Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-10-17
FREAKS OF ZUNI WORSHIP.

other articles-
FREAKS OF ZUNI WORSHIP.
New Collection Of Curious Fetiches Mt the
| National Museum.
A NEW AND VERY INTERESTING CASE
"A in the east wing OF the National Museum
filled with curiosities associated with the re-
ligious worship Of the Zuni and other Pueblo
Indians in New Mexico and Arizona attracted
the attention Of a STAR reporter the other day.
There is in the collection a great number OF
| fetiches OF many sorts. but the most remark.
| able Of them are images in stone representing
| the gods themselves-especially the prey
gods" in the shape of animals. which the
| hunter invokes for success in the chase. In
order to make it clear just wha. these beas,
| deities are it is necessary to quote from the
account Of the creation given by their
| votaries
When all was new mankind lived in q cavern
In the bowels Of the earth. The place was dark
and crowded and the people were unhappy.
| Hearing their lamentations the great sun
father sent his two children, armed with the
rainbow, the arrow of lightning and Il magic
knife of flint. With the magic knife the chill
dren cut the face of tine earth and led out the
| people into another cavern. which was not
80 dark. There they m ultiplied and grew mis-
cradle again. until the children were persuaded
| to conduct them into third cavern
yet bigger. where there was q sort of twilight,
the rays of the sun sitting through the roof
Here, however, they were not content. and so
they were irally taken forth into the light OF
day. They were black and nakel. with eyes
like those OF owls SO that the sun blinded
them.
Previously the world had been covered with
water Now it was damp and unstable-in
| fact great morass, frequently disturbed by
| earthquakes, and through its surface strange
monsters and beasts of prey rose up to devour
| the people. The two children harde,.ed the
surface with fire and burnt up the ferocious
| animals, the forms Of many Of which can be
seen to this day among the rocks, shriveled
live ut the present time, which shows tina.
everything was different in the days of the
new.
THE VARIOUS pnIrrEs.
While as yet all beings belonged to one
family. the great father, Po-shai- an ia, lived
in the city of the mists, guarded on all sides
by the six prey gods. On the north he was
guarded by the mountain lion. on tine west by
the bear, on the south by the badger.
above by the eagle and in the earth
beneath by the mole. Among these subordi-
nate deities he divided tine universe giving to
each the part above mentioned AZ appertain-
ing 10 eacL AT present IL Is their duty TO carry
messages between the great father and man
kind, for which reason they are prayed to.
POINTS OF THE COMPASS AND THEIR coLoRs
Among the Pueblo Indians six points OF the
compass are recognized and each has its color
North is yellow. west is blue. south is red east
| Is while. the upper regions many colored
and the lower regions are black. All the prev
gods are represented by their images in these
SIX coiors. For example, there is the yellow
| rnln ain liz ,f III. l.
lion of the west ,he red mountain lion OF the
south, AMI SO on. Likewise il is with the other
beasts, aid thus a very considerable number of
delties is formed. All of them must receive
,rshiptul attention lest they get angry and
revenge them>elves for the neglect as the black
bear lid In the true story of Mi-tsi.
Ml-tsI had become careless about his sacri-
ices. and one day when he was cutting corral
posts along came black bear out OF a thicket.
He ran and climbed up a dead pine tree, but
the bear climbed after him and ate his loot OF.
80 that he was amed for lie.
FETIcuEs FOR THE HUNT
When the hInier is abou. to set forth upon
an expedition he takes his image OF the particular
prey god he desires to propitate and has il
loaded by priest with the spirit OF the divin-
lty Then he hangs it around his neck and
performs many ceremonies, scattering sacred
meal OF seed corn. emblematic OF productive
ness. AID praying tue trees aGd iLickets of the
reaches spot where the beast he is in pursuit
OF has lain down he goes through more hocus-
pocus. without wuich he believes that he would
| stand no show whatever of success ia the chase
Only the priests are able to make the images of
tae deities or other fetiches properly. A Ietich
may De defined as an object in which spirit has
been induced TO dwell for the beneti; of the
| owner. 1t zoe. without saying that unless the
object il constructed in the proper manner and
painted correctly the spirit will not consent to
stay In it, These spirits are very particular
| atou: such things. Once every year there is
day set apart for a council Of the .etiches.
They are nil arranged according to their kind
and color in front OF an altar. i he qua.irupeds
| are set upright. while the eagles and other
winged ones are suspended by cords from the
raitcrs. Each member Of the tribe addresses
prayers to them and scatters sacred meal over
them Prayer chants are sung at intervals,
with dancing to the sound Of rattles accompa-
MED by limitations o. the cries of the animals
worshiped A feast follows, at winch portions
| OF eacn kind o. food are taken on: for sacri6ce
to the prey gods.
OTHER DErrIEs.
There are other deities beside the prev coda
however, which have to be propitiaued. For
example there IL the rain god, the
sun god. the war god and the
mother goddess, who Is the mother Of ali
the deities. She is represented By . very ex-
traordilary fetch. made Of an ear Of corn
wrapped up In curious bundle, with feathers
OF several kinds sticking out Of one end. Corn il
regarded by these people, who live on that
vegetable, rs emblematic Of the spirit of fertil-
ity. The feathers are those Of the eagle. itself
the god Of the upper regions, and Of other birds
associated with religious myths. Rain d PRAYED
for by thrusting into the ground little stick
with feathers attached to them, the scstterine
Of sacred meal and other ceremonies accom-.
panying the performance. Each festhered
stick represents . prayer and the plumes are
intended to carry them to the gods 70 whom
The annual meeting Of tho .-u,suderv-in-
chief OF the Military Order ,.oyal Legion
opened in PhiladeIphis " Zsy. Mr.. Geo.
W. Childs, on behalf Of \. Count Of Paris.
presented . beautiful baa..s 10 the order.
Fire has destroyed . brick block Of Eve
cottages st Chattanooga, Teua., involving .
Eleven men were Injured, two probably
fatally, BY the explosion Of locomotivs boiler
IN the Kansas City railroad ahops near St
The trades union parliamentary eommittse
IN London decided - favor Of promoting the
local trade-optioQ eight-hour bill
A. meeting at Tie shaxeholdees q the Ohio
and 4tesissippt Tailroad n Loudou Tie reor-
ganisation plaa Ne adopted.
| Freseott NetoeA, one e Esis's vsalthisst
mss. died - 1sia H. - Wednesday, sGsd