374 THE ZUNI INDIANS [eth. ann. 23 



like manner the people are unable to understand many of the rock 

 carvings which cover the mesa walls in New Mexico and Arizona. 



The black clay used in the manufacture of pottery is obtained on 

 Corn mountain. It is also collected from mesas near the farming dis- 

 tricts of Ojo Caliente and Pescado as occasion may require. The same 

 clav is found in many localities, but so strictly do the Zufiis adhere 

 to custom that they could not be induced to use clay for such purposes 

 from an}' other than the localities here mentioned. The}' declare that 

 the clay will never become exhausted, as Mother Earth will supply 

 them as long as they remain pure of heart. 



On one occasion Mr Stevenson and the writer accompanied We'wha 

 to Corn Mountain to obtain clay.'^' On passing a stone heap she 

 picked up a small stone in her left hand, and spitting upon it, carried 

 the hand around her head and threw the stone over one shoulder 

 upon the stone heap in order that her strength might not go from her 

 when carrying the heavy load down the mesa. She then visited the 

 shi'ine at the base of the mother rock and tearing off a bit of her 

 blanket deposited it in one of the tiny pits in the rock as an offering 

 to the mother rock (see plate xiia). When she drew near to the clay 

 bed she indicated to Mr Stevenson that he must remain behind, as men 

 never approached the spot. Proceeding a short distance the party 

 reached a point where We'wha requested the writer to remain per- 

 fectly quiet and not talk, saying: "Should we talk, my pottery would 

 crack in the baking, and unless I pray constantly the clay will not 

 appear to me.'' She applied the hoe vigorously to the hard soil, all 

 the while murmuring prayers to Mother Earth. Nine-tenths of the 

 clay was rejected, every lump being tested between the lingers as to 

 its texture. After gathering about 150 pounds in a blanket, which 

 she carried on her back, with the ends of the blanket tied around her 

 forehead, We'wha descended the steep mesa, apparently unconscious 

 of the weight. 



The only implements used in making pottery are the bottom of a dis- 

 carded water vase and a sort of trowel made of a gourd or a suitable 

 fragment of pottery. No wheel is used, nor is any kind of lathe or 

 revolving support known to these people. The clay is ground to a pow- 

 der and mixed with a small quantity of pulverized pottery, fragments 

 of the latter being carefully hoarded for this purpose. The powder thus 

 compounded is mixed with water enough to make a pasty mass, which is 

 kneaded like dough. The more care taken in pulverizing the material 

 and the more time spent in working it the finer becomes the paste. 

 When the mass reaches such a state of consistency that the fingers can 

 no longer detect the presence of gritty particles it is still more deli- 

 cately tested with the tongue, and when found to be satisfactory it is 



o The men who collect clay are the few who adopt woman's dress and do woman's work, and these 

 are always referred to as women. 



