74 THE SIA

overwhich thesebeings pass, temporarily abiding in the stone images ofthemselveswhich stand before thealtar. Thesebeings are exhorted tousetheir mystic powers with the cloud people towater the mother earth,that she

may become

pregnant

and

beartothepeopleofHa'arts (theearth) thefruitsof herbeing.

In order to obtain their services the Sia compensate them. The.

hii'chamoni (notchedstick), whicli is depositedtoconveythe message, invariablyhasplumesattached toit,these

plume

offeringsbeing actual compensation for that which ^is desired. Other offerings are matle,

among

which are

gaming

blocks, hoopsfor the cloud peopleto ride upon,

and

cigarettesfilledwith the

down

of

humming

birds,cornpollen,

and

bitsof precious beads. (See Plate xi).

Eagles arekeptcaged,

and

turkeys are domesticated forthepurpose ofobtaining illumesfortheseofferings.

It is the prerogative of the ti'iimoni to specify the time for the meetings of thecultsocieties, excepting ceremonialsfor the healingof the sick

by

the request of the patient orhis friend. These meetings being entirely under the jurisdictionof the theurgist,

who

does not possess within himself the

power

of healing, he ^is simply the agent actingunder theinfluenceof those beings

who

arepresentinthe stone images.

The

galatimeis the beginningof the

new

year in December,

when

the cult societies hold syuchronal ceremonials extending through a period offour days

and

nights, atwhichtime the fetich medicines are prepared;

and

those possessing real or imaginary disease gather in the

chamber

of the societyof which theyare members,

when

thethe- urgists

and

theirfollowers elaborate their practices of mysticism

upon

their subjects.

The

cult societies have

two ways

of retaining their

complement

of members.

An

adult or child joins a society after being restored to health

by

atheurgist,

and

aparent

may

entera child intoasociety,,or a

boy

or girl having arrived at years of discretion,

may

declarea de- sireto join a society.

Inthe case of a

young

child the paternal ormaternal parentcalls

upon the theiugist and,

making known

hiswish, presents

him

with a handful of shell mixtiire,'saying, ''I wish

my

^{child to}

^become

^a

mem-

ber of your societythat his

mind and

heart

may

be strong." In the case ofan elder boy orgirl theclan is firstnotified,

and

the applicant then calls

upon

the theiu-gist and, ijresenting

him

a handful of the shellmixture,

makes known

^his wish.

Most

of thesocieties aredivided ^intotwo or

more

orders,the

more

important order being that in which the

members

are

endowed

with theanagogicsof medicine, exceptin the

Snake

Society,

when

thesnake

'Thesacred meal, or sbcllmixtureasit isoften railedbytheSia,mayheprepared by auadult of eithersex;itiscomposedofcoarselygroundmeal, powileredsliells,andturkis.

STEVENSON.

THEURGISTIC

RITES.

75

order^isessential.

One must

pass througli three degrees before being permitted tohandlethe snakes. In the case ofminorstheycan not be initiated into the thirddegree until,in the ho'na.aite's judgment, they areamenable totherigid rules.

A

person

may

belongto two or

more

of thesesocieties.

Women may

be

members

of the various orders, excepting in the societies of the Snake,Cougar, or Hunters

and

Warriors.

The Snake

division ofthe

Snake

Society hasno female members,

and

the societies of the

Cougar

orHunters

and

Warriorsare

composed

entirelyof men.

When

one

makes known

^his desire to enterasocietyhe states to the theurgist

which

division hewishes tojoin.

The

objection tohandlingthesnakes keepsthe

Snake

division ofthis society limited, though the honor is

much

^{greater in} belongingto this division.

Upon

enteiing the medicine order of any society the

new member

ispresented with the fetichya'ya

by

the theurgist,

who must

practice continency four dayspreviousto preparingthefetich.

The

cult societies observe

two modes

incuring disease:

One

^is

by

sucking, and the other

by

brushing the

body

with straws

and

eagle plumes.

The

former

mode

is practiced

when

Ka-nat-kai-ya (witches) have causedthe

malady by

casting intothe

body

worms, stones, yarn,

etc.; the latter

mode

is observed

when

oneis afflicted through angry ants orother insects,which are thus

drawn

to the surfaceaud bruslied

off.

The

^medicineceremonials of thecult societies are quite distinct from their ceremonialsfor rain.

The

only compensation

made

the theurgist for his practice

upon

invalids either in the ceremonial

chamber

or dwellingis the sacred shell mixture. Itisquitethe reversewith all otherIndians with

whom

the writer ^is acquainted.

The

healing of the sick in the ceremonial

chamber

^iswith

some

of the peublos gratuitous,but generous compen- sation is re(iuired

when

the theurgist visitsthehouseoftheinvalid.

Continencyis observed four days previous toa ceremonial,

and

an emetic is taken each

morning

forpurification fromconjugal relations.

On

the fourth

day

themarried

members

bathe (the

men

goingintothe river)

aud

have ^their heads

washed

in yucca suds. This isfor phys- icalpurification.

The

exempting of those

who

havenot been married

and

those

who have

losta spouse seems a strange

and

unreasonable edictin a coinmuiiitywhere there^isan indiscriminate livingtogether ofthepeople.

The

ceremonials herenoted occurred afterthe planting of the grain.

Several of the ordinances

had

been held previous to the arrivalof the writer.

She

collected sufdcieut data, however, to demonstrate the analogy betweenthe rainceremonials of thesecret cult societies, their songsbearing the one

burden —

supplicationfor rain.