The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1879-10-18
The snake nanrf.

". q. Matser, Indian Agent Of ths
Moquis Puehlos, Of Arizona, gives .
thrilling account OF q strange ceremony
practiced by that tribe, called the
Snake Dance The Moquis regard the
serpent as q sacred reptile, possessed of
the power of controlling the elements,
and disposed to be friendly 10 man..
They never kill snake, and frequently
handle the most poisonous serpents with
impunity. The rattiesnake is regarded
with special yeneration, and their bite is
no more dreaded than the scratch of a
mesquit thorn or the pricking of cactus.
They have an antidote for the bite Of a
rattlesnake which is infallible, and never
fails to effect cure in few minutes
when administered immediately. An
Indian of this tribe, when bitten by q
rattler, swallows the antidote at once,
and after being stupehed for moment,
becomes entirely restored, and never
feels any pain or Inconvenience after
ward. All attempts OF white men to
learn the ingredients of this antidote
have proved futile, as the secret is
guarded with religious fidelity, and an
Indian would lay down his life rather
than communicate the recipe for snake
bites to pale face. If white man is
bitten by rattlesnake, the Indians will
not hesitate to give him the antidote, but
he must not inquire what it is COM
posed of.
The snake dance is performed by the
Moquis every two years, and is resorted
to as means of propitiating the Spirit
of the Summer Rain to send abundant
showers to fructify the earth and make
the crops grow. The corn is planted in
the moist sand of the mesa, without pre-
vious preparation of the ground. for the
plow is unknown to the tribe. and after
it has grown to q certain height and
needs moistening from the clouds. pre-
parations are made for the grand snake
dance. A deep and wide excavation is
made in the dirt floor of one Of the
largest houses in the village, and the
whole tribe go out to hunt snakes. These
they catch with their hands and bring
them in twined around their hecks.
coiled in their bosoms, or wrapped
around their legs and arms. All Kinds
of snakes are captured-the rattler. the
viper, the moccasin, the blue racer. the
black, the garter, the green, spotted-in
fact, every variety existing In the coun-
try. These to the number of several
hundred are placed in the pit in the
floor, and the mouth is covered over with
a buffalo robe, the hairy side down, to
prevent the reptiles from crawling out
and escaping Then o certain number
of old men dance around the pit, chant
ing monotcnous songs and calling upon
the imprisoned serpents to intercede
with the Spirit of the Clouds to
send rain upon the thirsting corn
fields. A body of younger men next
form circle around the pit and go
through similar ceremony Then come
the old women, who have different
chant, then the young married women,
then the boys, and finally the virgins
with their hair done up in loops, and
then for O few moments q solemn silence
prevails, during which the Kissing of the
serpents and the shrill sound OF their
rattles are heard under the buffalo robe.
These sounds are taken as favorable
tokens that the incantations have been
lsuccessful, and that copious fall of rain
Twill follow. Then the buffalo robe is re-
moved, and then the men and boys leap
into the pit, and each one brings forth a
snake, which he holds in his mouth,
lISometimes man will emerge with two
or three small snakes in his mouth, As
each man energies from the pit with his
mouth full of snakes, he runs at full
speed down the almost perpendicular
side of the mesa until he comes to the
plain, and there gently releases his cap
tives, who at once take to the grass and
quickly disappear. After the pit has
been emptied the men examine the
.7e,< k1x..s,.
and if blood has been drawn, they know
that the fangs of rattler have entered
| their flesh, and they lose no time in APP
plying the antidote.
The wounds inflicted by the rattle
snakes are very painful. The rattler,
when provoked, is the most savage of all
serpents, and will continue to strike and
lacerate an enemy as long as he is within
reach. Sometimes an old snake with full
grown fangs will fasten upon the cheek
or arm CT an Indian and hold on until
the fangs are torn from his jaws. Mr.
Mateer witnessed one. of these snake
dances of the Moquis recently, and was
Mortified at the sight. He saw the blood
streaming from the arms and breasts of
the Indians, who bore the pain with stole
Indifference, and seemed to take pleasure
III tAt luiilCtiUu. luGf uelt6V6u lildb the
more savage the snakes became and the
deeper the wounds inflicted, the more
eopious would be the shower. On the
occasion of the last snake dance the In
dians of one of the villages refused to
participate For some reason they be-
lieved the rain would come down without
the dance, and while the other villages
were engaged in the ceremony, they sat
idly in their houses listening to the noise
and smiling at tho unnecessary trouble
their neighbors were taking. Subse-
quently thny had good cause to repent,
for when the rain came sweeping down
from the mountains, it poured eopious
food upon the e-worshipping vii
lagos and their fields, and passed around
the hereto village and their parched corn
fields, leaving them as dry as powder
horn. The result was that six of the
seven villages raised abundant crops and
the other had to call ON the Agent for
Government rations.
Mr.. Mateer was formerly q resident OF
this city, and appears to be truthful
man. He was spectator of the strange
snake dance, but witnessed it from safe
distance, sitting on a wall overlooking
the scene.