Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1920-08-06
HISTORICAL PAGEANT OF
SANTO DOMINGO INDIANS
WI7NESSEDBY HUNDREDS

bols and bright cocKatoo feathers,
brought from Mexico, surmount
the top
The koshare are naked except
for a breech apron and fringe of
evergreens. They are painted gray,
sometimes only half of their bodies
and sometimes entirely Their
faces are astonishing masks of
white, gray and black. They look
like large and feroCious beetles,
Their hair is twisted up into
ludicrous peak on the tops of their
heads, with q bunch of corn husks
topping off the head dress.
At Wednesdays dance the Ko-
share came trotting in, shouting in
the peculiar hoarse. clownish
voices which they assume for this
special act. They performed
amusing antics. taking liberties
with the crowds, poking into their
lunch baskets. borrowing whatever
they took a fancy to, and imitat-
ing the walk or the manner of the
visitors with a license quite free
from offense one of the koshare
carried a baby on his back. a baby
Koshare, painted and rugged up
like his father. a spot of white on
his infant nose, his small mouth
painted in leerng red cash.
Another koshare of 4 years Old
was quite the envy of his play
mates, with his rafting turtle shell
belt, his fox skin dangling behind,
the tail at 4 frisky and realistic
angle shaking with every move
ment of his small body. just like
the big clowns The antics and
makeup of the Delight Makers"
were revelation to many visitors
to the Santo Domingo dance who
had never before seen such a thing.
That Glowing was pastime of
aboriginal, prehistoric man, and
that he had evolved ludicrous.
highly humorous costume" long
before Barnum and Bailey's clowns
came To painting their faces, and
taking off" the serious things of
life, dawned gradually upon the
new conner.
Funny to Englishman.
These chaps have a sense of
humor. hey. WHAT" said an Eng
lishman whose stick. glass, and
cape We're at that moment being
behind his back for the
edifiCation of Indian and whites
alike.
Plump matrons, with both poise |
and avoirdunois, and unembarrass-
ed by the loss of their girlish |
figures, their feet and legs bare /
the black gowns fastening on one
,h1 40 thrntnh
the hot afternoon. At least fifty |
bewitching in their min |
iature regalia, joined the grown
ups, the little girls waving .
branches of evergreen in both |
hands, eyes modestly doWncast,
blue wooden head -dresses just like
heir mothers.
Both men and women have
Quantities of hair, we'll kept and
ong, sometimes curly. 1t is gen.
rally bobbed on each side of the
ace but the remainder is still very
hick. The women have pretty
trms almost invariably. It IS
probable that centuries of corn
and the use of the mus
les of the upper part of the body.
ire responsible for the develop
nent and heaviness dbove the
waist of the Indian woman. There n
ire many beautiful types at Santn
Domingo.
The costumes of the men dancers
s somewhat bewildering. This
ear the Indians had quite outdone
themselves, for in addition to the
Id and treasured garments and
egalia. cotton dance aprons, wool
silver bells, carved
eads, turquoise wampum, rope
ringe, turtle shells, they had the
irest deer skin moccasins, and the
most beautifully woven belts.
heir bodies We're painted below
he waists. and they had evergreens
ound around their upper arms
nth blue bands and around their
eltS
Not to be ignored either were the {