Browse:Lye (Volume 1, entries 2558–2566)
Lye
Volume 1, entries 2558–2566. Source context: THE DOCTORS AT WORK: REPORTS FROM LAYMEN → BUSINESS AND CUSTOMERS. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 2558
[Lye, a protection against evil (p.459f.), is used by itself and in many combinations.] If yo' got a enemy anywhere roun', yo' gits a box of potash - jis' lak if ah wus fixin' it up fo' someone, ah have them tuh bring me a box of potash. If they thought they had a enemy round wus goin' do 'em any harm, anything, ah would have yo' bring me a box of potash an' ah would take this potash an' fix it up in a liquid an' den put so much of it in a bottle an' give it to yo'. Yo' would take dis home an' git up in de mawnin' befo' de sunrise an' yo' would sweep yore steps wit it - sweep yore steps an' repeat de Psalms about de Lord makin' me lie on green pastures. De mawnin' yo' git up an' sweep yore steps wit dis lye- Water, yo' put a little bit in a basin or somepin an' jes' dip yore broom in it an' sweep it an' say de Psalms. An' dat will keep anybody from doin' any harm to yo' - keep yo' havin'" good luck.
Entry 2559
To keep the law away, ah would get me some of van-van, get me some lye, some blueing water, and ah would go to mah banquette and ah would scrub it ev'r - just wherever around mah door, I would keep it - white - white - white - white as snow. And keep it - scrubbed - scrubbed - scrubbed - and they never come across the door. Any time he come there, throw your water each way ev'ry morning for nine mornings - throw your water thisaway - bucket of water this way - and that way - and he never come in your place.
(How - which way do you throw the water now?)
Right - if you living and your front door thisaway, you throw one this way, and you throw one that way, and one this way.
(You throw one out the front door, one to the right, and one to the left?)
That's right - for nine mornings. You keep it up.
(For nine mornings.)
(Just plain water?)
Just plain Water.
(Or just scrub water?)
Plain water.
(Just three buckets?)
Three buckets - thisaway and this way and.
(You just scrub with the other stuff?)
That's right - scrub with the other stuff.
(I see.)
Entry 2560
If yo' don't want de law tuh come to yore house, yo' use dis concen- trated lye an' burn incense. Dat concentrated lye goin' keep'away all evils - all kinda dirty acts an' doin's, jes' lak if somebody intendin' tuh sprinkle somepin fo' yo'. Why, if yo' don't want it done, or yo' heard tell of nobody do it, yo' scrubs yore house wit lye, or if yo' mop de front of yore po'ch wit lye, ain't no law comin' dere. Pract'lly, ain't nobody goin' do no harm because that lye drives away all evil things.
Entry 2561
Fo' luck aroun' mah home lak that, tuh keep the laws or anything lak that from botherin' me, if ah wus a-hustlin' or bootleggin', ah would take an git me some lye an' git me some sugah an' lay it undah mah do'step an' sprinkle it all roun' de house an' on de inside an' dat will keep de laws away.
Entry 2562
Keep that place scrubbed with that sugah, Red Seal Lye above all - a cup of sugah an' Red Seal Lye [and] don't evah let soap touch de flo' fo' cus- tomers. [Why? They could or would slip away.]
(If you want to get roomers you do the same thing?)
Yessuh, an' keep soap away.
Entry 2563
Like this [business] burns [flourishes] here and that one over there [burns] - well, if that burns out and the trade here - he ain't got no trade here. And I'll tell you I always seen it did, and I've did it myself during Prohibition. I'd scrub my place out - you see, sweep it out good. and scrub it. But as I said before [in another statement], I'd sweep in all the time, though - never sweep out. Sweep in. When you sweep, you take and get you nine buckets of water. You get you a box of lye, get a bottle of ammonia - get you a bottle of ammonia and a box of lye and use nine buckets of water. You put your lye - you take lye and you sprinkle it all around your floor first. See. You throw a bucket of water to your right, one to your left, but always throw it inside. Stand at your door and throw your water. Don't never let your water go out your door - throw that in your door, see. And when you starts scrubbing your place, you scrub to the back. Start right at the front of your door but be backing up all the time. Don't never walk - back up, see. As you scrubbin', back up. When you start sweepin', then you face your place - going in all the time, but don't use over nine buckets of water. And after you scrub your place good and you get it dried out, you puts you some cinnamon and sugar down. You get you - I think it costs ten or fifteen cents for a box of it, you get you some of that incense and you light that and you burn that in your place. Now, after you got all the inside of your place straightened out and scrubbed clean, you come to your banquette [sidewalk]. You get on the outside and you use nine more buckets of water on the outside. Now, vou sweep both ways there. All the time sweep to your door, you see. You sweep thisaway [to the right], you sweep to your door; you sweep thisaway [to the left], you sweep to your door. See. Now, sweep your water to your door - don't sweep it in the place, but sweep it to your door and let it run down to the ditch itself. And then you sprinkle your cinnamon and your sugar again. See. But you sprinkle it to your door and throw it from your door - throw it in, see. Well, that make that trade come across over there to here. And that'll make - you'll get all the business over here. And, if you see where you can't do no good there, just go over there and sprinkle you some salt after you done scrubbed your place - but you have to pay somebody [to do it]. Get them to go over there and throw some salt down, and it'll cause a big row over there. See, when they start to rumpus over there, everybody will run over here to this place here.
Entry 2564
To draw in customer, yo' git chew - lak dat chure front do' dere, yo' git chew a can of [Red] Devil Lye, potash, an' yo' git chew a handful of table salt an' put it right on top of dat can, an' yo' take a ice pick or somepin an' chunk hole all in de top of de can, an' jes' lay dat right on top, at twelve a'clock, an' bury it right in front under yore step or right in front of yore gate. An' one tuh de back. Dey'll be comin' in. Tell yo' whut chew do wit dat. Yo' take dat same potash an' yo' take three Cans - three cans. Take de cans an' open it an' put it in a boilin' pot of watah an' jes' boil it in dat watah an' jes' go all roun' yore house an' sprinkle it all roun' yore house - all in de dirt, all out in de front of yore do', right dere in de front of yore do'. An' yo' git chew a box of spice an' yo' git chew a package of sulphur an' yo' mix all that together an' table salt; an' ev'ry mawnin' befo' sunrise yo' jes' go on an' sprinkle it right out chure gate dere - throw it out dere, turn yore back an' don't look back an' walk on back in yore house. Dey'll nevah - dey'll come an' jes' be passin' by all de time.
(That is to keep the law away?)
Yes sir - keep de law away.
Entry 2565
Ah'm a bottlegger mahself - dat's how come I mos'ly knows some of them things. Yo' don't need nuthin but take yo' a can of potash an' a box of red pepper and digs yo' a hole right befo' yore steps - round hole jest enough to fit de can. And take it and take de red pepper and set it right on de lid of dat can, and set it down and bury it right dere befo' yore steps.
(You set this can of what?)
Potash.
(Up - upwards?)
Dat's it.
(And you take the red pepper and do what?)
Put it upside down on dat can.
(And cover it up. That keeps the law away.)
Entry 2566
Dey would git two cans of lye an' about midnight in de night, nobody sees yo', yo' digs a hole underneath each one of yo' steps an' put de can dere. But don't stop de can tight, let it be slant, an' yo' cover it up kinda lightly - you know, where dat scent and dat strength kin come out. An' dey tell me if dey'd come dere and start, dey wouldn't come no farther than that do'.
(That keeps the law away.)
An' he'll ask yo' questions.