Subject:Ask
Entries
Entry 5642
[This is a job-stealing rite! There are a number of them in Hoodoo. To obtain a job is an important rite in hoodoo thought.] Fo' instance, yo'd walk on out dere lak yo' attah [after] quittin' a job, a feller not wantin' a job. All right, yo' could take a shovel an' pick dis [other feller's] track up, de right track, an turn it roun'. An' den de nex' mawnin' yo' kin go dere an' ast dis man fo' de [other man's] job. See? Go dere fo' - well, 'bout three mawnin's, somepin lak dat. But on de third mawnin' yo' go, de man [boss] will give yo' de job. (He would take my job away from me and give it to you, if you turned my foot track around?) Yes.
(But you must get my foot track while I am going to the job?)
Dere yo' are [exactly]. Yore right foot track whilst yo' goin' to de job.
Entry 7505
Well, it's jes' lak dis now, if yo' kill my brothah, or my sister, or any relation of me. All right. Well, dey'll take 'im to de undahtakah an' de undahtakah will 'balm dat body. Well aftah 'balmin' dat body dey will take 'im, an' have a wake - jes' lak dey call set up, yo' know, set up wit 'em yo' undah- stan' dat night, see. An' de nex' day dey bury 'em. [This burial the day fol- lowing death is almost the rule in these 4 volumes of HOODOO.] Well, dey set up wi t 'em dat night an' de nex' day dey'll take 'em to de cemetery. Well, aftah takin' 'em to de cemetery, yo' let 'em lay dere three days see, an' de third yo' die an' de third day yo' rose. All right. Aftah dey rose - yo' will rise on de third day - an' aftah dey rose, an' I knows it's de third day, well, I'll go to dat grave an' I'll stan' at de haid an' I'll call dat person who kill yo'. I will call 'im three times. See. Aftah I call 'em three times, I will call 'em twice, an' [after] I call 'em twice, den I'll turn around an' call 'em once [magic of diminishing amount] right at de head of de grave. An' [when] I call 'em once, den I'll kneel down an' I ask de Lord fo' what I want to be done to 'im. An' jes' de same [way] he killed yo' or me - if he killed me wit a knife, somebody will shoot 'im an' kill 'im; an' if he shoot me, somebody will cut 'im to death. [Murderer will suffer a death different from the one he gave.] See, but he'll have to die somehow.
Entry 7506
Dere's things yo' kin do to de dead man. If yo' go to dis dead man, dey claim to his grave, nine mawnin's an' call 'is name an' ast 'im who killed 'im, dey claim dat he'll tell yo' in de ninth mawnin'. (What time do you go out there in the morning? You go out there in the ' morning, you say.) Yes, go out to dis body jes' 'fore day - jes' since it's night.
Entry 7507
Shot to death. Well, now if yo' is shot to death, yo' jes' take an' go in de woods an' dey git somepin dey calls scrubby oak [second-growth oak?] switch. Well yo' git one of dose switches, an' de very person whut's dead in de coffin, yo' take an' put dat in 'is han'. Put dat switch in 'is han' in de coffin, see, an' tell 'im, say, "Whip dis person across de whole worl'" - jes' who his name wus, yo' undah- stan' - "whip him until he git enough." Jes' call de dead person name an' also dis othah man's name - see, what did de killin' - an' den yo' close 'is hand on it. See [demonstrates] jes' close his hand right up on it, an' he'll finish drawin' up [!!!]. See. An' den when yo' bury 'im, in spirit dis same scrubby- oak switch an' dis fellah in spirit will whip dis othah fellah until he die. He won't live very long. If he live six months he doin' good. [Charleston, S. Car.,
(?).639:2+85.]
Entry 7618
Ah heard 'em say dat yuh kin go tuh de graveyard - lak dat, if ah Wants tuh change mah luck - dat ah kin go tuh de cemetery an' dig right up on de right-hand side of de grave jis' about where ah think de heart oughta lay, an' dig a hole down deep an' git me out two han'fulla dirt. Bring it out. An' when ah git dis dirt, ask fo' luck - jis' ask of de dead fo' luck, an' drop from five tuh eight pennies in dat hole an' plug it up. An' when ah rise up from off mah knees, tuh thank 'em [a rare courtesy!], an' walk away an' don't look back. Well, ah take dis dirt an' carry it tuh mah house an' sprinkle it roun' dere, an' dey say dat will give me luck.
(That is to change your luck. In anything?)
In anything.
Entry 7619
(What do you know about graveyard dirt?)
Well, ah tell yuh, yuh kin take graveyard dirt - now, yuh kin go tuh de grave- yard jis' lak if yuh wanted tuh do anybody any harm. Well, yuh kin go dere. Well, yuh kin carry - it's a cert'in 'mount of pennies fo' yuh tuh carry, see. Well, yuh kin carry dem eight pennies an' yuh go tuh de haid of de person, see. Well, yuh ast dem fo' some of de dirt, see; an' tell 'em dat chew'll pay dem fo' it, see. Well, yuh drop dese pennies intuh de dirt right tuh de haid of dem, see. Den yuh take some of de dirt. Git some of de dirt an' put it in a papah an' yuh kin bring it on back home, see. Well, yuh kin take dat dirt an' jis' lak yuh go tuh a person's house, or yuh kin git someone tuh do it fo' yo'. Yuh kin go in dere an' sprinkle dat dirt roun' in dere, see. Well, it will cause dat whole room tuh git upstarted, see. Dere'll be fussin' an' fightin' an' goin' on until dey [man and woman] be separated, see.
Entry 7908
If yo' want a job, when yo' git ready fo' dis job, yo' go an' git chew some sulphuh an' git chew some dirt from de graveyard. An' yo' - jes' lak yo' goin' tuh dis job - yo' git tuh de house, yo' sprinkle dis roun' de house. An' when yo' sprinkle dis roun' de house, den yo' could walk up on de do' an' knock at de do'. An' ask fo' de job an' yo' do dat fo' nine mawnin's, an' in de ninth mawnin' yo'll git dis job.
(You mean you sprinkle this in front of the boss' house or the job?)
Yes [at the home of the boss].
(All the way round the house?)
Not all de way roun' de house, jes' from de front. Lak dat's de cornah [demon- strates], from dere tuh de cornah of de house.
(Just to the front of the house?)
Yes.
Entry 8307
Yo' could take a pichure. Now, if yo' wanta do good, if yo' wanted de person tuh love yo' or somepin an' - yo' put dat pichure tuh de haid of yore bed, an' call de person's name nine mawnin's. An' wit a pin dat's nevah been used, a new pin, yo' put nine holes intuh dis pichure fo' nine mawnin's. An' while yo' punch dose holes, yo' talk tuh de pichure jis' lak yo' talkin' tuh de person. An' aftah de nine mawnin's, jis' whatevah de statements were dat chew made, dat person will do jis' lak yo' ast dem tuh do, but chew must keep dat pichure dere.
(You punch one hole each morning or nine holes?)
Nine holes for nine mawnin's.
(That's nine times nine?)
Eighty-one.
(And you keep it at the head of the bed?)
Yo' keep it dere tuh de haid of yore bed.
(Now you do harm you say with the photograph. Tell me about that.)
Well, if yo' wanta do harm wit de pichure, yo' could take dat pichure an' yo' take dat tuh de graveyard, an' yo' go an' yo' call de spirits of de dead. When yo' think dat de spirit is dere, yo' take out nine han'fuls of dirt out of dat grave. Den yo' place dis pichure down dere an' yo' explain tuh de spirit jis' whut yo' want 'em tuh do tuh dat pahticlah [particular] person, see. An' what- evah yo' say, den yo' pay dat spirit.
(Well, now. What do you usually pay the spirit?)
Well, it goes - Well, NOW DE FIRST DEGREE IS THREE PENNIES. DE SECOND IS NINE AN' DE THIRD IS THIRTEEN. [I do not recall that these sums of money paid the spirit are called degree elsewhere in Hoodoo.]
(Then you cover that picture up in there?)
Let it stay dere. An' yo' have tuh explain tuh dis spirit whut tuh do tuh dat pahticlah person, an' pay dem tuh do dat. Dey'll do it jis' lak yo' ast dem tuh do.
Entry 8880
Well, if somebody wrote chew a lettah now - jes' lak if yo' wanted tuh git tuh somebody an' dey wrote chew a lettah, why yo' take dat lettah an' yo' read it. Yo' read it backwards. An' den, if yo' kin read backwards, take dat lettah an' yo' read it backwards. An' den yo' take an' take it tuh a willah tree. Yo' take it to a willah tree. An' a willah's got a forked root tuh it. Yo' dig down tuh dat root where it's forked down dere, an' den yo' turn dat lettah bottom upwards undah dere, undah dat tree, an' kivah [cover] it back up. Well, yo' git de devil's shoestring an' yo' weah it round yore arm, jes' tie it round yore arm. Dat's whut ah heered 'bout dat.
(What will all this do now?)
Dat jes' lak if yo' love somebody an' want 'em back tuh yuh or want - whatsom- evah yo' want done tuh 'em. Whatsomevah yo' want done, when yo' go tuh dat wil- lah tree an' put dat undah dere, yo' speaks dat befo' de Fathah, Son an' Holy Ghost.
Entry 9066
Well, dis jes' lak dis now, tuh change de judge mind. When it time fo' yuh co't - people talk about Hearts Cologne but dat stuff stands fer a lotta things, dis yere Hearts Cologne. Well, yo' take dat. Take a li'le dat Hearts Cologne an' yo' sprinkle it in de band of yo' hat. All right. Yo' take a li'le an' yo' put it intuh de mole [mold] of yo' haid, see. All right. Yo' take a li'le of it on yer fingah an' yo' smeah it across yo' chin. All right. Yo' put some on both sides of yuh face. See. All right. Den yo' drink de rest. An' dat's [that]. Jes' what chew ask de judge tuh do, he will come yer way.
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 10616
Yo' kin take devil's-shoestring an' Adam-an'-Eve root an' if it's any- body roun' dat chew wanta do somepin, wan' dem tuh leave or somepin, yo' could put it up ovah yore front do'. An' if dey evah walk undah it, anything dat chew tell 'em or say dat chew want 'em tuh do, dey do it. An' yo' don' even have tuh tell 'em.
Entry 10876
Ah heered people say tuh ketch a black cat, hold him back of his neck an' strip yore han' down de tail seven times an' count 'em, an' throw him from yo' an' cuss at him, an' don't look back at him. An' dat as good a luck fo' work as a man could do. (Well, after you have done this with the cat, then what do you do?) After ah throwed de cat away, yo' [ah] cuss at him. Why zh'd git out an' go an' ask some man fo' a job, an' ah would be lucky enough to git a job by dat.
Entry 11740
Say like if any of yo's people is in jail an' yo' don't have money to git 'em out, yo' go to a graveyard an' yo' takes two pennies. And dey say yo digs a hole, yo' know, 'way down in de middle of de grave, an' yo' pays de dead spirits fer dat dirt. And yo' tell dat dirt, tell dat spirit dat, "Ah wants chew to go direct to de jailhouse and ah wanta git so-and-so out." And dey say yo' jest leave dem two pennies there and you'll go on to de co'thouse when dey be's having co't, and you come [out] without [paying] money. (What will you do with that dirt?) Yo' jest picks up dat dirt and carries it to de jail- house wit yo', an' yo' jest holds it tight on yo', and when de' havin' yo' trial, dey more den apt to turn yo' loose and yo' won't have to pay nuthin - jest dem two pennies what chew left at de graveyard.
Entry 12751
Well de first thing would be if yo' wanted a job. An' dat go fo' a job, a favor or money or anything. Dat chew would git chew some of dis root whut de' [they] call rat- tlesnake marster, an' spice. An' yo' take dat root an' yo' chew dat rat- tlesnake marster, but chew have [hold] de spice in yore mouth. An' yo' spit dat when yo' speakin' tuh him. "Fore yo' consult him yo' spit from him an' nevah spit tuh him. Den he cannot turn yo' down even [whether] it's money or job or whut. If he don't place yo den, he will place yo' [later], but don't nevah spit, jes' spit tuh him but [when] chew spit jes' turn away from him, turn yore haid from him an' spit.
Entry 13077
Jes' lak if a fellah wanta git a job, ah hear 'em, dey take an' kill a snake an' let him dry, yo' know. An' take him yo' know, jes' lak he git into ashes, yo' know an' put him inside of a bottle. An' take - jes' lak a cigaret smoke an' blow it in dat bottle an' stop it up. An' dey says dat every time yo' open dat bottle, a little sompin will come up out dat bottle lak a snake, yo' know. Say if yo' tote dat in yore pocket an' tote it in yore pocket bottom upwards, yo' know, dat chew could git a job. But ah ain't nevah tried it. Ah had a ole fellah tell me dat once but ah ain't nevah tried it. Waycross, Ga., (1072), 173:3.]
Entry 13238
In the morning when you get up to go to your landlord, the fellah that owns the property [you rent], you take and put sugar and [in] a brown piece of paper, wrapping paper. And fold it to you 9 times and put it in the bottom of your right shoe. And any favor that you'd ask him to do for you, he would do it. He can't turn you down whether he's out [of] money or not.
Entry 13313
Git choo some chewin' tobaccah an' jis' break off fo' corners of dat 'baccah an' chew it - dem fo' corners yo' chew it. Then put de otber piece In your pocket, an' go down there wheresomever you Suppose to git a job an' he'll purtty near give yo' one. [Years ago the old plug tobacco Was cut into oblong pieces as purchased. This is an unusual four corner rite, my only example of it.]
Entry 13329
You go out here an' git this trumpet root. That's a root that grows - it don't grow now'ere roun' here. It grows in the middle of a pond. When you git to that trumpet it's like a bugle. It's about that long [4 feet], it stays green winter an' summer. You take that trumpet root an' you pour some water in it [the flower] from a pump. Nuthin mus' be but de pump. An' take that water an' boil it. Yo' see, yo' boil that trumpet root all together. Well, when yo' git that water, yo' bottle it up an' take a drink. An' take that trumpet an' cut it up, an' put it out there an' let it git dry. Either put it in de stove an' let it dry. Well, yo' powder dat up. Yo' take that then an' yo' go to captain: 'Captain, I'm out of a job an' I wan'a job." Put some that [dust] on yo' [and take a drink of trumpet-root tea before you go] an' yo' got a job.