The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1915-11-23

That sacrificial snakes are gorged
TO the bursting point with the flesh
of women and babies killed for the
purpose in the kivas of the Tewa In
dams in New Mexico is the informa-
ton that has been brought forth by
Mrs. Matilda Coke Stevenson, an en-
inent ethnologist long in the service
of the government, writes William
Atherton DuPuy in the Savannah
News.
Mrs. Stevenson, when a young girl,
married James Stevenson, an ethnol-
ogist engaged in exploring for the
government certain Rocky Mountain
regions and recording the facts with
relation to the life, customs, history
and religion of the natives living
there.
In 1879 James Stevenson led an ex-
pedition for the Smithsonian Insti-
tuition which had as its object the
study of the Zuni Indians, the branch
of the Pueblos which inhabits the
western portions of New Mexico. His
wife accompanied him and took part
in the exhaustive research which fol-
lowed. James Stevenson died ten
years later and his wife took up the
work where he had laid it down, be-
came a member of the Smithsonian
staff and spent twenty-five years at
work among the New Mexican In
dams She is acknowledged as one
of the nations two best authorities
on the Zuni Indians.
Secrets of the Tewas.
The secrets of this fascinating tribe
being largely cleared up Mrs. Steven
son some ten years ago turned her
attention to the Tewas, cousins Of the
Zuni and also classed as Pueblos.
The Tewas dwelt in six villages of
the Rio Grande valley of New MeXi-
co. Some of these villages are near
Santa Fe and others near Albuquer-
que. There are now about 1900 Te-
was where there were 5000 three
hundred years ago, for, like all of
their kind, they melt away in con-
tact with the whites. But these rem
nants still dwell in the bleak villages
of San Idlefonson, San Juan, Santa
Clara, Nambre, Tesque and Hano.
There they attend quite devOutly the
services of the Christian missions
that were long ago established and
to all outward seeming are a simple,
mild and plastic people with nothing
in their lives that does not appear
on the surface.
InvestigatiOnaI Methods.
AS a result of her long experience
knew every member of the tribes per-
among the Tewas, Mrs. Stevenson
sonally. She was intimately acquaint-
ed with the different secret orders
among them. There were, for in
stance, the main divisions into the
winter people and the summer peo-
pie, otherwise called the sun people
and the ice people. There presided
over each of these divisions chief
penitent or cacique. The sun people
were in control during the summer
and the ice people during the win
ter
The present habitations of the Te-
was are built on the plains and are
are by no means as picturesque as
those of old, which were grouped
about a mountain top for defensive
purposes. The kiva is the ceremo-
NAL chamber of the village, and is
usually its very center. On the noun
tain tops the kivas are built first and
the other apartments grouped around
them, the structures often being five
stories high. At any rate, the kiva
is the secret ceremonial and sacred
part of the village.
A Scientist Detective.
With this knowledge of the struct-
ure of Tewa society and with her in
innate personal acquaintance Mrs
Stevenson set about her work. The
methods she pursued would, in de-
tective parlance, be termed "roping,
and consisted in cultivating individu-
ais who know the secrets that these
might be directly revealed.
She went to one of the villages tc
establish a residence. She hired an
Indian to build her a house. So hum
Bile are even the leading men of these
tribes that she could employ for
mere pittance cacique who would
be likely to know all that she want
ed to find out He worked for month!
under her direction.