EMPIRES children: THE PEOPLE OF TZINTZUNTZAN FOSTER 



Volume: 



Cuartillo: 0.5 liter. 



Cuarteron: 4 liters. 



Medida: 5 liters. 



Fanega (here called hanega) : 25 cuarterones, 100 

 liters. 



Carga of wheat: 220 liters (2 bags each contain- 

 ing 22 medidas). 



Tercio of wheat: half a carga. 

 Weight: 



Onza: ounce of 28 gm. (Used to buy gunpowder 

 and shot.) 



Libra: English pound, used to mix ingredients for 

 pottery. 



Arroba: 11.5 kilos. 



Carga: 14 arrobas. 

 Distance: 



Pulgada: inch. 



Pie: foot. Feet and inches are used sometimes to 

 measure lumber. 



Brazada: the distance between outstretched arms, 

 about 1.6 m. 



Vara: one-half a brazada. about 80 cm. 



Cuarta: span of 8 pulgadas. Four cuartas are figu- 

 red to a vara, though for the average man tliis 

 does not equal 80 cm. 



Jenie: distance between outstretched thumb and 

 index finger; this is figured as 7 pulgadas. 



Sesma: "six fingers," the distance measured with 

 the fingers parallel but the thumb tip bent out- 

 ward; this is figured as 4 pulgadas. 



Cuatro dedos: the distance across the four fingers 

 held parallel. 



All monetary references are in Mexican pesos, 

 for which the dollar sign is used. The exchange 

 rate during the entire period of the study was 4.85 

 pesos to 1.00 dollar. 



Many friends have contributed to the success 

 of the field work in Michoacan. I am particular- 

 ly grateful to Dr. Julian H. Steward, founder 

 and first director of the Institute of Social An- 

 thropology, whose unflagging energy has made 

 possible cooperative works of this type in Mex- 

 ico and other Latin American countries. One 

 of the most gratifying aspects of the work was 

 the help and encouragement offered by all Mex- 

 ican anthropologists and Government officials 

 with whom we had contact. 



Especially to be mentioned are Lie. Alfonso 

 Caso, Arq. Ignacio Marquina, Dr. Pablo Marti- 

 nez del Rio, and Dr. D. F. Rubin de la Borbolla. 

 Lie. Antonio Arriaga, director of the Museo Re- 

 gional in Morelia, visited us many times in the 

 field, and took it upon himself to obtain many 

 necessary permits and letters in the State capital. 

 I am grateful to Lie. Jose M* Mendoza Pardo, 

 Governor of the State of Michoacan, and Lie. 



Jose M* Moreno, Secretary of the State of Mi- 

 choacan, for the interest which they took in the 

 work and for letters and permits afforded us. 

 Prof. Pablo Silva Garcia, Director of Education 

 in Michoacan, gave us permission to utilize the 

 school building as expedition headquarters. Sr. 

 Salvador Silva A., Contador General de Glosa, 

 of the State of Michoacan, kindly gave us per- 

 mission to examine tax records. 



Dr. Starker Leopold, of the University of Cal- 

 ifornia, aided in the identification of ducks and 

 other birds. Mr. M. J. Lindner, chief of the Mex- 

 ican Fishery Mission of the Fish and Wildlife 

 Service, LI. S. Department of the Interior, sup- 

 plied information about the fish of Lake Patz- 

 cuaro. Dr. George Harrar, of the Rockefeller 

 Foundation, identified specimens of maize, 

 wheat, and beans. Mrs. Betty Leopold drew the 

 figures with which the text is illustrated. In 

 Washington Miss Ethelwyn Carter, secretary of 

 the Institute of Social Anthropology, has been 

 helpful on a thousand and one things from the 

 time the first field accounts were relayed to 

 Washington until the final manuscript was deliv- 

 ered to the printer. Mrs. Pauline Roth typed 

 most of the manuscript, and Mrs. Eloise Edelen 

 edited and proofread it. 



I am deeply grateful for the help of my wife 

 Mary, who accompanied me and worked with me 

 for several short periods in the field, and who 

 read and reread manuscript and proof. 



It is impossible to mention all those who help- 

 ed in Tzintzuntzan, but some people, always, 

 are closer friends and are remembered with par- 

 ticular affection. Rather than attempt to mention 

 them here by name, I will point out that they 

 will be readily recognized through frequency 

 of appearance in the text. 



The use of personal names posed a problem. 

 Some incidents and events are, for diplomatic 

 reasons, best not connected with the true char- 

 acters. On the other hand, an account is much 

 more living and human if real persons take 

 part, talk and act, rather than fictitious sets of 

 initials. Also, should a follow-up study of Tzin- 

 tzuntzan be made at a later date, it would be 

 far easier for those participating if they were 

 to have a nodding acquaintance with names 

 which they encounter during their own field 

 work, and in the census. Weighing the pros and 

 cons I finally decided to use real names when- 



