THE SOMAIKOLI DANCE AT SICHUMOVI 
Mesa, until one reached Hubbell’s Pueblo, 
Colorado, forty-six miles from Keam’s, and 
then thirty-five miles farther east at Fort 
Defiance. To the south it was eighty miles 
to the new town of Holbrook on the just 
completed Atlantic and Pacific Railway, now 
the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fé, and to the 
west and north there was no camp or set- 
tlement until the great cafion of the Colorado 
was crossed and then it was about one hun- 
dred miles to Kanab. The only other white 
man in the Hopi Province at the time I was 
there, was Dr. Jeremiah Sullivan, who lived 
in Sichumovi with the chief, Anawita, and 
had been to some extent initiated into that 
tribe. 
I had rented from Tom Polacka, a Hano 
(Tewa) native, the top story of Tewa, a 
single large room with a fireplace in one 
corner, and with a porch in front of the door, 
formed by the roof of the house below, where 
I could smoke my pipe and easily imagine 
myself, as I looked along the entire mesa 
toward Walpi, much farther away from the 
toiling world than actually I was. 
On Saturday, November 8, I recorded in my 
diary: To-day the Moquis have been making 
great preparations for to-morrow which is a 
great dance day. To-night they cleaned up 
the rubbish and threw it over the cliff. 
To-night is T6-td-ki-d, Tod-td-ki-pi or Tok- 
tight-d, the “night of dancing.” 
My diary for Sunday, November 9, further 
records: To-day was a great one on this mesa. 
About sunrise I heard the drum going at 
Sichumovi and a great yelling, and getting 
up I saw a crowd in the plaza, but the princi- 
pal actors soon returned to their kiva. The 
dancing did not begin again until about 
eleven o’clock and then it did not stop until 
sunset — dancing with singing and hammer- 
ing on the drum. The drummer, with his 
big drum, sat in the center of the plaza with 
Six or seven singers, around whom was a 
circle of about forty men, boys, women and 
girls, all togged out in their best. ‘‘Mose”’ 
was there dressed all in black (cambric) and 
did not look half so well as in his ordinary 
clothes. It is strange what a fancy these 
Indians and the Navajo have for black. One 
man had on calico trousers, one leg one pat- 
tern, the other another. 
The women wore white blankets with red 
borders and they had their hair done up in 
quite a different fashion from the ordinary. 
It was brought down smoothly and fastened 
207 
behind in a sort of long knot wrapped with 
red yarn. Over the forehead from ear to ear 
was a kind of thick fringe of black hair about 
four inches long, sewed to a string and tied 
about the head in such a manner that the 
eyes were almost obscured. Their feet were 
moccasined, which they are not on ordinary 
occasions, and the buckskin of the top of the 
moccasin swathed their legs, as when they 
ride. 
The members of the circle sang together as 
the circle slowly moved from left to right. 
Each man or boy chose a partner and joined 
the circle with her. It was absurd to see a 
tall Indian enter with a girl of only seven or 
eight years. [I learned later that the older 
girls were not permitted to take part]. 
Presently there was a shouting in the 
direction of the kiva, ‘‘ Yah-hai— yah-hai,”’ 
very loud, and looking that way I perceived 
a man coming, nude excepting for a kilt, and 
painted yellow. On his head were feathers. 
His hair was “banged’’ in front above the 
eyes, cut short on the sides, and hung down 
long behind. From his waist at the back 
trailed afoxskin. In his right hand he carried 
a gourd rattle painted green and white and 
filled with small pebbles, judging from the 
sound. In the left hand he carried a sort of 
baton with a cloud symbol in the middle and a 
free swinging pendant at either end. Imme- 
diately behind him was one of the most 
grotesque figures I have ever seen. It was 
one of those innumerable Hopi ghosts, saints 
or minor gods known as a “katcina,”’ covered 
with all sorts of trappings, and heavy wrap- 
ings about the head with the semblance of a 
mask in front (the mask fantastically deco- 
rated with green and other colors), a strong 
bow in his right hand which he used as a staff 
(the quiver being hung to his left side), and 
in his left hand an ear of corn and a small 
bent stick. He came prancing and dancing 
and jumping after his leader in the most 
extraordinary way. The deer hoofs hung 
around his waist rattled loudly. He was 
supposed to be blind. His leader rattled as 
hard as he could rattle and advanced a few 
steps toward the group shouting an incanta- 
tion, then suddenly turned and faced the 
kateina and yelled ‘‘Yah-hai — yah-hai’”’ 
at the top of his lungs. Then he walked on 
shouting, the drummer thumped away on the 
drum, the singers and dancers sang, and the 
katcina capered about in frantic spasms of 
tramps and jumps, never stopping for an 
