Subject:Turpentine
Entries
Entry 2646
Yo' kin take Sloan's linament an' turpentine an' mix a proportion of it together an' bury it down up undah de house where de bootleggah is an' dat will - dat supposed tuh keep de law away. It will fo' a while. There ain't nuthin dat's goin' keep dem police 'way all de time, but dey'll visit yo lesser den dey would without any help at all.
Entry 3280
[Three ingredients is only one of many groups of 3's in the text (pp.651-654 and elsewhere). Blackjack received it's name from the black bark of the common oak Quercus marilandica. Palmetto in the present case are the scrubby palm plants one sees in the coastal lowlands from North Carolina down into Florida. Turpentine weed can be one of several plants having an actual or a fancied odor of turpentine.] [To] fix dat up to keep de mens away from dere [his wife or woman] he'd go out in de woods an' he'd git 'im - jis' ast anybody, any of dem ole people. Dey tel] 'im right, yo' know, right where to git dat, dem kinda roots at. Yo' take a blackjack root - get de blackjack root an' a he palmetto root an' some of dis 'tentime [turpentine] weeds. Dey got some weed dey call de 'tentime weeds. An' yo' mix dat up, yo' understan', an' put it on yore private see, an' let it dry.
(You mean, you just mix the leaves up, themselves?)
Yes, jis' take nuthin but de leaves, see.
(You don't boil them, you just mix the leaves up?)
Mix de weeds [leaves] up, yo' undahstan'.: See, it'll come wit juice all ovah it. An' mix 'em up, put 'em on yore private, see, an' let it dry. Don't wash it off. An' go wit yore wife, yo' undahstan', an' go ahead on out dere an' work where yo' wanta work at. Evah time a man git ready to go wit yore wife - dey won't have it, but he'll get on her, yo' undahstan'. Well, he'll jis' straddle her an' 'is thing will fall - he can't have her.
Entry 3616
Well, yo' kin take a woman's sanitary cloth [a term rarely used at this date by informants], aftah she'd put it dere somewhere. Yo' kin take it an' tie it in nine knots - not take nine knots in de cloth an' tie it, but yo' know yo' kin take a piece of cord string an' tie nine knots hard dis way, yo' undahstan'. Tie nine knots in. An' yo' take it aftah yo' tie dose nine knots in it, an' put turpentine on it an' burn it up.
(You mean you tie this string around the cloth?)
Roun' de cloth wit nine knots in it.
(And then you put nine knots in the string after you tie it?)
Shu' [sure] - no, tie knots wit de string. See, wrap it roun' an' tie dat one dere; den wrap it roun' ag'in, see. (This string, you wrap it around once, around the sanitary cloth, and tie it Once; wrap it around again and tie a knot; wrap it around again and tie a knot. Get nine knots?) Git nine knots. She won' be no mo' [good] to 'erself or no one else.
Entry 3619
A string, an' measure it, de length of 'is [privates] an' tie nine knots in dis string. Now, if it's not long enough to go roun' 'er waist she might piece it out. Now she tie dem nine knots an' she [wet] dem nine knots in turpentine an' wear dem nine knots right below 'er stomach in front [mons veneris], an' in time won't have no nature fo' nobody but 'er.
Entry 3627
Yo' could win a man. Yo' could take, yo' know, a string an' put nine knots in a cord string an' put it in turpentine, yo' know, an' wear it aroun' yore waist, an' it would keep 'im from havin' dealin's wit any othah woman but chureself.
(Well what do you do with that string first before you put the nine knots on it?)
Well, yo' take an' put nine knots in it, see, an' make a wish an' put it in dat turpentine an' tie it aroun' yore waist, an' evah time he git ready tuh have a intahco'se wit any othah woman, see, he couldn't.
Entry 3780
If a man have a bad disease, yo' kin git de bark from de no'th side, outside, of a gum tree, an' de bark from de east side of red oak tree, an' mix 'em togethah an' make a tonic, an' dat will cure him of de bad dis- ease. Yo' put a few drops of turpentine in it.
Entry 3895
Dey say yo' kin take a woman's piece to de cemetery an' put [on it] some saltpetah, some cayenne peppah an' some turpen- tine an' bury it. Put it in a piece of papah an' bury it an' it will rot. When it rots it'll turn yo'. It rots in yo', yo' won't be no mo' good fo' nuthin.
(What will it do?)
It'll rot chew down heah.
(It rots you and the doctor has to operate?)
Yeah, see, yo' won' have no mo' mens, it turn yo' outside.
(It turns them inside out.)
Entry 3965
An' git chew some vinegah an' nine drops of turpentine an' dat'll stop a woman's periods on 'er. (How would they give that to her?) Give it to her by de tablespoonful - yo' know, jes' lak [demonstrates]. (That is what you call root-working. She knows he is doing that.)
Entry 4040
Use some cloth dat yuh have, if de party don't wash fo' yuh. Nobody'll evah wash fo' yuh, dey can't make yuh move out, 'cept come tuh yuh do' roun' five a'clock in de mawnin' an' throw de night- watah roun' de do' see. An' dey put salt in de night-watah, yuh see. Dat's fer tuh make 'em move out - an' de smell of de watah. Den yuh go an' dig up some dust an' put on de watah in de back of de house, an' taken some turpentine an' throw it on top of it, an' yuh cannot go.
(That is, if you don't do it, it will make you move.)
Yes, [if] yuh leave it stan' out dere.
(I.see. But if you do that, they can't make you move. I see.)
An' if anybody comes tuh yuh an' tell yuh dey comin' tuh 'rest [arrest] yuh fer dat crime, [you] say, "Dey won't come here." Yuh take yuh a mouthful of cold watah, undahstan', an' take a mouthful of hot watah behind dat wit a little salt in it. Salt in de hot watah aftah drinkin' de cold watah an' walkin' in acircle. AH'M GIVIN' YUH FAX [facts].
Entry 4076
Git de feathah from a black chicken, if yo' a man thirsty fo' a woman, in love wit 'er. Yo' take dat feathah from a black chicken an' yo' manage tuh git some of 'er ministra- tion. Now, de way ah've heard dis: if yo' kin git some of 'er ministration, an' yo' put dat wit dat feathah in dere. Den yo' take dat feathah an' put it in a bottle an' yo' put yo'self some spirits of tur- pentine in dere. Yo' put some dis othah stuff [urine? semen?]. Put some quinine in dere. An' den yo' take dat piece [hatband] or de bow, eithah one, outa yore hat, an' put it in dere. Let dat stay right dere nine days. [Auto horn.] Aftah nine days yo' bury dat thin' right somewhere 'bout de no'th cornah of yore chim- ley in de groun'. Den yo' go out dere an' yo' make watah on dat dere fo' nine days. Yo' pee on dat fo' nine days. Den dat dere - dat draws 'er 'fection to yo'.
Entry 4400
Take a lizard. Ah've heard 'em say yo' take a lizard an' tuh split 'im open on 'is back. An' when yo' split 'im on 'is back, take an' hang 'im up where de sun will rise on 'im. An' when de sun rise on 'im, see, when de sun is goin' up, yo' hang'im wit 'is tail up an' 'is haid down; an' dey tell me dat will turn dey bowels up so dey can't be unlocked.
(Well, how do you know what person you are working on?)
Well, yo' take an' yo' git some of dere action, an' yo' put it in dere. Put it on dis lizard, inside of 'im, de fo'wards side nex' to de sun, wit cayenne peppah on it. Yo' know, cayenne peppah draws too, it draws up, an' three drops of turpentine. An' den when yo' git dat bone, den yo' hang it up dere. An' dat lizard will dry up to nuthin but jes' dat skin. An' as long as he's hangin' up dere, why dey can't have an action. Dat's whut ah heard on dat.
Entry 4459
Dey kin take yuh passage or yur urinate.
(That is your business, you mean?)
Yes, take dat aftah dey do it, while it's fresh, an' take it tuh a big hick- ory-nut tree an' bo' a hole in it, in de hickory-nut tree, an' put dat stuff in dere. Pack it. An' go git a li'le salt, cayenne peppah an' turpentine an' stop dat in wit it. Dat will lock yore bowels so dat yuh can't have no passage. Yuh feel lak yuh wanta do it. When yuh go tuh do it, it will burn yuh.
Entry 4777
Well, if ah'm a enemy tuh yuh an' wants tuh confuse yuh in yore home, ah mah- self, ah cain't do it. Got'a git someone tuh help me tuh do it, an' dat's by goin' an' gittin' a piece of yore clothes, sompin othah dat chew wears, don't chew know - sompin dat chew wears. An' ah takes dat an' tear it up, makes a very small string out of it. Take it an' twist it.
(Tear the whole piece of cloth up?)
Not de whole cloth, jis' git yuh a strip off about lak dat [demonstrates], whatevah it is, an' jis' tear it up in small strips. Take an' twist it dis away [demonstrates]. One [strip] dis way an' one dis way, jis' lak dat, yuh know. Jis' keep atwisting it till yuh git right intuh a fine - down-lak yuh know, tuh a string. Yuh take it den an' yuh put it - draw a knot intuh it. Yuh know how yuh tie a knot intuh anything. Well, yuh take dat an' git it intuh whatevah yuh kin git it intuh [a jar, see later]. Den yuh take some salt an' take some vine- gah an' anything dat dey'd use lak a garlic. Yuh git yuh some garlic tuh put in dere an' nine drops of turpentine. An' tighten dat up real - tighten it down howevah yuh wanta tighten it down.
(Tighten that jar down?)
Tighten de jar down, yassuh, an' den yuh prob'ly cain't git tuh de house; but git somebody tuh bury it tuh de back of de steps.
(What will that do then?)
Dat will - dey cain't git along in dere.
Entry 5054
Tuh stay on dere ain't but one thing yuh could do an' dat is tuh git, jis' - well, yuh could jis' say a piece of dere ole sock or jis' any of dey clothes or anything lak dat. An' take it an' take an' jis' dip it in some turpen- tine. An' wrap it in a piece of cloth an' jis' tie it right roun' yore right arm. An' wear it dere fo' about fo' days or eithah six. Dey cain't do a thing-a wit chew. Dey couldn't move yuh. (If you were trying to move me out, I would get your sock and do that, so that you couldn't harm me then. If I did that, that would keep you from harming me any way - any kind of way at all?) Yessuh.
Entry 5268
Well, dey kin git yuh shoes. Dey will git a li'le piece of de innah sole out of 'em, jis' outa eithah one of 'em. An' take dat innah sole an' carry it an' use turpentine on it; may- be ten or fifteen drops, not undah ten an' not ovah fifteen. Take it an' put it in a tobacco can or snuffbox. Git dat an' bury it, jis' keep it buried dere. An' YO'LL BEGIN TUH TAKE PAINS IN YUH ANKLES AN' KNEES, JIS' AS LONG AS DAT'S BURIED, JIS' LAK YO' WUS A MAN WIT DE RHEUMATISM. YO'LL BE DOWN IN YUH ANKLES AN' YUH KNEES, AN' FINELY [FINALLY] IT WORK ON UP IN YUH HIPS. AN' WORK ON THROUGH YUH BODY. IT'LI WORK ALL OVAH YO'. IT'LL GIT YO' IN SICH A CONDITION DAT YO'LL HAVE DE STIFF- NECK AN' EVAHTHIN' ELSE.
Entry 5269
If de boss fire yuh - yeah, he fired yuh. Yuh goes tuh 'im an' ast 'im fo' a job ag'in, once mo', an' he says, "No." Yuh say, "Well, ah been work- in' mighty faithful fo' yuh an' yuh's not treatin' me right.' Sompin lak dat. Git chew some spirits turpentine an' if yuh kin git tuh 'is shoe or sompin lak dat, his right shoe - if yuh kin ketch 'im wit 'is shoe off sometime, rub it on de bottom of 'is shoe, yuh know. An' take a li'le dust dere from de bottom of 'is shoe an' mix wit some turpentine an' put it in a li'le can. An' stop it up an' carry it an' bury it undah yore do'step. An' yuh got a job wit 'im right on. Yes sir, yuh git de job back.
Entry 5617
Take a fellah's track. Git right 'long behin' 'im an' take his track, if he be walkin', movin'. Yo' know right whilst he's movin', git 'is track from right behin' 'im. An' dey say dey'll take dat track den an' dey'll go git some black peppah, red peppah, turpentine, Sloan Linament - anything real hot whut'll burn yo' know. Says dey'll put it in dis track den an' dey'll take it den an' go tuh a runnin' stream of watah. Dey'll stan' wit dere lef' shouldah tuh dis stream of watah, an' dey'll throw it ovah de lef' shouldah an' den dey'll walk away. Well, dey say den dat track as it floats down de stream, say dat'll take, carry yo' on off - will run yo' away from home, jis' make yo' go on where- evah dat goes. Yo' jis' go on off till yo' die.
(How many tracks of mine do they take - or just one?)
Jis' takes one track - eithah one.
Entry 5636
When a person, yo' know, jis' walkin' along, an' dey could take sulphur an' salts an' spirits of turpentine an' mix it tuhgethah an' cuz yo' tuh have a foolish min'. [Spirits of turpentine is used occasionally instead of turpentine, the addi- tion of spirits giving to turpentine a spirit or other-world quality. An inform- ant somewhere in Hoodoo explains the spiritual essence of turpentine.] (Well, what do they do with that stuff after they get it? What do they do with that?) Takes it an' mix it tuhgethah an' as yo'd walk along, see dey po's dat in yore track as yo' go 'long. A certain numbah of tracks yo' know. Ah 'spect [suspect] yo' have tuh put it in de tracks, nine tracks nine mawnin's. An' dat vill cuz yo' tuh go crazy.
(This mixture, they just slip it into these tracks?)
Yes.
Entry 5664
When a person is doin' anything tuh yo', yo' take dey track an' take it - if dey goin' dis way, yo' take de track dis way; if dey goin' dis Way, yo' takes de track dis way [demonstrates]. (You take the track right from the toe back to the heel?) Take de track from de toe. Don't take de heel, take from de instep tuh 'is feet, from de instep of 'is feet. Take dat goin' dataway an' go an' git chew some sulphur, spirits of turpentine, black peppah an' tie it up in a ball. An' go tuh a runnin' watah an' throw it in.
(What will that do?)
Well, dey'll leave.
Entry 5689
Git aholt of dat foot track, take up a half of a pound of dat firs' track along dere tuh de toe. Take dat wit 2 drops of vinegah, 2 drops of tur- pentine, 5 drops of coal oil. An' den dat will draw de man back home - woman or man. Aftah yo' git all dat tuhgethah, why yo' take dat [track] an' put it in a bottle an' drop dis [9 drops] on it. An' den yo' sprinkle dat along where dat, if yo' are gone away from yore home, yo' undah- stan', sprinkle dat along in de tracks [made after the first onel. Dat'll draw 'im along back home.
Entry 5737
Ah heard dat yo' could take dat track up an' put it in turpentine, dat will give dat person rheumatism. (Do you take both tracks up or does it make any difference?) It really doesn't make any difference, jis' so you git one de per- son's tracks.
(And just put it in something with turpentine?)
In turpentine, dat 'sposed tuh give 'em rheumatism. Dey say dat it does.
Entry 5972
Now if dere a ole lady yo' can't git away from yore house- dere a ole lady dere or someone roun' dere an' yo' want 'em tuh leave an' yo' can' git rid of 'em, stick roun' wit 'em where de man git 'is hair cut or sompin lak dat. Git some of 'is hair, see. Git some of 'is hair an' put 'is hair in a little flannel rag an' use some Heart Cologne. An' yo' take dis hair an' dis Eeart Cologne an' yo' do it up in dis rag. Don't sew it, yo' tie wit cotton string an' yo' do it up good. An' jes' befo' yo' do it up, tie nine knots in it, jes' about a inch from de end of de cotton string. Tie nine hard knots in it an' 'noint 'em all good in spirits of turpentine, an' make a wish evahtime yo' make a tie. See. Evahtime yo' make a tie in it, wrap it aroun' an' make a tie. Well, yo' make a tie fo' nine times, an' den jes' put it in yore pocket an' walk on tuh a runnin' creek an' throw it in dere, an' don't look back, keep a-goin'. Yo' won't have any trouble wit 'em atall no mo'.
(Runs him away.)
Yessuh, he gone.
Entry 6040
Dey take a lock of yore hair out de mole of yore haid. If yo' vanta ake love, dey could take dat hair an' plait it as much [many] times as dey kin git it. Dey sew it up in white cloth an' den in a flannen [flannel] cloth. (What kind of a flannel cloth?) A red flannen. Dey take dat hair -' SEW IT INTO DE TICK OF PILLAH, dey pillah whut dey sleeps on, an' dey keeps it moist thoroughly wit spirits of turpentine an' dat'll make love. [This love hand is fed (p.578) spirits of turpentine because of the word pirits says an informant somewhere in text.]
Entry 6374
Well, ah heard it said if yuh git nine strands of der hair an' yuh wrap dat aroun' a cord nine times jis' lak yuh tyin' up a [package] - jis' aroun' de hair, wrap it from yuh all de time. Den yuh git chew nine drops spirits of tur- pentine an' yuh put on dat, an' yuh wrops dat up in a piece of papah. [You put 9 strands of victim's hair in a piece of paper, add 9 drops of turpen- tine, and wrap a cord from you 9 times about this paper pack- age.] An' yuh go an' put it undah de [house owner's or renter's] doorstep. Yuh put it undah dere evah mawnin' befo' de sunrise fo' nine mawnin's. Yuh put dat undah dere an' yuh go back after sundown. Yuh put dat undah dere an' yuh go back aftah sundown. Yuh put it undah dere befo' sunrise an' go back aftah sundown an' git it, den put it back dere ag'in befo' sunrise. Yuh go it fo' nine mawnin'san' on de ninth mawnin' dey [owner or renter] goin' be movin'. [Wrapping and winding, two important magic actions have not always been indexed in the past. There are in Hoodoo many examples of the former, especially wrapping to you or away from you. True winding rites probably will also be found in Hoodoo, they appearing in love rites of general folklore (see BALL OF YARN examples, FACI, 2nd ed., p.439). [Wilmington, N. Car., (294), 217:4 - 85+.1
Entry 6620
Yo' git a snake bone an' take de shoes - yo' git de snake bone an' yo' take a person's shoe an' take dat li'le leathah piece outa it whut's in dere. An' yo' take dat li'le bone an' dry it up - yo' know, kinda make li'le powdah of it. An' yo' take de othah part, de tip-end of it, dat sharp part, an' put it down intuh de shoe an' place dat li'le cloth back ovah it. Yo' take dat powdahs an' sprinkle dat all roun' in dere. If it's yore shoe, if ah wanta kill yo' or put sompin in yo', put snakes in yo' where dey won' come out. Well, yo' see when yo' put dat shoe on, yo' goin' press yore weight ag'inst it; an' when yo' does, see, it pops up intuh yo', intuh yore heel. Well, yo' see, dat poison jis' goes right straight on up in yo'. An' aftah dat poison git up intuh yo', in about de ninth day it begin tuh make li'le snakes in yo'. It begin tuh make li'le snakes in yo'. Well, if yo' wanta git dose snakes outa yo', yo' git chew some sulphuh an' green peppah, black peppah an' mix it all tuhgethah. An' den yo' git chew dis milk of magnesia an' den yo' put dat in wit it an' mix it tuhgethah, an' jis' nine drops of spirits of turpentine. Yo' mix it all up tuhgethah an' yo' take dat fo' about eight days an' it will kill dose snakes. An' yo' go tuh de woods an' dere's one li'le sprig of stuff dat dey call dat Copras it bears one of de straight leaves an' de li'le j'ints [joints]. Dey got about four li'le white j'ints run up tuhgethah. [Does informant mean copperas, and does he think it is a plant?] Yo' take dat an' weah dat intuh yore clothes, an' dey say dat will really, surely run de snakes outa yo'. Put it all tuhgethah an' it will run dose snakes out of yo'. (You just wear this root though, you don't take either of those things - just wear it?) Yes.
(And that snakebone, can you get that any place about the snake?)
Yes, yo' kin git it from de snake, jis' any part of 'is body, jis' so it has dat li'le sharp end kind lak a pin.
Entry 6909
Well, yo' kin put chew some red peppah, nine balls, [I mean] seeds of red peppah. Yo' have de seeds tuh put in dere. Grind dat peppah. Nine drops of spirits of turpentine, halfa tea- spoonfula salt, halfa teaspoonfula sulphur. An' put it in yore shoe an' weah it an' dat will kill dat.
(Anything they put down for you?)
Planted fo' yo'.
(Do you wear this in one or both shoes?)
Yo' kin put it in de shoes, or else if yo' want, yo' kin put it undah de steps, put it all tuhgethah an' bury it undah de steps.
Entry 6936
If anybody wuz poisoned an' lak if anybody wuz goin' do anythin' fo' dem, an' dey jis' really knows dis one thing an' jis' make up an' do fo' dem. Well, if dey wuz poisoned in a way dat chewed wanta do sompin fo' 'em, why yo' would take whiskey, a dime drink of whiskey, an' nine drops of turpentine an' puts it in dis whiskey. An' [if] dis whiskey don' make 'em drunk an' de tur- pentine won't bothah 'em, well dey drinks it down. Well, dey drinks it down. Well, tuh make it shore, yo' takes a ten-cent [piece] an' file it off wit a file. Well, yo' puts it in sweet milk an' give it tuh dem tuh drink evah day, jis' lak yo' do a meal.
(What will that do?)
Well, dat will draw de poison from 'em.
Entry 6943
[Silver will] run it outa yo'. Ah'll run it outa yo'. Ah'll git me a dime or quartah - so it's silvah money - take me a file an' ah'll file dat stuff, dat quartah, yo' see, an' git de dust, git it plumb dusty. All right, ah'll git me some vinegah, some salt. See, ah'll put it in dere. Ah'll put me fif- teen drops of turpentine in dere wit it. Ah'll git me a box of Epsom salts. Ah'll give yo' dat Epsom salts three times a day. Dat's tuh keep yore bowels open. Dat vinegah an' dat, whut ah got made up. Yo' drink it fo' times a day until it take a act on yo'. Well, now, it - in drinkin' dat, why it'll stir dat up in yo', yo' see, stir dat poison up. An' dat Epsom salt [is] tuh keep yuh bowels open, yo' see, an' pass it on through.
Entry 6982
Ah've had de claps so bad until ah didn't do nuthin but a solid stream of blood evah time ah made watah. An' ah went tuh Dr. O'Leary here an' he vashed mah bladdah out an' he tole me, he said, "Yo' got a sore on de end of yo' bladdah. Yo' been havin' dat - yo' been ovahstrainin' so long until it's worked back up intuh yo' stomic." (This doctor, was he a medical doctor?) Yes, an' he nevah did do me no good. So finely, ah one day, ah wuz workin' at de shop down dere, ah ovaheerded someone, a fellah, talkin'. An' ah says, "Well, ah'm goin' tuh use dat remedy. Ah went right on home an' tried it. He says get a pint of, a bottle, an' fill it half-fulla meal.
(What kind of meal?)
Half-fulla cornmeal.
(Half-full of cornmeal.)
An' put nine drops of turpentine in dere. Den git chew some rain watah an' fill dat bottle up. An' den shake it up right good 'till it all resolve [dis- solve] an' yo' know - when it resolve [dissolve] down de meal, dat brings it down about dat low [demonstrates]. Den yo' see it sinks down in dat watah. Yo' shake it up an' take a good swallah outa dat three times a day, an' dat cleah yo' out. Ah don' care whut's de mattah wit chew. Well, ah had it so bad dat ah couldn't hardly walk, it burned me tuh walk. [I fixed] dat jah [jar] mahself, yo' know. An' ah say, "Ah'm goin' home an' try dat." Now, dis, dis is by ex- perience. Ah've done it twice. Evah time ah have it an' I've tole othah men about it. Ah know a frien' dat done dat. Ah fixed 'im a bottle of it an' it Cured 'im. Ah carried - ah goes home an' ah gits me a pint bottle, an' ah fills it half fulla meal, an' ah gits dis rain watah. [Here, thinking that informant was merely repeating, I stopped recording to save cylinder space; but immediately realizing that he was adding something new, I restarted machine to ask what he did with the cork.]
(What did you do with that cork?)
Put a trench in dat stoppah so de air will jis' sour dat meal, sour it where de air kin git out an' it won' blow de cork out or eithah bus' de bottle.
(I see.)
Or put chew a papah stoppah or somepin, so dat it won't be so tight. Well, in about three days dat will be good an' sour, an' it have a good taste from dat tarpentine. An' dat'll rid yo' - ease yo' an' cure yo' up.
Entry 7276
To keep from being caught, let murderer jump backwards across the corpse and then put turpentine on feet.
Entry 7298
One thing yo' kin do, yo' kin go tuh a stable or a cow lot an' walk in dere. Den yo' kin take othah - somepin lak turpentine - jes' lak dat an' put on yore feet, an' de dogs couldn't trial yo'.
Entry 7326
Ah heard of if a man or a woman done a crime an' dey git out an' try tuh git away, dey'd rub turpentine undah de bottom of dey feet an' walk across de graveyard an' dey could git away. [This may be my only ex- ample of a woman trailed by dogs. Yes, I remember Eliza in Uncle Tom's Cabin.]
Entry 7331
If a person - lak nov, say ah kilt somebody an' ah wanted tuh git away. Ah kin take mah foot an' put it in dat [cow] manure an' den step in tur- pentine an' run through a cemetery. An' ah'm gone, dey couldn't find me.
Entry 7344
A fellah tole me - now dis - dat he run away from de chain gang. Yo' want me tuh tell de whole story, dat's it. He run away from de chain gang an' he stopped at a woman's house an' got some turpentine an' put it in de bottom of his shoes. An' he said dat dey had de hounds aftah 'im an' he stopped tuh mah house. An' ah said, "Put it in de bottom yore shoes?" He said, "Yeah." Dat wus up heah in Baldwin County, Georgia. Yeah, neah Millersville. He'd run away from de camp. An' ah tole de woman - ah wusn't married tuh her, ah was livin' wit 'er. Ah says, "Git dis fellah sompin tuh eat." An' as he got sompin tuh eat ah lifted up de shoe an' smelled of it an' he wus about five miles from dis camp at dat time. Ah wus standin' in mah back do' an' ah heard de dogs barkin' an' howlin' an' goin' on. When ah heard de dogs hollerin' ah come tuh de front do' to look out down tuhwards de rivah tuh see. Ah thought maybe some of 'em had de fox houns' out. An' dis fellah come up. at de time. Yeah. He had done got de turpentine in be- tween mah house an' where he run away from de convict camp, don't chew undahstan' me. [I am not supposed to hear well.] An' ah give him sompin tuh eat an' he left, an' de dogs come as fur as mah camp an' de captain an' de fellah dat wus wit de dogs, dey couldn't track 'im no fu'thah. Dey look aroun' an' dey says, dey axed [asked] me de questions about de fellah comin' dere. An' ah tole 'em dere come a man dere but he didn't have on no stripes, yeah. He had got de clothes dough [though]. He tole me de fellah back behin' had give him some clothes to change wit.
Entry 7348
Ah heard a man say he went to de forks of de road, jes' like dey did some devilment an' de law was aftah 'em. De fellah said he'd go dere, yo' know, wit a bottle of turpentine an' marks right an' one east, an' po's [pours] a little turpentine in each one of dem marks - goin' across de road, an' dey nevah couldn't trail 'em. (Now, you said just across the road he makes a mark. How would he make the first mark?) He makes one north - east yo' know, east an' west, an' den south an' north. Dere don't be but two. (He makes one east and west. Then what does he do? Then he makes another mark? Where does he make that one?) Make dat one south an' west.
(South and north you mean.)
Yes, south an' north.
(I see. Then what does he do?)
Po's [pours] de turpentine in each one of dem marks.
Entry 7349
Ah heard dat if yo' wuz tuh do anythin' an' run away an' dey put de dogs behin' yo', den if yo' wuz tuh keep gasoline an' spirits of turpentine on yore feet, den dey couldn't track yo'.
Entry 7350
Yes, in dis way: Ah don't know whethah it's fact dat de law couldn't find or not, but ah do know dis one thing. If yo' were tuh do sompin chere an' dey wus on yore - say, if dey had hounds runnin' yo' or sompin, yo' could put turpen- tine an' red peppah undah yore shoe sole an' dem dogs couldn't track yo' no fu'thah dan where yo' use dat material. Right dah dey'd lose track an' dey couldn't start it.
Entry 7352
I have bin lak dat way in de South, zhoo know. A man down dere lak tuh kill a fellah once. It wus mah secon' cousin, yo' know. So he went one night - he had tuh be taken on de Manning [S. C.] Road - I had tuh cart 'im, yo' know - taken on de Manning Road. I take 'im on down dere [road] tuh a little ole neighbor's house, zhoo know. So he tole huh whutevah he wants. She said, "Well, yo' in a very bad con- dition, becuz, yuh know, a murderin' case, " she said, "that's one case that any- one har'ly git ovah." She said it wusn't goin' to cost no more dan thirty-five dollahs, she said, tah clear it. He said, "Well, de thing whut I wan'a git aftah is not ta ketch me." He said, "If they don't ketch me, " he say, "I'll leave, if I kin git out de way." She says, "Well, all right." She went back in there, she stepped back in de room again, she gits sumpin in a little bottle - red jis' like vinegah. She mix some vinegah wit it, she take a little turpentine an' she put in it. Dat whah I seed 'er put in dere mahself. She take sumpin come-like - it looked like table salt. Well, she fixin' it so it boil. So he come back home tuh town dat night jis' about 'leven-thirty. So I drived up to de nex' cornah of de road [just beyond the town] an' let 'im git out an' come on back [to town] yo' see. He take his left-footed shoe, an' taken some turpentine an' put in de bottom of de left-footed shoe, an' some salt; den he went up to de law office [courthouse] see, de office's on left-hand side de road. Well, he takes some of dat [liquid] from de bottle given to him by de witchcraft woman, an' po'ed it right down 'neath de steps. An' dey ain't nevah did ketch 'im.
Entry 7353
Well now, jes' lak if he done de killin', [he] say, "Ah wants tuh git away." Well, he'll go to work yo' see an' git 'im a pair of new shoes, he'll git 'im a bottle of turpen- tine. He'll take dat turpentine an' he'll pull 'is shoes off an' rub undah de bottom of 'is feet wit dat turpentine, an' he'll po' a little in 'is shoes. He'll go to work den an' he'll git 'im jes' about nine grains of black pepper, six grains of spice, an' git 'im jes' about a piece of bluestone a little bit biggah den a black-eyed pea. An' he'll put all dat togethah. He'll go to work den an' git 'im a dime bottle of alcohol, an' evah mawnin' regardless to where he goin', he'll take dat alcohol an' rub behin' 'is ears, rub across 'is fo'haid, an' he'll take dat turpentine an' 'noint 'is shoes - under de bottom of 'is shoes - an' he'll chew a grain of dat black peppah, one grain of dat spice, evah day, an' jes' a little crumb of dat bluestone mixed togethah. An' as long as he continue wit dat, he'll always keep a-goin'.
(Can't catch him.)
He'll keep a-goin'. [Waycross, Ga., (1097), 1771:5.] [Rites for catching a murderer are much more varied and interesting than those permitting him to escape, egg rites alone being amazing both in number and diver- sity. Everywhere the spirit of the murdered person is present or its presence assumed.]
Entry 8054
Well, yo' take a bone, say dis wrist bone here [demonstrates].
(The left wrist.)
Yeah. Yo' take de left wrist. If it's a evil person, say like some fellahs ah might recite yuh [or their] name fast: "George Bohall," "Up-jump, de Devil" [etc.]. All dose fellahs had police records, bad. Dey got kilt, dey died bad. Dey had tuh hold 'em down. Well, yo' take his bone an' yo' would bring it ovah tuh de house, an' yo' have what yo' call de dead pot.
(Dead what?)
Have a little pot about dat high, what de women use fo' po'in' [pouring] on.
(For what?)
Fo' po'in' on, tuh keep dere comb warm when dey are straight'en' [straight- ening] women's hair. Well, dey got a small little pot lak dat. It's a little stove, yo' know.
(Yes.)
Well, yo' take dat bone from dat evil spirit [the spirit of the bad man killed] an' yo' take it dere, an' yo' git some good whiskey. Yo' know, an' if he died a drunk. Dose are people dat yo' know [about], yo' know where dey grave, buried at, an' yo' go tuh dat most pahticlah [particular] grave an' git dat bone. Yo' put dat on de fiah an' yo' boil dat. Now, yo' set three hick'ry sticks across dere an' yo' set dat right on top of dat bone. Aftah yo' set dat on dat bone, why yo' take whiskey an' yo' po' ovah 'im, po' ovah dat mos' pahticlah bone. An' aftah yo' po' it ovah 'im, yo' demand 'im tuh go an' kill So-an'-so-an'-so.
(I see.)
An' dey goes on an' yo' do's de work.
(I see.)
Or else, yo' wanta, say, run 'im ovahbo'd [make him jump overboard], let 'im, let a automobile run ovah 'im. Yo' always place him in a place dat he'll git kilt.
(I see. You cross those hickory sticks?)
Cross 'em across. (And then when you - this [I demonstrate] is your pot. Are the bones in the pot?) No, dat's what de sticks are dere fo'. Supposin' de pot about dis size [dem- onstrates]. Well, yo' place [demonstrates] one here, one dere, an' one here. An' den yo' place de bone right 'cross dere lak dat [demonstrates].
(Oh, across the sticks.)
Across de sticks. Dat is tuh [I interrupt]...
(Then what do you do with the pot?)
Well, yo' mos'ly use a li'le turpentine an' linseed oil in dat pot - turpen- tine an' linseed oil in dat pot. But yo' start yuh fiah slow, jis' so, so she [pot] make an ord'nary steam. Dat is tuh keep a certain pressure on 'im. Den yo' demand 'im wit controllin' powah, say, "Ah demand yo' wit controllin' powah tuh go ovah an' do such-an'-such a thing. Go ovah an' kill Such-an'-such a one." An' yo' [the spirit] must do so. (I see.) [New Orleans, La., (819), 1171:2.] [As we have seen, there are many substitutes for the human body: (l) anything that came from the body, such as blood, semen, urine, excrement, sweat, spit, hair, fingernails, toenails, and footskin; and (2) anything that has touched the body, especially clothes. In this division we shall examine three entities that are not a part of the body and yet preeminently represent it - photograph and name and letters and handwriting. Of these three, name already has occurred so many times in the preceding rites, I shall start here with photograph.]
Entry 8386
(What can they do to me with my photograph?)
If it's on a tintype, dey bury it. It'll kill yo'. But if it's on a paste- bo'd, dey jes'bury it, dat'll bring yo', dat'll keep yo' dah. But if it's on tintype, it will kill yo'. (How do they bury that tintype?) De tintype's buried in turpentine. (Just how do they bury that?) Jes' take it an' dig a hole fer a foot an' a half an' yo' turpentine it good. Put de turpentine at de bottom where yo' lay it, an' yo' put dat - jes' put it right down in dere lak dat an' pack de dirt on.
(You turn the face up?)
Turn de face down. Yes, de face is turned down. Well, dat divides dem.
Entry 8532
Use a coconut, put turpentine in dere an' de party's name, an' stop it up tight an' throw it intuh de Mississippi River, when it will float in de watah, an' de party will leave dere home. Turpentine in dere, yes.
Entry 8620
Ef yo' worried about de law comin' round, yo' take yo' some sugah an' some - understan', an' a quart beer bottle an' yo' put one [of the two articles] at de front do' an' one at de back do'. If de law is botherin', take dem names an' Write it [them] on a piece of papah nine times. Take jis' about a bottle of turpentine an' put it [names] in dere an' jis' throw it behin' 'em an' tell 'em don't come back no mo'.
Entry 8904
If a person stole a.thing from yo' an' yo' wanta find out if it's dem dat did it, yo' gotta git chew some coffee grinds [grounds] aftah de coffee's [coffee has] been made. Git dose coffee grinds. An' den yo' take some coffee grinds an' let dem set outdo's [outdoors]. Don't leave dem in de house, yo' let 'em set outdo's. An' den yo' will git chew a bottle of turpentine. Now, dey done stole it an' yo' wanta find out de fak' [fact]. An' den, when yo' git some turpentine an' dose coffee grinds - an' den yo' take dat eggshell an' brown hit an' put it in dere. An' den yo' take dat eggshell - aftah yo' take dat egg- shell. An' yo' make yore wish while yo' fixin' it up. Yo' make yore wish while yo' fix it up an' den yo' take dis eggshell. An' den yo' take an' beat up some garlic an' brown dat garlic. Yo' gotta brown evahthin' yo' use. An' den yo' take, if yo' have an idea who got it - if somebody tell yo' dese people got it an' yo' know where dey live at...
(If you have an idea who did, what do you do with it then?)
Take it tuh dere do' an' bury it right up undah de centah of dere do', right up undah de centah of dere house eithah much [if you prefer]. [Center of house makes this a quincunx rite.] An' if dey got it dey'll bring it back. Dey'll bring it back.
Entry 8930
Well now, if you - like you was to take a dollah, say fo' 'ninstan' [an instant = an instance], if you'd take a dollah, or if yo' took mah glasses, or if yo' took anything out mah house, or anything yo' take from me, if yo' steal it from me in the street, I gits a red onion. Listen at me good. I splits dis red onion, but not let it come apart. See, yo' jis'gash it like that [demonstrates].
(You turn it like that, gash it through the side, not from top to bottom.)
Well now, you take an' git five drops spirits turpentine. Yo'll write your name on a cigarette papah. Like your name John James, I'll put in on a ciga- rette papah, put five drops of spirits turpentine, put that name [in the split onion], then put about two little pinches of cayenne pepper, an' spit in it five times, an' make yo' a woosh [wish]. An' then I take yeh [the onion holding your name] an' bur' [bury] mah things back. If yo' don't it'll run yo' crazy, if yo' didn't. See, that will drindle right on your mind 'bout choo takin' mah glasses.
Entry 9159
Take a white pocket han'ke'ch'ef an' dampen it wit peroxide an' kero- sene an' turpentine, an' jis' - see, yo' be's in de co'thouse, yo' see, where dey is, an' as he talkin', yo' jis' carry dat pocket han'ke'ch'ef an' dey make it [sentence] light. (Where do you carry it?) Do it jes' lak [demon- strates by shaking or waving handkerchief]. See, dat will make de scent of it
[reach the judge and jury].
Entry 9406
Git chew a fresh hen, black hen aig an' yo' put a hole in it, an' aftah dat stuff outa dat aig [come] outa dere, git chew a bottle of turpentine. An' fill dat aig up wit dat turpen- tine an' bury it right where dey have tuh pass ovah it. Sure tuh move.
(That drives them out of the house.)
Entry 9603
Well, yo' git some fish brine an' some gingah an' red peppah an' boil it tuhgethah an' put it about; wit a teaspoonful of spirits of turpentine which is hot, gives it powah, see. An' yo' take dat an' boil it an' go dere an' sprinkle yore house round yore do'steps. An' dey gotta go when dey git a place dey don't wanta stay dere, an' dey'll move without [giving you] any trouble. (There won't be any trouble getting them out of the house.)
Entry 9712
Lak if yo' wan'a job, dey tell me sompin but ah have nevah tried it. Lak if yo' wanted a job, ah heah de boys say, go tuh de bossman's house. An' aftah yo' go tuh 'is house - lak if yo' go dere an' try tuh git a li'l' work tuh do roun' dere. Prob'ly yo' fine some things roun' dere dat he's got or somepin he weahs or somepin lak dat. Yo' take dis. An' yo' come back an' take it tuh yore home. An' yo' come back an' yo' take dis turpentine an' olive oil an' salt. An' yo' take dis stuff an' yo' fix it up. Well, aftah yo' take dis stuff an' fix it up, yo' take an' care [carry] it back tuh dis bossman's house. An' yo' take an' hide it up undah, anywhere undah where he walks aroun' in 'is room. Yo' take dat stuff an' yo' care it right dere, an' put it somewheah in 'is room, wheah he kin walk ovah it. Well, yo' take it den. Yo' take an' go back an' git it if yo kin git back an' git it. Git back an' git it. Meanwhile he wuz workin' aroun'. An' yo' take an' bury it. Lak he's got a desk wheah he do's 'is writin', keepin' time, or sompin lak dat. Yo' take an' put it up undahneat' de desk or sompin othah lak dat. An' dey say dat stuff, whut chew put in dat stuff, will take effect on 'im. An' den yo'll come tuh 'im an' he says, "Well" - when yo' ast 'im fo' a job - "come to work." He'll give yo' job. Dat stuff will take effect on 'in, work on 'im in a way, an' he'll have tuh give yo' a job.
Entry 10605
[Out in the field I rarely if ever asked directly for self-perfor ed abortion rites; what I wanted was miscarriage, delayed birth, malforation or death caused by an enemy's witchcraft. The rite now following is a piece of folk medicine or practice a hoodoo doctor, fortuneteller or wise womas ooeld sggest to a client:] Some green coffee, coffee what you drink, she'll make a tea out of that and put some whiskey in there and turpentine and drink it hot - hot, hot as she can. And take a slop-bucket of hot boiling water and sit over it. Go to the store and buy her a lead pencil, brand- new, have never been used. And take that pencil and open her womb and spill that water. And when that pencil - the mouth of it is closed, you know. She take that pencil and put - she can do that herself better than anybody can, you know. Take that pencil and shove it until the mouth of her womb is open, where the heat can get in there, stay in. When she take the pencil and shove it, well she going to take the end of the pencil and make a little hole to open it, you know. And when - while she's doing that, she still over the bucket. Well, you see, the heat is going in there. You see, that heat hit there, that make the womb open like that and there come all - what was in there, going to come out. You see. Well, now, after hit come - well, it's according to how many months she be. Well, if it be four months, it's a baby. Now, it done come and she got to get that afterbirth out [and if] she can't get nobody [to help her], she take her fist and blow hard as she can. And still stay over that. After while that afterbirth come.
Entry 10903
Well, yo' take de hair off a bad dog's back, de hair off a cat's back, an' take a woman's underwear when it's dirty, an' wash it, taking dat watah an' applyin' it wit dat hair off de dog's back an' off de cat's back, an' puttin' turpentine wit it, an' shuttin' de bottle up, an' throw it in de Miss'ippi Rivah. It will cause one de greatest rows in dat house yo' evah did see.
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'.
Entry 11751
They kin take some graveyard dirt and people's hair and some of their clothes, and they would soaken it in vinegar and turpentine and wrap it up tight in some kind of jar, and put it underneath of the people's [victim's] steps that they may walk over it. It would cause an infection or transaction between the two. The person would git in contact with the person with whom he want to git to. That would bring the one whom that they wanted to them. [The person who walks over the bottle will find and visit the person who prepared the bottle.]
Entry 12047
You take a piece of red flannen [flannel] and you dampen that with kerosene and turpentine. Then you take a piece of John de Conkah and Jockey Club [perfume] and a piece of saltpeter. (Jockey Club perfume?) Yes, Jockey Club, and then you take all that and you put it into a little new piece of paper, but I mean brown paper. Put it onto the brown paper first and then put it in - put the devil's - annimum [an- vil] dust. Put annimum dust in there with it. And then wrap it up in that brown paper [brown paper for black person, white paper for white person is the rule]. Wrap it to you. Wrap it right to you. And then put it in a brand-new piece of 'lastic [elastic]. And then you get a new spool of No.8 thread, and then you wrap that good. You wrap it to you. See, you wrap it to you. See, that's bringing you luck. Just wrap it to you. And then you get you a new needle that you've never used - out of a new case [package]. And then you use that brand-new thread and you sew it to you, you know, and make your wishes. You sew it to you. And then you takes that
[package] and tacks it onto your [elastic] belt. You know, that piece of [red]
flannen, you know, and you put that kerosene and turpentine on there, and then you put it round your waist, just wear right round your waist right next to your meat. That's to keep anybody from harming you.
(I see.)
Annimum - an-n- (Wait a minute - annirmum dust.) [I am making a final effort to record this vord correctly. Anim and various things until later in New Orleans I knew it was anvil dust.]
Entry 12246
You git you a assafidadee [asafetida] see, an' beat it up fine, an' put some turpentine in it, some Hearts Cologne. And git chew a piece of John de Conkah root, and cut dat up fine and sew it up tight, and wear it right around yo' neck, an' leave it lay right on yo' chest, and nothin' kin nevah harm yo', if somebody goin' poison you.
(Nothing will ever harm you, I see.)
Even if somebody give you [him] sompin to eat, it couldn't go into his stomach. His stomach like a stone.
Entry 12282
Well, whenevah yo' wanta tie up a person, yo' don't want 'em to have success, yo' put so many knots in a raw cotton thread an' put turpentine on it, an' yo' read ovah it de 22nd Psalms. Read ovah it nine days an' then yo' put that string right behin' there [points to door]. (Behind the door?) Yes.
Entry 1326
Jis' lak if somebody got a spell on me or yo' an' yo' wanta git it offa there, yo' understan'. Yo' kin jis' take dat gunpowder, dat black gunpowder. Ah think it's a number seven - seven-'leven somepin such. But anyhow, de black powder. Spread it on a papah an' po' yo' 'bout a teaspoonful of turpentine on it an' light de papah, an' when de papah git up to de powder de powder will blaze up. An' whosomevah put dat spell on yo', it will jump offa yo' back on dem. (Don't you put anything else on that paper besides that?) [I was probably thinking of a name or incantation. Intention would be sufficient.] Nuthin but de gunpowder an' turpentine.
Entry 1368
If you be having chills, you see, [you] kin take a piece of cord string and just as many chills as you done have, you just tie a knot in there and dip it in some turpentine and tie it back round yo' waist; if you done have five chills, you put five knots in that string there and tie it round yo' waist. That's going to stop them chills.
Entry 1585
Ah tell yo' 'bout dat now, Doc [see in Index, Doctor, author called]. If somepin wus placed tuh de foot of de step an' yo' stepped down - step ovah it, yo' kin be harmded. But still, after yo' live an' yo' say yo' feel lak yo' haunted, yo' won't need but one thing. Know whut dat is? (No, what is it?) Yo' ought'a know. Well, yo' jes' git chew a ten-cent bottle of turpentine an noint chure feet an' rub it down, an' say, "Well, ah don't need yo' no mo'." Throw it ovah yore left shoulder an' go on 'bout chure business.
(And as they walk away - that will take the pain away?)
Entry 2248
(What do they say about that?)
Well, now if you want a job and can't get no job, well now, you goes to these white people's house and ask them for a job. They'll turn their back on you. Well, you go back home and get you a piece of red flannel - red flannel cloth, tie three knots in it, tie it around you calf up here - right round down below your knee.
(Either foot?)
The left foot, uh-huh, and saturate it good in spirits of turpentine and you go the next day. You go there and they more than apt to give you a job.
Entry 2344
Get some turpentine and brown sugar. Put as many drops as you is old on this brown sugar and hold it in the palm of your hand whilst you're talking.
(Talking to the boss?) Yes. And that's luck for a job.
Entry 2345
Git a bottle of turpentine an' po' it outside de do' - run up an' down lak dat ovah yore do', an' dey won't come dere. If dey come in dey'll talk very nice.
(That is to keep the law away?)
Yes.
Entry 2347
Dat's 'cordin' to whut kinda luck yo' mean. Ah know de gamblin' luck an' whut bad luck is given on dat, if a man's a gambler, see. Well, yo' kin take some turpentine an' red peppah, mix it, an' black peppah, an' mix it together. Now, if a man got a lucky hand, you kin put dat in his pocket, it will turn his luck. Dat's fo' gamblin' luck.
Entry 3722
(Now what would a man have to do to get rid of that, if he wants tc regain his nature?) Bathe hisself, his person in sweet milk an' spirits of turpentine nine nights or nine mawnin's. An' it'll come back to him, natch'ly [naturally].
Entry 7299
Well, if a man kill someone. "Long in dem days dey had bloodhounds. Well, he'd git ovah to some of 'is friends house an' git some turpentine an' he'd 'noint the bottom of 'is foots an' he'd go tuh a cow path where de cow had took a dump an' he put his foot in dat cow stuff, fresh cow stuff. an' dat turpentine, an' de dog [trailing him] he'd wandah, nevah could [dog] do anythin' wit 'im.
(DID HE ANOINT HIS FEET IN ANY PARTICULAR WAY?)
Jes' straight out [so that he would move forward]. (Oh! He rubbed his feet straight out from the heel to the toe with turpen- tine.)
Entry 7327
Jes' lak if a man kill a man an' he wanta git away, he goes to de cem- etery an' gits some of dat graveyard dirt, an' turpentine an' put in 'is tracks, an' dey will nevah ketch 'im.
(Put it in whose tracks?)
In his own tracks.
The informant gives a hypothetical example. The interviewer asks whose tracks, and the informant replies 'In his own tracks'; the escape claim remains source-reported.
Entry 7330
If yo' done a crime an' yo' don't want de houn' tuh track yo', go to a graveyard an' git dat fresh dirt - lak a party's been bur-ried [buried], today git de fresh dirt. An' rub de bottom of yore foot wit some turpentine an' dat dirt an' de dog can't track yo' no fu'thah. Wal ah know fren' of me done dat his- self.
Entry 7351
Yes sir, eithah de red peppah or turpentine. An' well, when de dogs go to trailin' 'em, wherevah where yo' sprinkle dat red peppah down [the dogs stop].
Entry 11114
[Woman's] stocking, or the man's sock, you kin put 'em on a drift [not adrift] whereby taking the stocking and rinsing it, and getting the water from the stocking, and put it in a coconut with some turpentine, stopping the coconut tight and throwing it in the Mississippi River or any flowing stream - that'll give her a walking ambition. [For walking in connection with flowing river see No.lll13.]
(What's a cuckiner?)
Oh, one of those coconut what grows in Africa.
(Oh, a coconut! Oh! I see.)
Yeah.
Entry 11365
Turpentine and red pepper with excrement put in north side of tree to kill or burn victim's hind end.
Entry 1034
I had a - suffer with this myself. A lady went and got some - had a lizard and took the blood from this lizard and the boil of this lizard [the Water in which lizard was boiled] and took the boil of this lizard and mixed it with the blood.
(Mixed what with it?)
Of the boil - you see, had boiled the lizard low in hot water, and took the blood and put this in some whiskey and give to her by night - jes' like you was drinking liquor. And well, when she drink this liquor he took and had a lizard drin [drained into her] you might say. And she could feel somepin runnin' all through her head, jes' after taking a drink and well, when this would happen, she'd jes' get up and holler and she said somepin was runnin' all through her head. And this action was kept up for about - kept up for almost six months before they went to this - to my grand-daddy to see what was the matter with her. And so, well, they paid out a big doctor bill and the doctor couldn't - the more medicine they gave her, she just about go crazy. Well, he [qrand-daddy] told her what to do. He told her to actually take to go get a lizard and as many as she could and get the blood from those lizards and put some turpentine in and take some turpentine and salts - Epsom salts and drink this - actually drink it, and that stuff would run this out of her system. She actually done that and she got all right.
(She had to drink some of that lizard blood for that?)
She had to take that in order to get rid of it - to run it out of system.
Entry 1092
[The term Eve-and-Adam is more frequently used than Adam-and-Eve, a proper name for the plant, but what an informant means by either name I do not know - it could be a plant from six or seven genera. Since one informant calls this root (possibly a corm) Adam-and-Eve-and-Their Son, I would identify it as puttyroot, common name for Aplectrum hyemale, a North American orchid producing annually a solid corm, "two or three of which remain strung together." When there are two, we have Adam and Eve; when three, the son is added. This could suggest The Trinity or The Holy Family, but as often as I heard the plant named I remember the son once. Adam-and-Eve, like lodestone and some other objects, is one of these He-and-She ingredients - see Index.] Ah knows that. Ah had a cousin, she lived in Oil Town, Arkansas. She got poison, see. Dis woman had her howlin' [like a dog - see No. 775, p.256, and second cure under Dog in this subsection later]. Now, ah know this fo' a pus'nal fac'. She wus howlin' an' sometimes she jis' crawlin' on her knees, see. Stood up diff'rent times though. Mah uncle taken her tuh her daddy - he [daddy] taken her out heah tuh Newport, tuh Ca'Zine Dyer. He taken her out theah. She got some rattlesnake dust - ah nevah will fo'git this, an' she made some little bags an' she hung one undah dis arm an' one undah dis one, an' she went an' got some dat Eve-an'-Adam dust an' she place it on cousin right heah [demonstrates]. Now, mah cousin wus crazy - she wus stone crazy.
(Right on her breast?)
Yes. She wus crazy. One [bag] wus made outa rattlesnake dust an' one [bag] wus Eve-an'-Adam dust. Dis one right heah dat's Eve-an'-Adams' dust on yore chest, an' dat whut she put undah her arm dat wus rattlesnake dust yo' see. She put one undah each one of her arms. An' when she got that Eve-an'-Adams' dust, she put that little bag an swung it right there. An' she tole mah uncle tuh buy a bottle of turpentine an' say, "Now, fo' nine mawnin's straight yo' git up an' fix yore water in a washpan an' let her wash her han's fo' nine mawnin's straight an' throw it to de.east." An' mah cousin wus jis' crazy - she wus jis' howlin', she didn't have bita sense. An' when dat woman put that on her, she come back home an' she tole her mama, she say, "Ah feel lak a diff'rent pusson." Dat wus in Newport, [Arkansas]. Strictly brought her back to her min' an' she didn't have sense 'nuff even to entertain mama.
(How did he fix this water in the morning?)
Ah'll tell yo' whut chew do. See, yo' git some watah an' yo' put it in de pan an' yo' put that turpentine in there fo' nine mawnin's straight. Yo' see, yo' take it in yore han' jis' lak yo' goin' wash yore face - co'se lotta folks use a face towel but yo' use it jis' natural, yo' see. [For use it jis' natural, see also the Uncle Ben Mackey story, No. 918, p.337.] Rub it ovah yore han' and stroke it down ovah yore face an' throw it tuh de west. See, throw that tuh de west, an' yo' say, "Lawd, heah am ah. Take all mah troubles an' heal me, In de Name of de Father, Son an' Holy Ghost." Co'se ah wus with mah cousin when she do that an' she wus crazy. She wus jis' as crazy as a rud [red] lizard [see Index].
(When did this happen?)
Dis happen in 1929, Oil Town. An' ah nevah fo'git de woman's name dat did dat [spell]. Her name wus Lou T. [At a later date we shall meet Caroline Dyer again. See near end of my interview with Madam Collins of Memphis in Interview section.]
Entry 1304
You can take the chamber lye and mix spirits of turpentine with it and then put it on and boil it until it dries up. That'll swell you up. {This bewitched condition, retention of the urine which causes hollering spells, is cured as follows:] You go right out and get one of these old fox grapes - some calls them tangle vines. Cut it off just about as high as your privates. Then you bend it over and put that right into a jar - the piece that's in the ground you bend over and put in the jar - and let stay twenty-four hours. Then, whatever [juice] you find in jar, you take a bath [with it] all over. That'll kill any 'craft [witchcraft] and hoZlering spells.
Entry 2346
Mop in turpentine, bluestone an' dragon blood an' dat'll keep de law away; an' sprinkle lye aroun' yore house, aroun' de steps, all de way round de house.
Entry 7194
[Caffrey's interview will be found on Pp.1459-1470. There in an intro- ductory comment I give the reader a favorable opinion about him. The following rite was removed from his material years ago be- cause it concerned a man's vitality, dirty words back in those days, smelling of evil thoughts or deeds. Usually cases of so-called social diseases were left for a sex special- ist, but more reputable doctors like Caffrey Would accept vitality deficiency or impotence trouble. An early advertisement of "Father" Caffrey, when only 29 years old, appears among the ILLUSTRATIONS at end of Hoodoo, vol.2.] All right. I'll look that condition over. I'll look that condition over an I'll say, "What instances did you see that you tied up? You say, "Well, I' tied up." say, "I believe that I'm tied up in some way or other." Say, "I can't make connection with no other woman but my old lady." You see? Well, all right. I'll look that condition over an' then I would go to work an' I would fix up, I would get me a bottle of - let me, now. I get me a bottle of well water. See, vell water.
(Well water?)
Well water. Mix that with ammonia. You understand me? Then I will go to pork an' I put some antiseptic in that an' I will have you to take some baths. You get the idea about that? An' have you to take baths three times a week. An' I'll get you Boston Compeller an' make an ingredient of that.
(What did you get?)
Boston Compeller.
(Boston what?)
Boston Compeller.
(What's that?)
That's to give you vitality. That's Boston Compeller, you see.
(What does it look like?)
Well, that's somepin like a oil that you get from the drug store.
(I see. All right, go ahead.)
Boston Compeller. Then you get about a - a small bottle of turpentine an' yo' get a small bottle of antiseptic. You get the idea about that? An' I fix that up and then I go to work an' I go out into the country somewhere an' I'll try to get in contact with some milkman or another at a milk dairy that got a cow that give rich milk. You see? Then I put about two tablespoonful of sugar in that. Get the idea about that? And in putting two tablespoons of sugar in that, I'll try to get [something]. [He is acting out everything.] [He claps his hands, uhispering "All right several times.] And then [get] an ingredient of some kind of creosote and shake that well, you see. And you'll take that three time a day. And in taking that three times a day I'll come to you and then you'll get you a bar of soap; you see, that Octagon soap, you see, and you wash yourself three times a day with that: at six in mawn- in', nine in the mawnin, and six in the evening, an' that will reduce that con- dition in you and you can go anywhere you want to go.
(I see. What was the name of that soap?)
Octagon soap.
(I see.)
Now, what ingredient I left out, but I'll bring it right back. You put about, sasewhere round about three tablespoons of whiskey or gin into that. See, that bring that vitality back.
(That restores a man to his vitality?)
His vitality.
(The woman can't keep him tied up. I see.)
Entry 10746
They say it'll stop your periods.
(Well, how do they do that?)
They say they take your chamber lye and put turpentine in it...
[While machine is off I ask for repetition.]
They take chamber lye and they put turpentine in it and they put cayenne red epper [to distinguish cayenne pepper from garden red peppers ground up] in it and there's some way they do with that that stops you. (Well, do you know how they fix it up?) Yeah, I seen it. (How?) They takes your chamber lue and put the cayenne pepper and the red pepper [the 2 peppers now separated] and they put it in a bottle and they bury it and that stops the periods on you.
(You heard this stops your water?)
Your periods.
(Oh, it stops your periods?)
Yeah, and it dries you up - just drift you away.
Entry 12506
Use a poultice of turpentine and flour, and drink red-oak bark tea to remove insects someone has put in you. [Wilmington 231:1.]
Entry 6195
Jes' take - lak I'd be havin' a woman or somepin.
(TALK A LITTLE LOUDER, PLEASE.)
Ah say, jes' lak ah'd be havin' a woman or somepin lak dat. Well, she could - ah could be on relief or somepin lak dat, yo' see, an' she may didn't want me to quit 'er, yo' see. She'd go to work an' take some of mah hair whilst ah'm asleep or somepin an' take it out to a tree or prob'ly lak dat, an' take a nail or, yo' know, a augah or somepin an' bore a hole in dere jes' deep enough to get dat hair in dere. Well, any time yo' put it in dere, yo' gotta put it ovah six inches. Dat will make it roun' about nine inches deep lak dat. [Why 9 inches, I do not understand.] An' fill dat hole back up, but instead of puttin' back de [auger shavings], why yo' fill it up wit stuff dey usely [usually] calls famnel.
(Flannel?)
Flannel, an' den on top of de flannel, why yo' take turpentine an' turpentine dat flannel good, an' put it in yore hair an' drive it back in dat tree. Lots of times dat runs people crazy. De same thing if dey got some of yore clothes.
Entry 6230
If dey git hold-a some-a yuh hair outa yuh head, or prob'ly from any- dere about chew where dey could git hair - from undah yuh arms, maybe yuh pri- vate or somewhere. Yuh kin take dat hair an' go tuh a tree, an' yuh kin bo' a hole right in dat tree. See, say fer instance deep enough, say fo' or five fches deep on de north side of dat tree. An' git yuh a peg jis' tuh fit dat hole. Yuh put turpentine on dat hair an' put it in dat hole. An' take dat peg a' drive it on dat an' leave 'bout nine licks tuh covah dat peg up. An' go dere evah mawnin' between six an' nine a'clock an' give one lick on dat peg. De first mawnin' yuh start, dey starts wit a headache an' fin'ly - evah mawnin' he g dere an' hit it fo' nine mawnin's. An' evah mawnin' yuh hit it, yuh git wuce orse] an' wuce wit dat headache. Hit got so severe sometime - de last mawnin he hit it, yuh mind will leave yuh. Yuh supposed tuh die, CUZ HE DRIVE YUH UP IN DAT TREE AN' YUH DON'T KNOW WHERE IT IS, AN' IT'S GONE, AN' YUH GROWS INTUH DAT SAP [hair grows in tree, see No.5804f.].
Entry 590
Yeah, you kin git a piece of lodestone and you kin go to de drug store and git you some turpentine - not de one you drink. You know some turpentine you gits you kin drink it - put on sugar or something like dat and take it, but chew don't git dat kind. You git de kind you can't - you see, you rub wit it but you can't drink it. Well, you kin take dat and if anybody tryin' to do you anything you know, you take dat and sulphur and burn it and dey couldn't do you nothing - dey couldn't stand you, dey wouldn't have nothing to do with you.
(What do you do with that lodestone?)
Well, dat lodestone, it just let you know when anything critical or wrong - you see, it just keep movin'.
(What do you mean?)
Oh, well, dat turpentine - you keep dat lodestone and den at times you jes' take dat turpentine and wet it [lodestone], chew know. And den jes' like if anybody's tryin' to do anything to you or putting down anything for yuh - well, dat lodestone, it would move, you know. You could feel it movin' in yo' pocket or somepin like dat and then you kin jus' rub yourself jest all over, you know, with dat turpentine and just burn it with sulphur an' old shoe, and that will kill that whatsomever it is.
Entry 700
In some cases you kin take some dragon's blood and spirits of turpentine and a little silver and mix it all up together and make a pill out of it - kind of a ball. Give 'em one of them every half a hour from - until they have taken three, six or nine. When they have taken three or de first one, they will quiet down - three they will become normal and go to sleep. When they have taken the nine, they will sleep good for a while and then they will wake up and wanta vomit or go to the toilet. Then you take a little sweet milk, which I won't say what it is you put in it - something you use - jest one something that yo' put in that sweet milk and give 'em a drink of it. An' they no quicker then [than] swallow it then in the space of five or ten seconds they start vomiting. They bring it up. Well, now in the course of time these things are in yuh, de flesh has a tendency to bring alive that powder in de same form of the animal - hatch it out. And when it comes out of yo' it come out as though it were young antses or young Wasps jest hatched - have no use of they wings, they tender and all that.
Entry 1369
That's another thing in chills that you kin do. You kin take a cord string and fit it around your waist, that is, leave it long enough to tie. And if you having any chills or anything like that, you put it down in turpentine and pull it out - dip it down with your finger and tie it around your waist. It's a sure cure for chills and fever. It'll re'lly break 'em up that will, too. Put nine knots in it - see, nine knots and if you do it, you ain't goin' to have no more chills. You might have one more but after it you won't have no more. Wear it nine days around your waist and after that you kin take it off and burn it up. Them chills is gone. [Cf. No. 1019, p.390.]
Entry 1370
For backache you take a cord string and you tie nine knots in it and get you a bottle of turpentine and wet that string good in that turpentine and wear that around your waist. And that turpentine will kill the pains in your back.
Entry 1371
Git chew a string an' tie nine knots into that string an' dip it in de turpentine an' tie it roun' dey haid an' dat a good cure fo' headache. Ah've tried that, yes. [Cf. No.1024, p.391.]
Entry 1399
They say you take nine needles and put 'em in a bottle of turpentine and you can wear it or either put it down under your bed and nobody won't hurt you.
Entry 1411
Then I seed a woman taking a frog from a woman. She got some peach tree leaves and she boiled them until they was real, real strong, and then she'd taken table salt and put in it and saltpeter and bathed her. And she put twenty drops of turpentine in that and give her a dose of castor oil behind it and it passed through her. (Now, what did she make to wash her with? And what did she give her to take inside, now?) Peach tree leaves - just an ordinary peach tree. Well, she just got those leaves and she boiled them until they were real, real, real strong; and then after you know, she got 'em boiled clean and cooled out, she put twenty drops of turpentine in it, and she put so much saltpeter in it and table salt. Did you understand me? [I was supposed to be somewhat deaf - for recording purposes.]
(I understand.)
Then she bathed her with it and also give it to her to take.
(Oh, there's just one liquid - you bathe in it and you drink some?)
Yes.
(I understand now. I see. And that got these frogs out.)
And afterwards she give her purgative behind it, and it worked it all through her.
Entry 1586
Dey say if someone bury somepin roun' yore house lak dat an' yo' got a idea who bury it roun' dere - yo' lookin' fo' someone tuh bury somepin lak dat roun' yore house - always keep yore bottle of turpentine an' keep yore shoes dampened inside with turpentine an' it'll nevah hurt chew. Yo' kin walk ovah it all yo' want an' it won't hurt chew.
Entry 1587
If you thought someone was tryin' to harm you, well I tell you about as good a thing you could do, if you thought somebody was trying to harm you. You just go to the drug store and get some turpentine, put nine drops in each shoe for nine mornings, and then get some aloes and work your stomach out good - cause nothing like that can't stand aloes.
Entry 1589
Well, fo' chills yo' take a raw cotton string an' wet it in turpentine, an' jes' lak yo' had two chills or three chills yo' - jes' as many chills as yo' have had - yo' tie that many knots in de string an' wear it round yore waist an' de chills will be gone.
Entry 1590
If anybody harm yo' or try to hurt chew in some way, yo' take a cotton string. Take dat cotton string an' yo' kin tie it in nine knots, see. An' yo' bind it around yore waist an' keep it thoroughly moist wit turpentine. Dat wus good.
Entry 1632
All yo' have tuh do is take some chamber lye an' red peppah an' nine drops of turpentine an' some salt an' take yo' a halfa can of potash - probably a can of potash an' git up soon dat mawnin' an' sprinkle it all de way around yore house an' under yore step. Den dere's no way fo' no roots tuh take effect of yo' at all.
Entry 2181
You kin take a red onion and put nine drops of spirits of turpentine on it and a half teaspoonful of salt, and a piece of homespun, and take dat, wear it on you. And beat it up real fine, if you're in any trouble [with the law]. I was goin' wit a man and he didn't like dat [using a whole onion], and he beat it up fine and squeezed dat juice in his shoe.
Entry 3099
[Pauline lived on an island 6 miles from Brunswick, Georgia, where I Was then working. What an opportunity to have explored that marvelous coastline as I had done at Beaufortl But I resisted the tempta- tion, refusing to break my rule - not to interview white doctors. I have two accounts of Pauline, both taken from broken interviews. In the first, we had been talking about Pauline - I am unable to find this - and then later I ask the following question.]
(Are there any white people that work here now?)
[Informant returns to Pauline.]
She lives on Bly's Island.
(Oh! She is still here. I don't want to talk to her but I just wondered.)
[Brunswick, Ga., (1201), C400:7 = 2017:7.]
iTne second account of Pauline comes from a man who has already given us in- formation about Doctor Buzzard - see 3071, p.893.] A white woman.
(What was her name?)
Miss Pauline.
(Where does she live?)
She lives heah at Bly's Island, a large island right cross tuh de rivah on de road to Jacksonville.
(Oh, just near Brunswick?)
Yes sir - six miles out chere [on the road] tuh Jacksonville. Well, mah mother done taken me out dere. Well, soon as ah got dere she set down an' talk tuh me. She asked me if ah evah worked any place an' ah tole her where ah worked. She asked me, "Did yo' have any enemies round dere?" Ah said, one woman wus a cook dere an' she wanted concernin' me tuh have somepin tuh do wit her - me an' her had tuh make beds in dis, yo' know, to dis home ever' mawnin' together. Ah wouldn't say nuthin to her. She said ah tried tuh play cute. She de one dat put down de stuff at de back gate of dis white tourist home where we were workin', an' ah step on it wit mah right fut gettin' ovah de fence. She done put it right whar ah got ovah de fence at ever' mawnin'. Me an' her wus de first ones dere. So after she seen me - see, ah tried to step on mah left fut, if it done kilt me. See, after two yeahs an' a half ah wus dried up to 135 pounds. She [Pauline] tole mama tuh let me come dere an' she would give me medicine. She taken sulphur, turpentine an' some kinda cocklespur weed - cocklebur weed - taken de cocklebur weed an' made a medicine out of it. [Three ingredients.] So she made a medicine an' ah started to taken dat cocklebur weeds an' sulphur an' turpentine. An' tole me tuh wear three pieces of Irish potatoes - white potatoes in each one of my shoes. So after dey figured - it came on to 'fect mah othah fut an' mah hips, yo' see, an' ah wus dead from heah down [demonstrates].
(From your hips down.)
Yeah, from de hips down. So after dat ah wore de Irish potato an' thing. an' ah begin tuh git bettah. So she tole me not tuh drink no whiskey. So ah stop off from drinkin' some whiskey an' got tuh walkin' an' ah put down de crutches. Yo' know, ah could walk wit de walkin' cane. Ah put down de crutches. So ah begin tuh drink whiskey at night wit de othah boys roun' heah. So dat throw me agin. Dey had tuh take me dere agin. She tole me ah had been drinkin'. Well, when ah got dere dat time, it had done came up into mah shoulders heah - see [demonstrates], it had me, ah'm daid in mah left ahrm - come up mah left side. So she had tuh work fast. Dey had tuh keep me out dere tuh her house fo' three days. So we had tuh pay her wit three pieces of silver money - ah had tuh find three silver dollahs somewhere. She charge only three dollahs - don't care how big de case wus - had tuh pay her wit three silver pieces of money. That concernin' de three links of chain also.
(Of Mary - that Mary wore around her neck?)
["Dat concerning de three linked chain dat Mary wore pertaining tuh de Bible" - from his interview in INTERVIEWS.] Yes sir, dat [represents] three silver dollahs dat ah had tuh pay her wit. De firs' time paid her wit a silver dollah, an' after ah went three times, had tuh pay her de three silver dollahs. So dat's de whole case of it, until ah taken up dis last bottle of medicine. Ah didn't drink any mo' an' dey said ah wus cured of it. Den ah had a fren'. He wus poison by a girl on a piece of cake. But he wus crowin' lak a rooster - jumpin' up an' down. An' ah tole him concernin' dis same lady - tole his mothah. An' she taken him out dere an' she pay her with three silver piece of money - carried him three times. See, each time it wus a dollah. When she carried him de last time, dat's when she gave him some kinda medicine an' out of his throat came a frog, little small wiggle-tail, little small snake. [Three things came out of his throat.]
Entry 3621
Den yo' kin take a piece of cord string an' put nine knots in it. Git chew some turpentine an' put it up an' down in dere an' put dat roun' yore waist. Yo' can't git up a courage tuh have an intahco'se wit no woman.
(Well, don't you do something with that string first?)
Jes' only put - no, dat's anothah diff'ren' one altogethah. But see, dat nine knots, an' worked in dat turpentine, put it roun' yore waist. Yo'll have a hard time, yo' know, to git courage fo' 'er.
Entry 3622
She kin take a cord string, see, an' evah time - tie nine knots in it an' evah time she have some dealin' wit 'er husban' put a little dat on dat cord string, see. An' it's a little turpentine ah think goes wit it, see. An' den he won't have any nature fo' any othah woman.
(Where does she keep that string?)
Around her waist.
(She ties those knots in it?)
Yessuh, ties dose knots in it - see, until she gits nine.
(She doesn't measure him with that string or anything of that sort?)
[My leading question here makes informant's answer measure from a distance useless.] She gen'ly [generally] measure from a distance first an' den ties de knot in dere.
Entry 6921
Silkweed, silver, sulphur, and 3 drops of turpentine boiled tuhgethah; teaspoonful 3 times a day.
Entry 7300
Well, yo' kin take some spirits of turpentine an' wet chure shoe wit spirits of turpentine or undah yore feet, an' yo' kin - he won't bothah yo'. Eithah yo' kin run through a cow lot where a cow pasture is, an' dey ain't comin no fu'thah an' dat. De dogs cain't track yo'.
Entry 7301
(You mean, if they put dogs on your trail?)
Yes. All right. If yo' figure dey goin' to put dogs on yore trail, if yo' can jes' make it out of town, anywheres, jes' git a little turpentine an' put it in yore shoe. All right, de first place yo' can, git out in de woods where a cow at - fresh cow's manure dere. Yo' step in it an' yo' can walk right on anywhere yo' want to. Dere's nobody goin' to bothah yo'.
(Dogs won't track you?)
Naw, de dogs ain't goin' to track yo' atall.
Entry 7329
About de graveyard? Say if dey should do anythin' in de city an' dey wanta dodge de law or keep de dogs from trackin' 'em, dey go to de graveyard an' git de graveyard dirt an' put it in dey shoe; an' dey sprinkle a little turpen- tine, yo' know raw turpentine, in dere an' de dogs couldn't track 'em.
The informant describes a hypothetical attempt to evade pursuit using graveyard dirt with turpentine. The tracking claim remains source-reported.
Entry 7346
All right, if a man kills anybody an' he wants tuh run away an' dey can't ketch 'im, he gits down an' he takes jes' a little bit of turpentine an' puts it in de bottom of his shoe, an' he walks on de ground till he git to a railroad an' he pull off all his clothes an' throw it all 'way. Well, dem dogs cain't follah him a bit fu'thah den dat railroad. When he gits on de railroad, dey cain't follah him a bit fu'thah den dat railroad track.
(Why couldn't they follow the railroad track?)
Cuz dat's cold - see, dey cain't.
Entry 12024
To keep his love, woman takes piece of his clothes, graveyard dirt, soaks them in vinegar and turpentine, wraps tight, seals in jar, and buries under steps. [Richmond 341:6.]
Entry 7345
If yo' wuz tuh git outa jail or even if yo' wuz tuh broke jail or any- thin' lak dat, outa any place lak dat, yo' could put turpentine in yore sock an' throw it down an' dey nevah could find yo'. Dey'll nevah git on yore trail or nuthin. Dat's de only kind ah know.
(You put turpentine in the sock and do what?)
Put turpentine in de sock - yo' know, jes' dampen it wit turpentine.
Entry 687
Well, they take a snake, whatsoever it be - if they put a snake in you, it'll be a snake; if you git a frog, it'll be a frog; if a bug, why it'll be a bug. Well, I've seen 'em git de bugs, frogs and snakes, put 'em on a tin and burn 'em up. And after you burn 'em up, you take de bone from de snake and dat frog, you know, mash dat ashes up and make a powder out of it. And they'll put dat in your whiskey or in your tea or in your coffee or whatsoever they kin git it in, jis' so they kin git it in you. And nine day after it git in you, you'll begin to feel a little pain aroun' yore stomach, and dat stuff begin to be full of germs. And if you don't git somepin and git it out right away, inside twenty- nine day you'll begin to pass these bugs and frogs and snakes.
(How can you get that out?)
Why, you kin git silkweed [= milkweed]. You take that silkweed wit a quart of Water and you boil it and you put that turpentine in it.
Entry 7347
"Scapin' convicts or somepin lak dat, dey use turpentine to escape from de convict camps, things lak dat, to keep de dogs from trailin' 'em. Well, dey take de turpentine an' put it on de bottom of dere feet an' dey leave, den de dogs won't trail 'em wit dat turpentine.
Entries from source headings
These entries are listed under the following headings in the source volume:
- Sloan's Linament and Turpentine — Volume 1, entries 2646. Source context: THE DOCTORS AT WORK: REPORTS FROM LAYMEN → BUSINESS AND CUSTOMERS.
- 1 KNOT EACH TIME STRING WRAPPED; 9 TIMES ABOUT SANITARY CLOTH; PUT TURPENTINE ON AND BURN — Volume 3, entries 3616. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SEXUAL IMPOTENCE → CAUSES OF SEXUAL IMPOTENCE → KNOTS AND TYING → KNOTS NINE.
- TURPENTINE - 9 KNOTS — Volume 3, entries 3619. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SEXUAL IMPOTENCE → CAUSES OF SEXUAL IMPOTENCE → KNOTS AND TYING → KNOTS NINE.
- WISH ONCE - 9 KNOTS IN STRING - FEED TURPENTINE — Volume 3, entries 3627. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SEXUAL IMPOTENCE → CAUSES OF SEXUAL IMPOTENCE → KNOTS AND TYING → KNOTS NINE.
- OAK TREE EAST SIDE - GUM TREE NORTH SIDE - TURPENTINE — Volume 3, entries 3780. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SEXUAL IMPOTENCE → CURES FOR SEXUAL IMPOTENCE.
- HICKORY TREE - SALT - RED PEPPER - TURPENTINE — Volume 3, entries 4459. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → EXCREMENT.
- TURPENTINE - DIP PIECE OF OLD SOCK OR CLOTHES INTO; TIE ROUND RIGHT ARM — Volume 3, entries 5054. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SWEAT → SOCKS AND STOCKINGS.
- TURPENTINE 10-15 DROPS - ON INSOLE - BURY; OWNER OF INSOLE WILL HAVE ALL SORTS OF PAINS — Volume 4, entries 5268. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SWEAT → SHOES.
- TURPENTINE AND DIRT INSIDE SHOE OF BOSS — Volume 4, entries 5269. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SWEAT → SHOES.
- SALT - SULPHUR - TURPENTINE - 9 TRACKS - 1 EACH MORNING — Volume 4, entries 5636. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SWEAT → FOOT TRACK.
- TURPENTINE — Volume 4, entries 5737. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → SWEAT → FOOT TRACK.
- BACKWARDS JUMP OVER CORPSE - THEN TURPENTINE ON FEET — Volume 4, entries 7276. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- COW MANURE AND TURPENTINE — Volume 4, entries 7298. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- GRAVEYARD DIRT AND TURPENTINE — Volume 4, entries 7326. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- GRAVEYARD DIRT - TURPENTINE - COW MANURE — Volume 4, entries 7331. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- TURPENTINE — Volume 4, entries 7344. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- TURPENTINE IN CROSS MARK AT FORKS OF ROAD — Volume 4, entries 7348. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- TURPENTINE AND GASOLINE — Volume 4, entries 7349. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- TURPENTINE AND RED PEPPER — Volume 4, entries 7350. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- TURPENTINE - SALT - RED LIQUID IN BOTTLE; LEFT HAND - LEFT SHOE - LEFT SIDE OF ROAD; WITCHCRAFT WOMAN CHARGED FUGITIVE $35 — Volume 4, entries 7352. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → MURDER → HOW MURDERER CAN ESCAPE.
- WRIST BONE: FROM EVIL PERSON WITH POLICE RECORD; GOT KILLED - 3 HICKORY STICKS CROSSED - SET ON; DE DEAD POT - A FIRE - TURPENTINE - LINSEED OIL; DEMAND WITH CONTROLLING POWER EVIL SPIRIT TO KILL — Volume 4, entries 8054. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → DEATH AND BURIAL AND GRAVEYARD → COFFIN - DOLL BABY - BURIAL - BONES → BONES FROM THE DEAD → TYPES OF BONES FROM THE DEAD.
- (25) TURPENTINE REPLACES COCONUT JUICE — Volume 4, entries 8532. Source context: THE PHYSICAL HUMAN BODY ITSELF → DEATH AND BURIAL AND GRAVEYARD → THREE SUBSTITUTES FOR HUMAN BODY → NAME.
- THREE INGREDIENTS: KEROSENE - PEROXIDE - TURPENTINE — Volume 4, entries 9159. Source context: ADDITIONAL RITES AND BELIEFS → COURT CASES.
- TURPENTINE INTO EMPTY EGGSHELL FROM WHICH INSIDE; REMOVED THROUGH HOLE - BURY WHERE PERSON WALKS — Volume 4, entries 9406. Source context: ADDITIONAL RITES AND BELIEFS → THE AMAZING CHICKEN EGG.
- SALT [= FISH BRINE] - RED PEPPER - GINGER - TURPENTINE; AT DOORSTEP TO MAKE PERSON MOVE — Volume 5, entries 9603. Source context: ADDITIONAL RITES AND BELIEFS → SALT AND ITS COMBINATIONS.
- TURPENTINE - OLIVE OIL - SALT: 3 INGREDIENTS; ON: SOMETHING BELONGING TO BOSS - PUT WHERE; HE MUST WALK OVER IT - YOU WILL GET THE JOB — Volume 5, entries 9712. Source context: ADDITIONAL RITES AND BELIEFS → SALT AND ITS COMBINATIONS.
- JOHN DE CONKAH ROOT - CUT UP FINE - PUT ON IT HEARTS; COLOGNE AND TURPENTINE - SEW INTO BAG - WEAR AROUND; NECK - STOMACH LIKE A STONE - NOTHING CAN HARM YOU — Volume 5, entries 12246. Source context: "CHANNEL DE WORLD".