Subject:Nails
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Entry 3231
Take nails an' cross 'em up in de seat of a man's underweah an' bury it in any parts about de house, yuh know, an' he cain't have nobody bat chew.
(How do you mean, cross these nails in the seat of his undervear?)
Well, yuh know yuh jis' take 'em an' cross de fo' cornahs right doo in de strotch [crotch] of 'is undahweah.
(How many nails do you take?)
Fo'[four] [demonstrates].
(Two parallel like that and two across there.)
[This designs a tick-tack-toe, or double cross or many crosses.]
Dat's right. In some of 'is dirty undahweah whut he's wo'n [worn]. See, don wash 'em. Whut he wo'n. An' jis' roll 'em up an' lay 'em up undah de side of de baid, direc'ly where he sleep at. An' he'll git tuh de place he won' wan' nobody but chew. An' re'lly de fac' of de business, he cain't go wit nobody but chew.
Entry 3305
Dey could git ahold [a hold] of yore chamber lye an' could stop it up in a dark bottle, yo' know, an' put nine nails in it, lak dat, an' keep it turned up on de head, an' quite natchly [naturally] dat would hurt yo', yo' know.
(Well, how would it hurt you?)
Well it could stop yo' from makin' watah. It would give yo' pains or things lak dat.
(I see. What kind of a bottle did you say you have to keep it in?)
Keep it in, you know, lak a beer bottle - dark bottle, any kinda dark bottle.
(It wouldn't do any good to put it in a white bottle, would it?)
No. Yo' would have to put it in de cornah of de house some place, in a dark place yo' know, an' turn it up. Dat will stop yo' from makin' watah an' keep yo' painin' [hindering sexual potency].
Entry 3314
An' den I've heard dat yo' go an' yo' git ten-penny nails an' a piece- I'M ASHAMED TO TALK.
(YOU GO RIGHT AHEAD, I'VE HEARD ALL THAT.)
Red flannen, piece of red flannen an' den dey get a piece of dis ah - ah dis root choo call...
[A long pause.]
(What?)
John de Conkah. Gits a piece of dis John de Conkah root an' yo' puts dat in dere an' den dey gits a piece - den if yo' kin git yore husban' when yo' have connection wit yore hus- ban', git a piece of towel an' yo' put 'em undahneath de steps an' den yo' throw - dey say yo' 'throw chamber lye undahneath dere fer nine mawnin's, see. An' on de ninth mawnin', if dat man's gone, dat man will be comin' back fast.
(Now, you do this after that bottle has been there nine days?)
No, yo' put dat dere - no, dat ain't got nuthin to do wit de bottle.
(Oh! this is something different, I see.)
It's somethin' diff'rent. (You put this John de Conker and that other stuff [semen] in this piece of red cloth, and put that under the step for nine days. And the nails in there?) Uh-huh, an' den yo' put 'em undahneath de steps, see. An' dan yo' take de chamber lye - yo' [this] suppose to be done so nobody see it, nobody kin see yo 'tall [at all], an' yo' throw it dere fo' nine mawnin's, nine straight maunin's. See now?
Entry 3363
Yo' could use eithah a bran'-new pocket han'cheff or eithah de dishrag, lak ah tole yo', tuh keep 'im from foolin' wit any othah woman, see. Yo' kin take an' wipe him down wit a bran'-new pocket han'cheff, an' take fo' nails an' nail it down undah de flo' undah yore rug, an' dat'll keep 'im. He couldn't raise a heart fo' othah women. Ah know yo' kin do dat.
Entry 3758
(Well, suppose a man is tied up that way, how could he git rid of that?) Git rid of dat? He would take dat perfume whut de call Hearts Perfume, cinnamon, saltpetah an' chamber lye, his own, wit nine ten-penny nails. Takin' a bath from head to feet an' throwin' it out to- Wards sunrise. Den she cain't do anythin' unless she gits wit 'im [again]. Dat untie him.
Entry 3769
Whilst he's asleep at night, takin' a cord an' takin' de full length of 'is private, tyin' nine knots in it, wearin' ti aroun' 'er waist, an' he'd lose all ambition fer outside women. He kin go.... (What did you say?) He'll be dataway, no use fer outside women, until he take some penny nail - five penny-nails.
(Wait a minute! The penny-nails, you take five of them?)
Five of 'em.
(Yes?) = [Continue.]
Put 'em in a quart bottle of watah an' drinkin' de watah off it. Dat will release him.
(That will give him the advantage, take that away from him?)
Absolutely.
Entry 3770
Nine penny-nails, put [in] a quart bottle of watah an' take it three times a day, see. Dat will kill dat what she give yo'. De way she goes in dat way - undahstan', whenevah yo' have connection wit 'er, any discharge she wipe wit a han'ke'ch'ef of some kind, an' you [she] tie nine knots in it an' tie it aroun' 'er waist, see. Well, dat makes 'im lose ambition fer de [other] woman. He may be hard an' he may aim to get on to marry de woman, den he fall, loses ambition fer no one else but 'er.
Entry 3869
Maybe yo' kin jes' ketch hold of 'em, yo' see, git hold of 'er - her sickness, yo' undahstand what I mean. Ministratin', yo' take dat an' yo' put dat in a bottle. Yo' un- dahstan', piece of it, piece of cloth or whatsomevah she use - cotton, whatevah it be. Take dat an' put it in a bottle. An' git yo' some of dis, de same thin' yo' call devil's-shoe- string see, [and] one of dose bottle of Hearts Cologne, an' one of High John de Conker. An' put dat in dere an' git yo' two nails an' one needle, see. If yo wanta, yo' could put three nails an' two needles, see. Den when yo' put de three nails an' two needles, why one of de nails counts fer de - one fer de Fathah, one fer de Son, an' one fer de Holy Ghost. An' put dat in a bottle togethah an' dem two nails [needles] count fer de conkerin' of de world. Put dat in a bottle to- gethah wit yore urinate, see. An' mix 'em an' stop it up tight, an' bury dat undah yore steps. An' whenevah she kin go; but she won't stay gone, see.
Entry 4176
Yuh take a person's chamber lye, takes seven nails. Yuh put three fo' dat person dat chew wanta use yuh Way. Git a Coca-Cola bottle. Jis' three nails yo' turn de points up - dat's de person dat chew wanta git chure way, an' de fo' nails dat's yo' - as a rule yo' turn dem lak dat in de chamber lye. An' den yuh stop it up wit a cork stoppah real tight. Den yuh set it in yore trunk where it can't be seen, or anywhere roun' de house where it can't be seen. An' as long as yuh hol' dat yuh got dat man.
(Whose chamber lye do you put in that bottle, his or yours?)
His, nobody but 'is. But chew remembah three nails down, name 'em, dat's de man; an' de fo' nails up, dat yuh. Dat's providin' it wuz a woman, an' 'vidin' it wuz a man. De one dat's workin' it tuh come dere way, dey must be on top.
Entry 4177
De chamber lye - yuh takes dis chamber lye an' put it in a jar an' git chew eight nails. Yo' turn fo' of 'em haid down an' fo' haid up. De down head is de woman, an' up is de man. Dat will break dem up. Yuh bury it right undah dey steps where yuh [they] kin walk ovah it.
(Well, whose chamber lye do you use?)
Use de man only. If yo' de man's wife, use de man only. If ah has a husban' an', yuh see, he's goin' wit anothah woman. Ah take his nurine an' put it in a jar wit eight nails, fo' nails haid down an' fo' up, an' close it up good in a jar tight. (What do those nails rep- resent now, what do they represent?) Dose fo' [down] de woman an' dose fo' up represent de man. Yuh take an' put de top on it tight, seal it tight, an' yuh take it an' go dig a deep hole an' yuh bury it. Den yuh covah it up real good, dat he may leave, go roun' 'er no mo'. He'll stay home.
(You don't call their names or anything like that?)
Don't call dere name.
Entry 4178
Yo' kin git ten penny nails, don't chew undahstan', an' brass pins. Yo' kin put 'em in a bottle wit de urine an' stop it up an' it'll set choo crazy. It'll stay in dere an' yo'll suffah clean till dey let choo out. Well, dat's mean, don't choo know. When dey let choo out, yo' got tuh git somebody [to help yuh], don't choo undahstan'.
(Why do they do that?)
Becuz dey're mad an' jealous of yo' gittin' along, an' do somepin tuh yo', don't choo know, so dat choo cain't have no luck.
(What do they do with this bottle?)
Dey buries it, buries it down in de groun' bottom upwards dey tell me.
Entry 4206
Dey say yuh kin take chxnber lye. Jis' lak dis yuh sweetheart, yuh kin take yuh sweetheart's chamber lye an' yuh chamber lye an' put it both tuh- gethah an' git chew nine needles an' nine pins an' nine nails, bran'-new nails, an' bury it undah de bottom of yuh footstep [doorstep] or eithah undah de bottom of yuh backsteps. Or eithah, if yuh don't wanta bury it undah dere, it's all right. If yuh wanta put it in de room anywheres it's all right, but it's bettah tuh bury it. An' dat'll make dem come home, an' love yuh very much.
Entry 4267
Anothah' way dat dey take it an' control of love wit it.
(This chamber lye.)
Kin control love wit it. An' den dey use it tuh draw a person tuh yuh. Tuh draw a pusson tuh yuh, yuh take dat an' put in it nine needles an' nine pins an' nine nails in a bottle, wit dat, jis' stop it [up]. An' drop de nails in head an' tail, de pins head an' tail, an' de needles head an' tail, callin' 'em evah time [you drop], an' make yuh wishes. An' den jis' stop de bottle up tight. Pusson apt tuh be settin' dere all alone, yuh shake dat bottle, yuh know, an' call dere name an' turn it upside down. Any place dey is, if dey ain't got de fare, dey be walkin', comin'." If dey ain't got de fare, dey try tuh be walkin' comin'.
Entry 4500
Yuh take dat watah an' put it aside an' let it git sour.
(This bath water.)
An' it get sour de suds goin' come tuh de top. Skim off dat suds an' pour all dat [water] out an' dere'll be groun's [dirt] undahneat' dere. Yuh take dat, de groun's undahneat' dere, too. Yuh know, gon'a be suds on de top, an' po' de watah off de top, den dere'll be drugs [dregs] at de bottom. Yuh take dat [dregs] an' yuh put dat in a bottle an' git dere name, write on a piece of papah nine times, nine needles, nine pins an' three nails, an' put 'em in dat bottle. See, if dey is from yuh [informant demonstrates by shaking imaginary bottle]. See, git dem tuh come tuh yuh. (Oh! You shake that bottle and the person will come to you. I see. Well, how do you get this scraping off their feet then? That off your feet or off their feet?) Dat off dey're foot, yuh know. (Oh! This is the bath water, that's right.)
Entry 4790
When a person wanta quit chew - if a woman's goin' wit a man an' he's tryin' tuh quit 'er, ah know how she kin git 'im back. Well, when he leaves git his - she'll go on back an' git 'is undahweah an' yo' know a little ravel comes right down heah - yo' know, a seam down de front. Yes- suh, yuh know dat whut sewed down de front.
(From the front of the breast all the way down?)
Yessuh. Well, she ravel dat thread from heah on down an' git 'er two new nails about dat long [demonstrates].
[I begin to describe informant's demonstrations.]
(About four inches long.)
Dat's it, about lak dat. An' she wrap dat. An' as she wrap it [demonstrates], jis' wrap it an' let it come down, wrap it an' let it come down. (She wraps a circle [with the ravel] around the nail and then she goes down to the bottom of the nail.) Yessuh, but yuh let it come [demonstrates]: Jis' as she wrap it, let it come down between dat until it git tuh de bottom - between de two nails. (She wraps these two nails together and the next time she goes between the two nails, and then she wraps them together, and then she comes down between the two nails again.) Yessuh. An' den she takes dose nails an' bury 'em at de do'steps an' he'll stay dere. [These two nails represent the man and woman. They are.held together by weav- ing, a magic-action rite. The head of the nail should be up, the head of the other down.]
(He won't leave her?)
Nossuh.
Entry 4925
Taken needles or pins or wire nails. An' jis' lak ah wuz tellin' yuh 'bout de sock: fold dat sock, if yuh wanta run 'em, fold it from yuh; an' if yuh wanta bring 'em tuh yuh, yuh fold it tuh yuh. An' yuh stick nine pins an' nine needles an' nine wire nails, an' yuh bury it undah yore steps, or undah dere steps, which- evah case yuh wanta do, run 'em or tuh draw 'em. If yuh wan' 'em tuh come, yuh bury it undah yore own step; an' if yuh wanta run 'em, yuh slip it in an' bury it undah dere step.
Entry 4983
An' so in de line of bringin' a man back, yo' take an' take his sock - take his sock an' nail it up in a da'k place in de cornah yer house, behin' de haid of yer bed. Yo' nail fo' nails an' yo' drive one right in de toe. Stretch it up bot- tomside downwards. Yo' drive one right in de toe, an' yo' drive one in de centah of de heel, an' yo' drive one on each outah edge of de heel. See, stretch it lak dat. An' yo' go to it fo' nine mawnin's an' call dis man's name, an' tell it: Bring 'im back to yo' In de Name of de Lord. An' aftah which - aftah nine mawnin's, dey say dat will bring 'im back.
(Do you use either one of his socks?)
Either one of de socks.
Entry 4984
Yuh take nine rusty nails an' yuh git 'is socks. Let it be real soiled - one, it don't diff'rence, jis' so it's a dirty sock. An' put dose nails intuh it an' bear [bury] it in de back yard. An' a... Well, YUH HAVE TUH EXCUSE ME, YUH 'URINATE OVAH DIS PLACE an' covah it up. See, dat will fix it so nobody cain't take 'im away from yuh.
Entry 5006
Jis' lak a man's sock or sompin, when yuh wanta break 'em up or sompin, or yuh wanta run 'em away, yuh bury it. Yuh jis' take it, jis' lak it's yore ole man or sompin an' yuh wanta git rid of 'im. Yuh kin run 'im away wit 'is sock, or: if yuh wanted tuh keep 'im, yuh kin keep 'im wit chure sock. (How would you run him away with the sock?) Well, yuh take his sock an' yuh wrap 'is sock up in sulphur, lodestone an' bluestone, an' yuh bury dat sock an' yuh put three rusty nails aroun' dat sock an' two pegs, an' yuh'll soon git rid of'em.
(How do you put those two pegs?)
Take de sock an' yuh bury his sock wit dat stuff in it. An' yuh take two rusty nails an' yuh put two on each side of de sock - one on dis side an' one on dat side. P An' put one in de middle of it, an' yuh put de pegs behin' it [like this N N N ]. What are those pegs supposed to do?) Ah dunno. [They symbolize the headboard and footboard of a grave. The design is a cross mark on the grave. She has crossed him.]
Entry 5016
Jis' take de sock an' roll it up - roll it tuh yuh. Jis' lak if ah want somebody tuh come tuh me, roll it tuh me.
(Whose sock?)
If it's a woman, her husban', or eithah if it's yore frien' or sompin yuh Want - if yuh could git holt of one of 'em, yeah, anybody's. Roll it tuh yuh an' put nine needles in dere, goldeye needles, an' nine rusty nails, an' bury it undah yore do'steps an' dat'll draw 'em.
(What about that red pepper?)
Yuh put de cayenne peppah in de sock.
(What will that do then?)
Dat will draw 'em tuh yuh.
Entry 5173
Nail a person's shoe undah de person's steps where dey live an' drive nine nails in it, in de shoe; an' when dese nails rust completely, dey'll die. (Suppose I would want to do that to you, would I take my shoe or take your shoe?) Mah shoe. (And then put it under your house, put nine nails right through the sole. Drive them down inside or?) Yo' turn dem [shoes] upside down an' drive dem [nails] through dat way [demon- strates]. Dem [nails] come [through] on de inside sole.
(Up [out] through the inside of the shoe.)
Entry 5174
Well, now, de piece when yo' intendin' - when yo' wanta send 'em away, now yo'll take dat piece [insole] an' cut a piece out of it. An', yo' know, yo' have tuh talk tuh it in a diff'ren' way all de time. Well, when yo' take dat piece out de shoe, yo'll git de lef' foot. An' when yo' take dat outa dat, dat's de same as 'is [foot] track. An' yo' take dat out an' den yo' git chew nine of dese fo'- cornahed nails, ah jis' call 'em. An' den yo' git chew a piece of thread an yo' tie all nine of dem nails. Yo' tie 'em tuhgethah. An' when yo' tie dem tuh- gethah, den yo' git a piece of shame brier [see p.646], an' yo' wrop dat tuh- gethah. An' den yo' put it in a blue bottle or a green one, eithah one lak dat, but let it be dark. An' yo' kin throw it in any runnin' watah. He cain't he'p from leavin', he got'a follah dat. (Now about those nails. You wrap those nails up in this piece of the old shoe. That the idea?) Yessuh, jis' a li'le piece whut yo' got outa de ole shoe, but yo' let 'em set a li'le while. An' den, when yo' set it dere, all yo' have tuh do, throw dem ovah yore lef' shouldah an' it go in dat watah. Yo' see, dey goin' as fur as dat watah run. Dey follahs den an' dey compelled tuh go in dat direction.
Entry 5463
Dey says if yo' take yore fingah, reach from hollah of de foot tuh de heel, dey take dat dirt up [demon- strates]. (YOu PUT THE INDEX FIN- GER AT THE HOLLOW AND the thumb at the heel and bring it together. Take up a pinch of that dirt. Out of either foot?) De right foot. An' yo' kin take dat den an' put 'em tuh wandahin' - trailin' [a rare word].
(What would you do with that dirt after you got it?)
Well, dey say dat yo' mix a li'le graveyard dirt wit it. Dey kin kill yo' wit it or else dey kin put yo' tuh travelin'. Take dat dirt an' sprinkle it wit nine new needles right in de direction yo' wan' 'em to go. If de house heah, dat yo' wanta run 'em from, yo' go right dere in front dat house an' put dat dirt. Say dat will run 'em. (Now I am not quite certain about those nails. You take this dirt from the foot and some of this graveyard dirt. And then you take nails or needles?) Kin take needles an' nails.
(How do you drive them - into the ground or what?)
Yeah into de ground. An' den nine new pins, an' needles wit it, but chew put dem needles between dem nine nails.
(That will make them go away.)
Entry 5500
She can take and get a piece of dirt from his left-foot track, and a lock of his hair, and a piece of his underwear, and nine nails, and seven grains of red pepper, and put all of that in one pack- age, wrap very careful, and take it and put it down at the sill of the door, out the door like that, and lean the package back, and he will come back home. [Fredericksburg, Va., by Ediphone.]
Entry 5535
Well, ah kin take dat foot track if ah jis' - say jis' WAN'A KEEP ANY- yo' see. Ah kin jis' ketch 'er track in a clear place, an' git a nice li'le stick an' measure dat track, an' git a good size bottle. An' ah'll sew dat track up in a red flannen cloth, an' ah will git nine bran'-new needles, see, an' stick it in dat cloth. Stick de needle right up lak dat in dat cloth, see. An' git three rusty nail an' tie it tuh- gethah, an' drop it in dat bottle an' cork it up airtight, an' evahthin' will be okay. Won' have no mo' trouble gittin' along wit chure wife.
(You said you use the stick for something?)
Yes, jis' any piece of li'le stick. Yo' jis' kin take a knife an' run off a li'le piece jis' long 'nuff tuh measure de track lak dat, see. Den yo' take de li'le stick an' yo' break it up, break it up in a li'le pieces, see. An' yo' put it in dat red flannen an' sew it up. Yo' take up dat track yo' know. Yo' take dat track up, see, an' put it in dat flannen jis' where yo' measurin' it. Sew it up an' take dem nine needles [etc.].
Entry 5536
[HERE IS AN UNUSUAL RITE, ONE DEVISED FOR PICKING UP A PERSON'S FOOT TRACK INSIDE THE HOUSE BY WASTING WATER ON THE FLOOR:1 Well, if yo' wan' someone tuh stay home - yo' heah me? Yo' heah me? Yo' measure dey footsteps an' yo'll take nine nails an' yo'll take dat footstep, de real footstep, an' yo'll put nine needles [nails] in de footstep. Dat's when we comin' in, when we in de house. Aftah yo' git 'em in de house, don' let 'em see it. Yo'll do dat even if dey sleep. Yo'll take dem nails an' yo'll - yo'll take dat whole footstep whilst dey in sleepin'. Now, if yo' wanted 'em tuh go 'way from home...
(Is that one thing complete now about the nine nails and the footstep?)
Well, yes, dey have tuh be in de house. Dey have tuh git 'em, an' if he sleepin', yo' kin do it bettah. Yo'll take nine nails an' yo'll ketch dey foot- step.
(How do you catch the footstep?)
See, lak mah shoe - see, lak dey comin' in an' yo' make a footstep. Maybe if dey got watah - always Wet sompin so dat dey kin step in it tuh git dey step, so becuz many time it dry an' yo' kinnot [cannot] git dey steps. Yo' have tuh waste watah or make where he gotta walk in it. An' den when he pass, it always - fo instan' [instance] yo'll make it wit a pencil so yo'll take de full step of de person. Yo' gotta git de full step of dat. Now, when he's in, yo' do dat - see, dat nine nails.
(What do you do with those nine nails now?)
Jis' leave 'em in de flo' wheresomevah he's at, dat's when he's comin' out de house. Well, now, fo' instan', if yo' wan'a use, scusin'[excusing] dat, dat's if a woman husban' is stayin' off.
(Here's my footstep. Now, you pick that up on something?)
Yes.
(Then you bring it into the house?)
No.
(What do you do with it now?)
Yo'll take de measure of dat footstep wit a pencil, if yo' gotta waste de watah or somepin fo' 'im tuh make de step. (There's the step now, then you take the length of it with a stick or some- thing? Now what do you do?) Yo' nails nine nails intuh de step [foot track] aroun' de marks [of the track] tuh ketch de whole footstep.
(You nail nine nails into the ground?)
No, intuh de house, intuh de house if he's in a house.
(You put that around the measure?)
Yes, if it's de whole measure. (You put that measure on the floor and then you put the nine nails around the measure?) Yessuh, dat's whut ah wanta [have been trying to] tell yo'.
Entry 5562
You get a pinch of dirt out of their left-foot track, bind that in a package, an' put seven nails in that package. You put three nails with the point [head] up, and four with the head down. Take that to running water and throw it over your left shoulder. Go on away and don't look back. And you won't be both- ered with them no more, so I have heard old people say.
Entry 5563
Ah heard dat dey kin take dese heah ten-penny nails an' drive 'em in yore track an' it will kill yo'. Jes' drive nine nails in yore track, both yore tracks, de right foot an' de lef' foot, jes' whichevah way yo' goin'.
Entry 5564
Dat a lady taken de track, yo' see, de hollah [hollow] of both of de feet - dirt - an' put intuh some fresh hog lard, stuck nine wire nails, new wire nails in this lard. Den wraps it wit raw cotton thread an' cuts de shape of a shoe sole, a pair of 'em, an' put 'em tuh- gethah an' wraps 'em an' put it in ground. Now, dose things dey say stops de ones from walkin'.
(How do you mean stops them from walking?)
Dere knees cannot bend.
(She gets that sole out of your shoe or does she cut it out of something?)
Cut it out of a pasteboard. Now dat's whut de lady tole me herself. [Mobile, Ala., (704 0r 702), 960:8.]
Entry 5565
Well, she'll git his track - she'll git de sand out of nine of 'is tracks an' she'll carry it undahneath 'er house an' she'll spread dat sand out. She'll take nine nails an' stick up in dat sand. An' he'll leave.
(Now which tracks does she get - one right after the other?)
No, his left tracks. (Nine left tracks.) Yeah. (Coming to the house or going?) Goin' - jis' eithah way, jis' git nine of 'is tracks. She'll git nine nails, jis' spread de sand down, an' den she jis' stick dese nails up in dat sand.
(Is all this sand in one pile or do they leave it in nine piles?)
Oh, no sir, jis' spread it out an' de nine nails in dere, an' in nine days he'll be gone.
(Are the nails pointed down or pointed up?)
Point down.
Entry 5566
You take nine new nails and nine new pins and nine new needles. You cut around their footprint, lift it up, turn it upside down and put it right back in the same hole; then, they stick these pins and needles and nails in it. That will give you pains in your leg. They always say they come in the left leg and changes to the right.
Entry 5657
Yah suh, dey - someone has tole me dat if dey git aholt of yo' foot track, an' dey put it in a bottle, an' dey puts six needles, six pins an' six ole rusty nails, six new gold- eye needles, six pins dat nevah did been used an' six rusty nails [mistakenly repeated] - an' den dey take it an' put it in a forked stick like dat [demonstrates], see. An' dey ties dose togethah an' dey put it to de foot of de steps, see. (Well, now they put that stuff in the bottle first, don't they, and then they put that bottle in that fork of that stick.) Yeah.
(I see. Where do they put that?)
Put unnah de steps or put it on de sunrise or sundown side. See, de haid of de step like dat, see, put dat down dere.
(I see - the step must be on the sunrise side of the house?)
Yassuh.
(And what do you do at the sundown side of the house then?)
Dey put de bottle outside - dey lean de bottle, put de bottle an' lean it. Don't let it lay down flat. (I see, they put the bottle at the sunrise side of the steps and they lean it tovard the sundown?) Uh-huh an' den dey lay down. Ah don't know nuthin about it befo' ah learned. (That's what I wanta hear. What you have heard about it. That's right. What vill that do to the person?) Suh, whut dat'll do? Dat track, if yo' got a husban', dat'll make him stay bome. An' den if he ups wit any othah wimmin, he can't even run about. If an- othah woman got 'im tied up, dat'll break 'em up. Dat's supposed tuh break 'em up in nine days time. (I see. And after you bury that bottle, do you do anything else then. After you bury that bottle, you let that stay there for nine days and then.
Entry 5985
In othah words, if it's someone yo' want, ah kin take three nails an ah kin drive three nails down, yo' know, in de ground; an' den ah kin take one [and] drive it up in de steps. An' take yore hair from roun' yore loins, any- where from roun' down dere, an' wrap it roun' dat nails all de way up. It won't be long befo' yo'll be back dere regardless of where yo' gone. (You have three nails in the ground, and one up in de step. You wound this bair on the one under the step?) Dat's right. [That is right, but it appears to me now that the hair could have been wrap- ped about all four nails.]
Entry 6036
Hair out of dere head - hair anywhere off of dem. An' dey take dat hair an' dey bury it in de north cornah of dere house undahneat' de house. An' aftah dey bury it down dere an' put nails on top of it, well it's a cinch dey ain't goin' to stay here.
(I see. Well, how many nails do they put on top of there?) Dey put ten, but dey got to be bran'-new nails. (I see. That'll send them away.)
Send 'em away.
Entry 6197
An' anothah thing wit yore hair, dey kin take yore hair an' vrap it Mom' three coffin nails an' go to a tree, cut a gash in dat tree an' lay it in dere. Jes' lay it dere an' nail it down in dere wit a staple-lak, yo' know, where it will stay. Let it stay dere on de east side of dat tree, an' let it be a young tree. As dat tree grow an' heal up, as dat tree covah it [hole] up, when it completely covahs dat, yo' die. Yo'll be sickly all de time atil it covahs up an' yo' will die.
Entry 6236
[I know] constantly from my own experience, that you could take your bair from de mole of your head and nine ten-penny nails, you see. (Nine ten-penny nails?) Yes, an' evahthin' is done in de ninth hour, an' nail it in de tree, undahstan'. Bell, an' inside of de nine months, you'll be beyond medical aid; the doctor couldn't bring you back to your recollection. You'll lose your mind. And if it stays there, you see, it will rotten away and so will you die. (I see. Well now, in this hair with those nails. you get this hair and ther chat do you do? With those nails then?) Suppose to use only nine [ten] penny nails. No other nails will do. (What do you do with them? I mean, how is that hair fixed with these nails yoa spoke of? What is done with them then?) You wraps it around there.
(You wrap this hair around these nails?)
Around de nails, each nail. You takes a portion of de hair, but from de mole of your head you see. An' you nails 'em in this tree.
(You mean, you wrap it around each nail?)
Yes, with nine [ten] penny nails, you see. An' you see, when you nail 'em in de tree, you nail 'em wit a curse word.
(You nail all these nine nails in at once?)
Yes - no, you nail 'em one by one.
(But all the same day?)
Yes, at de ninth hour; if it tis'n at de ninth hour in de mawnin', it is de ninth hour at night. An' you nail 'em wit a curse word. They says de blackest things they can about chah. (You put these nine nails. You put them all in there on one morning, one right after the other, all in the tree?) Yes.
(Any particular tree or any sort of a tree?)
Any sort of tree, but you try to git a tree that is not dying - you know, a half-dead tree. You see some of those trees that have leaves on one side and the one side it's like lightnen or thunderin' had done strucken it. Well, that will soon rot away, you see. Well, that's de side you'll choose to nail those nails, so that it'll soon rot away.
Entry 6247
I've heard 'em speak about 'em cuttin' hair out de mole [mold] of de head an' takin' nine nails, nine new nails, an' care-in' [carrying] it tuh de sunny side of a tree - I've heard of dat - an' drivin' it in. Drive these nails in dis tree. An' I hear 'em say dey go nine mawnin's an' drive these nails in de tree [one each morning], at de last mawnin' dey said then you'd pine away, yo' know. Yo' don't die right at once. Dey stop this hair up in dis hole an' put de nail in de hole.
Entry 6271
Jes' fo' instance, say, if yo' were livin' wit a woman an' jes' say, yo' wanted tuh leave 'er an' she wanted yo' back. She had a lock of yore hair. Den she would put in some nails, rusty - dey'd have tuh be rusty - rusty nails an' about nine or ten rusty needles. Put 'em in a bottle an' urinate see on it. Den whenevah she's ready fo' yo', she'd prob'ly shake de bottle an' git it all upset. It won't be long 'fore yo' git back dere. [The shaking of bottled urine, also other substances is a common rite, shaking should be indexed as a magic rite.]
Entry 6441
Now, if yo' wan'a woman tuh love yo' - yo' jis' wan'a woman tuh love yo' wit dem nails. De way yo' do, yo' git her nails an' parch 'em an' parch mah nails. Cut mah nails an 'er nails an' put 'em tuhgethah an' parch 'em. Make a fine powdahs out of 'em an' put dat in de food - jis' feed 'er on dat. Dat'll make her love me.
Entry 6447
Yo' take yore fingahnails - do dat on Friday. An' yo' trim all 'em off an' den git chure toenail de same way, an' scrape de bottom of yore feet. An' yo' parch dem toenails an' fingahnails tuhgethah. Parch 'em separate so dat de toenails be hard as de fingahnails an' de trimmin' from de bottom of yore feet. When yo' git 'em all parched, den yo grind 'em up tuhgethah. Yo' take dem den an' yo' sprinkle it ovah de food dat dey eat, an' dey'll eat dat. Well, now, yo' puttin' dem undah yore feet den.
(That's for love?)
Yes.
Entry 6448
Yo' cuts yore fingahnails an' yore toenails evah Monday or evah Friday, until yo' git a tablespoonful of it, an' den yo' take dat an' put it in whiskey. Dat's makin' yo' love me, see. Put dat in whiskey. An' den yo' put so much of dat - ah would - in yore coffee or yore tea an' let chew drink off it. Or yo' kin git it in dat powdah an' sprinkle on yore food, an' yo' eat it. (But you must cut these fingernails and toenails on Friday or Monday.)
Entry 6476
Yo' know jis' lak yo' scrape yore feet an' leave de scrapin' an' nails on a piece of papah. He kin take dat an' put it in a pocket hans'scuff an' take it an' weah it in de seat of 'is pants, causin' 'em tuh do things lak dat. If dey don't wanta do it, make women tuh obey yuh. Make hisself do things dat he wouldn't desire tuh do.
Entry 6492
De way yo' do dat, yo' have tuh cut 'em to yo' disaway, see. (Cut your fingernails?) Cut ary [every] one of 'em - cut all ten of 'em to yo'. Do yore toenails de same way - cut 'em to yo' all de time. Yo' git deg a bottle of Hearts Own Perfume an' put dat in dere. Den yo' kin set dat D8 anywheres.
(What will that do then?)
Dey'll be sickly all de time. Dey will not be healthy.
(The person whose fingernails and toenails you have.)
Yes sir, keep 'em. Yo' know when dey cut de toenails an' fingernails, yo' bor, dey gen'ly [generally] throws 'em out. Well, yo' see when yo' cut chure toenails disaway an' yure fingahnails, well po'don' scrape dat [bottoms of feet] from yo', yo' scrape it back tuh de heel.
(You scrape the dead skin back to the heel.)
Yes, scrape all dat tuhgethah an' den put it in dat perfume bottle an' stop it up. But it'll work quickah - hit'll work bettah by turnin' de bottomside up- wards.
Entry 6522
Dey take dem toenails, jis' trim 'em. Take dem toenails an' yo' parch dem toenails up, an' de fingahnails tuhgethah. Jis' - now, yo' got two fingahs on yo' fingahs dat is valuable. (What are those?) Dem's dese here [demonstrates]. (The thumb and the finger next to it?) Yes sir, an' yo' parch 'em up, an' if yo' drink whiskey, dey put 'em in dere. An' yo' put some of dat in dat whiskey. Let it set today, tonight. Den yo' be friends. An' yo' urinate, an' de las' dat uri- nate an' likkah, drap it [in] dere. An' yo' got 'em tied den.
Entry 6680
Yo' kin take nine new needles an' nine new pins an' nails - nine nails - an' put in a bottle. An' den yo' kin take one dese heah worm outa from undah de bottom [bark] see, think dey call 'em sawyah.
(Wood Sawyer?)
Yes sir. Dey got two little bills [horns] whut cuts in de wood. [These worms - the larvae of sawyers, several large longicorn bettles - bore large holes in timber or dead trees. Both worm and bettle are often called wood sawyers.] Put dat in dat bottle an' bury it down in de path where he walks. An' den, when he walk ovah dat, he'll ketch 'em in 'is foot. An' dat same worm [larva] whut chew see in dat bo'd, dat yo' put in dat bottle, jis' true as [what?]. [It will enter 'im an'] eat 'im up. [But this ailment can be cured.] Dat way [if you are in that condition] yo' got'a go tuh a root doctah de same way [as before]. Now a root doctor, he got'a take 'em out. A medical doctor don't do it.
(What would a root doctor do to get that worm out of him, I wonder.)
He goes an' git de root from de - dey call black haw an' red oak bark an' a stingin' nettle root. Put dat up in a bottle an' yo' got'a take. Dat stingin' nettle root, will run 'im out dere. [The other two help and also make 3 ingre- dients.]
(Well, what do you do with these roots? Make a tea of them or what?)
Yes.
Entry 6713
[This case of witchcraft occurred near Leland, Brunswick Co. N. Car. It is not much of a story but the ingredients and cure are in- teresting. A doctor from Sumter, S. Car., cleared up the case by finding two packages, one buried at the front door and the other in the ground under the house and beneath the woman's bed. Each package contained 6 Adam-and-Eve roots, balls from devil's shoestring roots, running huckleberry vine roots, and 4 rusty nails, each package wrapped in red flannel. The root doctor burnt both packages.]
Entry 6861
If yo' have a enemy dat chew - accordin' tuh de enemies dat chew know - yo' bury 'em in de ground an' make [a] wish, an' de same sickness or de influence dat dey have put on yo' will return back tuh dem. (How many of these nails do you put in there, you say?) Sometimes yo' use five an' sometime yo' use nine ten-penny nails.
(How do you prepare those nails?)
Yo' jis' buy 'em from de store. An' yo' take dose nails an' yo' hit 'em on de haid fer nine mawnin's, an' aftah.dat yuh bad luck return tuh de one dat send 'em. Dey claim dat de bad luck will turn back tuh dem, tuh de ones dat sent it.
[Nails are new.]
Entry 6975
Say yo' kin use nails, dat's when yo' a subject of gas. If yo' a subject of gas an' yo' use nine nails in a bottle of vinegah, yo' be shuh [sure] yo' drink.a tea- spoonful fo' nine mawnin's an' dat will take care of de gas.
Entry 7046
Git nine rusty nails an' soak 'em in a short pint of likkah nine days. Den take dose nails out an' strain dat likkah an' give it tuh 'em tuh drink. He'll nevah drink anothah drop. Ah'll guarantee dat, cuz mah uncle, dey broke him wit it. HE WUZ 80 YEAHS OLE. (He was 80 years old when they broke him?) Yes sir.
Entry 7790
Well, they say that chew can go to a graveyard and take the dirt be- tween the top and the bottom down in the grave, and mix that with a right foot of a rabbit; but the rab- bit must be shot down while he's running. And you take that and then git somebody's finger- nails and toenails and mix in with that, if you're against them, and then put that in a gun and shoot that away; and the direction that you shoots, the indi- vidual will leave, go off that same direction and become a wanderer.
Entry 7844
Yo' could use a needle, dey said, fo' breakin' up a home. (How would they do that?) Take nine needles an' nine ten- penny nails. Yo' undahstan' me? An' yo' could take dat same graveyard dirt. An' sew dat intuh a li'le bag an' bury it anywhere tuh de front of de steps. An' dat will tear up de home, tear it right up.
Entry 7931
Cut a board in shape of coffin, cut 9 knotches in it, drive 4 small nails in it, put under person's steps, just under dirt, that will kill you.
Entry 7952
I've heard though of taking nails from a coffir and wrapping it in red flan- nel, and give it to a person either for luck or ill luck, whichever you Wanted them to have. They sell them from twenty-five cents to a dollar.
Entry 7954
I've heard them say that they can take coffin nails and then take an individual's, some parts of his clothes, and go way out in the forest somewhere where the sun shines on a tree and nail that, use those nails in driving, and maybe some un- derwear or coat or something or a part of a coat, on that tree and fix it so it can't fall off. And as long as it stays there, on every change of the moon the individual will weaken down, and then finally he gits so he can't have any activity of his limbs atall.
Entry 7955
Like if someone stole sompin from yo', why yo' kin go tuh dat fig tree. Yo' have tuh git nails outa a casket an' drive three nails in de fig tree. An' while yo' drivin' 'em in dere, co'se yo' gotta be trimmin' de fig tree limb an' callin' de person's name; see, de one dat done dat. An' in dem nine days dat person who done stole sompin from yo', dey'll done try tuh git it back tuh yo' 'fore den.
Entry 8204
Yo' kin take a fellah's photograph an' take it out intuh de woods an' dig yo' a hole down. An' den take a nail, nine nails, an' stick right through it where it come through his heart. An' turn it on its face an' bury it, an' in nine days dis fellah will come tuh fadin' away. In de long run he will come tuh be a dead soul. (Put those nine nails all around his heart.) An' den turn it ovah on its face, turn it down on its face.
Entry 8205
Well, dey can't do anything now wit de photograph, not de late one dat's made, but de one wit de tintype, dey would take dem an' bury dem upside down, see, wit two nails. Look [demonstrates] two nails crossed dataway, an' bury de photograph upside down. An' dat would keep yo' wit a mixed-up mind always, an' prack'ly [practically] wit a bulgin' headache, contin'ly [continually].
(I see.)
BUT RECENTLY DEY DON'T USE DOSE TINTYPES ANY MORE. WELL, DEY DID ONCE UPON A TIME. DEY HAD DE BIGGEST PART OF DE PEOPLE, YO' COULDN'T GIT 'EM TUH TAKE DERE PHOTOGRAPH, UNLESS YO' JIS' STEAL UP ON DEM TUH TAKE IT, BECUZ DEY KNOWED WHAT WOULD BE DE RESULT.
(I see.)
Entry 8215
Ah heard, quite a while ago now - hit was a lady heah in St. Augustine, Fla., was up heah, but 'uh [her] husban' had quit 'uh. Her an' 'uh husban' ep- arated. Dis was [a] woman [who] was in a li'le busi- ness. Ah don' know whethah it was dry good or grocer- ies. But anyway, huh hus- ban' ruled 'uh outa dis by dis same identical thing ah'm talkin' about now, Witchcraftin'. He ruled 'uh out [of] dis. He went somewhere an' got some kinda stuff an' come back. An' he came back. Well, she didn't have no hopes er [or] nuthin, couldn't have no use tuh do nuthin any place. Well, dey even driven 'uh 'way but she was brought back. Dis woman aftah she came back, she had some money, an' dis man sold out all de goods of dis sto' whut dey had an' taken anothah woman an' lived wit 'uh. Ah had learnt dat he wus in some part a [of] Florida. Anyway, he wus goin' fo' good, goin' tuh sea. But she went an' she had 'im brought back. An' when he wus brought back, he gave huh de money dat he even carried fo' huh. Now, dat wus wit de photograph. Now, yo' take A LOTTA PEOPLE SAY, "AH DON' HAVE MAH PICHURE TAKEN AN' ALL DIS AN' DAT AN' DE OTHAH." NOW, YO' TAKE MAHSELF. HIT'S NUTHIN AH DO'S IN DIS WORL' TUH CUZ DE OFFICAHS AN' DETECTIVES OR ANYTHING LAK DAT TUH BE LOOKIN' FO' ME.
[This is caused by enemies through witcheraftin'.]
Now, ah've been 'rested twice right in dis town heah, one time fo' bein' drunk an' de othah time becuz me an' anothah fellah got intuh a fight. Now, ah has mah pichure, mah pichure's up dere, prob'ly in Atlanta, Ga. BUT NOW AH DON'T GUESS DEY'D DO ANYTHING TO IT AT ALL.
[Informant laughs.]
Well, now yo' kin take a pichure an' cut dis pichure half in two. Let dis li'le book heah now be de pichure. [One of my Nunbers Books I always kept on interviewing table; each informant having a number - see illustration at end of volume 2 of Hoodoo, which shows actual size and contents of one of these books.] Cut dis pichure half in two. See, heah's de pichure right on dere. Dat's de body of dis man's pichure. Cut dis pichure half in two. An' aftah yo' cut dis pichure half in two, git chew a pint flask. Go uptown an' git chew a pack of brand-new needles, a pack of brand-new safety pins, git chew 25 cents bottle of Hearts Cologne. An' aftah yo' cut dis pichure half in two, yo' write his name wit de pins - see, in dis part of de body, wit de pins, see [demonstrates].
(The upper part of the body.)
Dat's right, de uppah part of de body wit de pins, see. Yo' take de pins an' stick 'em dis way, an' dis way, an' one dat way, an' one de othah way, see. Sup- posed tuh be [able] tuh write dat, in de uppah part of dis body. Den yo' take dis part an' turn it haid foremost intuh de body, jis' lak if ah drap [drop] mah haid down lak dat. Yo' take dis part wit de needles an' yo' write wit seven - his name wit de needles in dis part of de pichure. Den instead of turnin' dis pichure down de same as de haid part turnin', turn it up, yo' see [demonstrates].
(Turn the feet up?)
Turn de feet up.
(Lower the head and turn the feet up?)
Dat's right. An' den yo' got de nails in dere. Well, yo' take an' put chew half of dis Hearts Cologne on dere. Yo' kin go tuh de graveyard an' git chew some dirt outa de graveyard. Don't mattah if it's from de haid of de grave or from de foot of de grave or from de centah of de grave, but git chew some of de dirt. Puts it in dis bottle, jis' about a tablespoonful, but let it be sifted, not no tracks er nuthin, jis'.de dirt itself. An' yo' bury dis. Now, dese people kin be in Chicago, Illinois. Dey kin be in Paris, France, or England, dey'll be brought back in a length of time aftah dis is nine days old. Den a person kin take dis pichure ag'in an' dey kin run yo' crazy. Dey kin take dis pichure lak dey do wit chure hair, yo' see. Dey drive yore hair intuh a tree wit a peg.
Entry 8344
All right if yo' wants tuh kill a person, yo' gits yo' a pichure an' drive a sixtypenny nail through de haid an' through de body. Carry it to an ole cedah tree an' drive it in dat cedah tree. Ah'll guarantee yo' in twenty-fo' hours dey'll be daid. (How many nails do you drive in there, just one nail?) Two nails, one through de heart of de pichure an' one through de haid. An' ah'll guarantee yo' dey'll be daid in twenty-fo' hours.
Entry 8354
Well, dey say dey take yore photograph an' take nine nails an' carry it tuh a pine tree an' yo' stab nine nails down in dat photograph. Dat would kill a person, dat will kill yo'. Dat will kill yo' if dey do dat. In nine days yo'd be daid.
Entry 8356
Ah learnt dat chew kin take dose nine nails an' dey would be rusty nails, undahstand. Ah learnt dat chew kin take an' drive 'em intuh a person's pichure, undahstand, an' dat would injure dem. In othah words dey would die, wit dose rusty nails, nine of 'em. (Where would you drive them? Into that... Where would you tack them? Against the wall or what?) No, intuh a tree.
[I stop machine too soon and must restart to add word heart.]
(All nine nails into the heart you say?)
Well, as neah as yo' kin git 'em intuh it.
Entry 8512
Take nine needles an' nine nails, an' also nine pins, an' a coconut wit a eggshell.
(An eggshell?)
A eggshell, an' dis quicksilvah papah.
Quicksilvah.
(You mean the paper they put around tobacco?)
[I am referring to tin foil.]
Yes, sir. Yo' take a indelible pencil an' write someone name on it nine times across.
(Over that silver paper?)
Yes. An' yo' write it nine times across dis way [demonstrates].
(You mean cross them like that, like an "x"?)
Yeah, an' den yo' cross dat again. See, jis' keep it all covahed up. Yo' are writing dere name backwards doh [though]. Yo' don't write it, yo' know, lak it should be, but yo' write it backwards. See, lak if yure name is WELLS, well yo' start wit dat SLLEW an' go right on lak dat. Write it fo' nine times, jis' lak dat, each way, backwards an' forwards, same way. Den, yo' take an' jis' put it inside of de coconut - take dis inside of de coconut an' take it tuh a midstream, an' throw it upstream, but it must be flowin' down, lak a drift [cur- rent], see. Yo' take dis coconut an' throw it out [into the stream] an' when dis coconut go down, dis person whatevah yo' wish tuh drift, dey'll come tuh dey can't be satisfied nowhere neah. If dey have no place, dey'll set out. Dey know dat yo' live in dere, an' dey'll come in an' dey won't see no peace at home. Dey are always on de go. Dat's if dey stay dere. Finally, dey'll git so dat dey can't stay in de house. Dey'll pack up whut dey got an' if de things dat dey have is too much trouble fo' 'em, dey'll take an' pro'bly sell it an' jis' go on adriftin'. Yo' pro'bly may nevah see 'em no mo'.
(What do you do with that eggshell and that stuff?)
De eggshell, dat goes intuh de coconut.
(Oh, that goes into the coconut.)
Egg, [coconut] milk, de quicksilvah, evahthing inside of dis coconut. An' yo' put it in dere an' yo' throw it ovahbo'd.
(I see.)
Entry 8551
Take a fish an' yo' write a person's name backwards, de two parties, if it's two, lak yore husban' is wit a woman.an' yo' cain't break 'em up, an' yo' wants 'em clean away from round yo'. Yo' don't wanta see 'em. Den yo' gits yo' a fish an' yo' dry it, but chew dries it into a perch fish. Dries hit into salt, yo' know, lak yore mack- eral - salt 'em down. Now - but chew have hit open already. Now, yo' takes dem nails backwards lak ah told yo' concerning de lemon, an' put it into dat fish an' sew dat fish up. An' carry 'im an' put 'im into runnin' watah, an' dat run de two away - dey couldn't stay dere. Dey have tuh go.
(The fish is killed before you put it into salt?)
Yes.
(How do you write those names on that?)
BACKWARDS. ALL RIGHT, MAH NAME IS VIOLA DORSEY. DORSEY VIOLA, DAT'S BACK- WARDS. Yores [if it] is Freddy Jones, [write] Jones Freddy. Dat cuts across dere.
[Freddy bisects Jones, the two names forming a cross.]
(That cuts across dere, cross the names?)
Dat's de idea, an' backwards. Cain't be straight fo' good.
Entry 8568
Go back to de fo'k of de road an' yo' kin take a nail, two nails an' cross dose nails, an' bury 'em right at de fo'k of de road. An' de person who wanta harm - an' dat will harm de person.
(Do you put anything with those nails or what?)
Jes' go dere an' put dose two nails cross In de Name of de Fathah an' de Son an' de Holy Ghost. An' de person whut chew wanta run away, well yo' could say dat [say or call victim's name]. An' dat'll carry dem. Jes' cross dem nails out dere.
(You mention the person's name, you say?)
Yes sir, name de person name, In de Name of de Fathah, de Son an' de Holy Ghost.
(That will drive them away.) [Florence, S. Car. (1308), 2212:4.]
Entry 8667
If yo' nail nine nails an' call a person name, dey'll always be down. (Where did you say they nail them down?) Nail nine nails down. (Where?) Nail 'em down on de floor. (Yes.) An' as yo' nail 'em down, call dat person's name. Don't care where yo' nail 'em at. An' call dere nail nine times as yo' nail dem nine nails. Dey'll always be down. Yo' see, when yo' nail 'em in, yo'nail 'em down.
Entry 8845
Yo' kin take nine nails every - [on the] night dat chew write dis let- tah, an' yo' take nine nails an' lay 'em in a glass crossways wit watah [lay them crossways in a glass of water] an' put some dirt [identified later] in de bottom of de glass an' sprinkle a little bit of dirt in de powdahs [identified later] in de envelope, an' dey say dat'll bring 'em back. Bring 'em back an' dey'll stay wit chew long as yo' keep it up.
(What sort of dirt do you use?)
It's graveyard dirt.
(What kind of powders do you use?)
It's some Lucky Heart Powdahs. [Lucky Heart is name of firm selling the powders - see interview AGENT FOR CURIOS (Jacksonville, Fla.) pp.1075-1085, first few paragraphs of text.] (You send the letter after you put these nails in the glass of water. You put this graveyard dirt in the water and this lucky powder. Then put this letter in the water, too?) No, yo' sprinkle some in de lettah, if yo' goin' send it tuh anybody.
(What do you put in the letter, just put dust?)
Yessuh. (If you write a letter to somebody, you put [in it] this graveyard dirt and this lucky powder. What do you do with these nails in the water? What do you do that for?) Dey say de nail keep dere till dey git dere or somepin lak dat, ah hear'd de ole people say.
(You keep these nails in the water.)
Until dey git de lettah, yeah, an' dey'll come. (They'll come back. But all you do is just put the nails in the water, nothing else?) De nail an' dat dirt.
(The dirt and the powder. Then you don't put anything in the letter?)
Yes sir, see yo' puts dat powdah an' a li'le dat dirt, an' call dere name.
(You put some of that dirt and powder into the water and also the letter?)
Yeah, an' call dere name.
Entry 8976
Yo' use dem needles an' nails - well, nails. Ah'll put nails an needles togethah. Fo' instance, yo' have a case in court. Yo' have, probably three or fo' witnesses against yo' an' yo' afraid dat when dey appear dat dere testimony will convict yo'. Now, nine mornings befo' de day of de trial, yo' go to de market an' yo' get yo' a beef tongue. Yo' get de beef tongue an' yo' come back home an' yo' split it down de middle. Yo' take dese witness' name, also yore witness, an' yo' write dere name down, nine times, an' place it inside of the tongue. Get yo' this No.8 thread - yo' get black an' white an' yo' take a needle an' yo' sew dis up in dere, an' as yo' sew dat, yo' curse it. As yo' sewin' yo' cursin'. (Which do you sew with, the black or the white?) Well, it's known as No.8 thread. It can be white or black. (Oh, I see.) But like if it was a negro an' have white witnesses against 'im, yo'd use white an' black thread. See, like mixed. (What if it's a colored man and he had negro witnesses against, him, then what?) Well, he would use black thread. Yo' take this black thread an' sew it an' cuss at 'im. Sew an' cuss at 'im. Evah time yo' sew it, cuss 'im. Sew dat up. Den yo' take nine needles an' drive dem in dere an' curse it all de time. Aftah yo' take nine needles, yo' take nine tenpenny nails an' jug in dere, all de way up to dere. Just take dat an'...
(You drive the nails into the tongue?)
Yeah, drive dem in dis tongue, all.de way through dis tongue.
(I didn't get that word. Do you jerk them or jump them in?)
Yo' push 'em in.
(Oh! All right. I didn't understand what you said.)
[I am trying not to offend! Remember the hermaphrodite in New Orleans and my use of the word sporting-woman - see p.1685,5 lines from bottom, fol.] Yeah, yo' push 'em an' den aftah yo' take dat an' yo' dig a hole. Dig a hole deep enough fo' yo' to git say around abount 25 pounds or 50 pounds of ice. An' yo' put de ice at de bottom an' put dis tongue in between an' freeze dat tongue fo' nine days an' nine nights. An' de day of de trial - whenevah yo' think de ice will run out, yo' just go back an' yo' put ice on it. Yo' keep dat tongue froze. As long as yo' keep dat tongue froze just as hard, yo' know like when yo' freeze sompin it git real hard - as long as yo' have dat tongue froze, it will work. Yo' keep de tongue froze. De morning dat yo' are goin' to trial, get up - just like yo' get up out of yore bed, don't make it up, leave it. Take yore undahclothes, yo' turn dem on de wrong side, even yore socks. Put on yore shoes an' clothes an' yo' come on out. Den yo' go to court. If dat tongue is froze when yo' go to court, to trial an' get up on de stand, dey'll call de witness to de stand, it'll freeze his tongue. He can't talk like he wants to. He'll git up dere an' he'll make some mistakes. He'll git up dere an' he'll talk, he'll be talkin' against yo', but de way dat he'll talk, it'll be in yore favor. See. He'll sort of stutter an' can't get de thing right like he wants, yo' know. Dey will throw it [case] out then.
Entry 9104
Yo' mean if dey ketch yuh fo' trial. Well, if dey ketch yuh fo' trial an' yo' kin git out on bond tuh git tuh dis judge - know wheah dis judge stays an' git tuh his home, yo' go dere an' slap fo' [these 4 objects later]: one tuh dis cornah, one tuh dat cornah, dis cornah, an' dat cornah. Drive fo'. De third one, dat'll be yuh. When yo' go co't, when de co't come, dey turn yo' right loose.
(What do you drive?)
Drive fo' nails. Drive one east, west, south an' north, an' when de co't come, dat settles it. It's off.
Entry 9154
(Tell me right from the beginning of it.)
From de beginnin' of de accident an' all?
(That's right, and how she had to pay this and all, you know.)
Well, she cooks fo' C. P. D. Dat big man up dere tuh Something & Company. She been workin' dere two years.
(This is your daughter.)
Ah works fo' So-an'-so, de jeweler uptown in de store. All right. Well, on de second Sunday of each month Mrs. D. lets Emily off, she's mah daughtah, fo' her tuh nuse [use] Sunday. She jes' go an' gits break- fast an' don' have tuh clean up, jes' dust. Dat's her commune Sunday. An' she jes' go an' git breakfast an' jes' dust around, make de beds - spread de two beds an' dust around. Yo' know, make things passable. An' she gits off. Well, this partic'- lah Sunday, which dis Sunday gone - a month now - wus de second Sunday. Well, she came home befo' ah did. She got off befo' ah did. She got off befo' ah did an' she came home an' she went tuh de garage an' got her car out. Well, she started to go to a girl's. She had her hair done dat Sat'day. Well, she started tuh go tuh dis girl tuh jes' have her hair turned undah yo' know. She got up dere on de cornah of Amherst an' George Street. She met two friends of hers an' dey said, "Oh, mah feets hurtin' me!" Said, "Would yo' take us home, Emily?" Emily?" say, "Why, yes, ah got time ah reckon." She looked at de watch. She says, "Yes, ah guess ah got time." Well, she went right on down de street dat way an' on House[?] on Egmont Street is where she got in dis collision wit de water - whut chew call it?
(Hydrant?)
Yes, dat's whut dey call it. An' she jes' ran right up intuh it. De steerin' wheel got locked on her. Yes, got locked on her. Well, den, it's nuthin she could do. Well, dat jes' tore de pipe all up an' muddied de streets with water an' everything, see. Well, someone ah guess up dere called up de police. Dat's de bes' thing yo' could have done. Dey came out. Well, dey 'rested [arrested] 'er an' made 'er git in dere cah. So dey called up dere at de wreckah, de Chevrolet wreckah. De Chevrolet wreckah came an' taken 'er car down tuh de Chevrolet place. [Police] taken her along tuh jail. Well, jes' about dat time - she wus in jail about five minutes. Ah got off from work an', cos' [of course] quite natchly [naturally], she gone tuh de co't- house right down dere. Evah'body ran tuh meet me, "oh Mirandy, Mirandy, have yo' heah whut happened?" Ah said, "No - no - what?" Said, "Well, Emily wus in a wreck." Ah said, "Did she git killed or git hurt?" Ah jes' wus flusterated den yo' know. So dey said, "No, she didn't git hurt. Dey taken her tuh jail." Ah said, "Well, all right." Ah went - rushed right on down tuh de fail. Dey said ah couldn't see her but dere wus nuthin wrong wit 'er. Well, where ah wus workin' at de time, ah wus workin' fo' one of de police's sistahs an' he stayed right dere, de little fellah dat rides de motorcycle, Andy C. He said, "No, Mirandy, ah wouldn't tell yo' a story, yo' know, yo' mah cook. Ah would not tell yo' a story." Ah said, "All right." So den ah came on back home aftah ah couldn't see her or talk tuh her. Ah Went ovah dere tuh Mr. G. an' ah axed Mr. G., ah said, "Goodness sake, whyn't yo' call me up an' let me know dat Emily wus in jail?" He said, "Mirandy, it jes' happened jes' now." Said, "Ah didn't know where tuh call yo' an' ah knowed yo' would see me." Ah said, "Well, ah do see." Ah said, "Ah want mah chile out, " ah say, "Emily is no jailbird." Ah said, "An' accidents are likely tuh happen tuh anybody at any time, an' especially wit a cah." Ah say, "Ah seen some cahs would go sailin' by hers a thousan' times an' say be wrecked, " ah say, "an' ah've read in de papahs where a man an' his wife were jes' married on dere honeymoon, got killed an' hurted." Jes' went on explainin tuh 'im. He say, "Yes, " he says, "Don't chew be worried." He said, "If it any sech thing lak money tuh git 'er out, why she's comin' out." Ah said, "Well, 'phone 'em an' ask is she hurted?" So he did. Dey said, "No, dey wasn't anything wrong wit Emily nor de people - de two girls whut wus in de cah. Ah said, "Well, all right." Mr. G. say, "Go on home." Ah say, "No. Well, no." He say, "Yes, yo' go on home." Ah went on home an' as soon as ah unlocked de do' an' opened up de house, den she came. Well, dat wus on Sunday, de second Sunday in last month. So Monday, dat Mon- day, yo' know, dey had co't. Well, de judge didn't wanta fine me, becuz he knows me an' 'er folks, yo' know, an' den ah worked fo' 'im. Ah have worked fo' 'im. Haven't worked fo' 'im. recently but ah have worked fo' 'im. Anyway he knows me. An' de Chief, Chief Francis, said, "Judge, dat Mills woman" - he wus talkin' 'bout me - he says, "ah've knowed her, been knowin' 'er fo' ovah 25 yeahs." He says, "She's a truthful woman. Ah believe evah word she says." He says, "She's all right." But yet, yo' see, de city had tuh pay fo' dat hydrant tuh be put back an' it cost - dey only charged her fo' dat hydrant tuh be put back. Dey had tuh hire extry help, yo' see. De watahin' people had done knocked off at dat time, yo' know, an' dey had tuh call on extry help. Dey had tuh call on extry help. Why ah guess dey had tuh pay dem extry. Ah know dey did.
(Overtime or something?)
Yes. So de Judge wus very lenient wit 'er. Dey only charge her $25.50. $25.50 but aftah she back ovah tuh de co'troom or tuh de jailroom - whatevah yo' call it - why she had tuh pay $26.50. All right, dat wus settled right fo' dat. She didn't have tuh go tuh jail. All right. Den she went on back an' fixed dinnah fo' her people. Well, de cah wus still at de Chevrolet place where she bought it from. So de one tuh go ovah - ovahhaul de cah an' see whut it would cost an' check up on it, yo' know, see whut dey could do. Well, Mrs. D., de lady dat she worked fo', friend - a personal friend is a businessman. So he tried to do it cheap as he could an' it wus $63. Well, latah on de watah people taken a 'tachment [attachment] on de cah an' Sued 'er fo' $55.55. BUT DEY'LL BE AS LONG GITTIN' DAT $55.55 AS YO' OR I WUS GITTIN' GROWN. AH'M GOIN' SEE TUH DAT PART. AH'LL TAKE CARE OF DAT MAHSELF. (Now, you were going to tell me what you have done now to take care of that - make a nice story of it.) Well, ah taken me a piece of stick - common ordinary stick an' ah hew it down jes' about lak dat [demonstrates].
(About as long as your long finger.)
Yes. Ah hewed me anothah piece about a inch, about two inches long. Ah make a cross in dat.
(You made a cross of those two sticks.)
Ah taken it an' ah put it in de back seat undah mah cah - undah de back seat of de car - our cah, de flivvah, mah cah. Well, it's mah daughtah's but ah call it mine.
(The car that was in the wreck you mean?)
Yes. Re'lly, it is mah daughtah's cah. Ah taken me three new nails, three rusty nails an' put dem in de back of dat cah. Ah got me some dust outa dat cemetery an' ah put some peppah, gunpowdah an' salt in a little sack - jes' made it about dat much - jes' a little lak dat, of each [demonstrates].
(Just a pinch of each.)
Jes' lak dat an' ah put it undah de.... [demonstrates].
(Under the seat?)
Uh-huh. Well, yo' know, ah hol' up de hood of mah cah wit a pencil [demonstrates].
(Made a cross with a pencil like that.)
Dat's de end of it.
(Well, now, where did you put those nails?)
In de back seat - undah de back seat of mah cah an' dat cross.
(Well, now the nails - usually they drive them into the wood?)
No, yo' jes' throw dem careless [demonstrates].
(Just throw them careless.)
Yes, careless.
(And just lay the cross in there?)
Jes' lak yo' would have jes' ole rubbage in yo' cah.
(Just throw stuff in.)
Yes, any stuff dat chew might need.
(And that was done so that they couldn't win this suit. That the idea?)
Dey will nevah win it, unless ah die or dat git misplaced. But DEY'LL BE AS LONG GITTIN' IT AS YO' OR AH GITTIN' GROWN UP.
Entry 9241
Wanta make dem move out, yo' come out heah an' take a aig an' bust it up ovah his front do'. Yo' git some of his dirt, some of his track yo' know, an' den pat it down good an' stick some nails in it, sompin lak dat, an' turn sompin tuh covah ovah it. In a few days he'll be gone away.
(Where do you put this stuff?)
Under de steps.
(Put a few nails in?)
Yes. Make it good, yo' know, lak a cake, an' stick some nails in it, an put it undah de steps.
Entry 9307
Take a chicken aig an' beat it up fine an' put plenty black peppah an' salt in it. Git chew two nails an' put it in dere mattress, if dere any way yo' kin git it in de mattress, an' sew de mat- tress back up. Anyone in dat house, dat'll run 'em outa dere.
(How would you put these two nails in that egg?)
[Since I did not kid my informant's, my mind here must have been tired!]
Yo' take two bran'-new nails an' jes' wrap it up wit de aig an' black peppah an' dat stuff an' jes' put it in de mattress.
(Use any kind of egg?)
Yes sir. any kind of hen aig.
Entry 9308
Ah haven't heard of 'em usin' pins an' needles [in answer to my unre- corded question about them], but ah've heard of 'em takin'a aig an' fo' ten- penny nails an' one aig, an' drive dose nails up in de ground. (You mean put the head down and let the point stick up?) Put de haid down an' let de point stick up, an' stick dat egg between dere an' den wrap it ovah. An' if yo' is in love wit someone, dat'll bust it up.
(That is if I wanted to break up some man and another woman?)
A man an' anothah woman, dat'll bust 'em up. (Well, you don't have to do anything else with that egg? You don't have to walk over it or anything of that sort?) Yo' don't have tuh walk ovah it or nuthin of dat kind. [Here is a rite of intention only. The 4 buried nails, points up, outline the coffin cradling the egg, intended victim. After the egg becomes rotten and bursts, the man or woman you have in mind will no longer annoy you.]
Entry 9722
Yo' kin take a twentypenny nail an' dress it wit High John de Conkah stuff an' dope it evah mawnin' an' evah night. An' take an' drive it neah yore house, drive 'em [informant changes to two nails] in yore do'side both ways. Say it will keep de law away. (What do you mean, drive them both ways?) Drive one dat-a-way an' drive one dis-a-way. Drive one on dat side dat-a-way an' drive one ovah heah dis-a-way.
(Right in the door frame?)
Yes, an' jes' dope [dress or feed] dat [driven in] haid evah mawnin' an' evah night. Say dey [law] won' come anywhere neah yo'. [Nails are more likely driven into doorsill.]
Entry 9723
If a landlord wanted tuh make yuh move out a house, yo' kin git chew two nails, bran'-new nails yuh see, an' yuh cross 'em right ovah de sill of de do' an' he cain't git chew outa dat house. Well, whensomevah yo' wants tuh cross yore house tuh keep anybody from stayin' in dere, why jes' as yo' use de nails fo' yuh tuh stay dere, yo' kin use dose nails fo' dose people so dat dey cain't stay dere. Dey have tuh cross de same nails.
(That will also keep the people from moving into the house?)
Yessuh, 'long as it crossed.
Entry 9724
Take two tenpenny nails an' nail 'em down an' cross 'em lak dat [dem- onstrates: nails crossed like an "x"]. Nobody will stay in dere.
(Where do you nail them?)
Right ovah de do' [doorsill]. Crosses up de house. (No one can rent it or stay in there.)
Entry 9725
Dey use nails fo' sep'ratin' a man an' a woman, or eithah de husban' an' wife, whatevah yo' wan' tuh do. Yo' take de three nails an' cross; 'em dis way. See, cross 'em dat way, yo' see, an' den yo' have anothah one comin' cross dis way. (They are crossed one on top of the other like a rail fence.) Yes. An' den git chew a twine string an' yo' wrap it till - have de twine string about a-like dat [meas- ures].
(Four or five feet long.)
Yes. An' wrap it till dat string is out; all de way in all dose things [dem- onstrates].
(In all those corners?)
[In the V's between the spokes of the wheel.]
Yes. An' den when yo' git it wrapped, den yo' take it an' whosomevah house it is, yo' go tuh dere house. An' yo' go in, yo' know, an' sit down an' talk or sompin lak dat. An' den go tuh de backdo' an' throw it east, jes' as fur as yo' kin in de grass. Den yo' come on back. Dat's de way tuh separate a man an' wife.
(You just throw the whole thing altogether, just throw the whole thing away?)
Yes, de whole thing away. Dat's tuh separate a man an' wife. [There are several of these rimless wheel rites in HOODOO.]
Entry 9726
Bury 3 nails crossed together to bring person back.[ Here, as in the preceding rite and elsewhere in HOODOO, we have the well-known rimless wheel rite.]
Entry 9727
Whenevah yo' be rid [writ?] out, dey done be rid yo' out - yo' know, outdo's an' yo' gotta move. Dey done rid yo' out, yo' know - de officah rids yo' out an' yo' gotta move. [Evidently your few posses- sions are on the sidewalk out in the street.] Yo' cake three nails an' yo' go tuh de do' lak dat an' nail 'em down [demonstrates] right in de middle of de do'.
(Right underneath the saddle that goes across the door.)
Yes, an' nail 'em down in dere an' call De Name of de Fathah an' de Son, an' yo' kin stay dere. Dey'll come an' lengthen yore days an' let chew stay on dere. Yo' won't have tuh move. Ah know dat fo' a fac' 'cuz ah did dat mahself. (You put them right down [I demonstrate] where that board goes over - over that saddle of the door.) Yes. [In that first line is there a play on the words writ and rid [get rid of you] both pronounced alike here.]
Entry 9730
Lak somebody have did somepin tuh someone an' dey wanted tuh change it onto dem - turn it back ontuh dem. Dey kin take three nails, rusty nail, an' put in dat bottle a chamber lye. An' let it set dere fo' nine mawnin's an' den take an' throw it intuh runnin' watah.
(This will turn the spell back on the person that put it on them?)
Yes sir.
(Whose chamber lye do you use?)
Yo' kin use yore chamber lye. See, if yo' wanted tuh take it off yoreself, use yores.
(That is if you tricked me, I would use my own chamber lye?)
Yes sir. [Informant would not throw his own stopped-up urine into running water, he throws emptied bottle.]
Entry 9731
Dey tell me if yo' bo' a hole in a tree an' take, ah think three nails, an' drive in dere an' name 'em. An' yo' drive 'em in dere. Dey tell me dat will cuz a person tuh git fits an' die from 'em.
(How many nails do they put in that hole?)
Dey put three.
Entry 9732
If yo' want tuh kill a woman or a woman wants tuh kill yuh, she could take six rusty nails an' git a piece of yore undahclothes, an' [or] ole stockin'. Takes it an' drop it intuh a quart jah an' screw de top on it. An' left about three holes in it, where jes' a li'l' sand kin drop in dere. An' bury it undah yore steps, if yo' aren't scared. An' den yo' walk in an' out an' back an' fo'wards [over it]. Jes' as de sand drop in dere, yo' [inside the quart jar] gits sick. Well, yo' git tuh de play [place] yo' won' be no mo' good tuh yuhself or nobody else. An' de mo' sand drop in dere de mo' closah yo' gits tuh yuh grave. Jes' kill yuh, yo' know.
Entry 9733
[This is a double-four rite, actually eight nails.]
Take a penny nail an' go tuh a tree an' nail yo' fo' dis way [demonstrates]. Git chew fo' nails, de ten-penny nails, an' git on de sunrise side an' put chew fo' of 'em dis way [demonstrates].
(In a row that way.)
Yes, dat's right. An' fo' dis-a-way tuh de sundown. Come roun' dis side an' put de othah for dis way, an' yo's all right. Nobody can't harm yuh. (You go to the sunrise side of the tree and you put four nails like that horizontal, right in a row. Then you go round to the sundown side and put four horizontal in a row. What do you do that for?) Yo' do dat tuh keep anybody from worryin' yuh.
Entry 9735
[Similar to the preceding rite we have the following one:]
(The wire nails?)
Ah undahstan', whut chew build wit. Yo' take dose an' yo' cross 'em aftah folks, an' throw [salt] den, aftah yo's ti'ed [tired] of 'em. Yo' know, dey comin' in yore house. Yo' kin cross 'em at chure do' fo' nine mawnin's, an' aftah dey done been in dere, yo' kin sweep out fo' nine mawnin's in behin' dem, if yo' wanta keep 'em out. Sweep out fo' nine mawnin's across dem nails down dere lak yo' wuz mad at 'em [the nails]. Aftah yo' done swept, den make a wish dat dey will stay away: "Ah don' want chew in mah house." An' fin'ly dey will quit comin' dere. (You cross four nails, you cross them as twos, like you are making a picture frame. And you put them down before you sweep out?) [PICTURE FRAME HERE SHOWS THAT I GRASPED THIS RITE AT ONCE THOUGH THIS AND PRECEDING RITE, NO.9734. WERE SEPARATED BY TIME AND DISTANCE.1 No suh, aftah yo' sweep out.
(You sweep out for nine mornings. Then you put these nails down?)
Yo' put dem nails down fo' nine mawnin's. (You don't put the nails down for nine mornings, you only put them down for one morning, don't you?) Dey said put 'em down nine mawnin's, dose nails, aftah yo' done swept out. Yo' puts 'em down nine mawnin's aftah yo' done swept. Yo' sweep fo' nine mawn- in's. (You sweep one morning, then what do you do the next morning? Do you sweep again?) Sweep ag'in.
(When do you put the nails down, each time you sweep?)
Each time lak yo' sweep. (That means four nails each morning. That's four nails each of the nine Dornings? That is 36 nails altogether?) Yo' put dem same nails back down.
(You only use four nails altogether?)
Yessuh, jes' only dose fo'.
(You take them up afterwards?)
Aftah dose nine mawnin's yo' take dem up. [To summarize this rite: the first morning you arrange 4 nails into a picture frame design on the floor at the door. Over them you sweep unwanted visitors foot tracks or prints. Take up the nails. Repeat this rite 9 successive mornings.
crossing nails at a doorway, with separately prompted material and frame interpretation. Keep the exact interviewer→informant role order; the later frame explanation belongs to interviewer/editorial context. keeping unwanted visitors out in printed informant dialogue. Retain the explicit out polarity; it is not retention at home or object possession. These are attributed source occurrences; outcomes remain unverified.
Read full source (printed page 3836) · Read full source (printed page 3837)
Entry 9736
Take new tenpenny nails an' nail it up here [demonstrates by pointing] in each corner of the house [inside the house], or either on the outside in each corner of the house. An' the next morning they'll be out that house. [Here we have a simpli- fication of the preceding picture-frame rites, signifying the "4 corners of the world" with a cross in each corner.]
Entry 9737
Yo' kin take fo' ten- penny nails an' jes' drive one at each cornah of de house, back an' front, an' dere won't no law come dere. Dat's experience. [This diagram is a stylized simplification of preceding rites, 4 crosses in the corners of a square.
Entry 9738
They can take four new nails, tenpenny nails, and they can bring 'em - if yo' got a field out there or something or garden, they can bring 'em an' cross four of 'em in the four cor- ners of that place you got, and you got to move. Yo' can't stay there, yo' got to go, if they cross four of those nails in each corner. But yo' going to make six- teen nails in them four corners. Yo' got to move when them sixteen nails are crossed. Yo' can't stay there, regardless of how it is.
(Where do they put them?)
Put 'em in each corner in the four corners of that place whatever yo' got.
(That property?)
Yes, that property. [Here we have either the complete picture frame in each of the 4 corners of the property, or else in each corner 2 nails cross each other making 2 separate crosses - a doublecross!]
Entry 9739
On dat person's premises, if dey drive tenpenny nails intuh a tree - on dat person's premises - why yo'll change dere luck. Dey jes' lak a fellah dat won't have good luck. (Just one nail?) No, seven tenpenny nails.
Entry 9740
(What are you going to do with those nails?)
Conkah anything yo' wanta conkah. It's nine nails. Yo' put three heah [demonstrates].
(Three right over your navel.)
Right ovah mah navel, an' yo' got three in de back, ain't chew? Dat's six, ain't it? Put one heah, one dere. Make a sack, yo' know, jes' lak a nation sack. But yo' kin fix it up round, yo' know, good aroun' yore waist. One on each hip. But yo' got three right chere an' three right in de spine of yore back. Dat's six, ain't it? Dis is seven an' dat's eight. Now, put one in dat left shoe. [For nation sack, see interview THE "NATION SACK" WOMAN, Pp.1449-1459, vol. 2, who describes this article.1
(What will that do for you?)
Conkah whut ah tole yo'. Conkah de devil or any way yo' want it. But yo' gotta make a wish In de Name of God. Yo' gotta do all dis In de Name of God an' have faith in it.
Entry 9741
Says yo' take nine nails an' carry 'em tuh a graveyard. An' if a per- son real mad wit chew, take nine nails an' carry 'em tuh a graveyard, an' leave a penny down dere, an' take some dat dirt. An' tie it in a rag an' carry it an' put it undah dat nail at 'er fiahplace. An' dat person dat mad wit chew, dey come dere whah [where] dat down. De woman or man dey come dat same night.
(You bury those nine nails in the graveyard?)
Yo' bury dem down dere an' yo' bring de dirt. [That nail at the fireplace is a peg upon which she can hang various articles. Having paid a penny for the graveyard dirt I see no reason for leaving the 9 nails there. Surely both grave- yard dirt and 9 nails were buried at the fireplace.]
Entry 9742
Yo' take nine wire nails - dey call 'em tenpenny nails - an' yo' take dem nails an' yo' put five at de front. Nail five down right in de centah of de front do'. An' yo' take de othah fo' an' yo' nail 'em right down in de fiahplace - right down in de fiahplace. An' yo' say, "Well, ah wan'a stay heah an' ah don' wanta leave - long as ah wan'a." An' evahtime de rentman come in he say, "Yo' got anythin'?" "No, ah ain't got nuthin tuhday." An' he go on by. He nevah tell yo' tuh move out de house - not argin' [argu- ing] 'bout it. Yo' stay dere till yo' git ready tuh go. See, dat's naiZin' yo' down.
Entry 9744
Use nine nails, nailing six the straight way and three the crossway [making the form of a cross] up overhead or either where the party have to pass at. And that's crossing of the house. Yes, sir. If they [know] exactly it's crossed: again, removing the nails, keeping them in the house overnight, throwing them out before the sunrise, and washing the house out with saltpeter, it's [the cross is] done away with. (That removes this cross I put on the landlord?) Yes sir, absolutely. [The 6 nails, grouped into three sets are driven into the floor as follows: IT Tr Tr. Then 3 nails are driven across the sets like this: H H H. We now have 6X's or Soblecrosses.]
Entry 9745
Say you could nail nine nails in de floor of somebody's home and keep them down all the time - I've heard that.
(Where would they nail those?)
Where do they nail them? (Yes.) Under the bed that they sleep in or somewhere near where they be all the tine; or around the stove or the table, where they'd have to, you know, often Pass over.
Entry 9746
You take nine nails and nail each one of 'em at nine o'clock every moming for nine mornings jis' acrost de door. On de first morning de first nail is driven into the wood at the edge of the front step; on the second morning the second nail is driven nearer the house; etc., until the nails form a straight line from the edge of the steps across the doorsteps into the house. An' the ninth morning he's comin' back. [This is my original transcription made in 1937 a short time after the recording: The voice came through badly but everything has been recovered and reproduced here.]
Entry 9747
Kin do dat easy. Jis' lak now if yo' sellin' a lil' drinks, now. Yo'll git nine nails an' yo' bury dem nails six days. Yo' bury dem nails. (Where do you bury them?) Right tuh de foot of yuh steps. Den aftah dat yo' drive one heah, drive one dere, an' drive one dere, drive one dere, drive one dere, an' yo' drive one heah [etc.]. Nine time.
(Drive them right around the steps.)
Yes, right around de steps.
(Down in the ground or into the steps?)
No, right on de edge of de steps. Yo' drive nine nails an' yo'll have de dhiskey in dis house. An' he'll come in heah an' he ain't goin' intuh dat room yhere de whiskey is atall. He come in anothah room an' look aroun' an' say, Av, dere ain't nuthin heah," an' he go on. [Charleston, S. Car., 603:2.]
Entry 9748
Ah've hear'd of usin' bran'-new wire nails, if a pusson stayed close toh yo' an' yo' didn't want 'em tuh live dere. Yo'd take nine new nails an' drive 'em down between yuh house an' dey house, an' in nine days dey'll move. Ah've hear'd of dat.
Entry 9749
Jes' lak if yo' an' a person have a big dispute or somepin of de kind, den yo' take nine nails, nine bran'-new nails. An' take yo' some sulphuh an' take dem nine nails an' a piece of tin. Yo' know, a top [lid of tin can] an' nail it down lak dat. Nail it through dat top an' put dat sulphuh undah it, undah de top. See [demonstrates], turn de top down, see, an' yo' take nine nails an' nail 'em roun' [through the lid] lak dat. An' if he's plannin' tuh do anythin', take a suit ag'inst yo' or anythin' of de kind, use dem nine nails. Den yo' tie his mind down. Yo' tie his mind down dat he can't do whut he intend tuh do. Can't do it.
(You just simply put the sulphur out there, and turn that tin top [or lid]
down over it, and drive nine nails into it.) Nine nails. An' talk to it jes' lak ah'm talkin' tuh yo', jes' what yo' want tuh be done.
(What would you say?)
Jes' lak dis: "Ah don' wan' chew tuh bring suit ag'inst me. Yo' must be mah fren', not a enemy. Yo' gotta be mah fren'." Yo' see, yo' nail dem nails down an' yo' talk tuh it, jes' lak yo' call 'is name: "John, yo' must be mah fren an' not a enemy tuh me. Yo' must be mah fren'." An' jes' nail yore nails right on down. "Ah'm talkin' tuh yo', John, an' callin' yore name. Dis is Carrie Han' [Hand] talkin' tuh yo'. An' yo' must be mah fren, not mah enemy.' An' jes' nail dem nails down lak dat.
(Where do you nail the nails down?)
Yo' kin nail 'em down jes' anywhere in yore house, yo' undahstan'. [Sumter, S. Car., (1351). 2344:6.]
Entry 9750
Peoples bury 'em, bury nails, big nails, at a certain distance, yo' know. Nine nails. An' dat will keep de law away. (Where do they bury these nails?) In de ground roun' de entrance, roun' de front yard where dey 'sposed tuh come in. Nine nails, jes' de p'int down. [Wilson, N. Car.,
(1454).2643:6.]
Entry 9751
Take nine nails an' drive dem in de steps, de do'steps, an' de person walks across dose nails comin' in dere, fo' eight or nine days, an' de first thing yo' knows, dey's movin. [8 days meaningless!]
(That will move them, driving these nine nails down at the doorstep?)
Yessuh.
Entry 9752
Say, if anybody wuz hurt chew or git chure min' confusin', an' make yo' don't know whut chew wanta do half de time, dey could take a oak stick an' put nine notches an' ninepenny nail an' put it at chure step. Use new nail. Yessuh, say dat'll shure hurt chew.
(How would they put the nails in, in the stick?)
No suh, nail it down roun' dat stick. Jes' lak if yo' put it in de centah, nail 'em all roun' dat stick. Say yo' couldn't stay tuh yore own house in no peace.
Entry 9753
Take nine bran'-new wire nails an' drive 'em right in de path right in de front of de house, right in de walk where yo' go out; [also] nine needles an' nine pins. An' turn 'em towards de east. Dat'll make yo' go. (Now [I demonstrate] this is the path. You drive the nine nails down there, nine needles and nine pins. How do you mean you turn them toward the east?) Yo' turn de haid toward de east.
(You drive them in on a slant then? That will make you move out of the house.)
Yessuh.
Entry 9754
A man an' a woman had a fuss an' got mad. An' dey'd fuss an' dey'd fuss, an' fuss an' fuss. An' dey come say whut dey goin' do. He say, "Yes, ah will take somepin an' ah'll put it round mah do'step, guess she'll be hoppin'. Okay. So, aftah he [he now changed to she] put it down, she got onto it - undah- stood it. She says, "Well, it's a two-handed game. It's jes' as much fo' me as it is fo' her. So now de first one gits de mos' of it, be de first one tuh go doon." So she goes an' she gits nine nails an' nine needles an' nine pins, an' she pat it in a red flannel rag, an' she put it undah de do'step an' let it stay dere nine mawnin's. An' de nine mawnin's, dis woman she passed by dis house an' she goes - jes' lak ah wuz walkin' 'long de street chew know, jes' lak ah wuz goin'aftah sompin, she passed right on by. So she goes off where she wuz goin' an' she turned off an' come back an' she went on home. So she laid down fo' a spell fo' a rest. When she went tuh git up, she couldn't git up. That wuz the last of dat. So dat stayed dat way fo' awhile. So she commence tuh study herself an' she says, "Ah think someone musta done opin tuh me." Says, "Ah feel very peculiah an' don't feel lak ah should feel lak dis. Ah ain't hurt nowhere, ah jes' can't use dis laig. Jes' weak in dis laig." Says, "Ah believe ah'll be smart if ah go someplace. So she goes somewhere to try tuh git relief. So she went [to a hoodoo doctor Gbo told her what had happened, the substance of this present rite]. So de man jes', he jes' kept right on tellin' stories, kept right on tellin' stories. He aoaldn't do nuthin fo' 'er. Finally she died.
Entry 9755
They kin git 9 tenpenny nails an' they urinate on 'em. Let 'em stand 3 days an' go on the north turn [see later] an' throw it under the house an you'll move. [This is my penciled transcription of the original made a few years after the recording. In that greceding bracket were the words end over side, indicating I knew this prepara- doaa was thrown under the north side of the house; yet a pencil line at the bot- to of the page adds sounds like "tum." My pencil also added the words profes- sional and excellent, reminding me that her cylinders had been missed by my transcriber and later shaved! This also happened to another unique woman at Memphis and a remarkable man in Jacksonville, Fla.]
Entry 9756
[Here in italics is my notation about a rite my transcriber forgot to transcribe: 9 new nails evil wisher drives in your home where you walk over or at doorstep. Go inside and turn around and drive 'em into floor going out as you leave the house. Run 'em out. Nails go out in a row, but the last 3 together. I suggest that the last three nails grouped closely together, the nailheads forming a triangle, represent the 3 HOLY NAMES. Memphis, Tenn., (962, informant good), 1553:6.]
Entry 9759
You kin take these nails, tenpenny nails, and you kin drive 'em in the ground where some person that you doesn't like or want to move them, you move them with nails. And when you drive 'em in the ground and make your wish, you drive 'em head down an' p'int up. Or you kin drive 'em at your doorstep and nail them down under your control. You use nine nails.
Entry 9760
A man was likin' a woman. He get to like another woman, yo' know, an' doesn't come to her no more. She'd get nine new nails an' drive 'em down in de ground at her door, just enough to cover their heads up, and then the next morning she would take some of her water from de chamber and throw that on it. See. Then when he comes back in over that, over them nails and that chamber lye, then he'll get on with her.
(He gives the other woman up. I see.)
Entry 9761
You take nails and drive them in the ceiling of your house and that'll bring your wife back home. On the ceiling of your house, eightpenny nails. (What kind of nails?) Eightpenny nails. (Nine?) Yes, sir, nine nails. Put them there and let them stay nine days. And pull them out after she come back home. But you let them stay and she'll come back to you in nine days.
(Where do you drive those nails?)
Right on the ceiling of your house, all the way around in the ceiling.
Entry 9762
Yo' take nine nails an' drive 'em into a pine tree on de sunrise side an' make yore wish, In de Name of de Fathah, de Son an' Holy Ghost. An' yo' kill a person dataway. (And you wish to kill that per- son when you are driving those nails in the tree?) Yes sir.
Entry 9764
Take yuh nine bran'-new nails, nine [new] needles. Take 'em an' put 'em in a sack, a piece of white clot' [cloth] whut nevah had no scissah in it, no mo' [more] dan whut yuh cut it tuh sew it, an' put 'em in dere. Bury 'em undah yuh front steps. An' if he come tuh de front, sweep in tuh de back all de time.
(I see. That'll keep the law away.)
He goin' tuh stay away.
Entry 9765
Ah goes tuh de sto' an' ah buy me nine bran'new No.lO [tenpenny] nails. An' ah go down tuh de woods an' find me nine trees. Don't git de nine of 'em lak [alike]. Take a ole sweetgum, poplah, maple, blackgum, sycamo' an' all dose kind. Jes' git nine of dem [different types of] trees. An' ah take an' ah chip out a space. Ah have mah axe wit me, mah hatchet. Ah chip me a space out 'bout as large a [as a] dollah, silvah dollah. An' ah nail on dis one - maybe dat's west. Well, ah'll come [demonstrates] ovah east an' ah'll nail a nail dere, an' ah'll go back kinda west no'th [northwest] an' nail a nail dere. An' den ah'll come back in kinda southeast an' put a nail in dat one. But yo' gotta have all of dose nail jes' in de same way - east. Yo' have tuh put 'em all east. (You said before that you nailed these trees in the shape of an "E" - like the letter "E".) Da's whut ah'm speakin' of now. Yo' goes no'th, go west, an' come back dat Way [demonstrates]. Den yo' have 'em sometime in a straight line. Yo' kin put 'em kinda "v" shaped. Den yo'll go tuh work an' put all of dose nails in dose trees an' yo' hit 'em all three times dis [first] mawnin', tuh git 'em tuh stick in de trees. Den yo' come on back de time [return home]. De nex' mawnin' yo' gits up early - yo' always have tuh travel early. Yo' has tuh go out dere den while de dew's on 'em evah mawnin'. Yo' go down an' maybe git wet wit de dew an' den have tuh come back an' change yore clothes. Well, yo' hit dis firs' one maybe one time, de firs' one. Well, yo' be sayin' a li'l' prayah, de Lord's Prayah all de time while yo' hit it - de firs' one. De second one, yo' may hit it two times. De third one three times. Den de fo'th one fo' time. An' go on till yo' hit nine time on de las' one. Hit de las' one nine time on de firs' mawnin'. Den yo' have tuh go back dere evah mawnin' an' hit de firs' one two time, an' de nex' one fo' - yo' have tuh double dose when yo' go dere evah mawnin' fo' nine mawn- in's. (The last one on the second morning you would hit that 18 times, double nine. That last nail, the ninth nail, on the second morning you hit it nine times the first morning, and the second morning you go back there, you have to hit it 18 times?) Have tuh hit it 18, have tuh double it evah time. But chew have tuh hit 'em light - er [or] heavy enough so de las' mawnin', on de ninth mawnin', dey all would go in de same time. Yo' drive 'em all up on de same mawnin'. (But on the third morning would you have to double that ninth one, hit it 18 times? How much would you hit it the third morning?) Yo' have tuh double it evah time. Yo' have tuh double dat nine evah mawnin'. If yo' can't keep a record, yo' have tuh have yo' a pencil an' papah. An' git chew a tablet an' yo' gotta mark how many times yo' hit it dis mawnin', an' how many times yo' gotta hit it de nex' mawnin'. Do dat evah mawnin'. If yo' hit it 18 dis mawnin', yo' gotta figure how many it gotta be hit de nex' mawnin'. Yo' gotta carry dat pencil an' papah right wit chew wit' chure haumah when yo' hit it. An' when yo' drive 'em up on de last [day] hit 'em all even an' nail 'em all good at de same time. An' whatevah yo' want did, dat will he'p yo' - whatevah yo' workin' fo'.
Entry 9766
(Twenty penny nails. You mean onepenny nails or twenty of them?)
No. Twentypenny nails but ten of them. Twentypenny. Like you go to the hard- ware store and say, "Give me a dime's worth of twentypenny nails. (Then what?) You take - see, like that wall over there. You take your husband's name or your wife's name [on a piece of paper] and open a hole [in the wall] and put it in there. And drive ten of them nails with her name up in there and she'll do anything you want her to do. Yeah. Just nail 'em in there and name her as yo' drive 'em. Ten of 'em. [New Orleans, La., (851), 1319:4.] (h). INDEFINITE NUMBER OF NAILS
Entry 9769
Dey said dey take a whole bundle of nails an' jes' nail 'em down so yo' can't see 'em, an' put dirt ovah dem from yore steps out tuh de gate, an' say dat'll make yuh leave home. (You nail them down into the ground. And where do you begin to nail them?) Nail dem from de steps clean out tuh de gate. (That is supposed to make you leave home?) Yes sir.
Entry 9770
Have five cents worth of new nails. Don't ase 'em fo' anything else an' nail 'em on de do' facin' [saddle] right [upright] 'em right down dere, right straight down at dat piece, dat crosspiece. Dat make luck.
Entry 9771
Well, ah've hear'd of settin' dem nails. Jes' lak comin' up tuh yuh do' dere [in interviewing room] yo'd set dem nail wit de point down - pointin' away [demonstrates]. (Pointing away from the door.) Yes. An' [you] have tuh boil all of dem nails in sulphuh, brimstone, peppah an' bluestone. Dey [unwant- ed person: law, rentman, etc.] can't come [in] tuh save dere life. [Here I turn- ed off recording machine too soon, missing the first few words of the demonstra- tion]...place dem up lak dat [demonstration continues]. (How? Have the point straight out like that? [I demonstrate]: And all this stuff is underneath there [the doorsteps]? This lime and all this stuff?) Yes.
Entry 9772
[In the margin title I have called this rite amazing because I had com- pletely forgotten about it and its future significance. The person I am inter- viewing here is J. R. Patterson, proprietor of the black hotel, Patterson Hotel, in New Orleans. Among the illustrations at end of HOODOO, volume 2, see the Patterson Hotel letterhead containing pictures of the hotel, the proprietor, and his signature on Wednesday, March 9, 1938, for rent on room No.17, including elec- tricity for my machine, and room space for my clients downstairs. I paid my rent each day before returning to my own hotel, the old St. Charles. To give Mr. Patterson some idea of my work, I suggested that he himself be interviewed. His following rite tells how he could be driven from his own hotel. Neither of us realized at the time that before a year had passed, Mr. Patterson would lose his hotel and I myself would be chased from the black hotel in Memphis by the police. For this later surprise, see Introduction to HOODOO, volume 1, page XxxIV, line 9 following.] De first thing yo' do, git chew a dime's worth of saltpetah. De nex' thing tuh do is git chew a box of cinnamon, a box of cloves. Git chew a nickel's worth of new tenpenny nails, an' den git chew one quart of gasoline. Den git chew a dime's worth of saltpetah. Go by dose person's house an' pick up, whethah it's mud, dirt or sand, take it up an' put it in de bucket wit dose nails. Po' yuh gasoline in dere an' strike a match an' light it, [let it burn] until it comes tuh be dry an' sandy. Den yo' take it an' go backwards from de do' where dey livin' at an' sprinkle it crossways dat way tuh de fo' cornahs of de world: [demonstrates by pointing] dat cornah, dis cornah, dis one, and dat one cross de street. In 24 hours de're [they are] gone. (You just sprinkle it like this [I demonstrate], like a wingy motion all around, cross that house?) [My demonstration of wingy motion must have been a fluttering or flipping motion like a bird. Informant misunderstands my word cross, meaning to put a hoodoo on the house, not throwing back and forth across the house.] No [you don't throw back and forth across the house] yo' tro' it from de house [demonstrates]. Yes, lak dis is de back, dis is de sidewalk out heah [demonstrates], sprinkle it dis way [demonstrates], cross ovah [demonstrates].
[I describe his demonstrations:]
(From the house out to the gutter, you sprinkle it back and forth, like a "v".)
[This "v" or triangle is the 3 Holy Names.]
One block each way, one block each way from de house. Lak Patterson [the speaker] whut chew [suppose you] wanted him tuh move. Well, yo'd git some dirt. See dat cigah ashes [he points to ashtray containing ashes of my cigar] an' [also] pick it from de sidewalk [get sidewalk dirt], an' git some dirt an' sprin- kle it aroun' dere - some sand. An' befo' he sweeps de banquette [= sidewalk in New Orleans] up in de mawnin', yo' jes' come aroun' dere an' brush up a little bit, jes' enough tuh git in yore fingahs an' put in dere. Den yo' come back heah dat night, yo' see, an' sprinkle from his do' crossways de banquette tuh dat cornah. Den yo' go tuh dis cornah an' go cross de street tuh de nex' cornah. Yo' go dat way an' go cross de street tuh de nex' cornah. Den yo' go ovah heah tuh garage. See. In 24 hours dey are moved.
(You have to throw it to the four corners of the world.)
Yes. [New Orleans, La., (1566, J. R. Patterson, proprietor of black hotel, Patterson Hotel), 2866:3.] [The title of this section could have been either Pins and Needles or Needles and Pins, both having tradition behind them; the first because a person is some- times said to walk on pins and needles; the second according to the folklore couplet: Needles and pins, needles and pins; when a man marries, his trouble begins. As in the case of the preceding section about nails, most rites about these objects have already appeared elsewhere in the printed text as parts of rites with other ingredients. The following rites will be listed according to number of pins and needles: 1, 2, 3, etc.1
Entry 9808
Yo' take seven needles an' yo' take seven straight pins an' yo' take three nails. An' yo' kin take a quart of watah an' de stoppah tuh shet [shut] de quart bottle. An' y'o kin put dem dere seven needles an' dem dere straight pins an' dem three nails in dat quart of watah. An' yo' put dat stoppah in dere. Stop it up, but don' try tuh stop it tight. An' yo' place it at sun risin' undah yore baid. An' if yo' wanta kill a puh- son - lak yo' wanta kill 'im- yo' kin hit dat stoppah wit a hammah. But yo' don' want no iron hammah, yo' wants a kinda wooden hammah, yo' undahstand. [Wooden hammer is rare in HOODOO.] An' yo' hit dat a certain many times evah mawnin' tuh kill a puhson, an' yo' hit it one time aftah it's gone down, dat sun, jes' tuh lingah dat person - jes' tuh put 'im sick, where he be Bo mo good, jes' lingahin'. An' when dem needles rust out, he rust out. It won't kill 'im right away. Take dem nails an' needles in dat quart bottle, an' yo' kin hit dat stoppah three times where de sun rise an' in seventeen days he'll be daid.... [Here I turned off machine too quickly and had to reopen conversation with a qoestion.1
(Where do you put this bottle then? Do you put it under the victim's bed?)
No sir, yo' put it undah yore baid, an' when yo' hit dat, take it out evah sasnin'-time yo' git up, an' hit dat stoppah an' jes' call [the name of] which ane yo' wanta do [kill]. If yo' want 'im tuh lingah, yo' kin hit dat stoppah ane time, as de sun goin' down, de sun settin' in de weat; an' if yo' wanta Hul 'im, yo' kin hit it early in de mawnin' three times.
Entry 9821
Ah've hear'd dey could bury - dey ties nine needles togethah am' grease dem with de grease dey call axle grease an' bury dem dat ways. An' hit on dem nine times, not hit dem all on de same masi'. Dey bury 'em in three parts in front of de do' an' hit 'em nine times fo' nine manin's. (Hit them once each morning?) Once each masin' an' dat will - dat's tuh drive a person away - yo' know, jes' die. Yo'll jes' fade away. Nails also [can be used].
(Either nails, or needles and pins?)
The pins, eithah nails. (And the needles. And you put three, in groups of three. And you must hit each one of those once?) Yes.
Entry 9823
Dey kin bury nine needles. Point de nine needles up an' put dem intuh de groun'. An' yo' walk ovah dem nine needles. An' dey have de points right straight up from de groun' an' put dat right in de mid- dle of yore do'. An' den dey kin put nine nails. Put nine nails wit dose nine needles an' yo' walk ovah dose nails, yo' see, an' dose points. Dat goes intuh yuh.
(You don't have to step on them?)
No, yo' don' have tuh step on 'em. Dey have 'em buried, but dey have 'em pointed upwards. Yeah, dey has 'em pointed upwards.
(What would that do to you then?)
Dat would give yuh pains.
Entry 10165
If yo' got a gurl - it's dis way. Ah got a gurl an' she runned away from me. She done lef' me. She's gone. Well, lak [I] say, dere's a lotta watah 'ween heah an' New Yawk. Say she's gone tuh New Yawk. She jes' jumped up an lef' me an' ah haven't did anythin' tuh 'er an' want 'er back. She won' come bach tuh me by writin' tuh 'er. All right. Ah go tuh de drug sto' an' ah gits me a 15-cents blue candle. Take de same nails an' needles an' put in dat.
(How do you put them in there now? How many do you get?)
A nickel wuth of ten-penny nail. Put eight nails, an' de whole papah of needles, an' about eight big pins. Yo' git dem ovahsize sticky pins yo' know, dem ovahsize one. Some packages dey sell two fo' a nickel. Dey are de small size. An' de large package it's got one long one dat way; dey sells dem one fo' a nickel. Yo' git chew a piece of lookin'-glass lak dat an' yo' tum de part dat chew look it, an' git chew a saucah of watah or git chew a bowl or cream saucah, or anything dat will hold watah. Den turn dat [looking] glass down ovah dat way. Take dat candle an' take de end of it which yo' is gonna set down, take a match an' light it dat way. Don' light de top part where de stem is; light de bottom part an' put it on dat glass.
(With the top part downward?)
Yessuh, on top of de glass, an' let it set dere an' make yuh wishes fo' hit. But yo' start hit at ten minutes an' burn it fo' twenty-five. In twenty-five [days?] yo' receive a lettah from her, to send aftah her or send her ticket. She's on her way back tuh yo'.
Entry 11171
If yo' git a chance tuh git in dat house - de devil's-shoestring, yo' take dat devil's-shoestring an' jes' ball a little bit of it an' put it ovah de do'sill or somewhere in de house, some corner of de house. Dey ain't goin' stay in dere. An' yo' kin give a fellah a walkin' figit. (How do you give a fellow a walking figit?) Jes' take some nails an' drive 'em in de ground an' turn 'em de way he goes. Put some needles an' pins between 'em. Off he go.
(Any special number?)
Nine [new] needles [nine new pins] an' nine new nails.
(You cover those up so they don't stick him?)
Jes' drive 'em right down in de ground.
(Where he'll walk over them.)
Entry 11181
Now they take the nails an' they drive them down into - jes' lak yo' take dat Red Seal Lye, dat has five holes in it, an' they take an' drive a nail in each hole of the lye. An' they bury this lye undah the house an' they git it near as they possibly kin ovah that lye [devil's-shoestrings] on the inside of the house. They put whut they call de devil's-shoestring, that's a little weed- as near ovah the top of that [can of lye] as they possibly kin. That's tuh make this person weak, sickly. (They put this devil's- shoestring over that and they bury that can of lye.) Bury that can of lye jis' undah de house as near as they kin. Jis' say fo' in- stance, if dis wuz his bed, they bury it undah that as near as they kin git to it undah there. They then come up an' try tuh put whut they call de devil's-shoestring - which is jis' a little weed-lak, yo' know - put it as near undah [center] de bed as they kin.
[This is surely a quincunx rite.]
Entry 12201
Nail dat horseshoe nail fo' luck up ovah yore do'. Yo' take dat horseshoe [nail] an' nail it up dere ovah yore do' on de inside. Dat's fo' luck to a home.
Entry 12203
Now, listen, she kin take nine horseshoe nails, some sulphur and lard, put those nails in de lard and sulphur at six 'clock in de morning. And then leave 'em there until six 'clock in de evening, standing at chure do' dere, an' call it. Put dem nails up on top yore door like that [demonstrates]. (Lay them along the ledge at the top of the door?) Yes, den you lay them up there and then you call him three times by his name. Jes' like you'd say, "Sam! Sam! Sam! Come heah!" And he would come. Ah don't care where he's at, he'll come.
Entry 12204
Ah've heard about horseshoe nails. Dey tell me yo' git nine horse- shoe nails dat's mighty good luck. But de way ah've heard about de nine horse- shoe nails, yo' take them nine horseshoe nails an' wrap them up in a piece of flannel cloth. Jes' have de head this way heah, jes' change 'em disaway [informant demonstrates].
(You put one head one way and one the other.)
Yes sir. An' then yo' - after yo' put a piece of cord, yo' tie it tight. An' dey say yo' keep dat in yore house. That's mighty good luck in yore home.
Entry 12205
De horseshoe - git nine horseshoe nails, an' yo' tie 'em head an' tail, an' yo' name 'em, an' put 'em ovah yore do', an' dat's fo' luck.
(What would you name them?)
Well, yo' name 'em fo' jes' whut chew want 'em tuh do.
Entry 12206
If you got a job an' wanta hold it, why yo' go out to any little place where you kin find an old horseshoe. An' take a couple of nails - horseshoe nails - nine of 'em, an' put round dat shoe. Take it back [to place where you work] and bring them with that, an' go under in de east corner of dat place, an' put dat horseshoe down. Put in dere so nobody kin dig it up, so it can't be found, an' leave it dere. Nobody kin have your job. (You find that horseshoe that has nine nails in it and you take that whole horseshoe. You don't take the nails out or anything like that?) No, leave 'em in dere, just as is.
Entry 2366
Red peppah an' ashes an' saltpeter an' dey cain't come ovah it. Pin it up( ovah yore do'. Dey'll come in but dey won't be mad.
(Where do you put that, you say?)
Jis' up ovah yore do'.
(Well, it would fall out wouldn't it?)
No, yo' gon'a put it in a bag an' tie a string aroun' de bag an' hang it on de nail, an' every day yo' got'a pee on dat.
(Not up there!)
Naw. Yo' take it down an' pee in a pan, an' pee on it, an' den yo' put it back up there. Dey cain't bother yo'. Dey kin come in but dey Won't do nuthin to yo'. Dey'll be jis glad.
suspending the tied bag from a nail above the door. Retain visitors can come in but are claimed not to be angry/harmful; do not rewrite the account as absolute exclusion. predicted mitigation of visitors’ angry or bothersome conduct while allowing their entry. No total visitor exclusion These are attributed source occurrences; outcomes remain unverified.
Read full source (printed page 661) · Read full source (printed page 662)
Entry 463
I remember one night I was living on a farm all alone. Whilst being there, I had been told that this place was witchy, so I minded it not. So I went there to live. And after staying there for a period of time a witch came to my home. And I was told how to capture this witch. So I captured this witch. So after capturing this witch I had her on my way to the stable and she turned into a horse, a beautiful grey nag. After I put her in the stable, I was so delighted with my new horse that I hardly could sleep. I wanted day to come so bad so I could go down to the blacksmith shop and have my nag shod all round. So finally, the next morning - I stayed all night by her in the stable - and the next morning before breakfast I take my nag to the blacksmith shop and had her shod all round. After she had been shod I carried her back to the stable and put her up in the stable. One of the neighbors round there had taken violently ill. What was the trouble, nobody knowed. So they sent for the doctor. The doctor came. I told the doctor about my new pony. So I went to the stable to get my nag to show the doctor and when I got there de nag was gone. When I heard of this neighbor being so sick, deathly ill, I went to see her. And when I went to see her she refused to let me look at her hands and also her feet. I persisted on doing that and den I got help so I should examine her. After I examined her I found she had horse- shoes on each feet and on each hand. She was deathly tormented with those nails. She had den turned to a natural human form. (About 1886, near Hampton, Virginia. This is an example of a folktale told as a personal experience.) [This is my comment in 1936, after informant left room.]
Entry 1393
Ah've heard about wire nail. Jes' lak ah be walkin' in dis house or either walkin' out dere in de street. Ah go an' git me a wire nail - git one dat stickin' up in de groun' an' ah go ahead an' walk on dat nail. Ah'll take dis wire nail an' carry it to a tree. When ah carry it to dis tree, take it den an' nail it up to de head, an' ah'll nevah have any soreness in mah feet from no wire nail. An' either dat, den if it's a rusty nail, ah'll nail it in de tree an' ah will nevah have no lockjaw.
Entry 1413
If yo' had de cramps so bad yo' can't hardly walk, take a nail an' drive a hole in a penny an' tie it roun' yore laig an' go on. Long as yo' live dat cramp'll not worry yo' no mo'.
Entry 1414
Heard of 'em usin' a penny for such as drawin' poison out of yore feet, if yo' stick a nail or somepin in yore feet. Yo' set a penny on it an' dat will draw it out.
Entry 1417
Suppose that someone did something to you. You nail a penny to de head of yore door or you sleep with three pennies to de head of your bed - any bed [in which you sleep]. You gota take a piece of cloth and sleep with de three pennies at de head of yore bed when you go to sleep and you'll wake up and den you move that away from you. See, jest like I'm speaking to you now, de man [who hoodooed you] will come to you and rap - speak to you and tell you dey [there] by de mattress [I mean] by de three pennies to de head of yo' bed. (He will tell you what he has done to you. He raps. How many times does he rap?) Three times.
Entry 1671
Yo' buy three bo'ds of new lumber an' nail two on de outside of yore house an' one in de house with new nails, an' dey say de ghosts will nevah come there.
Entry 1673
If some party's dead and dey don't like you, wal, dey worry yuh. Yo' Wanta go git chew a brand-new piece of bo'd and you wanta put it in yore house; yo'll puts it on de outside of your house - got'a put fo' nails in it, one to de fo' corners. Dere's fo' corners to a bo'd. Put fo' nails in dat and throw it in de house and call dat person name and dere won't be nobody worry yuh no more.
(You throw it in the house?)
Throw it underneath the house.
(But you nail it into the house first, outside.)
Yeah, yo' nail it outside.
(Then you throw it into the house?) [This into probably intentional.]
Den yo' throw it underneat' de house and nuthin nevah worry yuh no mo'.
Entry 1799
In yore yard, fix 'em right at yore steps in de shape of a coffin. Dey puts nails - drive 'em right down in de ground in de shape of a casket. Put six nails, ah think it's six - one in de corner an' one in de end. [Divide six nails into two parallel rows of three nails each, these rows being vertical, and then bring the two top nails closer together. This makes a pointed - Hoodo.o or three-sided head of the old-fashioned coffin.]
(What will that do?)
Dey tell me that will cause 'em tuh grow sickly.
(They won't die?)
No, jes' commence goin' down.
Entry 1800
Well, ah heard of 'em. They could make de shape of a coffin for you to kill you and put it right up over your door - be nailed with seven nails. They would make that in the shape of a coffin and if you go under them nails - some way they would fix those nails, see - you would die, if it's for you. Heard of that plenty of times.
Entry 1803
Ah've heard a lady say yo' kin take matches, or so many pins - ah don't know how many now exactly but ah'm goin' git all dis together, ah think ah'll have to come back again - and perform a casket or coffin under de side of de house, and nail nine nails around. Yo' know, make it jes' lak a person's grave an' nail nine nails around de heart. And dey say you'll drap dead off yore feet.
[The coffin is outlined with matches see No. 1785, p.538.]
Entry 1807
I've heard though of taking nails from a coffin and wrapping it in red flannel, and give it to a person either for luck or ill luck, whichever you want them to have. They sell from twenty-five cents to a dollar.
Entry 1808
Coffin nails is good luck. You nail three of 'em ovah de top of yore door where you come in at. Each and every morning and every night you stop under these nails and make a wish and they claim that will keep all good things coming to you.
Entry 2120
If the law's comin' to yore house, you take you seven pennies an' drive holes in 'em an' nail one up ovah every do' yo' got - it jest 'cordin' to how many do's yo' got. But don't nail none up ovah no windah but chure front windah. Nail one up ovah every do' yo' got an' dat would keep de law down.
Entry 2516
Dey says dat if yo' take a horseshoe an' nail it ovah de inside of de do', de front do', an' dey said if yo' walk undah dat nine times, that's to make yo move. (You put this horseshoe up over this other fellow's door? Now, if I wanted to make you move, I would take this horseshoe and put it up over your door inside the house?) Yessuh.
(Wouldn't you see it up there or not?)
Nawsir. Dey puts it up so dey see it up dere - dey say dat keeps de witches away [see Nos. 512-514, p.154] but dey put it dere unknown to yo'. Yo{ -jes lak yo' be's talkin', jes' slip one of 'em dere while ah'm dere [some other place] in dey house. An' den whoevah he is, go in dere nine times, he'd have to move. [This is a reversal rite, an unusual backwards ceremony - a through the lookina-qlass or opposite side of the mirror device, because an inside horseshoe has its prongs pointing into the house, thus inviting evil to enter, whereas the prongs of an outside horseshoe point away from the house warding off evil. Remember, this inside horseshoe is over the front door, only a few inches distant from the outside horseshoe, if one is there - a Janus-like situation. Remember also, most country cabins - unpainted inside and the wood naturally aged and stained - could conceal a rusty horseshoe until a person walked nine times through the door. Nevertheless, to nail up the horseshoe while the tenant of the house was near is easier said than done.]
Entry 2519
Tuh keep the law away yo' would take yo' a horseshoe an' nail it up ovah yore front do', an' git chew a red onion an' tie it up ovah yore do' - right up ovah de front do' right in de mouth of dat horseshoe. Turn it [horseshoe] up.
(Why is it turned up?)
Yo' mus' always turn it up - dat's always tuh turn de law aroun', see. Long as it down, it's a pointed thing - it won't do yo' any good.
Entry 3288
Yo' kin go to a tree where de lightnin' struck an' if yo' have intah- co'se wit a man, yo' kin take an' stop it up an' he won't nevah have no mo' intahco' se wit no othah woman. (Where do you stop this up?) Jes' lak yo' use a rag or sompin, tear it all tuh pieces an' take a nail an' nail it up ovah de tree.
(In this tree that was struck by lightning?)
No, he won' nevah have anybody.
[Answer to my ignored question is yes.]
Entry 4421
Yuh keep a kinda eye on 'em, yuh all along. Yuh know, especially if ain't got no constipation. Dey [he] go an' do what dey [he have to do] an' leave. Yuh jis' go out dere an' go an take [a] stick an' jis' go dere an' take up some of dat. An' go tuh pine tree or any kinda tree. Git a augah an' bore a hole in de tree, an' push some in dere an' cork it up tight. An' drive four nails in dere: one up, an' one down, an' one on both sides of dat hole. [This represents the 4 corners of the world or the 4 arms of a cross - the latter crossing up the victim.] An' dat's a dead man. [Another version of this rite will be found later under (4) SOCKS AND STOCKINGS, margin title NAILS 4.]
Entry 4422
Take some nails an' drive 'em intuh a person's bowels proposition, in- tuh a new bo'd, an' cuz 'em tuh have a eatin' cancer at dere private [rear, not front]. [The board is substituting for a tree.] (THEY DO WHAT?) Take a new bo'd an' place it on dere - jis' lay it on de new bo'd, de person business. When dey jis' go an' have a action, take it an' place it tuh de new bo'd. Take nine new nails an' drive it in an' [when] yuh drive 'em in so fur yuh crook de nine nails head tuhgethah. Don't let 'em tech tuhgethah, jis' crook 'em all lak dat [demonstrates].
(Bend them over towards each other.)
Ben' dem 'wards each othah an' dat'll cuz 'em tuh have a eatin' cancer at dere private.
(They drive these nails right through the business?)
Dey drive 'em right through intuh a new bo'd. [I have never heard of this rite before, but I suggest the 9 nails bent over are a diagrammatic figure representing Cancer or Crab, fourth sign of the Zodiac. If my suggestion is possible, 10 nails would have been a better symbol. Evident- ly the 2 pincers, because they close, are considered as one.]
Entry 4835
Dey take de undahpiece, de piece da' choo weah, yore bloomahs, yore near piece da' choo weah close tuh yuh, undahshirt, an' put it in a tree in de woods, an' nail a spike nail tuh it, yuh know, an' dat'll run yuh crazy.
Entry 4981
Den she kin take his sock an' make him stay at home, an' make him come dere by takin' dat sock an' nailin' down tuh de flo' wit de foot comin' in de do'. (Where does she nail that?) In de front do', jis' lak yuh come in de front do' an' she got a rug - undah de rug an' let de feet part of 'em be comin' in de do'.
Entry 6860
Take a nail - jis' lak if yo' wuz tuh git hurt or sompin, git cut or sompin, yo' take a nail an' put it up ovah yuh do'. Says dat would heal de wound up.
Entry 7957
If somebody steal sompin from yo' an' yo' wanta find out who did it, well yo' kin make 'em bring it back; an' yo' know by a person bringin' a thing back, why yo' know jes' who it is den. Well, yo take three screws - whut ah heard - from a coffin of a very wicked person dat died. Well, yo' take dose three screws an' yo' take three nails an' yo' go tuh 1...
(What kind of nails?)
Well, hit don' make a diffunce [difference].
(The nails are not from the coffin?)
Oh yes, indeed! Ah thought chew meant, yo' know dey say ten-penny nails, five- penny nails.
(No, you said the screws are from the coffin.)
Yes sir, de screws from de coffin, three screws.
(Where are the nails from?)
De nails from de coffin also. An' yo' take dese nails an' yo' go an' jes' lak yo' know of anothah wicked person, well yo' git in contact wit 'em, undahstand, git dey - not dey urine but de othah where dey have action. An' yo' dip de end of dese nails in dat. An' yo' go tuh a peah tree on de sundown side - of a pear tree - an' yo' call dis article, whatevah it might be, de thing dat dey stole yo' understan'. Yo' call it by name three times, an' say, "o thief, bring back mah stolen goods." An' yo' take de firs' one of de screws from de coffin an' yo' stick it in de tree an' yo' nail it an' yo' say, "Ah bind dis in yore haid." An' den yo' take de othah nail, er [or] yo' take de othah screw an' yo' put hit in de tree right, yo' know, right 'side de othah, an' yo' say, "Ah nail dis into yore soul." An' den de next one, which is de third one, yo' nail hit in dere - de screw - yo' know whut ah mean - jes' screw it an' hammer it in. Yo' gotta hammer it in dere. Say, "Ah nail dis into yore feet tuh bring back mah stolen goods, O thief." An' den yo' take dose nails an' yo' say, "Ah surround yo' by de Name of de Fathah, one fo' de Father, de Name of de Son, de second nail fo' de Son, an' de third fo' [de Name of] de Holy Ghost. (Wait a minute before you go on! You are using three screws in the coffin, aren't you? Are you also using three nails?) Three nails.
(But you put the screws into the tree?)
First.
(All right. Now you have three nails left. Now, what do you do with them?)
Yo' take dem an' yo' know, surround dese three screws, an' dey say dat dey'll really bring back the stolen goods an' tell yo', "Admit dat ah stole sech-an'- sech-a-thing from yo' an' ah'm sorry."
Entry 8899
Git chew a bran'-new nail an' put it in de Bible an' git a key. Yo' git de key. Yo' git de key, say: By St. Petah, by St. Paul, by de Lawd God dat made us all, whosomevah did so- an'-so must come tuh me or fall. Call dere names an' it might be [one of] a dozen of dem roun' dere. All yo' gotta do is takes yore li'le fingah - see, say, By St. Peter....
Entry 11253
But dis was a neighbor of mine telling me about it. See, I didn't know anything about it. And she said she would clean my feet up. Well, like children are out playin', well they raised some excitement, and she goes out to quiet these children and while she was out, why this woman had taken some of this stuff you speak of from her nails. She didn't take enough for her to notice that it had been gone. Then she was taken sick and stayed sick so long, they said, "Get a conjure doctor." And this man told her, afterwards, says, "Didn't you trim your nails or scrape your feet sometime ago and a woman was in dere?" So she said, "Yes." So he says that woman had taken the stuff that come off your feet and your nails, have taken it in the woods and nailed it up in a hollow tree. And he say it left you in trouble but you got me too late, say I can't do you any good. So she said the woman died. [There are a number of these hopeless cases scattered through HOODOO in which the doctor seeing the hopelessness of the ill- ness, has to provide an excuse why he cannot help patient.]
Entry 11920
If you wind a person's hair around a small nail and drive it into a tree, that person will have a headache the rest of his life. [Fredericksburg by Ediphone.]
Entry 11921
Wrap hair around a nail, drive it into tree when sap is rising, and run hair owner crazy. [Richmond 328:4.
Entry 11928
Drive victim's hair into the right side of tree as you approach it to drive victim crazy, but you must use a rusty nail. [Richmond 337:1.]
Entry 11932
Wrap victim's hair around a nail, name it, drive it into the north side of a tree, and it will run victim crazy after 9 days. [Richmond 367:2.]
Entry 11937
If you wrap victim's hair in a piece of paper and nail it into a tree with a new nail at sunrise, this will give the victim a headache. [Baltimore 46:10.]
Entry 11944
On the growing of the moon is the proper time to bore a hole into a tree and to put into it victim's hair and 9 tenpenny nails. This will run victim crazy in 9 days. [Norfolk 491:6.]
Entry 12017
Hair from mold of head, inner sole of shoe, one tenpenny nail, bury at doorstep. That'll make them love you. [Mobile 918:6.]
Entry 12401
Git a can of lye dey tell me, can of concentrated lye, an' dig a hole undah de steps an' bury it. An' if anybody put anything down fo' yo', dat'll eat it up. But yo' gotta punch a hole in de top of it wit a nail.
Entry 12587
Heard of 'em usin' a penny for such as drawin' poison out of yore feet, if yo' stick a nail or sompin in yore feet. Yo' set a penny on it an' dat'll draw it out. [Wilson 2667:4.]
Entry 12589
De people, dat run dese gamblin' ioints an' all, plays wit a few little gamblahs. Dey take a penny an' put - nail one in de centah heah at de front do', jes' where de people goin' in an' out - see. Dey do dat fo' luck. Dey say if de money comes in it stays.
(Just the one penny on the door?)
Yeah. [Florence 2182:5.]
Entry 12590
(Take a penny?)
Uh-huh, an' take a small nail an' drive 'em dere right in de middle of de do'. Yo'll always have customers - fo' likkah ah know. [Brunswick 2022:3.]
Entry 12591
(You take a copper penny. One?)
Oh yes. Lay one at each do' - a copper penny, one. An' nail one in each do' an' yo' know, yo' will draw customers.
[The law was added after machine turned off.]
(That will keep the law away, too?)
Yessuh. [Fayetteville 2539:7.]
Entry 12592
(Get you a penny?)
Yes sir, an' nail it in de center of yore do'. If yo' don' cover it up, yo' might jes' fix it [dress it in some way]. Jes' nail it in de center of yore do', a penny in money. Nail it in de center of yore do'. De law ain't hardly goin' come up dere. [This center-of-the-door rite - it has just occurred to me - is a type of quincunx rite because the bottom of the door space or the saddle, if one, forms an oblong.] [Savannah 2135:12.]
Entry 12593
Yo' ever see 'bout a penny? Dey take a penny an' nail 'em tuh de front do'. Well, dey take penny an'nail 'em right down to de front do'.
(What will that do?)
Dat will keep 'em [law] back dere. [Brunswick 2019:3.]
Entry 12594
Take a penny an' nail it in de center of dat do', an' a penny in de center of yore back do'. Now dat's tuh he'p keep de law offa yo'. [Florence 2270:9.]
Entry 12686
Yo' take a tintype photograph an' nail it tuh a tree or throw it in de rivah an' dat person will die. [Fayetteville, 2504:8.]
Entry 12942
If you take inner sole of shoe, dig a hole under the doorstep, lay the inner sole in the hole and drive a tenpenny nail through it, it will drive you away [just as you drive the nail], will kill you. [Mobile 918:2.]
Entry 13165
A woman nails a man's left sock under the door saddle with 9 nails to keep him home. [New Orleans llol:?]
Entry 13363
She wipes man off with dish rag, nails it under doorsill, and urin- ates on it. This is to hold him and to bring him back and keep him from other women. [If you walk over or under any part of your body or anything touched by your body, you are in the power of the person performing the rite.] [Rich- mond 302:12.]
Entry 9728
Ah hear'd dat dey takes three sixtypenny nails.
(What size is that?)
Jes' 'bout lak dat - jes' about dat long, yo' see [demonstrates].
(Oh, long as your hand.)
About seven inches. (About seven [actually six] inches long. Three sixtypenny nails. I never heard of a sixtypenny nail.) Yeah, dere's plenty of 'em. An' drive it down at de steps, yo' undahstan', kinda in a fo'kway [forkway]: one dis way, one dat way, an' one dat way [demon- strates].
(Like a "v": one here, one each end like a "v.") Yeah. (Which way would that "v" point now at the steps?)
East. (What I mean, would these two ends point away from the house or to the house?) Way from de house.
[They point away from the house.]
(And do they point in any particular direction?)
An' de ''v' points tuh de house. [Informant means small end of "v", but actually the stem of the "Y" points to the house.]
(You mean the ends of the "v"?)
Kinda "x" yeah. [Informant is actually talking about a "Y", my "v" having caused the confusion.] Dere's one, dere's one, an' here's one ovah dere, see. Well [that last one, the stem of the "Y"] dat's nex' tuh de steps. Dat's de way.
(Then what happens?)
Den yo' jes' walks on, goes on 'way from dat backwards an' nevah looks back at dem [after once turning round]. An' dat's all dat ah know of tuh be done. Dat de way dey tell me.
(What will that do?)
Well, dat make yo' move or git chew sep'rated of whatsomevah it is fo'. [The two persons inside the house walk out on a single road, soon come to the "Y" fork where they separate, one going to the right, the other to the left.
Entry 9758
Dey tell me yo' kin take nine nails an' drive down in de road which way dey went, an' count de nails fo' nine mawnin's, an' de ninth mawnin' dey tell me dey'll return.
(That's to bring a person back.
Entry 11549
"Dey takes [measures] your [right] track...wit a cord...dey'll take dat cord and dey roll it up with 6 new needles and six new nails, an' dey goes to de rivah, tide's [tide is] goin' down...dey throws dat overboard. Your mind goes wit dat [out with the tide]." [Charleston 556:14.]
Entry 11929
"They tell me, if a person wanta run you crazy, they kin take a couple locks of your hair, and take a rusty nail and drive it on the right hand side of a tree [the right side of the tree as you approach it]." [Richmond 461:1.]
Entry 752
My husband rented a house in Staunton, Virginia, and went to Pittsburg to make money to buy a home. While he Was in Pittsburg, this man he rented the house from, I used to go around with his wife and I was very nice to her. I used to give her lunch every Sunday night when we came from church. My husband had written to me to ask Mr. Dodd to look after the hogs being butchered. Of course I told Mrs. Dodd about it and she told me, "Don't bother Mr. Dodd. Mr. Dodd says that he don't kill his own hogs and he ain't going to kill anybody else's." So I said, "All right, then." So when he seen me having the men kill the hogs he said to his wife, "I wonder how it comes Mrs. Baker didn't have me look over it?" She said, "I don't know but I told you that's the way some colored people does." So he asked me and I said, "Your wife told me not to ask you to help about the hogs." Of course that was his wife and I wasn't going to bother. I said, "My husband has sent money to pay you." After that then she wanted me to go to church with her. They had a revival. I didn't want to go with her because she was going with another man. My husband was working and taking care of me and I didn't want to do nothing wrong. So I told her, "You know they say that church is condemned. You know my husband ain't here and I'm afraid something might happen and there would be nobody here to take care of the children." So that was my get-off to keep from going with her. So her daughter, she was a young woman, used to come down there and set with me. And she said, "Mrs. Baker, my mother has fixed something for you. It's in a bottle and I found it and took it and put it over in the orchard. And don't you eat nothing she brings you." They had an old-home week there. They decorate the wagons and show what they have to sell. Her and I went down to see the parade, me and the young girl. So she says to me, "There's that bottle" - when we was coming back. And I tried to get it but I couldn't get it. Even my hand was right on it and I couldn't pick it up. And I asked her to get it. So she got it and I come on home with it and put it under lock and key. And that very day then, the old woman didn't miss the bottle, she brought me beets and potatoes and beans and a lot of nice things and corn bread. I didn't eat it because the girl had told me not too. It look very tempting. So I said to the kids, "Don't you all want some of this, things that Mrs. Dodd brought me?" And they said, "No, mama. What you don't eat, we don't want none." So I took the food she brought me and scraped it out to the chickens. The chickens what was on the outside of my wire fence, they ete it and they all went blind. So when I go upstairs, I did - and look at this bottle and take it down to the doctor. Yes, he was a real doctor. Doctor [Somebody] of Staunton. I asked if he knew what was in the bottle. Well, he named all the things that he knowed was in the bottle, but he said he would have to send the bottle away to have it ana- lyzed to see what was in it. But she had new nails, new tacks, new needles, and my hair I guess, and night water. So he says, "Don't get none of that in you." So I saves the bottle and carried it to Pittsburg to show it to my husband. And I had this daughter along with me. She and her mother didn't get along. She said to me one day, 'Mrs. Baker, why don't you do away with that. Why do you keep on keeping it?" So I says to myself, "I don't know what to do with it. I'm afraid to put it in running water because it might run me away. Then I put it in the fire and burnt it. I got the girl to burn it. All the different colors you ever saw came off that stuff while burning!
Entry 899
A girl hurt me, got betweeen me and a boy. I had two children for him. I was noticin' how she come aroun' and talk to him and things, and I didn't pay it no mind. I taken it for a joke. Well, it wasn't a joke. And so this girl got between me and him. And so she got my track and got two three-penny nails, she got my left track, and put them in a little white sack and bury it under mah door. And so mah feet went to swelling, and legs, and I didn't pay it much attention. I worked right on. And after awhile I got so I couldn't you know, it pained me. So I went de doctor and the doctor he bathed me for it, and it looked like all he did wouldn't do me no good. So an old lady, she lived aroun' there, told me to go to some kind of other, a root doctor. And I did. And so he told me that I was hurt, and told me I couldn't git it up from de door. He says I have to git somebody else to git it or git him. So I give him a dollar and told him to dig it up from mah door. So he did. And he told me what it was. And so he say he'd take this stuff and put it to her door and that's the onlyest way he could have it turmed off of me. And he turned it back On her. Well, she Was in the same condition. I got well.
Entry 941
Now, de woman that ah'm [was] living with, she'd taken advantage of me that way. An' ah had a gypsy Woman [usually a colored woman wearing large ear- rings and pretending to be a gypsy] to tell me all about it, an' de gypsy Woman tole me jes' where to find the nail on de east side of de tree, an' on de north side ah'd find a peg, an' on de west side ah'd find a snuff-can top drove in de tree. I wrote home to mah mother an' tole her about it. She had that tree cut down an' found those items in dat tree - dere was a big nail, a small bottle with a piece of mah shirt, an' in that bottle there were some safety pins - hairpins, an' that shirt, an' two worms about that long an' they were jes' white. An' the fellah [doctor] that did it - mah mother kept it an' she preserved those things fo' certain days - ah don't know whut cause her to do it - an' the fellah that did it was standin' at de windah - an' she pored those things in the stove an' put kerosene to them an' de wind blowing jes' dat way - he was standin' dere an' it blew all in his face [see Smoke in Index]. He was den makin' preparations to go out on de water [as sailor or fisherman] but he never did go - he went crazy. An' dey figured dat returned back on him an' he couldn't stand his own work.
(Well, it didn't affect you in any way?)
Well, ah couldn't stay in no place, no place.
(How did it happen that this gypsy woman told you about this?)
Ah were down heah in Egypt [colored community] - right 'cross in de same town heah. [There was a Little Egypt near somewhere I worked on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.] But it wasn't did here - it was did in the city Key [West?] Florida. An' she came by havin' a big bundle on her shoulder an' she were hungry. So she ast me fo' somethin' to eat. Ah was making mah breakfast-dinner [brunch] then. Ah tole 'er to wait. So when ah tole her dat, de woman she - I let 'er in, an' when ah let 'er in, shé ast me to let 'er read mah hand. So ah did so, an' she tole me jes' how ah got chere an' when ah came an' how ah came. Ah.came de first Sunday in de month, de first day in de week, de first of de month an' de first day of de year. An' she said, "Dis woman yo' marry 'er but," she says, "she's not chure wife." An' she tole me jes' lak ah tole yo' whut was done, an' she [the wife] had did it [through a doctor]. Dat wus put on me fo' nine months, an' ah went ailin' fo' those months, an' a fortune-teller man tole me after dat, if I had gone jes one more month, ah never would have [been] able to regain [myself]. (Well, did you go back home or did you go back to your mother's to get rid of that stuff?) I did. [My question is not tricky; his answer is not a lie - writing home was going home (see Introduction for questions and communication problems).]
Entry 2010
You kin take a horseshoe nail an' you take it an' make you a ring for your finger an' you kin wear that. An' then [a second method] you kin git choo three horseshoe nails. An' you know this hoof where they cut off the horse's feet; an' you kin git that little dust. An' you take an' put that in your pocket, an' put them three horse- shoe nails in there, an' put that little dust in, an' you'll have real good luck. Ev'ry time you git ready to shoot dice or play cards, you take an' rub that stuff on your hand.
Entry 2766
Ah'd taken sick with the child, you know, before I left town. So I went to my house and ah stayed there three months. So I came back and when I came back, I just, you know, something just run all over me. You know, like a chicken - like a chicken when you pick it and you fix it - you singe it - with all them pimples - come up on it where you pull those feathers out. Well, you see my flesh all over was just like that. It was all round my neck and every- where was just like that. And so I just stayed sick and stayed sick - had doc- tors and doctors and doctors and doctors. So my husband told me, say, "Well, it just don't look like you goin' to ever get well." But still I didn't give up - still I didn't give up. I told him, I said, "Well, I just strictly believe that I gotta have an operation." He says, "Well, make it up in you' mind and go on a'get it." So the doctor come to me and told me I'd have to have an operation. So they rang up the ambulance for me. Ambulance came and ah got ready to get in the ambulance. So they took me on to the hospital and they examined me and they said I was too weak to take an opera- tion. Brought me back home. And so he said, "Well, you go next week." So my cousin come and she told me, she says, "Her sickness is not natch'l. Suppose you go and see about her - go and see somebody about her and question her." So he went and got a fortunetelling man - he didn't believe in nothing like that - went and got a fortuneteller man. And he come there and told him, "Your house is dressed." Says, "She left from here and went away [see preceding 3 months] and somebody done got de key and went in her house - got the key and unlocked the door and went in the house. Under the steps is dressed and all over. The back door and front door and all in the house is dressed." He didn't believe that. He says, "I don't believe it." So he talked with me about it and I didn't believe it. So, another one of my cousins come and told me and say, "Now, you must believe things like this because it's true." And she went and got de Bible and showed me, you know, where it says witchcraft, you know, and all like that in the Bible. [For some of Biblical sources, see my comment on p.361.] So, ah told him, ah said "Now, you go and see somebody, go and see somebody, [even] if you don't believe [in] him, go see somebody." And so he did. Him and my sister and another young man went, and they went to a lady called Madam Helen. She told him, she even as much as told him about my mother [in New Orleans]. She told him when I left from him and he had ordered a hundred and some dollars worth of furniture. She told him when he got dat and the date of the month, said, "Your wife has been down and this has been working on her for about eight months and - as clean as your hand. And it was true, too. Nobody ever went down and told her about it. She said, "It's a cup right under the left side - what's called the north corner of your steps, under the back and front." [My informant may not realize it but she uses unusual symbolism here. The outside doorsteps is a threshold altar! A person facing the house and standing in front of the steps is before an altar. To speak liturgically, he is looking "east and "the left side of the steps is "the north corner or "north end of the altar.] She said, "You go there and dig that cup up and if you - these people, if you want 'em to wander away, you bring it to me and I'll fasten it up. I'll put this junk in a bottle or a [glass] jar and let you go throw it in a running stream, if you want 'em to wander away. If you don't, just take it and fill it all full of [Red] Devil Lye." There was hair in there and lots of something look like blood, and nails and hair and garments, you know, pieces of step-ins or something - look like pieces of my underclothes, you know, was all in there. And there was needles in there, in the two cups underneath my steps back and front. And so she told, said, "Now, you go back and dig that up. When you dig that up, bring it to me and what you want did about it, I'll do it." And said, "Tell her to come." Well, ah was so weak. Ah was just so weak ah wasn't hardly able to stand up, and just did not want to leave that house. She said, "And move out dat house just as quick as you can." I just didn't want to, they just had to pull me out of there. And I just couldn't hardly walk, I was so weak. I went to her and she told me what was the matter with me. And she said, "Now, I don't want you to go back in that house. Never go back in that house no more." And I didn't go back in that house.
Entry 3029
Mah brother had done got to be a young man, see, and dis lady whut - dis woman whut he was in trouble wit was after him. She Was kinda ole - see, too ole fo' him, he was 18. All right. Well, she begin to buy candles - see, burn candles on him. She burned 'em a little bit at de time - every 20 minutes. All right. He begin to weaken down, suffer, nowhere he went he was satisfied - nowhere he went. Well she took his socks - see, the left. And his dirty garment, you know de BD's [= B. V. D.'s - unionsuit], took dat.
(What do you mean, took his garment? That had something on it from him?)
Yeah. She took dat and she took penny nails. She had a drier in her yard in de back - you know, in de back yard. She had his hands stretched out like dis [demonstrates] and de toes. See, dey were dem long shirt - well, de BD whut dey were, long ones.
(B. V. D.'s. You mean underclothing?)
That's it. And she had him laid - you know, tacked down wit penny nails. Eight penny nails it was. And she had dat dirty sock - were right in de middle of it.
[I now describe informant's demonstrations.]
(She put this underclothing - stretched it out and she tacked it down on top of the ground, and then she put this left sock in the middle of that, and then she covered it all over with dirt.) Well, mah brother wasn't satisfied nowhere. He had to leave from out of town. He left and he wun't [would not] come back. Don't care who send or write fo' him, he wun't come back.
(What did she do this for? To run him away? She didn't want him any more?)
Naw, she got mad cause he wouldn't marry her. She say she don't want him do nobody else no good. An' she done that. Well, ah prays to St. Ann, to Blessed Mother - that's is, to Blessed Mother. I prays and prays. Well, ah tell you what ah'll do, I say, I kin make him come back. Well, I got dem blessed holy candle, dem pure white candles.
(Where did you get it? From the church?)
I got it from de church, from de Fathers from St. Joseph's here. See, I bought it. I tole him to bless dat candle.
(You didn't tell him what you wanted to use it for?)
No, ah didn't tole him - ain't no use. An' ah got St. Peter. Ah sent away and ah got St. Peter - ah couldn't buy St. Peter nowheres here in Mobile. Got a brand-new key and a piece of blue, you know, ribbon [and made] a bow-like.
(Wait a minute! You got a St. Peter's key. Where did you send to get that?)
No, ah got St. Peter's photo. Ah send to mah niece to New Orleans to get it.
(Where did you send to get that, the photo?)
From New Orleans. That was the only place. Mah little niece sent it back to me in a hurry. All right. Ah went down there to the Catholic church to Father X and told him to bless this photo for me of St. Peter, see. I wanted a holy candle right away. He blessed that all at one time. He blessed that key, too. He say, "You want de key blessed, too."
(What kind of key did you have?)
Key like you unlock de door with.
(Where did you get the key?)
Ah bought dat key.
(A new key?)
Yeah, a brand-new key ain't never been used. All right. Well he blest it and before he blest it ah tacked dis key on to St. Peter, see. Ah put on there any kind of bow mah mind made me. Tied a big bow, a brand new piece - ah got a halfa yard fer ten cents.
(A ribbon - blue ribbon.)
Tie on St. Peter and nailed St. Peter up right over mah door, where you come in. Light dat holy candle and ah burned it only three days, on Wednesday, Friday and Monday - only three days, jest had one candle. Ah sweeten it down wit some sugar. Ah burn dat and ah call mah brother's name three times, see; call mah brother's name three times and den ah put mah name on with it see, one time - only one time.
(You call your name once.)
Call mah name once and call mah brother's name three times; and dis woman's name, ah call her two times. Well, mah brother came home. In three days he came, and he say, "Sister, ah got something bad on mah mind." Ah say, "What is it?"
[Recording is bad but he was going to kill the woman.]
She was burning a black candle on him.... Well, he gave her up. He almost like tuh kill her. He hated her. He drew her blood and he left her. [Drawing blood is an old remedy to kill a witch's power, see 485-487, p.148 and Index.] He came to Mobile.
(How long ago did this happen?)
Well that happen about five years ago right here in Mobile.
Entry 3051
Now St. Raymond, you gotta give him a whole lot to drink, and a big. key:
[Informant is confusing or blending St. Raymond with St. Peter.]
(What do you mean "a whole lot to drink?")
Now, when you drink - if you don't drink, well you see, you have him hanging up on your wall, and you gotta take and get something to drink and you chunk it up there to him, St. Raymond.
(What do you mean '"something to drink?")
Like wine or beer or whiskey, or whatever it is you [buy].
(What do you mean "just chunk it up there?")
Just chunk it up on the picture. You see, you have him and you have a key. You see, a key and a piece of ribbon. If you had St. Raymond, now, you'd say, "St. Raymond, I'm in bad luck and I wish you'd open the way for me, that way I will have luck at, be successful and coming in luck." Well, you'd get you a key and you'd tie it on a piece of red ribbon and you have a nail and you hang it up on that nail.
[St. Peter's ribbon is blue and about his neck.]
(Then what do you do?)
Well, he's supposed to open the door for you, open the way for you.
(I see. Do you burn candles before him?)
Yes, sir, you burn candles. You have white candles, you burn for him.
Entry 4271
[Here we have a rare two-bottle rite; one shaken, one unshak- en.] Well, listen now. Ah would take yuh urinate an' put it in a bottle an' git nine tacks, bran'-new tacks doh [though], an' nine needles, an' nine nails, an' ah put 'em in dere head foremost.
(Put them in head foremost.)
Put 'em in head fo'mos' an' as ah put 'em in ah say whut ah want done, 'Ah tole yuh tuh do such-an'-so-an'-so. Ah wan' chew tuh do dis, an' ah wan' chew tuh do dat, now. Ah don' wan' chew tuh do dat, ah wan' chew tuh do dis an' dat." See. "Ah want mah woman tuh come home at a certain time an' stay home. Ah wanta do all dem thin's." Den ah fasten it up wit a stoppah tight as ah kin git it. Den ah put it behin' de bed bottom upwards ag'in, bottom upwards, an' hold it dere so he - if ah wanta see 'im, pick it up an' shake it up. He'll come dere. Whutevah he doin', he'll stop an' come. (You what?). Any time yuh wanta see 'im, yuh shake dat bottle. He's comin'. An' den, ah kin take some mo' watah [urine] in anothah bottle an' put some saltpetah in it an' jis' keep dat stopped up. An' don' shake it at all. Keep it stopped up behin' yuh bed. Dat will hold joo all [the southern you all] jis lak dat an' yuh cain't git away from dere. Cain't nobody move - cain't nobody in de world, nobody take 'em.
(Whose water do you stop up?)
His'n.
(The woman stops his water up?)
Yes, an' put about a teaspoonful of hers wit it - co'se it be togethah den, yuh see. Jis' put a little bit of hers wit it, too - cain't do it [work] by it- self. Put a little of hers wit it - not much, put much of it. Dat'll make hers [not as much as] his - jis' put a little bit.
(And a little bit of saltpeter too, you say?)
Yes, in de bottle dat's still, but de bottle dat yuh [don't] shake up put nuthin atall in it [except saltpeter].
Entry 7218
Well dey go tuh de store an' git dese wire nails. Ah calls 'em tins [made of tin or tenpenny?]. An' dey git de lengt' of de man an' de lengt' of de Woman, from up here at de haid all de way down tuh de foot. Well den wrap dat man tuh yuh lak dat [demonstrates].
(Wrap this length - the string around to you, all around this nail.)
Yes, de string tuh yuh lak dat, aroun' dis nail clean until yo' wrap it right even wit de point. Den yo' take it an' nail it right down in de centah of yuh do' an' make yuh wishes. Yo' say, "Jis' as ah drive dis nail down heah ah means fer yo' tuh stay here." An' he goin' stay dere. How ah know about dat, ah got mah husban' nailed down right now. Dat's how ah know.
(Now, you say...)
[I am interrupted.]
Right now.
(Well, does it work? Well, how did you get his length?)
While he asleep. Ah got one fer me an' one fer 'im nailed right in de centah of de do'.
(And you wrap both these strings together right around the nail?)
Tuh yuh, wrap 'is tuh yuh an' yours tuh yuh, too. An' den when yo' wrap down tuh de bottom of de nail, stick it right down tuh de centah of de do', an' hit it nine times an' let de ninth lick drive it up tuh de haid.
(In the wood?)
In de wood. (In wrapping these strings around, do you wrap them both together or first one and then the other?) No, wrap de man's first, den mine.
Entry 10161
Yo'll git de graveyard dirt, yo' undahstand, offa person dat's died bad. Yo'll git de graveyard dirt an' yo'll git red cayenne peppah, hot as yo' kin git it [this means buy it from a hoodoo shop!]. Yo'll git chew nine nails an' yo'll put in dere. An' yo'll go tuh work an' yo'll put dere name. Yo' put it down nine times on a piece of papah, but den yo' put chure name [9 times] on ahead of it. See. No, heah [demonstrates] yo' put chure name 'cuz yo're makin' dem people go. Yo'll go tuh work an' write his name nine times an' yo'll write it cross, yo' undah- stand. [His name is not written across her name, which is written one below the other in a column. His name, following her column, is written either in the form of an X or a cross +, one name crossing the other; or else his name the first time is written normally behind her fifth name. Then the paper is turned upside down and his second name written across first one etc. Various ways of crossing names and writing them upside down are given in HOoDO0.] An' den yo'll go tuh work an' yo'll git nine nails an' yo'll wrap it up in dere, tenpennies [nails], an' yo'll git cayenne peppah an' yo'll git snuff. Yo' know, whut de people use in dey mouth. Yo' git a yallah of a aig. Yo' mixes all dat up tuhgether, yo' see. All dat's ingredients tuh make 'em go, yo' see. An' den yo'll wrap dat all up tuhgether, see. Den if yo' kin go tuh work an' make it lak a powdah, make dat lak a powdah. Dat's tuh sprinkle in de house. It's tuh sprinkle in de house an' dat'll keep a confusion in dere an' he kin not stay. Den yo'll burn a black candle. Yo'll turn it upside down [by cutting off the normal wick and making a new wick on the bottom of the candle]. An' yo' put nine new needles in dere, yo' see an' his name on de top. Write it all ovah all aroun it. Jis' write his name all aroun' on dat candle. Den yo' burn it upside down fo' nine days.
(What'll that do?)
Dat'll run him away, git him outa de house. He don' wanta see dat house any mo'.
Entry 11676
If somebody put a spell on you, or evil verk [work] on yuh, ah kin take yuh any night at twelve 'clock an' go tuh de fork of de road. An' lak at a certain time [I will] fetch yuh on back home an' fix de door tuh yuh step - an' den yuh'll go back- ward an' go tuh yuh baid- room an' git a pair of 'is socks or some othah thing. An' nine days aftah dat yuh would be off from home. Nine days aftah dat yuh'll commence tuh... [I inter- rupt.] (Well what would you do at the crossroads? What Would you do down at the crossroads to cure a person?) Why yuh want me tuh tell yuh secret information? (I'm not going to be here to go into business again- st you or anything of that sort, you understand. [Long silence and I continue.] You see, what you tell me is confidential. It doesn't go any farther, you see.) Well, I'll tell yuh anyhow. Now yuh, if anybody harm yuh, hurt chuh, an' yuh Wan'a put a spell on dem [this is called "returning the spell"]. Yuh go an' git a frog, one frog. Git chuh nine, nine eightpenny cut nails. Yo' know what a cut nail is?
(Yes, a square nail.)
Mm [whatever that means!]. An' go carry it tuh de crossroads, jes' go ovah de dirt where his feet print [leave footprints]. Do lak dat [demonstrates] an do lak dat [demonstrates again] an' be raising de nail.
[I describe his actions.]
(The person puts his hands down on the ground.)
[The hands are spread out flat on the ground.]
Gotta have [demonstrates] ground gotta go through his hand, you know [demon- strates].
(Through his fingers.)
[He continues to demonstrate.]
Yuh put yuh fingahs here and den yuh put de nails right here.
[Demonstrates a hammer.]
(A special hammer you use for that purpose.)
[While this is going on.] De devil will come along. Nevah go up to him. Go back home as slow as yuh kin an' carry dat nailed-down [prints] an' take de sand wit it. Nail dem tuh de steps an' yuh do de same thing. Let him go in de house backwards. As he go at de step goes on up, go in backwards an' lay down [to rest]. He gonna git up early - sunrise. Aftah sunrise de nex' mawnin'. An' den yuh give him a quart of vinegah an' sulphuh, an' in dat bottle. An' put it dere an' throw it in runnin' watah, den dat will [begin to work]. An' in nine days time, if he ain't too long [gone, he will begin to recover].
[While machine stopped I ask a question.]
No, yo'll start at de do' an' den take five more [steps] an' git some vinegah. Tie it right togethah wit a piece of cord string an' put about a spoonful of sulphur, wit a quart of vinegah. But chew have dat fixed. Now you have dat fixed a couple of days, yuh undahstan'. Den aftah yuh do it, git de person an' let 'im take a dose three times a day.
(That'll cure him?)
In nine days now dat person week is up an' de reason it is done. If it's recently done, dey has de party dyin' in t'ree days. [Presumably the longer the spell in time, the longer it takes to cure it.]
(The person that put the spell on him.)
Yeah, goes back [to him] see. [This is called returning the spell and by other names.]
[To be on the safe side I continue.]
(As I pass, I put them [my feet] down there and make my footprints and my handprints right at the crossroads.) Right at de cross of de road [making this the center of a square and a quin- cunx rite] and come right back to de steps and do de same thing. An' he'll [doctor] have to carry yuh back as yuh go backwards an' lay in de baid.
Entry 11849
They tell me that you take de fingernails and toenails, and some of your hair right here [points to back of the head]. You totta put that all to- gether, mix it, you see, with cayenne pepper - red pepper. Go to de fiahplace, wrap dat up good, tight. Yo' wrap it up with a piece of new home- spun cloth. And wrap it all up together good and tight. You wrap it up like this [demonstrates]. You wrap it away from you. Dat's to drive you away. And take it and go to de fiahplace, take up a brick and put dat [package] down in dere, and put dat brick on top of it.
Entry 4418
Dey say dat chew could take a nail an' dip off a little bit of yore, yuh know, manure, an' carry it tuh a tree, yuh know, a nail dain't [dat ain't] nevah been used, an' drive it through dat tree wit some hair, ah think dey say, an' some of yuh hair too, an' say yuh tap it fo' nine mawnin's, an' de ninth dey says yo'll die.
(That hasn't anything to do with your photograph, has it?)
Dey tell me dey have yuh pichure up dere wit it.
(Oh! You drive this nail through it?)
Through de pichure. Drive dis nail through de pichure, see, an' have dat hair up dere wit it. Jis' drive it on in.
(Where do you put the manure, on the end of the?)
On de end of de nail.
Entry 6213
Heard dey put things in de tree, jes' lak dey wanted tuh har 'em or sech as runnin' 'em crazy or sompin lak dat. Ah heard dat dey kin take yore hair an' put a hole in de tree, an' put chure hair in dat tree an' stop it up, or take a nail an' punch it down - take a nail hole an' punch it [hair] down. Drive a nail down on it an' nail it in dere, an' dat will run yo' crazy.
Entry 6216
Dey say dat chew take de hair outa person's het [head] an' take it to a tree an' a eight-penny nail, an' reach jes' as high up dat tree as yo' kin reach, an' nail dat hair up in dat tree jes' as high as yo' kin, an' den nail dat nail down an' dat hair in dere. An' says dt vill give yo' de headache an' yo' would die.
Entry 6217
Take de hair an' take a new nail an' bore a hole in de tree an' drive 'en in dere. Dat's de last of yo'.
(Well, did you put this hair in the hole?) Yeah. (What do they do with the nail then?)
ive it in behin' de hair.
Entry 6219
Take fo' stran's of yore hair, yo' understand, an' make a foldin' plat outa it. Aftah dey plat dat hair, dey take a brand-new nail, a eight-penny dl, an' carry it out in de woods an' git on de north side of a tree. You see, te BORTH SIDE OF A TREE HAS A HEAVY BARK on dat side. An' take dat bark an' jIs barely crack dat bark enough to put dat hair in dere, see. Wedge dat hair in tere. An' take dis eight-penny nail an' drive it in up to de eye [of the nail]. Pat SUPPOSed to kill yuh. [INFORMANT DOES NOT KNOW THAT THE NORTH SIDE OF THE TEE HERE HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE THICKNESS OF THE BARK. THE NORTH SIDE OF TTHING, ESPECIALLY OF A CEMETERY, IS A VERY UNLUCKY PLACE.]
Entry 6220
If dey wants yuh tuh suffah or eithah wants yuh tuh git well, dey takes a' dey go tuh a oak tree an' take some of yore hair or eithah yore name. Write It on a piece of papah an' drive fo' nails in dis tree halfway. An' take an' tdve dese fo' nails in dis piece of papah wit yore name in it halfway. Uhat do they do that for?) Dey do dat if yo's sick an' anybody harmin' yo' an' yo' wanta git well. Puts dese nails an' dis name of yore in dere an' drive dese fo' nails in dere halfway in dis tree - dis oak tree or any kinda tree. [Here we have a general cure for ailments rather than a specific one for the tree spell only. The ail- ing victim sacrifices himself to the sickness-harm causing spirit by offering this spirit his name, magically his person. However, the nails driven halfway into the name reveal a mock sacri- fice, a trick played against the troublesome spirit, always a simple-minded fel- low.]
Entry 6224
Ah tell yo' jis' how dey do dat. All right, dey will steal yuh hair- eithah parts of yuh body wherevah hair grow at. Dey kin take it an' ball it up tight, an' take a small nail an' carry it tuh a tree, an' cut a little hole into de tree, an' drive it jis' as fur in dere as dey kin. An' den dey go back an' drive dat hair fo' nine mawnin's an' den yuh's done gone crazy. Dat's de way dey drive yuh crazy, see.
(They go back there each morning and hit that nail?)
Nine mawnin's.
Entry 6228
They take the bair from the top of your head and bore a hole in the north side of an oak tree ad plug it up, drive a nail in the hole. And they go back every day for nine days and tap the nail, and the last day they drive it in as far as they can. Then chey claim you die.
Entry 6234
Dey take a lock of yuh hair an' go tuh de west side of a tree, see. An' dey take a augah an' bo' a hole, jis' a little tiny hole in dere - say a quartah inch augah. An' bore it about half-a inch an' take dat hair, an' have it wropped up in a piece of red flannel, an' put it in dat hole. Take a eight or ten-penny galvanized nail an' place it right by dat hole, jis' about a quartah of a inch, sompin sim'lah [similar] tuh dat. An' fer nine mawnin's dey go an' hit on dat nail. An' dat will - it won't kill yuh but it will run yuh crazy.
Entry 8329
Ah heard dat chew could take dat photograph an' climb up a tree an' turn it bottomside upwards an' nail it tuh a forked limb an' dat would make yo' go crazy.
Entry 8343
Dey tell me yo' takes it [photograph] an' yo' stick it up on a tree, right up on a tree, an' git a nail, a tenpenny nail, an' stick it right heah in de photo an' drive it right in dere fer as yo' kin git dat haid tuh go down in dere, 'an' dat'll kill dem, he'll die.
Entry 8347
I heard they say they kin take it [photo] an' nail it up side a tree, I think. An' they say fer nine mornin's, I think, they go there an' nail a nail, I think, in the heart of it. An' name it, call this person name. An' they say they'd die.
Entry 8351
Take a nail an' go tuh a pine tree an' drive dat nail in it nine times. Drive it nine times in dat pichure an' in nine days, dat person will have to come home. Ah don't care where dey is.
Entry 8352
Take yer pitchure an' carry it an' nail it up to a tree or some place, a small pitchure. Yo' put a nail about where yer heart is an' go hit dat pit- chure fo' nine mawnin's. An' yo'll soon be gone.
Entry 8353
Yo' kin take dat photograph an' put it up an' stob a tenpenny nail intuh it. Put de tenpenny nail right about de heart an' yo' go dere nine days, nine mawnin's an' drive dat; or nine evenin's jes' befo' de sun go down. An' hit it jes' one lick, an' yo' keep dat up until yo' drive it down tuh de haid.
(What will that do to you?)
It will kill yo'.
Entry 8358
Dey tell me yo' kin take it, de photograph, take it an' carry it tuh de no'th side of a tree, an' nail it in de no'th side of a tree. As long as dey keep it in dere, long as dey keep it in, it almos' run yo' crazy.
Entry 491
Take nine new nails an' put 'em in a bottle or nine new needles, either one, to ketch a thing dey call a witch at night when dey ride yo'.
Entry 842
Mah own experience. Yo' see, me an' mah wife isn't tugethah now, cause dere wus anothah man. Ah used tuh sell whiskey an' quite natch'ly if yo' sell whiskey yo'll have plenty friends comin' in. He wus a railroad man an' he come dere an' he telled her dat he could do mo' fo' her den ah could. Well, natch'ly, he wus a friend of mine - after he were comin' dere, natch'ly ah had to take him as a friend cause he spent his money dere an' drink his whiskey. He git drunk, ah'd take ca' of 'im from de officers till he git ready tuh go home. He is a man supposed to have been a root doctor. He fixed up a medicine after he git in touch wit mah wife an'dey went tuh lovin' each othah, goin'on, an den dey couldn't git 'long so good, dey wanta git rid of me. Understand. Dey fixed up dis medicine, so dis man [a root doctor I went to] tole me - de doctor tole me, dis othah root doctor tole me dat it wus rattlesnake, de dust of a rattlesnake. It wus boiled into dis tea - de natural tea whut we drink ever' day, an' broom sage [broom sedge], dis grass; broom sage boiled with pokeroot, boiled in a halfa gallon of watah down to a quart [magic of diminishing amount]. After dat, he put it in a bottle till it become to be three days old, den see he give it to my wife tuh give tuh me. Ah were drinkin' dat. If ah come home so sick or tired until ah hardly could walk, she would give me dis medicine befo' ah eat. Ah got tuh de place so dat when ah set down lak long as ah wus [have been] settin' heah [with you], ah would have tuh git up, cause mah whole body would a'been dead - jes' lak yo' know sometime yore han' go tuh sleep, yo' know. Mah whole body would go tuh sleep. An' ah got tuh de place dat ah could not stand to talk to no woman atall - ah didn't have nutin to do wit her or no othah woman. Only one sister an' mah own father, dat's all ah got; an' ah hated dem, ah didn't go by dem. Ah wus dyin'. Ah got to de place ah couldn't work - ah lost a job - mah job. Ah used tuh run a pawn shop - ah lost a job in dere cause ah couldn't make de [pawn tickets, he probably Was going to say]. [He evidently was moon- lighting - working in pawn shop by day and selling bootleg whiskey by night.] Mah sister come an' hunt me one day an' tole me, said, "Lance, yo' oughta do somepin - where yo' sense? Dere somepin wrong wit yo' - yo' nevah been dis way." Ah said, "Well, dere's nutin fo' me tuh do - ah don't want anythin'." She said, "Well, all right, ah'm goin' see 'bout chew mahself." Says, "Dey ain't but two of us left." She goes to dis man an' tell dis man. Dis man come an' tole me, says, "Now, yo' go back home" - ah didn't have tuh tell 'im anythin', said, "an' if yo' go back home an' open yore trunk, look right down in de back of yore collar. Yore white shirt ironed an' pressed an' lay down dere, yo' ain't wearin' it. Dis lady done fold it nice an' it layin' down - de collar right stiff. Look in de bottom of dat an' yo'll find a little package containin' - about dat long - containin' three brand-new wire nails, flathead wire nails, wit de hairpins, three of 'em, an' a little pinch of salt an' eggshell, jes' tied up togethah in dis package, layin' undah a black comb of yore hair [= hair comb] whut yo' use." Say, "Yo' kin hunt fo' it."
(Under the comb?)
De comb - layin' undah de comb. De comb 'bout dat long, see. Dey wus layin' right up an' down de comb an' de comb wus on top an' it wus layin' right up an' down in de back of mah shirt. An' ah went on back home an' ah found it. He said, "Now, when yo' find dat, yo' bring it to me." Ah car'ed it back to him an' he took de package an' opened it an' showed me whut wus in it - see. Den he says, "Ahm goin' tuh keep dis. Now, whenevah she meet wit dis man agin, yo'll see 'em - yo'll be right dere an' see 'em." Ah says, "All right." He said, "But don't hurt either one of dem. Dey'll hurt deyselfs. [This is a device to protect the doctor in case of a shooting or serious disturbance. He also kept the instrument of cunjuration, the package, for the same reason.] So he fixed de comb - he took de comb an' fixed de comb. Dis man [loving informant's wife] went on out on his work to de railroad. An' he [root doctor] says, "In from three tuh nine days, he won't do her no good." So he went on out an' he got his laig cut off up to his thigh. Well, he lived around three weeks an' shortly aftah dat he died. But ah didn't tell him to do dat, but dat's whut he did with it. She's out dere in de world some place now - but me an' her's not togethah. Now, dat whut happened to me.
(Well, who told you about the snake dust thing. Who told you about that?)
De root doctor.
(What did he say?)
How dis othah man had fixed it? Dis othah man fixed it - he cut de snake - killed de rattlesnake an' cut de head off an' parched it till it come tuh be a dust like. Den he put it in dere, see, an' mix it wit dis broom sage.
(But who had fixed this comb and stuff?)
Mah wife an' him.
Entry 1378
Git a can of potash - Devil Lye. Yo' hear talk of Devil Lye with the devil with the red head on the can of potash. Git chew nine nails - ten-penny nails an' git - put in nine new needles, dese goldeye needles. Bury it in de center of de gate. Dat's to turn back de devil-like - dat's if anybody tryin' tuh hurt cha.
(What do you do with these needles and nails? Where do you put them?)
Put them on top of that can of potash in the gate, when yo' bury it about that deep.
Entry 1394
I have heard the old people say that you can take a lock of your hair, and a piece of your underwear, and nine nails - five up and four down, and bury it right down at the sill of your door and lean it out from the house. You lean the package out very carefully - you bury it just out of sight. Take your left foot and drag the dirt over it and cover it. If anybody walks over it, that keeps them from trespassing. You won't have any trouble with them any more.
Entry 1801
You take nine penny nails and nail dat - like you would make a coffin. Understand. That, if you wanted to kill someone. (Well, how do you mean nail them? I mean fix [arrange] them? What do you dc with them then?) Well, if you wanted to kill someone, destroy someone, you'll take those nine penny nails and you nail 'em in de shape of a coffin.
(Oh, I see. You nail them in the shape of a coffin.)
In your floor, anywhere that you choose to nail 'em, you understand, and if you can, you try to get a piece of their shoe off the right foot on de inside of the ankle up at the top. And you'll take and then nail that down when you make de coffin and de last nail you drive you suppose that'll be through the center, which will be your heart, and you drive that there and they will pine away. I have known that doctors pronounced some had T. B., and everything, but no doctors can cure 'em. They just simply pines away.
Entry 1802
Bore a hole in de tree - and I have seen it done. Just like I had a wife, see, and she runs off. If I want to keep her at my house, like dis here my - dis house mine. Well, if I want keep her at home. See, I'll take her left- foot shoe and take nine nails. See, fix it just like you fix a coffin, and you put one in de heel, and two in the middle, and two here and two here and two here - just like you make a coffin. And put dat in her shoe thataway and dig a hole right under those steps, under your bottom step and put dat shoe in dere, and den put dem nine nails in dere in de shape of a coffin. And I'll betcha she'll never run off from dat house no more.
(I see. Do you drive these nails through the shoe?)
Through the shoe - turn the shoe bottomside up.
Entry 2146
Some people say they use nails to keep the police - that's another thing they say to keep the police away an' keep yore enemies out.
(How do they do that?)
They nail one ovah each windah an' talk to it jes' whatevah yo' want it to do, an' ah think yo' dress it with - befo' yo' nail it ovah each windah. Yo' make yo' up some sulphur - sulphur is a thing goes 'bout with ever'thin', an' a little graveyard dirt, an' yo' dress this nail. An' if you can, go write on it whut yo' want it tuh do. Yo' nail one ovah each windah an' one ovah de do', an' they say there's nuthin kin come ovah there.
Entry 2165
Yo' kin take yo' nine eye needles an' iron nails, put it in a vial, bottle, an' put it up in de chimley corner - hang it up de chimley an' no law or nuthin wouldn't come dere to 'sturb yo' atall.
(What else do you put in that bottle? You said before.)
chamber lye, iron nails an' eye needles. Put in one dose vials about dat large. [Urine in chimney, needles and nails are well-known protective devices against witches. Eye needle - informant does not mean the normally used qoldeye needle of hoodoo - is very unusual, meaning it is not the eyeless needle for knitting.]
Entry 2832
Yo' take an' git chew a candle an' yo' git chure lan'lord's name. Yo' fin' out de enemy whut's 'ginst yo'. Yo' take an' git chew a bran'-new tablet, linen tablet without de little lines. Yo' git chew a bran'-new indelibins [indelible] pencil [occasionally called indelicate], a bran'-new pencil have nevah been used. Yo' pull up yore sleeve an' jes' draw [demonstrates] from heah right roun' disaway - fingers.
(Outlining the fingers of your hand right on this tablet.)
Yas. Right on de tablet clean roun' to de j'ints heah, all right up dis way.
(Right up to the wrist.)
Den, aftah yo' git yore han' drawed off, yo' start markin' from yore thum' to de j'ints of yore fingers, wit little x's wit de lead pencil, an' den follow behin' 'em wit de indelibins pencil. In de pa'm of yo' han' yo' put fo' lines or five lines [for five fingers]. Yo' git all yo' enemies' names dat is 'ginst yo'. Yo' put 'em cross yore lines dat way. Den yo' put yore lan'lord up heah cross dese fo' fingers. Yo' place yore name on top of it to de heel of yore han'. (Your name will cross at right angles - cross all those names, making the form of an "x" like that. In a cross?) Yeah, yo' see [demonstrates] disaway. Dat's de way it work. Dem's de lines. Yore lan'lord heah, yo' enemy's heah. Den you take yore name an' draw it right through de middle of it dataway, right down dis way to de heel of yore han'. Den yo' git chew a candle an' git chew a papah of gold-eye needles.
(What kind of candle do you get? What color?)
Red. Git red. Yo' git chew a papah of gold-eye needles, a papah of large pins: Git chew nickel wuth new ten-penny nails. Yo' jes' set yore candle down an' den yo' take yo' a pair pliers an' grip dose needles an' shove 'em through an' make crosses in em [candles] dataway from de stem to de bottom, mix 'em up with de needles an pins. Den yo' light chure candle ovah dat han' on de dresser or wash-stand [which become an altar], somepin lak dat, or a center table, an' set it down dat way. [All of this is demonstrated.] Den yo' make yore wishes. When yo' git ready tuh put de candle out, don't blow it out, yo' ketch it an' pinch it to yo'. Yo burn it from five tuh ten tuh fifteen minutes. It goes up eve'y mawnin, don't yo' see, until it burns out. In de meantime when de candles is burnin' an' de needles an' pins is fallin out, leave 'em lay dere till de candle burn down. An'den joo got chure lan'lord.
(They can' t move you out of the house?)
Nawsuh, dey cain't move yuh.
(Do you light this candle at any particular time?)
Yassuh, yo' must light it on a time. Yo' see, yo' mus' light it in de mawnin' when de sun risin'. See, when de sun risin' yo' light chure candle an' yo' burn it. Yo' start at five minute up, as high as yo' wanta go, tuh twenty minute or twenty-five minute, yo' see. An' den yo' set dere an' make yore wishes as de candle burn. Hold yore watch on yore candle or yore clock, so yo' won't delay it none - yo' see, yo' won't run ovah yore minutes. Yo' see? Always put it on, on de exact minute. When de five minutes is out, put it out; or de ten minutes is out, put it out. Don't blow it out. Take yore fingah or yore thum' an' 'pit [spit] an' lay it on de stem [wick] an' pinch it ovah to yo' - break it off to yo' dat way, see. Den yo' got him.
(How long do you burn this candle? Until it burns all the way down?)
Till it burns all de way down. Yo' burn two an' dat's all. [For outline of hand or fingers, see 1988, p.583 & Index.]
Entry 3577
If yo've got a man fren' an' he don't come tuh see yo' as reg'lah as yoo want 'im tuh come, yo' git chew a nail an' a string an' tie nine knots in it [demonstrates]. Yo' wrap dat string an' yo' tie a knot, wrap. it roun' an' tie a knot till yo' git nine. Take dat an' stick it down dere to de do'step an' yo' make a wish whut chew want. Dat will make him come. (You just wrap the string around your finger [serving as a nail] and tie it around, tie it around [9 times].) Yes.
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 4356
Takes yuh chamber lye an' dey puts it in a bottle an' dey puts - git nine peas, nine black-eyed peas, an' nine nails, eight-penny nails about dat long [demonstrates] an' a needle, one sewin' needle. An' po' dat [urine] in dere [the bottle], an' a piece of fat meat an' throw dat in dere, an' nine straws. An' fo' dey put dat in dere, dey'll take it an' let it set up nine days. An' when it set up nine days dey'll go an' put it - dey'll take it an' put some mo' [things in]. Put black peppah an' salt an' vinegah in it an' three pods of red peppah. An' dey takes it [bottle] tuh de rivah an' throws it ovahbo'd ovah de right shoulder [using the left hand]. Dat'll run yuh crazy.
Entry 4417
His stoolment - his bowel stoolment. An' yuh kin cut a hole in any kinda tree, jis' since yuh cut a hole in it, an' put it in dere, an' den put dat same bark, yuh know, an' shut back ovah dat an' nail it up wit a hammah an' nail. An' dat'll lock 'is bowels an' he nevah will git ovah it.
Entry 4419
Yuh kin take a person's a - yuh know ah couldn't use de proper name of it, yeah manure. Yuh kin take hit an' yuh kin go tuh a pine tree, an' go roun' right whare it pointed right to- wards de east, see. An' bore yuh a hole in dere, an' yuh could put it in dere an' stop it up, an' go dere nine mawnin's an' drive a nail, see, in- tuh dat. An' den go dere nine mawnin's an' drive dat nail fuhthah an' fuhthah in fo' nine mawnin's. Time comes it would come tuh 'im, yuh know, be worried wit 'is backside, yuh know, an' it will cuz him tuh have so much trouble it will kill 'im in de long run. [Informants proper nome of it is undoubtedly a messy four- lettered word!]
Entry 5154
Yuh could take a person's shoe. Yuh could take dat shoe an' nail it up in de centah of de house, if de individual away an' yuh wan' dem back. Yuh kin take dat shoe an' nail it up in de direct CENTAH OF DE ROOM, an' dat will draw 'em back.
Entry 5395
Take dere track don't chew know an' stick it - an' put all of it in a bottle. An' den aftah yo' git it in a bottle, yo' stop it up an' take a aig an' write de name - de individual's name on de aig an' bury it in de groun' an' call dem three times. An' take a bah [bar] of Octagon Soap [trade name] an' take off de top wrappah an' de othah [inner] wrappah. An' take yo' a nail an' write de name on de bah of Octagon Soap, an' wrap up dat slick thin' on it [rewrap soap in slick thin', inner wrap- per], don't chew know, an' throw it in runnin' watah an' dat will mun 'em.
(You do all these things together?)
Yes sir, dose tuhgethah.
(You throw all these things at once into running water?)
No sir. Yo' take de aig an' bury de aig roun' yore do'step. An' den git de bah Octagon Soap, don't chew know, an' take de top slip off an' den dat [presum- ably inner wrapper, but I interrupt].
(What do you do with that soap then?)
Take dat soap an' git chew a nail. Write de name of dat individual dat chew wanta run. An' den put dat slick thin' back on dere an' throw it intuh runnin' watah.
(And what do you do with the foot track?)
Take hit an' stick it in a bottle an' throw it in de watah too.
(You do all these things together?)
Yes sir. Hit concludes tuhgethah.
(What do you bury that egg for?)
Bury dat egg tuh make 'em go. [To bury the preceding egg in the ground to send a person away looks more like a rite to hold the person. Yet similar burial rites with the same purpose will be found in Hoodoo. As always, intention is everything. Here the egg belongs to a tripartite rite; the other two parts being definitely send away rites. Is the egg a possible recall rite? If the sender away regrets the sending away, the egg stands ready to bring back the person. We must also note the egg has a double dressing; the name written on it, and the name called 3 times.]
Entry 5533
They measure your footstep with a string and tie that around a ten- penny nail, and drive it right in the ground where you have to step over ft, and that puts a curse on you. [Fredericksburg, Va., (45), by] Ediphone.]
Entry 5557
An' ah've noticed in South Carolina, dey've got a ole belief down dere tuh cripple a person. I hear 'em talk it an' seen 'em practice it several times, dat yo' kin take a new nail dat's nevah been used. Any person yo've got somepin ag'inst an' yo' wan' tuh git even wit 'em dataway. Dey track 'em anywhere where dey'll leave a track in de fresh earth, dig a hole an' place dat nail in dere wit de point up, an' when dey pass dere again, dey become crippled an' stay crippled until yo' remove dat nail. Ah've seen dat practiced a whole lot, an' had 'em tuh tell me dat's really de way dat it's cuzed
[caused] an' how it's done.
Entry 6202
It's got'a be a lock of yore hair from de mole of de head, an' dat must be buried in de highest tree aroun' in dat vicinity. It have to be put on a nail or somepin dat it could be driven in dat tree. An' as de sap rises, yore mind will begin to be inflected [afflicted]. Any kin'a tree, but it must be in a forest like where dere's a thickness, thickest [not thicket, a growth of small trees] - see, like a woods. An' it got'a be a time of year de sap is risin'.
Entry 6227
I've heard my mother say, if you want to do anything to anyone, get a piece of their hair and carry it to the north side of a tree, put the hair against the nail, and drive the nail for nine mornings. That'll kill them.
Entry 6239
They say you can meet people that go deep into that [work you inquiring about] and involve their whole mind in it. They supposed to can get contact with Satan at the crossroads, but the words that they say in certain ceremonies they go through with, well I don't know that part of it.
[At this point I probably ask how I could protect myself against evil work.]
There are several things you could do to protect yourself, but in protecting yourself you sometimes have to hurt the other party. Now, if a person is going to get, say HOODOOING me, well he's got to make me lose my mind if he possibly can. Well, I can go to another per- son [fortuneteller, rootworker, hoodoo] and I can find out that he's trying to make me lose my mind. Well, I can make him lose his mind before he can make me lose mine, as my only means of protection in that case. Now natchly [naturally] I'm an enemy to this person and I can't get up close to them myself, but if it's a man I can put some woman up to stay with him all night and get just a teeny bit of his hair on the left-hand side of the temple, on the left temple. And we take that hair and write his name on a new piece of paper, and we put that hair with salt and pepper in that paper, and we fold it very tight. Then we go to the woods at the beginning of spring and we bore a hole in a tree, and we take a hammer and nail, and we nail that piece of paper just as far up in the tree as we can - upto Che end Of the naiI. AND THE IDEA IS, WHEN THE SAP RISES THIS PERSON WILL BEGIN TO LOSE THEIR MIND WHEN IT REACHES THAT PAPER, AND WHEN IT GOES COMPLETELY UP TO THE TOP OF THE TREE, THEIR LIVES WILL HAVE BEEN COMPLETELY LOST; AND WHEN DE FALL COMES AND THE SAP GOES DOWN, THEY DIE.
Entry 6248
They run yuh crazy.
(How do they do that?)
They take a tree - they take de sunny side of de tree, when de sun rises on de tree, makes a hole wit a auger, den put dat hair in dere. Den take a ten- penny nail, yuh got'a have a ten-penny nail, den put dat hair in dere an' drive dat nail in dere. An' aftah de ba'k [bark] begins tuh grow dere ag'in, de weak- ah yuh git an' craziah [crazier] and foolishah. Dat causes yuh tuh be foolish, dat makes yuh lose yuh mind.
Entry 7223
Say lak a hoodoo come tuh yuh house. Ah could stop any hoodoo, know how tuh stop it. Git choo fo' - yo' know runnin' grapevines run up a tree - yo' git choo fo'. Cut fo' pieces off about so long [demonstrates]. (Four inches long.) Take yo' fo' pieces an' yo' cross 'em. Yo' take 'em in de house an' yo' cross 'em. Take a nail an' tack 'em tuhgethah an' cross 'em. An' hang 'em ovah yuh do'. An' dere ain't no hoodoo will walk undah dem. (You take four of them [pieces 4 inches long] and nail them in a cross, like that [I demonstrate], and put them over the door.) Dere ain't no hoodoo comin' in, he'll turn back. [Is the grapevine run up a tree an American wild grape or the scuppernong (a form of muscadine) trained as a tree with branches spreading in all directions on an overhead trellis? In any case, a hoodoo fears either being whipped by the vine or its form of the cross. Doctor Frank Hall says a bath with the juice from the fox grapevine will cure witchcraft (see No.1304, p.447). There are two in- digenous fox grapevines in America, the northern (Vitis labrusca), ancestor of varieties Concord, Isabella, etc., and the southern (V. rotundifolia), origin of the scuppernong.]
Entry 7538
For to send anybody away, somepin like that - just to send them away, not kill them, not atall like that - you go to the head of a grave, an ole grave, and you dig down there and you get a handful of graveyard dirt. An' yo' take ten new nails, nine new pins, an' seven grains of shot. An' yo' can take this, if yo' want to send them away from home, send them on adrift, an' yo' sprinkle it where they walk. An' the last sprinkle yo' make every time yo' sprinkle yo' drop three pins an' two wire nails - why they'll get in a fidget to go away some place an' they'll go. The chances is they won't be back under three year no how. [For as old a grave as yo' kin' find, see lO lines from bottom of p.2239.]
digging at an old grave's head to collect dirt for a stated non-killing send-away purpose. Retain old-grave/head location, handful wording and explicit send-away/not-kill distinction. direct conditional sprinkling of a prepared mixture to send someone away rather than kill. Preserve the explicit send-away/not-kill distinction and conditional purpose. These are attributed source occurrences; outcomes remain unverified. The informant explicitly distinguishes sending someone away from killing them and reports a chance of absence for three years. Hyatt's final cross-reference is editorial; the ingredients remain separate.
Entry 7837
Wit graveyard dirt. Jis' lak, yo' see, yore ole man is left wit anoth- ah woman, yo' kin go tuh de graveyard an' yo' kin git some dirt. An' yo' git a nail jis' about 'er size an' den yo' write her name on a piece of pa- pah, an' yo' wrap it aroun' dat nail. An' den dat graveyard, yo' git a bottle, an' yo' pack it [graveyard dirt] in a bottle an' yo' put dat nail wit 'er name wrapped in it. Dat's called buryin' 'em. Yo' kin take dat [bottle, now a symbolical coffin] an' throw it ovah in runnin' watah, an' dat supposed tuh break 'em up.
(WHAT DO YOU MEAN A NAIL HER SIZE?)
Jis' lak if it's a small person, a low [short] person, den yo' kin git a small nail; an' if it's a tall person, yo' git de tallest nail dat yo' kin find. An' put de graveyard dirt in a bottle an' pack it jis' as tight as yo' kin pack it - dat graveyard dirt in de bottle - an' den yo' write 'er name on a piece of papah an' yo' wrap it around dat nail. Dat nail supposed tuh be her. An' yo' stick it in dat graveyard dirt whut's in de bottle an' stop it up real tight, an' yo' throw it in de rivah. Dat supposed tuh break 'im an' dat woman up.
Entry 7899
Well, graveyard dirt - yo' jis' take graveyard dirt an' yo' take it up, an' jis' put chew some salt in dere, an' jis' git chew a li'le nail, jis' a li'le nail, not nuthin tuh hurt, jis' a li'le nail wit dis graveyard dirt. An' yo' put it inside of de stove an' den yo' let it [graveyard dirt and salt] git hard, jis' hard. An' den yo' jis' powdah it in de bottom of yuh shoe. [The nail of course does not powder, it merely being a magic object completing 3 ingredients.] Dat makes yo' lucky. Git hard lak a powdah an' den jis' weah it in de bottom of yuh shoe. Jis' sprinkle it [in your shoe]. An' den sometime yo' put talcum powdah wit it.
(What do you put talcum powder in it for?)
Well, dat makes it lucky.
(How do you get the talcum powder?)
How git it? Buy it. [A good answer!]
Entry 7956
They say to put four nails, nails which you nail your coffin with, four pins [from the garments of the corpse], and the [death] sheet over you, and a lock of hair. The hair is supposed to molt away. When that hair molts, you're supposed to molt. They would bury this, put it all in a bottle, wrap it up tight and bury it anywhere near your home. If you found this bottle, then they would em- ploy some old cunjure doctor to come and get this bottle and throw it in the river of running Water.
Entry 8148
Yo' kin take a person's pichure an' put it on a new piece of lumbah, an' put it up undah yore do'step, an' put a piece of dere hair in de toadfrog mouth, an' drive a nail in hit, in de toadfrog heart an' de pi- chure heart, on de new piece of lumbah whut chew got drive down. Drive a peg through 'is heart an' through de heart of de tin- type pichure. An' aftah dat toadfrog die, yo'll die. An' put dat up undah yore do'step so yo'll come out ovah it evah mawnin'. When dat toadfrog die, yo'll die. (You put this picture on a new piece of lumber, then you put the frog on the picture. Then you drive a nail [or peg] right through the hearts of all of them.) Right through both of 'em heart an' put a hair out 'is haid in 'is [toad- frog's] mouth.
Entry 8209
An' den yo' would take an' write a person's - draw a person's pitsture am'write dere name on a tree.
(Do you draw their picture on the tree?)
Yo' draw dere pitsture on a tree, jis' lak yo' would take an' go dere an' draw a pitsture on de tree. If yo' don' wanta skin it where anybody would take notice, yo' would draw a pitsture on de tree, namin' it him, an' den write undah it dat it him. An' take a nail, a fo'-penny nail, an' drive right in de centah of 'is haid. An' says yo' nail dat fo' nine mawnin's, yo' go dere an' tap it, an' de ninth mawnin' yo' drive it plumb in. An' dis person will die.
(You write his name and just say It's him on it?)
[He may have said It's him before recording began. He now says person must not be plainly identified.1 Yo' write his name, yo' make it kinda a sign. Don't make it plain where peo- ple kin read it an' all lak dat, don't chew know, but jis' lak imitatin' writin'. Well, yo' name it. Dat's 'is name. An' yo' draw dat pitsture, jis' - yo' know. An' den yo' take an' drive dat nail in dere an' - fo' nine mawnin's yo' would go dere an' tap dat nail an' de ninth mawnin' yo'd drive it in.
Entry 8264
Yo' take a photograph an' go in de woods tuh a tree, an' yo' jis' lay it up from de ground up side de tree. Yo' kin go dat high from de ground, eight feet high. Ah'd take a ten- penny nail an' drive dat through de forehead ontuh de tree. An' git choo some splintahs - fat-lighter [pine] splintahs [here, split pieces of wood, not small splinters] - some people call 'em torches - an' make a smoke right down here [at the bottom of the tree]. Jis' make a fiah, an' de smoke goes right straight on up [over the photo]. An' yo' git choo a shotgun an' go back about twenty-five or thirty feet from de tree, an' shoot right through that smoke at dat pitchure. Dey tell me dat'll kill yuh. [Large pieces of fat-lighter pine (several pines so called) were used at night as outdoor hand torches. This is described some- where in the text by a woman, from Orangeburg, S. Car., whose grandmother de- scribed a slave burial at night - a limited number of torches, no singing, etc.]
Entry 8291
Dey take yore photograph an' dey wanta do somepin tuh yo' mean. Take dat photograph if it's on a tintype an' carry it off in de woods befo' sunup. An' nail it up on de no'th side of a tree an' take yore gun an' shoot it. Shoot chure heart be' fo' sunup. Ah don' care where yo' at, if yo' in New Yawk, dat'll kill yuh.
Entry 8292
Ah heard dey kin take a tin- type photograph an' carry it tuh de oak tree, an' if dey wanted tuh harm yuh, an' nail it dere wit a tenpenny nail an' den shoot. Say dat would kill yo'.
Entry 8322
Well, de ole han's, de ole folks yo' know, dat ah've heard talk about dese things, dey usely [usually] take de photograph, but it have tuh be a tin- type. It cain't be no paste- bo'd. It have tuh be a tin- type, an' dey take it an' take sixpenny nails an' go tuh a cedah tree an' drive it. Don't hit but nine licks an' drive it on de sunrise side. An' dat person usely dies. But ah've nevah known it atchly [actually] tuh happen, 'cuz ah nevah seen it done.
(They drive one nail into this?)
Yeah, a sixpenny nail an' strike it nine licks.
(All at once, at the same time?)
Strike it nine licks an' drive it in de centah; right in de centah of de pi- chure, or in de centah of de fo'head, or eithah in de centah right in de stomic part of it yo' see.
Entry 8326
Yo' kin take dat, de pichure an' pluck out ev'ry eyes. Carry it in de woods to a tree to de sundown side an' nail it on dat tree an' fo' nine mawnin's ev'ry mawnin' go dere an' give a tap on dat nail fo' nine mawnin's. In nine mawnin's dey'll drift on away.
(You first pluck out the eyes?)
Yes.
Entry 8341
Say yo' could take dat pichure - a woman or a man, eithah one, could take de individual's pichure an' stick it in a tree. An' put a nail right in de middle of it, an' hit dat nail fo' nine mawnin's, an' say in de ninth mawnin' yo'll drop daid.
Entry 8345
Dey say if dey git holt [hold] of de pitchure, jes' lak now ah be mad wit joo, take it an' care [carry] it tuh a tree. An' go right tuhwards de way de sun rise, an' nail it intuh de tree. An' den yo' name de day, an' say when dem days is out de person will be out.
Entry 8346
Dey kin take yore photograph an' tack it up on a tree or anywhere in de house an' jes' about - yo' kin tell jes' about where yore heart lay, an' yo' kin drive a nail dere. An' yo' start de nail wit one lick an' evah mawnin' yo' call dat person's name an' hit dat nail one lick - evah mawnin' fo' nine mawnin's. But evah time yo' hit de nail one lick, call de person's name an' sompin will happen tuh him. He'll eithah fall an' git killed, git run ovah, or gits done 'way wit.
(That kills him?)
Yes sir. [Brunswick, Ga., (just before No.1240). 2104:9.]
Entry 8348
Or yo' kin take a person pichure an' put it intuh a tree. Bo' a augah hole intuh a tree an' put it in dere, an' put a tenpenny nail in dere at de middle of it, about where de navel be in de pichure, an' drive one lick on dat nail evah day fo' nine days. An' de last day yo'll drive dat nail in de tree, dat person ceases out - it will kill dat person.
Entry 8350
Whut chew kin do wit dat. Yo' take dis heah pichure whut yo' made yo know, if a fellah wants tuh do sompin real bad tuh yo', he kin take dat pichure an' go 'bout, chew might say, "cross de woods up 'ginst a long tall pine tree. An' he kin take, whut chew might say, dese eight- penny nails, an' he kin take dat pichure an' stick it 'ginst de tree an' nail dat dere. An' go dere fo' nine mawnin's, yo' might say, hit dat nail on de haid. An' it will run yo' stone crazy.
Entry 8360
Yeah, yo' takes a pichure. Well, yo' take de person pichure even if yo' in love wit 'em an' even if yo' see where dey don' mean tuh stay wit choo, an' yo' Wanta git rid of 'em fo' good. Yo' takes de pichure an' yo' goes tuh whut dey call a'simmon tree, an' de firs' two [limbs forming a] no'th fo'ks yo' see, den yo' takes de pichure an' tacks it up in de no'th fo'k. De no'th fo'k. Yo' find two fo'ks [limbs] run out jes' lak dat [demonstrates]. Put de pichure right in de daid centah.
(In the center of that fork?)
Yeah, right in de centah of dat fo'k. De fo'k may be a long ways up yondah, but still yo' kin see dat pichure.
(Well, how would you put it in that fork?)
Yo' don't put it intuh dat. Yo' nails, it, drive a nail through de centah. Den yo' walk back tuh it three days. Yo' pass dat same tree three days. An' when yo' pass dere yuh mind will git on dat tree forcible. Den aftah de third day, yo' take de pichure down an' conceal it from yo' fo' good.
(Hide it any place?)
Yes, anywhere, anywhere dat chew won' come in contact wit it any mo'.
(What will that do then?)
Well, dat'll put off whatevah yo' goin' through ovah wit. Dat will send 'em away fo' good.
(They won't come back again?)
Dey won't come back.
Entry 8366
Yo' kin take a photograph an' yo' kin put it in a pine tree wit a twen- ty-penny nail an' - an' a hammer. See, yo' go dere an' yo' hit dat twenty-penny nail fo' nine mawnin's, an' each time yo' hit dat twenty- penny nail, yo' kin look back ovah yore left shoulder, so dey says, an' de ninth mawnin' yo' hit dat twenty-penny nail, drive it all de way in. Dat person will die.
(Why do you look back over that shoulder, do you know?)
No suh, ah don'. [You will probably see the devil or the spirit of the person being killed. Or this lays the ghost of the dying person.]
Entry 8664
A man tole me he knew how to git a person who's away, if he's in love enough an' want to come, Want to take yo' back. Why yo' - he say nail up a nail ovah de do' which dey went out de last time. An' each night before yo' retire, dat yo' must stand an' look at dis nail an' call dis par- ty's name nine times, an' says each time, 'Come back, ah WANT CHOO TUH COME back." An' do dat fer nine nights, nine times each night. An' if dey had anythin' to come wit, dey'd come back.
Entry 8665
If yo' Want to kill a person - if yo' got it in fo' dem - git chew a nail an' go to a tree. Turn jes' towards de sun, de sunrise see, an' yo' nail dat nail in de tree see, an' call his name three times. In nine day's time why he'll be dead.
(Well, now, does he nail to- Ward the sun or does he nail it on the sunrise side of the tree?) Well, jes' lak [demonstrates]
de sun risin' disaway. See de tree settin' dat way. Yo' nail dat right in de tree towards de sunrise. (While you are facing the sunrise? Or on that side of the tree which faces the sunrise?) See, de tree will face de sun.
(And you put it in that side of the tree?)
Yo' nail it right in de side where de tree face de sun. [Florence, S. Car., (1318), 2263:3.].
Entry 8688
Ah heard tell of 'em takin' a nail an' drivin' it in a tree, in a 'simmon tree, about halfway, till it git to dem li'le notches-lak [just below head of nail] an' dey they stops. An' dey take an' name dat nail whosomevah dey want it tuh be, an' dey'll nail it down. [Fayetteville, N. Car., (1428), 2577.1
Entry 8786
If you want to make a person jis' drift an' jis' become a vagabond going here and there an' nevah content in one place, yo' write dere name wit evil wishes on a teeny piece of board, wood joo know, thin board, an' yo' git choo a lots of nails an' put anothah piece on. Dere name is tacked on dat first piece of board. An' den yo' put a thin piece of board on top of dat an' nail it down fine, jis' put plenty nails in rotation. An' at 12 o'clock at night yo' throw dat in de rivah, an' as dat board floats an' drifts down de stream, why dat person will drift. Dere mind will become unsettled an' dey'll jis' go to an' fro.
Entry 8898
Take a Bible, a small Bible. with a new do' key. an hang de new do' key - tie de Bible aroun' disaway, six times wit a cord. Tie de key into de leaves of de Bible, intuh Genesis chaptah. Hang it on a nail an' name it. An' de nex' mawnin' dat Bible will be turned right tuh de direction of de one who did de damage.
(Whoever stole the stuff?)
Yes.
Entry 8920
If you know de party's name wot got it, jes' write it down on a piece of paper, an' take a horseshoe an' nail it right in de center of de door, an' de same somebody wot got it will come back to yo' an' bring it. (You nail this name right in the center of the horseshoe over the door?) Jes' write it on a piece of paper an' put de nail dere an' put de paper dere too - put de paper on de nail first an' put de shoe right on top of it - right ovah de center of de door. De same party wot got it dey'll come an' have de sense to bring it back.
(If they stole this thing?)
If dey stole anything from yo'. An' if dey don't bring it back right den, dey will be messin' aroun' yuh an' dey commence to hintin' an' will bring it back. An' den tell yo': Yo' know all about such an' such a thing? Dey wants to see yo'. An' yo' don't know who it is. An' dey'll come an' have to sense of letting yo' have it back.
(How do you nail that horseshoe over the door?)
How do you nail it? Why yo' jes' take de nail an' set it up on dere.
(Are the two points [of the horseshoe] up or down, or how?)
Oh, de two points down.
Entry 9071
Jes' lak yo' got a trial comin' up, yo' kin take dere name, whatevah yo' 'rested [arrested] fo' or sompin lak dat. If yo' kin git dis law's name an' write it on ice, write it in ice an' fast as dat melt away, jes' keep ice evah day. See, 'fo' dat trial comes up, yo' jes' keep dat ice evah day. An' find out zactly whut time yore trial's com- in' up, an' keep dat ice evah day, an' keep a-writin' his name on it till dat ice melt away. Jes' watch it all de time an' jes' keep a-writin' his name on it, an' it'll...
(How do you write his name on the ice?)
Jes' write de law's name. Yo' write it wit a nail. Yes, scratch it on, an' yore name. An' when yo' write it, yo' write chure name down heah. Write it three times, write chure name three times up tuh de top. Yo' write his name undah it. Den yo' take an' yo' cross it lak a "x", see.
(You just write his name once underneath or three times?)
Three times. Yo' write his name up heah three times. Yo' write dat three times yo' see an' write chure name right down undah it three times, an' den yo'll cross dat evah time. Dey'll throw it outa co't.
Entry 9716
Yo' kin take a nail - a spike. Take dat an' kill a puhson. Ah tell yuh whut. Nail dat about de height of de puhson. Yo' care dat tuh a tree an' yo' kin care it in dis country [South Carolina] - yo' care it tuh whut's known as a workin' pine. Dat's de lady pine. Dere's a he an' a she, yo' know, suh, in de pine trees. An' yo' care it tuh dat. Go dere early in de mawnin'. An' dere's anothah one. Yo' kin care it tuh a peah [pear] tree an' drive it in dere about de height of 'em [the victim]. Drive dat in dere. Call 'em, hit it, drive it in dere hard, Ah drive dis spike intuh yore reart, dat no longah shall yo' Zive'r [live or] remain on earth. Die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Den turn roun' an' call dem. Call dem, but don't put yore hamah or hatchet down. Hold it in a drivin' position. Drive it! An' evah tine yo' drive yo' say, Die! Die! Dat'll bring on quick-enough death. Drive it! Tell 'em yo' drivin' it through dey heart, dey witals an' weins. Yo' shall Die! Die! Yo' must die! Yo' shall die!
Entry 9721
They say you can take a new tenpenny nail and if you want the man, why you can drive that down, beside your bed, in the floor. And if that makes you be the first place that you walk over in the morning and the last place in the night, and that'll make him come to you and come under your control.
Entry 9763
Yo' could nail a person down. Dey say yo' take nails, tenpenny nails, an' yo' could put dat nail a certain place in yore yard, or anywhere else. An' if yo' wanta nail a person down, yo' go dere evah mawnin' fo' nine mawnin's an' yo' nail dat down. An' yo' hit dat one lick an' tell 'em - yo' know, yo' put in [you include] whut chew doin', whut chew nailin' it fo'. Yo' nail dat down an' de las' time say, "Ah'm nailin' yo' down: In de Name of de Fathah, Son an' de Holy Ghost." Dat sill hold a person down.
Entry 9767
Tuh keep dem [police] away, if yo' kin find out how many officahs are in town. An' fo' evah man yo' git dat many of tenpenny nails, an' drive dem all in de front of yore do'. It's not officahs goin' come tuh yore house atall. An' if yo' wanta gain customahs, if yo' have one an' he comes dere, now yo' take some of yore watah - take de last drop of yore watah - an' put it in de whiskey. An' dey says dat dey will not stop comin'. Dey'll bring yo' all de customahs yo' kin wait on.
(That is the first customer who comes?)
Yessuh.
Entry 10793
Take a broom, or either a horseshoe, an' put it up ovah yore do'. Take a broom yo' know an' nail it crossways yore do', keep witches out. (Where do you put it, down on the floor or what?) Lay it right down by de do', on de flo'. (What will that do?) Dat will keep 'em out. Or ei- ther, if a person come in yore house an' yo' don' want 'em dere, yo' kin take a pod of peppah an' throw it in de fiah, an' make dem go.
(Just burn the pepper while they are in the house or after they leave?)
While dey in yore house.
Entry 11304
Dey use hair offa a dog fo' whut ah heard. Ah heard that if a person git a nail stuck in dey feet an' yo' shave de dog an' put de hair on dere, it's good fo' de poison. But fo' anything else ah haven't heard. [Read poison or hoodoo poison? The problem here is did you step on the nail accidentally or did someone cunjure the wound upon you - make you step on nail?]
Entry 11375
De fig tree - take a bottle an' urinate in de bottle. An' it's jes' lak if yo' got it in fo' me an' yo' wanta hurt me, urinate in de bottle an' den take somepin else [what?] an' po' in dat urinate, an' take dis red string an' tvist it real tight an' slash it to de main root of dat fig tree. Anybody go to dat fig tree an' eat it dey poisoned. If dey eat a fig offa dat tree dey's poi- soned. [The preceding word slash I evidently understood as lash according to my following question.]
(How do you tie this string around it?)
See, yo' takes de cork stop- per an' puts it into dis bottle. An' yo' takes a small nail an' makes a hole right into de center of dis stopper, right down in de cork, see. An' de end of it, take it out an' jes' twist it real tight an' jes' take yore knife an' jes' open de end of a tendril, jes' break off de tendril an' jes' let de thread in dere, an' jes' let it close right back up. See, dat urinate po' right into de tree.
(You have part of the string into the bottle and part of it hanging outside?)
[This is one of several transfusion rites in HooDoO, another example of how doc- tors imitated M.D.'s.] Yes.
Entry 11857
I could take just about three strands of hair of your head and go to a tree. And I would put it on the sunset side of that tree, where the sun goes down on that hair. And just take a long spike nail and bore a hole in that tree. And ball all that hair up on the sunset side of the tree, but it has got to be when the sap is up in the tree. By what I mean by the sap is when the leaves is on the tree. And bore a hole in that tree and stick that hair up in there, and drive that nail in there behind it. And when the sun commence to go down, that cause you to have headache, don't you see. And this headache will get worse every day, and from that it will drive you crazy, and from crazy it will kill you. [you do this] when the sap is up, because when the sap begins to go down you won't live very long.
Entry 11980
Lay hair in snuffbox with graveyard dirt, tenpenny nails, needles, pins, and throw into river; "run you off." [Mobile 883:3.]
Entry 12386
Yo' kin take a box of lye an' yo' kin go out at twelve a'clock in de night, if yo' wanta run anything away. An' like runnin' away, dey tell me, dat's runnin' away de enemies of 'em - dese polices an' diff'ren' things lak dat. Yo' go out at twelve a'clock at night an' bury it down undah yore do'- step. An' after yo' bury dat dere, yo' curse de people dat chew want to stay 'way. An' yo' take a cold biscuit an' a tin nail - one dese little tin nails - an' drive right down through de center of dat biscuit into dat can. An' let it stay buried dere, de' say, fo' nine mawnin's, an' yo' kin take it up an' use it. If anything git tuh worryin' yo' - yo' havin' any trouble or anything like dat - yo' go back dere an' put down anothah can. Well, at de time yo' may not fear 'bout nuthin interferin' with yo'. Nobody won't interfere.
(Why do you put that biscuit in there?)
Ah don't know why yo' put dat biscuit down dere, but sompin othah. [One guess would be an offering to the spirit doing your work.]
(But you say you can use that lye over - you can use that if you want to.)
After it stay dere nine days, why yo' kin use it. [Normally materials cannot be reused.]
Entry 12978
Cut a piece as big as a dime from the insole of a man's shoe, and with new nail, nail this piece to the floor under the carpet over which he walks. This keeps the man there. [Memphis 1551:4.]
Entry 3230
[To] take a man's courage or sompin lak dat, why yo' kin take a rag, jes' a rag whut chew wipin' wit, an' yo' kin take dat an' take it an' wrap it roun' dere nails an' wear de nails roun' yore waist fo' nine days, an' dat'll make a man stay home - eithah dat or keep 'is courage. (What kind of a nail do you use?) Use a six-penny nail.
(Just one?)
Yeah, jes' one six-penny nail.
(And this rag that you use, you wrap around that nail?)
Yeah, roun' dat nail an' wear it round yore waist fo' nine days.
(Then what do you do with it?)
Well, dat will take a man's courage.