Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1902-03-06
ZUNI INDIAN MAGIC.
A PERFORMANCE THAT PUZZLES ALL
WHO WITNESS 1T.

| TINS "OndertuI Fcnt Rivals the Fla,
nous Mango Growing Trick of the
! MISUNDERSTANDING Are Unable tt
Solve the Mystery.
Nearly everybody has heard of ant
wondered at the mango growing tricl
of the Hindoo, by which he makes {
seed sprout before the astonished eyes
of the European and reach maturity il
very short time.
But few are aware that an equally
amazing feat is regularly performed
by the Zuni Indians on this continent
Their medicine men at the annua
"corn festival" do a stunt of which nc
satisfactory explanation has ever beer
advanced. Scientists seeing it have
been made, as cowboy described it
to "look like 80 cents"
Preparation is made for this extraor
binary Zuni performance by spreading
large square of clean, yellowish sand
on the ground before the southern aper
ture of the medicine lodge. This sand
is carefully smoothed and packed sc
as to present firm, level surface.
| Around the edges of the sand square
are then drawn, by means of ceremo
NAL arrow, figures representing the
| Great Spirit, the earth, the sun, the
| sky and the rain. There are also the
| symbols for corn and for a bountiful
harvest
The indentations made by the arrow
are then filled in with pigments, the
clouds and sky with blue, the earth
with black and the harvest with
chrome yellow. The center of the
square is left vacant. When complet
ed, this sand painting is a fine speci
men of barbaric art and is far from
displeasing to civilized eye.
When the hour arrives, the officiating
medicine man takes his seat in the
opening of the lodge facing the sand
square. On his right and left, extend.
ing oct around the square, the chiefs
and warriors range themselves accord
ing to rank. Whenall are in position, the
medicine man fills the ceremonial pipe
with tobacco, lights it and blows one
puff Of smoke to the east, one to the
west, one to the north, one to the south
and two to the heavens. He then ad-
dresses those assembled, recounting the
religious history of the tribe, it's wan
behring's and famine and the benevo-
lence of the Great Spirit in the past
He closes with a prayer for the contin-
uance of fatherly care.
fThan ho folyoc Oraip of ooro from,
| the medicine bag at his waist, thrusts
the sacred arrow into the center of the
sand square, withdraws it. drops the
grain into the opening and carefully
smooths down the sand. Resuming his
seat. all the assembled chiefs light their
| pipes and smoke in silence.
| If the Great Spirit condescends to an.
swer the prayer Of the medicine man.
as generally happens, the grain of corr
will sprout and send forth shoot
| After an interval of fifteen or twenty
minutes the sand seems disturbed a,
the spot where the corn was buried
Soon slender light green blades OF
sprouting corn appear above the sur
face. The plant rises naturally and
rapidly during the day.
By the next sunrise the silk and tas.
sci appear. BY noon the ear and stalk
have reached full maturity.
Then ripening begins. Finally the
blades and husks turn yellow and rat
tie when they are shaken by the wind
All this, mind you, has been done in
thirty-six hours.
On the morning of the second day
the corn growing is complete. The
medicine man now addresses the
watchers. who in company have
watched" the plant grow, for it is
never left alone. With appropriate GER
emonies he symboizes the harvest by
stripping the ear of it's husks.
The corn he places in the medicine
bag for future ceremonies. while the
stalk is pulled up by the roots anG
hung over the door Of the lodge. The
long vigil Of the watchers is now end
| ed, and they seek much needed res
and food in order to be ready for the
rain dance on the following day.
/ Every white man witnessing one Of
these ceremonies is deeply mystifed
Above all. he is filled with admiration
for the old medicine man. So natura
and mysterious has been the process
that the spectator feels at times dis
posed to believe in the presence Of
some supernatural power.
Yet every sane person knows tina
this performance has nothing unnat
ural about it. No white man, however
has discovered the secret. The absence
of stage paraphernalia and the crud.
mechanical knowledge of the Zunii
add to the mystery of the whole thing.
Various theories have been advanced
in explanation. One is that som,
shrewd old medicine man discovered
by accident some peculiar natura
chemical that has the power Of fore
ing the growth Of grain of corn ant
that this secret has been handed dowl