East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1914-09-25

Indians in gaudy tunics and yucca
fiber pantaloons crowding sideways
through the halls to watch what to
them must have been the gorgeous
vestments of the priests, Then fol-
lowed the elevation of the Host, the
bowling of the heads, the raising of
the standard of the cross, and a new
era that has not boded well for the
Pimas and Papagos was ushered in.
Then the Papagos and Pimas scat
tered To their antelope plains and
to the mountains, and the priest went
on TO the mission of San Xavie del
Bac.
The Jesuits suffered expulsion and
GarceZ. the Franciscan. came in 1875
and also held mass in Casa Grande.
GarceZ says 1t was tradition among
the Moqui of the northern desert that
they had originally come forth from
the south. from the Morning Glow"
of Casa Grande. and that they had
inhabited the box canyons of the
ella, in the days when they were "a
little people" This establishes Casa
Grande as prior to the cave dwell
ings of the ella or F'rijoles: and the
cave dwellings We're practically con-
temporaneous with the stone age and
the last centuries of the ice age. New
the cave dwellings had been aban
doned for centuries before the Span
iards came. This puts the very end
of the cave age contemporaneous
with or prior to the Christian era.
In the center of the Casa Grande
reservoir and across the doorways of
caves in Frijoles canyon, grow trees
that have taken centuries to come to
maturity.
The Indian tradition is that soon
after "a very great flood of turbulent
waters" in the days when the desert
was knee-deep in grass, there came
the Indian gods from the underworld
To dwell i'm Casa Grande (Not so
very different from theories of evo-
luton and transmigration. is it?) The
people waxed so numerous that they
split off in two great families. One
migrated TO the south--the Pimas,
the Papagos. the Maricopas; the 9TH
ers crossed the mountains to the
north, the zunis, the Moquis the
Hopis.
Yet another proof of the great an
tiquity is in the language. Between
Papago and Moqui tongue is not the
faintest resent blance. Now IL you
trace the English language back to
the days OF Chaucer, you know that
II is still English. If you trace 1t
~ Do,
and Saxon conquerors came, there
are still words You recognize-thane,
serf. Thor, Wooden, moors, borough,
etc. That is, you can trace rseem-
hlances in language back 1900 years.
You find no similarity in dialects be-
tween Pimas and Moqui, and very
few similarities in physical confor-
nation. The only similarities are in
types of structure in ancient houses
and in arts and crafts. Both peo-
pie built TERED houses. Both peo-
pie made wonderful pottery and are
fine weavers; Moqui of blankets, Pi-
ma OF baskets; and both people as
cribe the art of weaving to lessons
learned from their goddess 1.-The Spi-
der Maid"
There are few fireplaces among the
ancient dwellings of the Pimas and
Papagos but lots of fire pits-"sipap-
us"-where the spirits of the gods
came through from the underworld.
Dancing floors-May-pole rings
abound among the cave dwellings,;
mounds and platforms and courts am
ang the Casa Grande ruins. The sun
and serpent were favored symbols to
both peoples, which is easily UNDER
stood in cloudless land where ser
pants signified nearness of water
springs. the greatest need of the peo-
Pile. You can see among the cave
dwellings where earthquakes have
tumbled down whole masses OF front
rooms, and both Moqui and Papago
have traditions of "the heavens rain
ing fire"
1t has been suggested by scientists
that the cliffs were cities of refuge in
times OF war, the caves and great
houses were permanent dwellings.
This Is inferred because there were
no kivas. or temples. among tho
caves and great houses Cushing