hrducka] physiological and medical observations 58 



As to preference of sex aniono; the Pima, formerly, wlieii the people 

 used to tight, the women say they wished for boys; now they wish 

 more for girls, who can cook for them and help them in other ways. 

 They believe that if a woman will eat one seed of the gourd which is 

 commonly used for water she will have a boy." The Zufii want many 

 children of both sexes; only a few of those asked with regard to sex 

 showed any preference,'' and the same may be said of the Mohave. 

 The Tarahumare desire boys much more than girls, A woman who 

 wants a boy will sing during the sexual intercourse ta-ur, ta-ur. 

 They want boys because they may become great foot racers or even 

 governors. 



Pregnancy in its earlier stages generally interferes in no way with 

 the woman's habits of life and occlipation in any of the tribes, but 

 it is very rare in any Indian settlement to see a woman near her 

 term working hard, or even to meet her outside of the dwelling. 

 Functional disturbance and diseases of pregnancy are much less fre- 

 quent and less serious than with white women. 



There are some curious notions about gestation as well as about 

 the unborn child. In all the tribes the pregnant woman must observe 

 certain tabus. 



The Apache women believe that with both boys and girls gesta- 

 tion lasts during a period of from nine to ten moons, the time being 

 counted by the new moon and from the last menstruation. The day 

 of the new moon is fortunate for the child. It is believed that boys 

 who begin to walk on that day will be fast runners. The women 

 know.no means of determining the sex of the child in utero. 



The San Carlos Apache pregnant w^oman keeps about her usual 

 duties as long as she is physically able to do so. She avoids no work 

 from precaution. Beyond ordinary care the younger people know" of 

 no special tabu for her, but among the less civilized element of the 

 tribe she is not allowed to be visited by strange people who might 

 frighten her. She may eat anything she likes, and does not need to 

 abstain from looking at an animal being killed or at blood. Some 

 women have a little morning sickness, but others have none at all, 

 suffering, on the whole, but little. 



Among the Hopi the pregnant woman must not see blood or any- 

 thing else likely to frighten her. The gestation period is counted by 

 moons, and the rather prevalent opinion, perhaps based on the slight 

 excess in size of the male child, is that it lasts longer with a boy than 



o In case a child is iDom dead to a Pima woman and she does not want any more children, the liody 

 is buried with the face covered with wrappings and with the head deep in the little cave which is cus- 

 tomarily made at the base of the grave. If, on the other hand, the mother desires to have more chil- 

 dren, the face of the dead baby is not covered and the body is placed so that the head is directly under 

 the shaft of the grave. Much faith is put in these expedients. 



b Occasionally, when either a boy or a girl is specially desired, the people visit certain shrines to pray 

 for the object o£ their wish. See Mrs. M. C. Stevenson, The Zuiii Indians, Twenty-third Anmtal Report 

 of the Bureau of American Ethnology, 294. 



