Browse:HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE (Volume 4, entries 7261–7359)/Part 2
HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE
Volume 4, entries 7261–7359. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 7341
Ah jes' heard dem say dat dey wear salt, table salt, in de shoes an' nobody couldn't git dere track. Couldn't pick up dere foot track.
Entry 7342
Git some ole money, ole silver money. Take that and tote it in de pocket, dey say the law can't ketch you.
Entry 7343
He will git sulphur an' will burn sulphur - er [that is] will sprinkle sulphur 'long as he go. Aftah it's burnt ovah, sprinkle it 'long as he go an' dey cannot track 'im. (If he committed some crime?) If he has committed some crime dey wouldn't be able to ketch 'im.
Entry 7344
A fellah tole me - now dis - dat he run away from de chain gang. Yo' want me tuh tell de whole story, dat's it. He run away from de chain gang an' he stopped at a woman's house an' got some turpentine an' put it in de bottom of his shoes. An' he said dat dey had de hounds aftah 'im an' he stopped tuh mah house. An' ah said, "Put it in de bottom yore shoes?" He said, "Yeah." Dat wus up heah in Baldwin County, Georgia. Yeah, neah Millersville. He'd run away from de camp. An' ah tole de woman - ah wusn't married tuh her, ah was livin' wit 'er. Ah says, "Git dis fellah sompin tuh eat." An' as he got sompin tuh eat ah lifted up de shoe an' smelled of it an' he wus about five miles from dis camp at dat time. Ah wus standin' in mah back do' an' ah heard de dogs barkin' an' howlin' an' goin' on. When ah heard de dogs hollerin' ah come tuh de front do' to look out down tuhwards de rivah tuh see. Ah thought maybe some of 'em had de fox houns' out. An' dis fellah come up. at de time. Yeah. He had done got de turpentine in be- tween mah house an' where he run away from de convict camp, don't chew undahstan' me. [I am not supposed to hear well.] An' ah give him sompin tuh eat an' he left, an' de dogs come as fur as mah camp an' de captain an' de fellah dat wus wit de dogs, dey couldn't track 'im no fu'thah. Dey look aroun' an' dey says, dey axed [asked] me de questions about de fellah comin' dere. An' ah tole 'em dere come a man dere but he didn't have on no stripes, yeah. He had got de clothes dough [though]. He tole me de fellah back behin' had give him some clothes to change wit.
Entry 7345
If yo' wuz tuh git outa jail or even if yo' wuz tuh broke jail or any- thin' lak dat, outa any place lak dat, yo' could put turpentine in yore sock an' throw it down an' dey nevah could find yo'. Dey'll nevah git on yore trail or nuthin. Dat's de only kind ah know.
(You put turpentine in the sock and do what?)
Put turpentine in de sock - yo' know, jes' dampen it wit turpentine.
Entry 7346
All right, if a man kills anybody an' he wants tuh run away an' dey can't ketch 'im, he gits down an' he takes jes' a little bit of turpentine an' puts it in de bottom of his shoe, an' he walks on de ground till he git to a railroad an' he pull off all his clothes an' throw it all 'way. Well, dem dogs cain't follah him a bit fu'thah den dat railroad. When he gits on de railroad, dey cain't follah him a bit fu'thah den dat railroad track.
(Why couldn't they follow the railroad track?)
Cuz dat's cold - see, dey cain't.
Entry 7347
"Scapin' convicts or somepin lak dat, dey use turpentine to escape from de convict camps, things lak dat, to keep de dogs from trailin' 'em. Well, dey take de turpentine an' put it on de bottom of dere feet an' dey leave, den de dogs won't trail 'em wit dat turpentine.
Entry 7348
Ah heard a man say he went to de forks of de road, jes' like dey did some devilment an' de law was aftah 'em. De fellah said he'd go dere, yo' know, wit a bottle of turpentine an' marks right an' one east, an' po's [pours] a little turpentine in each one of dem marks - goin' across de road, an' dey nevah couldn't trail 'em. (Now, you said just across the road he makes a mark. How would he make the first mark?) He makes one north - east yo' know, east an' west, an' den south an' north. Dere don't be but two. (He makes one east and west. Then what does he do? Then he makes another mark? Where does he make that one?) Make dat one south an' west.
(South and north you mean.)
Yes, south an' north.
(I see. Then what does he do?)
Po's [pours] de turpentine in each one of dem marks.
Entry 7349
Ah heard dat if yo' wuz tuh do anythin' an' run away an' dey put de dogs behin' yo', den if yo' wuz tuh keep gasoline an' spirits of turpentine on yore feet, den dey couldn't track yo'.
Entry 7350
Yes, in dis way: Ah don't know whethah it's fact dat de law couldn't find or not, but ah do know dis one thing. If yo' were tuh do sompin chere an' dey wus on yore - say, if dey had hounds runnin' yo' or sompin, yo' could put turpen- tine an' red peppah undah yore shoe sole an' dem dogs couldn't track yo' no fu'thah dan where yo' use dat material. Right dah dey'd lose track an' dey couldn't start it.
Entry 7351
Yes sir, eithah de red peppah or turpentine. An' well, when de dogs go to trailin' 'em, wherevah where yo' sprinkle dat red peppah down [the dogs stop].
Entry 7352
I have bin lak dat way in de South, zhoo know. A man down dere lak tuh kill a fellah once. It wus mah secon' cousin, yo' know. So he went one night - he had tuh be taken on de Manning [S. C.] Road - I had tuh cart 'im, yo' know - taken on de Manning Road. I take 'im on down dere [road] tuh a little ole neighbor's house, zhoo know. So he tole huh whutevah he wants. She said, "Well, yo' in a very bad con- dition, becuz, yuh know, a murderin' case, " she said, "that's one case that any- one har'ly git ovah." She said it wusn't goin' to cost no more dan thirty-five dollahs, she said, tah clear it. He said, "Well, de thing whut I wan'a git aftah is not ta ketch me." He said, "If they don't ketch me, " he say, "I'll leave, if I kin git out de way." She says, "Well, all right." She went back in there, she stepped back in de room again, she gits sumpin in a little bottle - red jis' like vinegah. She mix some vinegah wit it, she take a little turpentine an' she put in it. Dat whah I seed 'er put in dere mahself. She take sumpin come-like - it looked like table salt. Well, she fixin' it so it boil. So he come back home tuh town dat night jis' about 'leven-thirty. So I drived up to de nex' cornah of de road [just beyond the town] an' let 'im git out an' come on back [to town] yo' see. He take his left-footed shoe, an' taken some turpentine an' put in de bottom of de left-footed shoe, an' some salt; den he went up to de law office [courthouse] see, de office's on left-hand side de road. Well, he takes some of dat [liquid] from de bottle given to him by de witchcraft woman, an' po'ed it right down 'neath de steps. An' dey ain't nevah did ketch 'im.
Entry 7353
Well now, jes' lak if he done de killin', [he] say, "Ah wants tuh git away." Well, he'll go to work yo' see an' git 'im a pair of new shoes, he'll git 'im a bottle of turpen- tine. He'll take dat turpentine an' he'll pull 'is shoes off an' rub undah de bottom of 'is feet wit dat turpentine, an' he'll po' a little in 'is shoes. He'll go to work den an' he'll git 'im jes' about nine grains of black pepper, six grains of spice, an' git 'im jes' about a piece of bluestone a little bit biggah den a black-eyed pea. An' he'll put all dat togethah. He'll go to work den an' git 'im a dime bottle of alcohol, an' evah mawnin' regardless to where he goin', he'll take dat alcohol an' rub behin' 'is ears, rub across 'is fo'haid, an' he'll take dat turpentine an' 'noint 'is shoes - under de bottom of 'is shoes - an' he'll chew a grain of dat black peppah, one grain of dat spice, evah day, an' jes' a little crumb of dat bluestone mixed togethah. An' as long as he continue wit dat, he'll always keep a-goin'.
(Can't catch him.)
He'll keep a-goin'. [Waycross, Ga., (1097), 1771:5.] [Rites for catching a murderer are much more varied and interesting than those permitting him to escape, egg rites alone being amazing both in number and diver- sity. Everywhere the spirit of the murdered person is present or its presence assumed.]
Entry 7354
Jes' lak a man kill a man or woman - if he kill a woman. All right, say fo' instant dey bring about five people jes' where dis man is got killed at - dead, yo' see. All right, make dis man tech 'im. An' when de right man tech 'im - yo' know, each one of 'em tech 'im - when de right man tech 'im, he'll purge. [The word purge is common for a corpse bleeding when touched by murderer.]
Entry 7355
Take dey han's - don' care how many's roun' - take hol' of 'em an' lay dere han's on de dead person when yo' go tuh bur' 'im. Dat will tell yo' who kolled 'im. De blood will gush out [when murderer touches corpse].
Entry 7356
Say, fer instant, now a man commits a crime. All right. Well now, yo' don't know who done de murdah. All right. But now, lak dey would go an' 'rrest a bunch of men, yo' see, dey would wanta fin' which one of 'em is de man dat done de killin' right dere. Dat is, if dey kin git dere, yo' undahstan', lak [soon aftah] it happens. Dey kin take dis man an' care [carry] him dere an' he'd place his han' on dat dead person. Why where he cut 'im or shot 'im or anythin' lak dat, he'll start to bleed ag'in.
Entry 7357
Befo' dey bury 'im, yeah. Dey said [say for instance] dat ah'd kill yo' an' so anybody didn't know who done it, dey go an' lay dere han' on 'im an' de blood would come from 'im.
(They could tell that you'd killed him?)
Yes.
Entry 7358
Ah've heard dat if a person has got killed an' de person who killed 'im, if he happen tuh be dere - be roun' dere. Dere's some people dat do dese things yo' know an' den stan' aroun' yo' know an' may perten' [pretend] dey don' know nuthin 'bout it. An' if dey touch dat person, den he'll start purgin'. [The word to purge is commonly used to describe the bleeding of a corpse when touched by the murderer. Since the word to purge frequently means to cause evac- uation of the bowels or to clean or empty the bowels, was there a confusion be- tween bleeding and purging by the corpse? We must remember that formerly, espec- ially in hot weather, a body Was buried within 24 hours. Even then purging must have been frequent. Surely one example of this is the very first belief or story in Hoodoo, the burial of the witch Millie, No.1, page 1.]
Entry 7359
Well, if yo' have a crowd when he jes' git kilt - a crowd be roun' - well den yo' kin all go by 'im an' tetch 'im, an' when de right man tetch 'im he start fresh tuh bleedin'.