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KENTUCK iiiaaa AND LUCY B. THi . KENTUCKY SUPERSTITIONS KENTUCKY SUPERSTITIONS BY DANIEL LINDSEY THOMAS, Ph.D. LATE PROFESSOR OP ENGLISH AT CENTRE COLLEGE, AND FOUNDER AND PRESIDENT OF THE KENTUCKY BRANCH OF THE AMERICAN FOLK-LORE SOCIETY. AND LUCY BLAYNEY THOMAS, M.A. TEACHER OF ENGLISH AT WARD-BELMONT SCHOOL, NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE. PRINCETON UNIVERSITYPRESS PRINCETON N. J. LONDON: HUMPHREY MILFORD OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 1920 Copyright,1920,by PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS Published,1920 PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica PREFACE To bring together odd beliefs for the possible amuse- ment of the curious is not the object of a research in the field of folk superstitions such as we have attempted. The end sought is not humor or satire; our hope is rather that such value as is present will be serious. The study of su- perstitious survi\als throws light on what the working of the human mind was in the early stages of its evolution. Eccentric and illogical beliefs of today were accepted A principles of life centuries ago. collection of superstitions, in so far as it has scholarly value, is a partial record of what men have thought and believed. It is, therefore, our hope that this collection may be in a real, though per- haps small, sense, a contribution both to history and to psychology. In Kentucky and elsewhere, the folk superstitions are gradually passing away; many of them are already irrecoverably lost. For purposes of permanent m record, it would seem worth while to preserve print all that can be saved from loss. In the collection of the materials for this volume, we have received assistance from many people. For example, teachers and students of eight or ten colleges and sixty or seventy high schools, grade schools, and district schools have made contributions, small or great. Many other men and women, white and colored, in the mountains and in the lowlands of the State, have sent us items. It is im- possible to mention all to whom we wish to offer our grate- ful acknowledgments. Those who have sent us the largest KENTUCKY SUPERSTITIONS number of usable folk superstitions are Miss Louise Kelly, of Lebanon, Reverend and Mrs. Lucien Waggener and Mr. C. M. Fackler, of Danville, Mr. Josiah H. Combs, of Hindman, Rev. G. S. Watson, of Booneville, Miss Stella Nolan, of Harlan County, Mr. Joseph Hart, of Buckhorn, Professors L. L. Dantzler, of the University of Kentucky, B. N. Daniel, of Georgetown College, C. C. Freeman, of Transylvania College, John F. Smith, of Berea College, Thos. A. Hendricks, of Hamilton College for Women, Miss Mary Shaw, of Kentucky College for Women, Miss Ada G. Croft, of Cumberland College, Miss Mattye Reid, of the Western Kentucky Normal School,Dean Kirke Smith, of Lincoln Institute (colored), and Professors W. O. Hopper, of the Mt. Sterling High School, M. E. Ligon, of the Lexington High School, G. W. Colvin, of the Springfield High School, J. T. Norris, of the Augusta High School, J. H. Addams, of the Franklin High School, J. W. Welch, of the Henderson High School, J. H. Risley, of the Owensboro High School, and J. S. Cotter, of the Coleridge Taylor School We (colored), of Louisville. wish to express our very great gratitude to Professor George Lyman Kittredge for advice and encouragement in the production of this collection. vi