The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-04-14
In New York
Rx PAUL HARRISON

New York.-Arter nine days wandering in Harlem, rnis column seemed to have reported its full quota of negro folklore and witch doctoring and such. But now there is going to be some addenda, because 1t turns out that l know an amateur, though celebrated. practictioner of "hoodoo" charms.
 He is Ben Lucien Burman, whom literary critics insist upon identifying as "the new Mark Twain" because they like his Steamboat Round the Bend" and his "Mississippi." After collecting material for book in the Deep South, he goes over to Morocco or Algeria. to write it.
 In Africa Abou Ben Burman is considered a. very great marapou because he has described such magic contrivances as the x-ray and the microscope. Also 1t Is known that he successfully out witched the Aisawa, a fanatical and quite-mad sect of self-tortur- CTS and glass eaters. The Burmans had discovered that their native cook, Zahoura, had sworn eternal fealty to the Aisawa because they had cured her rheumatism. Dan- gerous as 1t was to monkey with native religions, 1t seemed less dangerous than the chance of find ing ground glass in the omelet some morning. So with signs and incantations, a bit of tattooing made of a ball of tallow and a hair with iodine, and a special charm from her head, Burman convinced the woman that she no longer was under the spell of the cult. And next time the Aisawa drums throbbed she apparently didn't even hear them.
 ":
 Acting the Doctor
 Down on the Mississippi Bur- mans witch-doctoring career be- gan with the problem of servant in the home of his friends. The negro had become so jittery that he wasn't bit of good around the house; he. was sure an even hoodoo doctor was putting spells on him Burman told the servant he'd fix that all right, because he'd learnej about black magic in Africa. So he whittled a little wooden cross to be worn under the negro's hat, and made up a little verse to be recited ten times day. The charms worked.
 One of his greatest triumphs was curing steamboat rouSter named Dave of an urge for gam bling. This called for another verse Gall charms practically have to have a rhyme connected with them) and a red capsule of a very bitter powder (you can guess what) to be worn on Q string around his neck. Whenever Dave wanted to gamble he was to taste the powder, and if 1t was bitter that was @ sure sign he'd lose all his money. If he ever started to gamble he was to look at his right hand, and if it trembled that was another very bad sign.
 We'll, the powder always.
 tasted bitter, and his hand always tremblcd, and Dave hasn't lost his wages since.
 Novel Stun
 vBurman has collected hundreds | of superstitions which at one time or another will all be grist for his writings. To catch witch l es, for example, 1t is only neces- i sary to so to sleep with a mosquito net around one's head. It seems a witch has to go in and out each mesh before 1t can grab it's victim so by morning 1t gets all tired a ou, dnoa a 'as,ea .:a,,r,h .unner, 2 s saying no word and working with your back to the stove. This is g common belief in Harlem ]. .ss
 To find anything that is lost you touch . grand-daddy-
 lOng-legs with stick. and l the first leg the spider lifts k will point the direction in
 which you must search ;,
 A piece of rope used in hang
 ing Is q powerful charm for goot
 Snail writing will answer any
 question if you can find somebod,
 who can read it A horrible
 ceremony with black cat is re
 quired to make person invisible and invisibility is believed to per
 init the commission Of a lot Q
 crimes To cure sore throat get the shoe of a man who neve
 has seen his father, i'll the sho'
 with water, and then gargle
 For getting even with an enemy
 bury the dust of Q long-dead snak'
 where the enemy will walk over it
 The snake will come up and ltv'
 inside the epemy's leg. White doc
 tors may call these snakes vari
 cose veins. but hoodoo peopl' | v<r u<.x.r Arz f1 4 l Parisians surprised Brittany. where the peasantry planes the Daladiei