Patricia and Larry Hester interview with Ruth Yancy, Bill Merritt, Milton L. Coleman, J.D. Fox, and Colbert Evans (part one)

The John Burrison Georgia Folklore Archive recordings contains unedited versions of all interviews. Some material may contain descriptions of violence, offensive language, or negative stereotypes reflecting the culture or language of a particular period or place. There are instances of racist language and description, particularly in regards to African Americans. These items are presented as part of the historical record. This project is a repository for the stories, accounts, and memories of those who chose to share their experiences for educational purposes. The viewpoints expressed in this project do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of the Atlanta History Center or any of its officers, agents, employees, or volunteers. The Atlanta History Center makes no warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of any information contained in the interviews and expressly disclaims any liability therefore. If you believe you are the copyright holder of any of the content published in this collection and do not want it publicly available, please contact the Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center at 404-814-4040 or reference@atlantahistorycenter.com.
Note: There is a joke at minute 12:55 about rape and two more at minute 14:54 and 29:55 that contain racially discriminatory language. In this first part of a two-part interview, Larry and Patricia Hester interview Ruth Yancy, who tells folk tales about why gypsies are cursed to roam the earth and about a ghost of a woman killed in a car accident in Atlanta in the 1920s. At minute 6:34, Billy Merritt tells misogynistic jokes about women and car races, as well as racist jokes about African-Americans. Milton Coleman, at minute 17:21, recounts the story of his grandparents moving into a farmhouse in Saluda, South Carolina, that was haunted by a blue light. He then recalls a story about African-American boys playing a trick and tells jokes about Civil War soldiers, a traveling salesman, parrots, hobos, off-color nursery rhymes, a farmer and a gangster, and an African-American boy helping a preacher. The interview ends at minute 31:55 with T.D. Pochs recounting when he was shot, went to heaven, and asked to come back.
Ruth Yancy (approximately 1920-?) was born and raised in and around Atlanta, Georgia, where she graduated from high school and worked at the Fulton County Tax Office. Billy T. Merritt (1932-1991) was born in Forsyth County, Georgia, and lived in Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Henry W. Grady High School and worked at the Fulton County Tax Office. Milton L. Coleman (1937-1993) lived in College Park, Georgia. After graduating from high school, he worked for Delta Airlines. He married Frankie Susan Sue Hardegree (1938-2021) and they had three children, Stacy Fleming, Lee, and Mark. T.D. Pochs (1913-?) was born in Pike County, Georgia. No additional biographical information has been determined. Colbert Evans (approximately 1905-?) was raised on a farm near Stockbridge, Georgia. He later lived in Rex, Georgia, where he worked at the Rex Chair factory. After retiring, he worked at a local farmers market.
dirty jokes;
AHC Oral History Cataloging Worksheet File Information Catalogue number \J.8', IOO~), \~ 0\ Source Field' (ContentDM) ~~, Release form Yes ciNo ) , Transcript Yes or No scanned: From Yes or No Default text: Contributed by an OR: Donated by individual: Individual through <your org. name> Georgia Folklore Collection through <your org. name> , Object Information Enter I.nformafIon abaut the PhIWS.lcaI ob)!'ect here: Title (interviewee .;1V\ ,YC1'{\ (, ( q, , \ .c,) name and date 'E'oi\I' '\ ",I,' litH of interview) IA,I\"\ ', I , Cnlt \{ f'/'l'\ 1'/(" I) { (\,1\"" "\ t"."" ' Description I"t'..', )10/\(1 (' \XII I' ,(: 1(" l~\} II fA (l\,j'( (~ (o1A {a'!\J;1A (bio on interviewee) 'I!'.(I.! 'M, {enc{"\\1' " I()(), {\ \ ',\ \~ ,"( "..l!'U\ ~b) ((I\\'t<f() AIL"\h, 'I' I"" ~,A,Hh(" (/)\:' t, (v\ ttl'\: \ l (\ (,,\1((\, k . ~f? \/t""'1> ,'I \'I '1, p: .:, ( , ) ,. , ,, \ ,1 ('. .;' , .. (lA, ~() (,)A ( ) 11 ij,)L, .~ . . " , ;.' li' I I , ' Creator (Enter either an individuai's name or an organization) Burrison Folklore Class Collection Name (within the organization) Georgia Folklore Archives Creation Date Exact Date (yyyy-mm-dd) (use only one) 1-:-::-----------+-----------------1 Year (if only the year is known) Circa (4 digit year) Year Span From To Object Type Image_ Text Text and image _ Video and sound Sound only ';/' Media Format (VHS, reel to reel, etc Recording extent Reel-reel Hours: Derivatives Access copy: Yes or No Access copy format: Recording clip Yes or No Clip extent: , I ,<','\I ;',; (t, , (~\,\"~ 1\' ' , ).' .< Beginning: '4-:-'91, ;) I \ 11 Notes (interview summary) Time code for clip (h:m:s) " ; ?' i Recording issues (background noise, echo, , static, etc.) 1 Subject Information Enrer .Informat"Ion a-bout the content 0 f the Ob)l'eCt here: Subject Date Exact Date (yyyy-mm-dd) (use only one) Year (if only the year is known) Circa (4 digit year) Year Span From To Subject Who Last Name First Name MI VI ("l' ( 'I(' l\I\, 'V\ H!'! 11\\' 'e" \\' \ (',,\t \. \, ", ,I1'1('','~rl ,. I C'" \!f"'., ":" (' .,1\,0'( '\ Subject Country State County Town Local Name Location' (1"'\ AIII'I\1IA :',( ...;~,\, l(){~ Subject What AHC Cataloger will complete this for you. (LOC sublect headinos onlY) Keywords Burrison, John Personal names See subject who for additional names ~ Corporate , names Geographic locations Topics ~"fk> 11t/c),(' f1 '.,) \)nh, , ~_A,./>\ '-.d t", ',~"". 0\(;'I,t ) r I (1\/ (\ .1 j j l I J l 1 l 1 1 j 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 I I I I 1 I 1 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 I MIS S l{U~'H Y A N C Y Miss Ruth Yancy was born and raised in and around Atlanta. AHhough she refused to give her age or birthda1,e, she is pJ:'obably in her late forties or early fifties. She.,' is of English, 11elsh, and Scotc11 stock. She is ba;f!sically far removed from the "folk soctety", and yet her narratives illustrate the confusion of , folk motifs with actual pr~nted so-~alled facts. Miss Yancy is a graduate of an Atlanta High school. Her father,lI611 employed with the Georgia Power Company, until his death. J~iss Yancy is employed by the Fulton County tax office. I WHY THE GYPSIES WANDER (00-29) Oh. about Mary uh. it appeared that. uhf Mary after the annunoiation by the angel Gabriel that she was to, uhf bear the Messiah, the son of God. Uh, she had a speoial friend in the family and her name was Elizabeth. Mary did not know that Elizabeth was also pregnant at the same time. But Mary. uhf having. uh, loving, uhf Elizabeth as muoh as she did. felt that the only person that she oould oonfide in.was .. ,her aunt Elizabeth. So she set out on a journey without telling her mother or father. An'. uh, she jQurneyed from Nazareth to. uhf Jerusalem, where the husband. uhf of Elizabeth was a minor priest in the temple. An'. uhf she didn't know attbat :ltime that Elizabet~ was also bearing a ohild. But she. in her heart, she wanted to get to someone she oould oonfide in, and , she felt that she QOuld oonfide in El~zabeth. So. she started on this journey from Nazareth to Jerusalem. And as she jou:rneyed this 10lJ.g walk a sand storm blew up. And she needed shelter fDom the storm. the wind was so strong and the sand blew so strong. And as she passed these tents that had ooen pitohed by the gypsies to. uhf she asked for shelter and they refused to let her oome in and be sheltered by the sand storm. So she Journeyed on her way but she had to stand 3 the buoking of the wind and the sand. And the gypsies themselves olaim that this is one of the reasons that they were oursed of God an,-.d they had to wander the faoe of the earth. 4 II 1'HE VMISHING Hn'CHHIJillR ( 33 ., 88 ) HESTER: You were going to tell me about that girl that died everyone sees her every year or so MRS. YANCY: Everybody doesn't see her but, uh, it just happens, .tt appears, and it was published in the Journal and, ,,11, magazine section several~ uh, years back that, uh, this girl lfas kiHmd in an automobile accident back in the J.920's or 24. Uh, out on Stelfart Avenue nE'ar that railroad bridge that crossE'S just before you get to Capital, uh, View Baptist Church, an Levonon Chapter of the Eastern Star. And,uh, this girJ. was killed on a rainy, cold night. And she was eVidently coming home from a dance, or at least that's how I remember it. This, uh, she had been to a dance. And had an',She and her escort were comining home and thls accident took place right near that, uh, railroad crossing, where it crossed on the bridge, is where the railroad crosses over Stewart Avenue. An' er every once in a while it has been, in years passed, uh, some motorist lfill be riding along there and he would see, or has seen, it has happened, :r:>' that this girl sUting on the wall of a curb crying. And he would stop and pick this, uh, and question her why she was crying and she would let him know that she was lost and she wanted to go home. And in on questionJ. ng this person she would be, uh, she would say that she lived at such a such a place very closely in that neighborhood. And, uh, the motorist on pickJng would on a taking pity on this person would, uh, take her in the car and take her to the house for, uh, thinking that she lived there. And 11hen he got out of the car and went around to let her out, as a gentleman should, to assist her in getting out of the car, and help her up the steps, she would not be in the car. 'J'here ~Iould be no one there, and then he would ring the door bell and ask this, uh, person that lived there, in that particular house, uh, if such and such a person lived there. And tel J. her the distressing circumstances that he found the young lady in. And yet he didn I t know how she got out of the car before l1e got to her house. The man, uh, the person who answered the door, would ask him what name this lady gave him; and he would give the name. An' then he say that that young 1ady was killed dmm there near the, uh, railroad bridge, uh, several years ago an I every once in a while somebody stops by this house and says they've picked her up and brought her to my door. B ILL Y '1'. lIigRHI'I'T 7 Bj.lly ~1erritt has a unJ.que talent of a clarn good story teller. His specialty is the dirty joke, although he insists that no women be present ~Then he narrates these tales. ~<'he joke, or schwank, is probably the most popUlar of the modern oral traditions. Hr. Herritt is a native At.lantan, born ia Forsyth County, but raised; n AtJcnta. IllS national origin ill Dutch and l':nglish. He is a graduate of Henry W. Grady mgh School and is presently employed. by the Fulton County tax office. He learned most of his storiE'S "just around, I just picked them up." HESTEfi: Ttl1l us that one you ..lere telling us awhile ago MJo:RHIT'J' : What? About the farmer .... er, not the farmer .... about the little boy who went to the door MERHI'l'T: 10uyou think D01~S might want to hear that . HESTEI{: She ..JOn I t mind .... HERRITT: Naw, she mi.ght not either. DORIS: About what? III ( 97 - 110 ) 'l'his f;l:l1.er Vlent up to a house and knocked on the dam; you know, an I the little boy came to the door; !In I he said, " Is your mother home, sonny?" She says ;f she Vlorks daVin at the local house of i ill-repute. , n.:;.,',.:, _ In the orlgnAl telling, without the presence of a woman, the house of ill-repute ,>jas called a "whore house". An' he says, "Is she a regular down there?" He say, "No she's just a substitute, she only works down there on Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays." An' the guy says, "l1ell, I'll be a son-of-a-bitch." An' the little boy says, "So am I but I don't go around ringing door bells an' bragging about it." IV You know what kills me back"uJ;l, this J.Htle gir.L wuz out Trickin' an' ~'reatin' at Hal.LOI~een 'l'ime an' uh she l~ent up and knocked on the door you knNI and helt her paper sacH open. An'i the guy CHme to the door an' reached back inside an' got this apple an' dropped it in the bag, you know. An' the .little girl 100kec1 , dorm, in the bag, an' she looked back up at him, she says ftnally she says} "Mister you son-;,of-a-bitch you broke my cookies." I'm telling yon that's Dust, about the way it is this da,V and time. v Did I ever tell you the joke about the feller that l'Ient to school with this other one an' they botb graduated, finalLy from ') the local oo.LLede there an' all. An one .Left tOvln to make his fortune in the world) an' :the other one stayed in town. So about three or four years .Later this one that had left an' went out in the world 10 to ma1{e hi s mark came back to town driving a bi [; '[i;lc1Jlrado Cadillac an' a two-hundered-an-fifty dollar suit an' diamonds on his fingers , you kno,]. J.ooki.ne; foJ" hi s boyhood chum; an 1 drove up into the square there. An' here his friend sat on a bench an'! had long beard, an' love beads on .~ an' looking terrible, a pair of tennis shoes an' levis. The man got';;of the oar an' went up to him, you know, an' said uh, "Ny, Gocl," ,he said, "why don't you straighten yourself up an' go on out an' get yourself a decent job." 118 says, "I kno,] ~liUl' capable of it," sa:ys "we w'ent to school togeather an' all." He says, "Look at me. I m"nt out there world an' I got a two-hundred' an fifty dollar suit, diamond rings, an' m Eldorado Cadillac that'll ruh a hundred an' t~renty miles an hour. "I /1 F ~\ ~'his ole boy. says> "This doesn't impress me.' an he saig, I can run as fast as that car'll go." An! ,the fella s.qys, "I don't believe it. " So he says, "I'll tell you what.," he says, " 1'1.1 tell you ~]hat.... you get your car out on the highway an' take off an' I'll show you." So the folIa did. An' he started off an' ran it up the thirty-,f.ive miles an hour an' looked out ant this feller trotting alclmg right side of thl'l car. So he says, "vJell he won't keep up now." An' he mashed down on :bhe accelerator an' got up to about sixty miles an hour an' Jooked out an' sure enough this guy's still rum1ing right along side of 'em. An' he's getting madder by the minute. So he steps down on the gas a littilie but harder ant goes up around ninety-five miles an hour. An' looks out an this guy's still trotting along right beside him. So he gets so mad he just stamps the accelerator to the floor-board an' up to one-hundered an'-twenty miles an hour an' went around the curve an' looks out an' the guy ain't no where to be seen. So fi Wffis to be eefl. So he turns around an' goes back to see what happened to 'em. So he gets \Jack around the curve an' 160ks over in the ditch an' here this poor fella is just a laying in this ditch all tore up, you know, An' the guy gets out of his car an' goes dOl'1n in the dit.ch, an' says, ""'hat's the matter, "lhat.'s the matter what happened to you?" An' he says, "Nan did you ever blowout a tennis shoe doing a hundred-an '-twenty miles an hour?" VI Tell you this ole feller one time down in Alabama drovG for the governor named of I..C. Said the state highway department went out there an'" bought a bunch of these new hydromatic automobiles. An' this old boy didn't know nothing about hydromatics whats-so-ever used to that gear shift, you )(no"l, An' said that ever time he drives had a tooth pick sticking out one side his mouth an' a cigarett~ out the other un. He said, you could take one look at him an' Imow fie'd rlln over you. So said he took one of those new hydromatics out an said wasn't gone more than thirty minutGs fln I he come back it was tore all to pieces. Sflid this feller looked over at him an' says, 12 "L.C.," he said, "What have you done to that car?" He said, "I broke it." He said, "Vlell what, happened?" He said, "viell, I.... you knOtT, I pull on out there on the highway an' come on up there to the traffic light. An I there was the fe11a 1~antin' to race." So he said, "I dropped that, thing down into uh 'L' for lunge, and took off away from that light," said "we got to going out there pretty good," an' he said, "I saw right then that he waz about to get me an' I throwed that thing up in 'D' for drag." AnI said, "W"l flew on out through there an in a few minutes an I thats when I really had get on it." He said, "I throwed that thing on up to 'R I for race an that's when it all come umround." 13 VII There wuz two these tl'lO nuns wa1ktng through this alley an I uh one wuz cOlored an' one wuz white. An all of a Budden a colored man and arhite man jumped out on 'em an' wuz rapeing lem. An' the white nun wuz saying, "Forgive them oh Lord, they know not what. tf,ey're doi.ng. Forgive them oh Lord they know not What they're doin ' " 'fhe colored one spoke up an' said, " This lHl does." VIII These two fena coloreds wuz in this fox hole durin' the war, an the shot an' shell wuz hi.ttin' very close to where they were at in this fox hole. AnI uh this one turned to the other an said, "Please say a prayer fer us; please say a prayer fer us." says, Vl'e'1'8 about to get killed here." And the other one says - looked around an says, "I am not a person who is religious; I never went to church in my life." "An I don't know any prayers." So anyway in the mea~Jime the shells jest kept hittin' a little bit closer to this fox hole an' getting just a little bit closer. Ah,l this other un turlled around an said, "Oh please say a prayer fer us Ii! ,,(Cause I know we're going to die, we're going to get killed." An I the other un saiduI told you I don It know any prayers." So sure enough those sheHs had done crept right up on the edge of that fox hole an' they way just iii matter of iii little bit before they would he killed. So the other un turned around an' said, "Oh please man, 14 please say a prayer." He says, "Well," he SllyS, "it's like thiS, I did live out next to the Catholic Church right out an whcn they were in there I could hear what, they ""'J,re saytln through t.he open window." c1,I"{f\ "So It 11 just repeat what I heard thr,fIW" the opened winder." So he says, "B 1. IX I 22, ! G 3." ) (I., !1\(jO\ ..... ) i ! There was these two colored fellas who decided that they were goin' to open up a high class resterant. It was going to be the best resturant in town. And each day they would swap duties, one was be the chef one day and one would be the maitrede. So they finally got the place opened up you know an' .. " fella had '' the cooks/whites and a big chef hat and . so olle ojiln the other one had otn his tuxedo wi.th the towel across his flrm you know. An' so he r s standin' there at t,he door and the first customer that walks in is a White man. And he goes in and sets down an',:'1ihe mQitrede rushes over Qnd says, "Yea sah boss," he says, "whQt can I do for ya?" He says, "give me two eggs, bacon, toast, and coffee, and make it snQpPY I've got a business appointment I've got to keep." "Yea sah boss." So he goes bQck to the kitchen and tells the chef. He says, "give me two eggs, bacon, toast, and coffee." An' the chef says, " well how does the man wants his eggs?" He says, "he want em scrambled, boiled, bal(ed, poached, fried or what?" He says, "just a minute I go back an' ask em." So he go back out t.here he say, "excuse me boss," he says, "how does you want them eggs?" The man says, "now look I ain't got time to fool with you, I told you I had a , business appointment just el~minate the eggs," So the maitrade goes back into the kitchen, you knmv, an I he said, "The man say he wants his eggs eliminated." And the c... the chef say, 1I"10ok man I don't know nothin' 'bout no 'lemonated eggs." Say, "I told you I could boil L," "/ 'em, fry 'em, bake 'em, poach 'em "or heard what he said right?" " "You sure you He said, "Just a minute, I go back an ask 'em one rna' time." So he went back out there, he says, "'Scuse me there boss," he says, "how was it you say you wanted dem eggs?" He said, "I said eliminate 'em damn itl gliminate leml" So he goes back into the kitchen where the chef's at, Y"OU knol1. He say, "That man says he _Iont,s dem eggs" tIIliminated." So the nigger said, "I done told you I clon't kn0\1 how to eUminate no eggs." So he thought a minute what he wuz gain' tell that man when back out fer. So he went back out there an' he say, '''Scuse me boss, I'm fraid you wonlt be able to get those eliminated eggs. 'Cause that damn nigger done broke thl'l eliminator." I . 16 MIL TON L. COL E MAN Mr. Milton L. COleman, thirty-three, lives in Cdllege Park. He works for Delta Airlines. 1-11'. Coleman hearcl many of his stories arourld Saluda, South Carolillla. His father was a farmer. Milton Coleman is of Irish"-Inclian origin. lIe a high school graduate. X Well the story well this story is about the, uh, ghost that they said that was around my grandmother's farm uh" Val' years and years before they hought it -- well she well she and my grandfather was uh natives of Augusta; Georgia. And they bought a farm in Colum uh, Saluda, South Carolina. So the night they moved in the place my grandmother got everything squared away and locked the door up and uh they went to bed and they saw this blue light that appeared on the '1a1l and the they didn't know '1here i.t come from or the out side so he got up and went to investigate and he saW' ,nothing an so one of the hands the next morning after they - a restless night of sleeping the next.. morning one of the people working for him said that the people on the farm before them, that someone had died in that room. An' the uh light appeared to or the nh people every now an' then. So they got to a-lJboldUg to see invest;igating an' they thought it was someone pUlling a prank. An' my grandfather set up an' uh was wanting fer tIle li..ght to appear; an' he set up two three nights in a rowan' '~as uh the light never did come back. An' one iSaturday night it came back an I uh my grandfather ~Jent to where to light was, an 'it disappeared again. It just disappeared when ,e .got close to it. So the story went that one day they wuz II a nun an' ~lOman who lived there an' the man 'ffizgoin t out in the nelda to work. An uh as the man went out in the fields to work an' his stand on the porch an' wBtchj.ng him walk across the yard.. An the yard an' a.lL at once, 17' this blue light just flashed from no "her.e, an' she looked back an' there was a burned spot an the man vias gone. He just disappeared ''', in his oF,wn, right in his own front yard. An' she she lived there for seyeral months after he disappeared. An' uh this blue light would kept kept appearing an' she moved an that's when my grandfather an' grandmother bought the farm. An' the \;ay I understand it it was that, they finaLLy figured out it was man trying to come back to uh real life. That's the way I got the story. XI Ah, in 1S!59 my ah father died up ah, he vras liMing in Saluda, South Carolina. He and my mother had been divorced since I vias nine years old I went, I went up to attend hi~ funeral. An' uh we were sitting around the funeral home tallcing this one night. An' Mr. Ramey that O"tInS H. 1. Ramey's Funeral Home there one of his assistants was telaing me ah they had - they have - a Negro funeral home an' a white funeral home 'Ihich at the time they wuz seg segertEated. An',~uhhe slid.d that ,uh they went out to this uh Negro house one night. They ah take they had taken the body out to ah let it lay in rest before they buried it. An' they had a they set up with it all night. 1'hey said they' ah had this ah open fire place, an' ah some of the young colored b03ls thought they could pull jokes on the people. An' when er er everyone had had went out to eat supper three of the boys took the bClJdy out of the out of the coffin an' put it 18 under the bed. An ,I one of the boys dressed up in a black suit got over in the coffin an' just laid there they had veil laying over the coffin ( you know, to keep the flys and things out, I guess). But anyway the boy just laid there an I said after supper al.L the ah people come back an was settin' around talkin' an I Hent on couple hours. AnI the boy still laying in there. Ant they all decided they vlUZ goin' to bake potatoes the open fire. 00 they bought hrought these potatoes in put 'em in the coals started 'em to bakin I '-em an' all. An' said when everyone was gathered around the fire place getting them a hot potato~ out. Said one of the this bop: l<ho ,ras laying in the coffin raised up an' said, "Ah, I I ve come backi" An I said one of the uh big men there threw a potatoes, hit him in the head an' killed it. So the next day they had two coffins there buried tHO of theml XII One time there was this Rebel soldier that went up on top of this hill OVer this Yan kee camp --- an' he says," I ,kin lick any five Yankees you got in your camp." So they sent five of them up the hill and a 1ittle while here they all come back dOHn the hill beat all just to pieces that Rebel had tore t,hem up. So he salll,"I can lick any ten of 'em -- any ten soldiers you have got do,m there, semel them up an' I can ,rhip 'em." So ten of ~em went up; ant a minute all ten of 'em came back 19 down the hill just beat to pieces; he had whipped all ten pf 'em,i,.b,\IY. And hI' say, " I .....' I can whip any twenty-five of I em; just send twenty-five of 'em up and I can whip them." So twenty-five of 'em went up and in a minute all twenty-five came back do~1U the hUl just beat to hell. So he said, " Why don't you send fifty up?" So fifty of the soldiers went up the hill and in a minute here they come back d01m the hill --- just battered an' tore all to pieces. An I he suys, " I can whip any hundred; any huhdred you got down there, I can l1hip 'em." And one of the previous fifty th~t went up there, he says to 'em he says, " You better be careful man, that's a trick; there's ~ of 'em up there." XIII One time there's this traveling sll'lesman going down the road and right in front of the car they passed this rooster and the rooster had a pair of overalls bn. An' so they uh the salesman couldn't believe his eyes ~,.- a rooster with a pair of overalls onl He got out of his car and l1ent up to this house ane! he knocked on the door and he says, "Lady," says "uh, am I seeing right?" says "Did I see a rooster aciJol'lEl' th& road down there with a pair of overalls on?" And she says, liKes you did," says "that's Clem," says "that my pet rooster" says "he's sensative to the sun" said "uh, I keep the overalls 20 on him to keep the sun from baking him uh his skin because his feathers falls out when the sun gets to him. He says, "Oh," says "that's ha the durnest thing I've ever seenl" She says, "You think that I s somethingl 'You ought to see Olem Hith a hen in one hand an' trying to take the overalls off with the other onel" XIV One time there was this guy who had a parrot-- an' you would uh "'" and he had a string on each one of his legs. 'You pull the string on his left leg and he'd say the Lords prayer; you would pull the string on his right leg an' he'd say the Twenty-third Psal~. So. he took him to Eil!lurch ~Iith him one one day and the ull: }beople couldn't believe it. So everyone come by and they they pulled the string on the left leg an' he would say the Lords Prayer an' they'd pull the string on hj.s right leg anI he would say the Twenty-third Psalm. Ive11 the preacher he come in says uh, ''What 's ya got there?" \& An' he to r,him he gotta parrot and explained T,lhat would do an I the preacher say, "I got to try this." So he pUlled the string on his left leg and he sa'${S the Lords Prayer; Illid. he:pulls the string on the right. log an' he says the Twenty-third Psalm. And the parrot -- the preacher SIaYl'Y' ''well uh, what will happen if I pull both strings?" And the old parrot spoke up an' saYIJ,',IBrother, I'll fallon my ass. What do you think?" 21 xv (?/ One time there was these0two hobos a walkin' down the railrOad ~ track, one was a big fat one an' one wall a little skinny one, And this little ski.nny one looks up at the big fat. one an I says, "HOi~ does you manage to stay so f'At to be a \lobo?" He say, "l'lell I'll tell you brother, 1 ' 11 go up to people's door ana I'll knock on; their door and they'll answer. An' 1 ' 11 ask 'em if they'll give me something to eat 1 ' 11 tell them a story out of the Dible. An'" says "uh, I'll tell them a story out of the bible an' they gi.ve me something to eat';" And the skinny one say, "What story do you usually tell them?" He say, "Well uh I usually tell them the one about Samson kill a thousand J'hilistines with the jaw bone of an ass. And then they'll then I eat good." He say, "Oh, I'm gain l to try that." So they passed this house and uh this little oJ.e skinny one say, "Now, ~Jhat, do you usually t6'l.1 'em?" Says, "I usually tell them the one about Samson kill a thousand Philistines "i.th a jaw bone of an ass." So he says, "'I'm gonna try-it." An' he went up to this door and he knocked on this door and the lady answered the door and he (aEfs, "Lady, di d you ever hear the story about Sanson killing a thousand "~I' Philadelphians wi.th an ass bone out. of a horse? Ainlt that a bi.t.ch'? I'll take cherry pie ,,, 22 XVI 'l'he follovJing are a few of the off colored take-offs on the ever popular ohildren's nusery rh~nes. Jack be nimble, Jack be quick Jack jumped over the candle sUck slupPPP' ----- Great balls a firel There vJaS an old lady, vrho lived in a shoe She had so many kids her butt fell off (counting numbers lI88-1193) Little Miss Muffet set on her tuffet Eating her herbs an' wj,egh Long came a spider, sit dOvm beside 'eI' An I say "What I s fun the bowl babe7" (coun'hinglll\Jmbers 478... l,88) You hearcl about the paychj,at,rist--- the three greatest cases he ever had? NeD., when l1ary had a l:Lttle lamb tha'l;, that cooked his goose 1 Nhen old Mac Donald had a fann -- he couldn't believe it! But, l;hen George vrashineton gave birth to a nation, that killed himl 23 XVII (counting numbers /j9 3-550) One time tbere was this farmer out plO\~ing in his field an' he had a )Jig red mule, that was tbe purtiest mule you ever seen. And the old mule could plO\~ a forrol'! .just as straight as anythi ng you "vel' seen. But he was out one duy .just workinG hts horse an' walking in that good old southern walk" :i'ou know, behind. that mule. 1\1.1 at once here come this big black Cadi,llac dOl'!l1 the road; an I this guy .jumps put of thc Cadillac Bn' he ha~ tbllis ,b~g coat on and a big bat anI he reached insidf; of his pocket. And he says, "Hey YOlH" Thc farmer says,. "Yea?" J-Ie says, "Come herel" ~'he farmer says, "~lhat ya Vlant, miste r?" He says,"Do you Imol~ me?" He says, "Naw, sir. I don't knoF you." "My name is Joe M'cGuffryJ 1 'm the meanest damn gangster that ever came out of Chi.cago." '.che farmer say, "vlell, :r sayll\ He "Farmer can you dance?" "Nal'l, si,r. I can't dance nothing but the bucle." "l'IeD you better start dancingl~' BLAH! BLlIN! m,AM! And he just started sllooting an I lie just kept on a shooting. And the farmer was just doing that ole "Southern Buck". Finally- his gun ran out. of bUllets. 1\n I uh, that farmer 1.ooked up at; htm an I says, "Hey, mtster," say- "hOl! many- bullets will that gun 2/j hold?" "Nine damn bullets, that's the reason I carry it, because I'm the meanest damn gangster that ever came out of Chicago." He says, "Nister, if that thi.ng will only hold nine bUllets," says "you done .ghot nine ," "That's right .farmer," says ";11' done <emptied i 1..11 He says "Goodoe]." So he walked over by the tree an' he got his shot gun,.bought it around and put tt right, in the 010 gangste~s face an' he says, "Hey, Hister Gangster u And ole gangster says, "Yea, what I fer you pointing that shotgun at me fer?" He say, "You said that gun only bold nine bullets ano its empt,y right? " "That's r5.ght.I''' "I'lell, Histe.l', let me ask you something? Diet you ever kiss a red mule's ass 1" XVIII (coun'ti.ng numbers 5,:>0 - 574 ) One time there ~Ias this !'Iegro preacher -- his sermon for Sunday was gonna be "Holy Fire from Heaven". So he told thi s Jittle negro boy' --- he Ba:\'!? "I'm gonna put you up in the attic \;ith th5.s book:of matches." and he says, "When I say'iJe'll have holy fire from heaven' I \Vant you to strike a match und throw i.t dmm. So Iittle kid got up in attic an' that Sunday that ole colored preacher just a-'preaching al'lay an' 25 26 he say, IIi![ say, hrothers an' sisters we '.ll have holy fire from heaven" an I nothin I happened. "8ay, and again J say brothers and sisters ~re will have hoJ.:y fire from heaven." And nothing happen. And he looked up and he says, "and again I say Junior, we'll have holy fire from heaven." Ole Junior looked down and says, "don't get shook preacher, the cat dono pissed on the match." XIX ( counting numbers 5711 - to end of tape ) One time there was this pirate that lived on this island, so he wanted to go to church. So all he had was a parrot as a friend. 80 he and his parrot took off tins one day to go to church, and l~here they had to go to I church was a J~~~~ out across the sea. So he got on the ship and left and all he had to eat on the ship was baloney. So they was a going across the water and somebody hollored, "dinner time." 80 all we had to eat on the ship was baloney, and that pirate says, "lots of baloneyl" And that ole parrot repeated, "lots of baloney, lots of baloney." So they went on a little l;ays and uh and so somebody fell over, so somebody fell overboard and the pirate hollored, "man overboard!" And the parrot repeated, "man overboard." So they got through that ordeal and went on a litt.le further and some this bird .flew over and someone says, "watch it captain," says,"it ... tho bird I S gonna mess on ya." He says, "let it fly, let it fly!" And the ole parrot says, "let it fly, let it fly." So after that ordeal t.hey went on a J i ttle further and they was going along and they hit. the big black rock in the middle of the ocean. And uh, 27 -the pira-te says, uh, "hi-t a big black rock,," And -the pRrro-t says, "hj,t R big blRcle rock," So they got in church -that next SundRy and after all these ordeals, and the uh, preacher, he got to preaching, and he preaches says uh, "and I says that there I s a JeSl1S in Heaven." And ole parrot says, "lot of baloney." And he says, "I say-tell you there I s a devil in hell." And ole parrot says, "pull em up, pull em up." And ole preacher says, "if that parrot don I t shut up, l'm gonna throw this Bible at him." And ole parrot says, "let it fly, let it fly." About that time the preacher threH the Bible at the parrot ducked and it hit. an ol,e nigger in the back of the church." And the parrot says,"hit a big black rock, hit a big black l'ock." B ILL Y MER R ITT For information concerning Mr. Merritt please see page 7. I j j j j j J j j j j j I j I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 28 I (counting numbers 227 - 254 ) Up in the ~lild of Alaska, they use to tell this tale about an old fella who ~las go tough that he didn't beHeve in doctors, medicine..,or anything else. But one day while out hunting he ran into this giant thorn bush, and drove one of the thorns in to his arm so deep that he was forced to go to a doctor. So anyway, he mushed in for two days to the doctor, and doctor exaimined his arm and said, "yes I'll have to make (I'> \.,'1\ an insension (insertion) ,'into your arm to get this thorn out, and, but let me give you some novocain to deaden t,he pain." And the old hunter says, "noooooo , says I don't believe in doctors, but I was forced to come to you because of this situation." He says, "you just fo ahead and cut my arm open and tal{e the thorn out, I'll, it want bother me." He says," Ive never been hurt but twice in my life." So the old doctor says, "well it's your arm." So he take the scapple and cuts this arm open, take the thorn out, and the r,uy is setting there, never even hatted an eye. And the doctor sems the arm up and bandages it up, and the doctor 1001<8 at him and says, "my, but you r.eQlly ure tough." He says J "you told me that there "las tHO instE(nces_, in your life in Hhich you had been hurt~ he says, "~rould you mind telling me "hat the oc,cassion was?" He says, "no, I don't mind at all doctor." He says, " one morning about three oclock in the morning I had to answer t~( call of nature ."- ,''So I went 29 outyide to relieve myself and I had stooped davm and I had forgotten " where I had put my bear traps, and so when I stooped down, the bear trap came-to on my nuts." And the doctors says, "oh,my' goodness, that really must have hurL" He says, "when was the second time you got hurt?" He says, "when I ran out of chain!" II (counting numbers 254 - 269) HESTER: How about some of those traveling salesmen jokes you were tening us?' MERRITT: Uh, the three traveling salesmen that came up to the farmers house, and uh, to spend the night and the farmers say~uh, you'll have to sleep with my daughter, but I warn you this, that if you harm her in any way or any manner, I'm gonna cut your peekers off according to however ya kind of ~lork you do." So the next morni,ng the farmer founded that all three of them had gone to bed .'ith~, his daughter. So he says to the first one , he says, "What kind of salesman are you'?" He says, "1 1m a mtllt salesman." So he took til !]leat groul'lcl<!lr and grmmd his off. So the secane. one he says, "lrJhat do you do?" ,; He s'r"ys ,"I' work fOl' a logging firm." He say, he took an ax an' chopped his off. The third one was standing there laughing an uh laughing and the farmer says to him, "What are you lAughing about? You seen what happen to your two friencJs ~j' NOH what kind ah work do you do?" He flays, "I'm a ll~llypop salesman, yO).l'll have to suck mine off!" III ORe tMs nigger preacher, he was a preach:tng j,n the church an' he says,iit's come to my attention in the congregation here that there is some brothers and sisters who have not beel1l baptised~ An' come this Sunday" saYiii "I want them down in,the river so's I can baptise. yla,"," And there is one big fat nigger sister sittin' up there in the church yo you know an' she's scared to death of that water an' she's carring on, " Oh, Lord I don't -- can't, go dotln there be baptised. I'm scpred of that water." One of the good brothers sittin' next to her says to her "There's nothing to worry about,"says "you a go on dotm there all. , ya go on#! out ill.to that watter with the preacher all.' he's gonna take an' put his hand on you head an' push you ul'lder the water an' you come up an' say 'I believe.'" An said, "That's all there is, to j:t1'an ' says'l;hat's all you gotta: do." So come Sunday they wuz all lined up there to get in to the river ,ln' the preacher he 's standing out in t.he middle of tbe river baptising. In mean time the old colored sister, sr~'s still some What dUbious about this all this. An she's carring on, HOh ,Lord" I can't get in that water, I can'i; get in that wate:n,. 'I clin't go dmm there." And the good brother saYl1. "Now, I told you an you gatta do is go out there with the preacher. He put his hand on ya head, push you )1 under the water an' you come up an' says, ~I all there is t <0 it~" believe.' An '''. that's In the mean time, just before the old sister steps off out into the water the preacher he done started preaching himself a sermon, forgetting what it is he is doing an' everything. He's carried away I out there his self. So he grabs tbCo.d fat sister an' he shoves her 1\ under the water an' she comes up an' says :'ll:believel" An' he done pushed her back under the water again and. she comes up a sputtering, "I believ"'~" AN' he done grabbed her an' shoved her under the Hater a third time.'" She come up said, "I believe this mother-fucker done trying to drmm me I" IV They tell this story about an old fella who Horks j.n a stove-works aNd under neath this stove-works they have a place for uh slaves, they br"mi~g into the country an' hOl~ing them there 'til they sold 'em. Just so happens this particular load of slaves the brought in all had fever !l1 I they was hot and they was an I they wuz down there a maoning, an' groanin ' and carrying on belliow this stove works up there. So that night when this fella l~ent home his wife WI1S :im an ill mood al/ ",;verything an' talkj.ng about how much Hark she had done, how she had been sll1vinr; over a hot stove all day. An' her hu.sban' say to her, "Woman, don't tell me your troubles. I've been'stoving over a uh bunch of hot slaves all day my self. II )2 v ~'here was '~his f'ella one time who had this pet gorilla, so he taught him how to play golf an' uh took hJ.m out to the country club an' bet the pro out there a thousand dollars that hJ.s pet gorilla could beat him playing golf and,: of course, the pro says, "I don't believe this. There isn I t lin y way'" says "I shoot in the lO~1 seventJ.es and the high sixties. An': I just believe I can beat him. So the guy says, "Ivell, here's my thousand. dollars to cover it~" 00 the pro P.et him an' they got up then to the fil'st hole an I the gorilla tees up the hall -- par five five-hundred-an I.-twenty feet green. Iilo anyway the gcril.lii\ takes off and swi ngs an I t.he ball goes out t"ero five-hundered-a.n '-f1fteen feet an I lands feve feet from the hole. 'J'he pro s<"eing what happeli'just took his clubs an I stuck them back into the bag --- turned around an' told the guy says, "You ~Iin. Here's the thousand dollars," He says,', ";e"can' t beat him. '1'he gorilla is on the green in one, five feet from the hole." says "I couldn't possible get :;there j.n less than three strokes," Says, Dust as he star-tcct to turn and walk off he looks back at the guy and says, "By the ~JaY how does that gorilla nut?" He says, ",Just like he drives, fj,ve-hundred-an, ...fifteen yar<!ls." VI There was this preacher one time had a parrot an' the parrot l1as to get in to the chicken pen and mess "J ith the preacher's chickens. So the f'p'eacher told hIm if he caught him out thore again an I was gain' t.o pull every haIr out. of bisread or every feather until he ~IaS bald headee!. So ab~lay the ole preacher caught him out there again an' JJ; sure enough he just pUlled every feathor in the top of his bead out., Ani 1 he say" "This Sunday I'm going to se'kyou at 1,\18 back of the church and I .lant you to tell them, Ladies to the right; gentlemen to the left.' \'Ihen they come into the church." i:io the ole preacher took him on there Sunday an' set him 011 his pedis tal; an' he .ras a smttlinlther~, "Ladies to the right; gentlemen to the left. J,adies to the right; gentlemen tiD the +eft." And abbut this tinle thleeEl bald-h"acled men walked up an' the olel parrot"ju~t :1it>okecl at t,)1em, you know. 1l!.n' \1e says, "Ladies to the right; ,gentlemen to the loft. And you tJwee bald-h~'aded chicken fuckers can sit back here Viith mel" VII Thill" s one time this lady had a parrot who Has bac] to cuss. She coullhi't give it 1l,lIly or nothing else. :;0 she decided to she .lOulcil take a trip to Europe an' take this parrot and t\1row him over-hoard out in the ocean. And they got about half .IIlY out across and the woman gVllbbed him ~n' t,hrowed him over-board.R about a da,)r later the ship sunk on 'em. An' the,e they "lere in a l.ife raft. and all and float.ing along the sea. And t.he ,loman looks up an' here comes that ole parrot of her's on a piece of drift. wood. An' the old parrot .Looks Dver t.here in the Ufe raft. and see her and he h01lam OV8J~ there. He says, "Ho\1's yell' ass'I" And the 1wman just didn't. pay him no a:Ltentiolh didn't even \1ant t.o kno\1 him, you kno'T. And he looks at her again an' says, "How's yer ass'!" She says,.c"Al1 Bhut upl" lIe says, "Nine too; 1.t must be th1.s damn salt water out here." VIII Hait a minute I . rhere W'JS these tMO t.his mIl one time flying through the c1.ty and H saw a wonderful place to light on this ledge to rest, 00 1. t. d1.d and it just so happened though that this ledge was out side a doctors office, an' the doctor didn't have much to do,:mAn', he li1l.ppen to see the old O~IJ. siM.ing out there a-sleepin' .So he say's, "1'11 think I examine him to have something to do. II So he rear;hed out the windOl; and grabbed the ole owl and throwed some chloroform in his face, you knml. An' uh examined hem; a1' found he had hemorrhoids and bad tonsils. So he operated on him -- fixed both ttdngs. Took,., iln' so set the ole owl back out on the l.odge when he was through. 010 owl finaHy came to an' shOok himsolf and f},ciw off. So about two weeks later this same owl. WaS flying through the same direction with a fr1.encl of his. Friend Looked down an I says, "Hy that looks like a wonderful .Ledge, Lot's go down an' land on that thing an' reAt a whil" ," An' ole o~ll says, "Noooooool'l says "can't go down there." Say, 'n come through here about tl'10 .1eeks ago an' went to sleep on that ledge and Hhen I woke up I couldn't hoot l'lOrth a shit, or shit YJorth a hoot fo}' tHO ~leeks1" 34 IX This nieger vlOman was in court trying; to get the judge to do something about her husban'. And the judge says, "Well let me hear vlhat happen, bl'lfOr1I can determine wh.rther there's anyi:,hing to do 01' noto II hoV\O'( AnI she says, "I vlEmt to tell you you onn"':I'1 That husban' of mine, he come in the front, door and he grabbed me an' violated me righij; there j_n the floor in front of my daughter fln Miss Emma." Judge says, "~'here aj_n't, much I can do about that.',:i\Uer all you are his Wife." "But,V she say, "that ainlt all your onner." Says, "When he got through with me, he jumped up an' grabbed my daughter and violated her e right there in front of mf an' 14tss Emma." Judge says, "That's terrible." A father should never do anything like that." Say, "But oh that ain't all your onner." He say, "There IS more?" Says, "Yea," says "when he got through "lith mYIdaughter he jumped up an' grabbed Miss Emma an' violated her right there in the floor right in front of me an' my daughter." And the judge say, "ID looks Uke I'm goiIhg t,o have to sentence him." And abo!lt tllat, time she says, "But that aj_n' t all your onner." Says, "You melln to say that something else happen?" SlIyS, "Ye9.," say "when he got through viith thss Emma," S9.ys 35 "He grabbed her gJasses off and I stuck them on that tiling of his an' says 'Look around big boyan I see if there I s anything you missedl" x This negro 'wonan went into court wantin' :llo divorse her husban'. And the judge says, "An on what. grounds do you want divorce." She says, ",John Henry, you drop your ~nawers." So he did, al d man he had a tool on hiljl that looked like it was fourteen inches long. Judge says, "I don't see any excuse for getting a d1,vorce because of that." She says, "Turn around John Henry," says "no~1 your onner you teilll me one thi.ng hO~1 you gonna drivEl a railroalil spi],El with a tack hanmler?" 36 , , , II , OOLBER~' ~;VANS 37 Mr. Oolbert Evans is a popular figure arouac' the community of Hex, Georgia. He is nOl; retirecl from the Hex Ohair factory but is employed three days a ,Ieel{ At the farmers market. He is basically a fiddle player, althought he rlid tell us these stories <lft,er he. had'tlet us recor<:l from him. Mr. Oolbert Evans refuses to rlevulge his age or education. Although, I would ju<:lge him to be of limitecl education and aroul1el the age of sixty~four. His family ,laS \~elsh-Irish. He was raised on a farm near Stockbridge, Georgia. (Large tape counting numbers 158 - 168) XI HESTE:tt: Talk about your mosquitos EVANS: (;\ I herr,d of one place in FlasEla where they were so bad d011n there and so big. The fella went to bed, didn't have much cover over him, mosquitos got, so bad he told them he wanted some more quilts to go on top of him. So they brought several quilts to put on top of him. An I uh though they the mosquitos bills W1Ul(J,I t I (. quite long enough to go through the qUilts. So he heard something scrambling around on tho floor. He looked over there on the floor and there was some the mosquitos over there with a monkey wrench taking off short bills an t putttng on long bills to go t,hrough the quilts" XII HI'~S1'EIO ~.Jhat was that one ahout the black pbts? EVANS: ~here! s one fella running from mosquitos. One time down in South Georgia an I he run he saw a uh wash pot in the yard turned bottom side upperds. He run an' got under that ~las pot. 'fhe mosquitosfflew down, thought they had him. The stuck their bills through that wash pot an' he had a rock uneler there. An t he braddee! the bills. 'l'hel went off, flOli off a-singing, "We got him at last." 'l'hoy thought they had him but they just had the wash potl 38 Research of the OBSCENg S TOR Y I had much trouble trying to research many of the tales we had collected, mostly because they were part of the modern folk "urban tradition". vJe moderns seem to incorporate the obscene shwank as', a large per centage of the volfune of jokes we tell. The shwank is prObably the most popular of all folk tales, both "folk" and modern. I tried both Baughman, Dorson, 811cl ~'hompson for some idea of how to classify t,he-fle tales. They were no help wha,t~soever. I was unable to locate a copy of Gerchen Legman's book, Ra~tonal of t~~ Dirty Joke, which was suggested to me as a source of research. Stith 'I'hompson did lump all jokes concerning sex under one motif number, X700 entitled humor concerMing sex. Mr. Thompson stated, "Thousl1nds of .obscene motifs in which there is no poin:~ except obscenity i tself' migl1'~ logically come at this poiNt, but they are beyond the scope of the present work. They form a literature to themselves, with its own periodicals and dollectionlii." He left space from 7U() to 749 in case "it might become desirable 1 to classify' these motifs. II Because of the lack of the classificanion of obscene and milder off-colored jokes it 11as necessary to lump all jokes deali11g with these subjects under the broad catagory of humor concerning sex. I did, however, try to find flpating motifs that were weaved in the stories. Thompson, Stith 'rhe ~1otif-Index of )!'ollt-Literature; volume 5, L-Z page 5lh. j, 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 I 1 I I I I I I I I I I 1 1 I I 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 I 1 1 1 1 NO~'ES I Why the Gypsies Wander is pr@@~~ly not a tale active in the oral tra<iition among the folk. Its motif was extremely difficult to locate. l~iss Yancy also mentioned that she had read the tale in connection with a Bible stugy course. These two facts brill.g me to the conclusion that this tale is perhaps a,Hterary work used as a type of exemplum told to illustrate the punishment of inhospttality antl/or unkindness. However, the tale does seem to relate to the motif QS02, .landering as a punishment. II The Vanishing Hitchhiker is an oxtremely common story through out the United States. And many times it appears in pr5.nt, as illustrated by}lis$ taney's declaratio!'l that it was published i!'l the Jourflal. Witnesses who Here present during her telling of the story told how true -and prev.eJlent the legend its in and around Atlanta. Its motif is E332.J3l, the vanishing hitchhikeri III Mqtif X700 Humor Concerning Sex. I could not help but notice and be amused at Mr. I-'lerritt's reluctance to use the .10rds "whore house" in front of a lady, and yet not hesitating to say "sol1-of-a-bitch.'! Also see notes on obscene folklore. IVI It was difficult to. find a motif' related to tld.s tale. It seems the usc of swear tlOrds by ohildren is not oonsiderod humorous. One oould try:,to conneot it to X700, humor conoerning sex. This hm~ever, would oall for a stretoh of the imagination. V This joke seems to be"related to the general mot.if, lies oonoe1:' ning speed (Xl796). Also motif's, X1796.2 lie: mll!1ing ahUi.i.~YJ a11e1 1:902 re-markable runner. VI "1'hL: t,ale is very obviously a modern type of schwank. It is related to Jl749, absurd ignoranoe --- misoellaneous. And to type 1328, numbskULL misunderstanclings. VII 1'his tall" is related to motif x665 , jokes about nogros; and to x691.21, unusual sexual oapacity of tho Negro. VIII J1V:38'i ,ignoranoe of religious matters; a1.d the broader catagory jokes about negros x665, and J2).95, religi.ous words or exoersises interpreted with absurd 11.terations, are the motifs of this"slWlllllk. IX 1'his tale' motif I-las extremely hard to find. 'rhe motif (s) of this tale malT be loosely fabrioated from the motif J2lJ96~ misunderstanding beoause of laok of different language to motif J24962, misunderstanding of tl~ meaning of a word. And the motif X665, jokes about negros. X lfhis story is told as a personal legend. It seems to be related to motifs: E338.l, non malevolent ghost haunts house or castle, E402(d) ghost-like noise cause owner to abandon farm, E402 11..1 gaost calls, and E530,1.5 ghost light indicates impending calamity, XI This shwmk is related to motif X665 'tales about negros XII This joke which deals wi. th a rebel story seems to follow motif number X581, jokes about soldiers. XIII Thi.s story is related to X70U, humor concerning sex. XIV Motif x459, miscellaneous jokes about preachers. xv This story is related to Jl738, ignorance of religious matters. XVI Obcene take-offs on nursery rhymes, perhaps mot.if X700J humor concerning sex. XVII I could find no related motifs. XVIII This shwank can be cOllll.ected to the following motifs; X459, miscellaneous jokes~about preachers; X665, jokes about negrosJ and again perhaps to children's use of obscene words does not have the humor iii the folk society, XIX The motifs XI~59 miscellaneous jokes about preachers. TApg II I Humor concerning sex, motif number X700 is one motif' dealing with this tale, II A.lthough this story does certainly relate to X700, humor con- CC1qj.ng sex, I ,"las able to locate some more definite mottfs than just this one. Q243.2 seduction punished and Q451.10 pUYlishment genitalia cut off seem to deal more directly with this story, III XII,9 miscellaneous jokes about preachers and x665, jokes about negros. IV The motif x665 seems to be related to this Jol<e} it is entitled .Jokes abO\lt negros. V The main character of this jest seems to be a modern trickster figure' it is connected with the motifs KiOO, deceptive bargin; and K264. deceptive wager. VI The motifs of X1159 .mimcellaneous .iokes about preachers seem to n t this tale.' VIII Again the motH X700, humor concerning sex fits this joke. IX and X both seem to follow the same general motifs -- jokes about negros x665; and X69l.2l unusual sexua.l capacity- of negros. Xi This sctmank and the following (alolflg wi th the Vanishing HHchhiker, II) were probably- the mo.st trae!itioul tales we collected. They seem to be very saturated in folk society-. Tale number XI fits the motif Xl2tJ6.l3, mosquitoe' carries spare (ane! / or longer bJ.ll) ~lhich he uses when necessary-. XII X1286.141 large mosquitoes fly off with kettle. BIBLIOGRAPHY To research mY' motifs for this paper I used: BAUGHf1AN, EftNJ':ST TYPE AND NO'l'IF-INDEX of the FOLKTALES of ENGl,ANI) and NORm M1ErUCA rej!erance erR 67/B3; oopyright 1966, Indiana University Folklore Series No. 20. THOMPSON, S'['D'H N01'IF"'INDI~X of FOLK:I.ITJo:HATURE six volumes, referll.l1ce GR 67/ T 52; oopyright 1958, Indiana Universi ty Press. EXTRA CREDIT MUSIC collected from Mr. Colbert Evans Rex, Georgia Collection Project for Folklore 301 by Patricia & Llll'ry Hester 6:40 class }fivF Hay 28, 1969 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I a. Collection of Music from Mr. Colbert Evans; EX'rRA CREDIT ( counting mnnbers 00 - 12 ) I Soldiers Joy: ( counting numbers 14 - 2/1 ) II Turkey in the StraIn ( counting nymbers 25 - 36 ) III Fisher's Hornpiper: ( counting numbers 35 - 45 ) Resurch Folksongs Elf nay M. Lawless II 526 (instrumental) IV Old Joe Clark: 1f played & sting: Oh, I went down to ole Joe's house, Ole Joe wann't at home; Ate up all of old Joe's meat, Left old ,Joe the bone: Fair-e-well ole Joe Clark, Fair-e-well I say; Fair-e-well ole Joe Clark, I'm going away to stay: Fair-e-well ole Joe Clark, Goodbye bed street,brown; Fair-e-well ole Joe Clark, I'm going to leave this tow:il: / ( counting numbers 45 - 62 ) V Chineese Breakdown: ( counting numbers 62 - 75 ) # 59 (instrumental) b. VI Bully of ~ Town: lfplayed & sling: Looking for that Bully, that B1Jtlly of the town; Looking for that Bully, that Bully can't he found; I'M looking for that Bully of the town: loJhen I walk this levy around and around, Everyday I may be found; vllien I walk this levy round and round, I'm looking fon that Bully of the town: ( counting numbers 75 - 98 ) VII Love Letters in the ~: (definately not traditional) If played & sUng: A day like today, just to pass the time away, Writing love letters in the sand; Are you left when I cried, the time we saw the tide, Pick out love letters in the sand: You made a V01f that you lfOUld always be true, But some hO~1 that vow Immt meant nothing to you; Now my broken heart ackes at every wave that brakes, Over love letters in the sand: ( counting nmnbers 98 - 115 ) VIII Wednesday .Night Hal tz: ( counting numbers 111\ - 1113 ) IX Good Night ~: ( couVltirlg numbers 143 - 1,:>8 ) If 752 c. x Uncle Nei: lfplllyed & sung: '1'here ,IllS un old <:larkey, his name was Uncle Ned, He died long long ago; He had no wool on top his head, ~~he place where the 'Iil"'! iUN grow: wo.' ""'~r:\- I' 0 So lay lown the shovel and hoe, Hang up the ficldle and t;he bow; There's no more work for poor Ure]e Ned, He's gone where the goocl clarkies go: (counting nwnbers 158 - 176) Mosquito tales by Mr. Evens previously in collection project. ( counting numbers 176 - 207 ) IJ 710 XI Tennessee Wagner: ( counting numbers 207 - End ) XII DQrJ.ing lIlelly Gray: If player! & sung: Oh my darling Nelly Gray) they have takelfl you away, Alld I'll never see my clarling any morc; I llm setting an' a singing an' a 101lgin'as a go, For you've gone from the old Kel,tucky shore: COLLECTION PROJECT-F-OL-KL-OR-E -30-1 by Patricia & Larry Hester 6:40 Class May 26, 1969 Spring Quarter
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Professor John Burrison founded the Atlanta Folklore Archive Project in 1967 at Georgia State University. He trained undergraduates and graduate students enrolled in his folklore curriculum to conduct oral history interviews. Students interviewed men, women, and children of various demographics in Georgia and across the southeast on crafts, storytelling, music, religion, rural life, and traditions.
As archivists, we acknowledge our role as stewards of information, which places us inaposition to choose how individuals and organizations are represented and described in our archives. We are not neutral, andbias isreflected in our descriptions, whichmay not convey the racist or offensive aspects of collection materialsaccurately.Archivists make mistakes and might use poor judgment.We often re-use language used by the former owners and creators, which provides context but also includes bias and prejudices of the time it was created.Additionally,our work to use reparative languagewhereLibrary of Congress subject termsareinaccurate and obsolete isongoing. Kenan Research Center welcomes feedback and questions regarding our archival descriptions. If you encounter harmful, offensive, or insensitive terminology or description please let us know by emailingreference@atlantahistorycenter.com. Your comments are essential to our work to create inclusive and thoughtful description.