Page:The International Folk-Lore Congress of the World's Columbian Exposition, Chicago, July, 1893.djvu/387

Rh figure, or rude likeness to the human form, made of mud from the mouth of a crayfish's hole:

"Old Master, now is the time to keep the promise you made. Curse him as I curse him, spoil him as I spoil him. I ask it in the name of the god."

In this case there is strength in numbers. The words must be repeated four times four times four (4 x 4 x 4), the "great," or invincible number.

One Voodoo told me that he believed that the Old Boy's wife was the sister to Old Grandfather Rattlesnake, a relative whom he "cunjered" into being, but my informant could not or would not adduce any proof of this.

A more important female deity is the moon.

In the old, old times, we are told, when Old Grandfather Rattlesnake was still visible to his followers, it was the custom of the Voodoos to build great fires, as much for illuminating purposes as to develop strength of body. Now Old Sun hated Grandfather, and dreaded the power of his sorcery; so he took all the fire and pent it up in a rock and set a very terrible woman boogger, with a knife in her hand, to guard the rock. The darkness of the night was so very dense that it was necessary to have some sort of luminary for the hours when Old Grandfather and his circle worked and Old Sun slept. The Frog offered herself as the light of the night, and was accordingly skinned and set in the sky. For illumination she answered very well, and in addition exhibited her power as a witch by controlling the growth of plants and animals and the movements of waters. This was well, but it was ill that her silvery light was cold and did not strengthen the body like fire. Fire must be obtained, but how? Again a frog volunteered: this time, a male. Thereupon, Old Grandfather raised by the power of his magic a very terrible storm, with rushing winds and great waters pouring, and awful thunderbolts striking, and while the attention of the boogger who guarded the rock where Fire hid was taken up with the rage of the elements. Grandfather, by the power of a cunjer-stone which he spat from his royal jaws, split the rock. A great spark flew out. Frog at once seized it in his jaws and started, "with leaps as long as the leap of flame to dry grass," to a place outside the storm, where heaped leaves, and twigs,