luck lak if yore gamblin', lak if yo' run a gamblin house, anything lak dat - yo' know, sellin' whiskey or dope or anything lak dat. Keep de law away.
Entry 2170
Yo' use a olive oil an' den yo' have a perfume - a lucky perfume dat chew use. An' yo' rub dat all ovah yore han's an' put it on yore clothes an' go down an' git close enough to him fo' him den tuh inhale, yo' know so he kin smell it, an' talk with him. If he don't give yo' a job den he'll tell yo' tuh come back, an' yo' mo' den apt tuh git work tuh do. [Olive oil is considered more or less holy - see Holy Oil. The perfume applied later reduces the olive oil odor.]
Entry 2171
Mighty good fo' that.
(How do they use that?)
Well, yo' use that on yore face an' han's after yo' git through with yore toilet in de mornin' an' yo' breakfast an' everything. Yo' let that be the last thing yo' do befo' yo' goin' tuh yore business, an' yo' jes' take a little olive oil an' rub it ovah yore face an' ovah yore han's like that in the mornin's an' that brings luck an' brings friends to yo'. That's mighty good.
Entry 2172
Dey say it's good to keep in yore home - dey's luck - jes' tuh have onions in yore home, red onions. An' dey say yo' take de outside, peel it an' burn it, an' yo' know make the wish to yoreself - yo'll be lucky. Most any home yo' go in, yo'll see 'em, both white an' colored.
Entry 2173
Yo' git a red onion - yo' usin' 'em in yore house. Well, don't let de peelin's hit de flo'. Burn dem up, de hull, because it makes a confusion in yore house - makes a big fuss in yore house.
Entry 2174
Burn sulphur an' onion peelin's together an' dat'll draw mens to yore house wit money, an' all lak dat.
(When do you burn that?)
Yo' kin burn it in de morning[
Entry 2175
She burn incense. An' then she take de peelin' offa red onions, she burn de peelin'. An' she put 'em on de stove on a brown piece of papah an' sprinkle sugah an' let 'em burn ev'ry mawnin'. She say dat bring luck. (You mean just that dry peeling off the onion? She burned the dry peeling - just the dry peeling?) Jis' de dry peelin'.
Entry 2176
Dey say yo' take a red onion an' put it on yore stove if yo' sellin' whiskey an' it will keep de law out chure house.
(How do you mean, put it on the stove?)
Jes' take an' cut dat end off lak yo' goin' cut it half in two an' lay it on de stove an' let it burn.
Entry 2177
Take your onion, a raw onion and put it in the middle of the fish, don't sprinkle it, just take a whole onion and put it in there. You clean it and put it on in the fish, and you ain't going to have none left - all them going to be sold out.
(That's when you're having your fish fry. Do you put it in each fish?)
That? No, just put that in the skillet in the first fish you fry - just that whole onion in the middle of it when it's frying. Put it on top of the fish there and let your fish fry. And your next one [skillet] you fry, just put it on there, all your fish will be eat.
(Each fish that you fry?)
Not each fish, just in the front of the skillet. Turn your fish over and take the onion up and set it back, don't set it where it'll burn, set it on top of there. You clean it but you don't cut it up. Use catfish and buffalo. All of them will sell out.
Entry 2178
Yo' take table salt an' yo' put it in de palm of yore hand, jes' a little, an' yo' build yo' a fire. Yo' take onion peelin's an' put it in de palm of yore hand, say, "God de Father, God de Son, God de Holy Spirit," an' throw dis in de fire. "Strike de fire in mah house. Bring success an' peace an' money an friendship in mah home." Yo' throw it in dat blazin' fire. (And you take each one of those things that you say and throw them into the fire?) Dat's right - de salt.
(The salt and those pieces of onion?)
No, yo' put de onion in yore hand an' jes' three pinch of salt.
(Three pinches of salt on the fire?)
Three heads - God de Father, God de Son, an' God de Holy Spirit.
(That is to bring in customers.)
Entry 2179
Onions is very lucky things to use. Yo' take a red onion an' you take the outside offa dat onion, den yo' burn dat onion in yore house fo' nine days - it's lucky. Yo' always burn yo' onion - dat's very, very lucky. Yes, a red onion is lucky. Den yo' kin carry dat onion an' dat'll make yo' lucky. If yo' steal a red onion - yo' go an' pick up a red onion quick, steal it, an' use dat in yore pocket. That's lucky.
Entry 2180
Dey say if de law be af'joo [after you], dey say you gits a red onion an' put a dime in it; jis' tote dat in you' pocket. Den dey say if you happen to see de law or anyt'in', you know, jis' squeeze dis onion, you know, like dat, an' dey say dey keep right on by you.
Entry 2181
You kin take a red onion and put nine drops of spirits of turpentine on it and a half teaspoonful of salt, and a piece of homespun, and take dat, wear it on you. And beat it up real fine, if you're in any trouble [with the law]. I was goin' wit a man and he didn't like dat [using a whole onion], and he beat it up fine and squeezed dat juice in his shoe.
Entry 2182
Take a red onion an' cut it in four pieces an' sprinkle salt on it an' tie it up tight in a hand'chief or jis' any ole kin' of cloth, a clean cloth, an' tote dat aroun' in yore [left] pocket an' when yo' go dere yo' sprinkle a little sulphur at de door an' when yo' be talkin' [to the boss] jis' mash de onion down in yore han's tight, hol' it tight.
Entry 2183
You take a red onion an' rub it on yer haid, an' take a little piece of it an' chew it - a little piece of it. It's a little root tha' choo git out of the woods, it's got a green leaf with black spots on it - they call it Adam an' Eve. It's supposed to be a lucky root. An' it's another one called the High John the Conker. You kin take that an' put it in a bottle an' put some Hearts Cologne on it an' it will drink it up in two or three days. An' you keep, you know, puttin' it on there. An' jes' like whomsoevah you wan' to git a job of, you jes' wear that - you know, jes' sprinkle it on yerself an' jes' let 'im git a whiff of it.