White] THE PUEBLO OF SIA, NEW MEXICO 255 
are enormously impressed with this, since they believe that the dancers 
are supernatural beings. Masewi then leads them back to their house. 
No one leads them to the plaza for succeeding dances except the last, 
when Masewi again performs this duty. 
The katsina dance four times during the forenoon, after which 
they retire to their house for lunch, which is brought to them by 
women. Heruta stands guard in the plaza meanwhile to see that 
no uninitiated persons approach the katsina; Heruta himself does 
not eat until the dance is over, even if it should occupy 2 days. 
The katsina dance four times in the afternoon, also. If someone 
in the pueblo has been ill for some time, some of the katsina may go 
to his house and stroke him with their soapweed whips, “to give 
him strength,”’ or give him a couple of ears of corn. 
After the fourth dance, the katsina line up in front of Tiamunyi 
who addresses them formally, thanking them for ‘coming to Sia and 
doing good.” ‘Tiamunyi tells them either that they may “go home” 
(i.e., return to Wénima), or that they must return for a second day’s 
dancing; he addresses himself to the society in charge of the dance, 
who, in turn, tells the katsina what Tiamunyi has said. Masewi 
leads the dancers back to their house; if there is to be a second day 
of dancing, they must sleep there. 
When the dance is all over, the dancers go to a sacred spot (tsa- 
pacromi) in the north plaza and pray. Then they return to their 
house, remove their costumes, ‘undress’ the masks (i.e., remove the 
feathers and any other accessories they may have), and, after dark, 
go down to the river and bathe. My notes do not say when, or how, 
the prayersticks are deposited. 
I obtained data on a katsina dance held in Sia on September 3, 
1941. A group of young men volunteered to put on the dance ‘‘to 
give ianyi [beneficent supernatural power] to the pueblo.” There 
were 9 Berictca katsina; they were the line dancers. Two Ho'wi and 
one Ctiwictiwi were side dancers. And three Kotcininako accom- 
panied the songs with the notched stick and gourd. Ctiwictiwi led 
the dancers into the plaza, making a road for them with meal (petana) 
from his bowl. The men had to obtain permission of the head of the 
sicti group (Andres Pino) to hold the dance; then permission from 
Masewi, who in turn notified Tiamunyi so that he would be ready. 
The dancers were obliged to vomit and to abstain from sexual rela- 
tions for 4 days before the dance. They had to practice during 
this time, also. 
“Tt is the duty of the War chief,’’ Stevenson observed (1894, pp. 
18-19), “to surround the village with mounted guardsmen at the 
time of a dance of the Katsina. A Mexican, especially, must not 
look upon one of these anthropomorphic beings.” ‘The same pre- 
