Subject:Fingernails
Other forms: Fingernail
Entries
Entry 2479
Yo' wanta have business with whiskey an' yo' business no good with whiskey. Yo' take yore toenails an' cut 'em off an' scrape out from under yore fingernails an' cut dem off, an' put dem into a little bottle or into a little glass wit de whiskey - about dat much an' let it set three days. Let it set three days an' then take it an' strain it out an' put it into a gallon of whiskey. Put it into dat gallon of whiskey an' de first customers come in dere an' buy, sell 'em dat; an' de more customers come in, sell it to 'em, an' after while yore business will be so great dat ever'body be flockin' right to yore business.
Entry 3876
She kin take her sickness an' her fingernails an' cook 'em in 'is food an' he'll stay with her.
Entry 4067
Yuh take some of dey fingahnails or toenails an' put it in a bottle wit some of yuh urinate an' keep it in yuh trunk or somewhere. Dat will cuz [cause] 'em tuh love yuh - be sweet on yuh. (Well, if some woman was doing that to me, would she take my fingernails or her fingernails?) Well, if she wanted yuh tuh love huh, she would take yuh fingahnails.
(And put it with my urine or hers?)
Yuhs.
(She would have both things from me?)
Yeah.
(And keep them?)
Yeah.
Entry 5949
Well, dey take a piece of hair out de middle of de mole of yore haid, an' dey [take] dat hair out de mole of yore haid an' dey git a perfume dey calls Hearts Cologne. An' take dat Hearts Cologne an' dey take dat hair an' put it in dat Hearts Cologne bot- tle, an' take dat bottle an' stop it up well. Den aftah leavin' dis bottle stay aroun' 24 hours, den dey take a or'nary [ordinary] person, jes' lak yo' is man dat has a gurl dat he thinks well of an' somepin lak dat. Yo' take de fingahnail - take de dirt. An' poke between [clean] yore fin- gahnails is protection to yore body. Well, dey take an' cut off all dat fingah- nail an' all dat filth [you left under your nails] an' de' put it in dat bottle, if dey poss'bly kin get holt of it, an' dat will DRIVE A PERSON UNSANE - JES' LAK A "SHORT MIND", YO' THINKS NOW AN' AFTAH WHILE YO' CAN'T THINK. Dat mind at pre- sent is gone.
Entry 6379
Dey say a woman, eithah a man, if dey want dey husban' or dey wife tuh stay home. Yo' take yuh fingahnails - trim yuh fingahnails, trim de toenails an' wash undahneath each one of yore arns an' if dey drink likkah, put it in likkah an' let it set fer three days. Don' let 'em see it. Jis' conceal it somewhere. An' dey say dey would nevah leave, jis' hang right aroun' dere - stay home.
Entry 6380
[This may be my only example of the rare term badge, meaning hand, or toby or mojo.] If yo' wanted 'er tuh love yo', why yo' jes' take some of - jes' lak yo'd take a bath an' git some of de dirty skin from undah de bottom of yore feet, de hollah of yer lef' feet. Trim yer fingahnails good an' close an' git some of de dirt from undah dere. Take dem an' parch dem, parch de fingah- nails. Parch dese fingah- nails brown, beat it up, an' git some of 'er hair an' burn it - de hair from 'er haid an' burn it. Mixes it tuhgethah wit Hearts Cologne an' sulphur, an' weah it undah-yer lef' arm as a badge.
(Wear it under your left armpit as a badge.)
An' in seven days she'll eithah come or she'll write yo' a lettah.
Entry 6396
Well, yo' take a person fingahnail an' yo' cut dem. Dat's fo' love.
(Just how would you do that?)
Yo' trim yore fingahnails. Yo' take an' bake dem an' den yo' take an' beat 'em up tuh a powdah. When yo' feed a person yo' sprinkle dat in dat meal, see, an' dey'll love yo'. An' den ag'in yo'll take - wash yore feet real clean an' scrape de dirt from de hollah of yore foot. An' yo' put dat in de food, an' dat'll make dem love yo'.
Entry 6429
Now ah've heard dem say dat de ladies dat goin' wit mens, fo' spechly [specially] spō'tin' wimmins, dey takes dere fingahnails an' jis' git a li'le dirt from undah 'em, or eithah dere toenails. An' lak dey cook grits or make any kinda nice gravy tuh put ovah a man's food, or somepin lak dat, dey will put it in dere an' make de man jes' so crazy about 'em - all dat.
Entry 6431
Scrape off de bottom of yore feet an' scrape yore fingahnails. Jis' all yore fingahnails dis way an' scrape 'em off. Yo' take dat an' make it in coffee. Some people jis' scrape de fingahnails an' de toenails. Dey take dat an' make coffee. Dey'll hold dat intuh de han's an' den dey make de coffee. An' when dey fix 'is cup, dey'll drop dis stuff in dere, an' dey'll give hin dat cup of coffee tuh drink. An' it will bring 'im down tuh where yo' won't lmoc 'im.
Entry 6433
How tuh make a woman love yo' or a man love yo'. Trim yore toenails an' fingahnails or clean out from undah yore fingahs. An' put it in yore coffee or put it in sompin tuh eat, or sompin othah lak dat an' let chew eat it. An' yo' go crazy about 'em, an' make yo' love 'em an' all lak dat.
Entry 6435
Jis' de same like a woman, or eithah a man, dey wan'a rule dere husban' or de man wan'a rule 'is wife. Well, dey take de fingahnail an' de dirt from undah de fingahnail, an' dey scrape de bottom of dere feet. An' dey puts it on de stove or anything an' dey'll patch it like a powdah. When dey give 'em dere food, well dey takes dat an' dey'll sprinkle it ovah de food from de feet [and nail clippings]. Dat's my experience wit dat.
(What will that do?)
Well, dat's - dey could rule 'em like, yo' know.
Entry 6437
[Well, ah've heard dey take de fingahnails an' toenails an' wash yore feet an' scrape undahneat' de bottom of yore feet. An' take an' parch de nails, beat it up an' put it wit dis heah stuff dat come from mdahneat yore feet, an' put it in 'is coffee. Dat's fo' someone yo' wan' tuh love yo'.
Entry 6445
Ah have heard dat yo' go tuh de fo'ks of de road, an' take yore fingah- nail or a corn off yore toes, an' make yore three wishes. Yo' know, say, "Ah wish dis one would nevah in- tahfere wit me no mo'; ah wish dey would go 'way from me an' nevah come no mo'." An' drop it an' dey'll go. Firs' thing yo' know, if dey's roun' about chew, why dey'll leave. [During brief stoppage of recording machine, victim's name is called - see later.]
(What do you do with the fingernails or the corn? What do you do with those?)
Jis' drop 'em down in dere an' say, "Ah wish yo' tuh go an' ah may nevah seen any mo'."
[Here I add the person's name previously dropped.]
(You just call this person's name, so they won't be around you any more.)
Entry 6458
All right, if yo' wants tuh run a woman crazy, yo' take some of 'er hair. An' cut 'er lef' li'le fingahnail, an' den git de middle fingahnail off de right han', an' some of 'er hair, an' tie it up tuhgethah an' go tuh a li'le saplin' tree. Bo' a hole intuh it an' place it in dat hole in dat tree. Ah guarantee yo' 'fo' a good while she be crazy.
Entry 6468
They can take your toenails and fingahnails an' see, like mah nails mog, they could harm me purtty much for this simple reason. They're dirty. See, they are not all that much long, they are dirty. Well, they would take this nail and they would cut these nails as close as they poss'bly could with the dirt a'all into 'em. If they could get to my toes, they'd do my toes de same iden- tical way. Now, they take these nails here, an' mah toenails an' they'd put them together. If they could get a lizard, they'd take a lizard an' they'd kill the lizard an' let that lizard dry.
(They take a lizard and kill the lizard?)
They kill the lizard.
(Oh, they kill the lizard.)
An' let him dry - I mean, till he gets to a powder. When he gets to a pow- der, they mixes him with these nails of mine. They'd put that into a piece of red flannel and they buries that. AN' NOW, WHEN THEY BURIES THAT, THEY BURIES IT WITH A CROSS.
(What kind of a cross?)
THEY MAKES A CROSS THEYSELF. THEY DON'T VERY SELDOM BUY A CROSS. YOu know, ordinary, plain - just a plain cross, wooden cross; just any kind of a small cross you'll use, just since it's a cross. They buries it with a cross into that flannel. See? Well, now, when they buries that, why they got me just the Way they want me.
Entry 6481
If dey could git holt of dat - an' if dey git holt of dat, why dey'll scorch it, see.
(These fingernails or?)
Or toenails, see, in ordah if dey wants tuh trick yo'. Dat's if a person is sellin' whiskey or somepin lak dat an' dey wants de customah tuh continue or tuh come on tuh love den, why dey'll burn dat. Dey'll scorch it, yo' see. An' aftah dey scorchin' it, den dey put de spice wit it, see. An' dey tie it in a li'le bag, see. An' maybe, if it's a woman an' she wants tuh use it, she'll [put] her dis- charges in it. An' den she'll jis' put it in a li'le whiskey an' soak in dere. See. An' aftah soakin' it well, she'll take de juice from dat an' den she'll po' it in dis whiskey. An' she'll shake it an' if yo' drink it, yo'll continue tuh go back.
Entry 6482
Well, yo' kin take a li'le bit of yore dirt from undah yore fingah- nails. Well, yo' git some salt an' git some alcohol, some vinegah - salt, an' put it in a bottle an' shake it up, an' make yo' do jis' lak dey want chew tuh do. (Do you get that dirt from under your fingernails or under mine?) No sir, git 'em from undah yore fingah- nails. Make yo' do jis' lak ah wan' chew tuh do. (Who would do that? Some woman to a man or man to a man? Something of that sort?) Eithah one could do it if dey knew [how]. Jis' lak yo' were mah wife an' yo' runs aroun' an' ah couldn't keep yo' home. Well, ah could git a li'le bit of dat dirt, yo' know, from undah yore fingahnails, an' make yo' do jis' lak ah wanted yo' tuh do.
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 6525
Dey take - womens take cut of all yore toenails an' yore fingernails an' take de dirt from underneath 'em an' dey could cook 'em in de bread an' make a man love 'em. Dey could WITCHCRAFT dem dataway.
[St. Petersburg, Fla., (1022), 1653:5.]
(5). A FEW MORE DOCTORS {Folk medicine in hoodoo or witchcraft has a wider field of involvement than the isolated cures given in books of general folklore. This is true because hoo- doo or witchcraft supplies causes for all ailments and diseases as well as cures, and also tells how to protect oneself in the future. Such protective rites, actu- ally preventive medicine, as well as other cures unlisted here, will be found throughout the total text. For the latter, consult especially: FOLK MEDICINE pp.361-519; SEXUAL IMPoTENCE Pp.2341-2509; and 'HER PRIVATE TIME' Pp.2513-2540.] [A considerable number of live things in you will be found on pages 227-239, well as elsewhere in the complete text. May I call your attention to the first two rites in margin title SNAKES.]
Entry 7050
Trim [scrape] his feet up from yuh [his] toes an' also scrape yuh nails an' boil it [together]. Den boil some money wit it, two fifty cents [2 half-dol- lar pieces, formerly of silver] an' let 'imdrink it. Cos' [of course]yo' have tuh slip it tuh 'im [disguise it], lak a tea. Yo' have tuh kinda [do this secretly]. [They] say dat'll stop 'im from drinkin'. (You scrape [from] the bottoms of his toes back to his heel. Then you scrape your fingernails; then take the two pieces of silver money.)
Entry 8564
Git de dirt from a person foot track an' yo' could put some steel dust with, an' hair from undah yore arms, an' yo' could bury it, an' yo' could keep a person down lak that. Either yo' could make 'em travel. Yo' could take a person's foot tracks an' yo' could take de steel dust, hair from undah yore arms an' dirt from undah yore fingernails. An' yo' take dis ole [anything you measure with] yo' know de length that yo' measure. Measure it [foot track] crossway an' straight up an' down, too. An' yo' could write de name [on a piece of paper or article used for measuring] an' bury it an' yo' keep 'em down. An' yo' could take a piece of their sock with that, yo' understan'.
Entry 9032
De nex' thing, tuh mah idea, whut's good, take some of yore fingah- nails. Trim yore fingahnails off. Go tuh some watah an' git dat daid skin undah yore feet. Scrape it down. Put it in sompin an' let it dissolve fo' nine days. Den take dat an' strain it. Have it in watah, an' jes' lak de jedge would have a sep'rate pitcher he drink out of, put dat ovah dere in his pitcher. Jes' lak yo' de jedge of de co't, put dat in yore pitcher. See, de chance is de co't goes up dere soon an' dey have evah-thing lined up, de jedge an' de jury. Put sompin in [the pitchers of] both of 'em. Ah'm de crim'nal. Ah'm de crim'nal, yo' know, an' yo' goin' try tuh send me tuh de chain gang. Git tuh arguin' on dat thing. Aftah while dey gits sorry fo' yuh. Things is workin' mah way. Whut chew want 'em tuh [do, that will do it]. Yo' couldn't do it. Simple things whut ah learnt wit de business [of being a hoodoo doctor].