Albuquerque weekly citizen. (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1891-19??, 1897-12-18
SNAKE DANCES
OF THE MOkIS!
The Weird Ceremonials as Described
BY q. Wharton James.
M0kIs FONDLING THE POISONOUS REPTILES.

few NJ even the well Informed p,.o
pie uf the nltpi states know ~ the
wonderful aud peculiar customs aud
habits ~ NJ" ~ the various race ~ l,n
pile within our own borders There are
facts ~ sutpt'-ing IN connection With
the rrrrmunlr- huh even th" rNrrN hhN
NE Vt SON luilan tt,h.- hat % iraul.
rt- ~ lar counties " ~ lu -,r iarli a. !
haN" seen ;urii,. they wound l." h'fnll"i
~ The iuu-, hrthfuu- ~ c.srlr- "t TO-
age hNr wiiur-,,d ,hr war unur'.
the gh'. ',nrr. nNd -,,rn TIM. 'n,"
zen th" uhuiuug snakr a,r,' ut thr
Muki ~ Moqm Indians ~ NrE. let
lur tell you 1t the SNAKE d,nrr ul Iar
Nokl-, about which little l. kuoNu."
u Wharton Jsm'- ~ ra-aIrut Ch .
,rcIutct, promoter, literary man, auti
,uatiAn. Amat ur rh't"gftph"', rihuN!o
-!,i nni u h~rp -lui"ut { thr laIhu
ace, Wa iaiAlhg L" urp.,,rt lur 'hr
hausA- tItN star "a M- raum ~ Nae II .
'"i savoy SLitr Il" SA- here irly,,tug
Lectures un kluulk- from tn u,ttia,
'Ituish.d hN j. | ,rmrut- rr'ururi
hiuu,ikrt ut l.,- Nugrlr- ~hu. Gui h-
ug utIri tpr i"ctuuug. engaged Nj
&. ,In-- tn du thr talking IT." taE'ntLiau
ruiur,+i aui uuli"d pnrkng" contain.
Igl~u luilan huNi- ~ .dr Il fI,hr-,
hr,wrru WhIr' Srfr halt huubrrl ~,
,pgtaph- ~ which l." prepared Ia
Illustrate hi- tain.
uNLN TNO NFNk k\rN IW -t,htI-
There are on, t~u NnEtr mru Hho
have ever HltLr--,-i th" nlur da'- ci
secret crtrmonln.- preceding IA" SNAKE
dance, continued Ar Jau"- "ut
Walter Frwk-- 1T the Smithsonian lu.t
tuition II one. aud ! am the uthrt How
dad W. arrange that W. both h"cam,
mrtnbeIr II he secret orders which prf
form these crfrmunIr- bf frNkr- Is II
member ut the order ~ hnlrlupr mel
aud AIN both All Antelope Ari Sunk,
nsn. ~ course. they Trust ~ ~ ",
never would have hrcoIne members.
have worked among the ldii ans fut tel
Years. have campei IN their village
tof weeks NJ time, aud have wufkrt
tor three ytatH 10 get n single photo
graph one Of a certain ynung wuIlIAl
And her mother | gO unarIn-d acrU.
the big Tessf yation ut the nuinaiic NayA
j,es, and they know | carry no wrspous
\ H.. 4 Il
tity. am their friend.
THE MukI INDIANS.
But hrst you must understand th
nature OF the Mukl Indians, said MI
Jau,es. NJ he tok up n dozen large uil
mounted photographs. .hrse picture
ne-,i-d no rxpiauAtiou. The Mukis Al
cliG dweilers Boys gO gbsOlutrl! make,
uulii we'll Ia their teens. Then the
wear n cloth wllch II scSntlrf than
hrrrch cluut. The women are full
allirrd IN dresses, which they wrAN
themselves and which they Will not stl
Tor iess than $l2 each. The mrn hAN
great bushy hair that hangs before thrl
eyes to their chln- Ia 'front.' aud the ul
pt.uplr's tacps are hOTrihiy wfluklrd. MI
.Jaunes sAya the wfinkln' are caused b
th-iT hard lie.
"rhrrr are seven villages of the Muk
tribe" cuntiuuei the narrator, The
are built upon three rocky plateau
which lut out like prninsulas inIO th
lneaA, Some Ot their villages are u
more than u quarter OF mile apart, "
they are under separate rule anu entlrel
distinct irom sach other The nearest
u white settlement IL Walpi. and. thoug
people have gone the twenty miles to 80
the snake dance at this village, dout
II more than 5n prfa0ns ever ~itner-r
the spectacle. Certainly none saw II !
any other place than Walpi. though
have witnessed IL at Orahi. --'rfal huI
drrd miles further from civilization
Eyety village has its snake m-u AMI u
Antelope men, who give the dance T.
their village.
CATCHING TIM SNAkE~.
NO. II IL extremely dllicult " iir
out when the crrenionials preceding Il
dance are going 10 b- held. Onll u
PRIESTS ot the Older know that Hut.
AN n member ~ the orders. there II q
Indian runner who sets out Tor the nra
rSt telegraph station when the time Al
pruarhrs, to notify M. ~ come un. u
,st time I went rpeut siK weeks AmuI
N'lr huhiH. WituFNNfh oi' WIN toiN
the uina da,s OF c-rrm0ni,'r."
Mr.. James hal b-rOmH intensely int
r-ted In his subject. h. struk~i h
heavy bIark beard and waved his han
III gasttrulatiOn.
Part OF the ceremonies consists
catching the snakes, These thirty Or
Antelope or Snake men sarurr from |
10 3Ub IAttlrrs. red racers, bull snak
and other kinir. DO they remove III,
Inis0ny II you should AK that Of
snake or an Antelope mAn II would
~ sacrilegiOuS ~ to say n Catholic pri'
d,ea not put q wafer on the tongue, b
only the pressure ~ his finger They
hot remOve the fAngs Or the poison. ]
snakes are put In bowls and taken 10
klya, which In an underground cave
where the secret ceremonies are held.
l. lighted by the hole through which q
iezcends TO the kiya by y ladder,
"rhe washing of.the snakes IA the M
interesting Of these performances
the afternoon before the evening 0f
snake dance. the priests aud members
the order descend Ia the ki,a. | pan q
occasion At NAlpi went with them.
-sw there the altar, Of which succes
IN getting . photograph. II IL made