Bisbee daily review. [volume] (Bisbee, Ariz.) 1901-1971, 1914-08-23
THRONGS ARE BOUND
TOWARD SCENES OF
MOKI SNAKE DANCE
Indian Courier Brings Word that
Priests Have Fixed on August
80 AS Day When Ancient Rites
Will Be Celebrated BY Tribe

has just arrived here from the Mesa
of the Hopi brings word that the an.
nual Snake Dance win De held at
Oraibi. the thirteenth of September
The courier bore credentials, which
make bis announcement official
r. L. Graves of Phoenix. who Is
here now says that once more the at
tendance viii break records. for al
ready the people are gathering Ad-
vertised by the tourist agencies the
dance has drawn a splendid crowd
men and women from all over the
earth. who are waiting along the main
line, o rencamped among the Mesas
Navajos, TO the number OF Eve hum
dred or more than have ever gath
cred for a like event are already ON
the trails between the Hopi villages
and their own country. It is the GUS
tom o fthe eastern race to gather up
the sacred corn meal. sprinkled about
the serpeuts before the concluding
movement in the dance.a nd pack 90
iu little snakeskin bags as charms
against the evil spirit The scramble
of the Navajo boys for this meal is
like that Of street gamins for pennies.
The Moki or Hopi Snake Dance
held alternate years by custom, ano
now every year for revenue, is a pray
er for rain The ceremonial is nine
days en- length an dtakes In almost
-.,-.-,. f,.,,, Of ,.rs.e1,fr In ,,trft o., fT,o
semi form of worship, known to the
mibarbarious tribes. Fasting, pub
lie prayer. incarnation by the priests,
races, the dances themselves and the
publication all these are items on
that nine day bill
Weeks before the dance the young
men -cour the mesas and the plains
for ratdesnakes. They gather an im-
mense quantity of the reptiles, and
hide them i'm one of the khivas. All
these nine days, the elders remain I'm
the underground chapels informing
their prayers to the gods. and per
forming rites unknown TO any man,
but accepted member Of the priest
hood Not even for Theodore Roose-
Welt the great white chief who was
initiated into the Eagle Clan last fail,
were an the rites made known Mr..
Roosevelt did see, however. the wash
| ing Of the snakes, a ceremony i'm
which the initiate handled the dead
~ reptiles as though they had been
harmless. Said Mr. Roosevelt imme-
diately after climbing out of the
khiya. "They were real rattlers and
had not been deprived o ftheir fangs.
On the morning of the dance the
Hopi uuners-those lithest of human
beings-are gathered at the edge OF
the river-or arroyo, where the scant
against the heat of the painted des-
corn PATCHES Of the Hopi battle
ert-and are started off ON a heart
breaking race to the top of the Mesa.
In the opinion of experts i'm training
| this two mile grind mp the rock sides
of the almost unclimbable butte IS
the most strenuous short contest men
can engage i'm. and the preparations
/ for the event must occupy months of
the hardest sort of training.
/ Early in the afternoon of the dance
the ceremonial place Is cleared and q
hideously painted warrior conceal7
two bags of snakes i'm a clump Of
fresh cut cotton wood boughs. Before
this clump / salways a hollow cavern
with a plank fastened over its narrow
mouth This symbolizes tie hole
from which legend says the Hop
sprang i'm the beginning ftime.
The Antelope priests come fortl
from the khiva first, and circle th'
plaza. swinging those swishy sand
filled gourd rattles and chanting 10
low coices. Then Games a line M
along the side and a long monoton
GUS stamping AN the time accompa
MED by the swish Of the gourd and
the cultural sing-song
Suddenly like the eruption Of a vol
cano. come the snake priests, burst
ing forth from the khivatop. They
too parade around the plaza. but fl
silence. and finally come to rest be
hind the Antelope priests VINO at
suu singing and stamping their RICH
feet AT last the monotone is inter
! rupted and with shrin yells. Oh
snake men leap upon the bundle q
cottonwoods. and seize their within
serpents. Tn pairs then they circl
the plaza one man carrying On
snake I'm his teeth and the other ii
ritatng the serpent with am easI
feather switb For half am hour doe
this continue. then suddenly at a sii
nal. the priests dump the wriggin
snakes i'm q heap Another rusne
out and sprinkles q perfect circle
conmeaI about the pile and moi
atom the ratuers.
Priests are I'm waiting and al al
4 other signal. rush in seize great ms
D uls of snakes and then proceed
D tear away i'm the four direction
] Casting the snakes upon the roci
s at the Mesa edge concludes this pa
Il of the dance.
II OF what comes later, Peter Clal
nj ar..rr,,1ano tsritiuo I'm Golfers la