Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-02-20
INDIANS BATH.

1t is quite commonly believed that
tie Indians Of the Western plains
never take Il bath. This does tie
redskins a gross wrong, although the
cXigencies of reservation life fire.
tlucntly drive them to remarkable ex-
Incidents. foF example, il IS probable
that there is not q bathtuh any where
within Tie confines of the great Nava-
- Indian reservation, in northwest
trn Arizona and northeastern Nt~
Mexico. containing 7,6S0,00Q acres OF
land. Most OF the reservation IL dcs-
ert, or at least semi-arld. in eharactsf;
and throughout the greater part OF
the year it would be hard To find
running stream or n water hole COLI
tanning enough water Ia enable per
son t. take a bath. no matter now
ardentiv he might desire to do 50. OF
the zS000 persons constituting the
Navajo tribe there are VERY few, II
any, who ever took bath in either
hot or cold water. with the exception
Of those who have attended the Coy
eminent schools. where tub baths are
compulsory.
Nevertheless. the Navajos recognize
the necessity of frequent baths, in
the interest of health. Il not of clean
Illness. So to meet the requirements
of country In which water is scarce
ana precious. and bathtuhs and
"swimmin' holes" equally unknown.
they have invented a highly effective
and Go them) satisfactory way of
bathing without the use OF drop OF
water, particle of soap, or other ae-
eessorles of the bath as practiced in
civilization.
They build for themselves a little
oven-lilke structure of the limbs and
branches of trees, banked over with
earth. At one side is left an aper-
ture large enough to admit the body
When any one desires to take a bath
a fire is built outside this little strue-
tire (Which is known as sweat
housed. In this fire number OF
stones are heated red hot, and then
piled back against the wall OF the.
sweat house. in the interior. Then the
person wanting a bath crawls in,
taking good care. for obvious reasons,
rot to touch the glowing stones with
the feet or other parts of the anat-
amy Only the head is allowed to
rrotrude through the opening, which
is then tightly closed by means OF
heavy blankets to prevent the escape
of the heated air of, the interior
In a very few minutes the body OF
the bather begins to perspire freely
AS rule an hour or more is con-
sumed by the Navajo in the sweat
bath. Perspiration is so profuse that
che would thinl; there was danger that
the bather would melt and disappear
in the thirsty earth or eVaporate IN
.he atmosphere. The bather finally
energies, and. if there is no relative
at hard to perform the task, proceeds
n rub himself or herself dry with
the desert sand.
IT is claimed for the sweat bath that
it opens every pore of the body, anu
that in connection with the sand used
for driving, it cleanses the skin as CT
fectiyely as the most liberal use OF
soap and hot water in the finest of
enamoled bathtubs with nickel-plated
fittings that the Bathtub Trust has
placed on the market. 1t is, in fact,
equal to the Turkish bath, with the
cold plunge omitted. And in mdwin-
ter, in the high attitudes of the Nava-
10 reservation tmost of which is from
5000 to 1000 feet above sea leveD the
icy winds that sweep down from the
snow covered Rockies form no mean
substitute for the ice water plunge of
the Turkish bath. Nevertheless. ne
matter how cold the weather may be,
no Navajo, male or female. shrnks
from The ordeal of the sweat bath.
And it requires heroism of no mean
order to emerge dripping from a tor
rid sweat house into a zero atmos-
phere.-New York Press.