22 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I33 



Parents feel obliged to have a daughter's ears pierced. Very rarely, 

 today, do they have a son's ears pierced." 



Formerly nearly always — today only occasionally — relatives are in- 

 vited to a plentiful meal at the ruka of the child's parents on the day 

 of the piercing, or very soon thereafter. No part of the child's body 

 was ever painted or decorated with designs. 



"talcum powder," DIAPERS 



The only preventive of chafing known is frequent bathing. Hence 

 the baby is usually bathed (set in a dish and water dashed against it) 

 whenever its diaper is changed. 



The baby's diaper is a piece of chamall — cloth woven by the women 

 from homespun yarn. The expectant mother will weave a piece, 

 double armstretch in length and one-fourth as wide, before the baby 

 is expected. It is cut crosswise into three equal pieces. Should the 

 baby arrive before the mother has woven a piece of chamall — "some- 

 times you know, a baby comes before the mother has reckoned it 

 will" — or, if the mother finds she needs more chamall than she has on 

 hand, she will cut up one of her own pieces of clothing (also made of 

 chamall) and use it. A mother usually has two or three pieces of 

 chamall as her own personal clothing, unless she is very poor. The 

 informant added with some laughter, "When she has used up every- 

 thing she has for diapers, or if she has not had anything to begin with, 

 she will probably cut up her husband's poncho !" 



The baby is laid upon the diaper, from under the arms to beyond 

 the feet. The diaper is not drawn up between the legs, as diapers usu- 

 ally are, but its sides are folded over the baby. Then the baby is laid 

 on another piece of chamall, one which reaches from the neck to be- 

 yond the feet. The sides of this piece are also folded over the body 

 but cover the arms also. Next, the bottom ends of both pieces are 

 brought under the feet, and a band is wound about the baby. When 

 the baby soils itself, it is wiped with the under piece and then bathed 

 and swaddled into a clean diaper. Soiled diapers are washed, dried, 

 and re-used. "The baby has no diaper, no shirt, nothing on its body, 

 like Chilean babies do; nothing except these pieces of chamall." 



The diaper of a child that walks is a skirtlike affair that reaches to 

 the ankles (pi. 3, 5). It is tied about the child's waistline with a band 

 "like men use to hold up their trousers." Open ends overlap in front. 

 In Alepue area women keep an unused diaper in the ruka to bring 

 good luck. "My mother kept one; I do; and I know other women 

 who do." Moss was not used as diapers. 



