STEVENSON] irHUHUKWE 525 



take the floor, and thereupon a member of the choir rushes in the 

 wildest manner to the center of the room, dancing- with the women 

 for a while, then performing the most curious and weird antics before 

 the altar, while he invokes the Beast Gods. After a time he fairly 

 pulls the a'kwamosi from his seat, barel}' giving him time to remove 

 his cotton clothing, and loads him around in the most curious maimer. 

 The old a'kwamosi has not the grace and symmetry of the younger 

 man, and he appears very awkward. The leader presently throws 

 himself before the altar and, slipping his left hand into one of the 

 bear's feet without removing the two eagle plumes it holds, dashes 

 about wildly. He circulates among the choir, growling and draw- 

 ing the bear's claws over the naked backs of the men, and frightening 

 the dancing women by threatening to do the same with them. The 

 women dance about forty-five minutes and leave the floor, but the man 

 continues his violent movements for an hour. In the meantime a 

 juggler appeai-s before the altar. He moves his eagle plumes over 

 the human image with queer incantations until it is supposed to 

 catch the tips of a plume with each hand, when the juggler elevates 

 it, apparently by having the image hold the tips of the plumes. 

 The illusion is perfect. A woman now takes a pinch of ashes from 

 the fireplace, and after sprinkling the altar she deposits some in the 

 palm of the right hand of all present. When the ashes have been 

 distributed, the assemblage groups before the altar, the men first and 

 afterward the women. Each person passes the ashes from right to 

 left three times around the head and throws them upon the altar. 

 After all return to their seats two young men representing the 

 Chapparral cock skip about gracefully for a moment or two and, 

 throwing their bodies almost prostrate upon the floor, take ashes from 

 the fireplace with their plumes and dance gracefully, one to the right 

 and one to the left of the altar, throwing the ashes upon it by 

 striking the left plume with the right, as heretofore described. Again 

 they lift ashes from the fireplace and sprinkle all present with it. 

 Returning to the fireplace for more ashes, they throw them to the six 

 regions, beginning at the North. The sprinkling to the regions is 

 repeated four times. Every time the ashes are thrown they cry, 



""Uh hu.'' The two return to the choir, and the a'kwamosi 



administers the medicine water, dipping it from the bowl with a shell, 

 to all present, after which he repeats a long litany. At the end of 

 each supplication the people join in the prayer. At the close of the 

 litany the a'kwamosi is joined by all in a long prayer to the Beast 

 Gods. The pe'kwin sits throughout the ceremonial with bowed head, 

 except when the a'kwamosi lights a cigarette and, taking one whitt*, 

 passes it to his deput}' to finish. The dance closes at daylight and the 

 novices receive their gifts in the manner heretofore described. 



After the ceremony with the novices, and as the first rays of sunlight 



