Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1902-09-26
ANNUAL FEAST OF
SAN GERONIMO
The Pueblo Indians Will Give Their Dances
and Run Their Races at Taos on
Next Tuesday.
THE SuMDoWN DANCE LIKE THE WAR DANCE

be celebrated the feast of San Geroni-
mo bv the Pueblo Indians at Taos. This
day has long been celebrated by the
Indians with great feasting revivals of
their ancient games and is a day Of
, thanks to the patron saint, Jerome.
The Puebl. of Taos is vii
lage of adobe houses and the
younger men or braves" princi-
pally carry out the program of the
feast day. After the dance at sunrise
with the 'salute to the sun" comes the
ceremony of seating the saint" A
small image which is supposed to rep
resent Saint Jerome is carried from
the low rooted church by some of the
squaws and placed in a high court
which had previously been decorated,
and very artistically too, with beads
and autumn leaves and draped with
bright colored cloth and fringed with
buckskin.
On the way from the church the pro-
cession of squaws, holding a canopy of
white above the image to protect it
from the sun, is preceded by number
of braves wearing a drapery of bright
hued cloth about their loins. The rest
of the body is covered with paint in
stars, stripes and figures of animals
and birds. The hair is ornamented
with feathers, leaves and other skins.
The men sing in dull monotone and
beat drums made of small barrels COW
cred with COW hide. This is their only
musical instrument.
After the figure of the saint has been
placed on the throne with due honor
the races begin. These are conducted
in a peculiar manner. The men WHO
equal number on each side. One run
ner starts from either end of the race
course and when he has reached the
line which is drawn about three feet
in front of the line of runners, an
other, team mate, may start, but
none must leave the base until his
mate has reached the line, and often
the one with whom a brave is to race
is half way to the goal before he gets
a start. When the race is over, that is
when each participant has run two
lengths of the course, the side having
the most lengths" ahead has won the
race and is given the prize which is
bright decorations for the hair, arrows
or tobacco pouches.
The Indian is naturally straight and
supple and when running he keeps his
shoulders back, the arms straight at
the sides and the head so far back as
to look uncomfortable. This is called
noble running"
In the afternoon the chifonettes have
their turn. They dress with bright cloth
around their loins and tie rest of the
body Is decorated with stripes of white
and black paint, the stripes on the face
running from the tip of the nose out
ward. They steal melons, baskets of
fruit, nuts and vegetables from the
wagons of the white men and kiss
the girls. The afternoon resembles
the carnival feature of other celebra-
tions. In the evening the clowns. climb
pole about fifty feet high at the top of
which is placed mutton, string of
cakes, watermelons and sack of gro
ceries. They decide which is to climb |
first by shooting with bow and arrows
Mt the mutton and the one putting the
most arrows in the prize is entitled to
the first attempt. If he succeeds in |
reaching the top in the allotted time, he |
secures the food.
AT sunset the 'sundown dance" is |
given which greatly resembles the war
dance. The dance is to the music of |
their own voices and the drum and it is |
monotonous humdrum of ki-yi with |
once in a while war whoop or an imita-
tion OF the cry of wild turkey or coyo-
te. The leader in the dance carries now |
an American flag, striking contrast to
their dance in the days gone by when
they danced around the body of white
man and held the scalp and tomahawk
In their hands.