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Textbook Ebook Italian Recipes For Dummies 1St Edition Amy Riolo All Chapter PDF
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Amy Riolo
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Italian
Recipes
by Amy Riolo
Copyright © 2022 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey
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CHAPTER 20: Making the Dough You Know and Love: Bread, Pizza,
and Focaccia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
Recipes at a Glance
Antipasti/Appetizers and Aperitivi
Insalata di mare/Seafood Salad��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������81
Funghi ripieni/Stuffed Mushrooms����������������������������������������������������������������������������82
Giardiniera/Quick Italian Pickles��������������������������������������������������������������������������������83
Bruschetta con pomodori/Tomato Bruschetta ������������������������������������������������������84
Caponata/Sicilian Sweet and Sour Eggplant Medley����������������������������������������������85
Crostini con purea di cannellini/ Crostini with Cannellini Bean Purée����������������86
Polpette di melanzane/Eggplant Croquettes ����������������������������������������������������������87
Antipasti misti/Antipasto Platter ������������������������������������������������������������������������������������88
Salse/Sauces
Cacio e pepe/Roman Cheese and Pepper “Condimento”��������������������������������������94
Pesto/ Fresh Basil and Pine Nut “Sauce”������������������������������������������������������������������95
Salsa besciamella/Béchamel Sauce ��������������������������������������������������������������������������96
Salsa verde/Green Sauce��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������97
Salsa di pomodoro/Fresh Tomato Sauce������������������������������������������������������������������98
Sugo alla norma/Sicilian Tomato and Eggplant Sauce ������������������������������������������99
Sugo all’arrabbiata/Spicy Tomato Sauce��������������������������������������������������������������� 101
Salsa Amatriciana/Sauce from Amatrice��������������������������������������������������������������� 102
Ragù alla Bolognese/Bolognese-Style Meat Sauce��������������������������������������������������� 103
Colazione/Breakfast
Biscotti d’anice/Anise Biscotti ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 253
Biscotti di miele/Honey Breakfast Biscuits ����������������������������������������������������������� 255
Cantucci/Tuscan Almond Biscotti��������������������������������������������������������������������������� 256
Pan di spagna/Sponge Cake������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 258
Quattro quarti/Pound Cake������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 259
Torta di frutta stagionale/Seasonal Fruit Cake����������������������������������������������������� 260
Bomboloni/Cream Filled Doughnuts��������������������������������������������������������������������� 262
Caffé/Classic Espresso����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 264
Caffé Latte������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 265
Dolci/Classic Desserts
Budino di riso/Carnaroli Rice Pudding������������������������������������������������������������������� 287
Panna cotta con lamponi/Cooked Cream with Raspberries ����������������������������� 288
Tiramisù����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 289
Tiramisù di fragole/Strawberry Tiramisù��������������������������������������������������������������� 291
Torta di nocciola/Piemontese Hazelnut Cake������������������������������������������������������� 293
Torta Caprese/Capri-Style Chocolate and Almond Cake������������������������������������� 295
Torta di fichi, noci, e semi di finocchio/Fig, Walnut, and Fennel
Seed Cake������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 297
Torta di ciliege, mandorle, ed olio d’oliva/Cherry, Almond,
and Olive Oil Cake����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 298
Zuccotto/Florentine Cream-Filled Dome Cake����������������������������������������������������� 299
Cassata Siciliana/Sicilian Ricotta-Filled Cassata Cake������������������������������������������ 301
Zeppole di San Giuseppe/St. Joseph’s Day Cream Puffs������������������������������������� 303
Struffoli/Neapolitan Honey-Drenched Fritters����������������������������������������������������� 305
Cannoli������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 307
Table of Contents xi
CHAPTER 4: Cooking with an Eye on the Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Seasonality in the Italian Kitchen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Sampling Everyday Menus for Every Season. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
A sample springtime meal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
A sample summertime meal . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
A sample fall meal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
A sample winter meal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Savoring Extended Sunday and Holiday Meals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Sunday suppers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Christmas and winter holiday menus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Lent, Easter, and spring holiday menus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Ferragosto and summer special occasion menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
INDEX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367
Table of Contents xv
Introduction
“Donne, ricette e mode, chi li capisce gode.”
R
ecipes have always been an integral part of my life. Much more than just
technical instructions, both oral and written recipes have the power to cre-
ate cultural bridges between ourselves and others. They narrow the distance
between time and space and give us the opportunity to be in touch with people and
places that we may not be able to physically reach. Whether we are preparing reci-
pes of those loved ones who are no longer with us or those who live on another
continent, the act of doing so brings us closer to them.
It was the desire to be with those I could no longer be with, and in places that
I couldn’t travel to, that fueled my passion for recipe reading, writing, and col-
lecting as a young girl. Growing up in a family with Southern Italian (Calabrian)
roots in New York state, food was our main link to our culture. Like many Italian-
American families, and families of immigrants during those times, we lost many
aspects of our culture due to the erroneous belief that assimilation was necessary
for the good of our nation.
It is often said that food is the last component of a culture to be lost when people
emigrate, and, in the case of our family and community, that is definitely true.
I apprenticed under my grandparents on both sides of my family and my mother
since I was three years old. Making bread, meatballs, cookies, pastries, and holi-
day recipes with them was the highlight of my life growing up. Later, I learned
that the very same Cuzzupe di Pasqua (Calabrian Easter Bread), Petrali (fig cookies
for Christmas), and other recipes that my beloved Nonna Angela taught me, were
the same recipes that our family in Crotone, Calabria, still make for the same holi-
days. In fact, we often prepare them at the same time on the same days without
knowing it! This means that a century after my great-grandparents emigrated to
the United States, those recipes acted as edible time capsules that kept our fami-
ly’s culture connected in a way that’s hard to explain. The Riolo family in the U.S.
lost contact with their Italian relatives for more than four decades, yet our recipes
lived on. What a joy it was to discover that we still had an edible connection to one
another when we reunited.
Introduction 1
Twenty-seven years after I first stepped foot in Italy and rediscovered my family
in Calabria thanks to my cousin, Joyce Riolo, I am proud to say that I have lived
and continue to work there. I am the Brand Ambassador for Ristorante D’Amore in
gorgeous Capri, Italy. I lead cuisine, culture, and wellness tours to the majestic
(yet still relatively unknown to tourists) regions of Abruzzo, Molise, and Calabria.
I have a line of Amy Riolo Selections products that come from genuine single-
estate producers in Italy, and I have maintained beautiful relationships with my
relatives there. I also have formed a marketing company for Italian products called
Italian Sensory Experience, LLC. I speak fluent Italian and often travel to Italy for
personal reasons, for work, and to attend conferences on olive oil, wine, and other
products. In the United States, I am the Brand Ambassador for the Pizza University
and Culinary Arts Center, which enabled me to get pizzaiola certification with
Maestro Pizzaiolo Enzo Coccia. I am also the chef at Casa Italiana Language School
in Washington, D.C., and am very involved with Italian and Italian-American
organizations throughout the world. Recently I became a founding member of the
Italian non-profit association called A.N.I.T.A (Accademia Nazionale Italiana
Tradizione Alimentari, or Italian National Academy of Food Traditions) whose
vision is to promote healthful and sustainable Italian cuisine, traditions, and agri-
culture in the world.
After spending so much time in Italy, researching the recipes, and seeing how
“Italian” food is served around the world, I knew there was a need for a book with
mass appeal that would help demystify genuine, regional, Italian cuisine and cul-
ture, and so my eleventh book, Italian Recipes For Dummies, was born. The contents
of this book are based on my Mastering Italian Certification Series that I have
taught in cooking schools and institutions. The idea behind the book and the series
is to give cooks the knowledge, tips, and strategies they need to create the best
Italian foods.
While recipes are the easiest entry point into Italian cuisine, preparing them with
passion and integrity can lead to a lifelong case of Italophilia, or love of all things
Italian. Eating a traditional Italian diet, of mostly plant-based ingredients dressed
with healthful doses of quality extra virgin olive oil and artisan vinegar, is as good
for the body as it is for the palate and the psyche. May the recipes in this book
bring you closer to those you love and connect you to your past and your future, as
they do for me.
I understand that some days are busier than others, so this book outlines how to
fit cooking into your life. Most importantly, though, it discusses the deep-rooted
misconceptions about getting to cook (not just having to cook) that have deprived
us of one of life’s greatest pleasures. You learn why Italians, myself included, are
so passionate about food, and you may be inspired to adopt some of the fervor!
Whatever your cooking skill level, you will find recipes and tips that are perfect
for you.
This book is a reference, which means you don’t have to read it from beginning to
end or commit it to memory. Instead, you can dip in and out of the book to find
the information you need. Use the table of contents and the index to find the sub-
jects you’re looking for. If you’re short on time, you can skip sidebars (text in gray
boxes) and anything marked with the Technical Stuff icon.
»» All temperatures are Fahrenheit. For conversion to Celsius, see the Appendix.
»» Vegetarian recipes are marked with the tomato icon ( ) in the Recipes in This
Chapter and Recipes in This Book lists.
»» I call for high quality extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) and unrefined sea salt in
many recipes throughout this book. I recommend these varieties because
there is a big difference among the types on the market today, and using the
best quality ingredients ensures that they are better for you. Be sure to check
out Chapter 5 for more info about why these items are important to me and,
I feel, to Italian cooking.
»» In this book, my dear friend, Dr. Sante Laviola, Italian research scientist,
Sommelier, and official wine-taster of the Slow Wine Guide (published by Slow
Food Editore) has paired his wine suggestions with my recipes. I truly appreci-
ate his opinions because he has a very unique and highly informed perspec-
tive on wine pairing. With a PhD in Physics of the Earth System, Dr. Laviola
uses a distinct form of wine pairing that promotes natural wines and protects
our environment while pairing wines with the proper terroir (or natural
environment including soil, topography, and climate) to each plate. He uses a
Introduction 3
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that, if the thief does not restore the stolen property, he will be a
dead man within a month.34.1
Similarly in Nias, an island to the west of
Thieves cursed in Sumatra, when a thief cannot be found he is
Nias.
cursed, and to give weight to the curse a dog is
burned alive. While the animal is expiring in torments, the man who
has been robbed expresses his wish that the thief may likewise die
in agony; and they say that thieves who have been often cursed do
die screaming.34.2 Curses are also employed for
Thieves cursed
among the Sea
the same purpose with excellent effect by the Sea
Dyaks of Borneo. Dyaks of Borneo. On this point a missionary bears
the following testimony. “With an experience of
nearly twenty years in Borneo, during which I came into contact with
thousands of the people, I have known of only two instances of theft
among the Dyaks. One was a theft of rice. The woman who lost the
rice most solemnly and publicly cursed the thief, whoever it might be.
The next night the rice was secretly left at her door. The other was a
theft of money. In this case, too, the thief was cursed. The greater
part of the money was afterwards found returned to the box from
which it had been abstracted. Both these incidents show the great
dread the Dyak has of a curse. Even an undeserved curse is
considered a terrible thing, and, according to Dyak law, to curse a
person for no reason at all is a fineable offence.
“A Dyak curse is a terrible thing to listen to. I have only once heard
a Dyak curse, and I am sure I do not want to do so again. I was
travelling in the Saribas district, and at that time many of the Dyaks
there had gone in for coffee-planting; indeed, several of them had
started coffee plantations on a small scale. A woman told me that
some one had over and over again stolen the ripe coffee-berries
from her plantation. Not only were the ripe berries stolen, but the
thief had carelessly picked many of the young berries and thrown
them on the ground, and many of the branches of the plants had
been broken off. In the evening, when I was seated in the public part
of the house with many Dyak men and women round me, we
happened to talk about coffee-planting. The woman was present,
and told us of her experiences, and how her coffee had been stolen
by some thief, who, she thought, must be one of the inmates of the
house. Then she solemnly cursed the thief. She began in a calm
voice, but worked herself up into a frenzy. We all listened horror-
struck, and no one interrupted her. She began by saying what had
happened, and how these thefts had gone on for some time. She
had said nothing before, hoping that the thief would mend his ways;
but the matter had gone on long enough, and she was going to curse
the thief, as nothing, she felt sure, would make him give up his evil
ways. She called on all the spirits of the waters and the hills and the
air to listen to her words and to aid her. She began quietly, but
became more excited as she went on. She said something of this
kind:
“ ‘If the thief be a man, may he be unfortunate in
Curses on a man all he undertakes! May he suffer from a disease
thief.
that does not kill him, but makes him helpless—
always in pain—and a burden to others. May his wife be unfaithful to
him, and his children become as lazy and dishonest as he is himself.
If he go out on the war-path, may he be killed, and his head smoked
over the enemy’s fire. If he be boating, may his boat be swamped
and may he be drowned. If he be out fishing, may an alligator kill him
suddenly, and may his relatives never find his body. If he be cutting
down a tree in the jungle, may the tree fall on him and crush him to
death. May the gods curse his farm so that he may have no crops,
and have nothing to eat, and when he begs for food, may he be
refused, and die of starvation.
“ ‘If the thief be a woman, may she be childless,
Curses on a woman or if she happen to be with child let her be
thief.
disappointed, and let her child be still-born, or,
better still, let her die in childbirth. May her husband be untrue to her,
and despise her and ill-treat her. May her children all desert her if
she live to grow old. May she suffer from such diseases as are
peculiar to women, and may her eyesight grow dim as the years go
on, and may there be no one to help her or lead her about when she
is blind.’
“I have only given the substance of what she said; but I shall never
forget the silence and the awed faces of those who heard her. I left
the house early next morning, so I do not know what was the result
of her curse—whether the thief confessed or not.”36.1
The ancient Greeks seem to have made a very
Thieves cursed in liberal use of curses as a cheap and effective
ancient Greece.
mode of protecting property, which dispenses the
injured party from resorting to the tedious, expensive, and too often
fruitless formalities of the law. These curses they inscribed on tablets
of lead and other materials and deposited either in the place which
was to be protected from depredation or in the temple of the god to
whose tender mercies the criminal was committed. For example, in a
sacred precinct dedicated to Demeter, Persephone, Pluto and other
deities of a stern and inflexible temper at Cnidus, a number of leaden
tablets were found inscribed with curses which consigned the
malefactors of various sorts to the vengeance of the two Infernal
Goddesses, Demeter and her daughter. “May he or she never find
Persephone propitious!” is the constantly repeated burden of these
prayers; and in some of them the sinner is not only excommunicated
in this world but condemned to eternal torments in the world
hereafter. Often the persons who launched these curses were ladies.
One irate dame consigns to perdition the thief who had stolen her
bracelet or the defaulter who had failed to send back her
underclothes.36.2 Another curse, engraved on a marble slab found at
Smyrna, purports that if any man should steal one of the sacred
vessels of a certain goddess or injure her sacred fish, he may die a
painful death, devoured by the fishes.36.3 Sometimes, apparently,
these Greek imprecations were as effective in reclaiming sinners as
Dyak curses are to this day. Thus we read of a curious dedication to
a lunar deity of Asia Minor, by name Men Aziottenos, which declares
how one Artemidorus, having been reviled by a couple of rude
fellows, cursed them in a votive tablet, and how one of the culprits,
having been punished by the god, made a propitiatory offering and
mended his wicked ways.37.1 To prevent people
Landmarks
protected by gods
from encroaching on their neighbours’ land by
and curses. removing the boundary stones, the Greeks
committed landmarks to the special protection of
the great god Zeus;37.2 and Plato dwells with unction on the double
punishment, divine and human, to which the sinner exposed himself
who dared to tamper with these sacred stones.37.3 The Romans
went even further, for they created a god for the sole purpose of
looking after landmarks, and he must have had his hands very full if
he executed all the curses which were levelled not only at every man
who shifted his neighbour’s boundary stone, but even at the oxen
which he employed to plough up his neighbour’s land.37.4 The
Hebrew code of Deuteronomy pronounced a solemn curse on such
as removed their neighbour’s landmarks;37.5 and Babylonian kings
exhausted their imagination in pouring out a flood of imprecations
against the abandoned wretch who thus set at naught the rights of
property in land.37.6 King Nebuchadnezzar in particular, before he
was turned out to grass, appears to have distinguished himself by
the richness and variety of his execrations, if we may judge by a
specimen of them which has survived. A brief extract from this
masterpiece may serve to illustrate the king’s style of minatory
eloquence. Referring to the bold bad man, “be it shepherd or
governor, or agent or regent, levy master or magistrate,” whosoever
he might be, who “for all days to come, for the future of human
habitations,” should dare to tamper with the land which his Majesty
had just marked out, “Ninib, lord of boundaries and boundary-stones,
tear out his boundary stone. Gula, great lady, put lingering illness
into his body, that dark and light red blood he may pour out like
water. Ishtar, lady of countries, whose fury is a flood, reveal
difficulties to him, that he escape not from misfortune. Nusku, mighty
lord, powerful burner, the god, my creator, be his evil demon and
may he burn his root. Whoever removes this stone, in the dust hides
it, burns it with fire, casts it into water, shuts it up in an enclosure,
causes a fool, a deaf man, an idiot to take it, places it in an invisible
place, may the great gods, who upon this stone are mentioned by
their names, curse him with an evil curse, tear out his foundation and
destroy his seed.”38.1
In Africa also superstition is a powerful ally of
Superstition as an the rights of private property. Thus the Balonda
ally of the rights of
private property in place beehives on high trees in the forest and
Africa. protect them against thieves by tying a charm or
“piece of medicine” round the tree-trunks. This
proves a sufficient protection. “The natives,” says Livingstone,
“seldom rob each other, for all believe that certain medicines can
inflict disease and death; and though they consider that these are
only known to a few, they act on the principle that it is best to let
them all alone. The gloom of these forests strengthens the
superstitious feelings of the people. In other quarters, where they are
not subjected to this influence, I have heard the chiefs issue
proclamations to the effect, that real witchcraft medicines had been
placed at certain gardens from which produce had been stolen; the
thieves having risked the power of the ordinary charms previously
placed there.”38.2
The Wanika of East Africa “believe in the power
The Wanika of East and efficacy of charms and amulets, and they
Africa.
wear them in great variety; legs, arms, neck, waist,
hair, and every part of the body are laden with them, either for the
cure or prevention of disease; for the expulsion or repulsion of evil
spirits; and to keep at bay snakes, wild animals, and every other evil.
They hang painted calabashes from the baobab at their hut doors to
keep away thieves; shells, dolls, eggs scratched over with Arabic
characters by the Wana Chuoni (sons of the book) of the coast, are
placed about their plantations and in their fruit-trees, and they
believe that death would overtake a thief who should disregard them.
A charm bound to the leg of a fowl is ample protection for the village.
There is no doubt that, superstitious as the people are, they dread
running great risks for the sake of small gains, and so these charms
answer their purpose.”39.1 Among the Boloki of the
The Boloki of the
Congo.
Upper Congo, when a woman finds that the
cassava roots, which she keeps soaking in a
water-hole, are being stolen, she takes a piece of gum copal, and
fixing it in the cleft of a split stick she puts it on the side of the hole,
while at the same time she calls down a curse on the thief. If the thief
is a man, he will henceforth have no luck in fishing; if she is a
woman, she will have no more success in farming.39.2 The Ekoi of
Southern Nigeria protect their farms against thieves by bundles of
palm leaves to which they give the name of okpata. Should any one
steal from a farm thus protected, he will fall sick and will not recover
unless he gives a certain dance, to which the name of okpata is also
applied.39.3
In the mountains of Marrah, a district of Darfur,
Guardian spirits houses, goods, and cattle are protected against
(damzogs) of
property in Darfur. thieves by certain fierce and dangerous guardian-
spirits called damzogs, which can be bought like
watch dogs. Under the guardianship of such a spiritual protector the
sheep and cows are left free to wander at will; for if any one were
rash enough to attempt to steal or kill one of the beasts, his hand
with the knife in it would remain sticking fast to the animal’s throat till
the owner came and caught the rascal. An Arab merchant, travelling
in Darfur, received from a friend the following account of the way to
procure one of these useful guardians. “At the time when I first
began to trade, my friend, I often heard that damzogs could be
bought and sold, and that to procure one I must apply to the owner
of a damzog, and discuss the price with him. When the bargain is
concluded, it is necessary to give a large gourd of milk to the seller,
who takes it to his house, where are his damzogs. On entering he
salutes them, and goes and hangs up his vase to a hook, saying,
—‘One of my friends—such a one—very rich, is in fear of robbers,
and asks me to supply him with a guardian. Will one of you go and
live in his house? There is plenty of milk there, for it is a house of
blessing, and the proof thereof is, that I bring you this kara of milk.’
The damzogs at first refuse to comply with the invitation. ‘No, no,’
say they, ‘not one of us will go.’ The master of the hut conjures them
to comply with his desires, saying, ‘Oh! let the one that is willing
descend into the kara.’ He then retires a little, and presently one of
the damzogs is heard to flop into the milk, upon which he hastens
and claps upon the vase a cover made of date-leaves. Thus stopped
up he unhooks the kara, and hands it over to the buyer, who takes it
away and hangs it on the wall of his hut, and confides it to the care
of a slave or of a wife, who every morning comes and takes it,
emptying out the milk, washing it and replenishing it, and hanging it
up again. From that time forward the house is safe from theft or
loss.” The merchant’s informant, the Shereef Ahmed Bedawee, had
himself purchased one of these guardian spirits, who proved most
vigilant and efficient in the discharge of his duties; indeed his zeal
was excessive, for he not only killed several slaves who tried to rob
his master, but did summary execution on the Shereef’s own son,
when the undutiful young man essayed to pilfer from his father’s
shop. This was too much for the Shereef; he invited a party of friends
to assist him in expelling the inflexible guardian. They came armed
with guns and a supply of ammunition, and by raking the shop with
repeated volleys of musketry they at last succeeded in putting the
spirit to flight.40.1
Amongst the Nandi of British East Africa nobody
The curses of dares to steal anything from a smith; for if he did,
smiths and potters.
the smith would heat his furnace, and as he blew
the bellows to make the flames roar he would curse the thief so that
he would die. And in like manner among these people, with whom
the potters are women, nobody dares to filch anything from a potter;
for next time she heated her wares the potter would curse him,
saying, “Burst like a pot, and may thy house become red,” and the
thief so cursed would die.41.1 In Loango, when a
Charms to protect
property in West
man is about to absent himself from home for a
Africa. considerable time he protects his hut by placing a
charm or fetish before it, consisting perhaps of a
branch with some bits of broken pots or trash of that sort; and we are
told that even the most determined robber would not dare to cross a
threshold defended by these mysterious signs.41.2 On the coast of
Guinea fetishes are sometimes inaugurated for the purpose of
detecting and punishing certain kinds of theft; and not only the culprit
himself, but any person who knows of his crime and fails to give
information is liable to be punished by the fetish. When such a fetish
is instituted, the whole community is warned of it, so that he who
transgresses thereafter does so at his peril. For example, a fetish
was set up to prevent sheep-stealing and the people received
warning in the usual way. Shortly afterwards a slave, who had not
heard of the law, stole a sheep and offered to divide it with a friend.
The friend had often before shared with him in similar enterprises,
but the fear of the fetish was now too strong for him; he informed on
the thief, who was brought to justice and died soon after of a
lingering and painful disease. Nobody in the country ever doubted
but that the fetish had killed him.41.3 Among the Ewe-speaking tribes
of the Slave Coast in West Africa houses and household property
are guarded by amulets (võ-sesao), which derive their virtue from
being consecrated or belonging to the gods. The crops, also, in
solitary glades of the forest are left under the protection of such
amulets, generally fastened to long sticks in some conspicuous
position; and so guarded they are quite safe from pillage. By the side
of the paths, too, may be seen food and palm-wine lying exposed for
sale with nothing but a charm to protect them; a few cowries placed
on each article indicate its price. Yet no native would dare to take the
food or the wine without depositing its price; for he dreads the
unknown evil which the god who owns the charm would bring upon
him for thieving.42.1 In Sierra Leone charms, called greegrees, are
often placed in plantations to deter people from stealing, and it is
said that “a few old rags placed upon an orange tree will generally,
though not always, secure the fruit as effectually as if guarded by the
dragons of the Hesperides. When any person falls sick, if, at the
distance of several months, he recollects having stolen fruit, etc., or
having taken it softly as they term it, he immediately supposes
wangka has caught him, and to get cured he must go or send to the
person whose property he had taken, and make to him whatever
recompense he demands.”42.2
Superstitions of the same sort have been
Charms to protect transported by the negroes to the West Indies,
property in the West
Indies. where the name for magic is obi and the magician
is called the obeah man. There also, we are told,
the stoutest-hearted negroes “tremble at the very sight of the ragged
bundle, the bottle or the egg-shells, which are stuck in the thatch or
hung over the door of a hut, or upon the branch of a plantain tree, to
deter marauders.… When a negro is robbed of a fowl or a hog, he
applies directly to the Obeah-man or woman; it is then made known
among his fellow blacks, that obi is set for the thief; and as soon as
the latter hears the dreadful news, his terrified imagination begins to
work, no resource is left but in the superior skill of some more
eminent Obeah-man of the neighbourhood, who may counteract the
magical operations of the other; but if no one can be found of higher
rank and ability; or if, after gaining such an ally, he should still fancy
himself affected, he presently falls into a decline, under the incessant
horror of impending calamities. The slightest painful sensation in the
head, the bowels, or any other part, any casual loss or hurt, confirms
his apprehensions, and he believes himself the devoted victim of an
invisible and irresistible agency. Sleep, appetite and cheerfulness
forsake him; his strength decays, his disturbed imagination is
haunted without respite, his features wear the settled gloom of
despondency: dirt, or any other unwholesome substance, becomes
his only food, he contracts a morbid habit of body, and gradually
sinks into the grave.”43.1 Superstition has killed him.
Similar evidence might doubtless be multiplied,
Conclusion. but the foregoing cases suffice to shew that
among many peoples and in many parts of the
world superstitious fear has operated as a powerful motive to deter
men from stealing. If that is so, then my second proposition may be
regarded as proved, namely, that among certain races and at certain
times superstition has strengthened the respect for private property
and has thereby contributed to the security of its enjoyment.
IV.
MARRIAGE