Dec, 1903. The Oraibi Oaqol Ceremony — Voth. 45 



greater with regard to the altar paraphernalia, which no one can touch 

 or even see without running the risk of being charmed, than with 

 regard to the participants, who have come into contact more or less 

 with others and with their homes during the ceremony. Should at 

 any time any one in the village have a malady similar to the charm of 

 any fraternity, the chief priest of that society is called to discharm 

 the patient, which he does by singing the discharming songs of his 

 society over the sufferer. 



The discharming ceremony over, the morning meal is partaken 

 of by most of the women in their homes, by the novices and a few of 

 the older women in the kiva. The four women who held the netted 

 gourd vessels during the dance take them with them and the water 

 from them is emptied out as a prayer for rain in some of their fields. 

 After breakfast all reassemble in the kiva, two other participants are 

 decorated and dressed up, a fresh lot of trays is tied up, to which 

 occasionally a watermelon, a piece of calico, a large round cake, a 

 bowl, etc., is added' and then another public performance takes place. 

 It does not differ essentially from the one already described — only 

 the four women have not now the netted gourd vessels. All have 

 again trays, holding also a pinch of sacred meal in their hand. 



Eight or ten such dances take place during the day. For each 

 one, two fresh mdnas are prepared, who may be either girls or women. 



During the intervals between the dances the plaza is by no means 

 deserted, as is usually the case in interrupted performances. One of 

 the trays thrown last at the various dancers usually becomes the object 

 of a spirited contention. First, two or three try to tear it from the 

 winner. (See No. 1, PI. XXVI.) Soon others take a hand in the 

 wrangle, the number often swelling up to fifteen or twenty. (See No. 2, 

 PI. XXVI.) Sometimes this closely knit mass of humanity will remain 

 for some time stationary at one spot, or at least nearly so. Then one 

 or two specially strong contestants, who may have succeeded in 

 getting hold of the coveted prize, or of one of these closely wedged 

 in, will set the whole body of contestants in motion (see PL XXVII), 

 so that it keeps moving, sometimes slowly, sometimes rapidly, from 

 one part of the plaza to the other, until some become exhausted and 

 are shaken off by the last, especially violent efforts of others, and 

 finally one who has a specially good hold of the object or is particu- 

 larly strong, remains victor. I have seen these contests last for 

 thirty, forty, fifty minutes, and even as long as an hour and a quarter, 



> On one occasion the women had inchided a large deseeded sunflower disk, which somewhat 

 resembled a yucca tray, when it was hurled through the air, and the disgust of the men, when they 

 found that they were deceived, caused a good deal of hilarity. 



