Browse:St. Expedite (Volume 1, entries 2995–3008)
St. Expedite
Volume 1, entries 2995–3008. Source context: THE DOCTORS AT WORK: REPORTS FROM LAYMEN → (3) SAINTS. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 2995
After they get the - after they burn that candle good on you [if some- one is burning a candle against you], you go to this yere, this saint they call - you know a saint they call Expedite saint? (St. Expedite? No.) Uh-huh. You go to Expedite saint and you carry Expedite saint a little small kind of - go to the Ten Cent Store and you get you a small hammer; not no big hammer, a little toy hammer the chillun play with. You carry him a toy hammer and a nail. Well, after you go there and carry him this toy hammer and this nail, you get you a black candle and you carry it to him and you light it there. And I guarantee you it's good.
(You leave the hammer and nail?)
You leave the hammer and nail; don't take it away from there.
(Well, suppose I was living here, where would I find St. Expedite?)
You'll find Expedite saint in the church or else in a book store - in the book store.
(Well, you have to bring the saint home, then?)
Yeah, you bring that saint home and you fix it at your house. But always nail it right at the door where they got to come in.
(You mean inside the door or above the door?)
Inside the door - inside the house. And burn that candle and some tape lights [tapers] - always burn the tape lights around it - little red tape Zights - well, burn 'em. Expedite saint is on a horse with swords in his hand and a whole lot of snakes around him. That's the Expedite saint.
The informant describes carrying a black candle in the St. Expedite account and lighting it there; the claim that it is good remains attributed.
Entry 2996
Yo' take yo' St. Espidy, he uses green candles. Yo' take it an' yo' pray ovah it an' yo' askin' St. Espidy, an' yo' rap on it an' he'll give yo' a rap back. Yo' ask St. Espidy fo' a wish an' jes' whut yore heart desires yo'll git.
(How would I go about it? To burn this green candle? From the beginning.)
From de beginnin'. Yo'll take yore green candle an' burn it from six in de mawnin' an' put it out - nine in de evenin' an' put it out. Nine in de mawnin an' yo' put it six in de evenin' again. Yo' burn it from three tuh nine days an yo'll git whut chure heart desires.
(Well, how do you mean you rap for St. Espidy?)
[She raps once - twice - again.]
(Just once? You rap three times. And you burn this green candle from six to nine in the morning and from six to nine at night?) Yes.
(You burn it nine days?)
Yes.
(Do you know anything about St. Espidy?)
Well, St. Espidy, he's very good." He have helped me. He helps me an' when ah wants bread ah call on him an' he brings me a rap [answers by rapping]. Ah heard dat he wus a man dat didn't believe in no evil work, an' he didn't fool roun' wit no kinda evil doin' when he wus on dis scene an' he wus a true man, an' when he died he went tuh heaven.
(Now when he raps back, would he rap three times?)
He jes' raps [she demonstrates three times in diminishing volume].
(Where will he rap - somewhere around the room?)
Yes.
(Then you know you'll have your wish?)
Yes.
Entry 2997
St. Espidee, if yo' pray tuh him he'll send yo' - he'll send yo' any- where yo' desire tuh go. Ah'm mos' well acquainted wit him. He could send yo' anywhere yo' wanted tuh go. All yo' have tuh do is promise him a light - any diff'rent kinda light. [Saint runs free travel agency.]
Entry 2998
Git St. Expedees up over your door - nail him up over there. Behind that same door you use that pink candle, burn it there.
(Up over the door and behind the same door you burn a pink candle?)
Yes sir, and make your wishes. That's to keep the police away. It will keep 'em away.
(What door do you use for that?)
Let that be the front door.
Entry 2999
Well, St. Espedee, I knows about him. Now he's a good sent [saint]. He delivers zhoo, too. Jis' like if you wants a job - or somepin like that - he'll open a way fer you, if you believes in 'im, an' if you don't, well it's jis' like anything else.
Entry 3000
St. Espidee is fo' luck an' St. Espidee is fo' unfortunates. Lak if a man is unfortunate, well fo' luck he kin burn a candle. Dey got cup candles dey call 'em. Dey sell dem in cups. Yo' burn a light tuh him eight days. Yo' burn a light tuh St. Espidee eight days an' yo' have some kinda luck in eight days, but dat's providin' if yo' make a promise to him. If yo' make a promise to him fo' luck an' success, he goin' give it to yo'; but if yo' lie to him, he'll take yore success away from yo'. Well, dat's de candle burnt to him dey call de cup candle, an' dat's whut he's fo', luck an' success.
Entry 3001
She's the onliest one what's in that favor. I tell you the saints - they have mighty good saints for the wishes that you wish. They have St. Espedees.
(What is he for?)
For a gambler.
(Well, what would a gambler do for him?)
Well, you see, if you gambling out for money and you're in bad luck, you goes there and you make a novena for nine days; and if you get your wishes, you gotta give it. If it's a dollar you promise, you have gotta give the dollar to it; if's a candle, a dollar candle light you have to give it to him.
(I see.)
Then you get your wishes.
Entry 3002
St. Espidee is fo' gamblers. Yo' take St. Espidee an' yo' gives him anything green, candle or flowers - green flowers or green vegetable. Anything dat is green, yo' give it to St. Espidee fo' [green] money. He's fo' gamblers.
(How, how do you approach him?)
Well, if yo'd go tuh him, yo' prays when yo' go tuh him an' yo'd ask him, say, "St. Espidee ah want chew tuh help me tuh git some money. Ah'm goin' out an' gamble an' if ah be successful an' git dis money, ah will give yo' a bunch of flowers. Or give yo' so much an' so much of somepin green. Ah take de money an' buy it an' give it to yo'." When yo' gits dis money yo' go tuh some church, or if yo' got him in yore house, yo' buys de stuff an' yo' puts it in front of him fo' a sacrifice.
Entry 3003
(St. Espidee is what?)
Is a lawyer. Dat's a case of co't too. Well dey use de candles fo: him an' pray tuh him an' give him a glass of milk if yo' kin give it, or git white rum, an' give him yore case an' he'll plead it fo' yo'. Light a candle an' a glass of milk, or eithah yore rum if yo' kin git it, but yo' cain't git no mo' rum now.
(What kind of color would you light to him?)
A white one to St. Espidee.
(What do you do, put him on the floor, too?)
No, no - yo' leave him right up. He's gotta git up on de stand an' he's gotta talk fo'yo'.
Entry 3004
Yo' write yore name, de husban's name - yore name at de top an' his underneat' three times, but all straight. Dat's behin' St. Espidee 'cause ah have did it an' bring de man back. But chew use 'cordin' tuh his color, yore light to St. Espidee, an' he will bring dat man back. Jes' git down an' pray tuh him, 'In de Name of de Father, de Son an' de Holy Spirit, St. Espidee, bring sich-an'-sich-a-one back," wit his name wrote behin' dat picture dat's tacked up - back of it pasted up dere. An' de man will come. An' keep dat light to him an' he goin' bring him back.
(You put his name behind the picture?)
Behin' dat picture.
Entry 3005
They pray to - wait, I'll tell you the saint to pray to to put 'em in bad luck - Expedee. Uh huh, that'll put choo in bad luck. Yes, sir.
(Suppose I want to put somebody in bad luck. What would I do?)
Well, you go there [to a public hoodoo shrine] and you pray and you light a black can'le to 'er, you see, an' ask 'er what choo want, choo see. And then at nine days, if it's success, zhoo go back and you give'r whut zhoo promised 'er.
(You only pray once, though?)
[My question means, you pray once when you set the candle, but you do not pray again during the nine days. She does not understand my question.] No. [The candle is her prayer.] Well, you kin put 25 cents in the box and that'll carry that light 9 days - you see, for that one light 25 cents in any Catholic church. [She is confusing the situation here. I do not think deliberately. She is obviously not a Roman Catholic - you do not buy a black candle in the Roman Catholic Church. But she knows a light can be set for a certain number of days.]
Entry 3006
Saint Expadee - see, he's the conker in law suits.
(How do you handle that?)
Well you go to a Catholic church and you make your novena there, you see. You give a light. You take his picture and have it blest at the church and bring it to your house and you burn a pink candle to it all the time. Whatever you wish for, you prays to that saint and make your wishes and burn [a candle to] that saint - like if you got a case in court and you wanta conker that case. Well, you go to St. Expadee - go to the church and go to St. Expadee and make your novena to him and tell him what you want him to do. Then you come back home after you do that and you burn your candle at your home up until that case is over.
[While machine.is stopped, I ask question about his picture.]
No, you don't bring his picture to the church, you always keep it in your house. You have this picture blest at the church and bring it to your house and have your little altar made and burn a pink candle to him.
Entry 3007
(What do they say about St. Expedite?)
Well, they say St. Expedite is lucky, but you gotta pray to him - certain things you gotta give to him for luck. You gotta have him up in your house and have a little altar-like and burn them little tapers to him for luck. Well, if you make him a promise or anything and don't give it to him, well you falls in bad luck.
Entry 3008
St. Raymond's for lucky things, but St. Expedee ain't. He's for devil- ment.