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Volume III, No. 3, Spring 1976 |
SO THEY SAY
Since Ozark people were mostly farmers, animals played a great part in their life, even in their beliefs.
If you kill a cat, you will have seven years of bad luck.
The left foot of a rabbit killed in a cemetery is considered lucky.
If a duck egg is taken into the house after sunset, the egg will never hatch.
A three colored cat can bring good luck, but most cats don't.
It will rain when dogs eat grass.
Colts must be weaned when the sign is in the thighs going down.
Don't castrate cattle when signs are going up. Do it when signs are going down.
Because weather plays such an important part in an agricultural community, it is logical that there are many sayings about the weather, especially rain.
In dry weather all signs fail.
If you see a whirlwind coming toward your house, it is a sign of rain.
A whirlwind going into the sun is a sign of rain.
If the whirlwind goes toward the branch of a stream or any water, it is also a sign of rain.
A dog lying on his back is a sign of rain.
Another rain sign is when a tree turns the bottoms of its leaves up.
Coal burning with a hissing noise means bad weather.
Itching is an everyday thing and most people don't give it a second thought. But even itching is the basis for some beliefs.
You are going to take in riches if your head itches.
If your nose itches, somebody is coming.
When the itching is on your feet, you're going to be traveling on different ground.
Since we published the last "So They Say" column, we've heard more beliefs concerning illness and children. They just keep popping up.
Sleeping directly in the moonlight will cause you to go crazy.
A leather string tied around the wrist will cure rheumatism.
A dirty sock worn around the neck on going to bed will cure a sore throat.
To cure chicken pox, lie down in a chicken house after the sun goes down and let a black hen fly over you.
Oil rendered from the fat of skunks is good for the croup.
To keep from catching whooping cough, wear a scarlet cloth around your neck when a canary sings cheerfully.
If a child is born in the night, he will never see spirits.
The baby will be a good singer if you crack the first louse found on his head on the bottom of a tin cup.
People who have moles on their feet and hands will have plenty of children.
If two pregnant women sneeze together, they will have girls.
A girl who drops her comb while combing her hair is due to some sort of disappointment.
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Copyright © 1981 BITTERSWEET, INC.
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