Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1920-12-10

They are known also as HOpis; and
their name signifies peace loving"
They have a tradition that several
hundred years ago the warlike
Apaches waged a terrific war against
the tribe. The remnant Of the Mokis
fled in terror and took refuge ON the
two great tablelands of red sandstone
which rise sheer some 20 feet out of
q vast sea Of sand. The great rocky
formation has been a veritable Gil
braltar Of defense to the tribe and from
the day the ancestral Mokis fed they
and their descendants have dwelt
there isolated. Rain Is the all-essen-
tial element in the success of MOki
agriculture. and In the desert region
rains come capriciously.
The date of the Moki snake dance
is determined by an old medicine man
In the tribe. When during August the
sun at its setting glints the sacred
rock that stands before the door of
the tribal kiva, the old medicine man,
Honi. mounts the highest point at
either Walpi or Oraibi and sOlemnly
gives notice that 16 sunsets hence the
solemn snake ceremonies will take
place. He ends by invoking all to be-
gin immediate preparation for the Oc-
casion. The women are to bake for
tribal feast, to dress themselves and
their children in their best garments,
and the men are to perform their sew
eral parts In the ceremonies.
A certain number Of young men. ap-
pointed for the purpose, start out at
next dawn to perform their part of
the preparation for the dance. They
are jakulali (snake gatherers). They
roam over the desert with a forked
stick In one hand and a bag made of
skins in the other. They know where
to look for rattlesnakes and some
times they get more than 200 serpents
In a week. They plant the forks Of
their sticks over the neck of the re-
cumbent snake, and by an adroit move
ment throw the reptile into the bag.
The serpents are brought to the pueblo
and turned over to the old snake
priests.
The PreIiminaries.
Six days after the official announce
ment of the annual snake ceremonies,
mysterious rites among q of the fore
most men in the Moki tribe begin in
a chamber hewn into the rock down be-
low the pueblo. This is the kiva,
the holy of holes Of Moki belief
DR.. ]. Walter Fewks of the Smithson-
ian institution Is the only white person
who has ever entered the kiva, and he
says that the ceremonies there consist
in washing the serpents captured and
brought there by young men. The old
men engage In barbaric incantations,
and chant appeals to the serpents, to
bear messages of devotion and friend
ship to the powers that rule the rain
clouds. The snake priests wear moth
ing to protect themselves from the rep
tiles fangs. Each day they wash the
rattlesnakes, sprinkle sacred cornmeal
on the serpents' heads, and deposit the
creatures in jars. Meanwhile the Moki
housewives cook and bake In prepara-
tion for the event of the yeGr-the
snake dance on the plaza of the pu-
eblo. The gaudiest tribal finery is
brought forth and made ready. White
and Navajo Indian visitors come across
the desert to see the public ceremonies
and for G week all Mokiland bustles
end buzzes.
AT the setting Of the sixteenth sun
from the official announcement by old
Honi the snake dunce takes place. Late
In the afternoon the spectators arrange
themselves In vantage spots overlook
ing the plaza where the dance is per-
formed. Some $500 persons ere gen.
orally on hand to see the ancient mar
velOus ceremony. The roofs of the
squat stone houses are crowded. Mo.i
children with scarcely a stitch on them
sit along the cornices with their brown
legs hanging down. There are cow
boys from all over the territory, report
ers from newspapers, scientists from
the cities, and hundreds of Indians In
brilliant and quaint costumes. 1t Is
"a raw oNNilCt OhC III lOl u ouiOh piN-
ture," said an enthusiastic artist. The
white people laugh, the dogs and chill
dren make tumult, while every one
awaits the opening of the dance. At
just about six o'clock, when the sun
is dropped into the yellow desert
away to the west, some one calls:
Here they come" Instantly there Is
silence. Everybody knows that the
entelol men-young athletic snake
dancers-are at last issuing from their
stone chambers. The braves are
scantily clad, and on each leg is a
small terrapin shell, in which are
placed small pebbles, which rattle as
the warrior moves, and make of him,
In sound at least, human rattler.
The dancers are smeared with red,
white and black paints. Around ecch
brow is bound flaming handkerchief,
the upper forehead being painted a
deep black, and the lower half with
black and white bands.
Live Snakes In Their Mouths.
The band forms In a circle and a