82 Field Columbian Museum — Anthropology, Vol. III. 



the corn-meal to his mouth, whispered a silent prayer and then 

 sprinkled the meal in a line and laid the yellow tube at the end of the 

 stand pointing towards the village. (See PI. XLVI.) At the oppo- 

 site end of the stand he placed first the food ball, and then, a few 

 inches from the bowl, the black tube. A fifth messenger has at the 

 same time been sent with the corn husk containing the corn-meal and 

 the dead mouse (No. 33), with instructions to deposit it on some large 

 ant-hill as a prayer offering to the ants that they would not destroy 

 the crops of the Hopi. In 1901 the messenger went to an ant-hill 

 close to the west side of the village, made a ring around the center 

 of the hill with some of the corn-meal and threw the rest of the 

 meal, the remains of the mouse, the naktvakwosi and the husk into 

 the ring. 



Returning to the kiva in about fifteen or twenty minutes the men 

 were still singing, but I am unable to say how many songs they had 

 sung while we were gone. I am inclined to believe, however, that it 

 was the same song that they commenced when we left the kiva. When 

 this song concludes all say, '■'■ kivakwai'' (thanks !), whereupon a pipe 

 is filled with native tobacco and lit by Massaveima at the fireplace. 

 While he lights the pipe and smokes a few puffs, some one loosens 

 the nakwakwosi from the crystal that is lying on the center of the 

 sand mosaic, and all put the crystal between their lips and suck on it, 

 saying that it makes their hearts strong. The pipe is then handed to 

 the Powamu chief priest, who smokes, hands it to the Katcina chief, 

 and then it makes the round, each one smoking a few minutes and all 

 exchanging terms of clan relationship, such as: Inaa, Itii (my father, 

 my child); Iwawa, Itopko (my elder brother, my younger brother), etc. 

 When all have smoked, the pipe-lighter takes the pipe, cleans it and 

 places it on the floor near the fireplace. The Powamu priest picks 

 up the tray with bahos, sprinkles some of the meal from the same tray 

 over them, holds the tray in front of him and prays over it. He then 

 hands it to Messavestiwa (in igoi, Moshohungwa), who also prays 

 over it and hands it to the Powamu priest, who places it on the ban- 

 quette at the north end of the kiva. Some one, usually Lomaashniwa, 

 now sweeps up the sand mosaic with the seed meal and nakwakwosi 

 that has been loosened from the quartz crystal, puts it all into his 

 blanket, carries it out and throws it on a pile about eight or ten yards 

 south of the kiva. Food is meanwhile being brought to the kiva and 

 all partake of a supper, after which they usually smoke and chat 

 awhile and retire to their respective homes. 



