THE LEVEL AND COST OF LIVING 



181 



of the gifts is based partly on the sample and 

 partly on independent knowledge of the gift- 

 giving occasions (something like 200 gifts are 

 probably exchanged annually) and the content of 

 such gifts (on an average, 10 cents bread, 3^4 cents 

 sugar, and 5 cents chocolate; or about 35 cents 

 worth of corn and meat foods). 



When, because of a funeral, a ritual, or a fiesta, 

 the Indians drink, they frequentlj^ keep on drink- 

 ing for several days.'^^ It is difficult to draw a 

 line between drinking in purely secular contexts 

 and this "aftermath" drinking, for men who like 

 to drink seek anj- occasion and of course take 

 advantage of times when drinking is socially most 

 expectable. It is rather rare for Indians to drink 

 when occasion demands. Nevertheless, ordinary 

 drinking is common enough to be economically 

 important. People who like liquor (and of course 

 some like it better than others) succumb when 

 they go to markets out of town and especially when 

 they visit fiestas,'^' when there is emotional dis- 

 turbance,'™ or, less frequenth^ simply when 

 friends meet and one invites the other to a drink. 

 It is certain that some men consume, besides that 

 in rituals, as much as 20 bottles (worth $20 or 

 more by the glass) a year. Excepting the Protes- 

 tant converts, there are no teetotalers. Every 

 man probably drinks three or four times a year 

 and may drink oftener. An informant listed 19 

 men as "heavy" drinkers (those who, when they 

 drink, keep drinking for a week or longer). AU 

 except three of these men were relatively wealthy, 



los The following seems typical: The man who became Indian Alcalde In 

 1941 is not a "drinker." Yet when he assumed office he of course drant at 

 the ceremony at his house. When the guests left the says) " I stayed at home 

 until about 5 p. m., then met the other two regidores In the jucgado. We 

 contributed 8 cents apiece and went to the store to drink a fourth liter. Then 

 we went to my house and drank half the liquor remaining from the ceremony. 

 I was pretty drunk, but had a little supper, and the neit morning had hang- 

 over [locally a sickness that must bo cured with a drink] and took one drink. 

 At about 8 o'clock the other regidores arrived and we finished the other half 

 of the left-over liquor and went to the juzgado. One of the regidores then 

 invited us to drink, and he bought a half liter: the other then bought a quar- 

 ter-liter and then, drunk, we went to our homes. The next morning I had 

 hangover and sent for liquor. After breakfast I went to ihQ jiizgado; It was 

 not my week, but the regidor suggested that I come and, besides, I had to 

 end my hangover. I returned home early and went to bed." 



"'A very poor Indian and his wife and 12-year-old daughter reported on 

 theh- return from a selling trip to Patzlin that they had spent about $1 on 

 liquor there, "all because the husband likes to drink." (He became drunk, 

 the wife less so; even the girl drank some.) 



i^oA Panajachelerio plantation worker had been widowed recently and left 

 with three children. He was lonesome and sought the 16-year-old daughter 

 of a fellow worker for a wife. She accepted (he said) but her father refused. 

 Thinking to win him with liquor, he drew $2 from his employer and went to 

 60I0I& where he bought four bottles. On his return he "began thinking 

 about my late wife and also my late mother and took a drink." When wo 

 found him on the road he had only a half bottle left, but he explained that 

 one bottle had been stolen in the night. (The stolen bottle seemed to be his 

 and bis brother's chief concern.) 



all except two were old principales, and four were 

 shamans, and it is evident that men become 

 drinkers partly because of long and habitual 

 ritual use of liquor. According to the same 

 informant, there once were women "drinkers" as 

 well, but, "Women nowadays are ashamed to 

 drink; those who do not drink speak ill of them 

 when they do. Female mayordomos, when they 

 receive their year, are forced to drink, and then 

 the}' keep on drinking for 2 days." 



PERSONAL EXPENSES, TAXES, ETC. 



Table 72 concludes the inventory of expendi- 

 tures supposedly incurred by the Indian com- 

 munity in 193G with items of a personal and legal 

 nature. The item of secular drinking in table 71 

 is also a personal expenditure, of course, but, as 

 has been seen, liquor has many other uses. Most 

 men smoke in moderation, and women will smoke 

 occasionally, but rarely if ever buy tobacco. Men 

 smoke both cigarettes and cigars (and very rarely 

 pipes made in other towns) but the older men 

 usuaUj' buy cigars, the younger men cigarettes. 

 The small amount of tobacco used by the No. 58 

 family in 1930 was a reflection of its tendency 

 towards Protestantism, since the missionaries dis- 

 courage the use of tobacco as well as liquor, and 

 in later years none at all was used. In 1936 the 

 only smoker was the head of the family. 



Photographs are occasional!}' made for the 

 Indians by traveling photographers at festivals. 

 Only men and boys have their hair cut, and almost 

 always by barbers. The local Indian barber is less 

 patronized than the outside Indian barbers who 

 come on market day and who are found in Sololi. 



Every man between the ages of 18 and 60 is 

 required to work on the highway for 2 weeks 

 (12 days) each year; instead of working he may 

 pay the sum of $2. It could be determined from 

 local treasury records how many men worked and 

 how many paid in 1936, but this was not done. 

 The fixed rate of $1 for 6 days happens to be the 

 prevailing labor rate in Panajachel, so that one 

 who works for others finds it economically as easy 

 to pay as to work. The wealthier Indians prefer 

 to pay, since they are able to and find it more 

 profitable to spend the time on their own lands; 

 the poorer people more frequently work, partly 

 because a dollar in cash (the work is divided into 

 semesters) is often more than the liquid assets 



