“Zin-ge-lay, wid dem run come,
Zin-ge-lay, wid dem jump come,
Zin-ge-lay, wid dem walk fas’!”
As he come, ’tamp him foot an’ say, “John Studee-e!” De boat t’un right
back come home. If it wasn’t fo’ dat little yawzy boy, de Devil will
kill ’em.
b. The Snake-husband.
Emilina Dodd, Lacovia.
A woman have a daughter, oftentimes engaged and wouldn’t marry, said
that the gentlemen weren’t to her sort; until one day she see a
well-dressed gentleman, came and proposed to her. But she has a brother
was an Old Witch, told her that man was a snake. She said the man was
too well-dressed to be a snake, but the brother was going home with
them under the carriage as a lizard. The first place, as he was going
on, somebody ask, “Mr. Snake, I beg you give me my collar,” and the
next, “Mr. Snake, I beg you give me my jacket,” and so on until he show
himself plain as a snake.
When they get home, he lock her up wanting to kill her, but couldn’t
kill her without the thing called “bump.” Go out in the yard looking
for it. After them gone, the mother-in-law said, “Me daughter, dis man
you marry going to kill you because he is a bad man and he marry a wife
already and kill her and he gwine to kill you too. I would let you go,
but him have one cock, him so chat!” So she threw a barrel of wheat an’
a barrel of corn. When the cock was picking it up he say, “I don’ care
a damn, I will nyam an’ talk!” sing,—
“Ko ko re kom on do!
Girl gone, him no gone,
Ko ko re ko kom on do!”
Then they throw a double quantity. The cock pick it up an’ sing,
“Ko ko re ko kom on do!
Girl gone, him no gone,
Ko ko re ko kom on do!”
Then Snake come from the wood while the brother was taking her on the
water. Snake overtake her, take her home again and lock her in, go back
in the wood again in search of “bump.” And mother-in-law throw a double
quantity of wheat and corn. Cock say again, “I don’t care a damn, I
will nyam an’ talk!” The cock eatey all and sing,—
“Ko ko re kom on do!
Girl gone, him no gone,
Ko ko re ko kom on do!”
So when Snake come out from the wood, he couldn’t get her again because
she was near on land. So he went back home an’ tek a stick an’ lick the
mother-in-law on the head, kill her.
(The following songs are taken from other versions of the Snake-husband
story.)
I will lick you so fine, I will lick you so sweet, yo’
fadder an’ mudder will never fin’ de hair ob yo’ bone.
Poor me Lydie gal, oh, poor me Lydie gal, oh,
han’some man sinake undone me.