Browse:THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF (Volume 4, entries 5206–8881)/Part 26
THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF
Volume 4, entries 5206–8881. Entries listed under this heading in the source volume.
Entries
Entry 7206
It wuz about twenty yeahs ago ah got off de train in a very small town an' ah went tuh find a place tuh stay. Ah went tuh 'nothah place where dere wuz a double tenement house, 'nothah fellah an' mahself. Didn't know dis fellah. Ah met 'im on de train. Ah greeted 'im. He says, "Yo' gittin' off heah." Ah say, "Ah'm changin' heah." We went tuh de station tuh see whut time de train would leave de nex' mawnin'. So we blundahed roun' tuh try tuh find place tuh stay at, an' finely, so-an'-so, an' went tuh a house. She has a room heah an' a room heah. Ah knocked on de do' an' tole de lady dat ah wanted tuh stay. She says, "Yes, de change is fifty cents an' twenty-five cents. So, ah not knowin' de fellah an' he didn't know anything about me. He said tuh me, "Fellah, do yo' drink?" Ah tole him, "No." He said, "Whut do yo' do fo' a livin'?" Ah tole him ah wuz a plasterer. He says, "Well," he says, "do yo' play cards?" Ah tole him, "No." An' so he says, "Yo' got any money?" Ah tole him, "No." He says, "Well, ah tell yo', ah'm up against it." He says, "Ah got a funny story ah wanta tell yo'." He said, "Loan me twenty cents." Ah give it tuh 'im. He went an' got 'im sompin tuh eat an' come back wit a dime an' he say, "Ah wanta git chew tuh pay mah room rent." Ah wuz afraid, an' paid it. De lady tole me, she said, "Somehow," says, "de Lord tole me depend on yo'." She say, "Ah don' know dat othah fellah." Ah say, "Ah don't eithah." She says, "But ah'm leavin' in de mawnin' at five a'clock an' goin' tuh work." [Ah] say, "When yo' leave, slam de do'." So jis' when she left, about five minutes aftah she left, ah heard a rattlin' on de next do' an' dis boy woke up an' say, "Yo' heah somebody knockin'?" Ah say, "Yes." An' befo' we could answah, de woman nex' do' came in, open de do'. Her daugh- tah came home, she say, "Ah'm worried tuh death." We say, "Whut's de mattah?" She say, "Sam, he work in de meat yard an' he stole some meat an' he buried it by de branch, " an' she say, "de law is lookin' fo' him." An' dey talked it ovah an' she left. So dis boy says tuh me, says, "Did jew heah whut she said?" Said, "Yes." He said, "Yo' wait a minute, ah'm goin' git some money." Ah said, "No, ah'm goin'." Said, "No, yo' wait." Said, "Yo' sit right heah an' listen whut ah say." He puts on 'is clothes an' gits up an' goes outen do', outa de house an' come back an' knocked. He went out about five minutes an' came back an' knocked on de do'. He knocked on de do' an' he said tuh dis ole lady, said, "Good mawnin', madam." She says, "Good mawnin'." He says, "Ah don' profess tuh be a medical doctor, neithah a surgical doctor, but ah do profess tuh bein' a herb doctor." He said, "Ah came tuh yo' dis mawn- in' tuh tell yo' a strange case." He said, "Some of yore folks are in trouble an' de trouble is buried by a runnin' stream of watah." She said, "Come in, son,"' she said, "Jesus sent yo', ah know." He walked in an' sat down, an' he tole her evahthing whut happened, whut he heard through dat wall. He say, "Now, ah tell yo' whut ah'll do," says, "yo' gimme twenty dollahs an' ah'll fix it so de sheriff or nobody won' tetch 'im." He began tuh git out de herbs tuh show 'er, an' gave her some an' wrapped 'em up. She give him de twenty dollahs. Now, dere's nuthin in de worl' could make her believe, but nuthin, but he's a root doctah. She believed 'im. Den he came tuh me an' says - so ah wuz ready tuh go [leave town] - "Whut did yo' do?" Ah knew all along. Well, ah found out he wuz a crook, wanta see whut he says. "Well, she give me ten - she give me twenty." He say, "Heah's five." Say, "Ah tell yo' whut chew do." Ah says, "Yo' kin take yore twenty, ah'll keep nuthin." Well, ah caught a train an' left him dere.
The narrator reports the woman’s belief that the man was a root doctor, while describing him as a crook.
Entry 7207
Yo' kin take a sock.
(Take a what?)
Take one yuh socks an' now, what dey put in dat sock, now ah couldn't tell yuh. Take one of dose socks an' pin it. Ah know personally dis wuz done becuz it wuz quite natchel, yo' know, ah had a brothah a [that way], yo' undahstan'. Ah'm explain' tuh yuh good. He had a vein, a open vein, here, along here, along here an' right up dere [demonstrates]. [He was] hurt [tricked], yo' see. Dat's called swollen veins. (What kind of veins, swollen?) Swollen veins. Undahstan'? Well, yo' take dat sock. An' now, whut yo' put it in [in it], ah couldn't tell yo'. Dey put it - but take one of yuh socks. It wuz a black sock ah had, black silk sock. Mah sistah bring- ed it up chere. Ah wuz down dere two yeahs ago. Ah wuz down dere in '36. Well, ah'm gittin' it straight now. Dat yeah, dat's about right, ah wuz down dere in '36. We found dat sock, las' yeah: was '37, round, oh ah'd say round about de 20th of July, an' dat sock had - ah couldn't even lay on dat pillah [pillow]. Yo' undahstan', if yo' lay on dat pillah it hurt yuh haid, but now aftah - if yo'laid on it, an' den if yo' lak dat, if yo' don' git dat cured, yo' stay lak dat. One mawnin', see, when she found dat sock, it wuz balled up wit de feathahs in it. But whut wuz in dat sock wit dose feathahs, we couldn't tell, yo' know. It's quite natchel dat yo'd be scared. Cuz it only cost me $50 tuh git rid of dat. Well, now, ah tell yo' what she [doctor] did tuh git rid of dat. Ah went tuh a lady, undahstan'. She told me, say, "Ah'll cure yo'." An' told me where ah goes. Told me ah wuz hurt an' ah cain't stand tuh drink whiskey long, account dat vein bein' swollen, yo' undahstan' [demonstrates].
(This vein runs right?)
Straight through me.
(Right straight along your back, that swollen vein?)
Yes, sir. An' ah went tuh dis lady, see, an' she tole me, say, "He's got a thing hid." Told me jis' lak whut it wus lak. She live on 923 [Something Street]. Ah'm try- in' tuh think of de name. Yo' kin put dat down, two diff'ren' things. But any- way, nevah mind about dat.
(Oh, that's all right.)
An' she commence right here an' measured dat place right here, right dere [demonstrates]. She say, "Dere's a knot dere."
(Right here, where?)
Dere's a knot or somepin. Well, she massaged dat knot an' rubbed it an' she tell me, say, "Yo' go home an' go tuh de druggist." Now, listen good. "Go tuh de druggist an' git a bottle of household - do yo' heah dat?"
(Yes.)
Household ammonia.
(Household ammonia.)
Household ammonia. You git a box of Epsom salts. Yo' git chew dat much salt- petah. Yo' won't want make too much. Dat much saltpetah. Yo' put dat in yuh bath watah. Don't put no salt in it - ah mean not salt, don't put no soap in it. But aftah dat, dat cleah ammonia. Dat's all. Jis' lak in place of puttin' soap in it, put dat household ammonia in dere an' dat saltpetah an' de Epsom salts in dis watah. An' takes yuh bath in it. Nine nights do dat.
(Nine nights?)
Nine nights an' throw de water tuh wherevah de sun risin' at. An' it'll soor cure yo' of de trouble. Well, dat's whut ah did. Well, it cured me.
(That's what cured you?)
It cured me. Now, here's de way. Now, ah'll take, jis' lak, yo' got tuh start it. It deal wit pain [demonstrates].
(Right from the top of your head.)
See dat li'le knot dere, see dat knot dere. It's a pain right dere. Well, now, yo' jis' put dat [mixture] on. It'll move from dere, start from right dere tuh here [demonstrates]. (It'll move from the top of your head down to the bottom - the back of your neck.) Back tuh dis here [demonstrates]. Dat narrah [narrow] eyeball bone.
(The pain is right behind the eyeball?)
Eyeball. Leads from dis eye right chere, right chere. Here's de othah. An' right along dere it's knots be showin' dere, an' it feels though dere's somepin inside. Some knots showin' dere. Well, dis lady tole me dat it wuz done through whiskey. Say, "But chew looks an' yo' will find it in yuh mattress," she say. But it wusn't in no mattress. It wuz in a feathah pillah; an' yo' would find vhutevah it is in dere. It wuz wrapped up. An' she tole me when ah find it, burn it up. Well, dat's quite nachel, 'cuz ah did dat, see. Ah burned it up in de fiah. Well, now, mah sistah, yo' see, when she slept on dis pillah, it burt 'er haid so dat she'd move dat pillah. But it wasn't fo' her, it wuz fixed fo' me. Whut fer? Yo' see some people wanta hurt me. An' ah wanta explain dis sah way, 'cuz yo' know ah nevah done used explainin'. An' ah, ah'se jes' explain zahself.
Entry 7208
Ah've hear'd sev'ral diff'ren' things about de fo'ks of de road. Ah bear'd dat when people wan' tuh separate people, dey go tuh fo'ks of de road; an' when dey wan' tuh put dem tuhgethah dey go tuh de fo'ks of de road, but it depends on whethah dey work on eithah de left or de right hand side. If yo' want people tuh separate, well dey'll write de person's name, de woman's name, nine dues on a piece of brand-new papah wit a brand-new pencil, tablet an' pencil dat nevah been used. If dey wan' tuh separate dem, dey'll write de man's name nine times an' den dey'll write de woman's crosswise nine times. Den dey take de pencil an' dey think all de evil dey kin: I jis' hope yo' son-of-bitches jis' fuss an' fight an' scratch lak cats an' dogs. [Informant scratches all over the [paper.] An' dey go dere an' dey dig down a few inches.
(They scratch that paper all up.)
Yes, jis' scratch up lak yo're mad at it an' curse dem an' think all de evil yo' kin. An' den yo' dig a hole dere an' yo' bury dat on de left-hand side of de road at de fo'k where de fo'ks meet. An' aftah buryin' it yo' po' watah on L, yo' know, tuh pack de groun' down where dat kin rot. An' by de time dat papah rots, dose people'll begin tuh disagree, an' in from three tuh nine days aftah it rots, dey're separated. An' if yo' wan' tuh put dem tuhgethah, yo' write dere names nine times an' yo' fold it tuh yuh. Of co'se de lady involved has tuh do dat huhself. She has tuh be told. An' she writes 'er lovah's name nine times an' huhs acrost it, an' she folds it tuh 'er nine times. Den she turns it aroun' an' folds it small way, dis way; an' turn it aroun' an' fold it to 'er dis way. Den she takes it an hides it on de right-hand side of de road wit all good wishes.
(Then what happens?)
Well den aftah de same period of time, aftah from three tuh nine days aftah it rots, dis person'll become vi'lently attached tuh 'er.
Entry 7209
Many yeahs ago [this happened]. An' dis woman tole me. She wuz mah fathah's sistah. She tole me dat a man came from de country tuh de city an' stopped wit a woman, yo' know, an' got work heah an' stayed in de house wit 'er. Dat Woman Wanted 'im tuh stay dere [per- manently] an' dat man couldn't git tuh 'is wife. He couldn't go home. So he talked tuh a frien' an' he says, "Don' chew know ah've got a wife an' ah cain't go home. Evah time ah start tuh go, it seems dat dere's somepin dat ah cannot go." Well, dis man tole 'im somebody did sompin tuh 'im. He tuk [took] 'im some- whah whah he found out - some fortunetellah, ah guess or medium. Dey [fortuneteller or medium] says, "Yes, dis woman has done somepin tuh yo' tuh keep yo'." Says, "She has a bag sewed up in a flannel an' she keeps it 'roun 'er laig." He says, "If yo' kin git dat, yo' kin git back tuh yer wife." So dis woman had a way of settin' up wit 'er laigs crossed, so Aunt Julia tole me. So he jis' watched an' had a penknife an' he jis' saw dat bag. An' he clipped it an' ran outa de house, an' she woke up an' right behind 'im. He flew. An' he took de train an' went home tuh 'is wife. She dashed aftah 'im fer evah inch of 'er life, but she didn't ketch 'im.
(What did she have in that bag?)
Ah don't know whut wuz fn dere. [Hoodoo has a hundred examples of what a woman or man can put in similar bags or hands.]
Entry 7210
(All right.) = [Ready to start.]
Ah had a pair of socks an' ah had a undahsuit. Ah came from mah work an' ah rolled it up, ah couldn't git in mah room, an' ah jis' shoved in between de screen an' de do'. An' ah left. When ah come back, mah undahsuit an' mah socks wuz gone. An' ah do know whut taken place wit me aftah dat, an' ah do know whut ah wuz told through fortune- tellahs.
(All right, tell me all about it.)
De fortunetellah told me dat ah were hurt in some a mah clothes. She did not say whut kinda clothes, but it fell back tuh mah remembrance dat if ah wuz hurt, it must have been mah undahsuit an' mah socks. (Well, how did you know you were hurt? Why did you go to this fortuneteller? Did something happen to.you? Were you sick or something before you went to the fortuneteller?) No, sir, ah wuzn't sick den. Ah wuz not sick den.
(What did you go to that fortuneteller for?)
Well, ah went tuh de doctor. Went tuh Natchez Mississippi Hospital in [nine- teen] thirty an' ah stayed ovah dere 'bout thirteen or seventeen days. An' de doctor seemly dey couldn't fin' de complaint, whut wuz de mattah wit me. He said dat ah wuz all right. Well, ah wúz still sick. Well, ah decided in mah mind - ah hear'd de people talkin' about hoodoos an' witchcraft an' fortune- telZahs. It came tuh me in mah mind by a friend of mine, he said, "Why don' chew go an' see such-an'-such a one?' He said, "Dey kin tell yo' things." Well, ah decided tuh go. Well, ah went tuh dem an' dey told me dat ah wuz hurt through clothes. An' ah ast dem, "Well, whut could yo' do fer me? Could yo' cure me?" Dey tole me, "Yeah." Dey believe through de powah of God dat dey could cure me. An' dey made me up a tea. Now, ah don' know whut kinda tea it 'twuz, but any- way dey give dat tuh me fer tuh drink an' ah drinked it an' ah really hadn't rest fer [so many] nights.
Entry 7211
A gamblin' han' [the best] dat yo' evah had, if yo' wan'a gamblin' han'. Well, yo' might go intuh a graveyard where dere somebody dat yo' know well, an' dey been buried fo' several days or several yeahs, yo' might say. Yo' take dere fingah dey call a dog fingah. (Which is the dog finger? Point it out to me. Which is the dog finger?) Here 'tis, right cheah [here]. (Well, which hand?) On de right han' [demonstrates]. (All right, I see the index fin- ger of the right hand.) Dat will be de right han' dere. Dat is de third fingah from de front. (The middle finger, then, on the right hand?) Dat is de thing. (All right, the middle finger.) All right. Den yo' take dat fin- gah an' clean de bone in milk - git de li'le bone out, but yo' gotta do all dat work at twelve o'clock at night. An' yo' find yo'self dere when yo' boilin' dat. WHILE BOILIN' DAT BONE DERE, YO'LL FIND YO'SELF FEEL FEAHIN' [FEARING]. WHUT AH MEAN BY MIS[TERIOUS? OR MIS- ERABLE?] YO'LL FEEL YO'SELF - YO'LL FEEL WARM. AH DON' CARE HOW COLD YO' BE. YO' KIN DO IT IN DE MIDDLE OF DE STREET, OR IN DE MIDDLE OF DE BANQUETTE [=SIDE- WALK IN NEW ORLEANS, LA.] OR IN DE YARD DERE; AN' IF IT BE COLD AS ICE, BUT YO'LL FIND A GREAT HEAT RIGHT AROUN' YO', BECUZ WE HAVE WHUT CHEW CALL THREE WITCHES DAT RUNNIN' IN DE AIR DERE. AN' IF YO' DEALIN' WIT DEM, WHY DEN IT COMES HEAT. DEY'LL BRING HELL FLAMES TUH DERESELF AN' TUH YO'. Yo' are dealin' wit dem.
(Oh, I see, you're dealing with three witches. Oh, all right.)
An' quite natchel, if ah'm dealin' wit chew, yo' have a right tuh go ovah dere an' see aftah me [see what I am doing]. An' yo' are wit me.
(I see.)
Now, maybe all three of 'em come tuhgethah. An' TUH GIT DEM [WITCHES], YO' GOTTA SET A SUPPAH, A DINNAH. YO' HAVE TUH MAKE A DINNAH, AN' DE DINNAH WHICH DEY EAT'LL BE A TURTLE HEART.
(A turtle heart.)
An' one thing again would be cel'ry whut chew eat aroun' - make salad.
(Celery?)
Yo'd git cel'ry. An' we have one thing, which de nex' would be, three grass- hoppahs. Yo'd have tuh put dose things in yuh mouth, dat is, tuh make de suppah; cuz yo' couldn't make de dinnah if yo' wouldn't do dat. An' in othah words, yo' hardly kin make de dinnah in de wintahtime. Yo' have tuh make it in de sumah, becuz we haven't much grasshoppahs who run in de wintah. Yo' undahstand?
(I understand.)
An' aftah dis suppah is made an' is started, yo' would fin' dem. Yo' would take a glass [mirror], but yo' - dat glass have tuh be bran' new, dat nobody nevah look intuh it.
(A looking-glass?)
Yes, sir. An' yo' could see dem lookin' intuh dere aftah yo' begin tuh eat. Yo' kin see three people but chew couldn't recognize yo'self, but chew dere. But chew cain't recognize yo'self, but chew see three people; but chew dere, but chew don't see yo'self. Yo' wouldn't count yo'self 'cuz yo' cain't see yo'self. But chew see three people dere, but one of dem dere is yo'. Den yo' see upset one person, den dat'll be de dragon. He look very proud, very nice-lookin' fel- lah, standin' right dere but den he's a destroying angel. Dat's de truth ah'm tellin' yo'. Den, aftah dat yo' won't see nuthin dere. Evahthin' disappeah from dis glass. Den yo' able den fo' tuh go on an' do anythin' whut chew wanta do. (I see. They'll call the witches. After that you use your power to do these things.) Why certainly.
(Well, what about using that bone? What do you do with that bone, now?)
Well, whichevah bone dat dey call de middle bone. Many people, if dey know whut de bone is, dey kin find ft, dat is, in de black cat, wit'out goin' tuh work an' takin' it an' usin' dem all; but some people by not knowin', dey'll have tuh use all of dem until dey git tuh de right one. But, de sense, if yo' know whut de right bone is, yo' kin go right tuh it an' git it. Maybe yo' might miss one, but yo'll git de nex' one an' dat'll be it. Undahstand? An' dat bone carries three fo'ks [forks]. Dat is, three j'ints tuh it. Whut ah mean by three j'ints, three rows, an' yo'll find between de edges of de bone, yo'll find three crosses. Dat's supposed tuh be main powah. An' yo' fin' dat dey use dat in more Mason lodge and Odd Fellahs, lotsa people do, tuh do dere work. [New Orleans, La., (861), 1374:7 to 1375:4.]
Entry 7212
[Two weeks after margin title RATTLESNAKE OIL received its typing for the printer's photographic process and had been followed by other material in final page form, I found the missing page mentioned in lines 24-26, page 3098, volume 4. Here it is:] (This is Tuesday, June 29, 1937, working in Charleston, beginning the morning's work, testing the machine. In case I lose these slips [of paper] in my note book [later called Numbers Book, a book numbering each informant and making a comment about him] written out by Doctor D. Giles, root doctor, Number 512. [Here] is his recipe for making rattlesnake oil. Calls [for a] bottle of mint lOc, witch hazel lOc, sassafras root lOc. That makes snake oil.) [As the reader can see, I am testing the stylus by repeating what Doctor Giles had said the day before just in case I lost the slip or slips of paper he had written out. He had not been the last informant of the preceding day.l Now, for [the bath or the anointing you] strip [take off clothing], put two [both] hands back of the head, [then] wash hands in [sassafras] root water [wash- ing] forwards [that is, away from you]. Turn over [hands and wash other side]. Get glass [a mirror] and hold hands before mirror, and [if] they get black, why you are all right [a spell has not been put on you]; if they don't [get black] why you are not [all right]. [This is merely one of many methods of diagnosis used by doctors; see DIAGNoSIS, Pp.165-217, especially MIRRoR, p.193 and the danger of looking into it.] [To end this rite] put glass [mirror] over hand and spell root, spell root three times - R-0-0-T. (Another root doctor says [not R-O-O-T but] M-0-N-Q-T-O-N-Y or it looks like monotony. Don't think I've ever heard it before. [After repeating the word three times] the little [hand mirror] answers, "I live [by the power of God or something similar].")
Entry 7213
Ah'm purtty shure 'bout dat becuz ah'm constant comin' in contact wit somepin lak dat. Maybe it be rattlesnake mastah, High John de Conkah an' Low John de Conkah, wild sprig of Sweet John - some people call it St. John. Dat's- ain't evahbody knows, but dey would know, yo' know, whut color it has. Git chew dose, yo' know, five or six tuhgethah, an' den have real good gin. Three times a week. An' red flannel. (You take red flannel. I see. You get this good gin then?) Yes, sir. Yo' know, yo' don' sew it. Be sure not tuh sew it becuz in sewin', why yo' might stick de needle in de roots don't chew know. Yo' don' wan'a sew wit de needle becuz dat is steel, unlessen yo' wan'a include somepin in it. But chew fold it up propahly tight an' yo' roll with black thread [demonstrates].
(And you roll it towards you.)
An' don't make no knot. Roll it an' carry de ends loose. Yo' know, don' tie a knot. IF YO' TIE A KNOT, WHY YUH WORK IS BROKEN. An' whenevah yo' gO out lookin' fer a job, why, when yo' dress, take it [this hand] in yuh hand befo' yo' left de house. Yo' be on hand an' made de wish lak yo' desires, an' take dat [hand] an' put it back intuh whatevah pocket yo' carry it an' den yo' wipe it right down tuh yuh waist [privates] three times. An' ah don' cā [care] if dey don't hire anybody else on de job, yo' will be hired.
(You will be hired?)
Cuz dat's not takin' advantage of no one. [597:5.] Whut ah learned ah learned from a well-learned man, great-experienced man, an' who really did delivah de goods.
(Where, by the way, did you learn?)
Part of what ah learned, in Jamaica.
(Oh, in Jamaica. Where were you born?)
Born and reared right in this city.
(Oh, you were born in this city.)
But ah wuz travelin' at large aroun' de Bahamas and down de British West Indies as far as Kingston, Jamaica. Ah begin tuh practice wit a girl, whut ah supposed tuh be a girl, but ah found she wuz a woman. She really could do things. An' dey wuz so simple an' so - lak it wuz impossible.
(Where was this? Where was this girl?)
In the Bahamas.
(Oh, she was down in the Bahamas?)
And dat's all right. An' ah come on up an' came tuh Kingston, Jamaica, an' ah found many more. Dey could meet chew an' look yo' up an' down, an' dey could do certain things, an' tuhmorrah yo'd be as crazy as a fool. An' ah wasn't sat- isfied until ah learned dat. An' de thing tuh do, yo' know, wuz tuh git right intuh 'em. Aftah ah could git dem tuh undahstand me [my English] an' ah undah- stand dem. An' dey simply do dis. Ah tried dat out while it wuz not mah desire, an' ah tried dat out an' ah found it true tuh de lettah. (Well, did you learn all these things in the West Indies, or have you learned some of them in this country?) In dis country. Now, dis partic'lah thing is de question dat chew ast me 'bout takin' a person's track tuh harm 'em. [Charleston, S. Car., (514 Doctor Glover) 597:5 and 594:1.]
Entry 7214
Dat whut chew call tyin' down. Dey'll wait until de man come in an' go tuh sleep, an' dey git a bran'-new ball of cot- ton yarn an' puts it on de inside of de baid, where de man gotta sleep. Why dey measure from de tip of 'is haid tuh de sole of 'is feet. Tie a knot tuh de neck, an' tie a knot tuh de waist, an' tie a knot tuh de knees, an' tie a knot tuh de ankles, an' tie one tuh de sole of yuh feet [5 knots]. An' den dey take dat an' dey care [carry] it undah de baid tuh de side dat he sleeps on an' tie it, yo' know, undah de springs wit de two ends tuhgethah double. Tie it right undah where [demonstrates]. Dis part of de body.
(Near the backside?)
Yes. Dat keeps 'im down, dat keep 'em from runnin' aroun'. [Charleston, S. Car., (514), 599:5.] [For more material by Doctor Glover, see Pp.2258-2259; No.112, P.41; No.272, P.79; and No.335, p.99.]
Entry 7215
If she measure a man while he layin' down in baid alive, well inside of at least a year's time de undah- takah 'imself will be measurin' dat man fer a casket [coffin]. He really will.
(What do you mean, measuring him how?)
Well, he'd be daid.
(Well, how would she measure him?)
[I am asking for details.]
If she measured 'im from haid tuh foot wit a kinda extension rule, well he'd be daid in a yeah's time.
Entry 7216
Git de width of yore body [demonstrates]. Git a cotton string lak dat an' put nine knots in it, an' take it out an' tie it tuh a tree, or sompin else [fence, etc.]. An' when dat string rots or comes apart, why it'll cuz yo' tuh fall in sickness or prob'ly dead sometime.
Entry 7217
Dey say dat if yo' ord'nar'ly measure a person whilst dey is layin' down sleepin' from time tuh time, dat'll cuz dere health tuh come bad an' lotsa times will cuz dem tuh lose dere life.
(Well, how do they measure you?)
Jis' measure dem as though yo' standin' up. Yo' five feet eight or five feet ten. Jis' take yo' measure, an' yo' go 'way [demonstrates].
(What do they do with that measure, have you any idea?)
Well, dey tote dat aroun' in dere pocket. Evah time dey takes dat measure dey tote it aroun'.
(Do they use a different string or the same string?)
De same tape [measure].
Entry 7218
Well dey go tuh de store an' git dese wire nails. Ah calls 'em tins [made of tin or tenpenny?]. An' dey git de lengt' of de man an' de lengt' of de Woman, from up here at de haid all de way down tuh de foot. Well den wrap dat man tuh yuh lak dat [demonstrates].
(Wrap this length - the string around to you, all around this nail.)
Yes, de string tuh yuh lak dat, aroun' dis nail clean until yo' wrap it right even wit de point. Den yo' take it an' nail it right down in de centah of yuh do' an' make yuh wishes. Yo' say, "Jis' as ah drive dis nail down heah ah means fer yo' tuh stay here." An' he goin' stay dere. How ah know about dat, ah got mah husban' nailed down right now. Dat's how ah know.
(Now, you say...)
[I am interrupted.]
Right now.
(Well, does it work? Well, how did you get his length?)
While he asleep. Ah got one fer me an' one fer 'im nailed right in de centah of de do'.
(And you wrap both these strings together right around the nail?)
Tuh yuh, wrap 'is tuh yuh an' yours tuh yuh, too. An' den when yo' wrap down tuh de bottom of de nail, stick it right down tuh de centah of de do', an' hit it nine times an' let de ninth lick drive it up tuh de haid.
(In the wood?)
In de wood. (In wrapping these strings around, do you wrap them both together or first one and then the other?) No, wrap de man's first, den mine.
Entry 7219
(You say you used to say your prayers?)
Yes, sir. Ah believe in God, ah trust in Him. Yo' know, God Himself...
[I turn off my recording machine too quickly.]
(What did you say about God?)
God, Himself, wuz de best hoodoo evah wuz known. [Madam Collins of Memphis, Tenn., says something similar: De sacrifice dat yo' offer up tuh Jesus removes de "trick, " fo' he is de "trick" giver an' de "trick" taker (p.994, line 6 fol. from bottom of page).] Yo' have tuh have faith intuh mos' anythin' yo' go intuh. If dere's no faith, dere's very li'le hopes, an' yo' have tuh put God in front. Now, He's de Supreme Being of de world, an' certainly in dis life we have tuh use God; but if we don't, we cain't git along. If it wasn't fo' Him, we couldn't breathe, den we couldn't live. He must open de way fo' us, give us our health an' strength.
Entry 7220
An' a girl, she wuz wantin' tuh leave. She wuz goin' tuh leave me lak on a Friday evenin' an' ah wuz lovin' 'er real hard an' ah didn't wan' 'er tuh go. She wuz goin' tuh leave me an' ah didn't Wan' 'er tuh go. So ah goes tuh a man [doctor] an' he tells me tuh go ahead an' go tuh a grave- yard befo' dat dat mawnin' an' git some dirt from undah - from off a man's breast, right off 'is heart, an' put it in a piece of flannel cloth; an' go tuh a grave where a woman hadn't been long died an' git some dirt offa her heart. An' den take it [both dirts] an' sew it up in a piece of red flannel cloth an' tote it on me. Tie it on mah lef' side, an' he guarantee dat she wouldn't leave. An ah did dat an' she didn't go nowhere. Yo' kin take graveyard dirt an' go tuh a stream of runnin' watah an' turn yore back an' throw it upstream, crost yore lef' shouldah, an' if dey wanted tuh go some place dey couldn't go. (Well, wouldn't you do something else, use someone's hair or something of that sort?)
[Informant ignores my leading question.]
Dat if ah wuz in love wit somebody an' she wuz fixin' tuh leave, an' prob'ly ah would heah dat, an' couldn't git 'er not tuh leave, an' ah could git some graveyard dirt an' go tuh any stream of runnin' watah, an' turn mah back an' throw it behin' me upstream. An' she wouldn't wanta leave, she can't go.
(You don't say anything while you are doing it?)
[Again my leading question is ignored.]
No suh, not anything at all. Jis' go by yo'self an' throw it crost yore left shouldah, an' she'll stay dere. [The intention of the rite is sufficient here.]
Entry 7221
Well, ah've heard 'em say dat if yo' bootleggin' an' yo' wanta keep de law away from yuh house, yo' git out soon in de mawnin'. Yo' take incense. Yo' kin buy dat, an' yuh burn dat, but here's de nex' thing yo' kin do dat ah suggest dan incense. Yo' kin take an' go tuh work an' git dat dirt whut ah suggest tuh yuh.
(What dirt?)
Soon in de mawnin' dat chew go out an' yo' mix up.
(What dirt?)
De dirt dat chew go an' stand on. Aftah yo' make dis dirt, aftah yo' make it up in a mixture. Yo' understand. All right, an' yo' stand on it, an' yo' reach down an' yo' git some of dat dirt. All right. An' aftah yo' reach some from undah de bottom of yuh feet - dis is whut chew call, whut ah told choo 'bout dose twelve head of dose officials, high offi- cials.
(I see.)
But yo' mus' call twelve high officials in de city which yo' live in - names, yo' mus' call dere names. An' yo' put dis dirt in dis pan an' den yo' brings dis pan back. [Then you] goes tuh de graveyard an' git some dirt outa de graveyard. An' den yo' takes dat salt an' yo' sprinkle dat salt ovah dis dirt. An' as yo take dis dirt soon in de mawnin', den de nex' mawnin' 'fo' de sun rise, yo' go all de way roun' yuh house an' sprinkle dis dirt an' say, "As ah cast dis dirt out, ah wants tuh cast [then call some of those officials' names] from dis groun' dat ah stand on." An' dey won't - yo' won' be worried wit 'em. (Will you tell me that story again - over again - you told in the beginning about standing out in a certain part of the house and calling those names. I don't quite remember that.)
[This was a part of the story told before recording began.]
All right. Here it is. Yo' go tuh de east side of de house - de east side, now - an' yo' dig dis dirt [the dirt upon which you stand]. Yo' make it up jis lak yo' wuz makin' a bread; git it good an' crumbly an' soft, yo' see, an' - but choo mus' stand. Yo' want me tuh show yo' how tuh stand?
(Yes.)
Ah'll show yuh [demonstrates]. See? Yo' mus' - aftah yo' git yuh dirt made up good, an' all, den yo' stand upon it lak dis [demonstrates]. See?
(With your shoes on?)
Wit yuh shoes on.
(I see. All right.)
Yo' stand upon it. An' see, when yo' standin' upon it, yo' supposed tuh be standin' on de high officials' heads, becuz dey comes from dust, accordin' tuh de Bible. An' den yo' reach down an' yo' take... [I interrupt].
(Well, didn't you say something about calling names or something?)
Call twelve of dese names of de high officials in dis town, or in de town yo' live. Ah wouldn't know whut dose names is.
(I see. Well, go on again with the story.)
In de town yo' live, see. Yo' call twelve high officials - rulin' powahs in dat town - an' yo' git dat dirt. An' whenevah yo' gits dat dirt from right undah de bottom - de sole of yuh feet - yo' put it in dis pan. An' den yo' takes dis pan an' yo' goes directly from dere tuh de cemetery an' yo' gits some dirt offa de daid body. An' yo' put dat in dere an' yo' mix it wit dat whut choo got from de east side of yuh house. An' aftah yo' do dat, yo' go tuh de table - tuh yuh table or wherevah yuh salt is - an' yo' git some salt an' put in it. An' yo' po [pour] dat salt in it an' den de nex' mawnin' yo' git up soon 'fo' de daylight, den go out an' yo' throw dis aroun' yuh house an' yo' say, "As ah throw dis salt" - jis' throw it out - "dat good fo' nuthin, aftah he [salt] done losed [lost] his savor, but tuh be trampled undah de feets of men." An' den yo' call some of dose twelve officials, high officials, an' yo' won't need worry.
(I see. He would go away, not make him move.)
Yes, keep from makin' yo' move or keep from any officer [keep any officer away] - anything.
(Keep the officers away?)
Yeah, away from your house.
(Trouble of any kind?)
Dat's trouble of any kind.
(I see.)
Entry 7222
[My memorable trip to visit Madam Griffin I mention in the Introduction to volume 1, p. XxIx. She had a tremendous reputation, a well-deserved one,: as you can see from my incomplete in- terview of her on pages 1309-1314. I say incomplete because there were constant interruptions and she was already tiring, though it was only late morning. A white woman had preceded me. Behind me waited a number of automobiles filled with people. And we were out in the country - out in the middle of nowhere. What faith these mortals have! Was her name Griffith or Griffin or something on either side or in between? Surely the mythological beast that flies suits better a woman who could call spirits to her presence and send them out on special missions.] ([The number of people] seeing you all the time - I saw this white woman this morning come in. How many colored people and white people [do you seeJ? What is the proportion? I mean, do you have two colored to the one white person, or do you have one white person to one colored person? How does the proportion rm?) [Sorry for my confusing questions. I was in a confusing atmosphere! Besides, I still had much to learn.] All de same. Do all de same. Jis' whut ah'd do fer a white person, ah'd do fer a colored. (No, I mean in numbers, the people who come here in the day to see you. How nany would be colored and how many would be white?) Well, sometimes ah have 25 of white and sometimes ah have 50 of colored. Now, last Saturday ah had 80 odd people an' ah wuz so tired ah didn't know whut tuh do.
(Eight what?)
80 odd. Well, dey wuz 15 of dem white. [Eighty persons on Saturday in summer surely represents an estimation or count of persons present, but not all of them would have had fortunes told. Some of them came along for the ride. Remember, Madam Griffin, a grown girl during the Civil War, was past 80 in 1937. After two intervening rites, I ask her how a man could keep other men away from his wife. Here is her answer:] He dresses it.
(What does he dress it with?)
Well, he goes an' gits some stuff from de drug store - yo' kin do dat, from de drug store - an' he playin' wit 'er lak he's playin wit 'er. Dress 'er so nobody else can't fool wit 'er, it will be so tight.
(What will he get at the drug store? What sort of stuff would he get there?)
It's called slick eel, somepin lak dat. [Here is further evidence that the loodoo drug store used a pharmacopoeia unknown to normal pharmacology! Slick eel? Does she mean slippery as an eel?]
Entry 7223
Say lak a hoodoo come tuh yuh house. Ah could stop any hoodoo, know how tuh stop it. Git choo fo' - yo' know runnin' grapevines run up a tree - yo' git choo fo'. Cut fo' pieces off about so long [demonstrates]. (Four inches long.) Take yo' fo' pieces an' yo' cross 'em. Yo' take 'em in de house an' yo' cross 'em. Take a nail an' tack 'em tuhgethah an' cross 'em. An' hang 'em ovah yuh do'. An' dere ain't no hoodoo will walk undah dem. (You take four of them [pieces 4 inches long] and nail them in a cross, like that [I demonstrate], and put them over the door.) Dere ain't no hoodoo comin' in, he'll turn back. [Is the grapevine run up a tree an American wild grape or the scuppernong (a form of muscadine) trained as a tree with branches spreading in all directions on an overhead trellis? In any case, a hoodoo fears either being whipped by the vine or its form of the cross. Doctor Frank Hall says a bath with the juice from the fox grapevine will cure witchcraft (see No.1304, p.447). There are two in- digenous fox grapevines in America, the northern (Vitis labrusca), ancestor of varieties Concord, Isabella, etc., and the southern (V. rotundifolia), origin of the scuppernong.]
Entry 7224
Well, ah don' know how ah got it in me. A lady brought me a piece of fish an' she claim, "Mah husban' jis' caught dis fish." An' she said, "It's al- ready salt an' peppahed." Yo' know ah always look at mah food an' ah said, "My, de grains of peppah are large." She said, "Oh, dear, dat's all right, jis' go ahaid an' eat it." So ah washed some of it off, see, an' it all stuck so close, ah couldn't git it off. So anyway, ah said, well ah'll try de fish, 'cuz ah couldn't eat nuthin but fish an' chicken. An' ah ate dis fish. An' ah had no more den finished eatin' it when ah jis' drew up in knots, cramp knots, an' ah fell tuh de floor, an' mah heart start tuh palpitatin' very fast. An' ah tole mah mothah, ah said, "Ah cain't live wit dis cramp." An' so she went aftah anothah lady, one dem HOODOO LADIEs. She called 'er. An' she tole mah mothah tuh go right away an' git me a pint [of] milk. Dat help- ed me some. An' den she fixed me some mustard watah an' - but de only thing ah knew dat cured me wuz a fresh aig [probably from a black hen].
Entry 7225
[This woman was called Humpadee [= Hwmpty] without the Dumpty because of her great size. As an unconscious defensive mechanism, she laughed from the moment she entered the room until she left. Hers was an agile mind. Later I would meet two women of similar size: A WOMAN OF SUBSTANCE (No.1257) in Savannah, Ga., PP. 1268-1276, and THE LAUGHING DOCTOR (1125) of Waycross, Ga., Pp.1470-1500.] She kin take de milk outa huh breast an' when he come in fah [for] eatin' food, joo know, she jis' put dis right in 'is coffee or in 'is tea, an' make a wush [wish]. Well, afo' [= afore = before] she do it, she got tah take an' grease huh dis rag - listen at me good - grease huh dis rag in lahd [lard] w'ah [what] she cook wit. Den aftah greasin' in lahd, she gota rub it undah huh lef' ahm [arm]. Git all dat stench from undah 'eah [heah] wipe de cup wit it. Den aftah she wipe his cup out, den she milk 'uh breast in 'ere, jis' put so many drops
[number not given]. Dat'll make him love huh an' keep 'im dere [in her house]
too. [Richmond, Va., (404), 358:9.] [For 2 other rites of hers, see No.1338, p.453, and No.1711, p.521.]
Entry 7226
Git diff'ren' kinda stuff an' put it in a bottle, an' take dem matches an' put it in dere aftah dat stuff is strong enough - jis' lak... [I interrupt to rename some of the ingredients mentioned before recording began.] (You take camphor gum and Listerine and?) An' bluestone, lodestone, steel dust. Put all dat stuff in dere an' mix 'um; mash it, yo' see. Dat gits strong, yo' see. Dat cuts dem matches, yo' see. Yo' shake it up, yo see, an' it sparks - jis' sparks. Slap it down. Evah time yo' shake it up, it'll spark.
(What will that do for you?)
Dat gits choo luck fo' a man whut gambles, yo' see.
(What do they call that in this part of the country?)
Call it a Joe Mo - Jomo.
(A Jomō, I see.)
Yeah, dat's a Jomo. [A jomō is a hand, a luckpiece, a toby, a guard, etc.]
Entry 7227
Now, dat wus experience too, becuz ah had a lovah 'bout fifteen or ō' yeahs ago an' he went away, an' ah didn't know whut become of 'im. An' he always say if he evah went away he wus gon'a Write me. An' ah sure loved dis man. Ah wus young den, yo' see. An' when he went away ah didn't know where he wus. Ah seen 'is frien' an' he says he didn't know where he wus, he said, but he hear'd he wus gone tuh Chicago. An' ah said, "Whut in de world Frank wanta go 'way dere?" An' ah said, "Well, do yo' know anybody kin bring 'im back?' He says, "No, ah don't know enybody." 'Well, '' he say, "yo' kin go tuh Berkley [home of hoodoo doctors and fortunetellers]" he said, "but why don't chew learn some things yuhself?" Ah said, "Well, dere is nuthin ah kin learn. Dey do so much tuh me, ah'm always got tuh go tuh somebody tuh git cured mah- self." An' he say, "Well, ah tell yuh, " he says, "kin yo' git any King of de World?" Ah says, "Yes, ah guess ah could ordah some." He say, "Well, yo' kin git some High John de Conkah?" Ah said, "Well, certainly." Ah wus in No'th Ca'lina but who tuh git it from ah don' know. An' he say, "Well, git some a dat an'" he say, "fo' nine nights, " he say, "when daid hours of de night, when nobody stirrin' much, ' he says, "fin' de fo'ks of de road durin' de daytime dat yo' know won't nobody disturb yo'." An', he says, "Yo' go dere nine nights. Fo' nine nights yo' go dere an' call Frank Glasgow by 'is name." An', he say, Yo' chew dis [root] an' den rub it in yuh hands," he says, "an' press yuh hand, yuh right hand ovah yuh heart an', " he said, "an' call 'im nine times evah night fo' de nine nights." An' he say, "Yo' see won't Frank come home." Well, ah didn't have much faith in dat but ah gon an' did dat. An' I'd go out nights. Ah go an' found a place. An' ah'd go out nights an' it seemed ah could jis' see Frank, yo' know. Fō' ah didn't have any othah frien' but 'im an zh'd go out an' call 'im an' ah would cry an' go out. So ah tole de man one day, ah say, "Ah reckon ah cried so much ah run 'im away." He say, "Oh yo' mus' not Cry," he said, "dat won't take no 'fect," he said, "but chew do dat. An' lemme tell yo', ah declare it will do good." An' one Satiday night ah wus jis' come from de job an' ah wus busy tryin' tuh clean mah room, an' somebody rang de doorbell. An' ah said, "Who come?" He say, "One." Dat's whut he say, foolin' me, yo' know. Ah say, "Who is one?" Ah don' know no 1 nor 2." He say, "Come an' see me." Well, ah left de room alone an' go on down[stairs] tuh de dō' an' seen. It wus Frank Glasgow standin' at de dō'. oh, ah wuz so glad. Ah wuz jis' ovahrejoicin'. Ah jis' broke down an' went o cryin'. An' ah wus thinkin' of dat, an' so since den ah always think of dat. Ah don't fo'git it. [Our informant gave three other good stories, warmly and vibrantly human: No.867, pp.305-306, handbills and Professor Purvis; No.888, pp.319-321, Vander (her second husband) bit me and black chicken manure (the locus classicus for teeth dropping out); and No.3068, Pp.889-891, Doctor Armour of Berkley (the home of doctors and fortunetellers). This elderly woman, with experience of the hoodoo world, tells an excellent story. She belongs to black folk-literature.]
Entry 7228
[I met a galaxy of doctors in Charleston, S. Car., before I had suffi- cient experience to handle them. Two years later I would have been better pre- pared. Moreover the weather was excessively hot and the hotel rooms noisy at night. There was little rest. The fol- lowing doctor, Maguin or San Mongain was rather strange. At that time I thought all of them were! This man has already appeared in: No.1221, p.434; No.1417, p.464; No.1638, p.507; and No.2209, p.629.] (Well, now, how would a person harm me if they got a hold of my foot track? How would they hurt me with that?) How would he hurt chew wit dat? He'd take yore foot track an' carry it tuh de graveyard. An' tuh take it back from de graveyard, yo' gotta throw dis dirty watah undah yore house. An' tuh kill de spell from dere an' [to] drive de evil spirit, den begin burnin' dragon blood at twelve o'clock at night in dat ole shoe [this rite partially given in No.1221, p.434, v.1.]. (What would he do with this track if he took it to the graveyard? What would he do with it out there?) When he take de track to de graveyard, he put it tuh de haid of de graveyard [grave] an' pay dem one cent, calls yore name an' tole 'em tuh mind 'im. An' durin' de time dat he done take it tuh de graveyard, yore foot track, yo' come back home an' throw it ovah [under]neath yore house. An' go an' git dis gum-bush an' let it stay in yore house fer three days an' burn it. An' de pusson will come back an' go back tuh de graveyard an' git dis track an' turn yo' loose.
Entry 7229
My grandmother lived across the road from my father and mother, and they found this old woman [Millie, the Witch] burying things under my father's house. And my grand- mother saw her doing it and she went over, and she must of got it, for she got sick and she stayed sick for six months. And someone told my father about a man. They called him a hoodoo doctor I think. Be went to see my grandmother and he told her Millie had planted something under my father's house. He went and dug under the house and found something in a little bag. The bag was about two inches square. My father said it had a draw string. She called it powder, some called it roots. It must grow somewhere. It looked like snuff. Then he fixed some medicine for my grandmother. It was liquid. And real snakes came out of her. [This happened near Gaston, N. Car., in 1890, and concerns the witch previously mentioned in rite No.l, p.1, from informant Julia, collected by hand,1936, in New York City. Did her parents use the term hoodoo doctor as early as 1890? Julia undoubtedly picked up the expression at a much later date.]
Entry 7230
[I heard] tell of 'em goin' tuh dese mulberry trees. An' jis' lak de fo'k - yo' know dey got fo'ks on 'em; yo' know, lak dis way [demonstrates] one limb disaway an' one linb datavay. [Get one of those forks and] point it right tuh de house. Well, tuh make yore husban' not go wit nobody else, yo' cut dat [fork] off. See, cut it tuh yuh in fo'ks. Den bend 'em tuhgethah lak dis [demonstrates] an' tie 'en wit a cord string.
(Take those two prongs [of the fork], bring them together.)
Yes sir, tie dem tuhgethah. Den yo' curse 'em fo' evarthin' yo' kin think of. Den yo' kin stick dat anywhere in de house where he will not find it, see. Well, he won't bothah wit - jis' lak if he goin' wit me, see, well he won't have no m Min' fo' me atall.
(Well, now, you must let this fork....)
Yes, jis' point it tuh de house.
(It must be pointing to the house and no place else, no other place.)
Yes sir, point it right at de house.
Entry 7231
[Doctor Nelson we have already met in the following: No.2226, p.632; No.2503, p.693; Pp.1599-1600; and 2260-2261.] Dey kin trick yuh wit dem, yuh [FINGAHNAILS and TOENAILS]. Dey take dem an' burn 'em, gits a powdah outa it an' make dem - mix dem wit de LOCUST an' put 'em in de individual food; yo' know, in de individual food, or put it ovah chewin' gum, anythin' yo' wanta git 'em, intuh dem yo' know, dat'll make de individual follah yuh.
(What kind of locusts do you mean, those bugs?)
Bugs dat fly around a lamp or a tree. In de forest yo'll fin' dem on de s'uth side of a pine tree. Go dere an' see 'em. An' leave de hull dere yo' know, de hull wha' chew git. (Oh, you leave that hull. What do you do with that hull then?) Yo' parches it. (Oh, you just grind that all up?) All tuhgethah. (I see. Mix it with that powder from the fingernails and toe- nails.) [607:3.] Dey take nine - dey got notches lak knots on dey fingah. Dey ake nine of dose notches in de mistletoe. Dey'll notch de devil's-shoestring.
(Nine devil's-shoestrings notches?)
Bope [no], cut 'em off lak de j'int of de fingah.
(I see, nine of these joints of the mistletoe.)
An' nine pieces of devil's-shoestring lak de j'int of yuh fingah.
(The piece of devil's-shoestring is the size of the joint of your finger?)
Each one, yeah [here] [and demonstrates] - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 - until dere be nine. dey bin' dem tuhgethah, one tuh de othah. In de Name of de Fathah, de Son: de Holy Ghost. Put 'em away, an' keep away whichevah yo' lak...
[I tumed off recording machine too soon.]
(You hang it up on the door? Now, how many pieces of mistletoe do you take?)
Nine.
(And you get one joint of devil's-shoestring?)
Yes, of each fingah. Dat be nine of dem too, yo' know. (Oh, you get nine of the devil's-shoestring too. That's 18 altogether. And you bind them all together. What do you tie them up with?.) Yeah, dat's right. Cord, yo' wind 'em tuh yuh.
(I see. Where did you learn this remedy?)
Dat, mah grandfathah told me dat too, yo' know.
(Did he learn that down in the West Indies or up here?)
Right here.
(Where did he practice?)
He practice in Sumter, S. Car., all de time - all around [that part of the country].
(What was his name?)
Samuel Ozias [Isaiah?] Weathahspoon. Yes, ah named aftah him, see, but mah mothah married a Nelson. [607:7.] Well, females do dat gen'ly [generally] tuh control a man. Dey measure from de haid tuh dey shouldah, from shouldah tuh de waist, waist tuh de knees, an' knees tuh ankle, an' ankle tuh bottom of de foot. Dey take dat from de elbow down tuh de wrist. An' takes dat an' puts it wit three pieces of devil's-shoe- string from de sundown side of de bush when dey go tuh it. De devil's-shoestring grows in a patch, chew know; but go tuh sundown side of de patch, chew know. Take a piece an' dey pays up an' tell it whu' chew wanta do when yo' git it. Yo' wind it roun'. An' measure three yards of cord an' win' dat measure up, yo' know, roun' dat devil's-shoestring an' wind it tuh yuh. Yo' wind it tuh yuh an' tell it whu' chew wan' it tuh do. An' dat. make dat pusson stay wit chew. A pusson commit suicide 'fore dey quit chew, unless yo' throw it away.
(That holds him.)
Unless yo' go tuh someone [a doctor] tuh let chew loose, yo' know. [608:1.] A pusson could git dis heah weed, dey call it snail weed, yeah. [Snailclover, one of several species, has spirally coiled pods like a snail. This is the first and probably will be the last appearance of this plant in Hoodoo.] Dat grows right on de groun' an' it grows jis' as fast as a snail grows, yo' know. An' yo' tetch a snail, yo' know, an' he go back in 'is shell. Dey git dat weed yo' know an' dey git it, dey pull it tuh yuh - lak yo' pullin' 'em tuh yo', yo' know. An' boil dat an' put some a dat likkah on anythin' wha' de individual eat or chew, chewin' gum, anythin'. Den all de tooth becomin'loose, yo' know.
(That makes the teeth, all come out.)
Dat cuz [an attempt at pyorrhea] of de gums or anythin'. [608:3.] Yo' go tuh de male mulberry tree an' yo' measure nine inches from de ground an' den skin dat bahk [bark] down. An' take dat an' boil dat, chew know, an' anythin' yo' rub - [put] some on de hand an' rub it on de individual haid, when yo' git a chance, makes yo' waste. Lak dey scale de bahk down, make yuh hair fall out de same way.
(Makes the hair fall out the same way.) [608:4.]
De nex' thin', yo' kin take dat [urine] an' stop up dere watah wit it. Jis' put it up in a brass pipe.
(Get a brass pipe.)
Dat'll stop 'is watah. Airtight [the] brass pipe.
(That will stop his water. Well, what sort of a brass pipe do you mean?)
Any kinda [plumbing] coupling, pipe; but not coupled brass [an uncoupled brass elbow]. Ah mean, have somebody ketch it, see. [Does this mean, have someone find (pick up the elbow) or have someone ketch, get the victim's urine?] [608:7.]
(How do they make that? What do they do?)
Well, yo' git it an' make outa wax or enythin' yo' kin suit yo'self tuh make it outa, undahstan'; but dis thin' dey put chew intuh, dat wheah de povah is.
(What do they put into that?)
Dey'll git de dirt from three graves: haid, chest an' foot of three graves, of a pusson who died wicked, yo' know. Den yo' put de devil's blood wit dat.
(What's that?)
Sompin yuh git at de drug store, yo' know. Yeah, an' dey'll put de dog an' cat hair wit it. An' den dey'll put it any place wheah dat pusson goin' come by, so dat de pusson git possession of it. When dey pass by it, dey mind is dissatisfied. Put 'im in a roamin' mind. Teah [tear] up de business an' make enemies.
(This is that little doll they make.) [609:5.]
Wal, dey'll git de box - dey makes de coffin, undahstand, an' dey'll draw a pusson's face. Dey'll write de pusson name on it an' lay it at de do'. It'll bring a pusson tuh yuh; it'll make a pusson stay in one place. If yo' wanta make a pusson stay from yo' place, yo' do de same thin', but yo'd have tuh git it from de house. Draw it [head] from de house tuh keep dem from de house. If yo' wanta bring dem tuh de house, turn de haid tuh de house, yo' know.
(What do they draw this on do you say?)
Write dere name an' draw de pichure on it.
(On what?)
On de coffin. Yo' draws 'em in de shape of a coffin, de board cut de shape of a coffin, yo' undahstand.
(Oh, you put a picture of him.)
Dat's it, zactly [exactly]. [609:6.] An' den dis anothah way tuh git rid of de spell, tuh make de pusson tell yo' vho de one done it. Go an' git some gum-bush an' let it dry fer three days, an put it in a cup an' burn it. Den de person will come back an' tell yuh dat he's de one done it tuh yuh.
(I see, you use gum-bush. And you put it in a pot?)
Tomato can. An' let it dry. [Charleston, S. Car., (518, Doctor Nelson, 613:2.]
Entry 7232
De Ole Man dat ah went tuh wit de addition [concerning the condition] of mahself - an' ah had a li'le piece of propahty [property] in Georgia - an ah wus figuhin' [figuring] dat somebody wus rootworkin' me, puttin' bad luck on me. An' he [de Ole Man] tole me, he said, "Didjoo see de tracks of de pusson?" [Ah] said, "Ah shure seen tracks." An' he said, "Well yo' git me some dirt outa de heel an' den outa de flat a [of] de shoe." Dat's de sole of de feet. Well, ah did so. He say, "Yo' place it intuh a piece of papah, put de heel in firs'." Ah did dat firs'. All right. An' den ah take anothah piece of papah an' got de middle of de track. All right, an' carry dat tuh 'im. Den he sont [sent] me back tuh measure de shoe track whut ah got de dirt from. An' ah taken a string an' ah measured it. But jis' how long it wus ah don't recall. He tole me tuh take dat string an' dat dirt an' mix it tuhgethah. Place it intuh a pile an' place it undah mah haid dat night. An' ah did so. Ah wus sleepin' in de baid. He said, "Don't put it undah yuh haid. Now, " he said, "set it undah yuh haid undah de baid." I did so. WHEN AH GOT UP NEX' MAWNIN', DE STRING WUS GONE AN' AH FOUN' SOMPIN DAT LOOK LAK A HORSE HAIR. AN' IT HAD SOMPIN LAK A WORM'S HAID, AN' DE DIRT WUS IN DE BOTTLE. [If all this happened, the Ole Man named Ole Wondah was a good cunjureman!] It wus yellah, it looked lak clay. An' de watah looked muddy, kinda lak clay.
(What water?)
It wus in a bottle.
(Did you have water in this bottle?)
Yes, he [Ole Manl put watah intuh de bottle. All right. An' now dat's de nex' mawnin'. All right. He said, "Now, whut ah wan' chew [want you] tuh do, is tuh go tuh a frien' of yuhs [yours] house, de frien' whut named John Thomas." Ah went tuh John's house as he said. "Yo' set dere maybe ten minutes, jis' lak yo'd [you had] come aftah sompin." Ah did so. All right. When ah went tuh John's house, he axed [asked] me dis question: He said, "Did joo sleep good las' night?" Ah tole him yes, vury good. He said, "Whut did joo dream?" Ah said, "Ah didn't dream anythin'." He said, "Well, whut did joo see?" Ah said, "Well, ah saw lots of thin's dat is dere in de house." An' he ast [asked] me dis question, said, "Did joo see anythin' of a bottle?" Ah tole 'im, no. An' den ah walked away [from friend] an' came back an' tole him [Ole Man] whut he'd [friend had] tole me. Den dis man [friend] lef' town. Ah didn't have no bothah [trouble] wit 'im.
(Where was that in Georgia?)
Dat wuz in Custah [Custer?], Georgia, in 1931.
(Well, who was this fellow that you went to see that morning?)
Dey called 'im Ole Wondah. He wus livin' in Macon [Georgia], a fellah, a high-hatted dark fellah [he wore a high hat].
(That was the doctor?)
Dat's right.
(Who was the man - whose house you went to see?)
George [John?] Thomas. He wus a farmah [liyed on a farm]. (He was the one that was trying to harm you. An' what did he ask you those questions for?) Ah jis' don't know, jis' as tuh how or whut. But he [Ole Wondah] tole me he would ast me some questions.
(Did you see anything that night at all?)
Ah didn't see a thing but de bottle whut wus placed undah de baid. Didn't see anythin' at all, jis' perfectly [quiet] as ah remembah. Ah dreamt a dream dat led me tuh a ox an' a few cows, but ah remembah ah had more steers dan ah did cows. An' dat wus de las' thin' ah seen dat would entahtain mah spirit to- Wards dat.
Entry 7233
Yo' see dem li'le red onions, but chew git chew one dat's small; yo' know, got a li'le tail tuh it, lak dat, [demonstrates] chew know. Yo've seen 'em?
(I've seen them.)
Now, de way yo' gotta do, yo' [go] up to 'im - now, listen good. Yo' kill it [the trouble]. Ah had de claps right tuh mah.... So yo' take dis red onion. Now mix dem good. An' yo' know a coman's vury weak anyway, say, "This ain't goin' hurt choo. Wipe dis on yo' so ah won' have tuh come back no mō'." Now, listen good. Now, aftah yo' take dat onion, yo take yo' a cord string an' tie it up somewhere where nobody won' see it. Now listen good, where it won' touch de wall anywhere. An' ah'll betcha, if she have any other man, ah'll eat chew up. She won' [have] any, anothah man, betcha.
(Now, you have that onion and she takes that onion, doesn't she?)
He has tuh tell 'er, see, say, "Ah have de claps, here. De doctor tole me tuh git some of yuh [your] wiping." Yo' know, it ain't goin' hurt 'er. Yo' know, put it between....
(But you have her take that onion and wipe you?)
Shore. Undahstan', yo' know, jis' lak yo' have a woman, yo' say, "Baby wid dis, will ya? Ah have de claps so bad." An' yo' takes dat [red onion] away from 'er an' yo' take a cord string, an' tie it up somewhere where nobody - not even yuh wife won' see it. Where it won' touch de wall nowhere. An' ah betcha evah day an' evah night she be right on yo'.
(I see. You wipe the woman with the red onion.)
Shore, an' den git roun' dat li'le ole tail of it [onion], git chew a cord string an' yo' tie it, an' hang it up somewhere where nobody can't see it.
(You hang up that red onion.)
Yes.
(I understand now.)
Entry 7234
Ah wus goin' wit a girl about six yeahs ago an' ah quit dis girl. An aftah ah quit dis girl, ah started goin' wit anothah girl. An' dis othah [first] girl got acquainted wit dis othah [second] girl. An' so she [first girl] got acquainted wit de girl ah wus goin' wit, dis othah [second] girl. Co'se [Of course] ah didn't tell 'er dat ah had evah been wit dis girl. An' so dis [first] girl had a party one Satiday night an' she got me dis girl dat ah didn't wan' 'er tuh know of. Quite natchel ah wen' tuh de party. So she had a Victrola, wusn't no radio den. In fac' [fact] she didn't [would- n't?] have one no way. An' she had a li'le whiskey fer de party dat night. An' so, all de while ah wus goin' wit 'er de ole Victrola, de spring 'ud [spring would] jump off sometimes an' ah used tuh fix it fer 'er, while ah wus goin' wit 'er. So she, aftah de music stopped, she tole dem dat ah could fix de Victrola. An' she'd [she had] taken de Victrola in de kitchen an' put it on de table. An ah went in dere an' see zactly [exactly] whut wus de mattah wit it an' fixed it. An' she put a pint of whiskey on de table up dere. Well AH DIDN'T PAY NO 'TEN- TION 'CUZ AH NEVAH DID BELIEVE IN DIS STUFF [HOODOO]. SO AH DRINK SOME OF DIS WHISKEY. MATTAH OF FACT AH'D TAKEN SEV'RAL DRINKS OF DIS WHISKEY. An' so, aftah ah got de Victrola completed an' evahbody got tuh dancin', an' den ah started takin' a couple a dances mahself. Well, when ah started takin' dese few dances mahself, ah got dizzy; got a li'le dizzy an' got a haidache an' got out mah haid some. An' de girl frien' ah wus goin' wit den, she'd taken me tuh 'er apartment. Aftah she'd taken me tuh 'er apartment, ah woke up nex' mawn- in' an' found mahself dere. So ah kinda come tuh mah haid a li'le bit. An' den she rent de cah [car] tuh take me home. So dey'd taken me home. An' when ah got home - ah don' remembah when ah got home or nuthin of de kin' lak dat. So 'bout nine o'clock Sunday mawnin', well ah started havin' fits, one right behin' de othah. So dey tell me, ah don' know anythin' about it. Ah fell unconscious den. So dey spent dat Sunday. DEY HAD ALL KINDA DOCTORS. DEY SPENT $74 ON ME DAT SUNDAY ON DIFF'REN' DOCTORS AN' NOBODY WOULD TAKE DE CASE. SOME DOCTORS WOULD COME IN AN' TREAT ME FER SOMPIN - DIABETES AN' DIFF'REN' THIN'S - AN' MAH REG'- LAH FAMILY DOCTOR, HE COULDN'T TAKE DE CASE. So he tole mah uncle an' evahbody dat he didn't know whut wus de mattah. It wus a case tuh 'im. So den ah stayed unconscious from dat Sunday mawnin' at nine o'clock until dat Monday night at half past eleven. Well a frien' of mine - didn't tell me - ah wus still unconscious, but he tole mah uncle. "WE DONE TRIED EVAHBODY ELSE CHERE [HERE], SUPPOSE WE TRY A HOODOO DOCTOR. IF HE DON' DO NO GOOD, WE JIS' WON' PAY 'IM. He [this doctor] run worms out mah mothah, but she [mother] said, "Ah know anothah good lady [but she is too far away], but anyway, by he bein' so bad off, we'll go up an' see dis one firs'." So dis fellah came in - so dey tell me, see ah wus still unconscious - said, "Yes, " S SAID AH WUS POISONED, AN' HE WOULD HAVE ME ON MAH FEET IN 45 MINUTES. Well, it wus about eleven-thirty den.
(In the morning or night?)
In de night. An' dis wus on a Monday night. Ah had been unconscious since Sunday mawnin' nine o'clock till ovah dat Monday night at eleven. SO HE COME IN AN' COMMENCES TUH WORKIN' ON ME. SAYS MY BOWELS WAS LOCKED AN' DIFF'REN' THIN'S. HE GIVE ME SOAP AN' BITTAH ALOES...
[I interrupt.]
(How did he give you the soap?)
He taken de soap an' he jis' mixed it up in a glass; yo' know, jis' watah enough tuh make de soap dissolve. Yo' know, Octagon soap, an' made somepin lak a pill outa it an' jis' held mah mouth an' rubbed mah throat - so dey tell me - until ah swallah dat. An' den dey give me bittah aloes an' dat unlocked mah bowels. AN' SOON AS IT UNLOCKED MAH BOWELS, AH COME TO. When ah cOme to, ah knows mahself. When ah wus on de party ah wusn't able tuh go tuh de bathroom. AN' [AFTER MY BOWELS MOVED] DEY SHOED ME A ANIMAL COME OUTA ME 'BOUT - AH GUESS ABOUT DAT LONG [DEMONSTRATES].
(As long as your little finger.)
YEAH AN IT LOOKED SOMEPIN LAK DE COLAH OF A ORANGE PEELIN', AN' IT RAN UP ON DE MEDICINE GLASS TRYIN' TUH GIT OUT. Ah [had] come tuh, den. Co'se ah wuS weak aplenty. Ah wus weak aplenty from havin' dose fits. Ah wusn't any good. De fact is, he tole me it would take aroun' a couple a yeahs tuh git so ah wus well ag'in. In fact it did. So ah commence tuh askin' question Who did it. HE'D TAKEN A NEWSPAPAH AN' PLACED IT IN A PAN OF WATAH AN' LET IT SET IN DIS PAN A WATAH SOMEWHEAH ROUN' ABOUT AH THINK - IT WUS NINE MINUTES AH THINK, AN' DIS WOMAN'S PICHURE COME ON DAT NECKED [NAKED] JIS' LAK SHE WORN NUTHIN ON 'ER - NECKED ABSOLUTELY.
(The woman that did this to you?)
Yeah. So he ast me did ah know dat woman. Ah say, "Yes." He say, "Well do yo' wan' tuh have her tuh come here an' confess tuh yo'?" DE PICHURE APPEAHED ON DE NEWSPAPAH RIGHT LAK DAT AN' HE TOLE ME TUH LOOK AT IT QUICK. AN' AH LOOKED AT. IT QUICK AN' AH RECOGNIZED IT AN' IT JIS' FADED AWAY AN' JIS' STAYED LAK DAT. [Before proceeding to the doctor's magic-mirror trick, let me pause in an attempt to explain his pan-of-water trick, the latter an excellent example of hydromancy. The doctor had brought in his usual medical kit a newspaper folded into folds about 3 inches wide; the top fold containing type only, the bottom fold also the picture of a scantily dressed woman. He then holds the newspaper several inches under the Water, type side up and picture side down. Patient is instructed to free his mind of all thought except the identity of the spellcaster soon to be revealed. Gaze at the water constantly without blinking. After a long period, as much as 9 minutes, the doctor begins to rotate the newspaper so that the picture suddenly appears and disappears. He tole me tuh look at it quick an' ah looked at it quick an' ah recognized it an' it faded away.] So he said, now ah'll have her tuh come here an' confess tuh yo' dat she did it, if yo' want me tuh. Ah tole him, ah said, "Yeah, ah'll be glad tuh." He'd taken a mirrah an' turn it bottom upwards; taken a mirrah an' turn de face up lak dat [demonstrates].
(The face of the mirror up.)
Lak dat. An' he said - ast me whut wus 'er name. An' ah tole 'im 'er name. Ast me whut wus mah name, an' ah tole him mah name. He wrote mah name at de top an' 'er name at de bottom.
(On this mirror?)
On a piece of papah an' placed it on topa dis mirrah. An' den he'd taken a clock an' turned it face down, almos' right on topa de mirrah, an' let dat stay dere fo' five minutes. An' he'd taken it up in fo' an' a half minutes, an' put it down fō' a few seconds, den picked it up. He tole me she would be dere in five minutes. Ah don' know where she wus. She wus away cross town, somewhere. But he tole me tuh watch out fer 'er, she would be dere in five minutes. Ah Wus wondahin' how she goin' tuh git dere. She lived on Marshall Avenue 'bout fō' or five blocks from dere. Well in fō' an' a half minutes from de clock she wus dere. She come up on - man had a automobile, a taxi. Ah don' know whethah she wus on 'er way dere or whut, but in fō' an' a half minutes she wus dere. She tole me dat she did it an' she wus sorry. She says she didn't do it 'erself, said she got somebody else tuh do it, an' tole me his name an' evahthin'. (Do you know what they put in the whiskey to hurt you that Way? What she put into the whiskey?) Yes, dis fellah had taken two grains of snake dust an' put in de whiskey. But dat wasn't did dat Satiday night. Had it been did dat Satiday night, it wouldn't a worked so fast, see. She had did it somewhere roun' about three months agO, an' DAT LIVE ANIMAL HAD BEEN PERFORMED FROM DAT SNAKE DUST. An' den ah had been away from 'er fō' fō' or five months, an' had been goin' wit anothah girl an' had passed 'er up. Well dis girl wus teachin' school. Well ah wouldn't let dis girl know dat ah had evah been wit 'er, cuz ah thought dere would be a lot a jealouSy dere. WELL, WHEN AH WENT BACK DAT NIGHT, DEY STIRRED IT UP, YO' SEE, AN' DAT MADE DIS LIVE ANIMAL LOCK MAH BOWELS. AN' IT HAD TUH PASS THROUGH OR ELSE AH'D A LIVED SO MANY HOURS HAVIN' DOSE FITS AN' DIED.
Entry 7235
Dat would be whut de root man, dis hoodoo doctor - dat would be whut he would do.
(What will he do? Will you tell me that again? What would he do?)
Now in case dat yo' wus hurted by anyone an' yo' would go tuh a root doctor. Well, dis doctor, he would draw dis pichure of de individual who did dat tuh yo' an' den, aftah dat, he would build a fire an' in front of de smoke, yo' see, he'll hold de pichure up yo' undahstan'. Put it, yo' know, on a stick or somepin an' den yo' shoot [the picture drawn by the root doctor].
(Who does the shooting, you or he?)
Yo' do it. Yo' will do it yuhself.
(That keeps away trouble.)
Entry 7236
[Playing cards is hoodoo's greatest method for revealing your past, present and future fortune. These professional manipulators of cards are usually called a reader or fortuneteller, though both latter terms may include crystal ball, pan of water, all sorts of special gifts, etc. The present rite, however merely starts with cards to discover the sex of a thief. For similar methods of divina- tion, See PLAYING CARDS, p.195f., and PLAYING CARDS SPECIAL, p.196f., both a part of DIAGNOSIS, Pp.165-217.] Yo' git chew a deck a [of] cahds [cards] playin' cahds, pu' [put] dem out dere lak in gamblin', an' yo' kin tell if it's a man or a woman. See, yo' cut [demon- strates], yo' shuffle dem cahds; yo' turn dem around an' den yo' shuffle de. Yo' cut dem three times an' yo' turn de face up. If it's a man, it goin' tuh be a jack; if it's a woman, it goin' tuh be a queen dat chew turn up, yo' see. A queen is fσ' a woman, lak dat. Now, if she is a colahed puson - it's a colahed woman - it goin' tuh be spade, queen a [of] spades; an' if it's a white woman, it goin' tuh be a queen a [of] di'monds, see. If it's a bright woman, it: s de queen a[of] hearts. See. De same wit de jack an' de king. See. Well, all right. An' aftah yo' cut dem cards an' find out how [who] it is, yo' take yo' dis S-lax [see later] powdah.
(What? Where do you get that?)
Yo' buy it at de drug sto'. It's HOODOO STUFF. Doctor Thomas [proprietor of the drug store] got it down dere.
(What do you call it?)
S-Lax powdah.
(Ex-lax?)
Yeah, it's a powdah.
(Not Ex-lax?)
No, not Ex-Zax. Dat's a candy. Dat's fo' - dat's candy. It's Ex-Zax powdah.
(And what is it called, this powder?)
Ex-lax powdah.
(All right.)
[Author gives up, resigns, etc.]
An' yo' buy it at Doctor Thomas Drug sto'.
(Doctor Thomas' Drug Store?)
Yeah, right down heah on Ramport Street. Yo' take dat stuff. An' aftah yo' take dat powdah - yo' take dat powdah an' yo' puts it on a lamp, yo' see, an' yo' burn it. Yo' see, yo' burn it ovah dere in a li'le pan, see. Well, aftah yo' burn it in a pan, yo' take dat an' yo' puts it - yo' take a red candle - not no black candle - see, yo' want dat back, a red candle, an' yo' burn dat. Yo' burn dat candle an' dat woman - yo' put [that] woman [her name] on de papah, yo' see. Yo' burn it ovah dat [lamp] an' ah betchah dat stuff'll come back tuh yuh.
(That they [she] stole.)
Yeah.
(What do you mean by "woman on that paper?")
[I want to be certain about this. My preceding understanding was wrong.]
Yo' see, yo' jis' put 'woman" - jis' write [the word] 'woman" on de papah. If it's a woman dat stole it [according to the preceding playing cards rite of divination] yo' write "woman" on dere. Yo' don' know 'er name. But if yo' know 'er name - it's bettah fo' yo' tuh know 'er name. If yo' know de puson's name, yo' put de name dere, an' yo' got 'er.
(I see. Where do you put that paper?)
Yo' put dat papah undah de li'le pan wit de candle on topa [top of] it an' yo' burn it. An' yo' goin' tuh burn dat stuff back tuh yuh.
(I see. What do you do with that powder?)
De powdah - yo' git de powdah at de drug sto'. See, yo' mix de powdah in wit dat stuff, yo' see.
(With what stuff?)
Mix de powdah an' burn it, yo' see, ovah de lamp. Yo' see, yo' burn dat pow- dah, see, in de pan. Den yo' stick de candle right up in de centah of dis [panl an' put 'er name right undah dat, yo' undahstan', an' yo' goin' tuh burn dat stuff back. [This burning brings dat stuff back.]
Entry 7237
Dere a preachah stayed in Boyce, Mississippi, Scotts County, an' some- one stole his suitcase an' he went tuh one of de gentlemen [doctors] an' de gen- tlemen tole him he'd git 'is suitcase back. An' so de fellah [doc- tor] went an' cut some cahds [cards] an' tole him tuh go tuh de stō' an' git 'im some sulphur, an' git 'im some salt, an' he give it tuh 'im. Den he [doctor] sprinkle dat ovah him [preacher] an' rubbed 'is [preacher's] hands an' [they] says he [preacher] throw it up in air where de wind blow it. An' he got 'is suitcase an' dere wusn't a thing tuk [taken] outa it. Dat's a true fac', he got 'is suitcase. [For wind- blowing rites, see Nos.5713-5718, Pp.2917-2918, etc.]
Entry 7238
[The following statement is a penciled note of mine made back in 1937 while transcribing cylinder recently recorded in Wilmington:] Fortuneteller - while eating breakfast in this woman's house [who was hurt] - the woman who he said had hurt her sent over some biscuits - he ate them and told his hostess [and patient] they would have killed her if she had eaten them - long story not worth copying. [Wilmington, N. Car., (215, the story occurring in Evans Co., Ga.), 121:2+85.] [The story should have been cop- ied because it showed that a doctor was immune to poison. It also shows a spell must be prepared for a particular person, a common belief in hoodoo.]
Entry 7239
(Where did you come from?) Why ah came from Nassau City, Nassau. Ah wus born dere an' in Nassau an' raised up in Miami.)
(You were born in Nassau and you were raised in Miami, Florida.)
Yes, sir.
(How old were you when you came to Miami, Florida?)
Well, ah wus only three yeahs old.
(How did you learn this work? From some other person?)
Through my dad.
(Was he a root doctor in Nassau?)
Yeah, a root doctor intuh Gongi Islands dey call it. He wus dere. An' he had dose four disks, yo' know, li'le roun' disks lak li'le silvah-lookin' things. Mah dad wus usin' dose but he'd nevah give me dat one. He would nevah give me dat. Well, he's daid now. But he died in Miami, at 555 N. W. 15th Street.
(He did root doctoring in Miami?)
Yes.
(HoW long ago did he die?)
Been daid fo'teen yeahs.
(His name was what?)
Doctor Walter Parsons [originally Porie.]
(How do you spell your name?)
Willie - P-O-R-I-E. (You have only been here five months, but before that you worked mostly in Florida.) Yes, sir, St. Petersburg.
Entry 7240
Well, mah sistah got hurt once in 'uh han' [hand]. Also one a [of] mah brothahs got hurt. He [doctor] come tuh de house. Mah daddy went [to Ouincy] an' got 'im. An' he tole fathah, say, "Yo' make me a fiah in de stove." He got nine needles in a li'le bottle of watah. Ah don' know whut else he done tuh 'uh. He say de people's been here [who caused her trouble]. An' fō' many mō' minutes dat thing got tuh boilin'. He says, "Dere's a woman goin' come in, ast yo' tuh give her somepin." He say, "Don' give her nothin. She goin' come in aftah some salt." Dat woman did come dere an' it jis' pō'in' down rain. She come in de rain, an' ast mah daddy fer tuh give her a li'le bit of cookin' salt. He tole 'er, "No, ah'm sorry." "Well, all right, goodbye." An' she went right off in de rain, see. Well now, HE WUS TAKIN' DE SPELL OFFEN MAH SISTAH AN' SHE [visitOr] CARRIED IT RIGHT BACK WIT 'ER. Dat's true. [The preceding story, simply and briefly told, is one of the finest statements in Hoodoo. I consider it a work of black literature, beautiful, saying much with little. Consider those two groups of five words each: it jis' po'in' down rain when the woman arrived, immediately repeated as she come in de rain. Within a few minutes the whole world changed. Before the woman's arrival the rain poured, after her immediate departure the rain fell gently, because she carried it [the spell] right back wit 'er. Remember, the informant is speaking extemporaneously. Try to rewrite this story using the same number of words. The doctor's equipment also amazes me. Nine needles in a small bottle! Yes, the woman was a confede- rate, quite worthy of the doctor. After her request for salt is refused, she answers, Well, all right, goodbye. Simplicity is everywhere, exaggeration no- where. Some day I hope a black Lady Gregory will discover this tale and trans- form it into a vehicle for great black, not white-folks acting.] [For a parallel to the preceding story, see NEVER LEND TO A WITCH, in which the witch also comes to borrow salt (FACI 2nd ed., p.875, story of Germanorigin). In our present hoodoo story we have, not some neighbor dropping in to borrow; but the appearance of the mysterious stranger, an awesome theme as old as history.] [A penciled note of mine on the transcription reads R.D. (= root doctor) near Quincy, Fla.]
Entry 7241
It's experience, ah knows. Ah wus goin' tuh a place one time tuh a skin game, an' so de boys says, "Whutcha got?" Well, de day befo' dat ah went an' caught me a rabbit, caught 'im alive. An' ah took de rabbit an' cut de lef' foot off an' lef' 'im still livin'. (Which left foot, the front or back?) De back foot. See, got de back foot on de left-hand side an' put it in mah pocket. Well, ah wus goin' tuh dis game an' ah didn't have but one nickel. Well, ah got down dere. Ah says, ah ain't got but a nickel, ah chance dis. Well, de firs' drop ah caught de firs' fellah an' ah still had mah rabbit in mah left pocket - dis rabbit foot. So well, we went tuh work den an' we gambled an' we gambled an' we gambled. An' so when de thing ended up, ah win de money. An' ah had faith dat vus mah rabbit de cause of it see, cuz it's lucky, de lef' hin' foot. [Doctor Nelson of Charleston, S. Car., says the left hind foot of a graveyard rabbit, No.2226, p.632.]
Entry 7242
Wal yo' goes an' use de devils-shoestring, black root, rattlesnake mastah, an' use de calomel [calamus] root [sweet flag (Acorus calamus)] dat goes on a - yo' kin take a li'le whiskey an' yo' put dat on dere. Dat goes through an' through de human body - which an' why it is de only way de most in de haid, yo' see, it flusteratin' through de jungle vein. An' from de - from it functions tuh de bowels it goes on an' den it gotta take effect on de kidneys. Den de kidneys git wrong an' den it gotta take effect on de bladdah. An' den she take dat line an' it goes up tuh de lungs. Den fore dey git de heart pertected [protected], yo' see, dat makes a function tuh it - dat makes it a slow. Den dat goes up in de haid. Den dat goes an' make dem absent-minded. But now, aftah yo' give dem dat, dey gon'a use yo' gon'a use yore method den. An' de firs' thing yo' have tuh do is give dem salts from Central America. A teaspoonful an' dat take it 'way, which an' why dat gon'a make de othah fellah whut done it - yo' see he goin' tuh know but he cain't tell whut's de trouble. An' one [once] yo' take it [spell] off, it will nevah come back no mō'. (How do you give her these roots? Do you put them in a bottle of whiskey or does she drink it or what does she do?) Nah, yo' let [her] take dat - yo' let 'er drink it.
(And then you use this powder too?)
Dat salts from Central American.
(How do you use that powder?)
Yo' jis' take it an' give it tuh - give dem a dose, jis' lak yo' take in yore hand a halfa teaspoonful.
(That will cure her then?)
Dat will cure her cuz dat will got through all de art'ries, all de jungle veins. Yo' see, dat goes when de heart is vaporating de bloods from de lungs. Dat will go tuh de brains, dat will go tuh de cap of de brain an' dat will cuz de - dat will work on de bowels an' git all de stuff whut is in dem. Dat'll empty it. Den yo' give dem de rattlesnake mastah or John de Conkah; an' den yo' give dem de blackroot, supposed tuh be anothah method whut yo' kin use in anothah way.
[While recording machine is turned off, something is said about spirits.]
(Well, now suppose you tell me this method first. Whose spirit do you call? The person who had this spell put on the person? Or do you call a root doctor or a conjurer?) Yo' jis' make a prayah: Lord, heah ah am an' whosomevah put de spell on me, Lord ah wan' chew tuh achly [actually] he'p 'em tuh take it off. Den dat will come tuh be, reveal [itself]. See, de spirit will go wit de man doin' de right thing. (Well, after the woman is cured, then what do you do with the spirit that you caught?) Wal, when she cured, turn 'im loose.
(How do you turn him loose?)
All yo' gotta do, unscrew it [bottle] an' let 'im go.
Entry 7243
Now, yo' take me, ah wuz fixed. Ah kin prove mine. Mah wife done it tuh me. But she done it, yo' know, wit mah private, yo' unnahstan'. Now it's [private is] no good fo' me. We had a fuss, yo' know, an' she jis' fixed me while ah wuz sleepin', see. An' now de whole haid of it's no good.
(I see. Well, what did she do to you?)
She put some HINDU STUFF on it. She sent tuh Chicago fo' it. (Well, what effect did this have or how does it act?) Well, it didn't verk on me fo' 'bout fo' [four] days; an' aftah ah found out whut it wuz, ah went tuh de rootman. See, mah mothah sent me tuh de root man an' he tole me he couldn't do me no good, ah wuz too fah [far] gone. Dat stuff had et [eaten] in dere, see. He couldn't do me no mo'[more] good.
(HAVE YOU EVER GONE TO A REGULAR DOCTOR ABOUT IT?)
YES, SIR, AH WENT TUH A REG'LAH DOCTAH.
(WHAT DID HE SAY ABOUT IT?)
SAID, DERE WUZN'T NUTHIN TUH DO BUT CUT IT OFF.
(Did he say it wuz any kind of disease or anything?)
No, jis' poisoned. Yes, sir, jis' poisoned.
(Well, what did your wife do then? Did she leave you or what?)
Ah lef' 'er [I left her].
Entry 7244
Ef enybody did yo' wit poison, [you] drink it, dere ain't but two roots dey use in dat. Dat's gall of de earth an' conkah root, called devil's-shoe- string. It's a root dat grows in de groun' has vury long prongs tuh it, some of 'ems dat long [demonstrates], yallah, an' it's vury good tuh chew tuh draw trade - anything, yore business, anything.
(What is the name of this root?)
Conkah root.
(It isn't John the Conqueror?)
Yeah, but not de othah John. Dis is jes' devil's-shoestring, yo' know. Den dere's anothah piece a [of] root yo' call John de Conkah. It's a li'le shortah dan dat. Dat comes from de South. Ah've seen dat, but dat don' act much as dis here devil's-shoestring. Dis devil's-shoestring de main root dat's roun' [it is the most popular root sold]. Now yo' take some of dat - jes' - an' gall of eart' - jes' de two of 'em an' boil it tuhgethah. An' give dat person a dose a [of] dat three times a day, an' it might take a month, but it will cure 'em. No othah medicine won' do 'em no good but dat.
(What will that do to them?)
Clean 'em out of de poison.
(Well, what sort of poison would they have in them?)
Well, sometime - most all of 'em [who] come tuh me does drink whiskey. Some wimmin done tricks tuh 'em, jealous of othah wimmin. Dey kin git tuh yuh through some whiskey, lak if ah'm fonda [fond of] drinkin'. Well, yo' put sompin in dat whiskey 'cos' yo' know ah lak whiskey an' dat where yo' goin' git me at. Dat's whut ah works on all de time.
(Then to get this poison out of them, you use....)
Gall of de earth an' devil's-shoestring. Them two.
(What other name did you call devil's-shoestring?)
Some people call it John de Conkah, too.
(You just called some root Conker, didn't you?)
Well, dere's 'nothah John de Conkah, too, but dat's a thick root. It don't grow heah. Dat grows in South Carolina. Ah've seen it. [798:3.] [The following portion of this interview, 798:4, has already been printed in Hoodoo as No.1980, p.580, in margin title HAND SECRECY, because I wanted to ill- ustrate in this HAND section the necessity for secrecy.] Conkah root - devil's-shoestring - black rattlesnake root, boil 'em both [2 roots] tuhgethah an' put a li'le red peppah, fresh table salt, an' mix it tuh- gethah intuh dis, an' as dat police nosin' aroun' dere - when yo' ketch 'im away, yo go behind 'im wit a li'le bottle an' sprinkle a li'le behind 'im. If yo' do dat, ah bet he'll nevah come dere. DAT'S WHUT AH SELLS, BLACK RATTLESNAKE ROOT AN' CONKAH ROOT FER DAT. LOTS OF PEOPLE USE IT TUH KEEP DE LAW AWAY. IT MUSTA DO IT 'COS' DEY ALL COME BACK AN BUY FROM ME ALL DE TIME.
(This conkah root is the same thing as devil's shoestring?)
Yes, dat [isl devil's-shoestring. Dere's anothah root dey calls real John de Conkah. Dat don' grow heah. Grows in No'th Carolina. But WE GATHAHS WHUT WE KNOW HEAH. Dis heah is purtty good 'cos' evahbody wants it an' buys it. [798:5.] Git dat devil's-shoestring, git a fresh piece, put a piece in yore pocket. Yo' go roun' tuh dat man evah mawnin' dat chew kin git close enough tuh 'im. Yo'll put a piece of dat root in yore mouth an' chew it. Aftah yo' chew it all good, yo' commence spittin' lak yo' spittin' 'bacco juice. An' den yo' take it out an' teah [tear] it all up an' throw it all roun'. Jes' as true as ah'm set- tin' heah, bet chew'll git a job - git a break. Keep on goin' dere. Ah've given lots of people dat. Ah should have lotta money but people ain't got no money.
[This Was during the Great Depression.]
(HOW MUCH DO YOU CHARGE FOR ROOTS AS A RULE?)
15c AND 2Oc ACCORDING TO DE SIZE OF 'EM.
(WHAT IS THE MOST EXPENSIVE ROOT YOU SELL?)
John de Conkah, Adam-an'-Eve an' Master...dat's a hard root, rough root, look lak a bamboo briar [bramble briar?] root almost. Dat's de mastah. Lots of peo- ple use dat.. "COS' EVAHBODY GOT A WAY OF USIN' EVAHTHING.
(WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR ROOTS?)
AH GIT PURTTY NEAH ALL OF 'EM FROM DAT MAN SETTIN' IN DERE - DARK MAN. HE BRINGS 'EM TUH ME, 'COS' HE KNOWS. BUT HE'S DE ONE PUT ME INTUH DE BUSINESS.
(He hasn't come in here yet.)
No, he been here presently. See, he lives in de country. He de one put me wise tuh all dis root business. He's [his] brothah too, brothah do same thing.
(Where did he get these roots? Where? You said in the market?)
YEAH, AH GOT A STAND DOWN AT 5TH AND K STREET. AH'M DE OLDEST ONE DOSE ROOT WOMAN DOWN DERE. DIDJA EVAH SEE A COLORED WOMAN WIT HUH PICTURE IN DE PAPAH? ALL OVAH DE WORLD WIT MAH PICTURE. DAT'S WHUT DEY PUT IN DE PAPAH. AH'M DE GREAT ONE.
(You are the root woman.)
YEA, AH'M DE ONE DEY PUT IN DE PAPAH. DON'T PUT NOBODY IN DE PAPAH BUT ME. DEY PUT ME IN DERE THREE TIMES. MAH PICHURE'S EVEN OVAH IN HONOLULU. Yeah, 'cos' ah got a white man dey sends here once a month an' gits [some root], gits a dozen [of the roots] evah once a month. An' 'is daughtah sends it tuh 'im in Honolulu.
(I'm going to come down and see your stand down there.)
Yo'll find me there. [Unfortunately I could not visit her stand.]
Entry 7245
Dem peppah seeds?
(No, tell me the whole story right from the beginning, now.)
Yo' kin take dis yeah [here] common spice an' season wit it: black peppah, salt an' devil peppah seeds. (Devil pepper seeds?) Yes, devil peppah seeds. Dat's dem large peppahs about lak dat [demonstrates]. (I see.) An' make a powdah out of it an' den dey sprinkle dat in yuh sock an' [or] yuh shoes, an' it will natchurally put chew in bad shape.
(And what did you do then?)
An' me - ah had a brothah, an' dat's whut a lady [fortuneteller or doctor] tole him dat a frien' did fo' him.
(I see. This is what happened in Louisiana?)
We lived over in Freeport, Louisiana.
(I see.)
Entry 7246
I knowed a fellow and he lost all control of himself [because someone did this to him]. They cut up horsehair as fine as he [they] could cut it and put that up in his food, and after that was internal it formed snakes. They [the snakes] commenced to destroy him. This doctor took them out. He gave him saltpeter, olive oil, poke root, and other things [surely including a laxative], and mixed them all together and gave him, and perished those snakes and they crawled out of him. [For horsehair producing live snakes in person, see also Nos.6571-6572, p.3084.]
Entry 7247
Tuh make a woman an' a man stay tuhgethah, de firs' things ah heer'd, when ah wuz growin' up - yo' know, grown folks would be talkin' an' dey wouldn't be talkin' tuh me an' ah would ketch some of dese things. Ah'd be workin' roun' - co'se [of course], mah gran'- mothah an' aunts could heah things dat grown people said. Ah heer'd some things. She said dat one time dere wuz a woman had a fellah an' he liked anothah girl. Said de woman took an' washed 'er feet right good an' den washed 'er hands an' washed from undah 'er ahms an'aroun' 'er neck, an' she washed dose places about 'er body real clean. Said de firs' place she washed from undah 'er ahms an' she squeezed dat in de watah an' she goin' tuh give it tuh 'im in somepin tuh eat. An' dey say, aftah she squeeze dat in de watah, said den she washed ag'in an' ag'in squeezed dat in de watah. Washed in palm of 'er hand an' squeezed dat in de watah. Washed dis hand an' squeezed dat in de watah. Said den she turn roun' an' didn't wash once but de nex' time tuh make it clean, an' she washed undah de bottom of 'er feets, instead of washin' 'em out dat way, she washed 'em tuh 'er, an' den cross-marked 'er hand on each foot, an' she squeezed dat in de watah. Well, she said dat worked around all right fo' awhile, den dat wore off. Den she turned aroun' an' washed 'er feet an' scraped 'em an' took de dead skin from de foot an' put all of it tuhgethah an' put it in a pot an' boiled it. An' when she did boil dat, den she goes tuh work an' strains dis watah an' put dat in somepin tuh eat an' dat's whut kept him. Dey claim he follahed 'er each an' evahwhere she'd go. Den dey said it commence tuh weah [wear] off an' she got - it's anothah part about chew dat only be's once a month, an' she got dat. She got about half tea- spoonful of dat, counted tuh seven drops of dat an' put dat in it. An' dat kept 'im.
(She would only use seven drops of that?)
Yessuh. An' put dat in an' dose drops lasted a yeah - seven yeahs. Den anothah woman tole her tuh take a tablespoonful of weewee an' put it in, an' dat still kept 'im. Dat kept 'im awhile den an' den dat begin tuh weah [off]. She tole her tuh go an' buy some beefsteak, an' she bought dat. She tole her tuh take her fingah about 'erself an' take an' wipe it on dis an' po' gravy ovah it. An' dat kept 'im. She said dat kept 'im until death.
(You said one woman did all these things?)
One woman told all dis about one woman, an' dis one woman had so much trouble wit 'im. He wuz supposed tuh be a very nice-lookin' man, it seemed lak dat all de women wuz 'bout tuh take him, an' it seemed lak she intend tuh have him an she tried all dese things.
Entry 7248
An' so aftah dat ah wus goin' wit a [another] girl an' dis girl quit De: Dat wus about three or four yeahs ago. An' ah went tuh anothah - AH NEVAH BELIEVED IN IT 'FORE, NEVAH BELIEVED NUTHIN ABOUT IT. An' ah neVah think about de girl at all, but dis man caught 'er - [this man] who had cured me. Well, he say, "Yuh girl have quit yuh, havent she?" Ah say, "Yes." He say, "Well, ah kin help yo'." Say, "Do yo' want 'er back?" Ah say, "Yeah." 'Well, '' he say, "yo' give me fō' pieces of silvah." Ah say, "Whut yo' mean by fō' pieces of silvah?' He say, "It gotta be a dime anyway." Say, "It can't be a nickel or anythin' ovah a dollah." Ah give him fo' dimes, but ah ain't payin' no ten-cent tip whutevah. Ah gives 'im dese fō' dimes an' he take de girl's name an' mah name on top, an' wrote it backwards [family name first, then given name] an' tell me tuh put in mah shoe [demonstrates].
(In your left shoe.)
In mah lef' shoe. Ah put it in mah lef' shoe. So ah goes tuh work de nex' mawnin' an' de girl says [this girl where he is] vorkin' on de job - so ah got sick of it, see. It kept on lak dat, an' kept on lak dat, an' kept on lak dat. Dis.[first] girl wus teachin' school. An' so dis girl dat wus teachin' school had gone tuh teachin' school in North Carolina, an' she thought she would go tuh New York an' event'ly [eventually] she'd come back tuh Norfolk aftah livin' in New York fō' a while. Ah really didn't want tuh see her come back. So she did. ["This low voice not at all understandable," says transcriber. Fortunately ve: soon return to the doctor.] So he [doctor] said, "Git me a red onion." Well ah wus a couple of days find- in' a red onion. Went aroun' tuh de market an' evahbody had white onions. Ah couldn't find a red onion. So by an' by ah went tuh de A & P Store an' ah passed an A & P store an' dere wus a delivery truck deliverin', an' ah saw some red onions on dere an' brought one on home. He made me cut it in half. Cut it dis way an' let de two skins on it an' cut dis.
(You cut it from the top to the bottom?)
No, no! Lak [demonstrates] dere's one skin here an' one here, dat way.
(Oh, cut it across.)
Yeah, right 'cross.
(Across the rings.)
So he'd brought some salt an' peppah. Took de salt an' peppah an' dumped a li'le pile of salt an' dumped a li'le pile of peppah, an' he said, "Take nine pinches of de salt an' put it in dis half."
(What did he put in one-half now?)
Put nine pinches of salt in de left half, nine pinches of peppah in de othah half. An' den he gives me a needle. Takes de needle an' stick it up through dis half an' pull dat needle an' take de two onions apart an' make dem tuhgethah, yo' see.
(You sort of pin the two of them together with the needle?)
Sew de onion right back, fix de onion right back so dat de salt an' peppah in it will be tuhgethah. Git a string an' tole me tuh hang it up in de no'th cornah of de wall.
(This needle was threaded with string?)
Yeah, de.onion wus hangin' on de string. Took it dere jis' lak he tole me an' he tole me in fō' day's time she would be back. Well, ah kept it dere, kept it dere fo' fō' days an' she didn't come back. So ah tole him she didn't come. He said tuh give her two mō' days. Ah give her two mō' days an' she didn't come. Ah goes back tuh 'im ag'in. He give me nine pods of red peppah. Yo' know dose red peppahs dat hang down. He give me dem an' a needle an' thread an' tole me tuh tie it, them up tuhgethah.
(These nine pods, did you put the needle through all of them or one?)
Yes, fix dem tuhgethah. Break 'em, yo' know, apart an' den take a needle an' jis' link 'em tuhgethah; yo' know, one on top of de othah. An' he tole me tuh hang it on de same nail wit dat onion. See, [demonstrates] jis' lak dis cornah of de house here is settin' dat way an' dis cornah here is de no'th dataway. An' he tole me tuh hang it in de middle of de house [making a quincunx]. See [demon- strates]. If de house wus settin' dis way, so dat would be de no'th cornah, hang it across.
(The other was hanging in what corner?)
De no'th comah. Cuz [because] she wus in New York. If she wus in de So'th, it would be in de so'th cornah.
(So you hung the peppers in the north corner, too.)
So he tole me in 24 hours she will be dere. An' she come in de nex' train, came right on de nex' train.
(She came?)
Yes sir, right on de nex' train. Ah wus made tuh do dat mahself, but he made me do it mahself - took de onion an' de salt an' peppah. But whut he did aftah dat ah really don' know.
(What did she say when she came? What did she come back for?)
Well, she tole me aftah when she come back dat she jis' couldn't sleep, jis' dreamin' about me all de time, an' diff'ren' things lak dat. But ah nevah let 'er know anything about dat. If ah had continue tuh let it hang dere she would of still been crazy [about me] an' ah had tuh throw dat away so dat she wouldn't be callin' me up on de job an' diff'ren' places lak dat.
(That's a personal experience you've had.)
Well, ah nevah have desert - ah nevah did want 'er tuh leave me no mo'. Co'se ah didn't want 'er too crazy, cuz she would call me up too much. So when she go tuh sleep ah cut a li'le piece of 'er hair off de top of 'er haid an' take some of 'er combin's, or she'd wash 'er comb an' drop a li'le bit of hair dere. So ab buried [this] down 'side of de do'step an' she nevah leave dere.
Entry 7249
Wal, dey kin take dat earth whut chew walked upon an' mix dat wit pow- dah whut we say controllin' powdah. Den dey would take dis powdah an' burn it an' de ashes dey git from dis powdah would be put intuh somepin. An' den prob'ly dis party would try tuh come in contact wit chew an' put dis powdah on yo' some Way. An' by doin' so dey have full powah or controllin' powah ovah yo'. In othah words dey make yo' do jis' whut dey desire. (Where do you get this controlling powder?) Controllin' powdah is made up jis' from ordi- nary powdah, whut we say, wit de oil of van- Van mixed in; jis' ordinary white powdah, an den mix in wit de oil of cinnamon an' van-van. [827:4.] Dat is fer stoppin' a person's nachure. Well, dey claim dey take dat dung an' take a new piece of cloth an' in usin' dis piece of cloth, dis - take dis piece of cloth dat's nevah been used, an' den dey will tie nine knots in it. An' dis party, dis woman or dis man, would weah dis aroun' dere waist at all time. An' dat would stop yuh nachure. (Well, what else would they do with that? Do they do anything else with that at all?) Not anything else, jis' weah it aroun' dere waist. A brand new piece of cloth dat nevah been used, but only usin' dis dung on it.
(Whose dung?)
De man. If a man wants to fix a woman, he would use it from 'er dung; if she wants tuh fix a man, she will use it from some of 'is dung. (That means the bowels and that is not his nature [semen] for [fixing a] woman
[or her nature for fixing a man].)
[When I met Doctor Sims in 1937, my knowledge of impotence rites was meager; in fact I still thought some of them were being made up! This is the reason why on reading the present transcription years ago, certainly before I started for Mobile, Alabama, I marked the rite doubtful. Sims happened to be a good inform- ant, but at the moment I could not understand his word dung. Definitely he means all emissions or secretions from the sexual organs being cast off are dung. As I have stated elsewhere, ovulation is unknown.]
Entry 7250
De reason ah'm tell'n yo' dis is it's from mah wife. Mah wife - dere wus a lady mad wit 'er an' she loaned a ole lady 'er bonnet, named Rachel Keller. An' she [Rachel] wō de bonnet away an' she kep' it about a week. She wus a frien' of our'n. Well, dis girl whut stayed dere, she found out it wus mah wife's bonnet. She watched 'er. She got some snail, a young snail an' fixed 'em - jis' take 'em lak she have - got 'em an' worked 'em up lak she wanted tuh swell 'em, an' jis' squirted de juice in watah. Washed 'em an' squirted de juice in watah an' put dat in a bottle. She [my wife] goes all tuh pieces-lak. She [the girl] takes an' sprinkles dat bonnet wit it an' mah wife wore it, an' she come jis' as blind as a bat - couldn't see nowhere.
(Real blind.)
She come blind as a bat. She had a li'le girl, name of Carnation. Call dat li'le girl sometime an' she try tuh go tuh de do'. Neah tuh de do' an' couldn't see it. She wus right behin' de dō', thought she wus tuh de dō', but she wus be- bhin' de do'. Couldn't even see me when ah come in de house. Ah carried 'er tuh de same ole lady, Mrs. Brown, an' ah know whut she done.
(You don't know what she did to her?)
I did.
(Oh, you did?)
An ah know whut she done an' whut she tole me tuh do. An' ah did it. She give me de stuff, cayenne peppah, a li'le piece of pod, yo' see. Put it in a skillet an' boil it till de watah wus red. Took a li'le meal, of what chew call...
(Corn meal?)
An' bind it right ovah 'er eyes jis' lak dat, until she got so she could see.
(That's what cured her?)
Made her so she could see. Now she kin see. Dat's been fifteen yeahs ago.
(Was this down in Pilesville?)
[Powersville? N. Car.]
Yes, sir.
Entry 7251
If yuh evah wanta cross [the spell] anybody hurt, where somebody done witchcraft 'em - yo' undahstan', yo' don' do did but three times. [In the cure Something must be done or used 3 times.] Now de spirit brought dat tuh me an' ah see de way it works, see. Yo' do dis before sundown. Yo' go out an' any sort of green grass - yo' know whut moody grass is. Yeah dat's dat flat grass, sompin lak ole flat grass dey call moody grass. Chew know whut dat is. An' yo' whut a dog fennel is. All right. Now yo' do dis befo' sundown. Yo' turn yore face to de east right in dat grass an' yo' pull up one bunch. Pull up dat bunch of moody grass, dat flat grass. Yo' pull up dat an' call anybody, jis' anybody yo think what done it. See. Now, if dey ain't did anything tuh yuh, hit goin' give dem good luck; but if dey did sompin tuh yuh, hit goin' back tuh 'em. Ah know dat by experiment. Yo' pull up a bunch of de grass an' call dere name, yo' pull up anothah bunch an' call dey name, yo' pull it up three times an' call dere name [three times] an' say, "Ah wan' chew tuh take yore trouble offa me, In de Name of de Fathah, Name of de Son, Name of de Holy Ghost." An' yo' lay it out, see. Yo' dig a li'le trench, lay dat grass in dere an' yo' call dem people name an' talk tuh 'em lak yo' talkin' tuh 'em. Yo' take some red peppah, some cooking salt, yo' put it on it. Yo' pō' jisa li'le bit of kerosene on it an' yo' take an' stick a match tuh it. Put a piece of papah where it will smoke a li'le. See. An' while dat thing burn, yo' continue callin' dere name. So yo' call it nine times an' tell 'em yo' wan' it so. Say, "Ah wan' chew tuh take yore trouble on back, In de Name of de Fathah, Name of de Son, Name of de Holy Ghost." An' yo' kivah [cover] dat up an' step ovah it backwards, an' don't look back. An' it ain't goin' be but nine days befo' - if dey did it - dey goin' go down vury sick, an if dey ain't right sharp dey goin' die. But it goin' be offa yo'. See, it will be gone from yo'.
(I see, throws it back on them.)
But chew do dat wit dem green weeds. See dem weeds goin' die an'...
(You do this with that moody grass.)
All right yo' git dat bunch of moody grass, an' den yo' kin git a dog fennel or: any kinda othah green weed.
(What do you do with that other weed?)
Well, yo' jis' call de name, but yo' gotta have dis dog fennel an' dat moody grass. See, yo' gotta work three. Yo' know anything de spirits do is three of it all de time: Fathah, Son an' Holy Ghost.
Entry 7252
Ah heard dat dey goes out an' gits incense an' dey burns incense. An' aftah usin' incense in dere house, dey goes tuh work an' dey git dem ademity cards - imadenithy. [At a guess I would say these are identity cards, cards containing pictures of people, which the rootman shuffles to increase the number of customers. This is a rite to increase business.] Why, dat's from de rootman. He'll go out an' he git dat an' he'll chew [it], an' evah time he chew dat way an' he'll spit. Evah time he chewin' an' he spit, why it draws a crowd mo' largah an' largah an'. dey content.
Entry 7253
A young boy, a young girl wus wild about 'im an' he wus crazy tuh go tuh school - he didn't caah tuh fool wit girls. Well, her people did all sech as dat [hoodoo work] an' so she slips, knowin' whut tuh git - she had some of dis snail dust, an' worm dust, an' also some ground puppy dust. [The latter is called ground puppy or mud puppy = chango or hellbender or salamander. We have here 3 dusts: snail, worm and mud puppy.] De end of dat, she, knowin' evahthin', bein' aroun' [experienced], she put a li'le [of these 3 dusts] around in de band of 'is hat. He become deaf. Den he got speechless, he couldn't talk. Den he got mindless. He had no misery nowhere but, see, jis' aroun' here [demonstrates].
(Throat.)
So he wus brought here [to New Orleans] an' de second night he wus here de lady [doctor] dat treated 'im dat day when he got here, ah helped 'er. Ah was right dere wit 'er. She sent tuh de drug store an' got a dime of castor oil, an' she got some sweet oil an' laudanum mixed. I am uncertain about laudanum, which transcriber transcribes lavender.] An' den she got pure olive oil. An' den she goes in de henhouse an' she gits a white hen turd, a dry one, an' she put dat intuh a teacup an' drew de tea out. Now, she gave 'im dis whole dime of [sweet] oil, an' as she brewed de tea, why she put nine drops of dis pure olive oil in dere an' she had 'im tuh gargle 'is throat good wit dat. She let 'im lay until 'is bowels moved, an' it moved quickly, becuz he seemed tuh be very much clogged up. An' jis' as soon as dey moved, den she gave 'im five spoonfuls of sal he- patica. An' de nex' mawnin' she goes an' gits some shame flowah. [This Shame flower, the sensitive vine or brier Schrankia Uncinata, is usually called: Shame brier, shame vine, sensitive brier, shame face, Shame Jim, or Shamin' Judy (see P.646).] She gits two of de li'le bu'bs [bulbs], yuh know. Evah heah [hear] yuh look at 'em [the plant] an' say shame, dey fold up? [I probably answered this question by shaking my head, yes or no. For saying shame to the plant or blos- som, see No.2290, p.646.] She got two of dose [bulbs]. She gits de leaf off de flag lily, one leaf, an' one peetal [petal] off de bloom. An' she makes a tea of dat an' she bathes 'is neck an' haid good wit dat. An' den, when she got through bathin' 'im wit dat, she gave 'im three aspirins. He couldn't sleep, couldn't eat, couldn't notice nuthin, but he went tuh sleep an' he slept all dat night. De nex' mawnin' we got up, we were fixin' breakfast." "Hello' [he says]. Here he comes walkin', lookin' well. She had a very purtty li'le girl dere which she Vus raisin' [bringing up] an' he looked at 'er an' smiled. Soon as she got close tuh 'im, he threw 'is han's on tuh 'im an' say, "Hey, " the firs' time he had spoken in nine months. Fo' fifteen days dat wus all she done wus tuh keep dat treatment up. His speech wus almost normal. His hearin', his sense of evah- thing wus almost normal. An' den, when she got 'im dat good, she asked me tuh tell 'er a good nerve builder to build 'im up. Ah said, "Well, give 'im Dr. Miles Nerve Medicine, an' Dr. Miles Anti-pain Cure." Ah wish yuh would see 'im today. He is a big hearty man as lives. An' he had lost 'is mind completely.
Entry 7254
[Doctor King, my first great failure, I remember quite well. In a group of ten dissimilar men, I could still identify him: very black, very formal, very professional. Yes, he carried a medical kit! A recent arrival in Richmond, so he said, my contact man Carter found him just as he was about to leave home on a professional call. Only because Carter had an automobile, that would save time, could he see me for a few minutes to make an appointment for the following day.] If he git holta [hold of] yuh shoe, dere's a root dat yuh call stationary root. He kin take yuh shoe an' shave off a li'le dust, off dat root, an' put it in yuh shoes. An' yuh kin put yuh shoe back on yuh feet, yuh unnahstan', an' dere ain't nuthin yuh kin do. Yuh unnahstan'? Well, if yuh wan'a be successful or anythin' lak dat, yuh unnahstan', dere's nuthin yuh kin do. Anythin' yuh do is stationary, yuh cain't do nuthin. This stationary root is any root the mail-order firm or hoodoo drug store says it is.] [Richmond, Va., (392), 446:1.] Dere's a certain bone dat chew git a holta [hold of]. Yuh'll fin' dat bone right ovah 'is left eye. Yuh notice when anybody, somepin gon'a happen tuh any- body, yuh've heard people says, "Ah'm gon'a have bad luck, mah left eye jumpin [see Folklore from Adams County Illinois, 2nd ed., Nos.4035-4050, p.176]. It's de only sign bone yuh got. Yuh unnahstan', it's a soft bone, it's right ovah yuh left eye. Dat's de bone dat zhoo git. Now, dat's de bone dat chew waäh lak yuh do a black cat bone (see Hoodoo Pp.74-97, etc.). Keep yuh outa all dangah, any time yuh're goin' intuh trouble or goin' tuh be disappointed or anybody goin' tuh do somepin tuh yuh. Well now, listen. If yuh know a man or a woman dat dey wuh [were] undah forty-seven yeah ole, not oldah but undah forty-seven, an' if yuh know dat person, an' anybody kin git dat bone an' wrap it up in a black han'ke- chef, aftah he's daid, an' - yuh take dat bone an' put it in yuh cloz an' weah dat bone continly [continually]. An' evahthin' dat's gona happen tuh yuh, wheth- ah it's bad or it's good - when somepin gona happen tuh yuh dat's good, dis bone will git hot, yuh unnahstan', an' yuh kin feel it burnin', yuh unnahstan' fō'a short while. Now, yuh know yuh're gona git in good luck. But if yuh're gona git intuh trouble de bone will move, jis' lak yuh eye jump lak dat. It will move So dat choo kin feel it. [446:2.] Now, if yuh have a paralastic [paralytic] stroke, somebody give yuh [has given yuh] somepin, put somepin down aroun' de house [for you to walk over or touch] an' yuh cain't git along. Yuh stay sick all de time, yuh haven't got no pahtic- lah [particular] ailment, yuh unnahstan', but choo jis' pō'ly [poorly] all de time, bad health, no courage, no man of 'bility [ability] tuh make connection wit yuh wife, an' all dat kin'a stuff. Yuh absolutely know dat dere sompin wrong. Well, all right. NOW, YUH KIN DEDICATE AN' KILL ANYTHIN' DAT IS AROUN' YUH HOUSE AN' IT WON'T HAVE ANY POWAH TUH IT AN' YUH GIT WELL. [Doctor King Says to dedicate and kill an animal around the house will not cure no courage. The killing of animals as a remedy for impotence is common in Hoodoo: ants, Nos.31ll-3112, p.2342; frog, Nos.3198-3203A, Pp.2360-2362; liver of live dog, Nos.3425-2443, Pp.2411-2414; snail, Pp.2458-2470, and duckling, No.6787, p.3122.] To dedicate the animal before its death is not so apparent, except by intention. There may be in Hoodoo an example or two of real dedication.] Now, ah tell yuh [a second method] whut choo do. Yuh go tuh work an' cut a piece of cloth outa de baid [bed] when yuh be sleepin'. Unnahstan', cut a piece of cloth outa de undahgarment dat choo wheah. Set it afiah [afire] an' let it Smoke. An' git chew a handful of natchal [natural] table salt, pō' [pour] it in- tuh a bottle, an' hold dat smoke right on dat bottle an' it will fill dat bottle up wit smoke [demonstrates]. (You hold the neck of the bottle down [tilt it]. Yuh put a rag dere, de smoke goin' in de first hole it comin' in. Well, fill dat bottle up wit smoke yuh unnahstan', an' stop [up] dat bottle wit dat smoke in dere. De smoke will live, it cain't escape.
(The handful of salt is placed in the bottle before it is corked up.)
An' yuh dig a hole undah yuh step an' put it undah dere. An' yuh git well.
[346:3.]
[Doctor King gives us another impotence cure:]
Now, whu' choo [what you] gota do now, yuh gota go tuh work an' git a male horse, a stallion. Ketch some of 'is watah, yuh unnahstan'. Ketch some of 'is watah an' baz [bathes] yuhself [the penis] down in watah [stallion urine] an' dat will...yuh git chure courage [sexual potency] back. [A penciled note of mine made at the time of my pencil transcription attached reads: Do not use unless par [lparallel]] secured. This rite of perfect magic needs no parallel, though there may be one in Hoodoo or elsewhere. Since this rite was never typed I have attached to this sheet my original penciled tran- scription made a few months after the collecting.] [446:4.] Yuh [someone else] kin take yuh photograph an' go tuh de graveyard, an' walk aroun' de grave seven times, jis' lak de walls of Jericho when dey walked around it seven times de walls fell. Pick some dirt off de daid man grave an' put it intuh a envelope, an' put dis pitchure in dere. An' bring it back an' put it anywhere yuh wan'a put it, upside down yuh unnahstan', an' [the person of the picture] yuh'll pine away tuh death. [467:1.] [At the end of this brief interview Doctor King left to visit his waiting patient. Carter let him out of the automobile somewhere. Next day Doctor King failed to appear for his appointment with me. As soon as convenient Carter went after him. No one at the house had ever seen or heard of a Doctor King! Unfor- tunately the landlady Was out shopping. Normally I would probably have returned to New York City after my work in Richmond. Instead I took a flyer down to Petersburg to visit Doctor King's old address, the one he had given us. Again, no one had ever heard of him or his name. What had happened? Doctor King had probably sprinkled some of his stationary root dust in my interviewing room. At least, as far as he was concerned, we were stationary.]
Entry 7255
Dem [= them = hel wus a hoodoo doctor. [I] knew all dat. Dat's all dat wus. [He] gived me one an' it looked lak it wus a toby tuh me or somepin, [a piece of] cattle [ani- mal] heart. It wus nuthin but a plain dried cattle [animal] heart, which dey [he] had placed in it [bag with] luck pins, looked lak it wus. (What did you carry that for? You carried it? Were you supposed to carry that?) Yes, ah carried it. It looked lak ah would git a job. An' ah played - if ah played politics ah would git it [the job], until ah lost it [the bag].
(Well, how did you carry that?)
Jis' tied it up in a red bag.
(In a red what?)
In a red bag, rag, a li'le small piece, yo' know, an' ah wore it around mah waist.
(I see.)
[This toby was a small piece of dried animal heart [chicken?] with several luck pins in it, carried in a red flannel bag.] [Vicksburg, Miss., (772) 991:4.]
Entry 7256
(What do they do with that hair?)
Well, dey'll take dat hair an' dey'll tie it aroun' dere waist, yuh know. Tie dat hair wit string an' make nine knots in it. Aftah dey make dem nine knots in it, well in about fifteen days yuh'd go crazy, if yuh don't go see about chureself. Yuh'd have tuh go tuh some strong two-haided person an' see about chureself.
(Where do you get this hair from?)
Out of yuh ear.
(And what do they tie that to?)
Aroun' dey waist.
Entry 7257
He left me once. Yes sir, mah husban', he left me once. Ah worried ovah 'im. Ah went tuh a man an' ah ast 'im. Ah went tuh a man supposed tuh be a rootman an' ah ast 'im whut would ah do. He say, " "Emily, ah tell yo' de truth." He say, "Pray." Ah said, "Ah done prayed till ah'm tyahd [tired]." Ah said, "It don't look lak tuh me de Lawd hearin' mah prayah." He said, "Yo' jis' have faith." Ah got me sompin dey calls de many fens, an' ah got mah brothah tuh go in de woods an' git me - well see, he has dat. He's got aplenty of dat. When yo' cuts dat - it's a weed grows about dat high - an' when yo' cut it, time yo' cut it half in two, it's two lettahs on it, it's a "IC" [= Jesus Christ] on dere. [The letters "I" and "J" years ago were made alike.] An' ah took dat an' ah [gotj me some of dis heah one-time droppah [eye-dropper] an' ah wrote him a lettah an' ah jis' took it an' jis' rubbed it all up on dere an' put it in de envelope an' sealed it an' sent it tuh 'im. He come on right back tuh me. He hasn't left me no mo' since.
(What is the name of this weed that you get in the woods?)
IC. De time yo' cut it off dere's two lettahs on it - IC.
(And you simply rub this root over this letter.)
An' dat othah droppah, one-time droppah, yo' put it on dere an' seal de lettah up an' send it tuh 'im. (You simply put this liquid in this one-time dropper and put it over the let- ter?) Put it on de lettah. [I am unable to identify this Weed. A similar holy plant is the cross vine (Bignonia capreolata) of southern U. S. A., which shows when cut across a stem the figure of a cross. Similarly this plant, like the "IC one, keeps husband home and away from other women (see 765, p.225 and 1810, p.542).]
Entry 7258
Now, if ah wanta give yo' a job - [you] come tuh me fer a job. Fer a mattah lak dat, de firs' thing ah'd say tuh [yuh], see mah firs' word tuh yuh, "Have yuh known dis gentleman?" [You answer] "Yes." "Have yuh evah worked fer 'im?" "Yes." "Why did yuh stop?" [Doctor Washington is using the new psychology and business methods floating about in the air about 1937.] Well, he explain tuh yuh. An' while he explain tuh yuh, ah'm gittin' de foundation tuh work on, 'cuz he mighta been workin' ovah in de market an' dere mighta been a fallin' out. Now befō' remarkin' on de fallin', out ah gotta go an' hunt de man whut carry de bone [of contention?] dat where de [trouble?] come from [originally?]. Go back an' search an' den he say, "All right, yuh ali. Well see me tuhmorrah evenin', [or] come back tuhmorrah mawnin' 'tween two and three 'clock. Knock on dō' an' dō' be opened, an' come on in de room an git choo outa baid. An' ah be lookin' fer people an' ah sleep dere all alone, no one but mahself. An' mah street do' an' mah room dō' stay open. Come in dere an' shake me an' ah raise up an' turns ovah an' go on out. When yo' come back, ah say, "Well, have yuh got nine dimes? Dat's whut ah want. Well, git nine. Ah Want 19, firs' an' second half. Dat's all de job. Don't gotta [ask for more] until ah git de man, git de boss right tuh de place ah want. Gotta turn on dis man t'ree [three] times. An' de fot [fourth] time, if ah don't git [him] de t'ree [third time]. All right. Well, do whut yuh could. Now ah might go an' take yuh drawahs. Don't wash de whole, [only] right in de seat. Put 'em in a basin jis' lak dat till dat watah turn black. Wait till it [turn black] now. All right, an' take dat watah in a rag, a cotton rag an' soak it all up in dat rag, an' den use dat watah in de basin an' git it on yuh arm, both sides.
(You Wash your arms?)
All yuh arms. Den take dat same watah, wash it off de rag. Yuh goin' fer de job de second time. Wash yuh face wit it jis' lak dat.
(Won't it smell?)
Yes, it smell. SOME PEOPLE SO CRAZY FER SMELLS.- DAT'S A JOB-JOKE - but do it an' yuh go dere. "Well, Cap [Captain] ah come fer a job dis mawnin'. How about it?" "Ah don' know. Come back latah, ah may see yuh between now an' Monday mawn- in'." "All right, thankee [thank you] sir."
(You salute him with your right hand.)
Yuh salute 'im wit yuh right hand - made de connection - t'ree times. Don't hesitate now. [He] tells yuh, "Ah ain't got nuthin tuh do, but ah'll see yuh maybe 'bout Monday mawnin'. Come back an' ah'll see whut ah kin do fer yuh. Talk tuh yuh surely." "Thankee sir; thankee, sir." Right off dere yuh goes. Come on back wit yuh. Come an' 'is thought wit yuh be. Yuh comin' back an' sleepin'. Yo' go back dere Monday mawnin' an' yo' got de job. Well, whut if yo' bein' treated now, ah wus de person aftah it mahself. Give perfect satisfaction. When yuh come back tuh me, ah done knowed whut ah done wid yuh, wit de watah. Den ah want chew tuh take dat same basin or pan an' git choo some physic salts an' some sulphur. Watch me. Some vaseline, half a bottle of vaseline, an' put about a quart of hot watah in it, an' put 'em intuh a round basin an' fetch yuh. An' wash from yuh navel down. [Here is the magic bath.] Sets de whole body in an' wash from de navel right on troo [through], all troo. An' dat watah turn black. An' den Wash yuh whole haid wit dat all up on yuh arms, all yuh neck an' let it dry. Don't wipe a thing, jis' let it stay on dere an' dry on yuh. Now dat man send fer yuh.
(He'll send for you?)
Dat's right. He'll have de job [for you]. Dat man send fer yuh.
Entry 7259
Years ago my mother walked acrost the yard one time going to the well. A pain taken her in the foot. She was as well as she could be before. And she became sick. A white doctor 'tended [her] and she became nothing but skin and bones. We saw he couldn't do nothing so we got a cunjure, some lady. I don't know who she was. She came back [with us to our house] and said I was the only one to go and GET WATER FROM A HIDDEN PLACE. If somebody saw us going we had to change and go somewhere else. I was just a little girl. She came back [a second time] and brought something in a box - I had to rub [on] her [the mother] in a bath. No one could do anything for her but me: You're the only one to rub your mother, nobody else but you. You have to do all the cooking, everything she eats. No one else is to cook it. We [I] had to go some- where in the Woods and get HIDDEN WATER AFTER DARK.
[The mother's situation became worse.]
She was going [barefoot] acrost the floor one night and stepped on a splinter. [This of course was the work of an enemy.] In the meantime [before this] a [strange] man came in. [After he left] that kitchen sprung up. [The floor buck- led causing the splinter her mother stepped on.] I don't know what it was. Every time that spell would come upon her she would rage. One day [some years later] as I was going to work this woman [cun.iure] came around the [corner of the] house and we happen to meet at the same time. And she said, "You're hurt. All your misery is right there." And she put her hand on your [my] stomach. She said, "You're hurt with your hair and with your pic- chure." And I didn't know what to say. I didn't want to said a word to her. And she said, "Let me go in and I'll tell you." [I took her inside.] "Give me a glass of water." I gave a glassful. SHE SET IT ON THE FLOOR. "IF YOU'RE GOING TO GET WELL, I'LL SHOW YOU BY THIS WATER. THIS WATER WILL BOIL." We sat there and looked at the water. And the water boiled over the glass. IT WAS COLD WATER. And she said, "You're hurt." She said, "If you don't say anything about it when you feel better, you'll get well; but if you tell anybody, you'll die." And every time mama felt better and would say something about it, she'd get worse. Just a week before she died she up and got out of bed. She said, "You all think I'm going to get better but I'm going to die." That evening, Friday evening, she Was taken speechless and stopped talking. She called for fish and corn bread. I gave it to her. I was upstairs and I would hear a funny noise. I went down and called her. She said, "No, nothing is the matter with me. I'm just eating. That was just a little while before she stopped talking. She coml menced eating and stopped talking and couldn't say a word. She died that night.
Entry 7260
Tuh separate a man an' 'is wife, yuh git dis oil dat dey call de Wizard Oil [demonstrates].
(Take this Wizard Oil and wipe your hand with it.)
No, dere hand wit hit an' rub it on 'is face, see an' hair. An' when he git in conversation wit de woman, if he kin git 'er tuh yield tuh 'im - he come tuh kiss 'er, hold 'er by de hand, he kin git 'er so dat she hate her husband an' be where he is all de time. See, cuz dat jis' draws de woman from 'er husban' tuh 'im. Ah've been tole dat. (Where do you get this Hizard Oil?) Well, some people makes it. Ah've been tole dat some people know how tuh make it. An' some gits it from diff'ren' places. [Washington, D. C., (638), 826:1.] [Until 1936, the year following the publication of my first edition of Folklore from Adams County Illinois (2nd ed., 1965), I neither knew nor suspect- ed there was a folklore about murder. In the first edition of FACI - abbrevia- tion used in present Hoodoo for preceding book - the act of murder occurs 8 times: (1) in a dream, No.6305; (2) omen of future murder from wedding dress, 7268; (3) site of murder an unlucky place for playing cards, 8931; (4) a black informant had heard about bringing back murderer by writing a letter, but could not explain how it was done, 9176; (5) dropping umbrella on floor a sign of fu- ture murder in that house, 10174; (6) murderer revisits scene of crime, 10279; (7) murderer unable to sleep facing the east, the sun [Son], 10280; and (8) if you talk about murder every day for 6 months [a folkway of saying if murder be- comes an obsession], you'll be hanged for murder, 10650. The Index in FACI (1st ed.) under Murder also says: see bloodstain, hoodoo and witchcraft, spirits. I will divide MURDER into 2 PartS: HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE, and HOW MURDERER CAN BE CAUGHT. This separation of course can not be absolute, because some inform- ants will give both escape and caught aspects of murder in the same statement. The final aspect of MURDER, the TRIAL, is reserved for COURT CASES later. [Obviously a murderer will use any method he has ever heard of to escape cap- ture by the law. If he has time and knows about one, he may stop at the house of a wise woman or witchcrafter or hoodoo for aid, but usually such professional assistance is not called in until the trial. Some doctors, especially the cele- brated Doctor Buzzard (p.891), specialized in all types of criminal work. Here, however, follow a few of the magic devices supposed to help a murderer in flight.]
Entry 7261
If a man is kilt dere's two certain ways. If a man is kilt an' he falls on his back, dat's de man, dat's de murderer kin easily escape an' very seldom captured. But if a man's kilt an' fall on his face, de murderer of de man is easily captured. But jis' how it's done, ah don't know, ah nevah have heard jis' how it's done.
Entry 7262
Heard in de ole times dey say if a person would kill somebody an' he [victim] would fall on his face, de man [killer] might go off but he couldn't stay. He'd return back in a short while an' give up. When he fall on his face he couldn't stand to stay away. In case he fall ovah backwards, the fellow might make his escape.
Entry 7263
Ah hear 'em say if dey die - when de' [dey] die, if he falls on his face, dat dey will ketch him [murderer].
The reported belief explicitly concerns dying. Hearsay and conditional wording remain; the bracketed murderer identification is editorial.
Entry 7264
If a man's killed an' he fall on his face, de one dat done it, he'll tell it befo' he dies; if a man's killed an' he fall on his back, he won' tell it.
Entry 7265
I've heard 'em say if you kill anyone an' de man falls on his face, de murderer can't git away; an' if he go, he'll have to come back.
Entry 7267
Ah heard dat if a fellah shoot a man down an' de fellah wanted tuh git away, why dey run dere an' grab de fellah dat he shot, if he's daid, an' turn 'im ovah on 'is face an' de man couldn't git away, he would lingah around some- whah. (His friends would turn the man over, turn the corpse over on its face.) De man dat was daid - an' den dat would have de man tuh lingah round somewhah an' he'd come back.
Entry 7268
Ah knowed a fellah - dat's right, he kilt a man. An' he shot de man an' de man fell on his face. An' he run dere an' - aftah de man fell - an' shoved de man on his back, see. An' den he - de woods ah reckon wus jes' about five hunderd yards, yo' know, from where he kilt de man, an' he runned yo' know an' he jumped ovah de fence in de woods, yo' see. An' when dey brought de hounds, yo' know, dere to put on his track, de hounds couldn't run 'im a bit furthah den dis swamp. An' dey ain't got 'im from dat day up until dis [1939]. Dat wus in de time of de World War [I] - it wus comin' on [before 1917].
Entry 7269
Dey claim dat if a man gits killed, dey claim whichevah way de man falls, dat's killed, dat is de way dat de fellah dat did de killin', prob'ly de one dat did de killin', dey'll go in dat direction. Let it be eastward, north- ward or westward or southward, dey will go in de direction - jes' in de direction de man fallen dat he's killed. [Notice anti-sunwise or anti-clock motion; we have the order of the four cardinal points of the compass.]
Entry 7270
If corpse falls the way murderer goes, murderer will come back [from that direction]. [A better statement of belief is given in its margin title.]
Entry 7271
If yo' kill any person an' yo' kin git a chance tuh step ovah 'im, can't git no kinda bloodhoun's tuh git behin' atall any mo'. Jes' step 'cross 'im aftah yo' kill 'im, see. [As we shall see in a moment, any stepping over the corpse, forward or backwards, makes the sign of the cross, a sacred symbol that will protect the murderer against the avenging spirit of the dead body.]
Entry 7272
Whut dey say yo' kin do tuh git away.
(What do they say about that?)
Jes' lak if a man kill anothah man or sompin of de kin' lak dat, said jes' step ovah his body. Be shure tuh step ovah his body an' dey'll nevah ketch chew no mo' through life. Jes' step ovah his body an' don' look back.
Entry 7273
If ah kill yo', ah kin jes' step right ovah yo' an' don' nevah look back an' den yo' won' ketch me.
Entry 7274
Wal, a sinner-man lotsa times he'll come back cuz if he didn't step ovah dis man, he more den apt tuh git caught. Or he will come back cuz [the spirit of] dis man whole lotsa times will worry him so until he [comes back].
Entry 7275
When dey kill a man, if he fall on 'is face, why if he fall on 'is face lak dat, yo' step like dis [demonstrates] step backwards ovah him. If he fall any way [you step backwards over him], but more specially if he fall on 'is face lak dat. Yo' come round dis way [demonstrates] an' step back- wards ovah him. Dey won't ketch yo'.
Entry 7276
To keep from being caught, let murderer jump backwards across the corpse and then put turpentine on feet.
Entry 7277
Said dat he could take de man dat he killed an' jump ovah him dis way [demonstrates] an' den jump backwards, but he do's it fo' three times an' den he goes on away. An' dey said he can't be caught, de hounds can't trail 'im. [Forwards and backwards is one time; do three times.]
Entry 7278
Know whut dey do to keep 'em from ketchin' 'im? Well, soon as de man fall - ah've seen dat mahself an' ah ain't nevah hear'd of dem ketchin' 'im. Soon as de man fall aftah dey shoot 'im, yo' know, an' he dies, why he steps cross 'im three times. He goes an' step cross 'im an' goes right roun' 'im an' step right cross 'im ag'in, three times.
(Steps forward over him?)
Yes sir, step fahward an' come right on back de same way an' step cross 'im three times, an' den leave. Dey'll har'ly ketch 'im. (He doesn't walk around the corpse [I demonstrate]: Steps [forward], over him like that, comes back [steps back over body], and then back [steps forward over body second time].) Yes sir, three times.
Entry 7279
Fo' instance, if a man would kill a man an' he would cross 'im three times.
(Here is the body. Now, how would he cross him?)
[For the body I probably used my Numbers Book, small note book containing the number of each informant and brief information about him after he left.1 He'd cross him dis way [demonstrates] an' den he'd come back dis way. Den he'd come farward ag'in. Dat's three times [forward, back- Ward, forward - each on an angle to form an X or cross.] Den he'd go away an' he won't be ketched by comin' back. Yo' may ketch him in California or somewhere but not by him returnin' back hisself, yo' see. But, if yo' know de party dat commit de crime an' will take dat chicken aig an' write his name on de aig nine time backwards. If his name Charles Smith, write Smith Charles, burying dat party wit dat aig in dere. Ah guarantee yo' in about three or fo' mont' time, yo' will ketch him near de place where he commit de crime, comin' back fo' some reason. He won't stay 'way. Well, if he [you or I] commit de crime, an' havin' trouble - so no dog, no law, nuthin could find out mah business or nuthin'; but if yo' kin git to it, de turpentine swamps. yo' git de turpentine an' put it at de bottom of his feet, rub it at de bottom in de shoe sole an' de dogs won't trail him. He'll be caught by someone else, but de dogs won' trail wit turpentine.
Entry 7280
Lak ah go out dere an' kill a fellah. Well, if ah kin manage tuh push 'im from me or step 'cross 'im three times an' walk 'way from him wit mah back to him, dat de law will nevah fin' me. (Well, how do you mean you step across him? Here's the body now. Now, how do you step across there?) See [demonstrates], if he would fall when ah shootin' 'im - if he'd a-fall to me, if ah'd manage to git to him an' turn 'im backwards an' let 'im fall on 'is back - an' ah come to him an' walk 'cross [him] lak dis [demonstrates] de first time, lak heah an' back ag'in, den ah walk away from 'im. (You walk over him once and back over him. You step across him three times and then you turn your back. Do you back away from him or just walk?) Yo' walk off from 'im. Step back an' back off nine steps dat way an' den yo' turn yore back, an' go on away from 'im, an' if yo' kin keep from lookin' back, de law will nevah git chew.
Entry 7281
If a man killed anybody an' don't want 'em tuh ketch 'im, he kin - de one dat he killed, he kin step backwards ovah 'im three times an' hug 'im an' kiss 'im, go to de graveyard an' put some dirt in each one of 'is shoes, an' dey can't ketch 'im.
Entry 7282
Ah've undahstood it dis way, dat when dey kills a man - aftah dey kill de man - dey turn an' walk backwards ovah 'im, for five paces I believe, back- Wards ovah de man; den dey turn facewards an' go in de same direction dat you turned an' dey couldn't ketch chew. [The murderer faces his victim while killing him, and then with his back to the corpse so that he can take one step backwards over the fall- en body, he continues five more steps backwards. At this spot the killer again turns 180 degrees to look towards the original or attack direction, the direction in which he now walks or runs away.]
Entry 7283
After, if a man kilt a [man], dey walk backwards nine steps, see, and den step across [the corpse]. Co'se if he can't go away [author interrupts]...
(He steps nine steps backwards and then waht do they do?)
Den dey'll step across - yeah, to de right [demonstrates].
(I see, make a cross.)
Yes, an' cross 'im an' he can git away. [Any stepping backwards across a corpse on the ground makes the sign of the cross: the stepping being one arm of the cross, the corpse the other. The step- per or killer is crossing or crossing up the ghost of his victim rather than trying to evade the police. The cross of our present rite is more complicated. Lay a broom on the floor to represent the dead body. Stand with your back to the broom and feet to- gether so that they touch the handle. Lift your right foot back to the right, diagonally, over the handle (body) so that it comes to rest solidly on the floor (ground). Then steady yourself on right foot while you move left foot to right until it, on other side of handle (body), is almost opposite right foot. Final- ly, lift up left foot, bringing it backwards to the left, diagonally, across handle (body). Your feet have made a cross as diagrammed: BROOM L-R Ｌ Ｌ
Entry 7284
Aftah he wuz killed, ah heard dat he could take an' step nine steps backwards, an' when he steps nine steps backwards, he would whirl round on de left heel an' pick up a strand of hair outa dat track an' call 'is name - name an' a lock of 'is hair. Ah heard dat's de way yo' git 'em back. (You call the man's name that wus kill- ed?) Call de nam dat killed 'im. (Well, how did they know it was that man?) Well, when dey step backwards nine steps an' whirl round an' dey git de strand of 'is hair, dey would know dat hair on account dey have seen dat man. An' den, his 'nitials - his 'nitials be cut in dat hair.
(You mean that would be the hair of the man that did the killing?)
Yessuh. [To whirl round on the heel (usually right) and find a hair in the heel mark is a common rite: In the hole you make by turning around three times on your right heel you will find a hair like that of your destined mate's (FACI 1st ed., No.7037; cf.7038-7039). For finding hair in shoe or stocking, see 2nd ed., 9105-9115.1 [Informant is describing the work of a doctor, who could recognize the hair and see the initials; a simple task for a gifted person, as anyone familiar with these volumes of Hoodoo knows.]
Entry 7285
Says, if yo' kill a man an' if he fall on 'is back, dat if yo' kill 'im an' if yo' step ovah him, dat he [spirit of dead man] won't tell it [by bleeding and other methods]. If yo' step ovah 'im an jes' keep goin' right straight goin' away fo' about fo' yards [12 feet or steps] yo' won't tell, de one dat done de killin'.