Subject:Sweep
Entries
Entry 4013
In my house ah had a ole lady livin' dere an' she'd come downstairs every mawnin' early. So ah asked her what she's comin' down dere fo'. An' she had some of dat conkering root [John de Conker] an' salt an' some red pepper an' a little other stuff an' chamber lye an' boil it all together. An' every mawning she'd start to sweep, she'd sweep from de back on out to de front. She said that would give yo' good luck. [An old penciled note of mine reads: The process wrong, do not use unless something similar from elsewhere, this is only idea [[along this line]] from Washington, D. C. Normally a person sweeps good luck (customers) into the house, but here good luck comes by sweeping out bad luck any spell dropped in the house.]
Entry 4308
Jis' like yuh sellin' whiskey or sompin like dat, an' yuh take yuh watah an' throw it on de front steps an' sweep it, dat supposed tuh bring a crowd. Don't sweep it out, see, sweep it in.
Entry 5094
Well, yuh take a ole shoe, jis' find yuh ole lef'-foot shoe, sompin lak dat, an' take an' burn it up in yore business. Burn dat shoe up in yore [place of] business - tuh [at] yore house dat day, yore business. See dey follah dat shoe. [Looks] lak de ashes of dat shoe will mo' [more] lak tuh draw 'em tuh yuh - lak it wus any kinda business. Well dey jis' come in dere. Could hardly git shet of peoples, couldn't hardly wait on 'em.
(Where do you put these ashes?)
Yuh jis' burn dem dere ashes up an' jis' sprinkle dem about ovah de flo'. An' den when yuh sweep, don't sweep it outdo's. Sweep it up behin' de do', 'cuz yo' sweep 'em away, yo' know. Sweep 'em right up behind de do'-like, yo' know, lak dat.
(And then leave it there?)
Yes sir.
Entry 5234
Ah heard if dere any person dat chew don' wan' aroun' yo', in de mawn- in' 'fore de sun rise, yo' go an' sweep yore front yard. Well, when dey come dere an' dey walk in an' yo' sweep it an' yo' burn a ole shoe. Yo go roun' anywhere where dis person is an' git any ole shoe belong tuh dem an' burn it an' sprinkle it. Well dat will keep 'em 'way from roun' dere.
(You sweep first?)
Yo' sweep'an' den burn a ole shoe - jes' yo' sweep an' den yo' put some sul- phur in dat ashes of de burnt shoe. Sprinkle it in de front yard.
Entry 5667
It have been said dat if an' individual come to yore house an' yo' want en to stay away an' not come again, to sweep dere track out immediately right behin' 'em as dey go out.
Entry 5669
If anyone visit yore house an' yo' don't wan' 'em dere, when dey start to leave, da' chew [that you] would follah 'em to de do', an' as soon as yo' kin, close de do' behind 'em, den open it immediately befo' dey kin git outa sight. Jis' keep Watchin' 'em, an' take a broom an' sweep dere tracks aay from de do', right on towards de direction dey're goin'.
Entry 5670
If yo' has a enemy dat comes to yore house, yo' wait cill it's dark an' take de broom an' sweep out de tracks behin' 'em. Dat enemy gon't return no' mo'.
Entry 5671
If yo' don't have nuthin tuh do wit 'em an' yo' wants tuh drive 'em, Yeep 'em away from yore house, yo' take some bluestone an' burn it well. An' while de bluestone is burnin', yo' take an' mix watah an' let it cook in dere good. An' dey come back tuh yore house an' yo'don' wan' 'em dere, when dey walk out, yo' po' it right in de tracks where dey make tuh go out, an' sweep it. Dat whut dey do wit de bluestone.
(They won't come back?)
Won't come back.
Entry 5672
When he come tuh yore house, when yo' see his tracks comin' towards yore house, well when he comes tuh yore house, yo' know dis 'is tracks. An when he stays - when he stays 'is length of time, an' when he starts out, git chew some salt an' throw on 'is back, an' den throw some salt in de yard, " den yo' start tuh sweepin'. Start from de do' an' sweep 'is tracks out back clean out. Dat's sweepin' 'im on away.
Entry 5673
Well, dere nuthin much dat chew kin do wit de foot track, but a lotta ople says it fo' drivin' people away an' all like dat. But de only thing dat yo' kin do wit de foot track is now: a lotta peoples wants tuh keep yo' away from de house an' all like dat. Now te thing is wit yore foot track proposition, like yo' have a person come tuh yore boase an' yo' don' wan' dem tuh come dere so often. Why [you] kin sprinkle some salt down right in front de gate where dey pass by, an' jis' as soon as dey come an' walk out, yo' gotta sweep de whole track an' all outside of de gate.
(Do you put that salt down before they come?)
Befo' dey come in dere. Jis' like yo' done be expectin' someone tuh come in, " yo' don' wan' 'em tuh be bothahin' yo'. Yo' don' wan' 'em tuh come dere, why put dat salt down dere.
Entry 5674
Tuh drive 'em away - tuh drive 'em away yo' git yo' some cayenne peppah an' salt. Jis' lak if a person is comin' in heah an' yo' don' wan' 'em in heah. An' yo' git chew some cayenne peppah an' salt, an' yo' set an' hold 'em [inl a conversation. Set an' talk wit 'em, be frien'ly wit 'em an' ack lak yo' ain't mad, chew know. An' den dey say, "Well, ah reckon ah bettah go." Well, yo' already has dat salt an' peppah mixed up an have it in yore han's somewhere, an' yo' follah 'em out de house. See, when dey goin' out, jis' sift dat cayenne peppah an' salt in dere tracks. Den go tuh each fo' cornahs of yore house an' put some cayenne peppah an' salt in each fo' cor- nahs of de house. An' den take de broom an' sweep it all on out an' sweep it de Way de' go an' flirt it. When yo' sweep it down on de steps, jis' lak if dey goin' up de street dat way, yo' flirt it de way dey goin' [demonstrates].
(How do you do that? Do it with your hand like that?)
[Flirting with a fan I had read about and had seen on stage; but flirting with a broom, though good English, was beyond my experience.] Wit chure broom, when yo' flirt it yo' say - WHEN YO' SPRINKLE IT DOWN IN YORE [ROOM] HERE, SAY, "WELL, AH'M CONKERIN' MAH ENEMY, IN DE NAME OF DE LORD. DRIVE DE DEVIL AWAY FROM ME, IN DE NAME OF DE LORD." An' jis' sprinkle it on dere, an' WHEN YO' SWEEP IT AN' YO' MAKE DAT FLIRT, YO' SAY, "WELL, AH'M FLIRTIN' MAH ENE- MIES AWAY FROM ME, IN DE NAME OF DE LORD." An' den flirt de dust on de street. Dey nevah put dere foot in yore house.
Entry 5675
Yo' mean de foot track tuh go or de foot track tuh come?
(Well, both of them - one one way and one the other way.)
Well, now, if yo' want somebody tuh come back, yo' git dis foot track an' don't - now, like de foot track is goin', don' turn de foot track back tuh yo'. Yo' git chew a piece of papah an' write on dat papah nine times, an' put it undah de step an' turn dat foot track back tuh de house. Dat's tuh come. Now, if yo' wan' 'em tuh go. (What do you write on that paper nine times.) Yo' write, "Come back, come back." An' ah don' care how far dat person is - an' if yo' wan' dat person tuh come back, in nine or 21 days dey will come back. Dat's fo' - now tuh go, yo' turn de track. Dis is de track, yo' write dat nine times, "Go."
(You turn the track as if it is going away?)
Yes. Git chew a handful of salt an' jis' dash it down an' sweep 3 times. Dey gone.
Entry 5676
Well, yo' take a person's foot track. Jis' lak if yo' wanta run some body 'way from town, move 'em, yo' take dere track. An' if dey goin' dataway, jis' go by an' ketch it from de toe heah, ketch it up from de toe back tuh de heel. Walk along an' don' stop an' pick up de track from de toe tuh de heel. Yo' jis' come 'long dataway an' carry it on home. An' soon as yo' git furt [far] as yore fron' do'step, yo' back back three steps from it an' throw it right ovah yore lef' shouldah. Take a li'le bit of sulphur in dis han' an' throw it ovah de right shouldah. An' yo' take de broom an' go tuh sweepin' it tuh de outside of de yard, an' dem people in less time den three days, dey goin' move 'way from dere. (The track you put it in your right hand and throw it over your left shoulder, and the sulphur you put it in your left hand and throw it over your right shoul- der.) Yo' take de track, see [demonstrates] dis is mah lef' [side]. Throw dat ovah yore lef' shouldah. An' de sulphuh yo' put it ovah yore right shouldah at de same place.
(You use the dirt from either track?)
Yo' use it from de right track.
(That is to make a person leave.)
Entry 5677
If anyone come in de house an' yo' didn't wan' dem enemies to come dere any mo', as soon as yo' step out on de outside, yo'll git a pail of watah an' throw de watah down behind 'em an' sweep it ot [out]. An' dat's de sign da' chew [that you] won't come back dere any mo'. Throw it on de flo' an' sweep dere tracks off. Yo' do dat on de sly.
Entry 5678
Well, yo' kin take dat dust from de feet, if yo' wanted a person in yore neighborhood ~ an' yo' had a fuss wit 'em - an' yo' wanted tuh run 'em away. Yo' goes at de ninth hour, yo' see, tuh runnin' watah an' yo'll take dis here dast, whut yo' have swept up at de ninth hour, an' yo' throws it ovah yore lef' shouldah wit yore lef' han', not tuh look back, wit a curse word. An' yo' are forced tuh leave unbeknown tuh yore ownself. Yo'll pack up. Yo'll jis' leave. Yo' have tuh walk away.
Entry 5679
(This woman whom the man has left, she would get hold of his left sock?) Git holt of 'is lef' socks, 'is drawahs, an' take an' take dem home, an' put 'en undah de do'steps. Don' let nobody see or know yo' put 'em undah dere. An' den take yore broom, when he come inside de house. an' sprinkle salt down evah'where he walks. When he's goin' out, don' sweep it out do's, sweep it back in de house. Seep it all back in de house. Sweep 'is track all back tuh de kitchen, an' let dat stay undah dere, an' dat will bring 'im back.
Entry 5680
Well, if yo' want 'im tuh stay home, evah time he starts out, evah tine he leaves yore house, yo' jis' walk right straight on out while his tracks hot. An'.sweep 'em back right undahneat' de steps, say, "Come back heah." Yo' ain't gotta put nuthin behin' dat, says, "Yo come on back heah. Ah'm yore wife. Come on back heah." An' yo' sweep 'is tracks right undah dat steps. An' evah time yo' go out, yo' do dat an' he'll Qe back an' be so nice.
Entry 7909
Also, yo' kin use dis graveyard dust an' start from de stairway dere an' jes' sprinkle it roun' de house an' git chure broom an' sweep it out, out behin' dem an' on out de walk. An' yo'll nevah be bothahed wit dem no mo'.
Entry 7910
Git some graveyard dirt an' sugah an' sweep it de way, out de do' behin' 'em, see, an' dey'll have tuh go. (You would be living in the house, though, wouldn't you? And to make another person go you would throw this behind them?)
[Behind him after he left so that he would not return.]
Yessuh.
Entry 8499
Perhaps someone come tuh yore house an' yo' didn't want 'em dere any mo', yo' could take a broom, make yore wishes, an' call 'im a bad name. An' take yuh a broom an' sweep )'im out an' he won't come back any mo'. [This is not the ordinary rite of sweeping behind a departing person. The departing is pretended and the person's name is intended or wished at least.]
Entry 8500
Befo' de sun rise of a mawnin's yo' kin sweep yore porch off an' call a person's name three times, dat chew wanta see an'dey'll come.
Entry 8501
Yo' take an' write his name on dere nine times all de way roun' de broom, straight though, not backwards. An' whenevah it time fo' him tuh come, yo' sweep in, an' put dat broom undah de baid an' he's comin'. (You just write it on the broom handle you mean?) On de broom handle wit pen- cil. All dat ah tole yo' should be wrote wit indeli- bin, de bad an' de good.
Entry 8995
Like if yo' are in jail an' yo' wanta get out. If yo' in jail, yo' have to go to court an' yo' don't know whether yo' going to get out. Yo' take yo' a broom an' yo' sweep yoreself fo' nine mornings. [Since there are a number of sayings in Hoodoo stating that a person swept by a broom will go to jail, the situation is believed to be magically reversible: you can get out of jail by sweeping yourself down.]
(How do you sweep yourself?)
Sweep yourself down for nine mornings with a broom.
Entry 9490
Yo' kin put red peppah an' salt - yo' weah dat in yore shoes, see. An' den yo' take salt an' put it in each cornah of de wall in yore rooms where yo' sleep at. An' if anybody [come] tuh yore house dat yo' don' want tuh come tuh yore house - dey come tuh yore house an' yo' don' wan' 'em dere - de time dey'd leave yo' sprinkle salt an' red peppah in dere tracks right out dere behin' 'em, an' sweep it out. See, an' dey won' evah come back a'gin. Well, we tried dat one time 'bout a police, about a law. Dey haven't nevah been dere tuh bothah us no mo'. (That first about that salt and pepper [in 4 corners of bedroom], that is to keep you from being harmed?) Yeah.
Entry 9529
If yo' know de person dat's goin' dere, if yo' seein' 'em an' it's jes' somebody whut visit yo', dat yo' don' wanta visit yo'. Well, now whenevah dey leave, yo' jes' throw jes' a li'le pinch of salt behin' dem, an' sweep it in de direction dey gone. Dey can't - dey won't come dere, dey'll stay 'way.
Entry 9533
Den, in case, if de police come tuh yuh house an' yo' runnin' a whiskey house or some kinda business, well yo' kin take some salt an' throw it out behin' dem, an' sweep it out wit a bran'-new broom. He won't come back no mo'. Dat will keep 'em from comin' back.
Entry 9535
Take salt an' trō' [throw] roun' de house an' cuss 'em, den sweep it - sweep dey tracks. Dey say dey won't come back den.
(What will that do then?) Dey say dey won't come back.
Entry 9536
Dey tell me, git chew some salt when dey goin' [from your house]. Start where dey got up from an' carry it on an' sprin- kle. Throw it out de do' an call dere name an' tell 'em tuh go. Den take up de broom an' sweep dat same salt out chare do'. Dey won't come back.
Entry 9538
If this person was an enemy to you, then you get some salt - out of a jar that has never been used - and when the person leaves, you sprinkle the salt behind them. You did it In the Name of the Lord. Then take a broom and sweep it out the way they went. Then set the broom bck in the house bottom side upward. And they wouldn't come back again. [For setting brushy part of broom up and handle down behind door, a rite widely spread, See 2432, Wilmington, N. Car., and 2433, New Orleans, La., both p.675, v.1, etc.]
[Old Point Comfort, Va., collected in 1936 by Ediphone.]
Entry 9561
[You] kin git some simple thing an' jis' git some red peppah - cayenne peppah - an' salt, an' call 'em in an' have a few word wit 'em, kinda conversa- tion. An' den aftah [or as] dey go out, throw it out behin' dem an' jes' sweep it out. Dat's how yo' could do dat. Dat's a li'l simple way tuh git rid of anybody dat yo' don't want. (I see. Now what else could they do?) Well, dat's about de simplest thing yo' could do tuh git rid of 'em.
Entry 9563
I hear say if de rentman come to your house an' yo' ain't got de money, ain't able to pay him an' yo' don't want him to put yo' out, get yo' a brand-new box of salt, and a brand-new box of pepper. Open de door an' don't use nothin' else but that. Every time he come dere, sprinkle your house an' sweep it, sweep it in the room an' yo' oon't have no trouble with him.
Entry 9564
As person leaves, sprinkle salt an' peppah behin' 'im an' say, Go! An' don't come back no mo'. [Washington, D. C., (?), 822:2f.
Entry 9569
Ah've heard 'em say they could take salt an' red peppah an' make 'em move. (How would they do that?) When yo' leave out the house, dey sprinkle that salt an' [red] peppah an' sweep it out behin' yo', throw it ovah they left shoulder an' sweep it out behin' yo'. Den yo'll leave.
(You mean if I were doing that, I would throw it over my left shoulder?)
Yessuh.
Entry 9571
When dey come, jes' mix a little salt an' red peppah tuh- gethah, an' as dey goes yo' sprinkle it right on behin' de do'h an' sweep out - sweep behin' dem. Cuss dem' some. Say, "Go an' stay an' nevah come back." (They will never come back again.) [Charleston, S. Car., No.518, Doctor Nelson, 610:11.]
Entry 9572
Take salt an' peppah. See, evah time yo' come tuh yore house yo' jes' throw it behin' 'im an' yo' cuss 'im out. Don't say nuthin good, jes' cuss 'im out, jes' say, "Go on! Don' chew come back heah tuh mah house no mo'." Jes' sweep 'im on out de street. An' he stay 'way from dere.
Entry 9573
If yo' got a man or a woman an' yo' wanta git rid of 'em, yo' jes' let 'em come in an' yo' take some salt an' peppah an' sweep it out behin' 'em an' tell 'em, 'Git out heah, yo'devil, yo'! Don't nevah come back tuh heah no mo'!" [That is] if yo' wants tuh git rid of 'em.
Entry 9574
Dey tell me dat if yo' on a job - lak now, if ah'm workin' here wid some people an' yo' don' lak me [you say] "Ah wish yo'd git away from heah", 'cuz he [you] got hateful ways, " or sumpin lak dat. Dey tell me yo' take salt an' cayenne peppah an' mix it tuhgethah. If yo' ketch dem goin' outa [the] do', throw it at 'em so dey won't see it, an' sweep it on oat. An' dey said he won't be dere long.
Entry 9575
If yo' want to keep people away from your house an' afraid that they Ykrt chah, yo' must always have salt an' red cayenne pepper mixed together. Yo' take that salt an' cayenne pepper, they people go out. When they come in de house, yo' don't want 'em to come, yo'd put that salt and cayenne pepper all behin' 'em. An' then yo' take de broom an' sweep that off de way that they go out. As yo sweep it, make a wish, "Keep outa my house." See? Well, they do that three ties. An' then they won't come back to your house no more. If they mean yo' any harm, they ain't comin' back no more. [This is an unusual preparation for an emergency: You must always have salt an' red cayenne pepper mixed together. Often materials must be new and remainders discarded.] [Richmond, Va., (348), 291:1 0r 348:1.]
Entry 9576
[If you] wan' 'em tuh move out sometime or don' wan'a be bothahed wit nobody dere in dat house, yo' - someone says tuh put red peppah in de fire an' burn it, an' throw salt ovah de flo', an' as dey walk out yo' sweep behin' 'em. Sweep it on out an' yo' won' be bothahed vit'em no mo'.
Entry 9578
Understand, listen good. You take cayenne pepper an' take dat salt fo' nine mornin's an' sweep it out your front way, an' betcha dey'll move.
(I see, that's to make the person move out of the house.)
Dere ain't nobody told you dat, have dey?
(Not the nine mornings one.)
I betcha dey'll move. Take cayenne pepper an' table salt an' jes' sprinkle [and sweep] it out for nine mornin's out your front door. Betcha dey'll move.
Entry 9579
When dey come in, an' as dey go out - yo'd have yore salt an' yore peppah, an' as dey walk out yo' sprinkle it right behin' 'em. An' as dey go out - yo' have yore broom- sweep it [salt, pepper, and tracks] from inside right on out. Say, "Don' come back, don' come back." Yo' repeat dat [incantation] nine timies, evah time dey come an' fine'ly dey'll stop comin'.
(That will keep anybody away - the law or anybody.)
Anybody - de salt an' pepper in dere tracks.
Entry 9609
[Take] de person name an' write it down an' git chew some salt an' peppah, an' when dey come in jes' sweep it back out. [Informant had started with a letter be- fore recording began.] (Why do you write that name down? What do you do with that?) Write 'em a lettah - jes' lak yo' gona write 'em a lettah - tell 'em stay away from your house, an' burn it up intuh a ashes. When dey come in, take dat salt an' peppah an' throw it down dere an' den sweep it back out.
(What do you do with the ashes then?)
Sweep it out 'hin' [behind]'em. (You mean with this salt and pepper [and letter ashes], sweep it out behind them. I see.)
Entry 9621
Take cayenne peppah an' salt when yuh [visitor] go out de do', an' sulphuh, an' take yore broom an' sweep 'em out. An' let chure broom go on
[sweeping] out in de street behin' 'em an' dey won't come back soon. De way dey go, let de broom go [sweep] dat way.
Entry 9622
Jes' lak he visit de home backwards an' forwards [visits frequently]. Evah tue he leave yo' jes' take some cayenne peppah an' sulphuh an' salt, an' throw it behin' 'im an' make a curse or somepin or 'nothah an' sweep 'is track. He'll have tuh go away.
(That will make him stay away?)
Dat's right. He couldn't stay dere.
Entry 9639
Take some peppah [seeds] an' salt an' take some of yore chamber lye an' scattah it aroun' de do' an' den sweep it. Yo' kin [will] go as de seed went - de peppah seed. (You go the same way the seed went. That is, if someone came to your house and you want to make him stay away, you put the stuff out and sweep it?) Scattah it ovah de flo' an' den sweep it out.
Entry 9647
Ah've heard it said, yo' kin take table salt an' black peppah. As dey go out de do' yo' sprinkle it behin' dem, an' yo' take de broom an' yo' sweep it out behin' den. And dey say dey will leave an' dey won't evah come back dere no more.
Entry 9650
(Before the law comes, what do you do to keep them out?) It's not possible tuh keep 'em away. Dey have tuh come once in ordah tuh keep 'em away. Well, yo' use de black peppah an' salt an' sprinkle it behin' dem at evah footstep dat dey make, an' den sweep it out behin' dem lak dat.
(Then they won't come back again.)
Yessuh. An' sometime yo' kin use sulphuh 'long wit it.
Entry 9662
Ah tole yo', when yo' want 'em tuh go [pauses].
(Yes.)
When dey makes de track, why yo' take a new broom an' sprinkle salt. Salt an' saltpetah, mix dat togethah an' sprinkle dat an' devil's snuff.
(Devil's snuff?)
Devil's snuff, yes sir.
(Where do you sprinkle that?)
Yo' sprinkle it right on behind. Jes' lak dey goin' out de do', yo' sprinkle it right on behin' dem. An' den yo' takes dis broom an' sweep it an' tell 'em - yo' make, make de wishes dat yo' want 'em tuh go an' stay [away]. Jes sweep 'im, jes' sweep 'im away. [The salt] outa box of salt dat's nevah been used out of.
(I see. Do you use salt? And what else did you say you used?)
Salt an' saltpetah an' devil's snuff.
(Devil's snuff. I see.)
Entry 9685
An' if yo' don't want 'em tuh come tuh yore house, yo' take table salt an' snake dust - cos' [of course] snake dust will kill yo'. Dey throw it at chew when yo' goin' tuh de house. Yo' take dat an' chunk it. Dey call it throwin' it at chew, but dey don't throw it at chew, dey put it down fo' yo' tuh walk ovah it. But if dey don't want chew tuh come tuh de house, yo' take one of yore right-foot shoes, an' sweep dat shoe, dirt an' all out de do', an' den dey'll walk backward from dat shoe in de house. Dey ain't comin' back no mo'.
(Whose shoe do they put out there?)
Yores. Jes' put a little table salt in dere. Dat will carry dem away.
(What do you do with the snake dust?)
Dat snake dust? Well, now, dat's tuh kill yo'. Dey won' do nuthin but jes' pur dat down, right down in yore pathway.
(Where you can walk over it?)
Yessuh, an' yo' walk ovah it. (But if they want to get rid of you, they just put that salt in your shoe and seep it out?) Yessuh. But dat snake dust, if yo' walks ovah dat snake dust an' dey got it in dere, why dat'll git chew, see, 'cuz dey got dat lodestone in it, yo' see.
Entry 9698
(Do what?)
(You get some sulphur.)
And sprinkle it on your front and back steps, and get some disinterested per- son to get a fresh box of table salt, you know that never been used out of it, and just sprinkle it and someone clean house with it and sweep it out, you bound to move. (I see. You bury the sul- phur under the front steps and back steps, and then you have to have this salt.) Table salt.
(That hasn't been used. What do you do with that salt now?)
Sprinkle it in the house and just like if I, you know, come in or walk out, well then as soon as I walk out, then you sweep my tracks, sole and all out to- gether, and say, "Well, that settles it. You won't come back, again."
Entry 9699
Ah've hear'd dat de ole folks used tuh say if a party come tuh mah house or sompin an' [I] gits ti'ed [tired] of 'em, says take some sulphur an' salt an' sprinkle it on de flo' when she leave an' sweep it out. An' dey say she'll stay away.
Entry 9707
An' den, yo' kin take- dey say if yo' take table salt an' yo' mix it wit sulphuh an' anybody - jes' lak anybody ame tuh yore house an' yo' don' want 'em dere any mo', jes' sprinkle it down behin' 'em an' sweep yo' flo' an' curse 'em, dey says dey won' come any mo'.
(How do you seep your floor - just anyway?)
Well yo' jes' sweep it right on out tuh de do' behin' 'em - if yo' havin trouble wit chure [bill] collectah or sompin lak dat. If yo' do him lak dat,
[he'll stay away].
Entry 9713
Git chew some salt. Sprinkle it down an' as dey go out de do' sweep it out behin' 'em. Take it [salt] tuh de back do', sprinkle it down. Dey call it de free-runnin' salt. Yo' heah 'em talk 'bout dat, de free-runnin' salt. Take dat an' sprinkle it out [of the container] chew know an' as dey go, sweep it behin' 'em. An' keep it [more salt] mdah de do'steps unbeknownst tuh 'em. [Free-running salt was an advertising device of a salt company at this period of time; it was not a hoodoo expression.] Well, yo' take yore watah dat chew make during de night, let it set two or three days, an' chunk it undah de steps. An' it won' be long 'fore dey runnin' 'gay from dere. Dey can't stay dere. Ah know dat's true.
(If you are trying to get rid of somebody in your house.)
Yes, an' yo' don' wan' 'em dere, yo' see.
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 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 10423
Take broom and sweep down [bed] to keep hag away ev'ry night before you get in; [sweep bed] head down to foot of bed. Do 9 nights.
Entry 10610
If yo' vanta build up yo' a trade, or somepin lak dat, jes' have a lotta customah. Yo' go tuh work an' take dis sane stuff ah tellin' yo' 'bout, de Adam an' Eve. Take Adam an' Eve an' some bushes dat grows in de woods called de heart leaves [some plant with cordate leaves]. Git some of dat, but don' take de leaves, take de stem - it's got a red stem. Take de stem an' wrap around dat Adam an' Eve an' bring it back ovah to de house dere an' yo' parch dat stem. Aftah parchin' dat stem, yo' pounds it into a powdah, an' carry it an' drop it all ovah dat house. Dat's conkerin' 'em. Drop dat ever' mawnin' 'fore de sun rise. An' yo' buys yo' a lucky star [incense molded into the shape of a star] an' yo' light dat lucky star an' sprinkle a little bit of dat stuff [parched heart leaf stem] ovah it; jes' a little bit, sprinkle it ovah it, 'fore de sunrise. Have it so dat it burn out 'fore de sun rise. An' when it do dat, sweep it on out, an' mo' customah commence comin' in, reg'lah an' reg'lah an' reg'lah. Have to hol' up burnin' it sometime [because you have so many customers].
Entry 10774
Well, whut ah've heard is this. Yo' git some snuff - that whut chew dip [what you pick up by dipping thumb and forefinger into it] an' mix some dirt with it, jes' dis natural dirt out heah [in the yard or field]. Mix it together an' sprinkle on de po'ch. An' den take a broom an' go backward, sweep backwards that-a-way [demonstrates]. Sweep it on out backwards that-away. An' then aftah yo' do that, then mop de po'ch with some Red Seal Lye an' [or] Red Devil lye. That's [use] one of 'em.
(What will that do now?)
That'll make 'em move, an' ah mean make 'em move right now. (Well, where would that be. In case, like right over here, if I wanted to get rid of them, I would do that in my own house?) Yessuh, make them move.
Entry 10776
Ah heard dat if a person keep comin' round yo' - yo' don't want 'em dere - whensomevah dey goes out yore do', jest git behin' 'em an' sweep out. As dey go out, jest sweep be- hin' 'em, till yo' git to de last do'step. An' sweep it on out de gate, an' yo' won't be bothered with 'em back dere no mo'.
Entry 10777
If you would come to my house and I didn't want you there any more, well the time you got up and left, I would take that broom and sweep right out behind you, and say, "Don't come here no more."
Entry 10778
If somebody come to yo' house an' yo' don't want 'em to yore house, uhen dey come dere, yo' jes' sit down, an' when dey leave yo' start tuh sweepin'. An' when yo' start sweepin' yo' turn yore broom bottom upwards an' say whut chew wanta say an' dey'll leave.
Entry 10782
Why, if yo' wanta make it lucky, every day yo' sweep yore premises, don' sweep de track from yore place, sweep it towards your place, an' it will mos' invariably bring good business.
Entry 10784
Walk roun' de house nine morn- ings an' sweep in front of yo' do'. (How do you mean you walk around for nine mornings?) "Fore de sun rise, jest walk right round de house. (Nine times?) Nine mornings - once every morning an' sweep in front of yo' do'. (You walk around the house and then you sweep in front of your door. Well, what will that do then?) That will make 'em move.
(Make this person move.)
Entry 10785
If yo' wanta break up a family of people, yo' kin take dat broom, an' some black pepper an' salt an' put it in de fo' corners of de house, an' sweep dat out, an' dat makes de man go an' de woman won't want 'im. (You do this in somebody's house, if you want to break them up.) Jes' put it in each corner, jes' dese three teaspoonful of dat. Mix it up together an' put it in de fo' corners of de house. Sweep it in de middle an' sweep it on out de do', an' one or de other will be gone.
Entry 10786
In sweepin' de house, don' nevah sweep de trash out de do'. Always in sweepin' it yo' sweep up [not out the door] an' yo' sweep it up an' put it in yore fireplace an' burm it. Jes lak when yo' sweep, yo' know, sweep de kitchen, don' nevah sweep it out de do'. Always sweep it in de house. Keep dat sweepin's in de house. Well, dat keeps de people out. Put dat in de fire an' burn dat.
(That keeps the law away.)
Entry 10788
Or you kin take just plain lye and boiling water and go and scrub your house and scrub yore steps and brush it in. And every morning sweep your steps down. And when you walk through your house, wherever you go, sweep the dirt in. Never sweep it out.
(What will that do?)
Bring you luck.
(What kind of luck?)
Like if she would want to take in roomers, she would want 'em to come in, if it was business, she... (Both of those things. Onions do the same thing.)
Entry 10794
De broom? Well all ah know whut dey kin [do] wit a broom, like if a person Would come in your place and you didn't want dem dere, dey put de broom behin' de do'. Is dat whut chure talking about? (No, how do they do that?) Dey jest - like you'd come in, dey could sweep yore track when you come out - sweep yo' out. Den dey put dat broom, turn it up behin' de do', an' when you walk in, you can't stay. Dat means, jest as yo' come in, sweep like dat and set de broom up behin' de do'. Yo' gotta go out.
(You sweep when? When they come in or after they go out?)
When dey go, see.
(And they won't come back again.)
Yo' sweepin' dey tracks out. Jest as dey go, sweep dem out.
Entry 10795
Put a person in bad luck, yo' take de broom an' sweep him down every morning.
(How do you do that?)
Jes' take - leave him stand up in de house an' take yore broom an' sweep him down. Put him in all de worstest luck in de world. Or let somebody sweep 'cross yore foots [feet] wit a broom, dat de same thing.
Entry 10799
Git some sut [soot] out de fireplace an' mix it with salt, an' when he goes out, take it an' throw it behin' him, an' git de broom an' sweep it, an' tell him tuh go, "Go, God damn yo'." (That's for a woman to make a man go away and stay away.)
Entry 10800
When yo' sweep de flo' always start at de front an' sweep yore trash on backwards. Don't nevah carry [sweep] it out de front. (That will bring in customers?) [Customers or good business were men- tioned before present recording began; I am not asking a leading question.] Dat brings in customers, see, cause dat sweeps de customers in instead of sweepin' 'em away from yo'.
Entry 10803
You get you some cinnamon and sugar. All right. You sweep. you go to sweep, don't sweep your dirt outside, you sweep your dirt in [into] the building. And you get this cinnamon and sugar and put it in the water, amd you scrub your floor. And then when you get through scrubbing that floor, you just take - get you some oil of clover. See, you buy some oil of clover at the drug store and you put water in there [scrub bucket] and you put a bottle of beer mixed in with it. (Bottle of beer?) Bottle of beer, yes. And you takes - start at the front door and you sprinkle it all the way back into the place, and your place will be packed.
(The place will be packed?)
Yes, sir, your place will be packed with people, all through the day.
Entry 10807
If yo' take a broom an' yo' sweep ovah a person's foot, dat's bad luck, says yo'll go tuh jail.
Entry 10813
Yo' know if yo' don't want a person round yore place of business or sompin like dat, an' can't keep 'em Way from dere an' want 'em away from dere, it's like ah first said. Whensom- evah he come to yore house, sweep out behin' 'em, out de gate [through door and all way out through gate]. An' don't let no matches go outa yore house atall, till yo' git to sweep behin' dis person. Dat's de only thing ah heard about matches. [Sweeping behind a person is common, but to the present rite a witchcraft ele- ment has been added with the matches. To make your counter spell work, you must not lend anything to a person who may be a witch or at least has a spell of any kind over you. In other words the departing man of this present rite could break the woman's kicking and incantations by successfully borrowing something from her house. Matches could also lend a sexual twist to the present rite.]
Entry 10817
[Well, yo' take bluestone an' saltpeter an' yo' sprinkle it into de floor an' den yo' leave it dere. Yo' put dat together an' yo' burn it. See, yo' burn dat together. An' de next morning yo' git up an' sweep nine times, fo' nine mornings, see. An' dem people be gone 'way from dat place. Dey can't stay dere. (In other words, if I am living in a house, and somebody comes in there and burns this bluestone and saltpeter, it would make me move out of the house.) Make you move out. (Well, then I would have to sweep this [these] ashes nine times for nine mornings, sweep it out of the house.) Jest sweep to de steps fo' nine mornings an' yo' can't stay dere.
Entry 10818
If yo' use yore own broom to sweep yore house an' [somebody] else's that's a little bad luck on that. An' don't sweep yore yard wit de same broom yo' sweep yore house with. Dey say that's bad luck. They always say that if a person use de same broom to sweep de house with an' dey use the same broom to sweep de yard with, that brings about a little difficulty wit de family.
Entry 10820
Say he come in - dis yore house heah - he come in heah. When he leave out, yo' sprinkle some salt right out behin' him an' take yore broom an' sweep it out. Dey tell me dat's mighty good tuh keep him away.
Entry 10821
Yo' kin take a broom, dey says it's bad luck tuh sweep trash out de house aftah de sun goes down.
Entry 10822
To make a husband an' wife be cross with one another all de time - look like dey jes' can't git along - de lady might use de broom on sweepin' off de table an' dat'll cause confusion 'tween her an' her husband. Seemed like dey'd be cross wit one another. Well, anybody oughtn't tuh do dat, but sometimes people wull do it 'cuse ah've seen 'em do it.
(Who would sweep the table with the broom?)
De lady, de man's wife.
(Well, what would she do that for?)
Dat easy cleaning de table, ah reckon. [This may not be the floor broom but the hand broom I describe elsewhere: long slender twigs, reeds or grass bent together and tied with same material just below bend - about two feet long.]
(Sweeping the table off with the broom will cause confusion in the house.)
[This is merely my comment for the microphone.]
Entry 10826
Put 2 broomstraws crossways [make cross with 2 broomstraws] over door and sweep behind, for unwelcome visitor. [For 2 broomstraws crossed and buried to be walked over in the tobacco fields near Wilson, N. Car., see No.1758, v.1.]
Entry 11217
Yo' kin take, yo' know, if yo' an' yore husband ain't gittin' long good in yore house, yo' kin take some spice an' dirt dauber nest an' mash it up together; an' after yo' sweep, sprinkle it in each corner of de house. Every- thing will git 'long lovely. Dat's all ah know it's good fo'; yo' know, killin' anything lak dat. Wear it in yore shoe for a fuss lak dat an' sprinkle it round yore house. Dat's all ah know dat it's good fo'.
Entry 11656
Ah heard yo' take a fo'k an' put it in yore bed mattress an' sleep on de fo'k three days, an' dey say that'll separate yo' an' yore sweetie. (Well, who would put that in there, under that?) Yo' put it in there yo'self yes, tuh git rid of yore man. Yo' see, yo' take that fo'k an' yo' put it in yore bed mat- tress, yo' see, an' yo' turn it towards him all de time. See, de sharpest parts [tines]. See. Yo' turn it towards him yo' see an' yo' sleep on that, three nights straight, an' that breaks yo'all up completely. An' tuh keep him away aftah he git gone, yo' git chew some table salt. See, an' sprinkle it jes' lak this [gets up and demonstrates]. Sweep it on out. He gotta stay out. Jes' do it gradually all de time, aftah he leaves [for work], when he walks out dis mawnin'.
Entry 12184
[Here is an interesting rite about horseshoes but the language can be easily misunderstood. A horse walks with the curved part of his shoe forward, this being called a heel! The two ends of a horseshoe are called toes! Linguis- tically a horse walks backwards! The imagry of the following rite is based upon these ideas and can cause confusion.] Do you Wanta stay in de house or do you wanta go? (I want to stay in the house.) Yo' git yo' a horseshoe and yo' don't have to place it inside de house. Place it in de front gate and turn de horseshoe [demonstrates] that [part] goes back. [Which part? Toes or heel?] Turn it in towards, to de house, an' fo' 9 mornings sweep towards de house an' that will keep you in de house. (Suppose a man and woman are in here and the woman wants to keep the man in the house. She will put the horseshoe out there [at the preceding gate] you say.) Yes, sir, if she wants to keep him in, turn de back of the horseshoe inside [turn heel, the curved side] towards de house. If you turn de horseshoe de way de horse make the track [toe toward the house, the way a horse would start away from the house] that will make him [man] go. If you turn it [heel, curve of the horseshoe] towards yo' [towards the house] it will make him come, stay in de house.
[I misunderstood.]
(If you turn these two ends [toes] of the horseshoe away from the house?)
No, sir, turn dem back to [towards] de house, that will keep him in de house.
(Well, now, suppose the woman wants to make him leave, then what does she do?)
Well, if she want him to leave, turn jes' like de horses face [walks pointed away from house]; yo' turn de round part [heel] of de shoe, jis' turn it to de house. He will leave. [Informant is a little confusing. If you want to keep person in the house, keep back of horseshoe or heel toward house, you cannot back away from the house; if you want to send the person away, point the prongs or toes to the house, because that is the way you would walk away from the house.]
Entry 12394
Well, now, if yo' sellin' whiskey. To bring new customers, every mawnin' yo' have yo' a box of potash [usually Red Devil Lye] an' every mawnin as long as [you need it]. Yo' take dat potash an' put it on yo' stove, take yo' a broom - don't git down on yore knees an' scrub it. Yo' take yo' a broom an' scrub yore po'ch a lil' every mawnin' wit dat potash wit yore broom. Jes' sweep it right out in de street lak dat, an' ah'll okay [0. K.] yo'll be successful. Yo'll have mo customers den yo' kin be able tuh 'tend to.
[Turned off recording machine too soon.]
(You sweep it out into the street you say?)
Yes sir, out in de street.
Entry 12532
Yo' take a red onion an' if yo' got anyone in yore house, yore hus- ban' or yore wife in dere, an' yo' want 'em tuh go or want tuh git rid of 'em. When dey go out de front do', on dat cross piece dere [saddle?] yo' take dat onion, aftah yo' done rolled it real soft, an' yo' squeeze dat red onion juice on yore steps. Yo' take a red onion in his track goin' out an' squeeze it in his track goin'. An' den, after hit stay dere awhile, why yo' sweep it out. An' he ain't nevah comin' back dere no mo'.
Entry 12573
Well, de only thing ah knows 'bout de pennies proposition, dey takes - jes' all dey takes is one cent - an' nail it down by de do' fo' if yo' want plenty custoner tuh come into a sto', anything. Don' nevah sweep a person's tracks out, outa de sto'. Always gathah them inside of de sto'. Dat bring plenty trade, dem pennies [this was during the Great Depression].
Entry 12583
Yo' take three pennies an' nail one at de front door, nail one at de back, nail one in de middle [door]. Well if dey comes in dis [way], let 'em always come in dis way an' yo' sweep. As yo' [they] come in dis way, yo' know yo' sweep up [after them]. Yo' sweep de dust from dere feet back in de cor- nah. An' aftah yo' gits it all'dere, have yo' a bottle [jar], jes' pick it up an' put it in, an' if anything it's a bettah thing to take it an' bury it, but chew kin put it in a bottle [jar] an' burn it. [By jar I mean a bottle with a wide mouth.] But it's best to bury it. [Burning a person's foot dust could cause trouble!] Dat'll keep people coming intuh yore place - keep friends.
Entry 12887
In de business line - fo' customers, if yo' runnin' dis place of busi- ness. Now, yo' kin take when yo' knock off [close] dis place at night, put some of dis Hearts Cologne in de water an' mop dis buildin' out dat night. An' don't sweep none of yore dirt out at night after six a'clock, outa yore front atall. Dat'll make business an' yo'll prosper mo'.
(Brings customers in.)
Entry 13260
Yo' take red peppah, cayenne peppah, hot, an' table salt. Let it all be new. Take table salt jes' new an' dis sulphur brand-new, nevah been opened befo' yo' know. Well, yo' take it an' mix it up, an' yo' jes' throw it all round yore house, an' dat's good tuh keep de law from comin' in annoyin' yo'. An' den if a person is comin' tuh yore house an' yo' don't want dem tuh go dere, yo' kin jes' throw dat out behin' dem in de chair where dey sit at in de room. Den when dey git ready tuh git up an' go out, den yo' kin take it an' go on out an' jes' throw it de way dey went, an' cuss 'em, an' dey'll not come back any mo'. Dey won't come back any mo'. If dey do', dey'll come right in an' dey cain't stay dere no time. Yo' gotta git out an' sweep behin' dem.
Entry 13289
A root doctor told me that. He said you git choo a bucket of watah a'a broom, an' as they goes on out de doah, he says - like aftah dey gone out, h say - he jis' go back from w'ere they's settin' at, an' gits his broom an' dip it in that bucket nine time an' jis' sweep with it. An', every time yo's make [each of] dem nine [dips], sweep it [from the visitor's chair] right on out [of the house] and make you a wish: "I hope yo'll go an' nevah come no more." He said they'll nevah come back to your house no more [mō']. [That allitera- tion go and mo occurs several times in HOODOO, it appearing to be an uncon- scious folk expression.]
Entry 1865
Like if someone leave home an' you want 'em to come back, you take an' sweep dey track right back in de fiahplace an' dey're bound to come back.
Entry 2434
Ah'm running a business, understand. Ah would write the name of five diff'rent persons or nine diff'rent persons [uneven number], an' put it in a kerosene lamp an' light de lamp an' let it burn for nine days - straight 'long all day long. An' ah would never sweep de sto' or de business place out in front - ah would jest sweep it in de back an' let it remain there fo' those nine days in trash an' stuff. Never sweep it out. Ah run business heah - began in '26 an' that's whut ah did an' had de sto' fulla customers.
Entry 2438
Yo' git 123 [or] 133 Psalms. Ah think it's de 133. An' yo' read dat 13 times when yo' first git up de mawnin', aftah yo' say de Lord's Prayer or yore mornin's prayer. An' yo' read dat. An' den yo' take an' go tuh do' tuh sweep out, three times, 'In de Name of de Father, de Son an' de Holy Ghost, let me rule dis day.
(That keeps the law away.)
[Numerology, astrology and other unscientific ideas having influenced hoodoo, I would say this is surely Psalm 133, an odd number composed of numerals 1 - 3 - 13 - 33 - 133; and backwards 31 - 331; and by addition 1+3+3=7; and by addition and subtraction 3+3-1=5; and by addition and division 1+3+13+33+133=183:3=61; and by multiplication lx3x3=9, also 13x3=39; and ad infinitum.]
Entry 2541
Jes' lak yo' got a place an' yore business is dull. In de mornin when yo' open up yore store, sweep de sto' from de front do' to de back - sweep yore trash out de back: An' about every night a little befo' yo' close up yo' burn a Lucky Star. Yo' kin go down to de drug sto' an' git 'em. Ah think yo' git about six fo' a dime. An' yo' put it on a little tray an' set it in yore store an' burn it. It smells kinda like perfume. Dat give yo' all de luck dat chew want.
(For bringing in customers.)
Yessuh. [See Lucky Star, p.607.]
Entry 5668
If somebody comin' round yo' an' doin' yo' harm, or wupin lak dat, an' yo' wan' tuh git rid of 'em, when dey goin' out de do' sweep dey tracks out behin' 'em.
Entry 1572
This is when they build a new house and you are getting ready to move in. They got old shoes, rags, sulphur, and made a smoke, fumicated [fumigated] the house. That was for to keep evil spirits away. And then they get a green pine bush and sweep the floor. That was the first thing they would sweep the floor with. That was for luck. [Ocean City, Md., (21), by hand; 40 or 50 years ago, before 1936, in Sussex Co., Va.]
Entry 2437
An' den dere's another way - jest lak if yo' wus living heah an' ah wus a enemy to yo'. Yo' felt dat ah wus a enemy tuh yo', dat ah put bad luck on yo' or somethin', or if yo' owed bills or somethin' of de kinds. It's a simple thing dat chew have, dat everybody keeps in dey own home yo' kin use. Yo' take sulphur, salt, spice an' red peppah, yo' powder dat up together an yo' keep dat. Jest lak if ah wus heah today. Well, yo' expectin' me tuh be back an' yo' knew ah wus a enemy. Well, somebody who knowed how to do to keep me 'way from heah, understand, dey done put chew wise. Well yo' git dat an' have it ready, so when ah leave, yo' see, as ah walk out yo' sprinkle dat stuff right out behin'me. Den goes back an' git chure broom an' sweep it out backwards. Don't nevah turn yore face - sweep it out backwards on out to de street. Dat keep 'em 'way.
Entry 2550
They burns a - they got something - sweeps your house in de morning. Just like you done business in here, you sweeps your place out - sweep all your dirt, all your trash one way. You mop it, you mop it all one way and then you got some little old incense candles. You burn one in that corner and one in that corner, one in that corner and one in that corner, and one on your cash register.
[Here five candles form an approximate quincunx - see p.710.]
(I see. And how do you mean by sweeping this dirt one Way?)
All one way - don't never sweep nothing back thataway, sweep it all one way. Just like you going thisaway with it, sweep it all that Way and mop it the same way.
(I see. And what do you do with that stuff after you get it swept up?)
Sweep it right on out de door. (Sweep it outside the door? Do you sweep it to the front of the house or to the back of the house?) Right on out de front. (Out the front, I see. And you burn these incense candles in each of the four corners of the room where you are doing business and put one on cash register?) One right on the register.
(And that is supposed to bring in trade?)
Bring in trade.
Entry 2608
If dey don't want dem dere, yo' jes' sprinkle salt in de chair where he sit an' right from de chair on down de steps, an' say three bad words behin' him, an' tell him, '"Go, ah don't want chew tuh come back any mo'." Dat'll cer'inly keep 'im 'way from dere.
(You put the salt in the chair you say?)
Yes sir, in de chair an' sweep it on away.
(Sweep it off the seat?)
Off de chair, down de seat, right on down de walk, down de steps, an' say de bad words when yo' git to de gate.
Entry 2676
Well, you could take - you go to the grocery store. You buy you a two- pound box of sugar. You get you a five-cents can of cinnamon. Now, before you start to scrubbing in this house, you sweep this home. Don't ever sweep the dirt out; you sweep the dirt in. And after you pick up the dirt and throw it into the garbage can, then you take this cinnamon and sugar and you burn it. See, you gotta use it three ways. You must burn and you must sprinkle it on your floor [and scrub with it?], and in the next two or three days this house gotta be rented.
(You burn that sugar and the cinnamon - you burn it, don't you?)
You burn it.
(Then what do you do?)
After you burn it?
(Yes.)
Then you scrub this place. You see, you got this into a little powder or something like that, but it must be burned with white paper - not newspaper or no brown paper, or no other kind of paper.
(Well...after that's burned...what do you do with that?)
The powder, the paper that's left? You kin always throw that out, you don't have any special use [for it].
(Now, wait - just a minute.)
That cinnamon and sugar?
(Yes.)
Well, you don't have to do anything with it partic'larly - you know what I mean. You just - after you finish burning it, then you kin throw that right into the garbage can, too. And after you finish, then you turn your mop upside down right at the door, as you going out.
(Well...you haven't done any mopping yet. When you going to do the mopping?)
Well, I told you, you mop already.
(Oh, you mop first?)
Yes. You mop first. You see, you get you a - you got to mop this place - get you a bottle of ammonia, bottle of blueing, see. And then you get - you go to any drug store and you get you some Logger's Oil or Miner's Oil, or any of those oils, you understand, to scrub with. See, that's to rent the place. See, that's to rent the place.
(Well...do you scrub...before you burn the sugar or after?)
You have to scrub before you burn the sugar, you see. You see, the place is thoroughly clean. (Oh, I see. And what kind of oil? Any kind of oil. All right. Burn the sugar and cinnamon, don't you?) That's right.
(Then after you burn that, you throw it out?)
Yes, sir.
(Then you get this oil and stuff and scrub the place?)
Yes, sir.
(Then you set your mop behind the door upside down?)
That's right - mop and broom.
(And broom. And then you rent your house?)
Yes, sir.
(All right. I want to get those things in the right order.)
[I was trying to solve the problem of using sugar and cinnamon informant's three ways.] That's right.
Entry 2696
Yo' kin take a person's chamber lye an' put sugah in it an' lye an' oil of anise, an' sprinkle dat an' make yore wish. Sweep yore po'ch back to yore house an' that brings good luck to yo'. Do dat fo' hustlin' people - bring money in yore house.
Entry 2698
You can take cinnamon and sugar and clear water and oil of verbena. See, like this is your front - well you start ascrubbing from the front, back in but not out. See, and sweep it back in. You see. Then you get what you call dragon's powder [dragon's blood]. See. You smoke the four corners up with that. [See margin-title Smoke 'em, p.723; also Incense, p.700.] Natch'ly you'll be successful in a business.
Entry 4982
An' yo' kin take his sock, take one of 'is lef' socks; one dat he's been weahin'. Yo' know, if yo' weah dat, it gits dirty. Don't wash it if it's dirty. Jis' take it an' take a li'le thumb tack, an' right up in de corner undah de baid, take a hammah an' jis' tack it down a li'le bit, to keep dat sock undah dere. Yo' kin sweep all aroun' dat sock, but jis' don't sweep de sock out. An' dat'll keep 'im. Or eithah yo' kin go undah de house an' nail it up [against the floor] lak dat, so he won' find it. If yo' think he kin find it, yo' put it inside. An' dat'll keep 'im wit cheh.
Entry 12766
Roots 3: devil's-shoestring, bitter apple, John de Conkah - mix with 4 substances: black pepper, cayenne pepper, salt and sulphur: then name it, sweep it, and man'll leave.
Entry 1061
Take some black peppah, salt an' sulphur an' mix it together, an' if they comes about chure house to harm yo' - come in, yo' know - sprinkle it on de floor an' sweep it. An' when dey come in an' go out, sweep de whole thing out an' that will stop dem from comin' dere an' cut off dere prosperity towards hurtin' yo.
Entry 1062
Well, this happened about five years ago [1931]. I had a boy friend and he met another lady down at his, Someone's house, here in Fredricksburg. Somebody told me he was down there so I went down there. I rang the doorbell and the old lady's daughter came to the door. She says, "Mama, here's Mrs. Smith." So the old lady came to the door with a broom and commenced sweeping all around. I knowed my mother done that same thing too. So I went on in and I say, "Where's So-and-So?" She said, "I haven't seen him." By that time he came walking down the stairs. I haven't been to that house since. Whether that broom kept me out of there I don't know. My mind just don't lead; me there.
Entry 1067
Heard if anyone sprinkles things in your home, and I've known it to be true - if they sprinkle anything in your yard, in your home - Mondays and Fridays or certain days - Sundays, Mondays and Fridays - but you do this before the noon hour. You get up and sweep the trash thoroughly out of your front. Put sulphur in it and stick a match to it and burn it. You sweep your back thoroughly and you do the same otherwise, twice every week, that is to keep things found from around your home so no one kin [sprinkle] anything round to take to your body.
(I see, you must do this before noon on Mondays or Friday.)
Mondays and Fridays before noon.
(I see, that's to protect yourself against anything put down.)
To protect yourself and also change your clothing. And on Sunday night turn your clothing or either be sure that they are on the wrong side. Put 'em on twicet a week of that other same, the same days that you burn.
(I see. You change your clothes on Sunday, you say?)
You turns your clothes [Sunday night] so you kin put 'em on on Monday, Monday mornings as you burns the trash. Wear your clothing on the wrong side. Fridays the same. Then nothing kin be taken to your body. (I see. When you burn this trash on Mondays and Fridays, you must do it with your clothes on wrongside out.) And put sulphur in it whilest it's burning.
(Put sulphur in this trash that you sweep out.) [Mobile, Ala., (710), 979:2.]
[Broom rites, used for many purposes, are endless.]
Entry 1488
[They get some dust] from the grave and sprinkle it in yeh house, and that cause you to have disease - cause you sickness. But.now the way they get rid of that is to take salt see, if you see this dus' in yer floor. You kin see it, you see, becus [it] is brown, yellah - whutever [color] it is. And you kin sprinkle salt over that see and you take some pepper. And you sweep all that up together and then you go out de door see, and if there's anywhere any running water, you throw it in this running water. That'll throw it back on the person.
Entry 2403
And if you don't do it thataway, you takes cinnamon and sugar and you sprinkle that cinnamon and sugar in the front of the door, but be sure to scrub - use nine buckets of water, one bottle of the ammonia. But when you scrub, don't scrub out your door - scrub in. You understand what I mean. Scrub it inside. Sweep your water in all the time. And after you do that, then you can sprinkle ycur cinnamon and sugar and that house'll get rented. Yes, sir.
Entry 2427
If yo' wanta be a bootleggah an' sell whiskey, don't evah sweep de tracks out do's; always take de tracks an' sweep dem in de corner of de house an' put cookin' salt in em an' put em in de stove. An' if yo' wanta keep de police from your house, keep from runnin' back an' forth out chure house, go an' git chew a new coffeepot an' git chew some loose salt, table salt, an' yo' full up dat coffeepot, two of 'em, an' put 'em to de back do' an' de front do', "In de Name of de Father, de Son an' de Holy Ghost," an' dat will keep de man from yore house.
(That will keep the officer away?)
Yes sir.
informant-recited invocation accompanying salt-filled pot placement. Preserve the exact Father/Son/Holy Ghost formula without appending words, theological identity or Prayer/Incantation equivalence. stated aim of keeping police away, with interviewer-confirmed officer referent. No housing eviction claim These are attributed source occurrences; outcomes remain unverified.
Entry 2429
Jes' lak yo' got de business an' - well, an' yo' got good trade all de time. Nevah sweep yore dirt on de outside - always sweep it in an' sweep it in de fire-hearth. An' like yo' wanted yore business to keep acomin' on too, yo' take an' go every Friday - git chew a ole shoe, git some sulphur an' a penny, an' yo' put it in de fire-hearth an' let it burn an' shet de do' an' go on outside. At twelve 'clock yo' do it.
Entry 2430
That [powder] you kin buy. Sweep from out de front door - always sweep it back in de door, sweep it up in pile, pick it up and carry it and put it out de back door. See. Well, dat's the dirt from the people's feet - you put that out the back, that's for them to come in and go in the back. You see. Well, ever' time they come in there - that draw 'em in, you see, with that powder.
Entry 2435
Jes' lak if yo' runnin' a business an' a congregation of people come in an' yo' want 'em tuh come back again - if dey leave - after dey leave, yo' sweep dey tracks, yo' know de dust off dere feet in through a crack or somepin lak dat.
(In the floor?)
Yes.
Entry 2436
When he leaves, when he starts out goin' on out, yo' git a broom an' sweep his tracks jis' as fast as yo' kin right on out on de ground, an' he'll stay away.
Entry 2439
If dey wanted tuh take roomers an' all lak that an' business wus kinda dull, an' take an' git whut is known - dere's a powder dey call it Good luck Powder. Take it an' use that powder - take an' use that with some of the dust that is swept outa de house. Says dey go an' git that dust that's swept outa de house - lak dey go to de end of the walk when dey sweep back, dey git that an' when they git it there, dey take [and] work it together an' sprinkle it about de house. An' they burn incense with that. An' that would draw his customers.
Entry 2464
You go to the drug store and you get some cinnamon and some oil of clover, and you get some of this yere steel dust and lodestone and you mix that together, and take some parsley and boil it down, and you mix that [all these] together and then you put that down and you sprinkle it all over your house - in the four corners of your house, you see. Sweep in inwards, don't sweep it out; sweep it inwards and then someone will rent the house.
Entry 2498
Yo' kin keep de law away from de house. Go to a colored cemetery an' git chew - go where yo' know dere's three people dat chew know, dat yo' wus dere when dey buried 'em. Take yo' fifteen cents an' yo' pay each one of 'em nickel a piece, yo' see, fo' each person. But let dis be newly buried - jis' yesterday or de day befo'. An' git chew ten pounds of dat dirt an' put it in yore bucket an' set it where yo' sweep yo'self. Dey won't even come near yore steps. Dose are spirits dat keep 'em back. Dat dead folks dirt whut wus buried, dey cain't come ovah it.
Entry 2575
Then you scrub your place. But you go to, say to a drug store, and the first thing you get - there's something that is commonly used that everybody know but very few use it. You see, the thing that we use is peroxide - that regular form of peroxide. Well, when it be's in a powder first from the salt [oxide], you take you a teaspoonful of peroxide in a bucket of water. You take a half tablespoonful of salt and a whole tablespoonful of sugar. [Three ingredients.] Mix that and dissolve it good and scrub all your place. But sweep inside - don't never sweep nothing out chure door. But get fresh water. Don't get no water that is - try to catch water that's rain water, don't get no water from the hydrant. Get you fresh rain water in that bucket and at night you scrub that place. Scrub it at night, don't scrub it in the day. Scrub it after sundown and scrub it inward in your building and sweep that water right on back through your building. And then if you got any mop, mop up after that dry. Then clear out your place, mop up - sweep with any other water you Wanta after that. But scrub that over and let that dry in your building. You take just a half a tablespoonful of salt and a tablespoonful of sugar and a half a teaspoonful of ordinary peroxide that you use from the drug store on the sore. And scrub in your building - not out chure building, in your building. That's the way you increase your business.
Entry 2610
Yo' have dat salt watah in heah, an' they come to their house an' they go out, well, they'll take that broom an' dip it in that salt watah an' jes' sweep it right out behin' 'em jes' lak dat.
(That keeps them away?)
Yes.
Entry 2642
I've been in that condition myself. A ole man charged me five dollahs one time. He tole me - I gave the five dollahs [first] - he says, "Want choo git twenty-one ole shoes, I want ever' one to be a lef' shoe, an' seven [rubber] boots." He said, "I don't care whurther yore boots are lef' or right or not. Put 'em into a can, a lard can, close the top up. [Years ago meat packers packed hog lard in very large cans for butcher shops.] Go into yore back yard an' burn that can an' everything in there concern. Take that dust an' scatter it all over yore house an' sweep it north an' south, east an' west, four diff'rent way, an' go ahead an' sell yore whiskey." I did it an' I declare the law didn't never run down on me.
Entry 2643
If yo' is sellin' whiskey an' wanta keep de law away, heah whut ah always do. Keep one yore ole shoes, yo' burn it, burn yore shoe up an' git de ashes. An' de police come to yore house, when he go out yo' jes' sprinkle dat ashes behin' where he go out an' sweep it. An' every mawnin' yo' jes' sprinkle a little sulphur around in de corner of yore house an' yo' won't have no trouble atall.
Entry 2651
They can take a little Van-van or sugar and put it in the four corners of your house and give your house a good scrubbing out with lye. Set a lump up on that side and set a lump on that side and a lump on each corner. And quite natural be the ants'll get to it. (Lump of what?) Sugar. And the sugar will make for drawing - make for them ants going and com- ing, that just ehe same way as a person. You see, them ants could go all day and they wouldn't bother the people. And that - by the end of that, you sweep that out. And just like that sugar in that house will draw that whole crowd, that crowd will come just like them ants do. As you put sugar in there, the ants going to find it and you'll find a crowd in there unknownst to you - they'll just have a crowd with them.
Entry 2653
When you sweep, sweep your trash to your business and burn the sulphur with it. Don't never sweep it away from your door; sweep it to your door every morning and burns the sulphur in it. That just draws them to you - that will cause the luck to come to you. (I see. That's to bring in business.) Yes.
Entry 2654
Take de same thing whut ah was tellin' yo' 'bout - dis Hawthorm Cologne [= Hearts Cologne]. An' yo' put dat Hawthorn Cologne, sprinkle it on de floor - puts wit sulphur yo' know where it kill dat odor of sulphur. An' all yo' do, prob'bly befo' de night when yo' clean up, yo' sweeps - start at de front do' like dis. Heah's de front do' where de entrance is. Come in. Yo' sweep all to de back an' don't sweep dis way, yo' see. Den yo' take dis Hawthorn Cologne an put it in a can or somethin', any kind of little container or somethin', an'po' de cologne on dat. Jest a little bit - not to wet it. Den stick a match to it an' burn dat. Ah'll guarantee dey will come in dere after dat. Den close up fo dat night - see, jes' close up. (That is to bring in trade. What do you put in that can to burn?) [I wanted the word sounding like hawthorne repronounced.] A little bit of pure medical sulphur an' Hawthorn Cologne.
(I see, you put this cologne on it.)
Jest a drop or two. Yo' don't need not enough to wet it - jest a drop or two.
Entry 2655
Well, de way dat would be done, de first thing you should do tuh bring in trade - yo' kin use whut we call a sprinkle. An' yo' could take yo' a little sulphur an' a little salt an' a little peppah an' sprinkle dat round. Den yo kin burn a little sulphur. Yo' burn sulphur on Fridays an' sprinkle a little, then sweep a little round on de flo'. That's very prosperous to bring trade.
Entry 2672
Yo' go tuh de drug sto' an' yo' git some Duke's Mixture an' yo' come back wit de Duke's Mixture an' yo' take it an' sprinkle it on that graveyard dust that chew have [sprinkled]. An' when yo' got a place of business dat chew want customers, in de mawnin' yo' git up an' yo' sweep out clean, jes' fer as out aroun' yore do' dere, an' befo' night come or befo' de day gone anyway, yo' goin' have mo' people in dere den yo' kin shake a stick at. Dey be comin' tuh look an' see whut othah people's seein'. Now dere in de club- room ah done dat mahself right heah.
Entry 2684
Well, you have to dress the house. Now, that chamber lye which you was speaking about a few minutes ago - if you bootlegging or selling something, you takes that chamber lye which you were speaking about. All right. You takes it soon in the morning, no one around, you take that chamber lye and you wash from your door - porch-step on back. Never, never sweep out your trash out on the outside; always sweep back, going back in the house. Sprinkle that chamber lye every morning for seven mornings and you will have so many people at your place until you just won't have seats for 'em.
Entry 2685
Dey take dere urinate an' fo' nine mornings an' sweep off de back steps wit it.
(How do they sweep?)
Yo' know wit a broom. Po' it on dere step and sweep it, yo' know, jest lak yo' sweeping off de step. (I mean how do you sweep it. Sweep it away from the house or toward the house?) Sweep toward de house.
(You sweep toward the house. Why do you do that?)
That to bring luck to bring people in. (It must be done at the back steps though. You do that when you are selling whiskey.)
Entry 2717
If you wants to draw them to you, you goes to the drug store and get you a dime's worth of steel dust. You get that steel dust and you get you a box of cinnamon. You can get a box of cinnamon for a nickel. After you getting the box of cinnamon, you take and get some van-van. This is supposed to be like - you mix that all together and you shakes it well. And you scrub out your place. You scrub out your place with this steel dust, van-van and cinnamon and sugar. You scrubs it out all around your place, around with that. When everybody is out you scrubs it out, and when you come in, as you come in, well, people come in and look like your business done pick up. That van-van done gives it a sweet smell.
Entry 2733
If you own a house and you wanta get a renter for that house, you take you some, what they call yellow wash, sugar, and your urine [three ingredients], and you put that in a bucket and you scrub that house all over. Start from the front steps, scrub up, and scrub it plumb to the back, and leave that house open and just make a prayer. When you make that prayer, in less time than two or three days you will have that house rented.
Entry 4310
Sweep out chure house wit chure chamber lye; dat'll make yuh have customers an' make de policeman stay 'way from yuh house.
Entry 4311
chamber lye, yuh watah - take de chamber lye from de night when yuh'all would git up. An' take in de mawnin' when yuh sweep out de house, sweepin' out de do', when yuh git through, empty de watah, throw it undah de house. (What will that do?) Dat bring 'im in, dat brings in luck.
(Customers?)
Yes.
Entry 4312
[Here is a rite that may have been widespread and fairly common at one time, but I found few examples of it - the urine rite.] Take plain table salt an' each time dey go out, she kin throw it behin' dem. An' some people will jis' urinate behin' dem people. Ah've know dat tuh make em move.
(The salt itself will make them move?)
Jis' plain table salt, dat's it.
(If that person urinates behind them, that'll make them move?)
Dat'll make dem move.
(Well, how would they urinate behind them?)
Dey watch fo' dem, or some people will hold it fo' jis' dat length of time. If somebody goes out an' dat dey jis' hate 'em an' don't want 'em, yuh know, dey jis' squat behin' dem an' jis' do dat, an' den take de broom an' sweep it right straight out behin' dem.
Entry 4894
An' yuh kin take his sock, take one of 'is lef' socks, one dat he's been wearin'. Yuh know, if yuh wear dat, it gits dirty. Don't wash it if it's dirty. Jis' take it an' take a little thumbtack, an' right up in de cornah undah de baid, take a hammah an' jis' tack it down a little bit tuh keep dat sock undah dere. Yuh kin sweep all aroun' dat sock, but jis' don't sweep de sock out an' dat'll keep 'im. Or eithah yuh kin go undah de house an' nail it like dat so he won't find it. If yuh think he kin find it, yuh put it inside. An dat'll keep 'im wid jeh.
Entry 7675
Ef anyone in yore neighborhood is doin' yuh any harm an' yo' don' want 'em in yore neighborhood, why yo' jes' go tuh de graveyard an' take a penny an reach down dere an' git chew some dirt chew know. An' take a pinch of dat dirt an' bring dat dirt back an jes' throw it on de flo'. An' dey sweep it out, why de spirits will worry 'em so dey has tuh leave dere, dey cain't evah stay dere.
(Whose floor do you throw that graveyard dirt on?)
On dere flo.
(Of the people that you want to move?)
Yes sir, wants tuh move 'em outa dere.
Entry 9229
An' if yo' kin leave a aig ovah a place - ovah a do' - de skin of de aigshell aftah breakin' de aig, an' take de white of it an' fasten it [skin] ovah dat do' an' covahate [= coverate - cover] dat, dat will affect chew. (What will that do?) Dat will leave 'em fes' safe, run a enemy away. If yo' got a enemy anywhere roun' yore home, dat'll spite dem away.
(If you put that eggskin over the door?)
De inside skin of de aigshell an' de white of de aig. An' wipe it up dere [with the egg white]. Git de yellah from dere an' den wipe de white of de aig up dere. An' take dat inside skin - jes' a small piece of: it - place it up dere. Hit'll stick. When it weah out an' dry off, jes' let it go on an' sweep it all out. He's gone away, too. Dat's de enemy. (How do you know you are getting the right fellow? How do you know you are sending the right man away?) Well, yo' writes de name - by name yo' know. If yo' know - jes' lak yo's a enemy tuh me an' ah knowed yore name. Ah didn't want yo' tuh come to mah house no mo'. Ah'd write a name yo' know an' write it on dere an' den stick dat - dis question on dere. Take de white of de aig an' scrape it up dere an' de inside skin an' stick it up dere. When it git dry an' fade away an' fall off, sweep it on out. He's gone off, too.
Entry 9460
If a woman had a man an' she wanta git rid of him, she would first start a argument wit him, an' de minute dat he'd begin tuh walk out, de same as ah'd walk out de do' dere [door of interviewing room] dat she would take a han'fulla salt an' throw it behin' him, an' throw some on de stove or in de fy'place [fireplace] - out de do' behin' him, an' if she got a fiah in de stove, throw some on dat. An' she would use a cuss. Den he stay away. In othah words dey would sweep yo' track out de do' as yo' go out. (Would she also sweep after - she would throw this salt after you and throw it into the fire. And throw it behind you, and she would put some in the fire and curse. That would make you stay away?) Yes.
Entry 9480
Yo' say yo' wan' zem tuh move out dis house. Git chew some salt an' carry it unbeknown tuh dem an' sprinkle it across de sill of de do' - see, right crossin' de do'. All right. Well, now, yo see, dey gotta step ovah dat. An' when dey open dat door de nex' mawnin' comin' tuh go out where dis here salt is, yo' see, dey goin' tuh pass ovah it, yo' undahstan'. Why dey gotta sweep it outa de house outa de way. An' when dey go tuh sweep dat salt away from dere, see evahbody in de house follah it. Won't be long, maybe. Ah've had dat done tuh mahself all right.
Entry 9530
All right. Git chew a box of table salt an' jes' when dey leave out, yo' jes' take dat table salt an' sprinkle it behin' dem. An' git chure broom an': sweep de broom out behin' dem. Yo' won' be bothahed wit dem no mo'.
Entry 9532
An' when ah gits tid [tired] of 'em comin' tuh see me, dey way ah do's him: When he - jis' when he gittin' up goin' out, ah'll put salt behin' him, an take a broom an' sweep him on out. An' ah won't be bothahed wit him no mo'. Ah won't have tuh hurt his feelin'.
Entry 9537
Have tuh git chew a box of table salt, sprinkle it all ovah yo' flo'. Dat's from de front do' - jis' lak if yo' got a po'ch on yore house, LAK DAT PO'CH DERE [points] - from de front do' tuh de po'ch. [For this porch see comment later.] An' take yo' a broom - one dese ole long brooms, stiff handle one [see comment later] - an' sweep it right out. Jis' take dat salt an' sweep it out. Do dat fo' nine mawn- in's. An' aftah de nine mawnin's dey will move an' nobody won't have tuh tell 'em. (That is to make a person move out of the house. But you have to sweep that stuff up, sprinkle it at their house? Don't you or what?) Don' care whose house it is, if it's yuh house or dere house or anybody's louse. Jis' lak yo' rentin' dat man's house, yo' rentin' dat house belong tuh dat man. Well, prob'ly yo' go dere at night, quite natchel [natural] if yo canta do dat yo' goin' have a broom wit chew. Well, yo' take dat salt an' sprin- kle. [The preceding dat pō'ch dere is a valuable piece of personal memorabilia. I could not remember whether I had interviewed in a second-floor back room, or one looking out upon the upper porch of the former Clark Hotel for blacks at Method- Ist Town, a black settlement then on the edge of St. Petersburg. You can see a colored photograph of this building, now abandoned, among the illustrations at the end of v.3, Ill.8. This picture I took in 1970, 31 years after the present interview. For St. Petersburg, see also vol.1, Intro. XxxIv, and letter to Ed- ward Bufford among illustrations at end of vol.2.] [The preceding long brooms, stiff handle one is sometime called a stick broom (see 2424, p.674, v.1). The short broom or un-stiff one, of course, is various varieties of the hand sweeper; long and tough grasses or twigs laid in a row and doubled, the point of doubling being the handle.]
Entry 9562
(How do you do that?)
What you do with a broom? Just like I want you to leave out of this house, where I'm got tired and sick and disgusted [with you]. All I gotta do is get me some salt, you see, and some pepper. And just as you leave out, I take the salt [and pepper] and throw it behind you - throw it down and I take the broom and sweep.
Entry 9566
Dey say dey sprinkle salt an' peppah in de house an' when dey go out yo' kin sweep it out behin' 'em an' dey'll move out lak dat.
Entry 9648
He comes an' [you] have a good frien'ly talk wit 'im in de porch or at de gate wherevah he stops at. An' den watch 'im, an' soon as he leaves, go right in de house an' git chew broom. An' sprinkle roun' dere, where he was, oit salt an' black peppah, an' sweep it de way he went. He won't come back.
Entry 9649
Ah've learned dat chew kin take black peppah an' salt an' if dey come intuh de back do' an' go intuh de house, why sprinkle dat black peppah an' salt behin' 'em. If dey goes out de front, jes' sprinkle it slowly behin' dem as dey go out an' sweep, an' dey'll nevah come back ag'in.
(But they must come in the back door before you can do that?)
Dey don' have tuh go in de back do' - de same do' dey go intuh. If dey come in de front do' an' jes' go in a room an' set or stan' dere, when dey git ready tuh go out, jes' go back out de same way dey came in, all yo' have tuh do is jes' sprinkle dis black peppah an' salt behin' dem an' jes' sweep it out, an' dey'll nevah come back.
Entry 9687
If yo' don't want no one in yore house, in yore room, an' when dey leave out, yo' take de salt an' sprinkle it in behin' 'em an' sweep, an' den spit init. Dey'll nevah come in yore house ag'in.
Entry 9825
[That] create dissatisfaction in a man's home. They kin take and bot- tle them. Take so many pins and so many needles - about nine [each] - so it's a odd number. You put them pins and needles, stick them through a piece of flannel. Roll 'em up and drop 'em in a bag. Well, natchly in pass- ing in de house, in and out, if you kin get some of de dust that they sweep up off the floor, yo' puts that in that bottle too. And as long as you keep it, why it causes a great dissatisfaction in the home, so as to completely break it up. It's never known but dey use them needles and pins that way to cause dis- satisfaction in the home.
Entry 10706
If a person come in an' yo' don't want dem dere, when he comes in, jest sweep him de way he come in. Sweep out his track jest as he come in, de Way he come in, if yo' don't want him dere. An' finally his conscience will jest lead him [to stay away]. Dat's jest de way yo' do de way ah jest tole yo'. Yo' kin talk nice to him an' say ah haven't got so-an'-so. Well, den if he continue to be comin' after dis, yo' git dat book an' put it under yore head an' read it, an' yo' git relieved from him.
(What is the name of that book?)
It's de Bible de 37th Psalms.
(You just put that Bible under your head?)
Entry 10779
Take a broom an' turn dat broom bottom upward - de part dat chew sweep wit, turn it upwards, an' git chew a clean towel an' put ovah dat broom an' call dere name. Call de person name an' dey cain't cross de sill of yo' door. Dey kin stay outside an' wanta come in, but dey cain't come in. (You leave this towel right over the broom?) Right ovah de broom. An' yo' call de name just once. Call it mine times. Anything yo' do in dat line yo' supposed to use nine or seven.
Entry 10812
If she wanta git rid of him, don't want him tuh come back, jes' sweep de house. When he go out de do', jes' sweep de dirt out behin' him an' kick it three time, an' tell him tuh go away- keep his spirit away. Kick it three time an' jes' say, "Go away," an' jes' sweep it on out de do'. Jes' sweep de dirt right on behin' his foot off de do', an' tell him tuh go away, an' his min' will finally [tell him to stay away]. (Just kick it up in the air three times. That makes him stay away.)
Entry 11149
An' den if de law take a habit of comin' to yore house, yo' know whut chew do. Takes black peppah an' salt an' mix it together, an' when dey come to yore house, sompin lak dat, yo' sprinkle de salt in back of 'em. Try tuh throw some right on dey back. Try tuh throw some of it when dey goin' out. Always have it prepared an' throw some of dat in dere back. An' den yo' sprinkle it on de floor right where he walk. Jes' lak ah walk in heah an' yo' sweep behin' 'em an' say, "Yo' damn son-of-a-bitch, yo' stay 'way from heah."
(And they won't come back?)
Dey ain't comin' back.
Entry 11728
Well, them's if you would have - the police were trying to raid your place, or something like that, and you were selling whiskey. Well, in an in- stance just like that, well, they'd come and raid your place at one particular time. Well, in their absence - [I mean] just as they would leave, well, you could take the goofer dust and just sprinkle it on the floor and sweep your house as they went out, and they wouldn't bother you no more.
(I see.) [Goofer dust here is principally the salt and pepper previously mentioned.] [Vicksburg 1042:8.]
Entry 12137
Well, it's jes' like yo' runnin' a game in dis house an' yo' don't want 'em to be bothered wit chah [the reverse, you don't want to be bothered with them!]. All you gotta do is git chew a bottle of Heart Perfume [or Hearts Cologne] an' every mawnin' when yo' sweep out, sprinkle a little on yore front steps. Every mawnin'. Dey won't worry yo'. De law won't bother yo'.
(The law won't bother you.)
No sir, dey won't bother wit chew.
Entry 12251
Ah ain't goin' [tell] yo' no lie. Ah'll tell yo' de truth now, but ah'm goin' tell yo' 'bout dis. Now, ah'm goin' [tell] whut ah knows an' whut ah don't know ah won't tell yo', 'c'use ah don' ca' fo' no foolishness. Well, all right. Now, ah have had people roomin' wit me. Ah have rn a roomin' house. Co'se ah haven't run one lately. Fifteen yeahs ago heah in dis coum an' people heah dat wouldn't pay me, an' ah wanted dem tuh stay, an' dey uouldn't stay 'way from mah house. Ah wanted 'em tuh stay 'way. Ah sprinkle Salt dere. Ah had tuh sprinkle salt down. An' now John de Conkah is a straight Sring, is a straight fact, it won't die. John de Conkah root will not. Yo' boils hit an' strains it through a thin white rag, an' git all dem herbs an' trash in through de rag, an' take dat tea an' sprinkle it an' sweep yore flo' wit it. Sprinkle salt behin' dere an' sweep it out, jes' anybody dat go out. Jes' have it in a bottle an' anybody dat go out, jes' sprinkle salt on de floor an' sprinkle dat root of medicine on de flo' an' sweep it out behin' 'em. Ah'll guarantee dey ain' t comin' back dere no mo'.
Entry 12785
To be effective buy 1 pound of new salt, sprinkle behind unwelcome guest from where he was sitting to outside, then sweep out. [Old Point Comfort, Va., by Ediphone.]
Entry 12802
Throw salt behind departing person, sweep 9 strokes, and he will not return. [Mobile 890:4.]
Entry 12803
With new package of salt, sprinkle it behind departing visitor, say, "I don't want so-an'-so here at mah house." Sweep as far out as possible.
[Mobile 942:1.]
Entry 12804
They throw salt into house when they leave, sweep it out of house, and tell them [unknown new renters] to keep out. [Mobile 877:1.]
Entry 12813
If someone is living in the house with you and you want that person to leave, throw salt behind him and sweep it behind him for 9 mornings. wll- mington 106:9+85.]
Entry 12825
After an undesirable guest, sweep out salt and pepper and wish he does not return. [Richmond 325:4.]
Entry 12826
Behind undesirable departing guest throw salt and pepper and sweep.
[Wilmington 116:12+85.]
Entry 12827
Behind unwanted guest throw new salt and new cayenne pepper, and sweep with new broom. [Wilmington 79:3+85.]
Entry 12828
Under chair on which undesirable guest sits throw salt and black pepper and sweep it out after him. [Wilmington 74:1+85.]
Entry 12829
Sweep behind departing person, then sprinkle salt and pepper all over the floor and doorstep. [Fredericksburg, by Ediphone.]
Entry 4291
If yuh in bad luck in doin' business in yuh house, de firs' thin' yuh do in de mawnin', git up 'fo' de sunrise an' sweep yuh dirt out chure back porch [never out the front entrance if you are in business], sweep de sand off yore back porch. An' go out tuh yuh, IF YUH GOT A TOILET, out where yuh dump yuh chamber lye. Bring dat fresh stuff back an' sprinkle on yuh porch an' yuh won't be bothahed wit dat no mo'. Why ah says yuh take some of yuh chamber lye whut chew urinate, yuh own, yuh sweep off yore back porch firs', den bring some of yuh urinate back dere an' jis' sprinkle ovah de back porch, an' yuh be through wit dem fo'evah. (That is after you sweep the porch, you sprinkle it with some chamber lye. You do that in the morning for nine mornings.) Fer nine mawnin's. [These 9 mornings enter the text after the first paragraph, where the extra periods following no mo' in original transcription indicate a recording-machine stoppage. Informant's preceding words yuh be through wit dem fo'evah raises the question With whom? Her bad luck does not arise from too much competition (espe- cially severe during the Great Depression, the time of this interview), lack of business ability, quality of facilities and goods and services. No, bad luck, like disease and all ailments, is caused by an evil-minded person who has thrown a dust in her house, planted a hand outside, wished her evil, etc. Why does she use ground on which urine has been emptied? Is this a contact-with-the earth rite? Or have we a practical reason? Urine, frequently used in scrub water, would become as urine-soaked-earth more useful when sweeping.] [St. Petersburg, Fla., (1043).1693:2.]
Entry 13376
Save your urine for 9 mornin's or nights, put salt and pepper in, sweep steps down, and sweep it up, repeating what you want done to bring person back. [Memphis 1570:13.]
Entry 13399
After person leaves the house, sweep urine and salt out the same door to make him drift away. [Washington, D. C. 813:10.]
Entry 1066
If yo' has a enemy an' he always giving yo' trouble, any morning yo' git up - nine mornings - if he lives - whichever direction he lives at chure house - from yore house - whichever direction he lives, why yo'll git up every morning fo' nine mornings an' sweep. Never carry yore broom back nowhere an' jest sweep. Everything yo' got to pick it up, jest sweep an' sweep it clear for nine long strokes. [Demonstrates.]
(Nine long strokes. They are forward and you don't bring them back at all.)
[Never sweep back and forth.]
Jest bring de broom back, when yo' bring it back, sweep it [lift broom] clear
[of floor]. Give it nine strokes - nine long strokes [sweeping strokes forward]
an' nine short strokes [non-sweeping strokes backward] for nine mornings. An' yore enemy - de tenth morning she'll come up an' acknowledge everything, every wrong that she ever did fo' vo' (In other words your enemy can't do anything to you.)
The informant instructs sweeping for nine mornings in an enemy-directed practice; its promised result is unverified.