Albuquerque morning journal., 1910-12-27


Your contributor is disposed to
make much of the efforts OF the "old
workers;" Of their not being left to
pursue their work as of old;" and to
lament their passing. when fortunately
for the good of the only two industries
which are really such among the
Navajoes-they have already passed
for 10, these many years. The facts
are, that all the really gooi blanket
work now being done-anC there is
more Of it being done now than ever
before in the history of the tribe
Is done, almost without exception by
the young women of about thirty
years of age and under, many of them
and they the best weavers-being
mere girls yet in their teens, The
same Is true in the case Of silver
smiths, and there are no old people,
either men or women, carrying on the
work today-none at least who will
or can do 1t we'll They do not "know
what to make and how to make it. Z"
as do the younger workers.
The principal reason for this. no
doubt, is, that eye trouble and failure
of sight comes much earlier in life
among Indians than among whites,
and good eyesight IS certainly a requi-
site to skillful work such as blanket
weaving and silversmithing. With us,
when our natural eyesight begins to
fail, we go TO the optician or oculist.
get glasses fitted to our sight condi-
ton, and proceed with our work about
as effectively as before. 1t is differ
ent with the Navajoes. A few Of the
men may be induced to buy a pair of
cheap store spectacles, never being
willing to pay more than 81 as a top
price, however. but I have never
known Navajo woman to try to as
sist her failing sight by even this
much. They accept it as a matter Of
course resigning themselves to their
condition and simply discontinue the
work they cannot see to do.
Another very effective reason ia the
greater skill and impelling ambition
Of the younger women and men. They
are susceptible to the encouragement
of praise for work well done, and to
criticism for that i'll done, and in them
rests all hope the future may hold
for their Industries. Not TO admit this
is to deny capacity for progress
among Indians; and we, who see the
younger generations gather up the
work where their ancestors have drop
ped it and go on improving and per-
fecting it, aspiring ever to ideals yet
unattained. know that they do possess
their capacity. All the poor blankets
we get may not be the work of the
older women, but certainly all the old
women's work We get goes into the
poorer class of blankets.
Just little knowledge and analysis
of conditions, will dispel good many
illusions concerning the work spoken
of 'as of old" Just how old is this
blanket industry? 1t cannot antedate
the advent of wool and as sheep were
brought into the country by Spanish
missionaries and early settlers and
passed into the Navajo's possession
through the fortunes of war, the Nav
ajo blanket is certainly of eompara-
lively recent origin As an industry,
or article of commerce, its origin is
much more recent still, and has had
its rise and development well within
tho memory of traders and others yet
living among and adjacent to the
Navajoes. To assume that it bloomed
out all at once in such complete per-
fection as to make it impossible for
skill and practice TO improve upon II,
is against all experience; and we VINO
see its steady improvement constantly
going on know it did nothing Of the
kind. That a few blankets We're
woven thirty or forty, possibly fifty,
years ago were very fine, does not inn
ply bv any means that all then woven
were so, nor does 1t imply that given
the same material, incentive and pur-
pose, none of today's weavers could
do equally fine and even finer weav-
ing. 1t must be remembered that all
such blankets We're the highly special
lied efforts of a very few women.
20
meet their own requirements, with no
thought of price or sale. and are the
relics of a time when the women had
to weave the blankets and robes worn
by themselves and families Under like
there are dozens of today's
weavers to enc of the olo-time weav-
ers. who could far outstrip even the
best efforts of the latter. This is not
a criticism of the fine old blankets
far from it-for they We're fine,
wonderfully fine, considering the con-
ditions under which they We're work
ed out. and deserve all. and more,
praise than can ever be given them;
nevertheless, the contention holds
good that finer blankets and none of
them could and would be made by
weavers of today If the same materials
were available and people were will
am aver that this question of
raising prices on Navajo blankets is
a rather delicate one, and no one un-
derstands better the protest such
is likely to provoke. Your
finds. first that Tow
prices Offered by blanket buyers in
duce the women to use cheap aniline
dyes and dirty WOOL" second, that
the only obstacle in the way of en-
native American art is the
matter of cash price for the Indian
product" and. third. he finds the
prices too high" It Is rather vexa-
tious problem-I have often found II
so myself-and I think we had best
look into 1t a little.
The weaver is not being overpaid
for her work; certainly not, if cheap
prices offered" compel her to use
cheap dyes and dirty wool" (Which
however. is not the fact) and there |
is ne more dismal wage proposition
than her remuneration for her part
in the industry Given any other pay
ing outlet for her labc~. there would |
very soon be no such thing as a |
blanket industry. BVt, with all the /
time there is at her disposal, the |
requisite skill. and the material az |
hand to work on. ii is her one and /
only way of earning money, and every I
dollar so earned is Just so much clear !
gain. This. plus their natural indus
trv and love for making beautiful |
things serves to keep many of the |
women busy. Certainly then. the |
,heaper prices cannot be gained by |
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