46 ETHNOBOTANY OF THE ZUNI INDIANS [eth. asn.30 



Squash blossoms form one of the ingredients of the pats or cakes 

 made by. the Shu'maakwe.' 



Squash seeds and blossoms are used externally by the Cactus fra- 

 ternity to bruig relief from the cactus needles after whipping with the 

 plant. ^ 



Datura meteloides DC. Jamestown Weed; called also Thorn- 

 apple. SoLANACE^. Nightshade family. 



A'neglalcya, name of a mythic boy; see legend below. The sister 

 of the boy was named A'neglakyatsi'tsa {A'neglakya, per- 

 sonal name; tsi'tsa, postfix denoting feminine gender). 

 The following legend is related of this plant: 



In the olden time a boy and a girl, brother and sister (the boy's name 'was A'neglakya 

 and the girl's name A'neglakyatsi'tsa), lived in the interior of the earth, but they 

 often came to the outer world and walked about a great deal, observing closely every- 

 thing they saw and heard, and repeating all to their mother. This constant talking 

 did not please the Divine Ones (twin sons of the Sun Father). On meeting the boy 

 and the girl the Divme Ones asked, "How are you?" and the brother and sister 

 answered, "We are happy." (Sometimes A'neglakya and A'neglakyatsi'tsa appeared 

 on the earth as old people.) They told the Divhie Ones how they could make one 

 sleep and see ghosts, and how they could make one walk about a little and see 

 one who had committed theft. After this meeting the Divine Ones concluded that 

 A'neglakya and A'neglakyatsi'tsa knew too much and that they should be banished 

 for all time from this world; so the Divine Ones caused the brother and the sister 

 to disappear into the earth forever. Flowers sprang up at the spot where the two 

 descended — flowers exactly like those which they wore on each side of their heads 

 when visitmg the earth.^ The Divine Ones called the plant a'ntglakyn, after the 

 boy's name. The original plant has many children scattered over the earth; some 

 of the blossoms are tinged with yellow, some with blue, some with red, some are 

 all white — the colors lielonging to the four cardinal pomts. (The medicine of the 

 Datum is sometimes called u'teawe ko'hanrw, 'flowers white.') 



The medicine is the property of the ram priests and the directors 

 of the Little Fire and Cimex fraternities. It is administered with 

 great care and is given medicinally only by the directors of these 

 fraternities. Each dkector must collect the medicme which he 

 uses, and must prepare and deposit prayer-plumes to the sacred 

 plant in order that his treatment may be successful. The powdered 

 root is given as a narcotic.^ 



1 Consult 2Sd Ann. Rep. But. Amer. Ethn.,ii. 543. See also p. 50of the present memoir. 



= See 23d A nn. Rep. Bur. A mrr. Elhn., p. 389. 



3 This flower is represented in Zuiii and in other pueblos by interlacing colored yams around the desiccated 

 fruit of Martynia huisiana Mill, which is attached to a leather band passing arovmd the head. On the 

 forehead the band is covered by the bangs of the maiden wearing the flower. This headdress is worn by 

 women in the dance. Students have described it as symbolizing the squash blossom, an error only too 

 pleasing to the Zuni, as the blossom of the Datura is most sacred to them. 



* The writer observed the late Nai'uchi, the most renowned medicine-man of his time among the Zuni, 

 give this medicine before operating on a woman's breast. As soon as the patient became unconscious 

 he cut deep into the breast with an agate lance, and, inserting his finger, removed all the pus; an anti- 

 septic was then sprinkled over the wound, which was bandaged with a soiled cloth. (The writer obtained 

 samples of the antiseptic, but each time the quantity proved too small for chemical analysis.) When the 

 woman regained consciousness she declared that she had had a peaceful sleep and beautiful dreams. There 

 was no evidence of any ill effect from the use of the drug. 



