Subject:Pull
Entries
Entry 3378
Take a string an' measure 'im when, yo' know, de full length. She'll measure 'im wit dat string, wit 'er undahskirt string. If she have a undahskirt on, she'll have a string on dat. She'll take dat undahskirt string an' she'll measure his length. She take it an' tie it in a hard knot to dat same length. Tie it right in a hard knot an' tie it to her waist, an' at night she take dat string an' break it off. She go to her table an' she git a dishrag, an' she take dat dishrag an' wipe it down by dat string. Pull de string through dat dishrag three times an' roll de string up an' throw it behind de door - or hang it up ovah de door. Throw it behin' dere an' dat will tie him up. He nevah kin have any truckin'. (Now she takes this string from her underclothes and she gets his measure. Then she ties one knot in it. And what piece does she bring out of that, then?) De same end - jes' see [demonstrates] lak he's [his] length heah, she tie it right dere. She tie de knot in dat string to jes' de length of 'i. Yes, she break dat off.
(It's his length then that she pulls through the dishrag?)
Pull through de dishrag.
Entry 4523
Dey take dat an' git a new-bran' [brand-new] file, one of 'em three- cornahed files, yuh know, an' wrap [the sweatband] aroun' dat, yuh know. An' bury dat in de do' of de individual - yuh know, like yuh want tuh call de individual tuh yore do', yuh jis' do same way like yuh use de hat bow.
(You bury this file at the door.)
At yore do', yes.
(With the sweatband wrapped around it.)
An' den yuh pulls it, if yuh wan' 'em tuh come. Yuh draw it tuh yuh.
[File pulled through a wrapping about it is the old stick-in-a-hole rite.]
(That will make them come, I see, if you want to make love to anybody.)
Entry 5461
[This statement contains 3 separate rites, the last one the burning rite.] Well, now yo' kin use a track fo' love tuh hold a person, or yo' kin use it tuh run a person. Now, tuh hold a person yo' kin take a person's lef' track when dey are leavin' yore house. Yo' kin take it an' pull it backward, jis' a li'le of it back tuh- wards yo'. See, an yo' kin take dat track yo' kin mix it wit a li'le cookin' salt, an' yo' kin bury dat undah yore do'step or right down by yore do'step. Well, dat will hold a person an' make dem love yo', see. Or, yo' kin take dat track an' not use de salt but chew kin take yo' a li'le perfume or a li'le powdah - sweet yo' know, perfume powdah, an' mix it wit dat track. An' yo' kin take dat track an' yo' kin wear dat track. Keep it on yore person an' dat will make a person stick tuh yo'. An' den if yo' take.... If yo' wanta run a person wit dere track, yo' kin git dere track goin' from yore house. Don't put it tuh yore house. Yo' see, yo' wanta git rid of dat per- son. Like ah'm leavin' de house, pull it from yo', see. An' den yo' git yore track - yore own track - an' pull dat back towards yore house. Den yo' takes dose two tracks an' put it tuhgethah, an' yo' git chew nine peppah seeds. Git chew a li'le piece of bluestone an' a li'le piece of alum. An' if yo' kin git de cemetery dirt, yo' git dat. But if yo' can't git de cemetery dirt, den yo' jis' use dose ingredients. An' yo' put dat tuhgethah, mix it up tuhgethah, an' put a li'le salt in dat. SALT IS A WONDERFUL THING IF PEOPLE BUT KNOW HOW TUH USE IT. Take a li'le salt an' mix it in dat an' mix all dat tuhgethah. Den yo' jis' take an' ball it up an' burn dat. Burn it in de fiahplace or in de stove an' dat'll separate dat person from yo'. Dat is if yo' pull it from yo'. Now, pull dere track from yo'.
Entry 5513
Yo' kin trick 'em disaway. Yo' kin go tuh work - see, it's yore shoe. Lak yo' walk wit de shoe in some san' [sand], an' den shape of yore shoe is lef' down dere, dat hollah right yondah. Where de track leave de hollah in dat san', yo' watch it, an' yo' go an' git chew de san'. Be sure it's 'is track, dough [though], an' start tuh [to = at] de toes of it, lak dis heah [demonstrates] an' draw it back, in de track from de shoe. Yo' draw it up once [one time only] an' tie it up.
(Which one?)
De lef' or right, don' make no diff'rence. Jes' start tuh toes of 'is shoe track an' drag it back dere lak dat. Git a handfulla dat track from de shoe, from de hollah. Be sure yo' git de hollah part right in heah. Take it 'long wit chew an' tie it up - sew it up in a li'le new piece of homespun, or a ole piece, it makes no diff'rence. Yo' jes' carry dat thing right down in yore pockets an' weah it dere. Weah it dere jes' lak dat an' yo'll run 'em crazy, long as yo' tote dat track. Yo' tote dat track.
(That is to hold the person?)
Yeah, by totin' dat track. See, he don' know it. Yo' totin' dat track evah- where yo' go. Dat's whut dey say yo' do 'bout it.
Entry 5876
Dey could run yo' prackly [practically] crazy. Dey'll go an' git, ketch a fish outa de watah, a live fish an' git a strand of thread dat nevah been used. Tie dat hair to dat thread an' pump a needle wit dat in it through dat fish tail, de end of his tail. An' carry it fo'ty or fifty miles from dere an' turn 'im loose in de watah. An' dat is a crazy man. He'll go dat way an' when yo' find 'im he'll be dataway - crazy. An' de first days aftah yo' drop dat fish down in dat watah, he's gone. But chew do's dat on de waste of de moon. (You just take a strand of the man's hair and you tie it up in a string, a piece of thread that has never been used. Then pull it through this needle and then you run this needle through the fish's tail and let the man's hair go through the fish's tail.) Yessuh.
Entry 6973
Now if somebody put a spell on yo' or sompin lak dat, Wanta kill yuh - Well, yo' know, serious - sompin gonna knock yo' out right away, see. Well, ah tell yah how tuh git rid of dat. Yo' git some bluestone, yo' know, out de drug store an' make watah. Make yer own watah, jis' lak yo' nurinate, an' put it in a bottle. An' put dat bluestone in dere an' let it stay in dere a while. An' take it an' po' [pour] in a toi- let an' it'll sink an' let it go on out. Pull de chain [old-fash- ioned device] an' let it go on out. An' de same thin' which yo' [spellcaster] wanta happen tuh me will happen tuh yo'.
[This is called returning the spell.]
(That is if somebody has hurt you, put a spell on you.)
Entry 7719
Now, yo' take an' yo' go tuh de graveyard, an' yo' write her name down three times on a piece of papah, an' change on de stob on de grave, yo' know. Pull it up heah [de- monstrates], see, an' put it down heah [at the foot] - yo' take de haid [headboard] tuh de foot, yo' see. Well, she done left yo' an' yo' want 'ah [her] back, see. Take de haid [board] tuh de foot an' change it [with the footboard]. Dat's to come [to bring her] back. See, she have tuh come back dere.
(What do you do with that paper?)
Dat papah, yo' got 'ah [her] name on it an' yo' [demonstrates] put it down dere an' yo' put it [pour] in some whiskey an' drive it [footboard in hole]. (You put it [paper] in that hole where you pull up that headboard and put it [headboard] to the foot. Then you take the footboard and put it back in the hole in the headboard's place?) Dat's right.
(Then she'll come back?)
She'll come back. [Paying the grave spirit with whiskey is fairly common.]
Entry 8686
[To stop a person influencin' in de world an' cut his success off, de way yo' do dat. Yo' git, yo' know, some of dis copris [copper] wiah. Yo' know dis roun' wiah kinda lak gold wiah. (Like the electric light wire?) Yes. Well, yo' take dat an' den yo' call this individual's name an' yo' tie three knots in it an' tie it roun' a green 'simmon tree. His success or his influence will be cut off. (A piece of copper wire, any kind of copper wire.) [These two notations of mine emphasize the confusion some informants had between copperas and copper. Present informant says copris.]
Entry 8909
(How do they do that?)
They go to the graveyard and get a bone. And like some - ah knowed a fellah, he went to the grave - he tote [carried] it iin his pocket. He say that was his lucky piece. He'd tote it in his pocket an' he'd pass it through his mouth and put it back in his pocket, go any- where. He.say he could do anything he wanted, nobody wouldn't do him nuthin. They couldn't do him nuthin or nuthin like dat. He'd pass dat bone through his mouth, go anywhere he felt like going, and do what he wanted, and nobody would bother him. [To pull a black cat bone through your mouth also makes you invisible - see Nos. 301 and 303, p.90.]
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 9822
Yo' jes' take nine pins, dat if yo' got anybody an' don't want 'em around yo'. Yo' jes' take nine pins an' stick 'em up in a roll or sompin yo' got in de house, so nobody couldn't see 'em. An' evah mawnin' yo' git up fo' nine mawnin's an' yo' pull one dose pins outs an' jes' throw it right ovah yore shouldah. Walk on outside an' throw it ovah yore shouldah jes lak nobody see where yo' throw it. Nobody know whut chew doin'. Jes' evah mawnin' fo' nine mawnin's an' de las' day he's gone. He'll leave dat town. (You put these pins in his house and you throw them. Show me how you throw them over your shoulder.) Jes' 'sposed tuh throw 'em dat ways.
(Over the left shoulder.)
Yes.
Entry 11020
If you wanta break up individuals - you has chickens in de yard and you wanna break up a woman an' a man. You feed de chickens and you ketch hold de rooster's tail, pull a feather out of dat. He fly away and you ketch his tail, you know. You call de pus- son name and say, "Yah big so-and-so from so-and-so, " you understand, dat break de man away.
(You say that as the rooster flies away. You pull the feather out.)
Yo' git hold dat feather and say, "Break up so-and-so with so-and-so." If yo' wanna break a woman loose from a man, you pull de feather out of a hen.
Entry 11309
Hair from top of dog's head and from top of tail [from head to tail] put in forked stick, buried under steps, keeps him home.
Entry 11734
If two fellahs goin' with the same girl, you know, and one kinda had the othern's [other one's] time beat, [and] he wanted to git rid of him; why he'd go to work, you under- stand, and ketch hisself a - if it was time (season of the year) he could do it. He ketch an ole grasshopper, these ole grasshoppers. Ketch him, you understand, pull off 4 little ones. They have six legs, you know; 4 little short legs and 2 long legs. Pull off dem 4 legs, the 4 short legs. And be talkin' with this fellah sometime, you understand. He'll be talkin', you know, great pardners [partners] together, you understand, [you] stick dese little dry legs in this fellah's pocket, either one of his pockets, and go on [walk away] you understand. An' after the [your rival's] first or second visit, this girl'll pay no more attention to him atall [at all].
Entry 12714
Ah say yo' kin take a rabbit if a person - jes' like if it's a man or a woman, yo' kin take de lef' hin' feet [foot] of a rabbit after yo' done killed him. Yo' take dat lef' hin' feet of dat rabbit an' if yo' wear it in yore pocket or yore purse or sompin [MAY BE ONLY MENTION OF PULLING TENDON - TO IMPRESS?] like that, whoever yo' Want tuh [be] round or sompin, well yo' jes' take that if yo' keep that rabbit foot bathed in dis heah Hearts Perfume - if yo' keep it bathed in Hearts Perfume and git chew some dragons blood and sprin- kle on it, and wherevah yo' go, yo' know it's a little cord in dat rabbit's feet, yo' kin pull it an' it seem like it's alive. [Pulling tendon of rabbit foot is rare in rites.] And if yo' go round wherevah yo' go, if yo' take dat piece of root out of yo' pocket or either yore pocketbook, and if yo' jes' touch de person whoevah yo' want or sompin like dat, yo' kin get 'em. With the lef' feet of de rabbit. (Do you touch them with your hand or must you touch them with the rabbit foot?) With de rabbit foot. (And what do you do with that cord [tendon]? Yo' pull it.
(When do you pull it?)
Whenever yo' git aroun' 'em. See dat [tendon] work duh foot.
(Oh, you must pull it when you touch them, you mean?)
Yeah, see, when yo' go in yo' jes' pull it, see. That means yore workin', yo' know, de rabbit's foot - dat little piece of cord dat's in it, yo' know - little stringlike yo' could put it and: it will work. It come out of de feet chew know, piece of de flesh - whatevah it is - when yo' cut it off. Dat's de lef' hin' foot of de rabbit.
Entry 12989
Or yo' kin take an' go to - if yo' believe in the root-working or hoodooing - go to them an' yo' tell them that yo' are out looking for a job. Git a cotton cord string an' take a dime an' put a hole in it an' put this string - run the string through that hole of the dime an' jest hang it around yore left ankle. Let it hang down so it can be in yore shoes, hang down in yore shoes, so anyone can't see it. An' yo' keep that around there an' that will give you luck to have work as long as yo' kin any time.