Subject:Clip
Entries
Entry 3929
Tell yo' whut dey did to me. See, yore shirttail - de man jes' take de scissors an' clip jes' about dat much off de end of de shirttail. (The front or back?) Cut off de front of de shirttail whut hang by his private. Den she tooks it an' she wrahps [wraps] it up in one of 'er periods rag, yo' undahstan', an' she fix it ovah de do', an' yo' be home.
(That's to keep the man home?)
Dat's right.
Entry 5967
Take a stran' of yore hair jes' as near de mole of yore head as yo' Kin, an' yo' kin take it an' take one stran' an' tie it into three knots. An crah mawnin' jes' at de dawn of daylight - de firs' mawnin' clip one dose knots out an' put it in de sweat of yore hatban' [sweat- bandl an' tote it arom' until de second morning. An' take dat stran' of hair out dere, dat first hot chew cut out, an' smoke it in yore cigaret right aroun' de forehead where de party [he or she] kin inhale de smoke of it. Well, dat is bringin' dere min' nearah towards yo'. An' de fo'th [second, see later] mawnin' clip de nex knot out. Yo' takes dat an' yo' take yo' a white piece of bran'-new homespun cloth an' ties it aroun' yore wais' an' keeps dat right nex' to yore skin. Dat nex' [third] morning take de nex' piece [knot] dat chew got clipped off from dose two piece [knots] an' yo' put it in yore pocketbook dat chew keep greenback [money] in dere. An' tote dem evahwhere yo' go. [Dem = smoke, waist, pocketbook]. An' jes' as long as a Woman dat yo' Wants - SHE'LL BE HANGIN' BY YO' UNTIL YO' MAKE OTHAH ARRANGEMENTS TO BREAK LOOSE FROM 'ER.
(You do that each morning?)
Each mawnin' until yo' use de last stran'.
(You do it the first morning, the second morning and then the third morning?)
Yes.
(And what did you say - you said, if you had something in your pocketbook?)
De las' piece - de las' stran' dat yo' cut off put in yore pocketbook an' keep it in dere if yo' got any greenback.
Entry 8093
If he's gone fah [far] off, yo' could...an' clip each cornah off it [photograph] an' stick it down, yo' know, lak in a crack an' sprinkle table salt ovah dat, an' yo' make urinate dere fo' nine mawnin's, an' he'll be back.
(Just stick it down in the crack?)
Yes.
Entry 8141
Now, if yo' wanta kill somebody wit dat, yo' take de photograph. Yo' don' wan'a use but jis' part of it. Jis' take off, if it's got a foot, yo' know some got a whole photo- graph, some got jis' a part, some got jis' de haid. Some got jis' de body, some got de whole an' some got jis' de haid. If yo' wants to kill somebody, an' it's de whole one, yo' cut off, jis' clip off de right foot, an' take dat whole photograph an' take it an' turn it, jis' turn it.
(You take off the right foot. And then how do you turn that, now?)
Jis' take it an' turn it tuh yo', jis' roll it, lak yo' take one roll, two rolls, three rolls [to you]. Understan'?
(Keep rolling it to you. The foot part or the rest of the photograph?)
No, de rest of de whole photograph. Yo' undahstan'? Jis' roll dat lak dat three times an' jis' carry it anywhere, don' care where yo' throw it, jis' throw it out somewhere. Well, now, hit's gone on away. All right. Yo' takes dis right foot, an' bring it on back tuh de house, but chew do nuthin wit it den. Let it stay dere, at least six or seven hours, sompin lak dat. "Bout six or seven hours aftah yo' done dis, hold it, take de pichure of dis foot, takes an' puts it down in a bottle, jis' de smallest bottle yo' kin find, an' puts ah reck- on 'bout dat much of mustard seed, lak yo' ketch dat much [demonstrates].
(Just a little pinch of the mustard seed.)
Drop it in de bottle, wit'out anything in it - jis' say about nine, if it ain't but jis' a haid [means foot]. Drop it in dere an' stop it up, an' jis' keep dat wit choo all de time. Dat's tuh influence dat person. Keep dat wit chew. An' yo' weah it a while. Well, no quickah den dey die, yo' gon'a feel dat right shouldah jump, jump jis' lak sompin skip ovah it. Soon as it do dat, yo' must take it [bottle] an' throw it away lak dat. Throw it lak dat. [If informant demonstrated, I missed it.] De safest way, de spirit comin' tuh yo' an' givin' yo' a notice dat dey daid. Don't care where dey are. (Right after this notice that they are dead, you must throw this bottle away right then?) Right then, de right arm will move when dey come.
(You will have that little kick then in the right arm?)
Dat's right.
Entry 8228
If yo' kin git aholt of someone's photograph an' yo' got it in fo' dem, why yo' take dey photograph an' yo' clip de photograph in nine diff'ren' ways.
(How do you mean, cut it nine different ways?)
Yo' cut de fo' cornahs offa it. But yo' ain't gotta cut it plumb up. When yo' cut de fo' cornahs, dat's fo' ways. Well, yo' kin take it an' cut it five mo' diff'ren' ways. Cut it all de way round, but jis' don' cut it up [photo must be left inone piece]. Den take dat pichure an' carry it to runnin' watah. Well, dey'll be harmed, gits in a car wreck or sompin. Dey goin' git out chure way.
[Stopped machine. Informant added a remark. Restart to repeat the addition.]
(They get cut up or something of that sort?)
Yes.
Entry 8822
They kin take yore han'- writin' - dey kin receive a lettah from yo'. Dey take dat lettah an' dey clip all four cornahs of it, see. Don't clip the whole lettah, clip all fo' cornahs of it off like dat, see. Dey take dat lettah den an' dey burn a little hole in it right in de middle, see. Aftah dey have burnt dat den, dey goes out an' dey. gets a lizard, an' dey takes an' dey kills dis lizard, yo' see. An' dey parches 'im up to where dey kin make a powdah out of it. Aftah dey make dat powdah, den dey sprinkle it all ovah dat lettah, yo' see. Dey folds dat lettah up good, see, an' dey folds it up an' dey take it an' bury it some place in de ground, yo' see, an' yo' lose control of dat hand.
(I see.)
Entry 10872
Take the fur. (Cut the fur?) From under the black cat's left leg or the left quarter. (From the front or behind?) Behind, and let it get right dry and you kin fix in a way. Clip it fine and you kin throw it over somebody, but you gotta make the black cat laugh. (I see, before you cut that hair. And then when you throw it over somebody, what will that do?) Well, that goes in your flesh - sticks in your flesh.
(I mean, what is it supposed to do to you?)
It works in your flesh, they say it'll work in you and it effect the flesh so that you taken with a certain disease in your skin and you'll die.
Entry 10873
Well, de hair from a black cat - a real black cat dat ain't got no white spot on him. Yo' know a black bone is lucky. Well, now, yo' tote dat in yore pocket in a gamblin' game. Git de hair from under de fo' laigs. (Under the four legs? Each one of the four. Each one of de fo' laigs.
(The hair from this black cat?)
Dat's right. An' dey tell me yo' go right behin' his ear an' pull it out, an pull it to yo', an' clip it from each one of his ears.
(Each one of his ears. Do you cut off the hair or the ears?)
Cut de hair.
(Cut the hair from each ear?)
From behin' each ear, an' de tip-end of his tail. An' dey tell me yo' kin do anythin' yo' wanta do.
(Well, what do you do with that hair after you fix it up?)
Fix it up, jes' keep it in yore pocket. Yo' wouldn't need to have no big bag, jes' a little small bag. Have it in yore pocketbook, jes' lak yo' goin' tuh git in a big poker game - a big gamblin' game.
Entry 10908
An' den, too, ag'in, if yo' want 'em tuh move, if yo' wanta upset peoples an' have confusion, yo' git chew a small little [young] cat an' a [young] dog: Yo' know, when a cat an a dog git tuhgethah, his bris- tles raises. Well, yo' takes dat cat an' put him tuh where a dog kin see 'em; an' when dey bristles raise up, clip de bristles off de cat an' offa de dog an' mix it tuhget- hah. An' if yo' kin git in dey house, why yo' carry it in dere an' throw it about in de house an' walk on out. Well, dat breaks 'em up an' keeps 'em always stirred up, confused tuh death.
Entry 10911
Dog manure an' dog hair - see, dey gotta git dat dog an' cat tuh fightin'; see, if yo' Wanta separate a man an' a woman. See, yo' git - lak mah, ah have two little white dogs now. Well, yo' git a cat an' git dem tuh fightin' an' clip de hair right quick while dey both mad. Yo' put dat tuhgethah, dat cat hair 'de dog hair, an' dog manure an' cat manure, an' rat manure. Well, yo' ba de three things don' git along, don't chew? Yo' know de cat hates de rat 'de dog hates de cat. So yo' throw dat in dere. It really separate any man wife an' it will make 'em move. Throw it in de room, jis' lak ah come in ah. Fo' instance, ah wanta have sompin in mah han'. Ah could be sittin' heah 'd coald be jis' sprinklin' it aroun'. [I replaced the original four-letter odd by amure.]
Entry 10913
Jes' lak if yo' got a dog an' a cat - ain't chew seen two dogs and two cats meet, an' de cat make up his bristles an' de dog make up his bristles? An' while dey got dere bristles made up, yo'll git de hair behin' both of 'em's neck, see; an' put it in a piece of cloth an' fold up de cloth, an' pin nine straight pins in it - one each way. See [demonstrates] pin one in it [cloth] dat way - an' one in it dat way [heads and points, alternated] an' dat jes' will make 'em fuss an' fight. (Well, now what do they do with that cloth after they pin it up? Where do they put that?) Yo' tote dat in yore pocket, see. When dey git together jes' lak dat dog an' cat fight yo' see; jes' fuss an' fight, be mad [every] time dey see one 'nother. Do dat wit de hair. (But they have to get near one another.) [Here without suggesting an answer, I am asking informant how all these concerns the two victims. Do they walk over Package? Is it thrown into their house? Does he name pins them? Without some such device all this is done by informant's intention.]