Book-bot.com - read famous books online for free

Arizona Sketches by J. A. (Joseph Amasa) Munk
page 117 of 134 (87%)
the women, they wash their bodies free from paint. After the men
are all washed and puked they re-enter the Kiva, where the long
fast is broken by a feast and the formal ceremonies of the snake
dance are ended.

The snake dance is annually witnessed by many visitors who gather
from different sections of the country and even foreign lands.
As there are no hotels to entertain guests every visitor must
provide his own outfit for conveyance, eating and sleeping. Even
water is scarce. Local springs barely furnish enough water to
supply the native population; and when the number of people to be
supplied is increased from one to two hundred by the visitors who
attend the dance, the water question becomes a serious problem.

On the lower portion of the road which leads up from the spring
to the gap at Walpi on the first mesa, the trail is over drifted
sand which makes difficult walking. To remedy this defect in the
trail, a path has been made of flat stones laid in the sand,
which shows that the Moquis are quick to recognize and utilize an
advantage that contributes to their convenience and comfort.

The Santa Fe Pacific is the nearest railroad, which runs about
one hundred miles south of the Moqui villages. The tourist can
secure transportation at reasonable rates of local liverymen
either from Holbrook, Winslow, Canon Diablo or Flagstaff. The
trip makes an enjoyable outing that is full of interest and
instruction from start to finish.

Some years ago the government, through its agents, began to
civilize and Christianize these Indians and established a school
DigitalOcean Referral Badge