Albuquerque evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1911-1914, 1912-10-17

utes.
Tenth. similar to the fourth.
Eleventh, similar to the fourth.
Twelfth. ten almost naked perform
| ers, painted white with thick coating
OF white earth, carrying braided
skelns OF dry cedar bark about 30
inches long and four inches in diam
eter. circled the IRE. and one per.
| former who carried an additional
skein OF bark NJ II and with loud
shouts all ran once around the large
fire and the performer with the burn
Ing brand ran to the east and threw
II .out of the circle. Repeating an
| other brand was thrown toward the
west another toward the south, and
another toward the north. Following
this all III their skeins OF bark and
| whipped themselves with the burning
mnsses, whipped their companions
with them. swung them around them
! selves, carried them over their backs
around their bodies, chased and struck
| each other with them, swung them In
n circle, and did almost every lmagln.
able thing with them until the ali
II within the large corral was literally
/ filled with fire. After the skeins were
/ practically destroyed tho remnants
were throwr down and the performers
retired This was followed Ivy rush
OF every Navajo who could get to the
sacred ground to pick up buLch or
a bit OF the remnants Of burning bark
which they rubbed on any part III
their hodies which they Imagined were
ailing, In full confidence that Ger
tain cure had been effected. Thus
ended the great spectacular act OF the
fire dance, the part held most sacred
by the peculiar people with ancient
superstitiOns. II was the twelfth act
of the nights performance and the
brands were thrown down by the
acorched, but stoic performers, ut cN-
actly midnight Whether this coiuc-
dencc was intentional or accidental Is
~ question. To what extent the per
formers were burned no white man
knows definitely. some think they
were deeply burned, others thihk only
slightly. The writer Is inclined To u
middle ground. believe that they
were protected 20 n great extent 10y
the earth with which they were paint
ed and by keeping the burning brands
continually in rapid motion, but to
escape entirely from being burned
would have been an impusstbillty. and
y believe these 10 performers viii be
. carrying very tender reminders of the
fire dance for many days.
Thirteenth, l6 performers executed
Il very slow dance around the fire,
after which bundle or pitch pine
} sticks were 1T and held over the
hands IN the burning tar or pitch
which dropped from the burning bun
dies Of sticks. Thls was repeated II
second and third time.
Fourteenth. II performers and two
spirits appeared ciTclcd. and went to
ono side where the spirits performed
"A dance and bunch of umolc (soap
wccdD grew In an empty ceremonial
basket, To the wonder and admiration
r az the spectators, the weed growing
about 10 inches nigh. This was NJ
+ 1880.
= Fifteenth. 10 performers besides the
two spirits. danced around the fire
and then the spirits danced and per-
formed to ont side.
sixteenth, similar with the cxccp-
tion that one spirit wore very large
e hcadgear. three feet in diameter and
20 took part.
Seventeenth, II performers, similar
Eighteenth. 80 performers, iva with
large head gear.
Nineteenth. II performers, similar
act,
Twentieth. 80 performers. In this
act three spirits appear for the first
time, one OF them representing the
sun.
Twenty-frst to thlrty-hfth acts
which carried the dance through to
daylight, wero all similar, different
. numbers OF performers entered. with
, one, two or three spirits accompany
\ ing, ClrCled the fire, and then "A few
Y of the performers, usually tho spirits
4 performed dances west of the fire
e where large number of chantcr'
! were located all night. In some Of the
I acts Just Mt daybreak. large cedar
< branches were brought In by four o
q the performers ana used in varuui
:, | ways.
!. The cedar brush corral in the cen
n ter of which the big fire was Keep
% burning brightly all night. was Owe
= $50 feet in circumference. About q
d feet around tho fire was used by the
y dancers, all tho balance of the dance
10 circle was occupied by spectators
white and Navajo. and probably three
4 thousand people were inside Of tn
0 corral and from one thousand To NJ
/, teen hundred were watching II from
n the outside. Fully Ave hundred whit
h people were there all, or some part o
j. the night.
"A
IA New PietuFeB---PaHtime and CryBta
= TTImbis's Livery Stables. Phone