Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 26, 1915.djvu/282

 272 Obeah in the West Indies.

In the meantime Dolly, fearing, it is presumed, that from the paucity of the evidence against them these two men might be discharged and their evidence utilised against himself, volunteered to give evidence for the prosecution to show that these two articles — asafoetida and quicksilver — apparently harmless enough in themselves, were real "instru- ments of obeah." It was, of course, however, then too late. The Sergeant-Major kindly reduced into writing for my benefit the statement which Dolly had made to him. It was to the effect that the skull had been brought to him by another man ; that he had dressed it with the horse-hair and metal band ; that the brass chain and piece of bone attached were intended for a sick girl, who should wear it around her neck as necklaces are worn by women ; that turpentine and vinegar form part of the obeah man's stock- in-trade ; that the man who took him the skull also took him the turpentine and vinegar, which were used by the man under his (Dolly's) supervision; that if mixed by any other man than an obeah man it would be useless ; that the mixture was to be applied as a lotion to the sick girl, who was a daughter of the bearer of the skull ; that asafoetida was a dangerous " instrument of obeah," it being used as a poison by obeah men; that if smoked from a pipe by an obeah man through openings or crevices in a dwelling- house the occupants would be rendered unconscious ; that he (Dolly) never used such dangerous things ; that he was a firm believer in spirits, and could successfully banish them ; that the skull with the metal (silver }) band and horse-hair, etc., on it was intended to banish spirits from the house of the man who took him the skull ; that this man's sick daughter would die if he (Dolly) did not drive away the spirit which was the cause of her illness ; that the skull was to be buried outside the entrance door to the house in order to keep off the spirit ; that the silver band on it was intended as a bribe to "buy the spirit"; that the spirit would not be kept off unless bought with silver,