12 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY 



Mrs. M. C. Stevenson, ethnologist, continued her researches 

 among the Pueblo tribes of the Rio Grande Valley, New 

 Mexico, giving special attention to the Tewa group. As 

 during the previous year, her studies were devoted chiefly to 

 the pueblo of San Ildefonso, which offers better facilities for 

 ethnologic investigation than the other Tewa villages, 

 although her inquiries were extended also to Santa Clara and 

 Nambe. Owing to the extreme conservatism of the Tewa 

 people, Mrs. Stevenson found great difficulty in overcoming 

 their prejudices against the study of the esoteric side of their 

 life, but with patience she succeeded finally in gaining the 

 warm friendship of many of the more influential headmen, 

 and by this means was enabled to pursue a systematic study 

 of the Tewa religion, sociology, and philosophy. Like most 

 Indians, the Tewa are so secretive in everything that pertains 

 to their worship that one not familiar with their religious life 

 is readily mislead into believing that the ceremonies held in 

 the public plazas of their villages which, with few exceptions, 

 are more Mexican than Indian in outward character, consti- 

 tute the sole rites of these people, whereas it has been found 

 that the Tewa still adhere as strictly to many of their ancient 

 customs as before white men came among them, although 

 some of their ceremonies are now less elaborate than they 

 were in former times. 



While the creation myth of the San Ildefonso Indians differs 

 somewhat from those of the Zuni and of other Pueblo tribes, 

 it is the same in all essentials. According to their belief they 

 were created in an undermost world, and passed through 

 three other worlds before reaching this one. The tribe is 

 divided into the Sun or Summer, and the Ice or Winter, 

 people, the former having preceded the latter in their advent 

 into this world, and their final home was reached on the 

 western bank of the Rio Grande almost opposite the present 

 pueblo. This place is marked by an extensive ruin. 



Every mountain peak, near and far, within sight of San 

 Ildefonso is sacred to the Tewa people, and they make pil- 

 grimages at prescribed intervals to lofty heights far beyond 

 the range of their home. The names of these sacred moun- 

 tains, with a full description of each, were procured. 



