866 THE ZUNI INDIANS [eth. ann. 23 



batter to such depth that the stone which is placed over it will not 

 touch the batter. The arranging of the stones, depositing of the bat- 

 ter, and placing of the husks are repeated until all the slabs are 

 employed. A stone slab is laid over the \yhole, and a tire is made 

 upon it. The coals produce sufficient heat with that below to bake the 

 he'palokia, which remains all night in the sla]) oven. In the morning 

 it is ready to be eaten, and is regarded as a great delicacy. 



Another process is to fill a large pot with the mixture and place it 

 on a deep bed of coals in a permanent excavation made for the pur- 

 pose outside the house. A small fire is built around the pot; the 

 batter is stirred until it begins to boil; a slab is then laid over the 

 excavation and a tire is built upon it. This process, which also requires 

 the pot to remain in place overnight, has never been in such favor as 

 baking in the house, because when the food is baked out of doors it 

 is believed to be more or less exposed to the witches, who are ever 

 ready to destroy people, not only by directly "shooting" bad medicine 

 into their bodies but by the indirect method of affecting the food when 

 it can be reached. 



A more modern way of baking wheat he'palokia is to till an iron pot 

 with the mixture, deposit it in the oven used for light bread, the oven 

 having been properly heated, and let it stand overnight. This method 

 has grown in favor during the past few years. 



Though wheat he'palokia is considered a delicacy, that made of corn 

 is dear to the Zuni palate. Usualh^ j^ellow or black corn is selected. 

 This is ground through the tirst and second mills, and the meal is sifted 

 through a tine sieve. About a cupful of the meal is chewed, several 

 girls usually performing this part of the bread making. Each mouth- 

 ful is chewed several minutes and then ejected into a small bowl. 

 A quantit}" of the unchewed meal is placed in a large bowl, boiling 

 water is added, and the mixture is stirred in the manner before 

 described; the chewed meal is afterward added, and the whole is well 

 stirred. The batter is baked in the manner observed with the wheat 

 he'palokia in slab ovens. 



He'ptdokia is sometimes made into pats, wrapped in corn husks, 

 and baked in the outdoor oven, which is heated as for light bread. A 

 comparatively short time is required to cook the bread in this form, 

 and it is regarded as a mere makeshift. 



Scraps which are left of both the wheat and corn he'palokia are 

 spread on cloths and dried in the sun, or, should it be raining, the 

 cloth is spread by the tire. When thoroughly dried thev are ground 

 in the tinest mill and the meal is mixed with cold water and drunk. 

 The meal of the corn he'palokia is also eaten dry as one eats bonbons. 

 The older men may be seen with a small bowl of the dr}^ meal beside 

 them taking a pinch every now and then while thej" work on their 

 beads or moccasins. 



