empire's children: the people of TZINTZUNTZAN FOSTER 



237 



know the rudiments of Christian doctrine and 

 the catechism. It is the duty of the baptismal 

 godparents to make sure the parents are instruct- 

 ing them, and to take charge if they should fail. 

 In practice, indoctrination once a week in the 

 convent, taught by the priest's nieces, suffices to 

 teach what is necessary. The baptismal god- 

 parents take the children for their first confes- 

 sion, and purchase a candle and orange-blossom 

 crown to be worn at their first communion the 

 following day, after which the child is given 

 bread and chocolate and then delivered to its 

 home. 



An unconscious, but very important part of 

 child education is the mastering of the series 

 of expressive gestures without which speech 

 would be almost impossible. These gestures are 

 in general use in most parts of Mexico, cities as 

 well as villages, and appear to have no deriva- 

 tional relationship with things Indian. 



Height. — One indicates by the position of the hand 

 whether the object referred to is human, animal, or 

 inanimate. The hand on edge (fig. 33, a) is used 

 for nonhuman animate objects, the tip of the right- 

 hand index finger u])right (fig. 33, 6) for humans, 

 and the hand flat (fig. 33. c) for inanimate objects. 



Cornel — The hand is held in much the same posi- 

 tion as for waving good-by (American style) and 

 the fingers are wiggled toward the palm. There is 

 also a slight amount of wrist motion (fig. 33, d) . 



Go! — The right hand is swept down and away 

 from the chest, palm out (fig. 33. e) . 



Good-by. — The hand and forearm are held at the 

 level of the head, palm toward the face. Fingers are 

 wiggled toward the palm, or the wrist is slightly re- 

 volved (fig. 33, /). 



Come on, let's go! — The hand is held in about the 

 same position as to say good-by, palm inward. Then 

 it is swept toward the chest, rising over the shoulder 

 (fig. 33. g). 



No! — The hand is held in the same position as 

 used to indicate height of a human, and the finger 

 is moved back and forth in a slightly menacing 

 fashion (fig. 33, h) . 



Be with you in a second! — This most useful of all 

 gestures is used by a person who is occupied to tell 

 another person or a new arrival that he will speak 

 to or attend to him just as soon as he has finished 

 whatever he is doing. The thumb and index finger 

 are held a couple of centimeters apart and shaken 

 slightly (fig. 33, i). 



To eat. — The hand is held somewhat in the good- 

 by position, but with the fingers bunched together, 

 and the hand moved back and forth toward the mouth 

 (fig. 33./). _ 



To drink liquor or to indicate a drunk.— The little 



finger is out straight, the thumb toward the mouth, 

 the other fingers bent toward the palm. The wrist 

 is moved to make a series of short, quick motions 

 imitating the downing of a "shot" of hard liquor 



(fig. 33, k). 



ACTIVITIES OF OLDER CHILDREN 



Older children play with and amuse younger 

 children a great deal, and take their duties so 

 philosophically that they do not appear to feel 

 abused. It is no disgrace for a 9-year-old of 

 either sex to have to mind a younger sibling, 

 and often young friends of the nurse join in the 

 fun. A 5-year-old girl is seen bathing her 2-year- 

 old brother. He squats in a tray of warm water 

 while she mercilessly soaps him from head to 

 foot. Presently he can stand no more, lets out 

 a cry of anguish, and the mother gently pushes 

 the girl to one side and washes the soap from 

 his eyes. Five-year-old Miguel plays a great 

 deal with 2-year-old Lupe, his sister, in the pa- 

 tio of the house. He taps her lightly on the 

 head with a stick, she sits down looking start- 

 led, then decides to laugh. Later, bitten by Lu- 

 pe, he gives her a swat and tells his mother he 

 is going to live some place else where he won't 

 have to be bitten. An 8-year-old girl amuses 

 two younger siblings, seating them on a ladder 

 in the patio. "Please come this way, please sit 

 down, all aboard." Her courtesy as conductor 

 of the train toward the passengers is the only 

 thing out of keeping. Up until the age of about 

 10 both sexes play together with relatively little 

 fighting in spite of age differences. Twelve- 

 year-old Celia is apparently perfectly happy in 

 the company of 5-year-old Consuelo and 7-year- 

 old Adolfo, but Gaudencio, age 11, is already 

 very jealous of his possessions, which he forbids 

 to his younger sisters. Particularly attractive to 

 them is his new stereoscope which they take 

 with their mother's tacit approval when he is 

 gone. Gaudencio gives vent to righteous indig- 

 nation upon returning home, grabs the box, and 

 a fight ensues. The girls appeal to their parents, 

 who take no sides and tell them to go away and 

 settle it themselves. Presently the scuffling ceases 

 and the affair is over. Teasing of girls by older 

 brothers is a common pattern. 



The children of Tzintzuntzan, in common with 

 those of other towns in central Mexico, enjoy a 

 good many more toys than one normally finds 

 in truly primitive communities. Fiestas and 



