Browse:THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF (Volume 4, entries 5206–8881)/Part 25
THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF
Volume 4, entries 5206–8881. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 7126
How, tuh keep 'im asleep while she's out at night, take his lef'-foot shoe an' turn it down undahneath undah de head of de bed.
Entry 7127
Dey kin use a shoe dis way. If it's in yore house an' if yo' wants tuh put a person tuh sleep, yo' take de lef'-foot shoe an' turn it down right at de haid of de bed, an' dey'll sleep dere clean until yo' move dat shoe. Yo' got a chance tuh do anything in de world tuh 'em an' dey cain't wake up.
Entry 7128
If yo' wanta make a person sleep, yo' kin [get] outa de bed from 'im while he's sleep. Yo' take his shoe, jis' only one. Take his lef'-foot shoe an' ease it down, an' turn it bottomside upwards right undah de side of de bed where he sleep on. Turn it bottomsides upwards undah dere. Yo' has a chance tuh go anywheres yo' wanta, 'cuz he's not goin' wake up 'long as dat shoe is turned bottom upwards.
Entry 7130
Take the [his] left foot shoe an' turn it up[side down] on his side of the foot of the bed an' he won't wake up.
Entry 7131
Yo' want anothah woman. Jis' lak yo' runnin' a roomin' house an' got roomahs in dere an' yo' an' yore wife in bed- room goin' tuh bed, an' yo' wanna git up an' go in de othah room an' don' wan er to wake up. Yo' take 'er shoe an' put it right undah de bed an turn it upside down, lak mah hat [demonstrates] right undah 'er where she's layin' dere. An' she can't wake up until yo' go wake her up yo'self. Yo' kin go out, kin dress an' stay out till daylight, an' den come back home an wake her up. Dat woman, she won' wake up till den.
Entry 7132
(What do they do about that?) Dey [women] take his 'ef' shoe an' turn it bottom up, put it right up undah 'is head - yo' see, lak up undah de bed. Well, yo' take dat lef' shoe of his'n an' yo' turn it right up undah 'is bed bottom upwards, an' he'll sleep dere until yo' come back.
(I see. If the woman wants to go out and run around?)
Yes, sir.
Entry 7133
Take the [his] right shoe an' turn it upside down until she come back. Keep him asleep.
Entry 7134
Git de right-foot shoe an' any piece he weah nex' tuh 'im - his undahclothes-lak. When dey go tuh sleep, take dat piece whut he weah nex' tuh 'im, an' put it ovah 'is face. An' take his shoe, de right-foot shoe an' turn it down. He'll continue sleepin' dere until dey go an' take dat from ovah 'is face an' turn 'is shoe back up straight in de night.
Entry 7135
If a woman's gittin' ready tuh go out, if she got sense, she'll lay on de bed wit 'er husban'. She pulls off 'er clothes an' while he's not lookin', she'll take and place her undah- weah undah 'is head. She'll take an' place her undahweah undah 'is head, an' he'll lay dere an' go tuh sleep an' he'll nevah wake up. Den she'll take his lef' shoe an' TURN IT DOWN IN UNDAH DE BED, AN' SHE KIN GO TUH HELL AN' COME BACK.
(And she must put the underclothes under his pillow - under his head?)
Her undahclothes undah 'is head.
(Under the pillow or under his head?)
Undah 'is head. Put 'er undahclothes undah 'is head. It kin be, as long as it's undah 'is head, she kin even put it undah de sheet. Yo' know, she put it somewhere where he can't see it.
(Oh, I see.)
Entry 7136
She'll take 'er drawahs an' pull 'em off whut she had on an' put 'em undah 'is haid; take her right-footed shoe an' turn it bottom upwards undah de foot of 'is baid, an' take his lef'-footed shoe an' turn it bottom upvards. An' he'll sleep dere until she come an' wake him up. (Where does she put his shoe?) Jis' turn it bottom upwards undah de baid. Put 'is shoe, one tuh 'er foot an' one tuh 'is, right side by side undah de bed.
(But she puts her drawers under the pillow?)
Ease it undah 'is pillah.
(And what would happen then?)
He jis' sleep.
Entry 7137
Yo' could take one of 'is shoes an' turn it down jis' somewhere at de side of de bed, an' den he sleep a long time. An' a woman kin take her skin- piece an' put it up ovah'at dis end of de bed, jis' hang it up ovah dere. Dey'll sleep sound lak dat.
Entry 7138
Ah tell yo' whut a woman kin do. Jis' lak if 'er an' 'er husban' gone tuh baid an' she wanta step out, she'll git up an' she'll take his shoe, turn 'em bottomside upwards in undah de foot of de baid. See, he cain't wake up until she come back an' turn dem shoes ovah. Den a man kin - he kin, jis' lak if he wan's tuh go out an' leave her dere asleep, all he's gotta do, jis' git up yo' know an' take his pants off or some of 'is drawahs, yo' know it's dirty, an' hang: 'em ovah de top of de baid ovah 'er haid dere, an go on off about 'is business. An' she won't wake up until he come back an' move dem things.
Entry 7139
Wal, dey take de lef' of yo' shoes an' turn it bottom upwards on any kinda piece of bo'd, an' nail it bottom upwards. An' dat's de way yo'll be, jis' lak dat shoe. (How is that?) Becuz de shoe is bottom upwards. Why when yo' turn dat shoe bottom upwards, feet up an' de - in dat way yo'll be down. De only way yo' kin be right is pull dat nail out an' turn dat shoe back up.
Entry 7140
Take a person's left shoe when he goes to sleep, hold over his nose about 10 minutes. He won't wake up.
Entry 7141
Take man's shoe an' pass over his face, then hang on bed; then her underwear pass over his face an' hang over bed.
Entry 7142
She'll take the left foot shoe an' jis' pass it over his face three times an' put it down...
Entry 7143
Ketch a man asleep an' take yore right-foot shoe an' carry it ovah 'is face nine times. An' yo' kin go on where- evah yo' wanta an' come on back, an' he won't wake up until yo' come back. (How do you put that shoe over his face? Show me how you do that.) Jis' lak he's layin' perhaps on 'is back. Yo' take yore shoe an' yo' turn it. Yo' know, maybe it smell inside of it, he inhale dat. Yo' jis carry it ovah 'is face lak dat [demonstrates].
(In a circular motion.)
Nine times in a motion, nine times.
Entry 7144
Turn person's shoe upside down an' leave on chest or stom- ach. Keeps him asleep.
Entry 7145
Tell yo' whut dey do wit yore shoes. Lak if yo' go out an' stay out late at night, or sompin lak dat, an' dey wanta keep yo' home. Dey don' wan' chew tuh go out too much at night. Or if yo' layin' down sleepin' an' dey wan chew tuh sleep soun' an' don' wan' chew tuh wake up, take an' put some black peppah an' salt in de shoe, an' turn it bottomside upwards an' put it undah yore bed - both de shoes.
Entry 7146
She'll take his shoes an' turn 'em upside down...take his hat, pin it [up] over his head.
Entry 7147
Turn de shoes bottoms upwards - his shoes. (Where?) Well, jis' lak he's pulled dem off an' gone tuh bed, she take 'em an' turn 'em bottoms up - turn de' sole up an' de top down. Say dat'll make him sleep until she come back.
Entry 7148
Turn yore shoes upside down, if yo' tuh bed. Turn yore shoes upside down an' walk on out, an' yo' won' wake up until he come back an' turn de shoe ovah.
(Do you use both shoes or just one?)
Use both shoes. Put it crossways lak dat [demonstrates].
(On top of each other crossways.)
Entry 7150
She take the left shoe off his foot...she turn it upside down under- neath the bed, an' then take his sock an' lay it across that shoe [making the shape of a cross]; either one of the socks, but she got to take that left foot shoe.
Entry 7151
Jis' take de shoe an' turn it down...den take an' turn his pockets wrongside out.
Entry 7152
If she gwine out - mean if she goin' tuh 'er girl fren' - dey kin jis' turn yore shoe upside down an' turn de toes undah de bed, an' he won' wake up till she come back.
(He turns his shoes upside down?)
Dat's right, de man's shoes.
(Both shoes, both pointed under the bed.)
Undah de bed.
(He won't wake up until she gets back?)
No, no!
Entry 7153
Dey tell me dat de women kin - 'fact a woman tried it on me - take her shoes an' turn 'em right undahneath de head of 'er bed, an' put a half a dollah undah each shoe, an' go out an' stay out, den come in, an' yo' won' know it. Yo' won' wake up until she come back an' move 'em.
Entry 7154
Take both 'is shoes an' turn 'em undah de head of de bed, upside downwards, fo' an' aft. (How do they turn them?) Foah an' aft. (That's the toe, one. And the heel?) Dat's right. Heah's a toe an' heah's a toe. See, dats de way. Undah de head of de bed. (Toe and heel, and heel and toe?) [Shoes are together upside down facing opposite directions.] Dat's right, an' he cain't wake up until she come back an' turn 'em up. An' he kin go an' do her de same way, if she's got low quartahs or top.shoes. But if she's got top shoes, dose high-top shoes, yo' have to put de tops undah, fold de tops undah, yo' see, so dey'll set straight. Jis' put 'em undah de head of de bed.
Entry 7155
Home at night? Take yore shoes, turn one tuh de head an' de othah back tuh de foot; yo' know, jis' de opposite ways, yo' see, wit sugah in each one of dem shoe, an' sleep lak dat. Tie one knot in 'uh undahskirt or 'er chemise, whatevah she has, an' sleep until she returns. She jis' has tuh keep it on, de one she has on. (Put one shoe with the toe pointing to the head and one to the foot. You put the shoes upside down, together, or one at the foot and one at the head?) Upside down, one at de head an' one at de foot. Set 'em nex' tuh each othah right in a row, right foot at de head of de man; one fo' de head an' one fo' de foot.
Entry 7156
After he's gone to sleep, look, she takes one of his shoes an' turn it to the head [of the bed] an' the other one to the foot, see, tying three knots in her underslip, an' he'll sleep there until she return back an' re- move those shoes.
Entry 7157
Heard 'em say dey kin take dere shoe from de right foot an' turn it up by a do', an' if dat person 'sleep, he'll sleep dere till yo' remove dat shoe 'fo' he wake up.
(You turn it up by the door?)
Yo' have tuh turn it up on de flo' facin' at de do' on de side.
(You turn it upside down?)
Yes sir, like dat.
(The right-foot shoe?)
Yes sir, an' say he will sleep until yo' remove dat shoe.
Entry 7158
Now, dat goin' in devilment trick. A woman takes yo' stockin' an', if [she] do dat 2 or 3 weeks, she take yo' stockin' an' she'll put it - no dis heah 'er stockin' whut ah'm tryin' tuh explain now. Ah ain't heard about 'is stockin' but 'er stockin'. She'll take dat an' she kin put it aroun' yo', roun' where yo' wouldn't know it's dere. An' den she'll take den 'er piece dat nex' tuh 'er, somewhere next tuh 'er skin, an' she'll put dat ovah yo'. An' yo'll sleep den, right on den, an' she kin go out an' do any kinda business she wanta, an' yo' won' wake up. DAT JIS' DE SAME AS MORPHINE YO' KIN TAKE IT.
Entry 7159
Well, ah heard dat yo' could take yore sock, if yo' wants tuh git out anywhere at night wit'out yore ole lady knowin' it or somepin lak dat. Or if she Wants tuh git out wit'out yo' knowin' it. Well she takes 'er stockin' an' while yo' sleep, she puts it ovah yore nose, see, an' yo'll nevah wake up until she come back an' move dat stockin'.
Entry 7160
Sock - kin take a sock. A SOCK FER TRUE HAVE COME DOWN FROM HISTORY. If yo' kin take a stockin' an' if a person is asleep - has plenty of money - yo' kin take it an' lay it, yo' sleepin', an' heah: s yore nose heah, an' yo' kin lay it right dere in fron' of yore nose. AN' YO' KIN TRY IT ANY TIME YO' WANTA, AN' YO' WOULDN'T WAKE UP. Ah kin be right dere when yo' woke up. Well ah been out de house, done been evahwhere, an' ah'll come back an' yo' sleepin' right on. An' den ah'll come dere an' take dat sock, an' soon as yo' commence drawin' long breaths, ah'll remove dat sock. Look lak yo' sawin' inside - look lak a saw. Minute dat sock is gone yo' don't heah dat. Reckon ah'll shake yo' an' wake yo' up, but ah done got whut chew got an' gone wit it. Done carried it somewheah, but ah wake yo' up. Me an' yo' lay down tuhgethah. Yo' couldn't sweah ah took it. Well, yo say dere's nobody else in de house but us two. How could it be gone? Well, if yo' didn't know, [who knows]?
Entry 7161
Well, dey always say, dat if a man asleep an' yo' wan' 'im tuh sleep till yo' come back, take yore [his] dirty socks an' hang 'em ovah de head of 'is bed an' he sleep till yo' git back. Take one of 'is dirty socks, de right foot, as neah as yo' kin see. Yo' kin see how de toe is printed in de sock. Yo' take dat sock an' yo' hang it ovah de head of de bed.an if he sleepin', he sleep till yo' come back.
Entry 7162
Well, she could take her undahweah an' jis' put it up ovah de head of de bed. Or eithah take a sock - her stockin', yo' know, a dirty stockin' an' tie three knots around it - like he's layin' in de bed, see, an' jis' lay it right cross 'is neck. AH (She takes her dirty stocking, and it has three knots in it, and puts it right around his neck?) Jis' lay it right ovah 'is neck [demonstrates]. (She puts the three knots right on his throat, and just lays it right over his neck. And he won't wake up until she gets back?) Until she gits back an' unloose de stockin'.
Entry 7163
Dey kin git de footbo'd or de headbo'd at least an' come an' put it undah yore house an' yo' can't wake up. (You can't wake up? Why would they put that under the house to keep you asleep?) Dey put yo' tuh sleep lak de dead man is. (Why would they put you to sleep? What was their idea of doing that?) De idea tuh put chew to sleep, den yo' nevah wake up.
(Oh, this is to kill you.)
Entry 7164
Take dat an' put 'em undahneat' chore house in de midnight, but yo got'a do dat on de young moon. An' take one of dem headbo'ds an' bring 'em an' put 'em, right jis' lak it wus yore bed here, an' shove 'em undahneat' dere. If yo' wanted tuh git up in de maw- nin' on time, YO' WOULD SLEEP AN' SLEEP UNLESSEN SOMEBODY WOULD WAKE YO'. Yo' can't - yo' wanta git up but choo can't. Yo' go back tuh sleep.
Entry 7165
Take some graveyard dirt an' sprinkle it ovah de house. Dat will put 'em fast asleep, dey say. Ah nevah experienced it but ah jis' heard whut dey would say.
(You mean it would put this man asleep?)
Puts 'im fast asleep an' she kin git up an' go jis' where she wanta.
(Where does she sprinkle that stuff?)
Sprinkle it ovah yore house.
(Oh, all around the house - inside the house.)
Yeah.
Entry 7166
She'll go in de graveyard an' git 'er a li'le graveyard dust an' use it. An' when she come back she take it from undah dere an' he wake up. (Oh, you do the same thing if a woman wants to step out, put that graveyard dirt underneath the bed.
Entry 7167
Git a li'le graveyard dirt an' put on a person, an' when yo' put it on 'em - git a li'le graveyard dirt an' carry it, tie it up real tight, an' put it up undah de pillah an' let 'em sleep on it at night. An' if he's got a wife an' 'is wife wanted tuh go out, she could put it up undah dere an' let 'im go tuh sleep. If he's got whiskey in 'im or anythin' - anythin' at all lak whiskey on 'im, she kin go on off an' stay jis' long as she wanta. An' when she comes back she'll pull it out an' he wakes up.
(That is to keep him asleep while she is gone.)
Entry 7168
Take graveyard dust...sprinkle it...over your hair...that will make you sleep.
Entry 7169
A woman kin have her husban' an' jis' go - it's lak he's workin' at night, an' he be here sleepin' an' she may wanta go off, yo' see, wit some other man or somepin othah. An' she - aftah he goes tuh sleep, she wan's tuh keep 'im asleep. She kin take a plate an' a knife an' fork, an' put it undah de head of dat bed right dere. De knife an' fork cross- ed in de plate undah de head of de bed. She kin put a candle undah de foot of dat bed an' light it, an' take her shimmy or 'er petticoat or somepin lak dat, an' hang it right up ovah 'is face - say prob'ly eight or ten inches from 'is face. An' he'll be sleepin' right dere when she come back home an' wake him up. He won' even wake up while she's gone. She be gone all day an' he'll sleep all day.
(She puts the candle on the foot of the bed?)
Yes, sir, puts de candle right on de foot. Yes, sir, he'll sleep.
(A candle of any particular color or just any kind of candle?)
Oh, jis' git dese big white - two for a nickel candles. [This was back in 1937 during the Great Depression!] Go dere an' buy a candle.
(All right, I see.)
See, she's going tuh make it back dere befo' dat candle goes out.
(I see.)
NOW, DIS IS BY EXPERIENCE. I SAW MAH BROTHAH'S WIFE DO DIS. See. An' she tol' me, say, "Brothah, he don' wan' me tuh go up tuh 'is mothah, " she say, "an' ah'm goin' an' ah know whut tuh do tuh keep 'im asleep." I SAY, "WELL, DO ANY- THIN' YO' WANTA DO ONLY DON'T KILL 'IM." An' ah sits dere an' looked at 'er do dis an' ah walked out an' set on dose row boats right ovah dere across de river in Bellpoint 'till she come back. An' when she come back, I come on ovah dere an' meet 'er an' went in de house, an' de candle done burned down about dat much [demonstrates]. An' he jis' alayin' dere dead to de world. An' she did all dem thin's.
(What did you say? Bell - where is that?)
Bellpoint. It's a li'le small town jis' across de rivah.
(Over in Louisiana?)
Yes, sir - tothah [the other] end of de bridge.
(I see.)
Entry 7170
[This is my resume' of rite transcriber failed to copy.] "Cross knife and fork under his pillow or under mattress. Shimmy over head. Broom stood in corner with brush part up. Keep asleep."
Entry 7171
Yo' take three matches an' cross 'em undah 'is haid - right up undah 'is haid. He'll sleep right dere until she come back an' move dose matches.
Entry 7172
I have heard them say sometimes you [a woman] take a lady's difficulty and put it under a man's nose [while he sleeps] and he won't wake up until she removes it. And she can get this money and do anything.[Ocean City, Md., Ediphone.]
Money is a reported opportunity in a hearsay account, not a required material or a verified result.
Entry 7173
De ministratin' rag an' put it undah- neat' de mattress where he sleep at, an' den take a nightgown or sompin an' throw in 'is face.
(What will that do?)
Den she kin go out an' stay out all night long an' come in de nex' mawnin'. She kin stay out all mawnin' too, from whut ah heard.
Entry 7174
Well, yo' kin place three names, yo' undahstand. Take it an' put it in 'is pajamas ovah 'is heart, an' he'll sleep sound until de nex' mawnin', slap [right to the moment] until yo' come back an' wake 'im up tuh git dat [piece of paper with the names] outa his pajamas. (What three names do you use?) Any three names dat choo know personal. Dose three names jis' lak yo' said John, Henry, Mary or Jane, anythin' lak dat. Yo' write it down on a piece of papah. Excuse me, ah'll show yo' how's it [how it's] done [demonstrates]. [Here I probably push my Numbers Book (numbers of inform- ants) over to speaker.] Oh! Ah kin show yo' here. Yo' see, write de three names; one dere, one dere, an' one dere. Den yo' fold it an' put it jis' ovah in 'is pocket dere, or if he is sleepin' in pajamas or undahsuit, or anythin' lak dat. Jis' lak yo' be playin' wit 'im an' slip in 'is, intuh where it would git ovah 'is heart. He'll go off tuh sleep. An' den he won't wake until yo' come back. [I suggest that these 3 names could originally have been the 3 Holy Names.]
Entry 7175
Write his name three times an' take it an' stick it into his shoe an' put it under his head.
Entry 7176
Yo' know de time de snake's sheddin', yo' know, well yo' kin take an' use his shed an' grind it up into powdahs - right fine powdah-lak dust an' sprinkle it roun' in yore hat. He'll jis' make yo' sleep all de time.
Entry 7177
A man say, fo' an' instan', if he got a wife an' he wan'a go out at night an' wan'a keep 'er home. Well, say fo' instan', if de night is real hot, she will perspire. Ah do dis now mahself. Well, ah tell yo' jis' lak yo' come tuh me dis way. Well, all right. Yo' go home now an' sleep wit chore wife, sleep on one side of de baid. Now, heah's whut chew wan' do in case if yo' wan' chure wife tuh stay home at night. Like yo' wan'a go out an' have a nice time or go out wit some othah woman, maybe. In othah words, yo' won wanta hurt 'er or anythin' but chew goin' out. All right. Well, now, yo' let 'er sleep on one side of de baid fo' three nights an' be shore she slept dere long enough so dat puspire [perspiration] would go through de mattress. In othah words, her scent go through de mattress an' git into de cotton. Well, natchly [naturally], yo' know, she git up an' yo' tell 'er tuh go fix breakfas' - anythin', jis' tuh git 'er out de room fo' a short uhile. An' when she do dat yo' git a small 'mount of de cotton - not a big piece, jis' a small 'mount.
(How do you get that?)
Well, YO' JIS' SPLIT DE MATTRESS, an' yo' jis' take yore fingahnail an' jis' do lak dat on de mattress. Quite natchel [natural] de lint'll come up jis' fas' as yo' do dat. Well, when it come up lak dat, yo' jis' git a small 'mount of it. In othah words, sompin 'bout lak dat. Den yo' brings it tuh yo' place, den yo' puts it in a piece of wool cloth, see. An' aftah yo' put it in a piece of wool, sew it up, an' go up undah de house in de same direction where she sleeps an' bury it. In case, maybe, it's a house dat a li'le on de ground, sometimes - say fo' instan' lak she sleeps heah [in house where we were sitting], yo' can't git up undah heah. Well, yo' kin git roun' de house on dat side dere, an' put it on dat side tuh de restin' of 'er haid. Maybe she sleep tuh both end, but one end of de baid she sleep tuh mo' den de othah one. Put it tuh dat end. An' den she'll continue tuh stay home until yo' come back. An' de minute yo' git in de bed she wakes up. Long as yo' stay out she'll always sleep. (In other words, all you have to do is to get some of this cotton out of the mattress and bury it under the house, under where she sleeps, and that'll keep her asleep while you are out?) Dat's right.
Entry 7178
If she has connection wit 'im an' take her a towel - use a towel an' hang it ovah de baid an' she kin go an' he'll sleep dere till she comes back.
(But she has connection with him first though? Then she hangs that towel over his head?)
Yes.
Entry 7179
She kin take a dishrag an' wet it fairly good wit 'er chamber lye an' slip it intuh de pillah or de cotton where he really sleeps on. An', why he'll go in dere [the cotton he sleeps on]. Well, de fac' [fact] about it, stay in dere. An' he'll nevah come out regardless tuh whut she even doin' on de outside. Let i sleep dere till daylight.
(He's going to sleep while she's gone out?)
Yes sir.
Entry 7180
Take an' cross 'is han's across 'is breast.
(Cross his hands across his breast when he's asleep?)
Yes, sir, an' take a li'le bottle of watah. Yo' cross ovah 'im, step all ovah 'im an' he'll stay asleep fo' hours. Jis' take dat li'le bottle of watah an' set it somewhere neah de head, anywhere near his head. Dat keeps 'im asleep.
Entry 7181
An' dey kin [go] right straight along ag'in, an' yo' kin go tuh sleep. An' yo' have any money, yo' kin go tuh sleep, an' if ah kin git tuh yo' - yo' done dead tuh de worl' when yo' drop tuh sleep. Dere's dis han' layin' on de kivah [cover], dis han' - dere's de right han' [demonstrates]. De lef han' is jis' lak dat [demonstrates]. An' yo' sleep dere till ah git anythin' dat ah want in yo' home.
(What do you do with that left hand?)
Git a basin of watah - an' yo' be sleepin' now - an' set it right side de baid an' lay yo' han' in it jis' lak dat [demonstrates] in yo' sleep, an' yo' sleep right on dere until dey git jis' whut de wants. Den when dey gits whut dey wants, dey'll make a li'le racket an' throw de watah out an' yo'll wake up. Ah knowdat, mahself.
Entry 7182
She could take her step-ins an' hang 'em up ovah de head of de bed. Wash 'em an' hang 'em up ovah de head of de bed an' put 'is han' down in a cold pan of watah. He'll sleep dere until she come back. (She must wash those things first?) No sir, jis' hang 'em. An' den she kin take her undah- Weah an' spread 'em ovah 'is face, an' put 'is han' in a cold pan of watah an' he'll tell evahthin' he done dat night.
Entry 7183
Take some clear water an' put it underneath of his bed, while he's sleepin', an' see he won't be able to wake up.
Entry 7184
Take de watah an' sweeten it an' have salt in it an' set it by de bed, an' he'll stay asleep until yo' come back. (You put each of these in a separate thing or?) No, yo' put a little watah in a little bottle eithah a little glass an' set it undah yore bed. Dat'll keep 'im asleep.
Entry 7185
Yo' kin take yore drawahs, yore bloomahs, an' hang 'em ovah de head of de bed, an' yo' take a pint of watah an' yo set de pint of watah down tuh de foot of de bed. Den yo' kin go on out an' go anywhere yo' Wanta, an' come back in an he's still asleep, 'cuz ah've tried it.
Entry 7186
Git chew some whiskey, some anvil dust an' vinegah jis' where he lay down. Yo' lay down wit 'im an' leave it up undah 'is bed, an' he won't wake until yo' come. Jis' undah de bed. [Memphis, Tenn., (949), 1530:15.] [This fifth and final subsection of section FOLK MEDICINE gathers fragments either from doctors themselves or from patients or their relatives or friends talking about doctors. Actually, similar fragments scattered throughout Hoodoo, show that many of these brief statements could have been placed elsewhere.]
Entry 7187
Yo' uses High John an' yo' uses five fingahs grass an' yo' make charms outa dem, an' den yo' put lodestone all on dat. An' if yo'd make a seal an' wear dat - when yo' read parts of de Bible. "Co'se [of course] dat's de way a lotta people do, but ah go by de Bible. See, whut ah do, ah based on de Bible - prayahs, see, an' sech. [The preceding word charm rarely appears in Hoodoo. For the word seal, see SEALS AND HANDS, p.643 and elsewhere.]
(How would you use this High John and five finger grass?)
Oh, yo' jis' put it in a li'le bag.
(Put it in a little bag and that piece of lodestone with it?)
Yes. An' den put it wit - wet it wit dis lodestone perfume, yo' see, an' weab it.
(And what about the seal?)
Or yo' kin weah a seal. De seals are made outa de Six an' Seven Books of Moses. (And then what do they do with this little bag they wear? That is something separate again, isn't it?) Dis li'le bag, dat's somepin sep'rate.
(What do you wear this little bag for?)
Dat's fo' pertection [protection]. An' prayah too. All de othah [people] weah a prayah. Prayah'll pertect chew too.
(What kind of prayer do you use while you are wearing that bag?)
Well, yo' kin weah a prayah at any time [not only while wearing that bag]. Yo' kin weah a prayah outa de Bible, de 91 Psalms on parchment papah. An' yo' have it wit certain kinds of ink. Yo' write dese prayahs outa de book of de 91 Psalm; mos' any prayah dat's suitable. An' yo' weah dat prayah all de time an' God'll pertec' chew. Yo' kin even put a prayah behind - on parchment - put it behin' jore do' an' no one cain't come an' do yuh any harm. (You say they have to write with certain kinds of ink. Can you tell what kinds of ink they have to use to write that?) Well, ah fergit de kinda ink. Dey have reg'lah ink fo' dat. Ah tell yuh - dove's blood.
(Do you get the blood from a dove or do you buy this?)
Well, yo' cain't very well git it from a dove, yo' have tuh buy dat. See, EVAHBODY CAIN'T GIT DOSE THIN'S. DEY SEN' TUH CERTAIN PLACES.
[Is dove's blood ordinary or special red ink with a dove label on bottle?]
(They send to some firm.)
An' git dose thin's an' dey even make dose parchments. (What firm do you buy these things from? Do you happen to know the name of any firm? There were several down in Memphis and one in Chicago.) Ah know one in Chicago.
(What one do you know there?)
AH DON'T LAK TUH CALL DESE NAMES, AH DON'T KNOW WHETHAH AH'D BE DOIN' RIGHT DEN.
(Oh, I'd just send and get a catalog, that's all.)
Well, de Lawrence [Laurence]. (What is their address? What street do they work on? State Street?) [A penciled note of mine, made soon after the transcription was typed, reads: Use with caution. Later I write in red ink: How cautious I was in the earlier days of collecting!!! This informant is O.K. (signed) H. M. H.]
Entry 7188
(Find out the names of those people.)
Madam Helen, Madam Kaye [Kate?], Madam Louise. Dey got anothah named Madam Fouche, anothah named Madam Queenie. Anothah named [something] an' dey got one live away, away back here by huhself. She is de one whut deal wit pure hoodooism. She kin do anything dat is wrong wit a person. Dey call her Madam Rossin [Ruskin?]. She has de last house on Pelican Avenue in Algiers. Dat is neah de Berman Higbvay. She is 9 miles out of Algiers, she is more neah Meraux[?] dan she is Algiers. Yo' kin git anything yo' want ovah dere, dose guys is tough. Pelican Avenue an' Berman Highway, dat is where de cutthroats hang out. [There have been a number of Helens: Madam, Miss, and Mother. For the toughness of Algiers, see INTRODUCTION vol., p. XLf., and p.776, and illustration of detective agency at end of vol.2.]
Entry 7189
Take dat - say, now, if dere is a woman dat wuz runnin' wit a man an' yo' don' want it done, yo' see. Dat's de othah woman, yo' know, wit a married man. Dis man is runnin' wit anothah woman. His wife have got aholt [a hold] of it. She kin dress 'er husban' fo' de othah woman. (Well, how would she dress him? What would she do that with?) She dress 'er husban'. She would take, she put 'erself in contact wit 'er husband now an' use 'im 'erself. An' when she's done wit 'im, den she smote [rub] 'im down, by puttin' dis innocent oil in 'er han's an' smote 'im down.
(She'll only do that after she's finished?)
Aftah she done wit 'im, herself; yo' know, de wife.
(She puts this oil on her hands?)
Yes, an' smote 'im down. An' aftah she smote 'im down, den she'll turn 'im loose. He kin go. Now, den, he kin go aftah dis othah woman. He cain't raise a heart fer'er, see. Den he'll come den an' looks - go on an' beat 'is wife, knowin' dat he don't wan' nobody else but 'er an' [that] he cain't mark time now lak he used tuh; knowin' dat somepin's wrong somewhere, don't chew see. But dat's de way she kin do.
(Well, what kind of oil would she use to do that? Put on her hands?)
Innocent oil. (Innocent oil. Well, where do you get that? Where do you buy it? How do you get it, make it?) Yo' know whut a innocen' is. Innocen' [as] a lamb. A lamb is innocen'. Yo' kin take a knife an' go tuh 'im fo' tuh cut 'is throat, he won't say a word. He's innocent. (Well, they call it innocent oil, yes, but you have to buy that some place, don't you? Where do you get that?) Oh! Yo' make it yuhself. Take a piece of lamb.
(Oh!) You get a piece of lamb. I see.)
Git a piece of lamb an' take a piece of fat off it an' stew it up.
(Take the fat and stew it up.)
AH DO'S DAT. AH MAKES A LI'LE MEDICINE NOW, YO' KNOW, TUH CURE "BAD DIS- EASES." (That's all you use, just that oil from that lamb? This mutton or lamb oil, you don't put anything with it or anything?) Don' put nuthin else wit, except dere's somepin else yo' wanta do.
Entry 7190
Now, ah'll tell yuh tuh show yuh dat ah kin know somepin. Ah were born in dis world feet foremost. Ah wuz wrapped in a veil three times. [This means] yuh talk tuh anyone in three tongues an' yuh kin sing ole-time songs, mah mothah said. Mah parents an' both mah gran'parents said ah had plenty hair on me befo' dey had dern [theirs]. Well, ah wuz born between de legs [of my mother] as a woman. Yes sir, ah wuz born wit mah teeth. Ah'd [I had] it [them] pulled an' nevah shed a tooth in mah life. Ah wuz de seventh chile outa seven daughtahs, born on de third day of de new moon. An' yuh know, mahself as a virgin should be wise [a woman of 55-60 years old]. Ah kin rub [you] if anybody did anythin' tuh yuh an' it'll all go away. Ah know ah wuz born tuh work [hoodoo]. No one taught me. Ah wuz born in North Carolina, in Salts- ville [lake?] where's dere nuthin but Geechees [gē'chē, singular]. Mah fathah wuz a full- blooded Geechee, mah mothah wuz a Amasha woman, black Creek Indian, etc., etc. [This woman, quite eccentric, was a professional worker and excellent. Unfortunately, except for the preceding account and No.2328, p.652, I lost all of her material. She claimed to be a Gee- chee (ge'chē), word from Ogeechee, a dialect originally of Negro slaves on the Ogeechee River, Georgia, formed of English and native African words. I found it difficult to understand either the Geechee or the Gullah, the latter along the lowlands and off-shore islands of South Carolina, Georgia and the northern coastal tip of Florida. A black man I interviewed at Ocean City, Md., in 1926, he working for his M. A. at Howard University, had spent several weeks in Charleston, S. Car. His opinion to me was: Those people down there are not Americans, they are Africans. I could scarcely understand a word they said.]
Entry 7191
[The following Doctor Marcus or William Brown will also be found on Pp.1289-1294 and 2246-2253.] Well, ah tell yah whut dey do. Dey took de right track, see. Listen good, now. Dey take yuh right track, dey got tuh git de whole middle of de track. Dey take dat track, dey put dat in a bottle, unnahstan', an' when dey put dat in a bottle, den dey gits some of dis ah - yah know de thin', dey call 'em, a thing grow in de wood. Dey call 'em de scorpion wine [vine]. See, yah'll git dat scorpion wine, yuh beat dat up an' put dat in de bottle, an' yah throw dat ovahbo'd, see. An' yuh got dat, yah'll run 'em finely away, see. [The scorpion vine could be: (1) scorpion grass, a forget-me-not, several small plants; (2) scorpion weed, the Indian he- liotrope; or (3) any plant the root seller calls the scorpion vine.] [587:1.] Dat's a pizen.
(What's a poison?)
Unnahstan' good - listen fore ah go on, fore ah tells yuh. DERE A LOT OF PEOPLE AROUN IN DE WORLD BUT DERE'S GOODNESS IN DEM. ALL OVAH DE UNITED STATES.
(I know, I understand.)
Dere's Doctor Brown, he shore [sure] kin tell yuh about me. Now dey recognize me, yuh see, [as] anothah fellah [doctor]. AH DON'T MEAN TUH TALK OF BEIN' A SNOB. (Well, there's a Doctor Peter Brown. Who is this fellow here [in Charleston], Peter Brown?) Well, he jis' git in touch wit me 'bout two or three mont's ago. See, ah tell yuh how he come in touch wit me, see. Dere's a woman he used tuh be wit, see. She did sompin tuh 'im, see, an' ah had tuh cure him. Dat's how he come in touch wit me, see. Ah don't really know 'im, yuh see. See, AH'M A PLAIN MAN BUT MAH WORK IS MAH WORK, AN' AH WANTA STAY DAT WAY. [He prefers to work alone.]
(Well, what is your first name? His is Peter Brown.)
MAH NAME IS WILLIAM BROWN, BUT EVAHBODY CALL ME DOCTOR BROWN.
(I see, you are Doctor William Brown.)
Yes sir, dat's mah name. YUH KIN FIN' ME ANY DAY AT 43 NORMAN STREET, WELL KNOWN DERE, COME ANY TIME. (Were you born right here in Charleston? Did you learn your work right here in Charleston?) No, ah - mah workman [person who taught me my work] always diedin' out [my teachers are dead]. Thomas [Promise?] Washington an' 'is wife. Dey died now seven yeahs ago. Yes, sir, ah'm prackly [practically] come up from [hoodoo] school trainin'.
(Where did they live?)
Dey died now. Well, dey did live in de same town. Dey from Tanner[?] Island. Dey home wuz from Tanner Island. Dat on de nex' side of, right nex' tuh BEAUFORT COUNTY UP DERE. DAT'S WHERE ALL DE WORK COME FROM. (And they are dead now. I see. What was their name? Washington was their name?) Thomas [Promise?] Washington wuz a man, he worked [taught] me, an' Nancy Wash- ington. Both of 'em died now.
(Who was the other man? You mentioned someone else?)
[I am probably thinking of the preceding Peter Brown.]
Ah said Promise [Thomas?] Washington give me mah schoolin' [in hoodoo]. Nancy Washington is 'is wife. An' mah name is William Brown. But evahbody call me Doctor. [58:3.] Now, yo' know whut chew do wit de chicken aig, yuh see. Now, yuh take jis' a pin, yuh unnahstan' an' yuh take de same thin' whut chew take from yuh fingahnail [demonstrates].
(That dirt under your fingernail.)
[Stick] in de pin an' dat same match, see, an' yuh tap [make a hole in] dat aig. Evah time yuh take dat pin an' do lak dat, an' den yo' threw [throw] it back inside. Now, yuh done put pizen dere, yuh see, down in dere [in the hole in the egg]. Well, when yuh goin' do dat, yuh take a li'le bit of sulphuh an yuh cork dat up. See, yuh cork dat up. Yuh haul[!] dat aig intuh yuh house now - yuh goin' pizen de person ovah yondah. Yuh keep de aig in yuh house, see. Now, yuh git a can of dis [Red] Devil Lye an' yuh set dat aig in it an' yuh cook dat aig. See, till it cook. [The lye is supposed to cook the egg.] Well, when dat aig is kinda cooked, yuh keepin' it till it be kinda daid [dead = rotten here], see. Yuh care [carry] dat aig an' yuh bury 'em undahneat' dat step [over yonder].
(Bury at the other house?)
Right tuh de step undah de house so when it bust, all dat stink gas is in de [victim's] house. An' soon as it bust, dat gas'll spread an' evahbody in dere pizened.
(Everybody is poisoned?)
An' if yuh once tetch it, yuh daid. (Well, how would you cure a case of that kind, if a person was poisoned that way?) Well, ah tell yuh; yo' see, TUH BE CURED, SEE, PIZEN DRAW PIZEN. But dese PeOple don' know it. Now, AH MIX DE SAME THIN' WHUT IN DERE AN' DRAW IT ALL FROM "EM. Let 'em drink it.
(You fix the same thing and let them drink it.)
Yes, sir, de same thin', see, 'cuz ah know aftah de aig bust, ah know whut it take tuh bust de aig. Well, ah'll make up de same thin' an' draw it [the poison] from dem. Onnahstan'? Ah'll mix up a scraped fingahnail an' cut off de match [head] an' put it in a glass an' drink wit de milk. An' ah'll have a li'le bit sulphur an' li'le bit of killback [calabash] wit watah ovah it. An' soon as ah give 'em dat tuh drink an' soon as dat pizen - anybody dat sick of all de pizen, ah give 'em dat an' it all come up. Evahthin' in 'em. Cannot stay.
Lye is named in an editorial explanation of the reported preparation; the cooking action is presented as supposed.
Entry 7192
Mah mothah's [mother wasl poisoned. In cloudy weathah lak dis she got a frog run up an' down 'uh ahms [arms].
(Only in cloudy weather?)
[We have had TIME AND HOODOO SPELL: (1) Pyschological, (2) Chronological, and
(3) Spiritual, pp.349-361). Here the weather influences hoodoo spells.]
Only in cloudy weathah. An' yo' kin see dem jis' plain runnin' up an' down 'uh ahms. A woman gave huh snake blood on account of mah fathah. Dis woman doin' [that] fuh [on account of], fathah. An' she gave huh snake blood in tomatoes an' she et it. An' dat's whu' cuz [what caused] dem frogs tuh run up an' down 'uh ahms. Yo' cain't see [them] until it's cloudy weathah. Mah mothah only weighs 75 pounds. She's vury pō' [poor in health] an de' [dey = they] killed mah fathah. (They killed him? Well, has your mother gone to a root doctor to find out what's wrong?) Yes.
(What does he do for it, anything?)
He did take some money but ah don' think he kin cure huh. He's a man over at [some place I could not understand and considered it fruitless to ask for a spelling] an' dey call 'im Doctah Buzzard. Ah've guess yo've hear'd speak about 'im.
(I've heard of him. He used to be in Beaufort [Bu-fěrt] County.)
He still ovah in Beaufort County. Well, HE'S A GENUINE "ROOT MAN," yo' see. [Notice the word genuine, indicating some doctors are frauds or use few roots. Notice, too, how informant changes my root doctor to the older root man.]
(Does he come into Charleston?)
He don't come ovah here. Evahbody has tuh go ovah dere tuh see him. [For more about Doctor Buzzard, see pp.891-905.]
Entry 7193
[Somewhere in Hoodoo I probably mention the Doctor Buzzard of Richmond, Va., a man who doctored a short time in the city a few years before I collected there. While personally transcribing the Richmond cylinders I made the follow- ing note about him:] [The] story [I just heard on the cyl- inders is] about Dr. Buzzard - tran- scribe later - important because this man - because he put fire in his mouth - is probably the Dr. Buzzard I met in Norfolk [Va.] - I had forgotten the account here and did not recall it when I met Buzzard in Norfolk - the description here of a tall brown man and goatee sounds something like the man I met - who was a little off in his head. [Richmond, Va., (389), 338:4.] A notation on this sheet reads do not copy whole story. Some of Norfolk Buzzards material is or will be in Hoodoo.]
Entry 7194
[Caffrey's interview will be found on Pp.1459-1470. There in an intro- ductory comment I give the reader a favorable opinion about him. The following rite was removed from his material years ago be- cause it concerned a man's vitality, dirty words back in those days, smelling of evil thoughts or deeds. Usually cases of so-called social diseases were left for a sex special- ist, but more reputable doctors like Caffrey Would accept vitality deficiency or impotence trouble. An early advertisement of "Father" Caffrey, when only 29 years old, appears among the ILLUSTRATIONS at end of Hoodoo, vol.2.] All right. I'll look that condition over. I'll look that condition over an I'll say, "What instances did you see that you tied up? You say, "Well, I' tied up." say, "I believe that I'm tied up in some way or other." Say, "I can't make connection with no other woman but my old lady." You see? Well, all right. I'll look that condition over an' then I would go to work an' I would fix up, I would get me a bottle of - let me, now. I get me a bottle of well water. See, vell water.
(Well water?)
Well water. Mix that with ammonia. You understand me? Then I will go to pork an' I put some antiseptic in that an' I will have you to take some baths. You get the idea about that? An' have you to take baths three times a week. An' I'll get you Boston Compeller an' make an ingredient of that.
(What did you get?)
Boston Compeller.
(Boston what?)
Boston Compeller.
(What's that?)
That's to give you vitality. That's Boston Compeller, you see.
(What does it look like?)
Well, that's somepin like a oil that you get from the drug store.
(I see. All right, go ahead.)
Boston Compeller. Then you get about a - a small bottle of turpentine an' yo' get a small bottle of antiseptic. You get the idea about that? An' I fix that up and then I go to work an' I go out into the country somewhere an' I'll try to get in contact with some milkman or another at a milk dairy that got a cow that give rich milk. You see? Then I put about two tablespoonful of sugar in that. Get the idea about that? And in putting two tablespoons of sugar in that, I'll try to get [something]. [He is acting out everything.] [He claps his hands, uhispering "All right several times.] And then [get] an ingredient of some kind of creosote and shake that well, you see. And you'll take that three time a day. And in taking that three times a day I'll come to you and then you'll get you a bar of soap; you see, that Octagon soap, you see, and you wash yourself three times a day with that: at six in mawn- in', nine in the mawnin, and six in the evening, an' that will reduce that con- dition in you and you can go anywhere you want to go.
(I see. What was the name of that soap?)
Octagon soap.
(I see.)
Now, what ingredient I left out, but I'll bring it right back. You put about, sasewhere round about three tablespoons of whiskey or gin into that. See, that bring that vitality back.
(That restores a man to his vitality?)
His vitality.
(The woman can't keep him tied up. I see.)
Entry 7195
Well, now, you uses flaxseed for one, slippery elm for two and then you get you some filet gumbo.
(Some what?)
Filet gumbo.
(Filet gumbo?)
[Filet (ground sassafras leaves) for gumbo is described several places in Boodoo.] Yes sir, that's green stuff that you uses for to cook with, see. And then you takes that and then you throws it around; around the house, see. And then you walks - steps in that and then you walks back and gets in the house with that, and that stuff will make you move. Now, another question is, if yo' don' wanta move. If I want you to stay, I just will get you some vinegar and the landlord's name, and fix that up with cayenne peppah, and then put his name down in there in a lemon, and then roll this lemon. And then take you a carrot and plant it.
(A what?)
A carrot.
(A carrot?)
Carrot, a carrot what you eat. Carrot. And take that carrot and plant it 'fore your door, and let it grow there. And just as it grows, you will remain there, right there. You never will move out of there, out of that house.
(Out of that house. Who will do this? The landlord, is he doing that?)
No.
(Who would do this to keep me in there?)
I would do that.
(I see.)
I would do that, make you stay there. You never would move, don't care how they don't like you, and how they would find fault of you. But you would stay there as long as that carrot is there with the landlord's name in the carrot and growing.
(I see.)
Entry 7196
[I do not know whether this doctor's given name Was Tobey or it came to him because he made Tobeys, meaning luck pieces or hands or jomoes. He is the man who drives out disease spirit on p.2259f., vol.3.]
(Doctor Casson?)
Cating.
(How do you spell it?)
Casing[?]. (I am glad to see you, Doctor. I want you to talk loud to me, I don't hear so well.) Me too. (All right, we will both talk loud then. All right. Well, tell me something about yourself.) About mahself? Me or mah trouble? [Dis Cason come to tell me his own troubles thinking as some informants before and after him did, that I was a root doctor from New York City:] (Anything. I've talked to a lot of very good root doctors and I - just tell me anything you want to tell me. I want to hear about how they say people harm you, you know; or how they say to cure you; or things of that sort.)
[There being a brief silence I continue.]
(Did you know old Doctor Buzzard?)
Ah know 'im but he died.
[The ice having been broken I continue.]
(How long has he been dead?)
He wuz about sixty some odd yeahs ole, but he wuz a good doctor. Ah learned many incidents from undah 'im 'fo' he died away. He'd git a man outa trouble. Ah learned a few turns from 'im.
(Well, would you tell me some of the things you learned from Doctor Buzzard?)
Ah learned usin' a bee.
(All right, how did you use that?)
[A unique technique follows:]
Has yo' got a hive of a bee, yo' kin take one of bee drones outa de hive, take a paah [pair] an' yo' kin learn 'em some a [of] de people. Ah putten sveet- nin' tuh de table an' putten dat bee intuh it tuh feed. When yo' wan' 'in tuh go out, yo' kin name a puhson [person] man, jis' call 'is name an' putten spots of white on 'is ahm, his back, not on 'is haid. An' he goes tuh dat same puhson dat chew call 'is name. An' when he's got through wit yo' business dat chev'd sent 'im, he'd come back tuh yo' an' yo'd undahstan'. If yo' say tuh 'im tuh come back, he'll come back; an' if yo' say tuh 'im tuh stay, he won' come back. But he's [he has] two [things he can do]. One, tuh travel wit chew 'cordin' tuh yo' case, whut yo' case would be. See whut ah mean. Ah wan' 'im tuh bring a message back when yo' conkah yo' bettah [when you outwit the enemy]. If yo' is in a lawsuit an' is sent intuh de jail fo' tuh be in co't [court] an' if yo' miss an' tell tuh 'im 'fo' [before] yo' git dere, yo' trail'll almos would be ovah den. But chew see in dose time dose people used tuh walk - work at short ends 'fo' yo' could start a trial dat yo'd be dere. De jury'd cut chew off, dat [becausel yo' shall not come up tuh de requirements. [In olden days it was sometimes difficult to meet the requirements for attend- ing courts and juries would not wait. To be on the safe side you either slept the preceding night in jail or had Doctor Buzzard send his bee specially fed to delay jury action. This information Was on a cylinder pause but is known from my following questions.]
(You say Doctor Buzzard taught you that, told you that?)
Yeah.
(What did you say you fed this bee?)
Feed dese bees on honey an' syrup, but use de ingredients of yo' scent.
(Of your what?)
Of yo' scent.
(Scent? You mean sweat of the body? Perspiration?)
Yeah. Put it on a piece of bread dat has sorghum an' dey suck dat from it. AN' ALL DE TIME DEY COME JIS' LAK A PET CAT TUH YO', AN' WHEN HE LET DOWN [ALIGHTS], YO' KIN RUB YO' HAN' ON 'IM AN' HE'D KNOW YO' FROM ME. See whut ah mean?
(And then you send this bee out to do your work?)
Anythin' yo' wanta send 'em [to do] an' dey care [carry] it out.
(DOES HE CARRY MESSAGES THEN?)
CARE A MESSAGE - JIS' WHUT CHEW TELL 'IM.
(HE'D TELL THE PERSON?)
ALL YO' GOTTA DO IS TUH TALK TUH DE BEE JIS' LAK YO'D TALK TUH RADIO OR ANY- THIN' DAT CAIES [CARRIES] A MESSAGE. AN' CALL DE MAN NAME. TEACH 'IM DAT.
[Few more lines to this but nothing new.] [Charleston, S. Car., (503), 547:1.]
Well, listen here an' ah'll tell it tuh yo'. AH LISTEN N IN DE WORLD ON DIS. DEY ARE IN DE WORLD. DERE'S A STORY SAYS DAT DIS WORLD IS KINDA ROUND, FO'[FOUR] CORNAHS OF IT. DERE AH HAS A FO' [FOUR] SQUARE [PROPOSITION]. Here is eas', sō't, no't - eas', wes', sō't, nō't - fō' [four] part[s] an' DE TERR'TORY WHEAH YO' HAS TUH GIT A PERSON OR KNOW A PERSON. [You are WOrking in a four- sided world.] [To] git a puson [it is necessary] DAT CHEW KNOW DERE NAME. Yo' Wan' 'em tuh come back home. Dey go off an' yo' wan' 'em tuh come back home. Make a fo' square [draw a square]. Write in dere: 1 an' 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7- 8. [He draws a square and writes in the numerals.] SEE, DIS IS DE WORLD, IF DEY IS IN DE WORLD AT ALL. DAT IS, HERE'S DE CENTAH OF DE EART'. All right.
[He begins to fold up the paper.]
(You fold that up.)
Fold it up, see. Yo' fole dat fo' cornah up an' de way dat chew put dat, de way dey come back. Now here is some question ah have tuh tell yo' 'bout. OUR MOTHAH HAS TUH TOTE US NINE MONT'S TUH BRING US IN DIS WORLD, SO DEY GOTTA CALL [A PERSON'S NAME] NINE TIMES. An' aftah [as?] dey call nine times, dey gotta stay in a cer- tain position, somepin lak dis [demonstrates]. Not lyin' up by raisin' it ovah yo' haid, an' puts it down. Put it down undah de foot of de do' [door]. An' in nine days time he'll walk in de house.
(Walk in the house. That's to bring the man back.)
Or a woman back.
(DO YOU WANT TO KEEP THAT PIECE OF PAPER?)
WELL, AH GOTTA KEEP DIS BECUZ DIS IS SOMEBODY ELSE'S STUFF DAT AH'M USIN'.
(OH, WELL, COULD YOU LET ME COPY IT BEFORE YOU GO?)
YEAH, YO' KIN COPY IT. [I believe that piece of paper, the world diagram, is copied in my Numbers Book.]
[Doctor Cason's material on p.2259f. in vol.3 comes in here.] [548:1.]
(What can I do to keep them from harming me?)
Well, yo' is travelin' ovah de worl'. Yo're travelin' ovah de world, yo' UndahSaN', de WOrld. AH TOTES A LI'LE BAG AROUN' MAH WAIS'. AH TOTE NINE KNOTS, ONE DIME AN' TWO PENNIES. Dem li'le articles stuck in dere. An' when ah gwine out, regardless of where ah goes, ah fin' dat somebody has done talk about me or no.
(Well what if they put something in the ground for you to walk over?)
Dat don' make no diff'rence. (What else do you put in that bag, besides those dimes and pennies? What else do you put in that bag?) I put a powdah in it. (What do you call that powder? Do you know the name? Can you think of the name?) Ah don' know. Lemme see.
(And a string that has nine knots.)
No string, a cord.
[He produces a ball of cord string.]
(Is that the cord, the ball of cord that you use?)
See [demonstrates] ah double dat up. Make nine knots outa dat. [Tie nine knots in the doubled cord, 1 Den ah ties a li'le roots.
(You tie some roots on that cord?)
Naw, ah don' put dat on dere.
(This powder that you use, what is the name supposed to be?)
Well, ah buy it an' den ah'll use diff'ren' article dat ah fix.
(Well has this powder a name?)
Yah, is a name but ah jis' cain't call de name of de powdah now.
(You send away and get it some place?)
Yes, any one of dese ten-cent box, big boxes, ten-cent box. Ah use dat. An', if dey not frien'ly an' yo' wan'a be coaxin' a pusson, yo' mix up certain amounts of dat an' about two teaspoonsfula cocoa.
(For to drink?)
Yes, sir. Dat says yo're coaxin' de mind of a pusson wit dis powdah. Yo'll use one or two spoonsfula powdah in dere. (You take one or two spoonsful of this powder. And then what do you put that in? What do you do with that?) Well, yo' fix up dat. Put roots an' stuff an' yo' pennies an' things whut yo' gona put in de bag. See whut chew kin make a bag outa firs'.
(What do you do with that cocoa [powder] then?)
Well yo' put about a teaspoonful in dat. Put it in, mix it wit de powdah.
(I see. Well, what sort of roots do you put in there?)
Well, yo' use de devil's-shoestring. Yo' unnahstan' dat? Do yo' know dat?
(I understand. Yes, ah know that.)
If yo' see it, yo' know it? (No, I wouldn't know it if I saw it, but I know of the root. I mean I've heard of it.)
(This is to coax the person?)
[I refer to the doctor's preceding words: yo're coaxin' de mind of a person.]
Yas. He comes tuh yo' ways. He's gotta come. Dey ain't no way in de worl' dat he kin git aroun' from it. An' while he might have made up in 'is mind tuh do harm, he's gotta come tuh do good.
(What did you just say, if things are what?)
[I had turned off machine and am now asking him to repeat.]
Ah said if thing goin' bad wit chu, yo' goin' tuh be at trial in de mawnin', yo' put a piece of dat root in de mout' an' pass it between yuh laigs. PASS IT BETWEEN YUH LAIGS ONE TIME.
(Pass it between your legs one time.)
Care [carry] it in yuh mout' - care it in yuh hip pocket on de wrong side an de case'll be thrown out. [549:4.] (Now suppose I'm not feeling well and I come to your house and I say, "Doctor, I don't know whether I'm sick or whether someone has put a spell on me." Now, COULD YOU TELL WHETHER I'M JUST ORDINARY SICK OR WHETHER I HAVE A SPELL ON ME?) Yas.
(How would you tell that?)
I'd feel yuh breath [pulse?].
(What do you do then?)
Well, ah tell yo' by yuh breath an' ah test yo' by yuh speakin'. An' ah come aroun' an' tell yo' whut it is.
(Well, how would you test me by speaking?)
Well, yo'd have tuh talk an' ah test yo'. Ah kin tell yo' feelin' 'cuz yo' son't be feelin' all right. Yo' kin talk so's ah kin git anythin' outa yo'.
[550:2.]
Ah nevah have experienced dat aroun', but ah have take de linin' outa man's bat an' put watah on 'is brains.
(Well, how do they do that?)
Well, dey do's somepin wit dat.
(What for example?)
Well, dey git dat linin' out - see, of co'se [course] ah don' follah dat [he does not do evil work].
(I understand.)
AH THINK AH'VE GOT TUH GO BACK TUH MAH BOOK TUH GIT DAT.
[To do this type of work he would have to consult his hoodoo book.]
(I see. What book do you use?)
AH USE DE "PSALM OF MOSES."
(The 6th or 7th Book of Moses?)
[I turned off recording too fast for an answer.] [551:1.]
(HOW OLD WERE YOU WHEN YOU STARTED THIS WORK?)
WELL, AH WUZ ABOUT FORTY.
(HOW DID YOU HAPPEN TO GET INTO IT? HOW DID YOU HAPPEN TO TAKE UP THIS WORK?)
Well, I WaS - had a jOb. AH WUZ 'TENDIN' TUH DIFF'REN' SICK. AH LEARNED TUH NURSE. Ah used tuh tend tuh git medicine fo' womens dat wuz havin' de baby. Ah took dem up by mah brain. An' ah studied a whole lot of it, dat tell about de practice of it. Ah didn't have tuh study no book fer dat, but ah knows a whole lot. Ah learned about John de Conkah, Adam-an'-Eve, rattlesnake root [I mean] mastah. All diff'ren' thin's. An' ah know whut dey fer. [551:2.] (WHEN YOU MEET ANOTHER ROOT DOCTOR AND HE HAS SOME GOOD REMEDY, WILL YOU USE THAT REMEDY THEN FOR YOURSELF?) WELL, AH TELL YO'. DON'T CARE WHO AH MEET, AH DON' WORRIES [BOTHER] WIT NONE OF DEM. DEY HARDLY WORRIES ME BECUZ DEY ARE NOT TUHGETHAH. [THERE IS NO ORGAN- IZATION OR FRIENDSHIP AMONG DOCTORS.] YO' WALKS AT ME AN' AH WALKS AT YO'. AH TRY TUH GIT IN YUH PATH AN' YO' TRY TUH GIT IN MINE. AN' AH DON' WORRY WIT CHEW. (I see, you work for yourself alone. Some of these root doctors will do things against you?) Yes, sir.
(And I suppose there are some who claim to be root doctors and are not.)
AH - AH'VE GOT MORE [TO MY WORK THAN BE] WIT 'EM. DEY ONLY TRY TUH MAKES MONEY AN' DAT'S ALL, BUT AH TRIES BY DE GOOD LORD TUH DO WHUT AH SAYS.
(I understand.) [551:3.]
Take yuh chamber lye an' put it in a bottle an' cork it up tight. An' goes tuh de watah's side an' [when] de tide goin' down. Yo' wave dat ovah yuh haid nine times an' throw it back ovah de shouldah an' walk aways from dere. An' wherevah de tide care [carry] 'im, it'll care dat outside; an' wherevah it'll lodge, wherevah de chamber lye drop out, [that] draps yo'. Ah knows. Ah hear'd dat done all right.
(You throw it back over your left shoulder or your right?)
Left. [551:6.] An' de way dat dey used - dere's two wavs tuh usin' 'em.
(There's two ways [I begin by repeating his words] to use these chicken eggs?)
Yes, two ways dat ah know of. Dey will write yuh name on dere an' yuh street an' yuh numbah. An' dey will write out de numbah of yuh days on dere.
(The number of your day. What day?)
Any day dey Wanta give, nine days or ten days, or anythin', any days dey Wanta give. An' dey'll take dat an' put it in a careful place, a certain place where no one kin see it. Or dey kin bury it where dey don't want 'em tuh see. Den, if anybody do anythin' tuh yo' fam'ly, any of yuh fam'ly people, yo'll write on de egg an' 'is street numbah of 'is place. An' anybody yo' know daid, yo' go out tuh de cemetery 'fo' he's buried, an' put dat [egg] in 'is lef' han' an' shut 'im [egg with name] up. An' put 'im [named egg] in. An' dey cain't stick [the town]. "When dat breaks, dey gone.
Entry 7197
Yo' see, jis' lak if yo' been messin' wit a woman an' she take yore nature 'way lak dat, de way fo' her tuh do dat, she git some dis heah clovah root. She takes some of dat clovah root an' boil it intuh a tea. Well, quite natchel [natural] in de sum- mahtime yo' drink ice tea. She'll take some of dat an' go ahaid an' she put it in dat [tea] watah, an' yo' drink it an' yore courage will leave. An' de fus' thin' yo' know, yo' cain't [do] nuthin. An' it's quite natchel she'll say attah while, say, "Yo' know, Conn, ah'm goin' leave yo'." An' she'll leave yo'. Dat de way Women do. An' anothah thin' she kin do, she kin take red shank root. She'll take dat red shank root an' gi' yo' dat air [give you that there] an' three raw aigs a day herself. Not have a thing on 'em. An' yo' suck dem aigs fo' nine days, an it'll bring yo' [nature] back. She'll bring yo' back.
Entry 7198
Yo' take an' make a circle wit chalk an' when yo' make dat circle, den yo' make a "x" yo' know. When yo' make dat "x" - when yo' make de circle dat's God. (The circle is God?) Yes sir, an' de "x" de firs' lettah is de - circle is God an' de firs' cross is God de Father, an' de nex' one is God de Holy Spirit. (Where do you make this circle with the cross? Where do you make it? Where do you draw that?) Well, right in de room where whutevah wus taken from it. [Here I turn off recording machine. What informant says, I restart machine and repeat the lost information.] (You make a circle on the wall or on the floor. And you put an "x" inside. And then inside the "x" you do what?) Well, when yo' done make dat "x" in Name of de Father, Son an' Holy Ghost, den yo' wish whut chew want 'em tuh do. Jis' carry it right roun' jis' lak dat. (You mean just carry this circle around. You mean you keep marking the chalk around?) Yes, jis' make a roun' ring. Have yo' got a pencil? An' ah give it tuh yo' aftah [return it] right away. (Wait a minute! You draw the circle [I demonstrate]. That's God the Father. Then you [I demonstrate]. That's the Son. And [I demonstrate] Holy Ghost.) An' make yore wishes whut chew want. (And you keep going around and around and around. Like turning a wheel around.) Yo' do dat three time, three Godhead.
[I demonstrate again.]
You draw a line right through that circle and call the son, then you draw another line across it and say the Holy Ghost, and then you keep drawing that circle around and around and around, while you make your wishes for them to bring that article back that they have stolen.) Long as yo' speakin' of whut chew want done, yo' jis' keep yuh han' goin' roun' an' roun'.
Entry 7199
Yo' take a fellah now dat wan's chew tuh move out dis house an' he don' lak yuh atall [at all]. He come in de mawnin' an' he git some ashes, yo' know whut burn in de chimley; oak ashes dō [though], it cain't be pine ashes. He take dat ashes an' he takes somepin dey call - ah cain't remembah de name of it, but it's jis' lak ink. [For this ingredient see later.] An' he take dat ashes [author interrupts].
(Incense? Gunpowder?)
No, not gunpowdah. It's somepin lak potash. But he uses dis instrument in dis ashes. Den he took it an' he come aroun' tuh yuh dō' wit a li'le of dis black-oak ashes de firs' mawnin', an' he sprinkle it aroun'. De second mawnin' he come an' he take a li'le bit of black an' red peppah an' sulphuh, an' he sprinkle dat aroun', aroun' yuh house - walk aroun' - walk aroun' dere nine mawnin's.
(Walk around what?)
Aroun' yuh house. Yo' know, jis' come from de back dō tuh de front - jis' lak somebody come in yore yard befō' yo' wake an' walk tuh de back an' walk back out tuh de front [circumambulates the house]. Den aftahwahds, it looks jis' lak nuthin in dat house - yo' be upsot [upset], yo' cain't do anythin'. Yuh mind is turrible an' jis' lak someone got chew crazy, until yo' move out, if it isn't a lease.
(You can't think of the name of that stuff that they get?)
Ah cain't remembah de stuff jis' at de present time, but ah knows it jis' as good as ah knows - it somepin lak ink. But it's not ink.
(Is it liquid like oil?)
Crela - creosote! Dat's right, yes sir. Supposed tuh use dat instrument in dere. But dey pō it out an' dat stuff'll git hard jis' lak tar; yo' know, when dey beat it up.
Entry 7200
[Informant says something about a locust tree.] (What do they say about the locust tree?) Ah heard dat de locust tree wuz a tree - de ole lady tole me dis - IT'S A TREE DAT CHEW READ IN DE BIBLE AN' IT WUZ HANDED DOWN FROM GOD. IT'S A HERB YO' GIT FROM DE LOCUST TREE DAT NOBODY KIN CONKAH BUT GOD. An' she give me dat herb.. "An' dis herb," she say, "ah'm not chargin' anythin' fo' it, but yo' a man ah lak." Ah loaned her ten dollahs Once. An' SHE CROSSED HER BREAST [with this herb]. [Somewhere in Hoodoo I tell the story about my contact man Edward Bufford, while we. were working in Savannah, Georgia. He had sealed some money in a letter to send home to his wife but feared she might not receive it. His landlady, where I interviewed during the day, took the sealed envelope and crossing it over her breast, said to him, "Mail it, now your wife will get the money." The money ar- rived safely.] Ah asked, "Whut kinda herb dis?" She said, "Dis is a herb from de locust tree, " an' she say, "ah want chew tuh keep dis herb fo' as long as yo' kin."
(Is this for luck or something?)
Fo' luck.
Entry 7201
[Before I turn on recording machine informant says he knows about some- thing done at the forks of the road.]
(What do they do at the forks of the road?)
All right, yo' kin go tuh de fo'ks of de road [crossroad here] an' yo' kin take salt an' throw it fo' diff'ren' [rooster crows on cylinder] ways in de fo'k of de road. Make fo' mahks [marks] at defo'k of de road an' throw dat salt an' sprinkle dem marks. An' eithah [whichever] way dat yo' wan' dat person tuh go, dey'll go dataway. Jis' de direction yo' wan' 'em tuh go, he'll go dat direction, yo' see. He ain't nevah goin' tuh come back, yo' see. [Vicksburg, Miss., (725), 993:5.] [Cylinder 993:6 followed without containing any information I could use. In some manner dissatisfied with the preceding crossroad rite, I decided to return to it.} (Now, you were talking a moment ago about making those marks on the crossroad. What kind of marks would you make out there? What kind of marks?) Yo' jis' - yo' kin make straight mahks, cross 'em. Make 'em an "x".
(Like an "x"?)
In an "x" in de middle fo'k of de road where...
(In the fork of the road. The road goes four ways?)
Yes, sir.
(And you put some of that stuff in each road?)
Each road. (And if you want him to go in a certain direction, do you have to point the direction you want him to go?) Point out dat direction, jis' point 'em straight. An' if yo' wan' 'em tuh go dis direction [demonstrates], yo' kin point dataway. An' put dat stuff dataway an' throw it dataway, an' dat's de way yo' gwine.
(You only throw it in one fork of the road?)
Yes, sir.
(You only throw it one way?)
One way.
(The way he's going?)
De way he's gwine, an' he'll go dataway an' he won't nevah come back. He be gwine all de time, gwine.
Entry 7202
Ah wus goin' wit a girl 'long [along] at dat time an' - well, ah wus engaged tuh marry de girl, an' de boy she wus goin' wit, she tole 'im. He tell 'er, "If yo' don' marry me, "' say, "yo'll nevah do dat othah fellah no good." Well, ah got in a li'le trouble an' ah got on a chain gang fo' six mont's. An' den when ah come back... [I interrupt.]
(Over this girl?)
Yes. Well, he wus livin' wit 'er, see. Ah come back on de 'leven day of March, he wus livin' wit 'er out cheah [here] tuh 'er house. She come tuh me, ah say, "Well, whut chew want?" She says, "Well, ah cain't ha'p [help] mahself." She say, "Ah don' love 'im, ah cain't he'p mahself." Ah say, "Ah don' see how come yo' cain't, yo' goin' wit 'im." Say, "He cain't pake yo' live wit 'im." She say, "Dere somepin othah wrong." Ah says, "Well, ah'll see 'bout dis." Ah jumps an' goes back tuh dis same fellah [in another story] an' tole 'im, ah says, "Heah, '' ah says, "ah has a girl fren' an' she's livin' wit a man, ah'm engaged wit 'er." He say, "Ah knowed all dat." An' he say, "Ah kin git 'haid [ahead] of dat if yo' want." Ah say, "Well, ah would lak fo' yo' tuh do it." Ah say, "How much will dat be?" "Five dollahs, " he says. Cheap. [He says this to me not to the doctor.] He got somepin in a jah [jar], a half-gallon jah, an' he gived me 'bout halfa pint outa dat. An' de way de stuff did look, ah couldn't tell whut i'twas. Dere li'le things jis' about dat long, look lak crawfishes. Well, he give me two drinks outa dat dat day ah wuz dere, an' he put a pint in a bottle. An' he tole me tuh give her a drink of dat fo' nine mawnin's, an' he tole me tuh git a piece of'er step-ins. Yes, ah got a piece of 'er step-ins, an' de sand offa 'er[foot] track, an' take some sulphur, salt an' black peppah an' red cayenne peppah, an' mix it tuhgethah, an' tote it aroun' nex' tuh mah waist. An' he say ah would git 'er back. An' she come back, she quit 'im.
(She quit the other fellow and came back to you?)
She come back tuh me. An' in '37 on de third day of April, she took sick. Well, now, when it came - it started in 'er thumb an' it went from 'er thumb tuh 'er wrist, an' from 'er wrist, in 'er shouldahs. An' ah carried 'er tuh.a doctor [M.D.] an' he says it's de rheumatic rheumatism. Dat's whut de doctor say. He give me some medicine, an' de medicine he give me tuh rub her an' fo' her tuh take, it would do mo' harm den it would good. [Everywhere in Hoodoo we learn that a medical doctor's medicine is useless for hoodoo.] An' it lef' out 'er shouldahs an' it went tuh de bottom of 'er foot, right in de centah [de pam (palm) of the foot it is often called]. An' it lef' from de centah an' it com- mence tuh workin' in de joints. Den ah carried 'er back an' ah said, "Dis medicine didn't do her no good." Ah said, "De misery goin' all ovah 'er." He took a x-ray pichure of 'er an' [it] goin' - nex' she had tuh be cut down undah heah, nex' tuh 'er foot down undah heah [demonstrates].
(Right under her knee?)
Yeah. Ah tole 'im, "Well, ah wouldn't wish fo' her tuh be cut, fo' if she cain't walk now, she nevah will walk if yo' cut 'er undah dere." He say, "Yes, we kin treat 'er, we kin git 'er up." Well ah say, "Ah haven't got no money right now tuh put 'er in de hos'pital." Say, "Yo' kin come down an' see her 'bout once a day." Say, "Dat even much as ah know yo' kin stand." Well, he come down an' he didn't do her no good. An' ah tried Dr. [Somebody]. He didn't do her no good. He jis' tole me - he come out an' say, "Well, ah cain't do her no good. Ah don' know whut's wrong wit 'er." Well, ah jumped up an' went to a place, an' dis fellah tole me.
(Here in town, did you go?)
No, outa town. [Out-of-town doctor] said, "Well, how long has she been sick?" Ah said, "Got 'er down now so she cain't walk." Ah said, "Ah have tuh he'p 'er up an' down jis' lak a baby. She lak a baby." He got sompin. It wus about as large a thing - about lak dat [demonstrates] an' he goes an' looks in it.
(What did it look like?)
It look lak a great big ole glass marble. Marble pichures. Look lak one of dese things yo' call 'roun' de worl'.
(The globe?)
Yes. An' he looked in dat an' he say, "Yeah."
(It was glass though Wasn't it?)
Yes. "Yes, " he [doctor] say, "he got 'er." Ah said ah didn't git 'im [didn't understand what he meant]. He said, "He got 'er through by a drink."
[Suppose we stop here to see what happened.]
[Informant's great big ole marble or round de worl' and my the globe show that the doctor now looks into his crystal ball. Seeing something in the glass he says, "Yeah, " meaning I now understand what happened. To my informant puzzled by the "Yeah, " he explains clearly that the woman had been tricked in a drink. Informant's marble pichures bothered me. I thought these were small pictures a doctor sometimes pasted on the ends of his fingers and held various places against his crystal ball, so that a client looking into the ball could see them! For an example of this tricky, as well as skillful work, see margin title CRYSTAL BALL, p.172. Actually, marble pictures were merely the pictures the doctor could see in the great big ole glass marble!]
[We now return to the doctor's, "He got 'er through by a drink."]
Ah said, "Drinkin' watah?" He said, "Drinkin' likkah." He said, "He [did not] give it tuh 'er - anothah woman give her." An' he said, "Ah'm goin' give yo' some medicine 'cuz it'll take a long time tuh git 'er well, 'cuz she's strong an' weak," say, "it take a long time tuh git 'er up." An' he give me a quart of sompin look lak shoe polish - slick looks to it. Tell me give her dat three times a day.
(Was it liquid?)
Yes. An' he got some - he went out in de hollah of a ole log an' he got nine snails, an' he sont [sent] - give me some money an' tole me go tuh de drug sto' an' git a nickel wuth of Epsom salt an' a bottle of Sloan linament an' a nickel wuth of camphor gum, an' ah come back. Den he put dat stuff on an' he heat it all up tuhgethah - ground it up an' put it in a li'le silver[!] pot an' boil it, an' boil it an' made a liquid outa it. An' he tolt [told] me tuh run 'er [What? See that she urinated?] evah night at nine a'clock when she wus ready tuh go tuh baid. An' take a saucah, a coffee saucah, an' fill it roun' half fulla salt an' slide it undah de baid.
(Why did he do that, did he say?)
Say dat salt would keep down de fevah. An' dat's de only thing got 'er up.
(That helped her?)
Yessuh, got 'er up.
Entry 7203
All right, a man take an' do wit a woman de same way. A man cut de seat, a piece where she sweat undah here, undah de ahm. (Under her arm. Both arms or just one?) Both ahms. All right, he takes dat an' he puts some li'le roots in dat - some kinda li'le roots.
(Do you know the name of those roots?)
Dey put - whut's de name of dat root now? Some kinda - devil's-shoestring. Cut dem tuh be short. See, dem shoestring dat long [demonstrates].
(The devil's-shoestrings about three feet long?)
Yes, sir, some is dis long. Some is long accordin' as jis' how much yo' take out de groun' an' dey will pop off.
(You cut them about an inch or two inches long?)
Yes, sir, dat much off see. An' yo' put 'em in de bottle. Well, dat's tuh keep 'em at home. Dat's tuh make a woman dat run about tuh dance an' shows, lak dat, run aroun' lak dat, dat keep 'em home. De mō' [more] he feed dat bottle, dat keep 'er down. If - he don' do it tuh kill 'er, yo' know, jis' tuh keep 'er home.
(And what does he feed that bottle with?)
With cologne.
(And where do you keep this bottle?)
Keep it in 'is pocket. Yo' don't bury dat, keep it in 'is pocket. (That all he puts in there, these pieces of her clothing and the devil's-shoe- string?) Yes sir, an' he shake dat bottle up, yo' know. Yo' see, de man [the doctor] tell 'im tuh shake it up, an' feed it. Feed it an' put it back in 'is pocket. Don' put it in nobody's hand. Keep it in 'is pocket jis' a small ole cologne bottle.
Entry 7204
See, it's been about a month maybe. He had a girl he wus goin' wit 'er an' she fixed 'im. Aftah he went tuh sleep - when he went tuh sleep, he said dat he dreamt about dis bottle dat she had fo' him, an' he'd gotten right up an' went an' got it. An' he'd fell off an' he looked so bad as if he was about tuh die. HE'D GOTTEN A AWFUL SMALL LOOK, terrible small, bone 'bout tuh come through 'is skin. An' he went tuh sleep an' he dreamt about dis bottle an' co'se [of course] he got up den an' went right in de bathroom an' found it. An' dis bottle had red flannel in it an' a couple of pins an' needles, an' he'd taken it an' broke it. He brought it an' showed it tuh me, an' ah don' know whut could a been in it, but it smelled lak evahthing wus in it, ah guess. Ah reckon it wus urine in it - guess was in it. An' aftah he found 'at bottle he begin tuh git bettah.
Entry 7205
[For Doctor England's interview see pp.1386-1401.]
But ah see dem use. Well, it's mos'ly used, is dis yere - well, de manure from a ole white mule. It is known tuh be de drawin' problem. Dey do's it up an' use it as an incense mo' [more] of a white horse or [than] a white mule. (What do they use that for?) Drawin' powah, tuh draw eny person, see. Yo' kin perfume it up. It is vury good to use dis Mary Garden Perfume, Mary Garden. An' also yo' have tuh use a portion of dis Hearts [Cologne]. LET IT DRY OUT AN' WET IT AG'IN. LET IT DRY OUT AN' WET IT AG'IN, TILL YO' GET IT CURED AN' DEN USE IT DAT WAY. (What do they usually do with that manure, carry it around, or do they burn it or what for drawing?) Well, fo' drawin', dey leave it intuh de home. See, tuh draw 'em on. If a girl's frien' have been here an' she wan' 'im come tuh 'er, den dey place it on de house stove. Den, by right an' all it's used wit it a composition of all whut ah used mahself is, dey uses oil of rose - oil of rose an' oil of Mary Garden. See, an' let it burn.