El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-07-23
RENE BACHE'S BUDGET
QUEER FOLKS IN NEW STATES
COMPOSITE OF ODD PEOPLES IN ARIZONA AMI
NEW MEXICO.
The Hopi and Their Picturesque Ceremonals- Awatob
The Lost Town-Navajo Sheep Kfngs-Villages
Built Like Bee Hives-The Havasupai of
Cataract Canyon

Washington. July 23.-The two state
Arizona and New Mexico, contain the
most picturesque aggregation OF queer
reoples TO be found anywhere In NORM
America. A large proportion OF the
population is Mexican, or OF spanish
descent-particularly in New Mexico
where the proceedings Of the terrific
rial legislature were printed, until with
in recent years, in both spanish anu
English-and there are several very IN
teresting tribes of aborigineS, who nVe
TODAY pretty much as they did IN pre-
historic times. before Columbus landed
on this continent
The Hopis.
In northeast Arizona are the Mokl'
who, by the way, object TO thal UeSA9
nation which in their language means
dead ones" II seems to have had It's
origin in q smallpox epidemic, many
wears ago which wiped out a large
mart Of the tribe They call themselves
Hopi. which signifies peaceful peopIe.
The Hopi today number about zVOo'
and occupy seven towns, when are ou!ft
of stone and sun-dried mud Dicks III
a STYLE of architecture that has been
Ii1,ano5 n beehive construction-eac
village being a sort of apartment mouse
on large scale, to which new suites
of rooms are added as required oy IN
crease of population They are an az
riculturaI people, raising corn, Deans
melons. and the finest peaches IN tle
world-these last obtained originally
from the Spaniards
A composite folk, they are Spit up
into clans which see INTO have been
originally derived from widely sepa-
raae geographical sources portion OF
them from Utah. Some OF the clans
have traditions which make them out
70 he descendants and present-day rep
resentatives Of the early cliff d"elIere'
whose architecture and MODE OF ire
they have substantially preserved
though now transferred, thanks 10
syreafer security against hostile and
predatory tribes, to the plains
Religious Ceremonies
The Hopi are remarkable for their
Ella hora+a religious ceremonials. They
are sun-vorshippers. The orb OF DAY
from their viewpoint, is The great gou'
who causes their crops TO grow In nlo
winter of every year, about tne zzho U
December. they hold sort OF pious -
tivaI the object of which is TO orlnS
back the sun from the south 1t is
wonderful drama, in which the gods are
iunersonated by actors grotesquely
masked and costumed and the theme
OF the play is the journey Of the solar
divinity to the south and his battle WIN
powerful devils who seek 10 preVeh' ms
return. Eventually, OF course, the deH
tls are overcome. and he comes PACK
triumphant.
Corresponding to this midwinter GER
emonial is the midsummer snake dance
about which so much has been VIII
FEN. The object of this dance to pro-
initiate the gods which control the
water supply-water in that dry region
being the prime need The rain goo Is
GREAT snake: lightning snakes are
WnOlR
original conception Of water ana rs
origin has TO do with serpents Hence
she Importance of the religious per
formance in question, the most striking
feature of which consists in gathering
a large number of rattlesnakes and Dull
snakes, which are held between lhe
teeth of the men who take part IN the
ceremony, and otherwise toyed WIN
90 he finally set at liberty on adj sides
Of the town. with the notion that they
win crawl away TO the various points
of the compass and get rain How the
nartfcipants in the ceremony escape
the snakes fangs is an unsolved prob
lem.
The Pueblo Rebellion.
Religion plays so large part In the
lives of the Hopi that even the dolls
given TO the children TO play with rep
resent gods, deliberately painted and
Naturally, when the early
Spanish missionaries tried to introduce
Christianity in the tribe, trouble arose |
which had much TO do with bringing
about the great Pueblo rebellion OF 1880 /
This rebellion, in which all the Pueblo |
indians took part, including the Hopi |
Of Arizona and the Zuni Of New Mexico |
was so far. successful that more than /
20 missionaries and about geo Spanish |