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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY PUBLICATION NO. 6 



though they are said to have been charged with 

 the responsibility of distributing palm fronds 

 on Palm Sunday. Natividad remembers that in 

 her childhood, about 1910-15, the following 

 barrios still functioned for ceremonial purposes: 

 San Pedro, San Pablo, San Bartolo, San Juan, 

 Santa Ana, San Miguel, and La Magdalena. The 

 small image of San Miguel with the sword, now 

 in La Soledad, belonged to the barrio of this 

 name. 



There were six cargueros mandones, two each 

 from the barrios of San Bartolo, San Pablo, and 

 La Magdalena. Two of them offered a pozole 

 on Saturday of the carnival, two on the Saturday 

 before Easter, and two on the Day of the Cross, 

 May 3. On Tuesday of the carnival they brought 

 five or six dozen chickens, which were hung 

 from the beams of their houses, and a peregri- 

 nation was organized to begin in the barrio of 

 San Bartolo and pass through all other barrios. 

 Music was provided and the oldest and most 

 esteemed men of the town were invited. Each 

 danced under the suspended chickens and final- 

 ly touched one which he received as a prize. 

 These cargueros paid for the pyrotechnic tower 

 and provided pozole, atole, and brandy for the 

 fiesta of San Francisco on October 4. In addi- 

 tion, they took an active part in the naming of 

 the cargueros of the kengueria complex. 



There were three cargueros of Our Lady of 

 the Rosary, the mayordomo, captain (capitdn), 

 and attorney (fiscal). Like the barrio captains, 

 they took part in the kenikua each Saturday 

 morning. For Corpus Christi Day the captain 

 selected a girl between 7 and 10 years of age 

 who, wearing a crown of blossoms, danced with 

 two musicians, one with a violin, the other with 

 a guitar, and both with a small bell tied to their 

 waists. These cargueros ceased to function about 

 the time of the Revolution of 1910. 



The three cargueros of the cross were the cap- 

 tain {capitdn), ensign (alferez), and sergeant 

 (sargento). They helped the cargueros of Our 

 Lady of the Rosary with the fiesta of Corpus 

 Christi. The captain provided a pozole on the 

 first day, the ensign on the second, and the 

 sergeant on the third. They also provided music 

 for the fiesta and played practical jokes, grab- 

 bing hats and scrapes of all passers-by and, by 

 means of pantomime and burlesque, trying to 

 embarrass all the women. During Lent each 



carguero selected a Friday and offered a po- 

 zole. Unlike the other cargueros of the kengueria 

 complex, these were appointed during the fiesta 

 in honor of the Virgin of Guadalupe. 



In a general way the organization of the ken- 

 gueria with its associated cargueros, as contrast- 

 ed to outside cargueros, corresponds to the Che- 

 ran cabildo described by Reals (1946, pp. 131- 

 136). Nevertheless, the organizations of the two 

 groups are quite different in many respects, so 

 that it is perhaps more proper to suggest that 

 both may have developed from a common source 

 along distinct lines. One of the most important 

 distinctions is that in Cheran each mayordomia 

 is represented by one carguero only, while in 

 Tzintzuntzan there are at least three, and often 

 more. 



THE RELIGIOUS ASSOCIATIONS 



Membership in the various associations dif- 

 fers from being a carguero, in that one belongs 

 for a long period of time, usually life, and in 

 that the monetary aspects are secondary in im- 

 portance. Likewise, most of these orders require 

 relatively little time as compared to the heavy 

 obligations of the cargueros. Also, the prestige 

 angle is of little or no importance. I believe 

 that all of the orders of Tzintzuntzan extant in 

 1945 are given. No list is permanent, however, 

 since some associations tend to die out when the 

 members lose interest and others spring up to 

 take their place. Apparently the arrival of a 

 new priest, with special orders dear to his heart, 

 is the signal for a shifting in the organization 

 which has prevailed under the preceding priest. 



The Third Order of San Francisco 

 (La Tercera Orden de San Francisco) 



The purpose of the Third Order of San Fran- 

 cisco is to allow men and women who do not 

 have time or inclination to become either friars 

 or nuns to enter actively into the religious life 

 of the Franciscan Order. According to the local 

 church archives the Third Order was founded in 

 Tzintzuntzan by t'ray Juan de Guevara, presum- 

 ably in the early days of Franciscan influence, 

 though the date is not given. The weathered 

 adobe facade of the Church of the Third Order 

 is all that remains of its former importance. 

 Apparently when the Franciscans ceased to 



