Evening star., 1926-05-18
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

The Hepi snake dance is a prayer
for rain. Within six hours after the
dance for the edification of Congress
men last Saturday afternoon, the rain
poured as it had not rained before,
for many weeks.
This led to the story told by a noted
ethnologist who has studied the
Indian dances. He was visiting the
Hopis in Arizona some years ago and
there he witnessed a snake dance.
While 1t was in progress with all the
enthusiasm Of the older Indians, he
noted a black cloud looming over the
mountains. After the dance, he and
a few companions were forced to seek
shelter in a schoolhouse when a tre-
mendous deluge broke. When the
torrents had slackened, some Of the
Hopi chiefs came along and were con-
graduated upon the success of their
snake dance prayer, whereupon they
answered rather morosely that they
had prayed for a gentle drizzle to
last two or three days and here the
gods had sent them a gully-washer!
x X X X
There has been much variance in
the explanations as to why this visi-
tation of the Hopis under the chaper-
onage Of Senator Cameron. 1t has
been inaccurately stated that 1t was
to offset efforts of the Indian commits
sioner, Mr.. Burke, to forbid further
observance of the ancient Indian
dances, for, according to the report.
intense efforts were being made by
certain missionaries and their church
people to stop the barbaric customs in
the interest of the Christianization of
the red men. This Is emphatically de-
MED by Commissioner Burke.
About three years ago the commits
sioner of Indian affairs issued a circu-
lar to all Indians appealing to them
to stop their great waste of time
through almost uninterrupted attend
ance upon festivals, dances, rodeos
and fairs, and to stay at home attend
ing to their gardens and farms, as
does the white man. so that they
could produce q larger share OF their
food.
1t was an effort merely to teach
them thrift and civilization. It was
not an attack upon any Of their In
dian religious rites. 1t had no refer
ence to the Hopis nor to other South
western Indians, but as some Of the
circulars got into Hopi hands they
were so misconstrued as to be taken
as an effort to forbid the "barbaric
Dances in the interest of Christi
anity, which is entirely disclaimed by
Commissioner Burke.
\ k.x X
There appears nothing in the dances
shown before the Capitol last Satur-
day that could give offense, beyond a
feeling of repulsion by white men
against holding snakes in the mouth
or even of handling the writhing crea-
lures SO freely. This is the verdict
not only Of the Congressman and 9TH
ers who witnessed the dances, but of
offlcials of the Indian Bureau who did
not witness the exhibition. and also of
scientific ethnologists who likewise
declined to view the unique exhibition.
The ethnologists did not refrain
from any sense of shock, since the
ceremony was familiar to them, but
rather with a feeling of regret that
the day had arrived when even real
Hopis would consent, for the first time
in history, to show the sacred dances
off of the reservation and apart from
the spirit Of true reverence. What
a sacrilege! eXclaim the ethnologists.
Never before had that been done.
How have the sacred rites become
commercialized! 1t was somewhat
the spirit of the captive Israelites in
Babylon. say the scientists, which
echoed in the astonishment of those
who appreciated the sacredness of
the religious dances of the Indians,
when they knew that the rites were
given for the enjoyment of "profane'
congressman and other whites:
For they that carried us away
captive required of us q song, and
they that wasted US required of us
mirth, saying. Sing US one Of the
aop Oa ~ Xiont