Subject:Ants
Entries
Entry 545
Now in case a man's child - somebody has caused a man's child to wander about from the house, won't stay home, yo'll see the 'fect of it aroun' de fire- place. Dere'll come a drove of ants, black antses, all on de mantelpiece comin' in droves, some goin' an' some comin', an' will cross each othah this way, cross each othah goin' to an' fro. Well, people have oftentime wondered whut does that mean. Yore child will wander aroun' an' can't stay home. Well, now there's remedy fo' that. The remedy is, if yo' would like to heah it, take some salt - Epsom salts, some quinine an' black peppah an' mix it together three days continuous, an' sprinkle it all on de edge of de mantelpiece all aroun' it an' those antses will leave. Any child mind will become settled.
(Well, why are those ants there? Have you any idea?)
Well, it's a sign your child's mind is not right - it is unsettled. Where dey come from ah don't know, but dey will cease to come.
(Well, what causes that? Somebody has done something to the child?)
Somebody have done something to de child to cause de child not to stay home an' aggravate de parents, keep de parents confused an' dey don't know whut's de matter with de child. He will come home an' his mind become settled fo' a while. Event'lv de chile go clean off an' won't stay at home none at all - dat's a sign of dat.
Entry 3111
Yo' kin take, if a man's goin' wit anothah man's wife an' dis man don' want 'im tuh go wit dis woman, yo' kin take some red antses, dese large one, if yo' kin git a lot of 'em. Jes' go tuh a antses bed an' git all de antses yo' kin git, an' take dese antses an' put 'em in a pan an' take dem home, an' put 'em in a stove an' let 'em parch an' den powdah dem all up. An' when dis Woman goes tuh bed at night an' go tuh sleep, he kin take an' powdah dis stuff across 'er stomic part down dere, her private part. An' when dat man goes tuh have a date wit 'er, why dey git hung up dere jes' lak dogs.
(Do you mix that red ant dust with lard?)
No sir, yo' don' need tuh put any lard in it, jes' put red antses dust by itself.
Entry 3696
[As ants cause (No.33llf.), so they cure impotence.]
Yo' kin git nine red ants an' boil 'em an' dey will give yo' courage, if yo' drink that tea three times a day.
(If a woman has taken your courage away?) Yes, it will give you courage.
Entry 5313
Dey take yore tracks an' dey don't pick it up from yo' - [I mean] dey don't pick it up tuh yo', dey pick it from yo'. Pick it from yo'. An' dey take yore track an' put it intuh a jar. An' den dey says dey take it an' dey takes some antses, red antses, an' put dat in dere an' stop it up. An' aftah dey stop it up, dey takes it an carries it tuh some runnin' watah, an' cast it intuh de runnin' watah an' dat'll start chew tuh goin'. See de idea?
(Now what do you mean they take this track up from you?)
Take it up from yo' lak dis [demonstrates].
(You start at the heel and take it up like that. Both tracks?)
Take it up from yo' - jest one, dat's de right track. Dey put nine big red antses intuh yore track.
Entry 5320
Ah heard dat yo' could take a person's track an' drop it in a bed of red ants an' dose ants would come. An' dey [you] take little bit.of crumbs of dat [track] an' roll dat. Jes' roll dem crumbs an' put 'em intuh dat track an' drop dat track, an' tell dem ants tuh take it an' go away evah which way. Don't care whut dey do wit it, it wouldn't do de person any good, 'cuz dey'd [they would] have tuh go an' dey'd be always goin'.
Entry 5321
Mah husban' an' ah weren't gittin' along so good, an' somebody tol' [me] how tuh git rid of it. Take his lef' track. Don't pull tuhwards yo', pull goin' from yo'. An' git a red ants nest, dese great big ants. Yo' git dis track an' yo po' it in dis ants nest. An' den, if [you] wan im tuh go away, yo' tell tuh go away. Or whut- somevah yo' wan' 'im tuh do, yo' talk tuh it.
Entry 5322
Well, git his track - git nine track comin' tuhwards yo' an' git it an' put it wit some red ants nest - in de red ants nest, an' some salt in it. An' stir it roun' an' talk tuh de red ants an' tell it whut chew want done, work an' all, an' he'll come back. (That is to bring the man back? You get nine tracks as he is coming toward you?) Yes.
(Just one track right after the other, I see.)
Entry 6529
Go tuh a ants' [mound] an' git enough of dose antses an' put 'em in a place an' let 'em dry. Pound 'em up tuh a powdah an' sprinkle 'em on anybody's food or in anything dat dey drink. When dey drink dat, in a length of time de ants will create inside dem de same as dey would [in the ant mound].
Entry 6531
Now dey tell me yo' kin take red ants. Go tuh a red ants' bed, jis' lak if yo' wants tuh run a person crazy. Yo' kin go tuh a red ants' bed an' git dose ants an' kill 'em. An' take 'em out in de sun an' let [put] 'em in de sun an' let 'em dry. Don't dry dem in de shade. Yo' know, put 'em in de sun an' let 'em dry. An' give it tuh de folks den in sech as dey bread, or one sech lak dat, an' dey says it will create live things tuh come up an' down in 'em.
Entry 6532
Goin' tuh a red ants' bed - jis' like yo' wanta put ants intuh some- body. Dat will jis' eat 'em up. Jis' git dem antses an' take 'em outa dere an' put 'em in anything dat dey'll parch up tuh a dust. Put 'em in dere live an' put 'em where dey'll parch up tuh a dust. An' git de Bible an' read de 37th Psalms while it's parchin', an' take it out. An' anything yo' put dat intuh, if dey nuse [use] it, drink it or eat it or anything, why dem ants will come alive in dem - jis' eat 'em up. [Why Psalm 37 should be used, I do not know.]
Entry 6533
Dey put dat in yo'. Jis' lak yo' know, it's not de ants, it's de aigs from de ants. Jis' lak yo' know yo're [you are] sore [angry] wit a person an' dis person drinks. Well, if yo' kin git - yo' know dese ants' aigs intuh dis whiskey, yo' kin give 'em dat. An' it jis' supposed tuh hatch an' run 'em crazy.
Entry 6534
Ah heard dat dey could take a dozen [12] red ants an' cook dem an' put 'em in a package. An' git dat package tuh a person an' saturate dat package in anything dat he might drink. An' dat would cuz 'im tuh swell up an' give him a' interternal [= internal] disease.
(In other words you would use this in the liquor.)
Entry 6535
If anybody poisons yo', yo' git dem red ants - de red ants. Ah don' know nuthin 'bout nuthin but de red ants. An' yo' git dem red antses an' yo' put it in a li'le bit of whiskey, an' yo' put some gunpowdahs wit it. An' when yo' put it in dat whiskey an' de gunpowdah, yo' make it out a liquid yo' see, of a mub. An' den yo' put it down dere an' yo' git de white of a aig, an' yo' mix dat up as a rub stuff. An' rub yoreself wit it, an' if dere an' insect in yo', why dat'll cuz dem tuh leave. As fur as ah heard of dat.
Entry 6991
Well, yo' git chew nine of dose large antses. Dat's whut chew speakin' about. Call dem bull antses.
(What color are they?)
Red. Yassuh, git nine of 'em an' yo' call yore husban' or yore cousin or who- somevah. Yo' call dere name evahtime yo' drop one a [one of] dem antses in dere [a bottle of whiskey]. Yo' call dere name an' stop dat up. An den yo' git dat - jis' po' it [whiskey] off aftah yo' let 'em [ants] in dere, an' de whiskey will kill 'em all, see. Well, yo' strain 'em off yo' know, an' jis' give 'em [victim] a drink of dat. Dey won't drink no mo' whiskey, cuz it goin' make 'em sick. Make 'em sick as a dog.
(You put these ants in the whiskey and strain it off and give it to them.)
Yes.
Entry 8730
Take a sewin' thimble an' git chew three sewin' thimbles of ants' nest, an' ants an' all, an' yo' go tuh work an' yo' put it into a envelope an' write de person name an' put de envelope an' seal dat up den. An' yo' go tuh work den, de really fac' 'bout it, an' yo' take a spoon dat chew use anywheres on yore table gen'ly [generally]. Yo' lay dat envelope down an' yo' don't squench [= crush, see comment at end of rite] it no way atall, no way. Yo' dig de width of dat envelope - it 'sposed tuh be three inches in de ground. Yo' lay dat envelope in dere but chew don't - yo' know, yo' don't have it where yo' squench it nowhere an' yo' have dis full length, an' yo' bury it an' yo' cover it ovah. An' yo' take a ten-penny nail an' stick down In de ground to de haid. [The buried envelope is a grave symbol, the nail the tombstone.] An' dat Will - DE REALLY FAC' 'BOUT IT, SUH, IT WILL UPSET DE DEVIL, MUCH LESS ANYTHING ELSE.
(You put that before somebody's house?)
See, yo' put dat anywheres where dere's any path or - anywheres dat person travel or walk ovah. It don' make no diff'rence whether it's anywheres close tuh his home. Anywheres where he travel ovah.
(What will that do to the person, then?)
WHY ABSOLUTELY, DERE'S NO WAY DAT HE KIN REALLY STAY AT HOME IN ANY PEACE. Can't stay home wit no peace: Him an' his folks can't git along. It will pizen [poison] de minds of 'em. [The preceding word squench is a dialectal form of quench, this latter meaning: to quench a thirst, or to put out a fire, or to cool suddenly by plunging hot steel into water to temper it. A former meaning of quench was to crush, a meaning that was rare back in 1939 when I collected the word.1
Entry 9893
Now, if yo' got a girl an' yo' wan' 'er tuh love yo', yo' kin go tuh one dem red ants baid. Ketch yo' one dem toadfrogs, dem ole rough toadfrogs an' kill 'im. Put dat toadfrog in dat ants baid an' let 'im stay in dat ants baid until dem antses eat 'im up, till he gits tuh where he ain't nuthin but a shell [skeleton]. Den yo' take dat frog den an' yo' git dat straight bone dat runs down 'is back. An' yo' kin take dat bone den an' any woman dat chew want or any man dat chew want, whilst me an' yo' talkin' or me an' 'er talkin', ah stick dat bone in dat garment dat she had on or dat he has on. If ah'm a woman ah stick it in a man [garment] or if ah'm a man ah stick it in a woman [garment]. Yo' see, stick dat bone in dere, jes' a small piece of dat bone, an' leave it in dere. Den yo'll come tuh be mah sweetheart if ah wan' chew, or yo'll come tuh be 'er sweetheart if she wan' chew.
Entry 9896
If yo' wuz a young man an' wan'in' [wanting] a girl an' love der [loved her] an' she wuz not yore class [she was above you] but still yo' wanted 'er, yo' take yo' a toadfrog an' git chew a nice li'l cigah box. Take yo a icepick an' put chew maybe two dozen holes, some in de side an' some on de top, so he git air yo' know. Shet 'im up in dere an' make some airholes in de box. Well, he'll 'vently [eventually] perish tuh death, an' de ants will eat de flesh off 'is bones. De ants will eat all de flesh, dere jes' be de carcass dere. He's got a hook in 'im jes' 'zactly [exactly] lak a fishhook. De ants eat all de flesh off 'im - dere be no skin dere, no nuthin but jes' 'is carcass - in about fo' months. It take about fo' months in de summah. In de fall of de yeah yo' kin git de carcass. Well, he's got a bone right in 'is hip back dere jes" 'zackly lak a fishhook. It shaped jes' lak a fishhook. Well, whut dey wanted de ants tuh do is tuh show 'em de bone, de fishhook. Dey take dis li'l bone an' put it anywhere in yore clothes. If it's 'er, when yo' go tuh see 'er, she'll hang it in yore clothes; or yo'll hang it in 'er clothes. Well, den she's got yo' tied. Dat's whut dey use de toadfrog fo'.
Entry 9898
Tuh make dem have a tendency tuh love anyone - yo' know, gain de in- fluence of anyone yo' wanta love - yo' gits a grown live frog. Let 'im be well- grown, healthy. An' gits yo' a pastebo'd box an' a darnin' needle an' thread. An' take yo' a pair of scissors an' cut a deep hole in dis box, an' yo' put dis live frog in dis box, but let it be at de twilight of de night. An' take yore scissahs an' cut holes in dis box. An' den take dis needle an' thing an' sew up dis box. An' take it an' don' say nuthin tuh nobody. Yo' take it an' go tuh a ants nest an' den yo' put it right in de ants nest. An' den aftah seven days yo' go back tuh de frog an' den de frog will be a skeleton. An' den it's two pieces about de skeleton yo' want. One look lak a fish scale an' one look lak a fishhook. An' yo' git dem two pieces an' yo' keep de fish scale. An' den yo' take de fishhook an' jes' lak if yo' wanta - intend tuh love anyone, yo' pin it anywhere on 'em fo' about thirty seconds, an' yo' tote it den. An' 'long as yo' keep dat fish scale yo'll have dem undah con- trol an' do anything yo' want 'em tuh do.
(What do you do with that fishhook?)
Yo' take that fishhook an' put it on his shirt or anybody dress or anything. Yo' know, hook it roun' dere. Yo' leave it dere fo' thirty seconds.
(Then what do you do with it?)
If yo' wanta yo' kin take it off.
Entry 9899
About de frog. Now, if ah had a girl, seed [saw] a woman dat ah wanted an' ah co'dn't [could not] git 'er no othahwise, ah'd take me a frog an' put 'im in a box. Cut some holes in de box an' care [carry] it tuh a red ant baid, one dese big raid ant baids. Put 'im dere an' let dose antses sting 'im tuh death. Stay away a couple, or three or fo' days until ah find he's done rotten an' quit stinkin'. Ah goes back in dere an' ah pulls dat hide off 'im an' dere's two bone in dere. One bone look lak a hook an' one is made lak a spade. Well, ah comes on back where dis woman is an' ah take dis hook an' pass by an' happen tuh scratch 'er ahm wit it. Hook it in 'er clothes an' ah go on. She'll follah me. She be mah woman from den on, until ah gits mad wit 'er or wanta git rid of 'er. Den ah could use de spade. De spade will bring hatred, make her hate chew. Lak yo' made her love, dat spade will make her hate chew. She'll hate tuh even see yo' comin'.
(What do you do with that spade to make her hate you?)
Ah keeps de spade all de time. Den ah take de spadebone an' do de same way wit it, yo' know, strike her, scratch 'er anywhere wit de spadebone, see. Den throw it away.
Entry 9900
Yo' git a frog, a toadfrog, an' yo' put 'im in a can. Yo' put some holes in de can an' yo' put 'im ovah a red ants nest, an' let de ants eat de frog. An' when de ants through wit it, yo' go dere an' gits de skeleton of de frog, an' yo'll find a bone in dere, in dis skeleton dat looks lak a fish- bone - a wishbone. [There is no bone in a frog or toad looking like the wishbone in a chicken.] An' yo' takes dis bone an' go out talk- in' wit de girl dat chure tryin' tuh git. If yo' kin hang it in 'er clothes jes' fo' two seconds, why she'll be crazy about chew. An' de only way tuh git unsundah [asunder] from 'er is take dat same bone from anothah frog, an' make a tea an' put some of de watah in sompin lak a bottle of soda watah [a sweet carbonated water of various flavors] or sompin lak dat - nine drop of dis. Den she'll git chew off 'er mind. Othah den dat, she'll stay wit chew.
(That is all she can do to get rid of that.)
Dat's all yo' kin do tuh git rid of dat girl.
(Oh! if you want to get rid of her.)
Yes, if yo' wanta keep 'er, why don't make de tea. (If you want to get rid of her, you get another frog and take it out to the ants bed.) Dat's it.
Entry 9901
Yo' kin take a frog an' put 'im in a pot an' boil 'im. Git chew nine red ants an' put in dere. Aftah yo' boil 'im, yo' take de frog out an' strip 'is laigs. Jes' lak yo' ketch de frog in dis han' [demonstrates] yo' ketch 'im by his laigs an' strip 'is laigs. Pull 'is laigs through de soup - de watah dat boilin'. [I describe informant's demon- stration.] (You hold him up by the legs and pull his feet down tovard the body.) Take dat, aftah yo' git de meat off - take his haid off - strip 'im enough tuh git de meat off wit'out teahin' 'im too bad. Take him an' git chew some cologne an' some linseed oil. Yo' 'noint 'im good wit dat linseed oil an' cologne. Take an' tie him in a bag. Put dat bag undah yore mattress. If yo' wan'a keep it from fallin' out, [put] 'tween de spring an' mattress. Gits a cloth an' put it up 'tween de mattress an' he [man] lie on dat.
(What will that do?)
Dat will keep 'im wit 'er.
(Do you take this meat off all the bones or what?)
Jes' offa one, his lef' hin' laig.
(And you put the whole frog under there?)
De whole frog undah de baid. An' take de meat dat chew got off 'is lef' hin' laig an' one dose bones, an' tie hit an' weah hit between dere in a bag. Weah it roun' 'er waist in a bag, let it hang down in front of 'er.
(This is to keep the man.)
Reep de man, yeah, at 'er place.
Entry 9902
In gamblin' if yo' wanta be lucky aroun' a skin game, yo' take yo' a frog an' kill it an' go tuh ant's bed, dem ole big red ant, an' put 'im in dere, an' leave him fer nine days. An' he goin' be hard [a skeleton], dem ants goin' eat 'im all up. Jes' take dat frog an' tote 'im in yore lef' pocket. Dat's one of devilest hands yo' evah see.
(You are going to be lucky.)
Yes, sir, yo' goin' ruin dem gamblahs. [Jacksonville, Fla., (549(, 687:7.]
Entry 9903
There was one trick they had. They used to ketch a frog and take this old frog, kill an ole land frog, an ole toad. And put him in a little box and make holes in it supin like yo'd a pepperbox. Little ants would crawl in there and them ants would go in there and destroy the body of this ole frog. And after he was dead, eat him up. You put that box into run- ulag water, whare there's a place of water running right steady down, until it washed all that ole filth, that ole eat-up flesh, away from that frog, yo' know, and leave nuthin but de bone there. And there was a certain bone there, I don't know what it was, but I've heared them tell it. There was a certain bone in that frog that they'd take that out and go around de girl's house. And if she was walkin' around, cookin' an' doin' anything, she had no knowledge of what was goin' on, why you could hang that in her dress.
(Hang it on the clothesline?)
No, her dress on her. She'd have a dress on. But, if you's to take that ole bone and stick it in her clothes somewhares, she passin' around de house an' you's settin' there talkin' with her, and she couldn't git clear of you.
Entry 9906
Yo' kin take a toadfrog. Now, I had dat - dat wus done tuh me. A man wus co'tin' [courting] me an' he wus co'tin' anothah lady. An' we co'ted fo' a good long while an' ah tole 'im, ah says, "Why don't chew let's git ma'ed?" He say, "Well, ah'm engaged tuh anothah lady tuh git ma'ed." Ah ast 'im, ah say, "Why yo' co'tin' me so long when yo' know yo' wus engaged tuh anothah lady?" He says, "Well, ah guess ah lak yuh." Ah say, "Well, dat ain't busi- ness." Say, "Ah thought chew wus co'tin' me fo' a wife. If ah hadda thought chew wusn't doin' dat, we'd abeen [we would have been] quit long ago, becuz a husband [was] whut ah wus lookin' fo'." He says, "Well, ah'm already [TORTOISE IN GEORGIA] engaged tuh git ma'ed." Ah say, "Well, when yo' goin' git ma'ed?" "Well, we's tuh git ma'ed in June." Ah tole 'im, ah says, "Well, when June come if ah live, yo' won' git ma'ed." He say, "Well, if ah live, ah will git ma'ed." Ah say, "Well, if yo' live yo' won' git ma'ed." So when June come - de lady wus down south - she came. He come ovah an' he tole me, he say, "Well, de lady ah tole yuh about ah wus tuh ma'y, she have come."
[Cylinder change causes the following repetition.]
Ah say, "Well, when yo' goin' git ma'ed? He say, "We's tuh git ma'ed in June." Ah say, "Well, ah tole yuh, yo' wouldn't ma'y her." He say, "Well, Ah don't see how yo' [can say] ah'm not gonna ma'y 'er. If ah live ah'm gonna ma'y huh." Ah say, "Well, if ah live yo' won' ma'y huh." So ah goes tuh a fortunetellah an' dis fortunetellah tole me tuh ketch a toad- frog an' git me a coffee can, a tin coffee can, an' drive holes in de bottom of dat can an up aroun' in dat can tuh 'bout halfway. An' ketch dat frog an' put 'in in dat can an' name him dat puhson's name three times. An' take it tuh a black antses baid an' stir it up, an' set dat can in dere; an' evah two or three days fo' me tuh watch dat can. Go an' look in it evah two or three days. An' when dem antses eat all de meat offa dat frog, tuh bring 'im dat frame [skeleton] in dat can. An' when dat wus done, ah ca'ed it tuh 'im. An' he tole me dere wus some bones in dat frog dat he wus gonna fix in a li'l package fo' me tuh weah shere it'll keep warm nex' tuh me, an' he would nevah ma'y dat wumman. An' he fised de package an' ah went tuh weahin' it. So when de time come fo' him tuh ma'y dis wumman, he come ovah an' he tole me, he sayed, 'Miss Cartah, '' he sayed, "De lady didn't ma'y me." Ah said, "Well, why she didn't ma'y yo'?" He said, "Ah dunno." Ah said, "Well, did yo' buy de papahs?" He say, "Yes, ' say, "Ah bought mah license an' dey cost fo' dollahs an' fifty aents, an' ah went ovah tuh ma'y her an' she tole me she 'clined [declined] de idea of gittin' ma'ed." Ah said, "Well, when did she say she would ma'y yuh?" "She didn't say." Ah said, "Well, yo' oughta make huh tell yuh when she gonna ma'y yuh. She 'clined de idea right now, maybe a li'l latah she might ma'y." He say, "She don' mean tuh ma'y' Ah say, "Yo' reckon she don't?" He say, "No." Ah say, "Why?" "Cuz she given me mah money back. Ah paid fo' dollahs an' fifty cents fo' de license an' she give it back tuh me." Ah say, "Oh well, she don't mean tuh ma'y yo' den." An' den he commence tuh worryin' me tuh ma'y 'im an' ah wouldn't ma'y him den, 'cuz de fortunetellah dat ah'd gone tuh tole me it would happen dat way. An' he tole me, "When he ast chew 'bout ma'in' don' chew ma'y him." Said, "Becuz he wouldn't live long. He would soon stricken an' die an' yo' would soon be a widow ag'in." An' jis' lak he tole me 'bout it, he would ast me 'bout ma'in' 'im, he did. But ah kep' 'im shooed off, an' re'lly, latah he did taken sick an' died. [Here I changed the cylinder. Informant begins by returning to an episode she had omitted, what she had done to make her rival refuse the man.] So dis fortunetellah tole me dat dis woman dat he wus supposed tuh ma'y, she wouldn't ma'y him. He tole me tuh git some li'l boy tuh go on in de swamp or somewhah an' fin' me a gophah - wit fo' laigs, a gophah, yo' know. So ah come back an' got de boys tuh hunt de gophah up an' dey wouldn't fin' one. [The preceding word gopher may confuse the reader. Here in Georgia where I was interviewing, people called the gopher a salamander. What informant means by gopher is a burrowing land tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus), the animal and eggs edible.] So ah went back an' tole 'im about it. Ah said, "Well, don' seem lak ah kin git a gophah." Ah say, "It'll have tuh be some othah 'rangements made." Ah said, "Dis man sweahs dat he gonna ma'y dis wumman." He said, "Yo' needn't worry about dat; he ain't goin' ma'y huh." He say, "Well." He got some dirt, some red-lookin' dirt, an' he showed it tuh me. He said, "If ah give yuh some of dis dirt an' tell yuh whut tuh do wit it, would jew be scared tuh do it?" Ah said, "No, ah won't be scared. Ah'll try tuh do it." An' he fixed so much of de dirt in a papah an' give it tuh me. An' he said, "Aftah dahk [dark] - yo' know wheah dis wumman live?" Say, "Yessuh." "Aftah dahk yo' go tuh huh house wheah she live. Don' let no one see yo', if yo' kin he'p it, an' yo' throw dis dirt tuhwards 'er front do', as much as yo' kin, tuh spattah it on de do' an' de porch aroun'. An' she won't nevah ma'y." So ah did dat. So dey didn't ma'y. (You said this was another case where a woman was going to marry the man. This is the same story?) Yes sir, dat's de woman's part of de graveyard dirt. [The reader may recall that my informant told us her rival de lady was down south. Here we were in southern Georgia not too far from Florida! I found this down south all along the Atlantic coast from Maryland southward. The south was always somewhere farther south!]
Entry 9907
Dey say yo' kin take a red ants bed an' cut a frog up an' let de red ants eat up dat frog - eat all of 'em [pieces]. An' den yo' could take cer- tain bones from 'im, lak a laig bone, lak dat an' carry it fo' luck. Dey say dat's very successful fo' a luck charm.
(Luck in anything?)
Yes sir, luck in anything.
Entry 9908
Yo' kin ketch a toadfrog an' yo' bur' 'im [bury him]. Dere's two or three ways about a frog. Yo' ketch a toadfrog an' yo' bur' 'im, an' put 'im in a ants baid an' de ants done pick 'im bad. An' den aftah dat, why yo' takes 'is bones. Don' want no flesh on 'is bones. An' weah it in yore pocket. An' den if it's a woman dat chew wanted tuh be wit, why yo' jes' tetch 'er wit dat frog [bones].
Entry 10639
An' den ag'in yo' see where dem little antses come in yore house - yo' see dem antses comin' in yore house, strollin' in lak a little trail. Pret- ty soon yo' goin' move from dere. Dey [law] come an' move yo' out. Yo' goin' leave, too. (When you see the ants com- ing in that way.) In dat house - dey make a trail in dere, de little antses, one right after de othah, some comin' an' some goin'. Dey goin' move yo' out an' yo' goin' go, too.
Entry 10646
Take dose antses, see, ketch 'em, an' dat [ant] bed dey done made - some of dat [ant] bed yo' see, an' yo' git it [some of that ant bed] in a box an' yo' bring it back. An' dey tell me yo' jes' keep dat sittin' ahin' yore bed all de time. See. Well, dey say dat's jes' tuh run yo' crazy - yore mind bad, see.
(You do that at some other person's bed?)
Yeah, doin' othah people harm.
Entry 10648
[Well, if somebody livin' next do' an' yo' wanta make 'em move, yo' go out in de woods an' yo' come to a ole tree wit aplenty of dem big red piss-antses in it, an' ketch as many of 'em as yo' kin. Put 'em in a snuffbox an' carry it an' put it under dere steps. Dey ain't goin' be dere long. Dey gotta go.
(That will run them away.)
Yessuh, shore will leave dere.
Entry 10649
Ah heard if yo' take a ant, if yo' wus tuh take, if yo' could a - jes' lak a ants' nest. Jes' lak yo' go to a ants' den dey have made. Jes' lak if yore husban' or sompin lak dat would wash his feet an' yo' would scrape his feet, well yo' take dis dead skin offa yore husban's feet an' take an' put it in dis ants' nest. Den dat et [eaten] by de ants an' den dat would cause him to walk jes' lak a ants, if yo' wanta do somepin to him or somepin lak dat. Dat would cause de husban' to walk jes' lak de ants.
(What do you mean, run him away or something like that?)
Yeah, jes' gives him de wanderin' an' sturbin' an' all lak dat. Jes' lak he'd love somebody an' yo' thought yo' could break him - yo' know, stop him from lov- in' 'em. Yo' jes' wanta do somepin ill to 'im. See, yo' takes an' wash his feet an' git some of dis heah, yo' know, dead skin off his feet, an' yo' puts it in dis ants' den, an' say den when he starts tuh walkin', he jes' wouldn't be sat- isfied novhere he goes, jes' lak de ants.
Entry 10656
Yo' take dat an' pound it up an' put it in his ratchet [rations]. Take dat big ants, ketch three of 'em, an' pound it up an' give him [hunting dog] a little bit every three time a day to each meal, an' he'll hunt an' search every place jes' lak dat ants will do. Go in every little hole an' corner. He don't stay long at one place.
(What kind of ants do they use? Did you say?)
Dey call 'em de horse ants, great big ole horse ants. Dey's red an' black. [A large red ant or a large black ant is called a horse ant.]
Entry 10657
Ah tell yo' 'bout a red ant's bed. If yo' got a dog in yore yard an' want him tuh be bad, yo' kin put nine red ants' in some bread an' give 'im. Yo' couldn't even come in dat yard where he wus. Dat dog would tear yo' up.
Entry 10658
Go to a big ants bed an git nine antses an' put 'em in some likker, an' let 'em 'solve [dissolve] in dat likker, an' give it to a man an' he'll stay vid chew an' give yo' all his money.
Entry 10659
Yo' ketch one dese big ones - big red ones - an' yo' take three of 'em an' put it [them] in a bottle, dese red antses. Yo' put 'em in a bottle, three, an' buries it tuh de steps. Dat's tuh broke up de house an' family an' make dem move out.
Entry 10660
Jes' lak ah wants tuh rent dis home, yo' see, an' yo' wants tuh rent it. Well, yo' got de most money. Well, ah haven't got very much money. Well, yo' go tuh a ant bed an' git about nine of dose ants, an yo' slip it in dis empty buildin', see, unbeknowst tuh me. An' den yo'll rent it an' ah won't.
(You mean you'll get the house and I won't get it? Or what?)
[My question shows he has the cart before the horse!]
Dat's right. Ah'll rent de house an' yo' won't. But chew got chure money, but ah haven't got it [my money]. [My informant puts ants into the house, I see them and do not rent the building, unless I consider ants in the house lucky. I keep my money, he spends his on rent.]
Entry 518
If yo' wanta ketch a witch - now, if a person is riding an' yo' wanta ketch 'um, yo' takes nine mustard seeds an' put 'em undah a sifter an' turn 'em down undah a sifter. De next morning he'll be there tryin' tuh count dose seeds an' yo' kin ketch him right dere.
(What'will he look like?)
He liable to be a ant or liable tuh be any kind of a little bug - you may not pay it no mind but dat's whut it is.
Entry 1100
Well, as fo' de red ants - if yo' have a chile dat waters de bed an' yo' kin git it tuh urinate in a pot, yo' kin put it in a red ants bed an' stop de chile from wettin' de bed.
Entry 1101
Yo' kin take a red ants nest an' go to it fo' nine mawnin's - dat if yo' wet de bed - fo' nine mawnin's, if yo' weak, a weak bladder understand. An' go to it nine mawnin's 'fore sunrise an' pee on dat, an' dat'll check dat up.
Entry 1752
I heard my father tell about boxing hands, where they get bees, flies, ants, wasps, cow ants - the great big ants - hornets, thousand-legs, all that kind of stuff, and they put that in a bottle and fill it with hot water. And that was used to put on their fists - just a drop or two. And when they struck a man he had a great pain and swoll up, and he couldn't fight back he was hurting so. [Here again, a hand can be a liquid.] [St. James, a Negro community 5 miles from Pocomoke City, Md., (104), by hand; these hands of 1870 decade in Wicomico Co., Md.] [Cf. margin-title WrestZing Hand at end of this subsection.]
Entry 5311
If yo' wan'a git rid of 'em, don' wan' 'em come back tuh yore house, yo' take up dere track, de lef' foot track, an' carry it tuh a big ole - where a lota big ole red antses 'bout lak dat. Ah heard dey said yo' could take an' carry it dere an' put it intuh dat ants bed. Yo' have tuh go fo' nine mawnin's an' drop a little bit of dat track intuh de ant bed, an' den yo' really sure dat dey will not come back. Said dey will not come back.
Entry 6699
De red ants nest, dey say if anybody subject tuh peein' in de baid, why dat'll stop 'em from peein' in de baid.
Entry 6700
Ah heard dat dey kin take antses an' make a tea outa dem an' stop any- body from dripping watah. Dese red antses.
(That will cure them.)
Say dat'll keep 'em from wettin' de baid.
Entry 10643
Take red ant an' a dirt dauber an' put it together an' yo' kin make People fight an' leave one 'nothah. Yo' throw 'em right down in de road right in front of dey do'. (What do you mean, the ant itself or his nest?) Git up de ant hisself an' at him up, an' use de dirt-dauber's dirt - his nest.
Entry 1902
Ah used de nest of de red ants mahself - see, ah used to be a gambler. Yo' git a frog an' take tie him up, both his laig, to a stake ovah a nest of dose large red antses an' let dem eat de flesh off his bones, see. An' den yo take de bones an' wrap 'em up in a cloth an' dress em wit cologne an' yo'll win. But it's dangerous - yo' have tuh pay fo' it.
(What do you mean by that?)
Well, yo' li'ble lose a member of yore body, yore arm or laig, toe, yo' know, or lose somebody in de family yo' love, or either yore life. Yo'll have to pay fo it. It s de devil's trick.
(What do you do with that frog? You stake - you mean?)
Yo' stake him - yo' torture him - yo' let de red ants eat de flesh off him - stake him alive. Yo' tie him up, all fo' of him laigs where de ants kin git to his flesh.
Entry 3086
[Madam DeLong is a hand-maker and of the dime-a-dozen variety. She must be included here because my informant visited both women. Besides, her name interests me for a reason given later. Aunt Sally is a master of her craft - original, brilliant.] At Savannah, Ga. (What were their names?) Aunt Sally - Savannah, Ga. Ah first went to Madam DeLong - she was white. Ah went to Madam DeLong.
(In Savannah.)
Dat's right - on Jerome Street in 1914. But ah went to her fer gambling hand.
(What did she do for you?)
Jest a minute, now. Ah don't recall [everything] - a piece of root and some black peppah; yes, it was, and if ah understand well, three grains [seeds] out of a green pepper, cayenne pepper. She had three grains. She took dat root dey call John de Conker and she [didn't] cut it up and [but] she cut another root which is called blacksnake root and a little gypsum [ginseng]. [Three roots.] [And she did them] jest like she did de seeds, like de three seeds dat she took out of de pepper, and she grates it into a flannel. But she had another rag in dere befo' she put it into de flannel. And she sewed dat up and she give it to me for luck in gambling.
[John de Conker was not cut up but worn in one piece.]
(This was the white woman, Madam DeLong: How do you spell that?)
Madam DeLong, dey call it. She's dead now.
(How do you spell that name?)
Ah jest don't know. [I heard this so'often!] [If I remember rightly, there was a curio mail-order firm in Chicago by that name. This woman - a possible agent of theirs or buying some of her hoodoo sup- lies from them - may have used DeLong as her professional name. We have a good example of name-adoption from a firm in G. H. Smith & Company (2740, p.746).] Ah went to Aunt Sally, dat was one of mah race after dat. Le'me see, 'twas about a year after dat, ah reckon. I did [it]. [It] worked very well in dat year cause I was runnin' pract'ly a kitchen gambling house - dey gamble in de kitchen - an' nobody didn't bother me. Well den, after she died, I went to Aunt Sally. Well, I went to Aunt Sally and she give me a fishing hook and she made me step three steps right out in front of her do'. Den she sont a little boy out after that and she told him to pick up her some sand out of each one of those [three] tracks. She told me when I got to de last track, "Don't make no other step." She said, "Jis' swing around." I swung around. And ah noticed dat dat last track - de little boy brought in de sand. She put de other two sand to- gether out of de other two tracks, but dis sand heah, dis last track, she didn't put dat sand in dere. She put it into something look like a sifter and she sift- ed it into a white piece of cloth. After sifting it into a white piece of cloth, she laid it up on de sheft [shelf] and she said, "Now, you sit down fer five minutes." Ah sat down five minutes and when she rech up dere and got it agin, instead of it being sand, it was ants. It was ants! Ah looked at it myself. It was dem little antses. Den she tuk it and put it into de same package. Ah don't know whether de dirt turned to ants or not, but when she did lay it up dere five minutes and den when she looked at it, and I looked at it too, and it was ants instead of de sand. Den she fold it into de other package and fold it up. And she hand it to me like dat [demonstrates].
(With her fist down.)
Yeah, jes' dat way, with her fist down. Ah never will forget it. And den she tuk it back. Dat's how it was done. And she said, "Now," she say, "I won't give yo' dis." Ah said, "Well, why?" She said, "Yo' ain't able to pay fo'it." An' ah asked her, ah said, "What do you want fer it?" She said, "Fifty dollars." Ah say, "Ah'll pay fer it twice." And she wouldn't take de $50. She tuk $5 but she never did give me de package. She say, "Yo' go on you'll be all right.
(What was that for?)
That was for running business, a place of business - help yo' business.
(Or in ganbling.)
Yes, actually that was my business - running a gambling [business]. ["Go on you'll be all right is a common trick (see 885-886, p.319), but to change footstep-dirt into live ants and refuse a large price for them displays the hand of a master. I need not explain that some doctors work upon the theory: if you give nothing, there can be no evidence. The ants? Simple - two packages
(see bottle substitution,792, p.265).]
Entry 3098
[Molly Lee, a white doctor, had quite a reputation. I first heard about her while I was collecting in Richmond. Since I did not interview white doctors (see INTRODUCTION), I assumed she lived in or near Richmond - a false assumption. The following well-known and commonplace rite attributed to her does this doctor an injustice. Any woman who could receive her crystal ball from the spirits (561, p.178) must have been original and competent.] I knows once in my time, a woman had a man for her husband, and she lived over here in Suffolk. Maybe you heard something, too. There's a lady the other day, lady named Molly Lee, a white lady, she claims do it. She done something. She's a great woman for wrestlin' with young boys. She has a young boy down dere and she say, "Go ketch me a young frog - a toadfrog." And he get that frog and go put a board or something on him so that he can't get away - wouldn't kill him, fasten him down where he'd stay there and die, and the ants eat him up. Let de ants eat him up, you know, all to a skeleton. And in that frog's bones, find a little bone in 'em just exactly like fish scale. And there's another bone in 'em that is used, too, like a fishhook. You know, a little point to it - wasn't, see, all de way; but just more like a fishhook than any other bone. You kin take that bone - now, this has happened, this is not - but this is the bone that the boy had. She take that bone and hook it into a person's coat.
(Into what?)
Into somebody's clothes - just as you pass by, you know, just hook it into somebody's clothes and don't you pull it out, and he'll fall for you just as far as you'll let him. And at de same time this other little bone like a fish scale, see, when you get a chance to do it. Well, you see, if you can't get 'em to you, you can't drive them away. That's what they always says. And you come and just put dat bone just like a little fish scale, drop it on 'em, and just stay like you never seen 'em before. You'll never get dis bone out yourself. If you don't put dat fish scale on 'em, dat's finished - dey's gone and you'll never see 'em no more. He just gone from you just as free if he never been with you atall. (I see. If you want to keep them, you put this little hook; and if you want to drive them away, you put this fish scale on them.) Yes.
(And this is what that woman over in Suffolk did with these young boys?)
Well, she would have these boys ketch frogs for her.
(Oh! She had those boys catch frogs for her.)
Only little boys what is barefoot. Woman had children big as me. (I see. She did that though to get these other men, but she had that little boy catch the frogs for her. That was her way of getting a man and sending him away if she didn't want him - got tired of him.) Yes. And I mean, they ain't been back. That is what they used. I don't know whether there's anything else now that she did besides that, 'cause I've been there. I've gone over there in my automobile. That's what he carried on back. [Informant drove a client over to Molly and that is what she gave him to use for himself.]
(Is she supposed to be a root doctor or something?)
She is that.
(Molly Lee?)
Molly Lee.
(Is she still living?)
Yes sir, fur as I know. I have never heard of her being dead.
Entry 3982
Yo' take de antses when dey pilin', totin' dere dirt up high, why yo' kin take dat an' git a han'fulla it, an' put it in a bran'-new white han'ke'ch'ef an' urinate on it, an' den put it in somepin lak a tin [can] an' bear
[bury] it. Now, dat'll fill yo' fulla pain, jes' lak somebody shovin' needles through yo' dataway, yo' know - jes' lak somebody stick yo' dat way. Well, it's no cure fo' dat. (You have to walk over it.)
Entry 11278
Now, here's another black art method. This black art method was by this old - this here William Rogers. This is one of his authors.
(Down in Columbus.)
Right here in Berkeley, Va., adjoining Norfolk. [His method] was to go to a ant's hill and look for the large size red antses. He gets nine of them out of there and kill them. Then he would go and look for a snail. Take him and shove him in the stove and let him parch up. Mix this together with lard, give it to a man or woman. Give that to a man and he rub that on his wife, the next man what have intercourse with his wife, his testicle bag Will burst open.
(Burst open.)
Burst wide open and kill him in three days time. [444:5.]
Entry 6376
Yo' know, jes' lak we be settin' down filin' our fingahnail off, yo' know, an' yo' know people be settin' roun' talkin' tuh each othah an' ain't thinkin' about it. Well, dey watch chew an' dey git chure fingahnails. Ah'll take 'em up an' ah'll carry 'em tuh dis ant bed an' whenevah dey take yore fingahnails an' carry 'em tuh de ants bed, yo' know dose ants mo' den apt tuh take evahthin' dey kin an' carry dem in 'is hole. See, when he carry dat, den ah'll go back de nex' mawnin' an' if dat ant is missin', have taken dese nails, vell ah'm goin' stop de hole up. Well, dat's she's goin' bad, got somepin, jes' lak somebody got de TB [tuberculosis]. Jes' long as her fingahnails an' thin's is stopped up in dis hole, she dryin' away.
Entry 493
That's if he is a human an' be a livin' pusson.
(What have you heard about that?)
Dey [hag or witch] jis' take an' strip off necked [naked], jis' strip off necked, if dey gon'a ride joo. Dey write chore name down fo' diff'ren' places - write it on one piece of papah, write it on anothah piece, write it on anothah, an' on anothah one. He'll take it an' tie it roun' his ahm, he'll tie one roun' dis laig, an' one on dis laig, an' one on dis ahm. An' he'll put one roun' dere [his neck]. Dat'll be five pieces - jis' yo' name on it - two feets an' yo' ahms, an' put one piece aroun' de neck. An' aftah dey do dat, why dey grease all ovah wit fresh hog lah'd [lard]. Dat make 'im go to bed wit dis thing on his min'. An' in de night when you lay in bed sleepin', his spirit wandah an' git where you's at, an' jis'beat on yo', knock on yo', choke on yo', an' have yo so yo can't har'ly ta'k. An' de way to git 'im, de only way yo' can git 'im, is jis' take some peppah an' pu't in a bottle, red peppah pu't in a bottle, an' open de top of it. An' he'll go down in dat bottle an' he can't git out, an' he'll stay thah, in thah till nex' mawnin'. He'll put on his clothes [next morning], wherevah he be he'll put his clothes on, an' it'll be de firs' one at yo' house dat mawnin' axin' yo' fo' somepin. An' if yo' don't care wha' chew give im out chore han', dat'll turn 'im loose out dat bottle. An' while he's in dat bottle he turn into all kin' of insex, ants, bugs. An' when he come to yo' house dat mawnin', an' if yo' give 'im anything, a couple of matches or any- thing, why you turn 'im loose. When he come thah he'll be down [dejected], lak dat, chew know.
(Suppose you burn that bottle up?)
He'll die. Dat is his spirit.
Entry 645
See, yo' kin take yore chamber lye - take dat chamber lye an' - person take hit to a red ants' bed. Yo' take it an' yo' po' it into somepin an' yo' takes some [corn] meal an' make it up as a dough, an' yo' take it to a red ants' bed an' yo' sprinkle it in dat red ants' bed, an' jest long as it in dat ants' bed, yo' see, dem antses will work dat dough up - up an' down dat-a-way. Well, dat'll create germ to work inside of a person, an' jest work, work, work, till it kills 'im. Well, yo' see de doctors don't know whut dat is. De doctors will be working on it fo' one thing, but still it's dat germ - de cunjuration. [For this germ theory, see No. 654.]
Entry 683
Yo'.take de dust from a ant hill an' sprinkle it on anybody, it will make dem be in bad condition an' give 'em bad luck, because a ant will rustle fo' his food. Well, dey will practi'lly git lazy an' dey won't try tuh feed demselfs. [Here is contrary or opposite magic.] Dat always keep dem from han' tuh mouth all de time. Dey nevah has anythin'.
(You take that dirt from the ant bed - out of the ground.)
Jes' de dirt from de ants - jes' lak, yo' know how dey is, weaves up dere dirt aroun' dere little hole. Well, yo' jes' rakes dat dirt into a piece of papah or on a piece of pastebo'd an' take an' put it in a cloth an' carry it on wit chew. Wherevah anybody is doin' fine, doin' well in life, throw dat dirt an' dat starts dem tuh travelin'. [Here is similar (sympathetic) magic - ants travel, your victim travels.] Dey jes' continue tuh goin' an' always will be from hand tuh mouth an' nevah has anything.
Entry 700
In some cases you kin take some dragon's blood and spirits of turpentine and a little silver and mix it all up together and make a pill out of it - kind of a ball. Give 'em one of them every half a hour from - until they have taken three, six or nine. When they have taken three or de first one, they will quiet down - three they will become normal and go to sleep. When they have taken the nine, they will sleep good for a while and then they will wake up and wanta vomit or go to the toilet. Then you take a little sweet milk, which I won't say what it is you put in it - something you use - jest one something that yo' put in that sweet milk and give 'em a drink of it. An' they no quicker then [than] swallow it then in the space of five or ten seconds they start vomiting. They bring it up. Well, now in the course of time these things are in yuh, de flesh has a tendency to bring alive that powder in de same form of the animal - hatch it out. And when it comes out of yo' it come out as though it were young antses or young Wasps jest hatched - have no use of they wings, they tender and all that.
Entry 1102
If yo' were hurted - if someone take an' done somepin to yo', yo' see - take a red ant an' boil 'im. Take two or three of 'em, yo' know - two or three of 'em an' jes' boil 'em, boil down. Take 'em an' put 'em in a pan of water an' let 'em boil down to a tea an' drink dat, dat will take dat thing off yo'.
Entry 1103
Now if a person put a spell on yo' an' yo' have headache all de time, yo' kin go to one dem big red ants nest an' take a flour sack - a sack, yo' know or somethin' an' take up de whole, jes' as much dat nest as yo' kin. An' take it back home an' put de whole thing in a pan or kettle an' boil it. An' then bathe yo' haid in dat same watah. An' don't throw it out - jest bathe in it 'bout three times an' throw it tuhwards de sunrise. Dey say dat takes dat spell off yo' - yo' won't have dat headache spell no mo' or whatevah dey put on yo' like dat.
Entry 1615
You take a ten-cent piece an' you file it down to nuthin but dust. You take a pinch of sulphur, about a halfa teaspoonful of sulphur, an' you take this on your tongue. An' you take a swallow of your own water. Whoever the person is, now, they got to have their own water - you know, whoever it is urination, just enough to swallow. An' I'll guarantee that ever'thing you eat, that'll come right up, an' it'll come these little ants or anything. While that silver's in you, you never git nuthin - won't nobody kin ever put nuthin in you.
Entry 1850
Take a pin an' put a little hole in it [chicken egg] an' put some of yore blood in that little hole. Yo' know, yo've seen dem little eye-dropper or nose-dropper, somethin', drain it down lak that. Take a strand of yore hair an' stick it down in there - in that hole an' carry it out in the woods where yo' know that snake's there - most any kind of a little bug or something is, yo' know. But chew put some sugah roun' there yo' see. See, that aig is goin' tuh sweat, chew know, an' that sugah is goin' dissolve and the ants or whatevah gits ovah to it first, that's jis' whut - if it be a snake, well, yo'll crawl lak a snake; if a ant gits holt'a it, well yo'll fis' wander aroun' jis' lak a ant.
Entry 1986
[This is the Rite of Disguise, p.395.]
Ah tell yo' how ah've used 'em. Yo' ketch a red ants an' cut him half in two, an' as de ant's dyin' yo' gotta put him in a bottle wit dis same Hearts Perfume agin an' oil of clover, an' yo' keep dat ants dere. Yo name dat ants - name dat ants some kind other name. yo' know, yo' don't call it an ants - any name yo' care tuh give it besides yoreself. Well, whatsomevah yo' goin' tuh use dat ants fo' in de luck, jes' shake it up an' says, "Now, Whatsomevah-yo'-name-it, help."
Entry 2057
[The best known of living hands is the toadfrog, but there are more - chicken, louse (human), snake and others.] Git chew nine - git chew nine red ants, put them in a red bag, use them fo' luck. Go to de red ant hole an' yo' git chew nine red ants. It's luckier tuh git 'em as dey come out de hole. Yo' set there an' ketch yo' nine. Ketch yo' nine red ants an' sew 'em up in there live. That'll make yo' luck fo' anything - yo' jis' be lucky in gamblin', anything lak dat.
Entry 3112
Ah heard yo' kin take dese red antses beds, yo' know, an' git chew some of 'em. Take 'em if yo' wanted to fix up a man or anything lak [that] yo' know, an' yo' kin take 'em an' beat 'em [into powder] an' wear 'em roun' yore wais'. An' aftah de man - say yo' an' 'im be togethah. An' aftah he git through wit whut he done, yo' jes' take dem antses an' jes' wipe right, takes 'is leg an' den let it run up an' down 'is back, dese antses lak dat. But chew have it tied up in a rag. An' say den yo' wear it roun' yore wais'. Den de man can't have any dealin's wit anyone but choo. Ah've heard of dat much about antses.
Entry 3203
Ah heard dat yo' git a toadfrog an' yo'od, kill 'im, an' put some black peppah an' some salt on 'in, an' carry 1m to a red ants bed an' put 'im down in dat - lay him right down in dat bed - go know, dem big bed yo' know - lay him right down in dat bed an' let de ants eat 'im up all but de skin an' bones. Den yo' kin take dat sharp bone - yo' low, let 'im stay dere though fo' nine days - an' take dat sharp bone an' carry it an stick in yore wife's garment, her nightgown, can't nobody else mess wit 'er atall but chew. [Waycross, Ga., (1136), 1850:3.] 3203A. If he had a ole shirt, an' iron a frog - yo' know a ole frog - on de tail of it...he'll stay dere... [These 3 separated periods show that I stopped my recording machine twice. A later copy of an original comment explains Why: "THE WOMAN HAS BEEN HOPPING ABOUT LIKE A FROG [[demon- strating the rite]]. Iron him [[the man represented by his shirt]] as you do the frog and his nature will be killed."]
(IRON A FROG ON THE TAIL OF THIS OLD SHIRT OF THE MAN?)
YESSUH. [This woman is marked prof? (professional) and good, but SHE EVIDENTLY HOPPED ABOUT DURING THE WHOLE INTERVIEW. This sort of thing Was Wonderful when Words accompained actions, but in the present case she was pretending that my inter- viewing table was an ironing board. But with my recording machine, switch con- trol, notebook, and old black hat on the table, I preferred demonstration a little farther away.]
Entry 3851
Ah says, if a man got a woman an' also, if he can't rule de woman, he kin jes' take a woman when a woman's periods rise, an' carry it an' find a big red ants' nest an' bury it direct in dat ants' nest. Dat's all he gotta do wit dat, jes' bury it right in dat ants' nest an' walk off. Back up to ten feet an' turn yore face an' go on about chure business, an' evahthin' is okay den.
(What will that do then?)
Keep her home - yes sir, keep 'er undah yore jurisdiction.
Entry 5305
Whut ah know about separatin' yo' husban' from yo' if yo've jis' tied up a man, sompin lak dat. Yo' kin jis' take his right foot track. Yo' see, it's leavin' yo' an' sometime as he go out tuh de do' an' yores when yo' is comin' back away from it. Yo' scoop up 'is right foot track right in de middle, yo' see, an' den yores as yo' turn back tuh go 'way from him. Yo' scoop up yore left foot track. An' yo' take dat an' carry it tuh a red ants' bed - big red ants' bed - an' yo' tell dem red antses, say, "Separate I an' him, I an' So-an'-so, 'In de Name of de Lord, dat we'll nevah have anything tuh do wit each othah any mo'.'" An' ah do know dat tuh be true.
(That is all you do, just put these tracks in that....)
Put dem tracks tuhgethah - jis' take it in yo' a little piece of papah or sompin, yo' know, dat chew won' waste it. An' yo' take it tuh dis red ants bed an' jis' sprinkle it as yo' talkin' tuh 'em.
(That's all you have to do for that?)
Dat's all yo' have to do wit dat.
Entry 5308
She could take his track an' she'd care [carry] it - take his track an' she'd care it tuh a ants bed, see. She'd ketch it in de middle, in de mid- dle of de foot, see. Jes' one track, yo' right foot. Dey would take it an' take jes' dat much sand out frum [from] undah his feet [demonstrates]. (Just a pinch.) She would take it an' care it an' put it in an ants bed, an' put some lard wit it an' place it intuh dat ants bed an' leave it dere. An' de mo' dem ants would stir it up, de mo' he'd go. He'd leave town.
Entry 5309
Dey take a man's track an' put a little grease mixed up in it. Go tuh a red ants nest an' put it in dere. Jes' lak dem ants is runnin' an' gwine, it will jes' have dat man jes' all stirred up all de time. But ah ain't nevah tried dat.
Entry 5310
Tuh separate a man an' his wife or sompin lak dat, dey said yo' take up dere tracks. If yo' want de man tuh come tuhwards yo' an' yo' want de woman tuh go from yo', yo' take de man track from de heel comin' tuh de toes. Pull de heel dat way, see [demonstrates]. An' de woman, yo' take dat sand at de toe an' pull it - take it from yo'. Dat [is] if de man wuz yore husban', an' yo' break him from anothah woman dat way.
(What do you do with that dirt?)
Yo' take it an' put it in a big ants nest. Dat's whut dey tell me, put it in a big ants nest. An' when de ants take it an' bring it out, an' carry it diff'ren' ways, dat's tearin' de min' [mind] apart, cuz one ant's comin' disaway an' de othah one comin' de othah way. Dat will jes' tear dere min' apart.
Entry 5318
Pick up de track an' mix sugah wit it an' put it in a ant bed. An' evah time dem ants git tuh workin', dey work dat track up an' stuff. Don' care where yo' is yo' gotta go.
(That is to send you away?)
Yes sir.
(You mix sugar with that track?)
Mix sugah wit it, so de ants goin' work it. Yo' know de ants goin' be aftah de sugah.
Entry 6698
Lotta [lot ofl people, yo' know, dey urinate in de baid, cain't he'p it. Dey goes an' if dey uri- nate in a red ant's nest, it'll cuz dey urine to stop. It'll stop it.
Entry 6701
Fo teas fo' sickness, lak yo' got de yallah jandice or sompin lak dat. Well, yo' ketch yore antses an' boil 'em an' yo' make a tea an' give it tuh 'em. (For yellow jaundice?) Yes.
Entry 6702
Dey tell me if yo' kin git some red antses, take an' carry 'em an' boil 'em. Boil 'em down therly [thoroughly]. Well yo' kin take dat watah an' give it tuh a person an' let 'em drink it. Dat's good fo' any kinda tricks. [For tricks, see TRICKS, p.280f., and elsewhere.]
(That cures them?)
Cures 'em, yassuh.
Entry 6857
Folks always have a convulsion, as yo' know, [at that time] an' if yo' boil a aig, a hen aig - now, ah've proved dat mahself. Yo' BOIL A HEN AIG ON DE SILVAH MooN, de time dat de moon is young, on de firs' change of de moon. Yo' git a fresh-laid aig an' boil it an' crack a li'le hole in dis aig aftah it's boiled. An' take it tuh a ant heap, an' whenevah de ant eat all dat aig up, why it's no mo' convulsion or whatevah dose folks have. Ah've proved dat.
(Well, don't you do anything to those people who have the convulsions? At all? Don't they get any medicine or anything?) chamber lye. (In whose chamber lye?)
De one dat have de convulsions.
Entry 7787
Take a chicken alg an' go tuh a ant hill an' dig down in dat hill an' git some dirt an' a red ant. An' den go tuh de woods an' git a young oak tree, a oak tree dat's got jis' kinda sprouts tuh it. An' dey come back wit it an' take it, an' go intuh a kinda forks in de road 'bout where anybody, yo' know, 'spect [expect] tuh walk on. An' den if fellah [lover] or fren' is gone away, take an' bury dat. Yo' know, bury dose things down tuh de ground an'take dat red ant, egg an' all, an' put ovah de top of it, an' dey say dat will bring 'em back.
[Informant now illustrates rite with following story:]
Dey talk about a ole man an' he didn't want 'is daughtah tuh stay 'way. He vent out tuh de red ants' baid an' he got de fo'ks of a li'le tree, an' buried it down tuh de fo'ks of road in de direction which she went, wit graveyard dirt, an' told it whut he want done. An' 'is daughtah came back an' she's up dere tuh 'is house right now.
(You mean just this little small fork off the tree?)
Yes jis' a li'le small fo'k about where it will not be noticed. An' bury it in de direction in which she's gone. Jis' use de graveyard dirt an' tell it whut chew want done an' sprinkle dat graveyard dirt ovah it. (You mean the fork at the tip of a [branch], you cut that off that red oak tree?) Yessuh.
Entry 10271
If a person got chew fixed so yo' ain't got no manhood wit chureself, yo' jes' go an' make water into a red ant's nest. It will freshen right up ag'in. Ah've lost mah nature mah- self dat way an' ah've gained it back dat way. Dat's true about dat. [For ants see Nos.3111-3112, p.2342, v.3.]
Entry 10636
Well, dey say dat if yo' got a ant bed roun' yore house, jes' give 'em sugah an' feed, dey say dat yo'll have luck round dere, 'long as yo' stay dere an' 'long as dat ants' bed dere.
Entry 10637
Go to a ants' nest an' git de dirt from roun' it an' put it in sulphur, red peppah an' table salt, an' wear it in yore pocket; dey say dat gives yo' luck. Brings luck to yore home.
Entry 10640
Go to a ants' bed an' git dat sand an' sprinkle it round someone's house dat chew didn't like an' dat will also cause trouble. (What kind of trouble?) Like fights an' probably would end up into killin'. Dat's de red ants' nest.
Entry 10641
Red antses - jes' lak if, yo' know, yo' wit 'em an' yo' wanta git rid of dose people, jest anybody. If yo' don't wanta put 'em on de go [become a wanderer] yo' jest git - dey [ants] bores a hole in de ground. An' yo' jest stay right dere an' git jest a weed [or] sompin - not a stick - weed of any kind an' yo' jest continue tuh stir when dey come out dat hole, jest lak dat. An' de person dat chew don't want, yo' jest call dere name as yo' stir. Well, when yo' quit stirring, now when dey come out, if dey comes out an' go dis way or dat way - or dat way, dey ain't comin' back dere any mo'...dey goin' make [a new nest] 'long as dey kin git tuh de church or some place lak dat...but dey goin' tuh leave dat place. See, when dem [ants and] things come out dat hole like dat, see dose people is going.
(Those people whose names you called, that will drive them away.)
Dat's one de easiest way dey'll go den.
(These are big red ants.)
It's a big red ant, it a cow ant.
(Oh! Cow ant. A cow ant?)
Yeah, it made like a cow. When yo' cut his head off de other part will go right on, yo' see, dis part go an' dat part go. Well, yo' take dat an' yo sew it up.
(Sew up what? Sew up the head?)
Dat's right, dat other part will keep agoing.
(And what do you do with that head then?)
Yo' call dat person name an' watch it. See how long he be dere.
(You take this head from it [ant] while you call this person's name.)
You have tuh sew it up an' put it in yore left pocket. (And that person whose name you called will be going the same way that ant's body is going?) Jest lak he's going.
(This is the cow ant? Why do you call them the cow ant?)
Dey made lak a cow. Dey got laigs lak a cow, got a haid lak a cow. Look lak his eyes big as a big head. [Two parts of cow ant working in opposite directions is no more wonderful than the doctor who could see a tombstone rock in section HEADBOARD OF GRAVE ANSWERS DOCTOR GLOVER BY ROCKING, p.2258f., v.3.]
Entry 9810
(That foot track, what do you do with that foot track after you get it and put those pins and things in it?) Yo' take hit, yo' don't bury hit, yo' lie hit on yore bedspring an' yo' sleep on hit. An' he may go wit anothah woman but he won't ca' [care] nuthin 'bout 'er. An' in goin' tuh de othah woman he'll pay yo' twice de 'tenshun [attention] dat he will 'er. But in goin' wit yo' an' lovin' yo' often, yo' know, evah once in a way he'll go tuh dis woman, but he won't intendin' tuh stay cuz ah got a man lak dat. Him an' me mean so much. (In other words, you will take this foot track in order to hold a man - that's all.) Dat hold 'im. (And you put those pins in there in order to keep other women away. You name them your enemies.)
[I am corrected!]
Dat won't completely keep 'em away, but he'll be from undah dere influence.
(When you name these pins you are thinking of other women, aren't you?)
Yessuh, dat's de enemies. (They are your enemies and you want to keep them away from your husband or your man.) Well, heah's de othah one. Yo' see, womens doin' lak dat, gittin' de foot track an' pins, dat's not all of it. Yo' see if a woman - now, ah don't know 'cuz ah ain't nevah did nuthin, but ah hear'd it. [They] say, if a woman goin' wit chure man, he care de mos' fo' yo', an' yo' ain't tryin' tuh, yo' know, do nuthin but jes' tryin' to keep de man a Zi'le out de way, an' she tryin' tuh do somepin tuh 'im. Yo must always do lak dis, say he goin' wit 'er an' he ca' mo' fo' 'er. Well, she's got'a make him ca' mo' fo' her den he do yo'. Yo' got'a git 'is track den, but chew git it in a diff'ren' way. 'Stead [instead] of gittin' it fahwahds, yo' gits it backwahds. But chew take it an' yo' ca' it tuh a ants [nest] - jis' lak, yo' know, in de summah. Jis' lak yo' see a ants nest an' ants totin' dirt in an' out. Dis is ca'in' [carrying] it in jis' [like] ah'm gittin' love. Yo' got'a git de woman's track dis time, not de man's track. Git de woman's track. Yo' ca' it tuh a ants nest where de ants totin' dirt in an' out an' put it down dere. An' yo' go tuh puttin' it down where de ants totin' in dere. Yo' know how ants tote in. An' yo' name de same thing: "Name of de Fathah, de Son an' de Holy Ghost, make her leave dis town." An' yo' know, as yo' thinkin' [all this] yo' sprinkle it. Well, jis' as de ants tote it in, she got'a go. Well, dat's de woman. Fo' de man, well, yo' don't put it down in no ants nest. Jis' tie it up in a hans'cuff [handkerchief] an' yo' got'a put nine pins in dere. [Here I turned off machine thinking she had ended and had to restart by re- peating what had been lost.]
(Put it in your bedspring?)
Put dat undah de haid of yore mattress an' sleep on it. But de woman yo' got'a find a ants nest where de ants totin' in de dirt. [Informant now tells an experience of hers, an experience similar to the one told in, vol.] Dis wus a man passin' through [town]. Ah didn't know 'im an' he didn't know me. Ah wus on mah way tuh a party one night an' he said, "Lady, " he said, "ah'm hongry: Ah wan't somepin tuh eat: If yo'd give me twenty cents, " an' he said, "dat's not de price, ah'd tell yo' somepin." He wus a big mulatto man. He weren't no white man, he wus a colored man. Ah says, "Well, ah'll give yo' mo' den twenty cents, " ah said, "heah's thirty cents. An' heah's whut he tole me. An' he tole it so straight. Ah had nevah seed de man befo' an' he had nevah seen me, but he tole me who [what woman] mah man wus gone wit an' how he looked an' evahthing, an' whut she wus tryin' tuh do, an' whut fo' me tuh do. An' ah'd called 'im back an' ah'd sweah de man wus crazy. But ah done whut he tole me [to bring back my man]. De dog! See, dat walk right off an' left me. He come right back tuh me an' ah ain't had no mo' trouble wit 'im since. Ah wus dressed an' ah start out tuh de party. Well, it wus a big mulatto man an' he came rapped on de do'. He did give his name but ah ain't goin' tell no story, ah cain't remembah 'is name now. He says, "Well, where yo' goin', lady? See yo' dressed." Ah an' mah sistah [were going to the party], but ah'm jis' talkin' 'bout mahself. He wus talkin' tuh me. He says, "Ah lak yore future." Aftah dis, ast 'im tuh come in. Ah say, "Ah'm goin' tuh a party. He says, "Whut party yo' goin' to?" He says, "Ah think ah mostly know wit'out chew tell me." Ah says, "Ah'm goin' down heah in Thomastown." [I said it] jis' lak dat. He say, "Well, yo' drinkin'." Dat wus 'is words. Ah said, "Ah'm drinkin'?" He say, "Yeah." Ah said, "Ah did have 'bout a dime's drink but no mo'." [This was a dime's drink back in 1939, not in 1976, and it was the cheapest moonshine available.] He said, "Well, yo' goin' tuh de party tuhnight. He's daid an' yo' goin' preparin' tuh raise hell.' Said, "But if yo' gived me twenty cents, ah'll tell yo' sompin." Ah say, "Well, whut chew gona tell me?" He says, "Yo' worryin'," says, "yo're not satisfied." HE SAYS, "IT'S A WOMAN BUT SHE'S NOT YORE COMPLEXION, ' SAYS, "YO'S KINDA TEASY, WHUT CHEW CALL CHOCOLATE BROWN, BUT DIS WOMAN IS BLACK." He says, "Whut chew call a [something] or some bnda black woman [something]. Say, "But dis woman tryin' take yore man." Dat whut he said, "Dis woman tryin' uh take yore man." An' he say, "When dis woman tryin' 'uh take yore man, if yo' give me twenty cents, ah tell yo' how tuh git 'im from 'er 'tention." An' he say, "Ah oughta charge mo' den dat, " he said, "but ah's hongry an' ah want somepin uh eat." But he wus a colored man. We wus goin' tuh a barbecue, ah an' dis girl. Ah say, "Well, if yo' come go tuh de party, ah'll buy yo' sompin." He say, "Well, if yo' promise me fo' shuah yo'll buy me somepin uh eat, ah'll pay yo' 'fore yO gits dere. BUT IF YO' DON' PAY ME DE MONEY, WHUT AH TELL YO WON'T DO YO' NO GOOD." Ah said, "Well, come on." He said, "Yo' goin' wit de man an', " he said, "de man love yo' an' yo' love de man, an', '' he say, "jis' lak he come an' familiahize [familiarize] wit chew. He don't stay heah an' life [live] wit chew, do he?" Ah says, "He sho' don't." Ah says, "Me an' 'im quit." Ah said, "He lived down dere wit dem othah wimmins, went crazy 'bout 'em.' He say, "Well, when he step out de [door], jis' lak he step, yo' go out an' yo' git 'is right feet, git 'is right track." Says, "When he step out, don' chew go right behin' 'im. De time [after] he go, git 'is right track." Ah didn't even pay 'tention. Ah put on mah coat, de one dat ah wuz weahin' roun'. He say, "Git it from de toe an' rake it back tuh de heel, an' git somepin kinda slick an', " he say, "whut yo' pick up on dere, take an' tie it up in a hans'cuff." An' he say, "When yo' tie it up in a hans'cuff, yo' git nine straight pins, an' if dere any woman dat chew think he goes wit, whatevah dere name dat chew think is yore enemies, yo' call 'em name by name. An' jes' as yo' call 'em name by name, yo' stick dat pin in dat hans'cuff an' dat dirt till yo' git de nine pins in dere." An' [he] say, "When yo' git 'em in dere, hol' up de haid of yore mattress an' put it [handkerchief with pins] on yore springs, an' let yore mattress fall back down an' sleep on it." AN' SAY, "HE'LL COME TUH YO' MO' SO DEN HE'LL GO TUH DIS OTHAH WOMAN." SAY, "HE MAY GO BACK TUH DIS OTHAH WOMAN BUT HE WON'T MEAN 'ER NO GOOD. HE'LL MEAN YO' DE GOOD." (Then what else did he tell you about - there's something else about getting rid of the women?) About de girl. Well, he jes' left an' heah ah thought that... He says, "Now, if yo' wanta git rid of dis woman, if he go wit yo'..." She lived down on - ah live on [something] Street, 10ol, an' she lived on [something] Street, way down at de [something] Garden. "Yo' wanta git rid of dis woman he goin' wit," say, "but if yo' don't do it, if yo' do lak yo' did de firs' time, it'll backwards an' fo'wards. If yo' wanta git dis woman out of town," say, "yo' go tuh her. She ain't comin' where yo' live, cuz she's scared of yo'." Dat's whut he said. "But chew go tuh 'er home. She goes tuh work evah mawnin'." But he wun't lyin'. She do go tuh work an' ah know it. "Yo' know whut kind a shoes she weahs?" Ah said, "Yah, ah do." Say, "Now, ah got de right feet of his'n. Yo' git de left feet of 'er track an' don't rake it from de toe." "See, " [says informant] ah rake his'n from de toe." [He] say, "Yo' take it from de heel. Take it up an' put in a piece of papah an' ca it tuh a ants nest. "'- Now dis is a diff'ren' story. "yo' see how de ants, " he says, "work all day. Yo've seen dat. See, dey be totin' it in but dey don't tote it out. When dey come out, dey come out aftah ca'in' it through [the hole]." Jis' lak dose ants wit'in dey nest, he don't nevah tote out, he totes in. He says, "Yo' take dis woman's track an' rake it from de back of 'er heel, de left foot, an' ca' it tuh a ants nest. Go till yo' find a ants nest, totin' in an' out, ' [he] says, "if yo' have tuh wait till de summah. If yo' cain't run tuh de south, '' say, "yo' wait till den [warmer weather] an' dey ants totin' in."
[Down the coast from Maryland the "south" was always farther south - author.]
An' he say, "Yo' jis' stan' up dere where yo' see all dem red antses totin' dat dirt intuh de hole, an' yo' has it in a papah or hans'cuff an' jes' sprinkle it down, In de Name of de Fathah, an' de Holy Ghost, whut do yo' want wit mah mam? An' ah want mah man fo' ah need mah man mahself. An' jis' drop it dere an sprinkle it." An' de ants will come pick up dis dirt whut ah bring from anothah place an' dey goin' tote it in dere. An' dat's jis' how she'll tramp [become a tramp, a wanderer]. When ah sprinkle it down dere an' dey tote it, she'll have tuh leave dis town. If yo' wanta git rid of 'er, yo' jis' carry it tuh a ants nest an' yo'll be rid of de woman. He say, "De man goin' stay 'cuz yo's sleepin' on 'is dirt undahhaid [under your head]. But de woman will have tuh leave town. She will leave de town an won't even know how she leave.
(Well, did you do that, then?)
DID AH DO IT? AH'VE GOT 'IM BUT AH AIN'T GOIN' STOLE [STEAL] HIM. AH AIN'T RUN 'ER YET, BECUZ IT AIN'T BEEN BUT A COUPLE OF MONTHS BACK. WELL, YO' KNOW, IT'S WINTAHTIME AN' DE ANTSES AIN'T TOTIN' IN TOO MUCH DIRT. IT'S WINTAH. But ah tried it 'bout puttin' de pins intuh him [his foot tracks]. BUT AH KNOW ONE THING, HE'S QUIT [HER]. BUT AH'LL BE DOGGED IF AH AIN'T GOT 'IM. IF SHE SEE HIM, SHE SEE HIM ON DE FLY, 'CUZ SHE SHORE WON'T KETCH 'IM REG'LAH.
(Well, are you waiting now until the ants come out before you run her?)
AH'M GONA "RUN' 'ER THOUGH. AH'M JES' AS GOOD TUH RUN ER AS AH'M SETTIN' IN DIS CHAIR. She go tuh work evah day right by mah house. All ah gotta do - ah'm gonna grab 'er left-feeted track an' ah'm gona git me a ants nest. She's de onliest one give me trouble wit mah man, an' soon as ah git dat she WOn't give me nO trouble. JIS' AS FUR NO'TH AS AH WANT 'ER TUH GO, SHE GOIN'. AH'M GONA NAME DE CITY WHEN AH'M DROPPIN' DE DIRT AN' WE SEE HOW FUR SHE'LL GO. [This woman had a good story but she hopped around the room and kept repeating and repeating.]
Entry 9894
If yo' have someone dat yo' desire dere affection an' dere love, dey say now yo' could ketch a bullfrog an' put 'im intuh a box where he's confined and put holes. Set dis box where ants kin eat 'im up. Aftah dey eat 'im, dere's a bone in 'im. Yo' take dis box up an' look in dere [among the bones]. Dere's a bone-lak, lak a "T". Yo' take dis bone an' go tuh dis person an' put it somewhere in de lining, somewhere in dere clothes where dey won' know it, an' let dem weah it nine days in dere clothes. Aftah dat yo' take it an' keep it, an' as long as dey live, yo' can't git rid of 'em. Don't care whut chew do or how mean yo' be or how cross yo' be tuh 'em, as long as yo' keep dis "T" dere, yo'll nevah git rid of 'em in de world.
Entry 9895
There is something else that ah didn't tell you, they has a peculiar influence on people, an' that is the frog. Did chew evah hear that? You get a toad. You know what a toad is? [I probably nod my head yes.] You take him and you go to - you seen these large ants. You take him while he's alive an' carry him to a bed of these creatures, you know, an' put an ole bucket over him so he can't get out. And they'll jes' eat him completely up, and den they will leave the bones there. It's a bone that come out of his back; it looks like a shoe- buttoner, has a little hook-like in it. You take this and get a piece of this person's clothing. Say, for instance, if you could steal a pair of a lady's stepins or jes' anything that chew have of theirs - that chew can get of theirs, small that chew can wrap up. You wrap that up into a package of some kind like it was something very precious. And as long as that bone remain there, this person will remain very near to you. Now, that is something that has been tried by millions, an' also by myself - something to be substantiated.
Entry 9897
If yo' wanta make a gurl love yuh, [they] say yo' git chew one dese big toadfrogs an' put it in a cigarbox, yo' know. An' put holes in it. Yo' see, all round it so de ants kin go through, dese large red ants. Yo' know, not de real large ones but dese li'l small red ants. An' put it right ovah de hole where nobody won't bothah it, off somewheres or 'nothah. An' dem ants will eat off all de - eat 'im up yo' know. Sting him an' den dey'll eat - feed off him, see, until dey git all dem bones tuh dereself. An' it'll be one bone dere jes' lak a fishbone. Ah've seen it mahself. It look jes' lak a fishbone.
(How does it look now?)
A li'l crooked - yo' know how a fishbone got a li'l crook in it. An' dey'll take dat fishbone an' - sometime yo' know yo' kin git up tuh a gurl an talk wit 'er but she don' care nuthin much 'bout chew; but den de same time, yo' kin git closah yo' know. Well, den when yo' git closah, yo' take dat bone yo' know an' stick it in 'er clothes anywhere, an' yo' can't git rid of 'er.
(That will make her love you.)
Entry 9905
Tell yo' about frogs. Take a frog an' put 'im in a snuffbox an' punch holes in it, an' ca' it down tuh de fo'ks of de road. An' at de twil of day go back fo' nine mawnin's, an' de las' mawnin' he'll be et up by de antses. An' take him den an' take de bone outa his haid, an' keep it in yuh pockit. An' if yo' wan' someone tuh do whut chew ast 'im [ask him] take an' put dat somewheah neah dem, an' dey'll do anything yo' as'cum [ask them].
(When do you take that frog down there to the road?)
At de 'twill of day - yes sir, jis' befo' daylight. (The twill of day, that means just before daylight.) [This last remark of mine is merely an editorial comment for the future. I may have another example of twil but I am not sure. Does it mean at the twilight of day? Somewhere in HOODOO I think we have the expression first Light. Does the latter equal dawn?]
Entry 9909
Well, now, if yo' kin, yo' kin take as li'l a thing as a toadfrog, an' ketch 'im an' put 'im in a box. An' jis' let 'im stay dere, you see, until de ants eat all of 'is flesh offa his bones. An' it's a li'l forked bone in 'im dat yo' kin git. An' if yo' kin git anywheres neah dat man an' put dat bone on 'im, an' he'll come back. Yes, sir, he'll come right back home tuh stay dere.
Entry 10654
If yore daughter mā'ys a man dat chew don't want her mā'y him, if yo' don't [want] him tuh have her, an' she goin' do it anyhow, ovah yore control, yo' go tuh a great big red ant nest. Dem big red ants, on a sand hill where dey be - a big red ant bed. Yo' ketch up a bottle of 'em or a buck- et of 'em, whut [whatever] yo' kin git 'em in, where dey can't git out. Den go tuh a young dogwood tree dat grows, a young dogwood tree, jes' one, one or two yeahs ole - a lil' young one dat Sprout up. Yo' goes an' take yo' a long white thread-string an' tie yo' nine knots in it, jes' lak dat. Yo' go tuh a young dogwood tree at chure farn. Yo' meedn't bother tuh cut it up. Take dat thread-string an' goes roun' an' roan' an' roun' down tuh de root. Wrap it roun' dere an' draw it tight, roun' an' rou' Tie it dere. Take dem ants an' come back an' go up tuh de house wit dem ants, an' &sys, if yo' want de man tuh leave, yo' says, "Ah means fo' dis man tuh leave yo' in a mng, as fast as dese ants is crawlin' on de ground." Dem ants done go oeg dere at once. An' if not, yo' kin say, "Ah want chew tuh come back home tuh mah booe, Mhere yo' left out of, as fast as dese ants is runnin' on de ground. Ah mean yo' not tuh walk back. Ah mean fo' yo' tuh run back." Yo' let dem ants out. Let dem ants out dere in de yards, an' first thing yo' know, dem ants goin' tear right Off [run away as fast as possible]. Yo' kin watch 'em, see 'em, tear right outen de house, leavin' dat way, goin'. Dey ain't goin' undah de house. Dey goin' from de house, every time. Well, den yo' turn loose dem ants an' do dat way lak dat, an' in about six, seven or eight days, natchly [naturally] see, somepin git wrong in de house an' she git dissatisfied, she gather up her clothes an' come back home. An' if not - now if yo' mean fo' him tuh go, he'll slip off de house an' he'll go tuh his home. He's gone. An' de dogwood tree wit dem nine knots an' de strings, dat's is down on him. Dat dogwood tree dat yo' go out dere, an' dem nine knots in dat white string dat chew wrap round dere tight an' tie it round dat dogwood, dat dogwood is fo' him, dat's down on him. Yo' ain't gotta do dat fo' her, if yo' daughter come back. Yo' go ahead an' talk tuh 'em [ants] when yo' git dem ants bed, turn 'em loose in de house an' say, "Ah want chew come back home fast dese ants is runnin' way from dis house."
(In other words, you are sending the man away and bringing your daughter back?)
Yo' send de man away, understand, an' let her stay dere if yo' wanta. Yo' make him leave her.
Entry 11045
De rooster, ah know a little sompin 'bout him. Yo' kin take a rooster three yeahs ole an' kill him. Take his haid. Yo' see a ants' bed haven't yo'? Jes' take dis ole rooster's haid an' jes' put it in dat ants' bed an' let it stay. Yo' know de ants will shore eat de meat off de skull. An' let it stay dere jes' long enough fo' dose ants to git all de meat off de skull, go through his haid an' git all de brains an everything till it come to be testified [petrified?] an' ole. Well, dat's luck.
(How would they use - what would they do with that?)
After den, dis ole fellah tells me, yo' goes tuh de 67th [6th and 7th] Book Of Moses an' den he'll give yo' de direct answer.
Entry 1104
He got in love wit a woman an' he wus a married man an' he wus about tuh quit home - say, he couldn't he'p himself. [This sort of thing is often considered a spell put on a man or woman; even a drunkard drinks because of a spell - see No. 78, p.33.] So he said he went to a ole man [doctor] an' de ole man tole him tuh take a pair of his socks an' put it in dat red ants nest. An' he did so. An' he tole in a certain period of time tuh go back tuh de ants nest an' look at dose socks. An' he said he went back dere an' dey jes' look lak a net, yo' know. An' he [doctor] said, jes' de same as he wus fond of dat woman, jes' dat same way dat he an' her were jes' lak dat, an' he would nevah go back dere any mo'. He jes' weaned off from her. Dat's all ah've evah heard about dat ants nest.
(And your cousin did that in order that he would stay with his wife?)
Dat's whut he did.
The informant narrates instructions to put socks in a red-ant nest; the later relationship change is a reported outcome.
Entry 10448
Mustard seed to catch hag; next morning kill anything "you see necked" - if ant, pull off leg; whatever you do to the ant will happen to the hag [Wil- mington, (204), 109:6+85].
The account gives an ant as a conditional example and alleges that what happens to it affects the hag. Neither that identity nor the claimed transfer is established.