The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1891-12-28
FOLKLORE OF THE PUEBLO INDIANS.
How the Old Inhabitants of New Mexico
Hand Down Their Traditions.

How the Old Inhabitants of New Mexico
Hand Down Their Traditions.
Despite all their progress in civiliza-
ton, despite their mental and physical
acuteness and their excellent moral quail
ties, the Teewahn are in some things
but overgrown children. Their religion
Is one Of the most complicated systems
on earth. Besides the highest deities
all the forces of nature, all animals, as
well as many things that are inanimate,
are invested by them with supernatural
powers They do not worship idols, but
images and tokens of unseen powers are
revered. They do nothing without some
reason, generally religious one, and
whatever they observe they can explain
In their own superstitious way.
Every custom they have and every be-
Lief they own has a reason which to
them is all sufficient, and for each they
have story. There is no duty to which
q Pueblo child is trained in which he
has to be content with the bare COM
mand, "Do thus;" for each he learns a
fairy tale designed to explain how peo-
pie first came to know that it was right
to do thus, and detailing the sad results
which befell those who did otherwise
1t is from this wonderful folklore of
the Teewahn that have learned-after
long study of the people, their language,
customs and myths-and taken, I'M
changed and unembellished, this series
of Indian fairy tales.
The use of books is not only to tell,
but to preserve; not only for today, but
for ever. What an Indian wishes to
perpetuate must be saved by tongue and
ear, by telling down." as were the
worlds first histories and poems. This
oral transmission from father to son is
OF sacred Importance with natives. Upon
it depends the preservation of the amuse-
ments, the history. the beliefs, the Gus
toms, and the laws of their race. A
people less observant. less accurate of
speech and of memory, would make
sad failure Of this sort of record; but
with them it is wonderful success.
The story goes down from generation
to generation, almost without the change
of word.
Here in Isleta, the quaint pueblo of
the Teewahn where I am living, have
become deeply interested not only in the
folk stories themselves, but also in the
manner of handing them down. Win
ter is the season for story telling. Then
the thirsty fields no longer cry for water,
the irrigating bitches have ceased to
gnaw at their banks and the men are
often at leisure.
Then of an evening if I go out to visit
some vecino (neighbor) | am likely to
find in the great adobe living room a
group of very old men and very young
boys gathered about the queer little cor
ner fireplace with its blazing upright
sticks. They, too, have come a-visiting.
The young men are gathered in another
corner by themselves, eating roasted
corn and talking in whispers SO as not
to disturb their elders, for respect to age
is the corner stone of all Indian training.
They are not required to listen to the
stories, being supposed to know them al
ready.
AS come in, kindly old Tata grand
father) Lorenso is just beginning story
In the musical Teewahn, and one of the
boys runs to bring me little hewn
wooden stool that I may join the circle.
Lorenso pauses to make a cigarette from
the material in my pouch (they call me
"Por Todos," because have tobacco ''for
all'0, explains for my benefit that this is
story of the beginning of Isleta, pats
the head of the chubby boy at his knee,
and begins again.-C. L. Lummis in st.
Nicholas.