The Conjure Woman | Page 5

off'n him, seein' ez he did n' know nuffin erbout it tel he done et de
grapes.
"Sho nuff, it rain de nex' day, en de oberseah went ober ter Aun'
Peggy's wid Henry. En Aun' Peggy say dat bein' ez Henry did n' know
'bout de goopher, en et de grapes in ign'ance er de conseq'ences, she
reckon she mought be able fer ter take de goopher off'n him. So she
fotch out er bottle wid some cunjuh medicine in it, en po'd some out in
a go'd fer Henry ter drink. He manage ter git it down; he say it tas'e like
whiskey wid sump'n bitter in it. She 'lowed dat 'ud keep de goopher
off'n him tel de spring; but w'en de sap begin ter rise in de grapevimes
he ha' ter come en see her ag'in, en she tell him w'at e's ter do.
"Nex' spring, w'en de sap commence' ter rise in de scuppernon' vime,
Henry tuk a ham one night. Whar'd he git de ham? I doan know; dey
wa'n't no hams on de plantation 'cep'n' w'at 'uz in de smoke-house, but I
never see Henry 'bout de smoke-house. But ez I wuz a-sayin', he tuk de
ham ober ter Aun' Peggy's; en Aun' Peggy tole 'im dat w'en Mars
Dugal' begin ter prune de grapevimes, he mus' go en take 'n scrape off
de sap whar it ooze out'n de cut een's er de vimes, en 'n'int his ball head
wid it; en ef he do dat once't a year de goopher would n' wuk agin 'im
long ez he done it. En bein' ez he fotch her de ham, she fix' it so he kin
eat all de scuppernon' he want.
"So Henry 'n'int his head wid de sap out'n de big grapevime des ha'f
way 'twix' de quarters en de big house, en de goopher nebber wuk agin
him dat summer. But de beatenes' thing you eber see happen ter Henry.
Up ter dat time he wuz ez ball ez a sweeten' 'tater, but des ez soon ez de
young leaves begun ter come out on de grapevimes, de ha'r begun ter
grow out on Henry's head, en by de middle er de summer he had de

bigges' head er ha'r on de plantation. Befo' dat, Henry had tol'able good
ha'r 'roun' de aidges, but soon ez de young grapes begun ter come,
Henry's ha'r begun to quirl all up in little balls, des like dis yer reg'lar
grapy ha'r, en by de time de grapes got ripe his head look des like a
bunch er grapes. Combin' it did n' do no good; he wuk at it ha'f de night
wid er Jim Crow[1], en think he git it straighten' out, but in de mawnin'
de grapes 'ud be dere des de same. So he gin it up, en tried ter keep de
grapes down by havin' his ha'r cut sho't.
[Footnote 1: A small card, resembling a currycomb in construction, and
used by negroes in the rural districts instead of a comb.]
"But dat wa'n't de quares' thing 'bout de goopher. When Henry come ter
de plantation, he wuz gittin' a little ole an stiff in de j'ints. But dat
summer he got des ez spry en libely ez any young nigger on de
plantation; fac', he got so biggity dat Mars Jackson, de oberseah, ha' ter
th'eaten ter whip 'im, ef he did n' stop cuttin' up his didos en behave
hisse'f. But de mos' cur'ouses' thing happen' in de fall, when de sap
begin ter go down in de grapevimes. Fus', when de grapes 'uz gethered,
de knots begun ter straighten out'n Henry's ha'r; en w'en de leaves begin
ter fall, Henry's ha'r 'mence' ter drap out; en when de vimes 'uz bar',
Henry's head wuz baller 'n it wuz in de spring, en he begin ter git ole en
stiff in de j'ints ag'in, en paid no mo' 'tention ter de gals dyoin' er de
whole winter. En nex' spring, w'en he rub de sap on ag'in, he got young
ag'in, en so soopl en libely dat none er de young niggers on de
plantation could n' jump, ner dance, ner hoe ez much cotton ez Henry.
But in de fall er de year his grapes 'mence' ter straighten out, en his
j'ints ter git stiff, en his ha'r drap off, en de rheumatiz begin ter wrastle
wid 'im.
"Now, ef you 'd 'a' knowed ole Mars Dugal' McAdoo, you 'd 'a' knowed
dat it ha' ter be a mighty rainy day when he could n' fine sump'n fer his
niggers ter do, en it ha' ter be a mighty little hole he could n' crawl thoo,
en ha' ter be a monst'us cloudy night when a