March, 1905. The Traditions of the Hopi — Voth. 175 



child move about in the room. After the first day the mother was 

 anxious to open the door, but the father forbid her, saying that they 

 were not to do that, because the Owl had forbidden it. So she 

 waited and on the third day she was very anxious for her child and 

 could hardly await the third day. During the night also, and it 

 seemed to her as if the morning was very slow coming. Finally 

 when it became light she went to the door, which, like the old Hopi 

 doors, that were not made very well, had cracks. "It is light al- 

 ready," she said, "let us open the door." Hereupon she shaded her 

 eyes and looked through one of the cracks. She saw her child walk- 

 ing up and down, but also noticed that it began to change into an 

 owl again. " Let us open the door, " she urged, "it is already light. " 

 Her husband protested, saying, that the sun had not yet risen, but 

 she opened the door, and out rushed an Owl which immediately rose 

 up and flew towards Bayupki to the place where" it had come from. 

 "Well, now," the man said, "there you looked in before the sun had 

 risen, and yet the Owl had told us not to do so. You have done this, 

 now you have done it and we have no children now. We were just 

 getting our child back again, and now you looked in and it has turned 

 into an Owl, and it will now remain an Owl." 



54. THE CHILDREN AND THE LIZARDS.' 



Aliksai! A long time ago the people lived in Mishdngnovi. 

 There was to be a dance in the village of Shong6pavi and a man from 

 Walpi was going to attend this dance. He came by way of Mish6n- 

 gnovi, which was then situated half-way down the mesa, where there 

 are still the ruins of the old village. East of the village there was a 

 large rock, and at this rock some children were playing. They were 

 hunting some lizards, the kind that are called hikwa (pi. hakwdhpu). 

 "What are you doing there?" the Walpi man asked. "We are hunt- 

 ing these h^kwas. " "What are they?" he said. "Why these here 

 in the cracks and on the rocks," the children said. So some of the 

 little boys got their bows and arrows ready and, aiming at some 

 of the lizards, sang the following song: 



Hakwa, puta ponongaqo 



Lizard that, in the body. 



Wihu qoiotalcang. 



Fat full of. 



Aaay alihi alihi, 



Nahanak nahanak hanak! 

 As they sang the last word they shot their arrows at the lizards. 



• Told by Sikihpiki (Shupatilavi) 



