Subject:Eat
Entries
Entry 3755
Tuh git 'em apart, yo' gotta go right den, an' if dey stand it dey gotta eat a piece of dog. Jes' - git a - kill anothah dog an' git a piece of de meat outa de backbone right from de small part of de back. 中 Git a piece of dat an' cook it an' give it to dem. (What will that do then?) Dat will shrink 'em down an' dey come apart.
Entry 3954
Well, dat's like if yo' wanta kill someone. Dat's whut dat is. Yo' kin take a woman ministratin' cloth, don't chew know, an' yo' kin care [carry] it to a pine tree as de sun go down an' yo' kin take a ten-penny nail an' drive it in de hollow of dis ole pine tree as de sun goin' down an' walk off an' leave it right dere. Den when de frog eat it up, den she'll die.
(What eats it up?)
De frog.
(The frog eats that up?)
Yeah, a frog will eat dat up, den yo'll die.
(Where would the frog come from?)
Yo' would have tuh carry de frog dere an' put de frog in dere. When de frog eat dat up, den yo'll die.
(You just put it in the hollow of a tree?)
De hollah of a ole pine tree.
Entry 6077
Ah heard dat chew take nine stran's of yore hair, lak yo' wanted yore basban' or sompin lak dat to stay wit chew. Take nine stran's of yore hair from undah yore arm, undah yore left arm, an' nine from down heah, an' trim mine of yore fingahnails, an' put 'em on de [stove] lid an' parch it, an' sift it op in some dough or cake or sompin an' let 'em eat it. He'll nevah leave yo'.
Entry 6542
Tell me yo' kin take a dog hair, see, an' if dey cook it in yore bread an' git chew tuh eat it, it will fill yo' full of li'le things lak grubworms an' things. Eat chew up inside.
Entry 6589
Lak if a person is sick an' dey wants tuh git rid of dis sick person. Bell, dey kin fix up a remedy fo' dem dat de maggots will eat 'em up. Dey kin take dese snails an' dey kin make a salve out dese snails an' dey rub wit dis salve an' dat'll bring maggots intuh dey skin. Well, dose maggots will eat dis person £P. DEY HAVE PLENTY CASES IN DIS CITY WHERE WOMEN HAVE FIXED MEN AN' DEY EVEN THROW UP MAGGoTS.
Entry 6959
One of de greatest things fo' any disastah, it have been said, dat if anythin' happens tuh yo' by evil people, dat's tuh jis' eat plenty sulphur. Jis' lay right tuh dat sulphur an' it will kill it out.
(That's if there is anything inside of you?)
Dat's de idea. Eat dat sulphur.
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 10263
(What can he do for that?) Well, he kin go to take black mo- lasses syrup an' eat it, eat it fo' about nine days. Dat will kill ever' bit of it [impotence].
Entry 10970
Take a aig an' boil it, cut it half in two, an' take de yelloo part out an' fill that up with salt, an' take it an' eat it without drintdn'gyatah at all. An' ask to see de man dat chure goin' tuh marry or the w yo goin' tuh marry, an' yo'll see 'em when yo' drink dat watah. [You vill see the that night in a dream. This is ordinary folklore. I have included it bere becamse divination is part of a hoo- doo or root doctor's work. He or she might offer this advice to a client.] [Fay- etteville, N. Car., 2572:16.]
Entry 11116
Take dat coconut if it's a bad person aroun' yo' somewhere an' yo' jes' don't wanta run him away or yo' jes' don't wanta hurt him, but chew jes' take dat coconut yo' know an' jes' whip it, jes' keep awhippin' it, an' he'll git a whippin' from someone but it won't be from yo'. An' den aftah yo' whip it good, den yo' git it tuh somebody. Don't chew bust it; don't chew eat it. Give it tuh someone else.
(Do you do anything with that coconut before you whip it?)
Yo' don't do anything but jes' git it out de sto' an' start tuh uhippin' on it, yo' know, in a private place.
Entry 11642
Now mah sister, she gambled - she used tuh gamble. She don' gamble no mo'.... But fo' luck fo' gamblin', tuh eat herrin's or sardines, dat'll give 'em [luck]. (Luck for gambling?) Yes.
Entry 12432
Ah've heard this about a mockin'bird. Ah knows dis to be a fact because me an' mah brothah is [when just] boys, yo' know, we's gwine long at night, a dark night, an' we would go whut we call bird threshin' yo' see. We went bird threshin' an' killed a mockin'bird.[This is evi- dently done with long switches or sticks, beating the shrub- bery on which bird was singing. I should have asked for details.] Well, mah mothah wuz living den - mah mothah's dead now. An' she tole us, she said, "Chillun, ef ah wuz yo' all ah wouldn't eat dat mockin'bird, " she said, "dat is mah death dat chew'all got." Well, we went ahead on. We went ahead on an' eat de mockin'bird an' sure 'nuff in about six month's time mah mothah died.
(What did that have to do with her death?)
Well, ah don't know, but dey say [to kill] a mockin'bird is bad, say dat would be murder. But we went ahead an' et dis mockin'bird. An' so dat wuz mah mothah death.
Entry 13063
Well, ah heard dat if she make him eat out of de fryin' pan an' pot, he'd stay home. He won't be so happy tuh go off. (How do you mean, eat out of the frying pan and pot?) Well, wherevah it's cooked, yo' know, let him eat out of that an' don't put it into a plate - jes' let him eat out of de pan - de fryin' pan or skillet or anything lak a pot.
Entry 13236
That is only used in a drink. Now if you know a person is an ex- cessive drunkard, you know that you can always give them in something to drink- mostly using wine, or where eggnogs or cocktails are concerned. You get a little bag, a little new bag - linen or domestic white cloth, cotton. You put three tablespoons of sugar in this little bag and sew it up. You have seen a sachet bag. You make a sachet bag out of that and wear it under the arms, where you know nearly everyone will perspire under de arms. (Which arm do you wear it under?) Under the left. You wear that for nine days and then you take this and add it to the per- son - well, even if they drink coffee, you mix that in the coffee. But be sure that chew don't drink it, you see. [In hoodoo is is always dangerous to sample any of your own work!] But you'll put that in the sugar dish after you wear it, but if not, if they drink, you put it in their drink. That is the way that is done. [Despite this reference this rite continues as follows: Mobile, Ala.,
(650), 866:3.]
[The preceding account comes from a Mrs. Brady, a woman with great experience in the world I wanted to meet, she having sold curios, given advice to women in trouble, told fortunes, made hands, etc. In fact she became one of my helpers. Unfortunately my first day recordings were so bad I had everyone back for another session. Here is what she said the secone time - substantially the same, but of greater interest.] Git chew a piece of new domestic, any kind of new white cloth, and you make these little bags [as I said, she made hands]. You've seen little sachet bags. Put about three tablespoons of sugar in each one and sew it up, and then you pin it under the pits of the arms.
(Both arms?)
Sure.
(One under each arm.)
There are other people wear 'em other places but it's not so nice. They do that. But ah tell you it really does have a strange effect on people. Ah've seen things carried out like that - it really does. And then after they have worn that nine days, then it will absolutely do the work.
(Then what do they do with that?)
You put it in the coffee or in wine, anything that you have to use anything sweet in.
(And what will that do - hold them?)
It will hold them, influence them towards you.
Entry 13296
Dese ole oak trees an' dey burn 'em into ashes, coals. Den yo' ketch a terrapin an' put him in dese ashes, coals. An' put dis ole terrapin in dere an' let him roast. An' dey eat him, hull shell, entrails an' all. [Hull shell could be con- fusing. Victim does not eat hull and shell and entrails. The shell is hulled, cleaned out, and meat and entrails eaten. While collecting folkore on Deal Island in Chesapeake Bay in 1936 I learned that oysters and clams are shucked a word I had always associated with Indian corn. Even so, by hull, informant may mean WHOLE shell, entrails and all.] Dat will cure dat.
(What will that cure?)
Cure de consumption [tuberculosis]. Cure it on anybody. Ah don't care who dey is.
Entry 1226
Say yo' could take a dog when she's in heat an' kill her an' if anybody had consumption or T. B. or somethin' lak dat an' cook her unbeknown to 'em an' let 'em eat it, dey say dat would cure 'em.
Entry 1233
Well, a dog now, if yo' got de yellah ja'ndice an' yo' can't be cured from doctors, yo' have to catch it - it's hard to ketch - yo' has to ketch dat dog's urinate. An' den yo' take, yo' don't let chure patient know that, but yo ketch his [dog] urinate an' yo' mix it up in his bread an' yo' let him eat that bread, an' it cures the yellah ja'ndice.
Entry 1424
If anybody have tricked yo' any way, in a case like dat yo' kin git chew one. Go in a store an' steal it, a Irish potato. Don't let 'em give it. Jest steal it an' put it in yore pocket an' when it gits hard - it git hard jest lak a brick - an' whenevah it gits hard, why yo' take it out an' eat it. It be hard but eat it, an' whatevah is wrong with yo' why it will kill it.
(That would kill any poison that anybody has got in me in any way?)
Yes.
Entry 2239
If yo' have trouble wit de law yo' kin git dis rattlesnake marster. Everybody should keep it fo' protection, cause it's natch'ly good - ah know personally - for friends or either enemies. A person should keep it an' chew it - at least swallow a piece of it as much as once a day. Now that is something good to keep the law off yo'. [Rattlesnake master as protection, see p.469f.]
Entry 3128
An' den she kin do dis heah. She kin take an' trim 'er fingahnails, she take some of 'er period, an' she puts it intuh his sompin tuh eat, an' dat'll take his nature from 'im [except for her].
(She has to put all those together though?)
Scrape huh fingahnails an' take some of 'er ministrate.
Entry 3440
A man kin kill a proudin' gyp an' take dat livah an' cook it an' let 'is wife eat it, an' if she went out near anothah man, dat's where she'd be found. [My following comment is not a gratuitous remark of mine. I am merely re- peating what informant had added after I had turned off recording machine. Other examples of these brief additions will be found in the text.]
(There's no way of getting them apart.)
Entry 3850
[We are so concerned with the ordinary magic rites of walking back- wards, counting, throwing over shoulder, and others, that we seldom think of the rarer magic actions (not omens) such as anger and temper. Here are several examples from FACI 1st ed: "Peppers can be grown only by a person who has a violent temper" (1057); "Unless you are angry while planting peppers, they will not grow" (1058); and "Stop a person's hiccough by making him angry" (5419). The following rite is the rare one of pretended anger:] A woman kin take her sickny [sickness] rag, yo' undahstan'. She kin take dat off it an' put it in 'is rations, an' give it to him to eat. An' whilst he's eatin' it an' befo' he git through eatin' an', she scold at 'im, yo' undah- stan'. Well, jes' anythin' she wanta do den, she got 'im. He be scared of 'er from den on.
(But she must do that while he is eating it?)
Whilst he eatin' it, yassuh. She gotta scold at 'im whilst he eatin' it.
Entry 3923
De othah way dey do dat, jes' lak a woman when she be's ministratin', she takes dat an' she puts it in a cake. An' she 'solve [dissolve] dat intuh dat cake, see. He eat dat an' he stop runnin' roun' wit evahbody else but.'er.
Entry 3925
An' dere anothah one. She kin take her monthlies an' if yo's eatin' dere, an' put it in a li'le bread, an' yo' go wit nobody else but 'er. It make no diff'rence how many wimmins or whut dey got, yo' don't care fo' nobody but 'er.
Entry 3936
Take - buy livah or steak an' tie it roun' 'twixt 'er laigs right chere, right in 'er groin. Tie it roun' dere an' wear it in de mawnin' - wear it till eventime tuh cook it. An' den she'll go an' cook dat an' yo'll eat dat an' den yo' can't leave her. Yo' jes' go crazy ovah her.
Entry 3939
Go to de sto' an' buy a piece of steak, an' take dat steak an' put it on her as a pad, jes' lak she wearin' a cloth, an' WEAR IT DERE FO' THREE DAYS [a rare length of time for this rite], an' take it an' cook it - don't hash it, jes' take it an' fry it. An' he eat. Don't care how he's been runnin' roun', he goin' stop an' commence stayin' home. But, HE WILL KILL 'ER OR SHE WILL KILL "ERSELF.
Entry 3941
A woman kin take an' go tuh de market an' she kin git a piece of steak or a piece of po'k [pork] livah, an' she kin put it on a cloth, jes' lak she put- tin' on a cloth fo' her monthly period - lay it between 'er laigs jes' lak she fixin' a cloth when she's sick. An' lay it right on dere an' pin it up on 'er, jes' lak she put on a towel. Put dat on dat mawnin' an' wear it until twelve a'clock. Take it off an' cook it an' give it to him, jes' 'nuff fo' him - nuthin tuh throw 'way, jes' 'nuff fo' him - an' let 'im eat it. An' when he eat, den she's got 'im so - she got 'im den.
Entry 4082
[They] say dat she kin take, if she wanted tuh make him really love her, or he love her, dat he kin go take some of 'is, or she kin take some of 'er watah, anythin' lak dat, an' put it in somepin tuh eat an' cook it fo' him, yuh know, an' let 'im eat dat.
Entry 6423
Git de dirt out of a person's fingahnails an' yo' kin hurt 'em wit dat. Den yo' kin make love wit dat.
(How would you make love with that?)
Now, yo' kin take de dirt out chure fingahnails dere an' put it in anything dey eat or eithah drink. An' jis' let he [him] git dat wit dat dirt outa yore fingahnails an' he eats dat, if yo' wan' dem dere yo' see. An' when he git dat den yo' got 'im, yo' see.
(That's in case of love.)
Entry 6424
Dey use it tuh make love, boys an' girls yo' know.
(The dirt from under their fingers. How do they do that?)
[I had asked about fingernail dirt before turning on recording machine. My question here is merely a comment for myself.] Well, dey put it intuh dere food jis' lak it wuz powdahed.
(What is that supposed to do?)
Well, he would eat wit 'em yo' know an' dat make him think mo' of de party, yo' see.
Entry 11477
They takes that scurve [obsolete for scurf, here flakes or scales of dead skin] off their feet after they take a bath. They scrapes a lot of it off. Like as if they are cooking some kind of meat, well they'll wear that piece of meat up on 'em - like if they buy a steak in the morning, well they wear that on their private, that piece of meat. Then they take this meat with that stuff off their feet, and they cook all that together, and they feed that to the man to eat. But dey [the woman] don't eat it.
(What will that do?)
Well, that makes a man be upstirred, makes him lazy, makes him trifling. That's occasion if a woman really likes a man and wants to keep him at home.
Entry 782
They said there wus a ole man an' his wife. They wus livin' lovely togethah fer about forty years an' nobody ever known no disagreement or nuthin' between 'em. So one day he wus workin' in the field an' there come along a ole man an' says, "I want to know if you want your fortune told?" He says, "Well, no." He says, "Yes, I'll tell you your fortune," he says, "for a quartah [twenty- five cents]. = He says, "Well, I don't - I ain't got de money, but I don't care about it." He says, "But you ought to have your fortune told becuz there some things you ought to know." So he says, "Where's your wife?" He says, "She's home." He says, "Well, now, your wife has got somepin against you." And he said, "Now, I'll tell yo' whut choo do." He say, "Well, where do you keep yore razor?" He said, "I'll tell you," he said, "I keep it home over the doah in a little box." You know, in the country where they had jis' a little one-room house like they - specially they did about twenty-five or thirty yeahs ago [before 1936] - they use'ly had a little shelf up ovah de doah, an' a rack with a gun, an' a little shelf to put the boxes where maybe they had little chains, and then maybe nails an' diff'rent things like that. So he said that's where he kept his razor. So he says, "Well, now, you got to wat-chore [watch your] wife," say, "she may try to hurt choo if she got yore razor." He says, "I see," he says, "you got a mole there - that's a lucky sign. You got a mole there," he say, "on your neck," he says, "but if you wat-chure wife," he says - "well," he says, "I jis' want to tell you to be careful." So he tole 'im good-by. He got the quartah. So he went on to the house. When he got there the old lady she wus in there fixin' up her husband's dinner [midday meal]. You know, he tole 'im, "Now, you mind too, how you eat" - whut she fix it fer 'im - "if you don't mind, she'll trick you." So when he got to the house he met her, [he] pleasant an' nice, an' tole 'er, "I want to tell yore fortune - you need yore fortune tole." She say, "You don't know anything." She say, "I don't wan'a spend mah money." So he says, "Well, I'll tell you, I'll tell yore fortune for ten cents." She says, "Well, all right." He says, "Where is yore husband?" She says, "He's in the field." He says, "Zhoo know, '' he says, "yore husband got a big big mole on his neck." She says, "He's got a mole on his neck." "You see, I tell that much; you know I know somepin, don't choo?" She says, "Yes, that's the truth. He sure has got a mole on his neck." He says, "Well, now, I'll tell you whu' choo do, '' he says, ''don't he keep his razor right over the doah?" She says, "Well, I declare, you sure do know things, don't chew!" He say, "Well, now, I tell you that much." He say, "Now, you take that razor at night when he lay down - you take that razor an' cut that mole off an' you kin git every dollah he's keepin' from you; you'll find out somepin or othah you ought to been knowin' long along." He wus so earnest that she said, "Well, I'll do it." So he says, "Now, I'll tell yeh," he says, "when he come, don't choo say nuthin' to 'im, you jis' watch 'im an'," he says, "when he goes to sleep, you go an' take that razor an' you cut that mole off." Now, he done tole the ole man out there in the field that his wife gon'a try do somepin or othah to trick 'im. So when the ole man come, he looked all up an' down. You see, both of 'em wus curious now, 'cause they'd heard somepin. So she - in order to keep from sayin' somepin or othah to 'im - she goes an' gits 'er mouth fulla watah, 'cause she's a great talker an' she couldn't keep nuthin'. An' she wanted to tell 'im so bad that this ole man had been there an' tole 'er all this. But she gon'a wait until he gits to sleep, you see. So she filled her mouth fulla watah. An' when she filled her mouth fulla watah, he come in an' he said, "Well, you got mah dinnah done?" She wouldn't talk. He wondered whut in the world wus the mattah wit 'er. She nevah said nuthin'. He wondered whut the matter. An' so he went on an' eat his dinnah. Night come an' not a word. He couldn't imagine not to hear from his wife - this man said somepin a mattah wit his wife. "Now, whut in the name's the mattah." So fin'lly, at last he laid down. An' when he laid down he says, "Now, I'm not goin' to go to sleep. So he pretended that he wus asleep. An' she waited an' waited an' waited for him to snore. Well, directly he made a little noise like he's asleep, an' she gits up an' goes to git the razor. She got the razor. He looked right at her. She got the razor an' started to the baid. Jis' as soon as she started to - this ole man jump up, he didn't wait choo see. They said he jumped up an' says, "Yes, you started to kill me." That jis' made a great big disturbance an' broke 'em up. [Wilmington, N. Car., (215), 123:5+85.] [This trick by the fortune-teller says my informant happened years ago in Effingham County, Georgia - on Savannah River and next county above Savannah. But it is a folk story. My note while transcribing original reads, "Also heard this story in S. C., use (this) as separate appendix and refer to in Intro. I have not yet found this extra version. A note about third version reads: "Story of the old woman and the razor - badly recorded - recheck - on the full moon at midnight (wife to) get hair from behind husband's left ear and had to be done with his razor - (the trickster called) cunjure doctor - badly recorded but last part well recorded, so know what story is about - wife was going to cut his throat to get insurance money to get this young man - gave this as an actual occurrence (Richmond, Va., 418,369:7)" - Introduction Notes.]
Entry 1856
I have tried dis when ah first came to St. Petersburg - go an' look me round, couldn't git me a job nowhere. One fellah tells me, says, "Now yo' go an' take yo' a dime, '' he say, "an' buy yo' a crocus fish [fresh-water drumfish]." After yo' git dat fish, yo' cut de head off dat fish an' yo' kin do whut yo wish. Yo' kin eat de fish or yo' kin throw it away. But be shure yo' git de head of dat fish an' cut it open an' git dem two rocks outa dere an' put it in a sack an' wear it in yore pocket. Dere can't nobody turn yo' down fo' a job.
Entry 3940
Den a woman could take a - jes' like yo' go to market an' yo' git some steaks - yo' get steak. She know yo' like dat, or any kin'a meat yo' like. She wears dat right 'tween 'er laigs. She take dat an' leave her wear dat whole day an' she cook dat. An' she'll take dirt from undah her toenail an' she'll put it in yore food. She'll take an' she'll get some tomato paste an' put it into dat meat. De minute yo' eat dat, regardless of where dat woman at or where yo' at, but yo'll suffah wlt cramps in yore stomik. She done got dat, all dat filth down in yore stomik. Don't care where dat woman at, yo' want to see her, [even] if dere mens wit a fowl gun dere; but if dat woman in dat buildin', yo'll take a chance an' go on where she at. Dat's what yo' call she done fed yo' off 8ome of 'er 'pearance.
Entry 9919
Put frog eggs in food; creates frogs inside. [Mobile, Ala., 945:4]. Tuo drops of frog blood in drink creates frogs in person. Can be cured by sweet milk, saltpeter, and alum. [Mobile, Ala., 920:4]. Starve frog to death, parch head to powder, feed to a person, frogs inside you. [Vicksburg, Miss., 997:3]. Frog burned to powder, mix with graveyard dirt, across enemy's path for bad luck. [Snowhill, Md., from man born and lived early life near Sewanee, Tenn., 9:1].
Entry 1224
Den you kin take and feed dat dog - kill dat dog and get her blood while - if she's howling and gwine on and cuttin' up, and feed it to a person and he'll howl jest like dat dog. He'll howl - you'll put him to howlin', you see, put him to howlin'. He jest howlin' like a dog: [For another method of making a person bark like a dog, see No. 775, p.256.]
Entry 1898
Dey tell me yo' kin take a toadfrog an' go into any kind of a show or anything like that, even in a gambling room, anywhere yo' mind to carry 'em like dat. Said jest if someone come in dis town an' yo' wants tuh break up de show or anything like dat, say if there's any kinda lodestone dey have workin' round dere an' yo' wants to find out whether it is lodestone, jest ketch yo' a toadfrog an' go in dere an' dey say de toadfrog will eat all de lodestone dey carries in dere an' dey jest can't act.
Entry 3154
He kin take de right han' of a roostah's spur an' do de same thing - take de right foot of a roostah spur an' do de same thing. An' she kin take de left one an' do de same. Yo' jes' buy yo' a roostah, kill 'im an' eat 'im, cut dat spur off, an' aftah de last dish of dat is eat up, yo' jes' take it an' rub it lak dat.
(Where do you rub it?)
Jes' rub it in yore han', de right of a roostah's spur. If she wanta work one on yo', yo' undahstan', jes' take an' rub 'em lak dat three times. Whensomevah she wit chew, she kin rub it up dere lak she's playin', an' yo' can't have nobody else. She kin take de left one [a man takes the right]. But yo' cain't do it until de chicken's eat up. Den yo' kin try it den.
Entry 3156
A girl tole me dat she could take beef livah an' cook it an' give it tuh me tuh eat, an' dat would cuz me, if ah went out wit anothah woman, dat would cuz me an' 'er tuh go tuhgethah lak a dog. Jes' beef livah. (She wouldn't put anything else with it?) Ah don't know whut she put wit it. She nevah did tell me whut she put wit it. [Surely not beef liver but dog liver is meant - see later sub- subsection (c) DOG, under subsection (1) CAUSES OF SEXUAL IMPOTENCE.]
Entry 3349
Jes' lak wimmins wants tuh trick a man or sompin lak dat tuh keep 'im home. Well, dey'll take dey sickness, some of 'em, an' put it in sompin tuh eat. An' jes' lak yo' got a wife an' yo' runnin' aroun', why yo' go tuh have her, she'll take a dishrag an' clean yo' wit it. Well, yo' wouldn't be able tuh mess Wit anothah woman on de outside. Yo'll start but it will fall.
Entry 3433
Well, jes' lak yo' Want - if yore wife is a run-aroun' woman an' yo' Wanta ketch 'er wit someone, an' she all de time tellin' yo' dat she don't do dat.[ Well, all yo' gotta do is git yo' a dog - steal de dog an' carry 'im off an' kill 'im, see, an' git 'is livah. An' den when yo' git de livah, yo' jes' go on an' buy yo' a dime or so of de othah livah, yo' know, an' mix in it an' carry it to her dat night, dat aftahnoon, an' tell 'er to cook it fer supper, "I be home fer SUppah." See. AN' DEN SHE GO ON AN' COOKS IT. WELL, IT'S A KNOWN FACT DAT SHE BE WAITIN', WAITIN', WAITIN', AN' DON'T SEE YO' COMIN', SHE GOIN' GIT MAD AN' EAT HERS, yo' undahstan'. She goin' eat part of 'ers an- MAYBE IF SHE DON'T, WHENEVAH YO' COME IN, YO' JES' MAKE OUT LAK YO' GOT A PAIN IN DE STOMICK or yo' sick OR YO' DON'T FEEL LAK NUTHIN, yo' see. An' den she'll go on an' eat 'ers. See, an' 24 hours aftah she eat 'ers, why de nex' day or so if she go off, any time dat Week, any tIme - CO'SE YO' CAN'T EVEN HAVE NUTHIN TO DO WIT HER, see. [For other examples of this belief see Nos.3425 and 3431.] If she go out why yo'll find it out. See, yo' undahstan', she goin' git stuck. See, dat dog's livah make her, when she have connection wit de othah man, dat will draw de both of 'em togethah. Dey can't git away. See, he'll swell up an' she would too.
Entry 3436
Ah heard of dat. Dey tell me dat chew kin kill a feis' dog [a small dog] an' any way dat chew kin git any of de blood offa de livah of dat feis' dog [a feist] in any- thing at all to eat fo' him. Well, if he has anything to do wit anothah woman, it's natural he git stuck, yo' see.
Entry 3460
An' people pay to go see it. Yo' know how dey do it. Yo' ketch a dog in heat, see. Yo' know a dog proudin' aroun'. An' kill it an' git 'is [her] livah outa him [her]. Carry it on home - wrap it up in a piece of papah jes' lak de othah livah. Fool 'er, yo' know. Slice it up. An' don' chew eat none of it, let 'er eat it. An' when she eat dat if she go [demonstrates] dat's what will happen to her.
[Informant's demonstration was probably interlocked fingers.]
(She will get stuck to the other fellow?)
Yes, sir, git stuck together. DEY HAVE TO KILL ONE OUT TO DE HOSPITAL TUH SAVE DE OTHAH.
Entry 3879
Mah husban' lef' [left] me an' he lef' me sick an' ah couldn't undah- stan', but de Woman had 'im crossed yo' know. AN' SO BY HIM LEAVIN', HE COULDN'T HE'P IT. Firs', ah went tuh lady dat she read cards, an' so she tole me tuh git 'is sock an' bury it. An' when ah buried 'is sock, he wrote a lettah back home, but he didn't write it tuh me. He wrote tuh someone de rest of mah fren's. An' ast 'em tuh come in heah an' talk wit me tuh see would ah let 'im come back home. An' den aftahwards ah went ovah heah tuh Jefferson, Ark., tuh Mr. DeHorn, an' in three weeks aftah ah went ovah dere tuh him, mah husban' came home. Ah went tuh Mr. DeHorn.
(How did this woman have your husband crossed, do you know?)
Well, she feedin' 'er, yo'know.
(Her monthly?)
Yessuh, in sompin tuh eat yo' know, an' givin' 'im a little powdah an' stuff lak dat. An' so Doctor DeHorn had tuh stop 'im from eatin'. It looks funny tuh stop a man from eatin', but it stopped 'im from eatin' 'er cookin', an' he came home. [See remarkable story about a woman who was unaccountable for being an alcoholic, because a drinking spell had been put on her by someone who wanted her husband (75, p.33).]
Entry 3981
De female sex jis' take her own urinate an' use it on 'er male - make him become humble, see. Yuh kin jis' try dat, yuh know, even on yuh animal. [I had heard so often the basic rite of urine in food or drink, I turned off my recording machine; but the final word animaZ brought me to life with some sort of question: Animal, did you say? What did you say?] I say, yuh kin even take yuh animals. Use it on a dog. Yuh kin use yuh uri- nate an' let 'im use - use it in 'is food an' he becomes domestic an' humble. So it is wit de female [what] dey kin do wit de male. She kin use dat an' make him become submistic [submissive] an' humble - make him become submistic an' huml ble tuh 'er - in ordah dat she kin handle him.
Entry 4077
[Urine in food or drink is a widespread belief in hoodoo and witch- craft. Examples of it have already been given in HOODOO - see 2663-2364, p.661 and elsewhere. Here in the following rites the eater or drinker has been tricked; he does not know what he has eaten or drunk. Occasionally in HOODOO a person will purposely drink his own or another person's urine; a practice lin- gering on as a deviation (uralangnia) among a few persons. Superstitions similar to these urine ones will also be found regarding menstrual blood.1 Yo' kin take yore chamber lye. Jes' lak if ah wants tuh go wit a woman, or a woman wants me tuh go wit her, either one, see. Yo' kin take yore chamber lye an' put it in some watah, or either put it into sompin tuh eat, an' dat'll run yo' fool about her - all to- gethah a fool, yo' jes' wandah away [live in a dreamland] an' yo' jis' lose out on de world.
Entry 4081
Well, dat de same thin', aftah yo' git 'er tuh yo'. Well, aftah yo' git 'er tuh yo', aftah she gits tuh yo' an' gits a-goin' wit chew, aftah 'er love is come tuhwards yo' - tuh keep 'er is tuh take some of yuh urinate an' feed it in 'er food. Drops some in dere.
Entry 4084
Dey could use yuh chamber lye.
(All right, how could you do that?)
Dey tell me if yuh take de chamber lye an' mix it intuh whut chew eat - dey tell me a woomin kin take dat an' sprinkle a little of de chamber lye intuh whut chew eat an' let chew eat dat. Dat'll keep yuh from runnin' aftah othah wimmins.
Entry 4098
Yuh kin take hit - take de chamber lye an' put it in 'is coffee or eithah sompin tuh eat, an' it will make him love yuh an' give yuh money.
Entry 4795
When ah wuz a young girl ah hear 'em talkin' about it.
(You say it was an old woman?)
Yeah, it used tuh be when I wuz a young girl. It's a certain way dey say dat you kin git a piece of dough. Make a flour dough.
(Out of flour, ordinary flour?)
Flour, an' yuh take dat piece of flour dough about dis long an' yuh wear it undah yore lef' arm nine mornings, [then] put it undah yore right arm nine morn- ings an' aftah yuh do dat, den yuh take it an' weah it be- tween yore laigs. (For how long?) Nine mornings. Evah thin' is nine day's work. An' den, dey say, yuh beat it up right fine, jis' lak a powdah, lak peppah or salt, an' den yuh take it an' sprinkle it on somepin tuh eat fer 'im, yuh know, an' dat will make him follah yuh, make him love yuh.
Entry 6409
Take an' wash yore feets an' take de dead skin from undah yore feet. But now, what dis is fo', what I'd [use] it fo', would do it fo' diff'ren' things. I'd take de dead skin from undah yore foot. An' yo' wash it, yo' scrape dat dead skin an' yo' let it dry. Put it on de stove an' make a powdah out of it. An' aftah yo' make dat powdah out, wellyo' kin drop it intuh dere Coca-cola or anythin' a person eat. Dat's when yo' wanta control 'em, yo' see; keep 'em so dey can't do yo' nuthin. Take advantage of 'em, yo' see.
Entry 6417
An' yo' kin take de skin offa yore feet, a woman kin, or eithah a man. It don' make any diff'rence. Take dat skin offa yore feet an' evah time yo' feed "in, drop some of dat intuh 'is food. An' let 'im eat it an' he cain't quit chew.
Entry 6422
Dat's right. Take dirt from undah yore fingahnails an' dress it in boiled food, lak cabbages an' turnips an' all squashes an' things lak dat. An' people eat dat an' become tuh be crazy about people. Do dat two or three times.
Entry 6425
Heard tell of people say dat yo' could take de dirt out from undah yore fingahnails, an' dough it up in de bread or anything dat yo' cook lak dat, an' make yo' boss 'em [that lets you boss the person].
Entry 6438
Take yore fingahnails an' yore toenails, an' scrape undah de bottom of yore foot, an' take dat an' take an' put 'em in sompin fo' him tuh eat. Dat will make a man love yo'. Parch it in de stove, yeah. Parch it in de stove till it git tuh a powdah, cuz yo' know, so dey can't detect it in de food. An' put dat in dey food an' dat will make dem love yo'.
Entry 6477
Yo' kin take jis' de dead skin. Yo' wash yore feet, soak yore feet ah mean tuh say, an' den yo' wash it, an' den yo' take dis dead skin an' scrape it off yore feet. An' den yo' wash de plate. Git chew a plate dat yore wife or sweetheart or who yo' got goin' eat. An' yo wash dat plate wit all dat dead skin, see. An yo' let it dry on dere, an' den yo' let 'em eat outa it, an' yo' nevah git shet of 'em.
Entry 6488
Take de skin from undah yore feet. Yo' wash yore feet clean an' den yo' take a knife, jis' lak yo' scrapin' yore feet an' carry it back dat way, back tuh yo'. An' take dat an' mix it wit some sugah an' put dat in sompin tuh eat. Yo' give dat tuh 'em.
(What will that do?)
Dat will make 'em bring yo' evah cent dat dey git.
Entry 6490
(Now what do they do with that stuff from the bottom of your feet?) Well, yo' takes dat an' yo' dries it. Dat's if dey're washin' [the feet], yo' know. Yo' take dat. Dey soak dere feets an' dey take de scissors an' instead of scrapin' it down - an' dey scrape it up.
(They scrape it up from the heel to the toe?)
To de toe.
(Well, why do they do that?)
Well, dat's de way dey do it, from de heel tuh de toe. Dey dries dat. Let it dry an' roll it lak a powdah. Put it intuh de sugah an' let yo' sweeten it intuh yore coffee or intuh yore food. Dat's fo' makin' people lak me, yo' know. Bring on luck, brings all dat, see.
(I see.)
Entry 6491
When yo' wash yuh feet clean, don' wlpe it, wait until it begin tuh dry an' den yo' scrape de bottom of each feet from de heel tuh de toe. See. Save dat an' put it intuh a vessel an yo' put yuh own chamber lye on it. Den yo' stop it up an' yo' let it stan' nine days - nine days. An' de las' day take it out an' dat party, if yo' kin git neah tuh 'em, drop a drop or two of dat in whutevah dey eat or dey drink. Why dey will eithah have tuh be yuh frien' or dey will die. I've knowed of dat [death] evently [eventually].
Entry 6500
Dey scrape it offen de feet an' den dey take dem fingahnails, dey trim dose, an' dey git de dirt off de toenails, from undah de toenails an' undah de feet, an' put all dat tuhgethah an' powdah dat up an' dry it. Den when dey git dat powdah up, dey put dat in a bottle. Dat's when yo' want 'em tuh love yuh an' yo' can't do 'em no harm. Yo' put dat in a bottle an' den yo' fill dat bottle wit chure urinate wit dat stuff, an' let it sit dere nine days befo' dey use it. Den aftah de nine days whenevah dey fix yo' a meal or anythin' lak dat tuh eat, or anythin' tuh drink, dey will put a teaspoonful of dat in there fo' yo'. Well, den dat gits chew jis' dey way. Gits yuh down undah dere foot an' yo' can't do no mo' den dey wan' chew tuh do.
Entry 6506
Providin' - if yo' wuz a disagreeable person, well dey will use de watah from de foot, from de bath or somepin lak dat. An' sometimes dey use it in dere food, an' dat's why dey does dose tricks. (What do you mean by that? I didn't quite understand that.) Yo' see, jis' lak if yo' wash yore feet in de watah, see, an' de watah is cleah, well den some people dey'll take it an' dey'll cook de food in dat watah. See, an' aftah cookin' de food in dat watah, why den de person who eats dat food, if dere spirit is high, [a cross person] dey mostly will bring it down lak dat. Uh-huh nominal [= make person normal.]
(I see, the temperament.)
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 6540
Take a dirt daubah. See, dey builds dere nestses up side de house. Yo' takes a dirt daubah nes' an' yo' take dat an' yo' put it in watah or in anything, an' a person will eat dat. As it git inside of 'em, dey claim, it will be young eggs er sompin in dere. An' aftah dey git inside of 'em, by it bein' warm in dere, dey creates. An' when dey do anything, why it's jis' lak a dirt daubah's makin' a house.
Entry 6554
Git a frog. If yo' kin git de insides of a frog an' kin manage tuh git jis' a part of 'im intuh de pot - somepin neah 'is heart, which is de livest part of 'im aftah yo' kill 'im - an' yo' put it in de pot an' dat person eat it, dey say den he'll begin tuh have young frogs in 'im.
Entry 6573
Yo' take a lizard or a salamandah or anything lak dat - yo' take a lizard now. Ef a person take him an' ketch 'im an' kill 'im, yo' take him den an' yo' let 'im dry up. Well, aftah he dry up, yo' take him an' pound 'im up an' put 'im in anything, an' aftah while he'll grow. Jis' lak yo' put 'im in watah or sompin tuh eat, an' a person eat it, git it in 'em. He'll grow an' in a very short while he'll be runnin' all through 'is flesh.
Entry 6613
Git a snake an' put a snake in yo'. Dey kin go ketch a snake an' kill it, cut 'is head off an' hang 'im on de limb [of a tree] by de tail. Tie a string aroun' 'is tail an' hang 'im up an' put a tin cup or tin plate undah 'im an' ketch 'is blood. Let 'im bleed in dat tin plate or tin cup, whutevah it is. Now dey take dat blood an' dey kin put dat blood intuh yore food or somepin tuh drink; or dey kin let dat blood dry until it comes jis' tuh a hard powdah. Dey kin sprinkle it in yore shoes. An' de perspiration from yore feet will such up de strength of dat blood an' cuz yore body tuh attract dat, an' it will go all through de body an' kill de body. An' it will be crawlin' jis' undah de skin, all about, mostly from de point where dey entered. Depends upon how long it is when it gits in de stomic an' come on up. An' he'll choke yo' tryin' tuh come on up.
Entry 6615
Well, yo' kin take de blood outa scorpion, eithah snake, eithah one, an' put it intuh a person's food In de Name of de Fathah, de Son an' de Holy Ghost, an' dey'll becone tuh have snakes in 'em, or scorpions in 'em. Den if yo' wan' dose outa dere, yo' git chew some salt, red peppah, sulphuh. Combine 'em tuhgethah an' let 'em take it fo' nine mawnin's In de Name of de Fathah, de Son an' Holy Ghost. An' dat soon will git 'em out.
(Get those live things out?)
Yes sir.
Entry 6623
How tuh put things in a person. Say yo' wanta put a snake intuh a per- son or dese ole red-haid scorpions. Gits dose things. An' kill 'em an' git dere haids off an' den hang 'em. Put 'em on a string an' put 'em somewhere until dey jis' git perfectly dry. An' den take 'em down an' put 'em intuh somepin where dat dust can't git up yore nostrils. Put 'em in.somepin an' beat 'em up, an' den take dat dust an' put it intuh some watah or a person's food. An' let 'em eat or drink 'em an' dat'll create live things in 'em.
Entry 6627
A fellah kin take a rattlesnake, if he's a rootman an' he has a rattle- snake. Fo' or five or 'em round dere [rootman's home]. Parch it daid. An' he take dat rattlesnake an' grind up dat head jis' lak a powdah. He's [snake is] daid yo' know. [He] got 'em roun' dere [his house]. He take dat rattlesnake an' put it in anythin' tuh eat or drink, an' it will kill yo'.
Entry 6628
Take a snake an' cut 'is haid off, which is poisonous, yo' know, an' let dat haid dry up completely. An' den take it an' pound it up an' give it tuh dat individual tuh eat. Or de snake gut or anythin' like dat, an' give it tuh dat individual in dere food tuh eat. It don' hardly kill 'em, but it will cuz li'le insex [insects] tuh grow in 'em.
Entry 6634
Yo' kills a snake an' yo' let 'em dry. Aftah yo', yo' know, let 'im dry, den yo' parch 'im an' take dat dust. Yo' beat it up an' put it in a rag an' shake it ovah a person's sompin tuh eat, or dey food if yo' kin git a plate dressed. Dat whut we call dressin' a plate. An' when dey eat, in time an [at] times he begin gittin' sick, an' it will create live snakes in 'em an' dey grow tuh maturity till it kill 'em.
Entry 6635
Take a snake and kill him and dry him and powder him up. Put it in something you eat or drink. They claim that snake will come alive again.
Entry 6636
I've heard you go to the woods, kill a snake, dry this snake up, beat it up into a powder, and give it to a person in his eats, and in two months time a snake will form in their stomach.
Entry 6709
Dey tell me dat if a woman wants tuh take de uppah han's [hands] of a gan an' take him in, dat chew [the woman] kin draw de blood from a' animal an put it in any kinda thing he eat or in 'is whiskey - jis' so long as yo' git it inside a him - an' dey have de upperturns of yo' in any way dey intend tuh do it. De only way dat yo' kin git loose from dat, whut ah learnt, jis' take somepin an' strike where yo' kin draw de blood from dem [the woman]. See, den yo' kin git loose from dat.
(They use the blood from any kind of an animal?)
Any creepin' animal [so that the man will creep or crawl at her command].
Entry 6768
Yes, sir, she eats that herself. Well, she eats that for to do away with children. She eats that, fourteen of them [the insects] to destroy her kids, if she is more than two months gone. If she is less than two months, she takes less than that - less dirt dauber - to destroy her kid.
Entry 6810
(What do they use garlic for?) Dat's, dey poun' dat up, too. Dey poun' dat up an' use dat fo' - jis' lak now, if yo' sick, dere's somepin in yo' an' yo' cain't git it out, yo' know. Yo' take dat garlic pound it up an' take it - jis' pound it up, pound it up, pound it up, an' mix it wit a teaspoon sodee.
(Soda?)
Yeah cookin' sodee. Swallah it down, see. An' dat knocks it out.
(I see.)
Entry 6811
Yo' take garlic, yo' see, if a person got poison in 'em. Yo' jis' take dat garlic an' yo' stew dat down wit vinegah, an' yo' give it tuh dat person tuh eat. Dat will kill it down in dere. (What kind of poison?) Any kind. Jis' say, jes' lak dere's a person down heah gives yo' poison in whiskey or sompin. Yo' know, jis' LAK A PERSON TRY TUH KILL YO', TRY TUH GIVE YO' ANY KINDA SNAKE-HAID DUST.
(Any live things in them?)
Yeah.
Entry 8030
Well, yo' have tuh grind dat up, grind de bone of de dead man up. An' perhaps dey might put it intuh yuh food or perhaps yo' may drink. Why jis' grind it up fine or jis' take a hammah or sompin lak dat an' beat it up - put it in a rag an' beat it up fine, yo' know, jis' lak flour on somepin. An' put it intuh yuh food or jis' put it intuh whiskey yo' drink or soft drink or anything lak dat an' yo' drink it down. Why dat would give yo stomic trouble. De balance of yuh days yuh stomic will nevah be no good tuh yo'. Keep yo' in lingahin' death.
(What do they call that?)
Suffahin' a man.
Entry 10138
" They take the heart out of black cat, like when her husband is a drunkard. Well, they take that heart out of the black cat, which is not much more bigger than an oyster. Well, they will take that and put it in an oyster, you see, and - like some women they feeds their husbands ~ and the husband likes for the woman to feed them. Well, the first thing she will stick in his mouth is that black cat heart, and after: he eats that black cat's heart down, he will soon go out somewhere and some man will kill him, because it makes him very mis- chievious and makes him meddlesome. Perhaps if he is colored, he will go and meddle with some white gentleman and the white people will kill him. Well, that is what she give him that for, because he loses his conscience the minute he swallows that and he will go and get rough with anybody and meddle with anybody and that is why he gets killed and that is why [what] she perhaps will want. That is what she does that for, to bring his death.
Entry 9948
Dey take dat ole toad- frog an' stew 'im up, take 'im an' stew 'im up. An' yo' know de people dat is dirty. Dey take dat"ole toad- frog an' stew 'in up an' put 'im intuh sompin tuh eat, what chew eat, but chew won't know anything about it. Ah have had 'em do dat tuh me, yes sir. Dey take dat ole toadfrog, yo' know, an' skin 'im an' dry 'im, an' mix it wit somepin tuh eat what dey cooks. Ah reckon dey done me dat way. An' yo' know when dey stew 'em - it lak stew, jes' lak dat - yo' take a ole bullfrog, ole long bullfrog, yo' know, an' skin 'im. He looks lak a chicken [after he is skinned]. Well, dey take de ole othah toadfrog an' stew 'im up. Cook 'im right along wit somepin tuh eat. An' yo'll take it all right. Yo' go dere an' eat at night. Den when yo' come in dat nex' day look lak yo' gonna jes' go fer 'er an' eat 'er up - jes' lak yo' wanta eat 'er up. Make yo' crazy about 'er.
Entry 10846
If someone is a enemy to yo' - dey wanta see yo' linger or somepin - yo' kin use it fo' dat, but 'scusin dat ah haven't hear't [heard]. Dey cook it down to a oil, dat buzzard grease, an' yo' give it to 'em.
(How?)
In dey food or in water.
(What will that do to them?)
An' dey will come to be limber - in other words, dey wouldn't iwould] lose de use of deyself [by becoming too limber!].
(Why would they do that?)
Why, jest lak if a person had a grudge against yo' or anything, if dey wanted tuh do yo' harm some way an' dat de onliest way. Anyway dey could git to git dey 'venge out dey would do so.
Entry 11026
You kin get a black hen's feather, git chew a little black molasses, and take you a little of dis ole card weed, they use to call it - grow in de fields. (Card weed?) Dat's right. It bears a long seed-like along in de fall of de year, and it's a lot of yellow dust on dat. You git chew one of dem, git de longest one yo' kin find. If yo' go to a bush, git de longest one yo' kin find. You take dis chicken feather and dis black molasses and you boil it like a tea- like. And you kin slip some of dat to a fellow and it ain't very long 'fore dat Weed will sprout into his veins. [At one time I thought this weed might be the card teasel or cardthistle. I'll leave this for the expert in folk names for plants.]
(You boil this weed and the molasses and the feather all together?)
Yes.
(And how do you give to him?)
Well you gotta slip it in somepin dat he eats.
(Oh I see, and this weed will sprout in him. What will that do?)
It don't sprout into his system, it forms into his veins; just cripples hi up, bad laigs.
Entry 11042
(How do they handle that?)
Well, you see, it's one gut into a chicken.
(There's what?)
There's one gut into a chicken.
(Just one gut?)
One gut, that's all kin do any harm. That's a gut runs from the, from the top of his - you know, the back of his neck all the way to the rear end of it.
(The rear end, the tail end?)
That's right. (To his behind?) To his behind. (All right.) Now, yo' take that gut and you kin fix that gut and you kin dry it out and you kin - and after you dry it out, you makes a powder of it. And you use this powder into a person's eats - what I mean about eats, about sittin' dowo eatin'. You sprinkle that over 'em and you gotta act like a chicken - you just goofy. They acts like a chicken all the time.
(I see.)
Entry 11055
They will ketch a black hen - goin' pick 'em out a black ole hen an' git de white offa dat, dey dung, de white. And if dey kin git it - maybe dey wants to do it, dey can't git to 'em. But he'll git somebody else an' put some in yore food. See. An' de minute dat yo' eat it, in nine days yore tooths will come to be slack all over everywhere - in nine days. (And your teeth will eventually drop out.) [Not eventually, but within 9 days!]
Entry 12033
If a woman boils a man's hair in the food he eats, he will be under her control. [Jacksonville 751:2.]
Entry 12236
Say take John de Conker. It's in de woods, it's a weed, yo' take hit. It's got a whole lotta spring to it. An' put it in a bottle an' feed it, feed it with cologne or whiskey. Yo' feed it ever' time yo' eat, or ever' time yo' go tuh gamblin'. Feed it an' dey say hit's lucky.
Entry 12278
Ah tell yo' whut chew kin do, yo' kin take a fo'k an' a knife an' wipe dat plate. Git chew a clean rag an' wipe dat plate, his plate, or his fo'k or her fo'k, an' let him eat out it aftah yo' wipe wit it, ev'ry mawnin' fo' 9 mawnin's. An' if he don' stay dere, he'll come tuh stay. (What do you wipe that plate with?) With a clean cloth. Yo' wipe yo'self in heah umndah yore arms, undah both arms, an' in heah, an' den yo' take an' wipe yore plate. An' always yo' wipe it tuh yo' [demonstrates].
(With a circular motion?)
Yassuh, wipe it tuh yo' lak dat. He'll come tuh yo' if he's not staying dere.
(You don't do anything with that knife and fork then?)
Nuthin but wipe it tuh yo', jes' when yo' wipe dat fo'k yo' wipe it dataway. An' yo' wipe it up. (You have to wipe the fork the same as the plate, to you? You wipe the plate and the knife and the fork?) Yassuh, wipe all three of 'em.
Entry 12436
They say if yo' eat mockin'bird aigs or eat a mockin'bird, either one, yo' can't keep a secret. [Sumter 2462:11.]
Entry 12571
(Well, what kind of a bone would they get from that man?)
Just any part of the body. Mostly they try to get that bone down in here, you know, right between your laigs. Mostly try to get that part that's kind of fork like that, you know. [This is the folkore penis bone of a man, supposed to be forklike.] Get one of those bones like that. That's mostly what they get [from a dead man of course]. Well, any part of that bone. Well, they take it and dry it up into a dust, or take a file and put it in your eats. That will cause a stroke.
(That will cause a stroke, I see.)
That [is] if your blood ain't good. If you got good blood, you understand, and your system's not constipated, it won't hurt you.
Entry 3871
Now, dey said if it's a person - if it's mah wife or if ah go an' eat to someone's house, if dey wanta git me tricked, dey take de dishrag when dey ministrate or have dere monthlies on. Dey take an' rub some of dat on an' rub it on mah dish or mah spoon or fo'k or sompin ah nuse [use] an' ah go an' eat wit it. Or eithah put a drop of it in mah food. Well dat will git me.
Eating is explicitly described within a conditional reported account; use is a bracketed editorial insertion.