460 THE ZUNI INDIANS [eth. ann. 23 



bones are laid upon it, and four musicians from Chu'pawa ki'wi*sine 

 take seats west of this box. At this time the crowd makes room for 

 the members of the 'Hle'wekwe fraternity, who enter, led b}' a woman 

 carrying- in her left hand a pottery basket of sacred meal and her mi'li 

 (insignia of the order of O'naya'nakia), which she possesses through 

 membership in another fraternit}^, and sprinkling meal with her right 

 hand. 8he wears ordinary dress, with a white cotton blanket l)ordered 

 in red and blue. 



The *Hlem'mosona, who follows the woman leader, is dressed in a 

 white cotton shirt, white embroidered kilt held on with an embroidered 

 sash and red belt, and dance moccasins. A large white iiuffy eagle 

 pkime and a wing feather of the 'hlai'aluko are tied to the left side of 

 the head, and several short yellow parrot plumes are attached to the 

 forelock; the hair is flowing, and has been plaited to make it wavy. 

 The sword supposed to have been used b}^ the original 'Hlem'mosona is 

 in his left hand and one with a feathered handle is in his right. He 

 precedes the other officers, who are followed by the fraternity at 

 large, each man precedhig those for whom he acts as fraternity father. 

 The bodies of the men are nude, except for the l)lack woven kilt. 

 Each wears his bow wristlet and elaborate necklaces. Hanks of dark- 

 blue yarn, with sleigh bells attached, are tied around the legs below 

 the knees, the 3'arn hanging in tassels at the side. Gourd rattles are 

 carried in the right hand and swords in the left, a number of the men 

 having two swords, two three, and one four. Plate cix shows sword 

 of the 'Hle'wekwe. The swords, which are of juniper (species unde- 

 termined), are slightly curved, rounded at the end and are as long as 

 from the tip of the middle linger to the elbow, this being the method 

 of making the measurements. The aged warrior has a serpentiform 

 sword, tipped with an arrow point 2 inches long and 1 inch wide. 

 Though this sword is frequently swallowed to the handle, it is run 

 very cautiously down the throat. 



The women and the girls wear the usual dress, with the limbs and 

 feet bare, and are adorned with man}^ necklaces of silver, coral, and 

 ko'hakwa (white shell beads). They carry two eagle-wing feathers in 

 the right hand and the sword in the left; one woman has two swords. 

 They hoot and make animal-like sounds as they enter the room, and as 

 they proceed they shake their rattles and sing for a moment or two 

 before the performers on the notched sticks and deer-leg bones begin 

 their music. The party moves in single tile with slow, even step, keep- 

 ing perfect time with the music of the notched sticks. First one foot is 

 raised squarely from the ground, then the other, the men raising their 

 feet much higher than the women. The women hold their arms out 

 and up, and the left arms of the men are held in the same way. They 

 pass around the boxes and the musicians by the north side, and when 

 the 'Hlem'mosona reaches the south side of the boxes he steps from the 

 line and, waving his sword before and over the boxes, turns, facing 



