The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1895-10-15
A RABBIT DRIVE
AMONG THE PUEBLO INDIANS
OF NEW MENICO.
An Annual Event Which IS Preceded
10y Curious Preparations,
Including a "Sacrel
Dance"
HHE Pueblo Indinns of NV


with the appearance Of the new moon
IN September a sacrel dance pro.
cedes the hunt, for with the Pueblo
Indian dancing is form OF Worship
ms well as an amusement.
The ceremonies of the annual rab.
bit drive are conducted by the shlmau
medicine many of the village. I'm Ter
his direction prayer plum IS are planted
aroun the Village on thu da; pre-
cediug the hunt. These "urayer,"
are sticks, notchel at one end, about
foot in length, with tuft o. felth.
ers tied on with n corn shred. Only
feathers of the brightest plumage are
used, n those OF the woodpecker,
blue-biri or rel-bir I. Black feathers
are considered to bring bal luck. The
feathers OF n blackbirl or of raven
are of i'll omen, aud if found in the
possession of any ono he would be
taken from the village aud beaten to
death as witch. These "prayers"
are planted Mt intervals of about fi[ty
feet III every direction for about a
mile from the village. The distribu.
tors OF them are first sprinkled by the
shaman with sacred corn meal. The
prayers" are first planted to the east,
and then TO the north, south aud west,
and the myrads of plumes, seen on
plain, give picturesque appearance,
something like field of vari-colored
flowers, or garden in bloom.
In front of every Pueblo village,
facing to the east, is a shrine "a four
or five foot stone structure with two
chambers. The shrine is topped with
smooth stone. Into these chambers
and around the shrine are thrown the
skulls aud bones Of rabbits killed at
the hunt. At the next annual drive
new bones are placed Mt the shrine.
Each Indian engaged in the hunt is
supposed to take from the shrine a
charm i'll the shape of n bone of one
of the rabbits, but in reality he has
carved from stone n fetch resembling
that part of the rabbit which strikes
his fancy This is supposed to give
him luck in the drive Bundles of
prayer plumes, inclosed in the sacred
corn husks, are placed in the shrine,
and when the ceremonial of each In
dian hunter taking his peculiar charm
has ended, the shrine is closed until
the next annual drive.
Each hunter places his charm
around his neck, and then they all re-
pair to the ostufa (church) for their
worship dance. The Indian believes
that this fetch gives him the cunning
and swiftness that the rabbit pos
sesses. After all have squatted upon
the floor, the shaman gives to each
sacred cigarette, made of native to-
bacco, aud rolled in corn husk. All
smoke III silence. This is Supposed to
blind the red eyes of the rabbit so that
his capture may be assured. When all
have finished the shaman grunts, and
then pitches II tune in which all ioin.
Strangly, there are no tenor or So
prano voices among the Pueblo In-
dlans, and as every man sings in nearly
the same strain. their music is discor-
dant-if it can be classel as music.
About shutdown, while the hunters
are engaged in the preliminaries, the
alguacil thigh sheriff of the village)
goes through the narrow and crooked
streets shouting III nasal tone that
the hunt will take place the next morn.
ing; that the shaman will lead, that
he has selected twenty braves for the
hunt, mentioning their names, and
that tue rabbit hunt dance will now
begin-everybody must come. What
ever effect the cigarette smoking and
the sacred singing may have had in
paralyzing the rabbits is certainly dis
PEELED by the discordant yells OF this
town crier
About dark the squaw5 build fire
near the door of the estufn, and then
return to their huts women not be
ing permitted to enter the sacred es.
tufa, nor witness the ceremonies The
medicine man furnishes tue spark for
the fire by briskly rubbing together
two sticks. This is considered sacred
fire; il furnished otherwise it would
be PROCLAMATION, and, besides, they
would not kill any rabbits. The Pueb
los believe that the sacred fire rests
in trees, aud that it can be had only
in this manner.
At signal from the shaman, which
is grunt, oil rise and form in limo
facing the cast-the shaman Mt tia,
head. He first spiiukles the floor with
corn meai, and then the men file before
him, each receiving n sprinkling. The
line has now formed rs n crescent.
opening to the cast. The dance be.
gins with song, which is supposed to
have the effect of so churming the
rabbits that they cannot hear the ap.
proach of the hunter on the morrow.
The dance is n slow promenade in stu.
gle file, with n hippity hop step, and
the chanting is equally mOnotonous.
Two men In front carry concave
gourds in their left hands, over which
they draw n notchcd stick. Those who
have heard the raspings OF Chinese
fiddle can have some idea of this OK
cruciating noise. The men are bare
footed aud barelcgged, wearing only
II patchwork OF rabbit skin around the
body. The breast is bare, with the
exception of coat of red paint. de-
scribing the figures of rabbits. Dur
ing the height of the music one OF the
dancers jumps into the middle of the
room with "Hol Hol" He initiates
the jumping of a rabbit, and the man
ner in which that animal is TO be killed
the next day by the successful hunters.
This is received with many grunts OF