This dream book is unique in that the Pick'Em system of Rajah Rabo consists of 104 pages of lists of dream image keywords with 9 consecutively-numbered selections for variations on the imagery. The 10th number in the set, deemed a "Special," is picked to play only on designated days of the week.
The dreams are given
interpretations called "signifies" and "forecasts," and the
sets of number picks with these interpretations are arrayed in the following format:
DOPE SPECIAL 711 Mon. Wed. Fri.
Man user 712 Signifies that some valuable in-
Woman user 713 formation will be given you.
Hop 714 Try to make good use of it.
Reefers 715
Smoke 716 FORECAST: try to cure your-
To sell 717 self of the habit of criticizing
To see grow 718 others, and you will be able
To steal 719 to keep your friends longer.
To be arrested for 710
There are also 5 pages of women's names, 4 pages of men's names, and 12 pages of monthly number picks.
I have not been able to turn up any information about the author of this book, Carl Z. Talbot, except that he wrote under the pseudonym Rajah Rabo and originally published his books in Mount Vernon, New York, a close suburb of Manhattan that happens to be the most northerly stop on the New York City subway lines. Talbot is known to have published the Rajah Rabo 5-Star Mutuel Dream Book in 1932, with a "new improved" revised edition released in 1941. The Pick'Em Dream Book was originally copyright 1953, and, in keeping with the time period, we find that there are entries for "TELEVISION," "ATOMIC," and "HYDROGEN BOMB," and in the entry for "WAR," both "World no. 2" and "World no. 1" are given separate number picks.
As can be seen from the "DOPE" example given above, Mr. Talbot dealt unabashedly with topics that many dream book authors have traditionally avoided.
Under "CRAP GAME" he listed both "Crooked" and "Raided," under "FATHER" he listed "In jail," under "LYNCH" he listed "Down South," and under "BIBLE" he listed "Jewish."
Under "PROSTITUTE" he listed "to be robbed by," under "WALKING" he listed both "to police court" and "with the dead," and under "RESTAURANT" he listed "Jim Crow."
Under "THEATRE" he listed "Apollo" (a black venue in New York City), under "VOMIT" he listed "in subway," and under "NEWSPAPER" he listed both "Amsterdam News" (a black-owned paper in Harlem) and "P.M." (a short-lived left-wing radical paper in Manhattan mostly staffed by Jews).
He even worked out a ten-digit entry for "FAGGETT" [sic -- a misspelling of "Faggot," a homosexual man], with separate numbers for "Colored," "White," "Walking," "Talking," "Good-looking," "Ugly," "Drunk," "Sick," and "Talking to," as well as an unexpectedly positive "FORECAST," given the anti-gay prejudices of the time: "Don't throw away a valuable friendship because of those who love the life they live, and live the life they love." Suddenly the image on the cover -- of a darkly dashing turbaned young man with a mustache and a smile -- brings to mind memories of the 1950s rock'n'roll singer Little Richard and his wayward "Tutti Frutti" charisma.
Even though some of the lucky dream images in this book are old-fashioned, Rajah Rabo's system of dream number picks -- both in the Rajah Rabo 5-Star Mutuel Dream Book and the Pick'Em Dream Book by Rajah Rabo -- still holds a great deal of appeal to lottery and racetrack bettors. As evidence of this continuing popularity, a lengthy newspaper article on hoodoo practices in Macon, Georgia in 2000 made mention of the Rajah Rabo books.
All in all, Carl Talbot's individualistic touches, his unique number-picking system, and his frank embracing of the wilder side of life make the Pick'Em Dream Book by Rajah Rabo much more than "just another Dream Book." Frankly, it is an unsung gem of the genre.
More general information about dream books, policy wheels, and lottery betting will be found in the page about "Aunt Sally's Policy Players Dream Book"
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