STEVENSON] SECOND NIGHT 215 



The picture presented in the chamber of the Ant fraternit}', in 

 which the men and women are preparing for their dance, and in two 

 other rooms, where parties are being decorated for the dance, is not 

 unlike the greenroom of a theater. Paints, robes, and ornaments are 

 scattered about the rooms. The men of the Ant fraternity are paint- 

 ing their bodies in white to represent animals, snakes, and the heavens. 

 The parts which they can not reach, such as their backs and, shoulders, 

 are painted by one another. The women paint their lower legs and 

 arms in white. All have their hair done up in their usual stj^le and 

 wear yucca wreaths tied in rosettes at the side of the head and a flufly 

 eagle plume attached to the forelock. The portion of the wreath 

 passing over the forehead of the women is covered by the long bang. 

 Men place the wreaths and feathers on the women's heads. Both 

 sexes wear elaborate necklaces, and the women have strings of tur- 

 quoise in their ears. 



When all are read}^, two parallel lines are formed lengthwise of the 

 room, which extends north and south. The choir is grouped on the 

 east side and sings to the accompaniment of the rattle and drum. As 

 soon as the dancers are on the floor they form into an ellipse, a woman 

 to the left of each man, and dance from left to right. The men sing 

 but the women are silent. After dancing thirty minutes the dancers 

 pass in file out of the house to the Chu'pawa ki'wi*sine. After enter- 

 ing they form in an ellipse and pra}^ aloud, and, dancing around for a 

 time in the ellipse, they form into two lines and dance again. 



During the dancing a noise is heard on the roof, and on investiga- 

 tion there are found a number of men and one 5-year-old child, repre- 

 senting Navahos. All but the child carry rattles, and they are richly 

 di'essed, the best figure being the tiny boj', who personates a Navaho 

 girl. Now and then they call through the hatchway to the dancers 

 below, who reply; and in a short time they leave for the roof of the 

 Mu'he'wa ki'wi^sine. 



A number of young women with their heads covered with blankets, 

 as on the previous evening, are in the Chu'pawa ki'wi*sine. Several 

 of these are compelled to la}' aside their wraps and dance back and 

 forth between the lines of the Ant fraternity. Three youths, appear- 

 ing as decrepit old men, personating the Zufii when they lived on 

 To'wa yal'lanne (Corn Mountain), hobble around with the aid of stafl's. 

 Their clothing is ragged and their long, shaggy hair is unkempt. One 

 carries a stone ax, and another has a pair of large tin tweezers hanging 

 from his neck, and both carry bows and arrows. 



Crowds that pour into the ki'wi^sine indicate the approach of the 

 Navaho dancers, who are evidently the stars of the evening. Com- 

 ing down the ladder one by one, they form into double file and 

 repeat the dance of the previous evening, the child appearing as 

 interested as the elders. At the conclusion of the dance and song — the 



