502 THE ZUNl INDIANS [eth. ann. 23 



After this ceremony with the novices the dancing is resumed and 

 the theurg-ists continue their practicing upon the sick. Three young 

 and charmingly graceful boys, wearing white cotton breechcloths, 

 their bodies painted white, now appear for the first time among the 

 dancers, a number of whom are women. The adult novice is led upon 

 the floor to receive her first lesson in healing. She is very awkward 

 as she is dragged about by her fraternity father, who, after touching 

 his plume to some portion of the body of an invalid, has the pupil suck 

 the spot. She afterward pretends to deposit something from her mouth 

 into her fraternity father's right hand, and he dashes, with her arm 

 through his, to the bowl and, holding his hand close to it, appears to 

 drop in some object. When novices receive their first instruction no 

 objects are seen or sounds heard in making the deposit in the bowl. 

 The wee one is carried on the back of her fraternity father, who throws 

 himself almost prostrate upon the floor, jumps about in a squatting 

 ])Osition, and performs curious feats when he is not extracting disease. 

 The child takes no part in the healing, as one must have reached the 

 age of discretion before attaining to the degree of practicing medicine. 

 After some fifteen minutes the fraternity children are returned to 

 their places, and they at once join in the dance, the younger one dan- 

 cing with all the enthusiasm of her elders. One of the theurgists 

 carries on his back a boy about eight years of age, who has been 

 previously initiated into the order of Mystery medicine, but is not yet 

 old enough to be active in his order. This man's actions are so violent 

 that it is remarkable the child retains his position. 



The Great Mother collects ashes from the fireplace and heaps them 

 before the altar, and the ash-sprinklers who appeared early in the 

 evening come again from the choir. They repeat the sprinkling of 

 the ashes, and they dance in front of the altar longer and more vio- 

 lently than before. After the ashes are sprinkled, the a'kwamosi 

 administers medicine water from the bowl with a shell to the men and 

 women, and all sprinkle the altar with meal. 



The novices now take seats on boxes in line facing east. A bowd of 

 yucca suds is brought and the fraternity parent lifts suds with his 

 two eagle-wing plumes and anoints the head of the novice. After- 

 ward each member of the order dips suds with his eagle-wing plumes 

 and deposits them on the head of each novice, and then the head 

 is washed by the wife or sister of the fraternity parent, who gives 

 prayer plumes and four ears of corn to the novice, and then draws his 

 mi'li by the novice's lips, head, and shoulders. Each member of the 

 order does likewise with his mi'li, and the ceremony of initiation into 

 the order of 0'na3'a'nakia is closed. Variations of a minor character 

 occuri-ed in the Mj-sterv medicine order in 1884. 



Soon after the order assembles, one of the theurgists, who is also 

 a member of the Fire division, stands before the altar and dips the 

 quill ends of his eagle plumes into the medicine water and presses 



