Subject:Symptoms
Entries
Entry 10685
What do you do with the banana peeling?) A banana peeling is something you burn, that's something to burn. Yoa can Cke a banana peeling and burn it, and take it after it's powdered, and yoa can make a person heart - the doctor [an H. D.] be seearing that a person got heart trou- ble - by feeding 'en or giv- ing them that banana peeling [powder] in water to drink. And they be sick, and don't need nothing else but that banana peeling, and the doctor be swearing that person's got ordinary heart trouble. And when you stop giving it to 'em, stop feeding it to 'em, there won't be no more trouble. [Presumably this is believed to be a device by which a hoodoo doctor gives a person heart trouble and then cures him.]
Entry 7217
Dey say dat if yo' ord'nar'ly measure a person whilst dey is layin' down sleepin' from time tuh time, dat'll cuz dere health tuh come bad an' lotsa times will cuz dem tuh lose dere life.
(Well, how do they measure you?)
Jis' measure dem as though yo' standin' up. Yo' five feet eight or five feet ten. Jis' take yo' measure, an' yo' go 'way [demonstrates].
(What do they do with that measure, have you any idea?)
Well, dey tote dat aroun' in dere pocket. Evah time dey takes dat measure dey tote it aroun'.
(Do they use a different string or the same string?)
De same tape [measure].
Entry 11686
Yo' go out dere 'fore day in de mawnin' an' git a twig offa tree at de fo'ks of de road an' use it. Yo' kin use it fo' luck, fo' bad luck, an' dey use it with dis red flannel. Ah 'magine yo' seen red flannel. Yo' use red flan- nel. An' git chew a twig while de sap is in it, but chew cain't git it when it's dry, at de fo'ks of de road. Dat cause people tuh has spells, fallin' outa beds, agony in de haid, agony in de feet, athaletics feets an' all lak dat. (What do you do with this twig? How do they work that?) Well, yo' git chew a piece of red flannel an' git chew some turpentine an' asafetidy an' boil it all tuhgethah in 'bout, jes' say 'bout a cup of watah an strain it an' po' all dat drugs [dregs], let say yo' has drugs tuh it, an' strain it through dat red flannel. An' aftah yo've strained it through de red flannel, den yo' use only de watah, understan'. Set dis watah in a dark place in a closet an' keep dis twig in dis red flannel wrapped. Yo' kin weah dis roun' yore neck fo' luck fo' yo'self. An' de watah fo' bad luck yo' kin sprinkle around a person's do'steps tuh cause 'em tuh move. If yo' wanta sprinkle it fo' luck, if yo' Wanta sprinkle it, yo' kin sprinkle it tuh cause 'em tuh move. Yo' kin sprinkle it fo' a person dat's sick, tuh make 'em have iller health. Yo' kin sprinkle it where a person is sick, tuh make 'em have bettah health; accordin' tuh whut chew magic' but chew gotta git it from de fo'ks of de road 'fore day in de mawnin'.