Walter Hough

“ SNAKE KIVA, ORAIBI.
A shrill whistle denotes that some Moki is the fortunate possessor of an eagle to supply him with the prized feathers for ceremonials. The man who is opulent enough to keep a turkey also has feathers for the gathering. Women go about on various errands or pay visits in which gossip bears a large share. Many a pair of dark eyes peep out from the light-hole in the walls of the houses, or a maiden with hair done up in whorls takes a modest glance at the strangers. ”

“ The weird, high-pitched songs of the corn grinders, and the rumble of the mealing-stones, are familiar sounds in a Moki village. If you see a woman or maiden with face powdered with corn flour, it means that she has been busy grinding in the hopper-like mills sunken in the floor of every house,—and very hard labor it is. Most of the able-bodied men are in the fields if the time is summer, that is if no ceremony is going on—a rare contingency. Moki men are not afraid of work. ”

“ Other dances of the Mokis are more pleasing, as the Kachina dances, with their mirth and music, or the Flute dance, full of color and ceremony, but the Snake dance attracts with a potent fascination. One gets so interested in the progress of the dance that the anticipated element of horror does not appear amid the rhythmic movement and tragic gestures of the dancers with here and there the sinuous undulation of a venomous rattlesnake. Along the sky-line of the houses and on every available foothold and standing place are spectators. ”

“ Only an instant and the priests start up, each with one or more snakes; away they dart for the trail to carry the rain-bringing messengers to their native hiding places. They dash down the mesa and reappear far out on the trails below, running like the wind with their grewsome burdens. The Antelope priests next march gravely around the plaza four times, thumping the sunken plank, and file out to their kiva. ”

“ A stroll about a Moki town will convince the explorer that there are streets full of "surprises," as we call unexpected nooks and corners in our own houses. Just what the building regulations are no one has yet divulged, but the lay of the ground has much to do with the arrangement. Wolpi is crowded upon the point of a narrow mesa, and some of the houses are perched on the edge of the precipice, their foundation walls going down many feet, the building of which is a piece of adventurous engineering. ”

“ This is the soul of the house and the sign of its dedication; no house is without one. Around the walls and from the beams hang all sorts of quaint belongings—painted wooden dolls, bows and arrows, strings of dried herbs and mysterious bundles, likely of trappings for the dances—enough to stock a museum. In well-to-do families the blanket pole, extending across the room, is loaded with their riches in the shape of harness, sashes, blankets and various other valuables. In one corner is a fireplace with hood; sunk in the floor are the corn mills ”

“ The light side of life is uppermost in Moki-land. The disposition of the Moki is to make work a sport, necessity a pleasure and to have a laugh or joke ready in an instant. This is the home of song makers; the singing of the men at work, of the mother to her babe, of the corn grinders, of the priests in assembly chamber or in the kiva-vault, constantly ripples forth. ”

“ On come the demoniacal groups, to music now deep and resonant and now rising to a frenzied pitch, accompanied by the unceasing sibilant rattles of the Antelope chorus. Four times around and the "carrier" opens his mouth and drops the snake to the ground and the "gatherer" dextrously picks it up, adding in the same manner from time to time other snakes, till he may have quite a bundle composed of rattlesnakes, bull snakes and arrow snakes. The bull snakes are large and showy, and impressive out of proportion to their harmfulness. ”

“ The morning and evening reveal new coloring and beauty beyond the power of pen or pencil to depict. With the night new experiences come in the desert. In the clear air of Tusayan myriads of stars are revealed. It is not often the good fortune of the astronomer to enjoy such skies for observation. Stars of low magnitude, rarely seen elsewhere, are easily found in the night heavens of Tusayan. ”

“ Nampeo, at Hano, is the best potter in all Moki-land.
Of course little figures have to be carved from cottonwood, painted and garnished to resemble the numerous divinities of the Mokis who take part in the ceremonies. Men and women make them for their children, who thus get kindergarten instruction on the appearance of the inhabitants of the spiritual world. These "dolls" can often be bought; they are among the most curious souvenirs of the Moki. The weaver, too, spends his odd times in weaving the far-famed blankets of wool, dyed blue with sunflower seeds. ”

“ When all the snakes have been duly danced around the ring, and the nerve tension is at its highest pitch, there is a pause; the old priest advances to an open place and sprinkles sacred meal on the ground, outlining a ring with the six compass points, while the Snake priests gather around. ”

“ Far out in the plain the watchful Moki from his high vantage has seen the approach of visitors, and the news flies fast. There will surely be some of the inhabitants to greet the traveler when he arrives, to wonder at his outfit, ask for piba and matchi (tobacco and matches) , run errands and be on the lookout for windfalls of food. If the traveler wishes a washerman, a boy to graze the horses or carry water and wood, or if he wishes to rent a house, he will soon find willing hands and plenty of advisers. Shiba (silver) makes things run smoothly here as in civilization. ”

“ These ceremonies are religious and make up the complicated worship of the people of Tusayan. Even a visitor bent on sightseeing alone will be impressed with the seriousness of the Indian dancers and the evidence of deep feeling—perhaps it should be called devotion—in the onlookers. Not only in the somber Snake dance, but in every other ceremony of Tusayan the actors are inspired by one purpose and that is to persuade the gods to give rain and abundant crops. ”

“ All streets lead to the plaza, the center of interest, set apart for the many dances; some solemn and awe-inspiring, some grotesque and amusing; all dramatic in action and marvelous in color. In the center of the plaza is a stone box. This is a shrine, the focus at which all ceremonies center, and beneath it is the opening into the underworld of
POTTERS.
departed ancestors. Around most plazas in Tusayan the houses are built solidly; at Wolpi the dances take place on a narrow shelf above the dizzy sandstone cliffs ”

“ Tall columns of white steam arising in the cornfields at early morning invite to a feast of roast corn taken from the newly opened pit-oven. Then there is feasting while the ears are hot and jollity reigns. One thing will strike the visitor as curious: the Mokis do not gamble or drink fire-water, even when they have an opportunity. ”

“ The Province of Tusayan, where the Mokis now live and thrive, is not a total desert waste, although the first impression of those accustomed to green fields and frequent rains is likely to be to the contrary. Drought-defying plants bloom at certain seasons, and fill wide stretches with color. Along the sandy washes, adjacent to the pueblos, which rarely by the good will of the rain gods show a silver glint of water, are corn fields and melon and bean patches, well cared for and jealously guarded by their owners. ”

“ Though veins of coal peep out in many places near the pueblos, the Mokis do not use it, although they seem to have known what coal is long before our wise men settled the question; the native name for it is "rock wood," koowa, a word which resembles our word coal. The score or so of fruits, grains and vegetables which the Mokis plant would, in favorable seasons, cause peace and plenty to reign in Tusayan, but Moki history has some sad tales of famine. When the crops fail, the "good people" of necessity fall back on the crops of nature's own sowing in the desert. ”

“ The division seems fair as to the amount of labor. A popular illusion that the Indian makes his wife do all the work is dispelled here, as another, that Indians are always gruff and taciturn, will vanish after a quarter of an hour's acquaintance with the jovial, laughing Mokis. The house belongs to the woman, and it is proper that she should do the labor connected with it, grind the corn, carry the water, do the cooking, keep the house tidy, and mind the baby. Fortunately, Moki babies do not long require much attention ”

“ The young boys, perhaps, with bow in hand, go to the field with the men, for here is where man's work comes in under the broiling sun, preparing the ground, planting the crops, hoeing, keeping off the crows, prairie dogs, mice and insects, setting up breaks against the wind or sudden rush of water, gathering the crops and bringing them to the house on the mesa. ”

“ The Snake dance is an elaborate prayer for rain, in which the reptiles are gathered from the fields, intrusted with the prayers of the people, and then given their liberty to bear these petitions to the divinities who can bring the blessing of copious rains to the parched and arid farms of the Hopis. ”

“ High up above the plain, viewing from all sides an almost illimitable distance, basking in the brilliant sunshine from sunrise to sunset, bathed in the pure, life-giving air, the Mokis, or "good people," [2] as they delight to call themselves, must feel freedom in its truest sense. ”

“ Testimony to this fact can be furnished by reference to many well-known individuals, who, were they entirely free to indulge their preferences, would every summer forego the seaside and the fashionable watering-place and return to Arizona to mount a sturdy bronco, and forget for a time the cares and conventionalities of civilized life in a simple, wholesome and joyous existence in the sunlit air of the desert. ”

“ Rabbit hunting is another favorite amusement, and parties of young men often do more hard work in one day thus than in a month otherwise with few results to show of "long ears" slain by the curved boomerang. In the proper season berrying parties go out for a day's picnic; the Mokis enjoy traveling, and a journey of fifteen or twenty miles to a berry patch and back is not thought anything out of common. When the green corn comes then the Moki lives bountifully. ”

“ The Mokis are the best entertained people in the world. A round of ceremonies, each terminating in the pageants called "dances," keeps going pretty continuously the whole year. The theaters and other shows in the closely built pueblos of the white man fall far short of entertaining all the people, as do the Moki shows. Then the Moki spectacles are free. The scheme of having a gatekeeper on the trails to demand an entrance fee, while it has great possibilities, has never entered the Moki mind. ”

“ The blankets are serviceable to the last degree and in the loose garment of the women will, perhaps, endure a whole generation. Belts of bright colored yarns, embroidered kilts of cotton and embroidered woolen sashes are chef-d'œuvres of the weaver. ”

“ At Oraibi, where one of the three Snake dances held in Tusayan in the even years occurs, painted baskets of wicker are made. They are very decorative. The potter also plies her craft for the advent of the white man. The clay has been gathered, prepared, and made into vessels of forms tempting to the visitor, painted and burned at the foot of the mesa so that the villainous smoke will not choke everyone. ”

“ Whoever wishes may go to look on, but not everyone goes. The Snake priests return, go to the kiva and remove all their trappings, come out to the edge of the cliff where the medicine women have brought great bowls of a dark liquid brewed in secrecy and mystery. ”

“ Such a condition of things in Tusayan would fill the Moki with joy, for he has the same fondness for rabbit as the negro has for "'possum with coon gravy." Snakes seem to be more plentiful than rabbits, although it takes ardent hunting to catch enough reptiles for the Snake dance. Rats, mice, prairie dogs and an occasional deceased burro or goat vary the menu of the pueblos. ”

“ No plant has escaped their piercing eyes; they have given them names and found out their good and bad qualities; pressed them into service for food, medicine, religion, basket making and a hundred other uses, from an antidote for snake bites to a hair brush. They are also perforce vegetarians. ”

“ The statistics of highest mortality must coincide with the time of watermelons, which are never too unripe to eat. Dogs, chickens and burros also add to the picturesqueness of a Moki village. The burros have the run of the town, and furnish amusement for the children. When providence or luck has prevented a burro from stealing corn, his ears have a normal, if not graceful length. Few there are, though, that have not paid penalty by the loss of one or both of these appendages. Chickens and dogs are a sorry lot. ”

“ So the birds that fly, the reptiles that creep, are made messengers to the great nature gods with petitions, and the different ancestors and people in the underworld are notified that the ceremony is going on that they too may give their aid. The amount of detail connected with the observance of one of the ceremonies is almost beyond belief, and being carried on in the dark kivas has rarely been witnessed by others than the initiated priests. ”