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INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 2 



the town. Continuing his remarks, the former 

 mayor also said that the priests seem not to 

 want people to understand the prayers and 

 rituals. He then went on to point out how 

 different conditions are in the United States, 

 where he had spent some years, and entered 

 into a discussion of the reasons for the 

 differences. 



RELIGIOUS FIESTAS 



The most important rituals and recreational 

 events at Cheran are the fiestas. They are not, 

 however, intimately connected today with the 

 Church. It might be fair to say that the saints' 

 days are the excuses for holding the major 

 fiestas. All the large fiestas are accompanied 

 by special Masses, but the extent of churcli 

 connection i.-: perhaps less than that involved 

 in the mayordomias. Essentially, the fiestas 

 are secular events with religious overtones. 

 All the major fiestas are conducted by the 

 municipal authorities, rather than by the 

 church. They are important commercial events 

 in the town, especially the fiesta of the patron 

 saint. They also provide a great deal of enter- 

 tainment. In general, they offer occasions for 

 making the major purchases of the year, show- 

 ing hospitality, overdrinking, and for the excite- 

 ment of large crowds and release from routine. 

 Only a few people find the religious aspects of 

 importance, even though they may attend the 

 Mass. 



In some towns the fiestas are in disrepute 

 and have been abolished. In Cheran there is 

 no opposition to the fiestas on religious grounds, 

 but primarily on grounds of drunkenness. As 

 one solid farmer remarked — 



The bad part of the fiestas is that people get so very 

 drunk; you have seen how the women become more 

 disorderly than any (I had not observed this as a 

 general thing, by any means). The worst is where the 

 fiesta is too large, as in Cheranastico, where three bands 

 are employed although the town is small. People there 

 have to pay 13 to 15 pesos per family. Also bad is 

 when cargueros have to pay the entire cost of the 

 fiestas. Here the fiesta costs only 1 or 2 pesos per 

 person (family). 



Such views are unusual in Cheran and, except 

 for efforts to introduce such novelties as basket- 

 ball games, the progressive administration 

 takes pride in perpetuating the conduct of the 

 fiestas on a grand scale. 



FIESTA OF THE PATRON SAINT 



The fiesta of the patron saint, San Francisco, 

 is held for 4 days, beginning the first Sunday 

 ■ after October 4. Usually after the Fiesta of 

 San Luis in Nahuatzen August 2.5, comisionados 

 are named by the mayor (on August 20 in 1940) 

 and are notified by formal letters delivered by 

 the police. Only persons out of town or those 

 providing very good reasons may refuse to 

 accept the post. The major duties are distri- 

 buted by barrio, and for each barrio a head 

 commissioner is named who selects a group of 

 from 5 to 15 assistants. The duties in 1940 

 were distributed as follows: Barrios II and III 

 each had to provide a band, barrio I provided 

 the fireworks or castiUo. and barrio IV provided 

 the wax {la cera). The barrio IV duty really 

 meant that it paid for the Mass and for the 

 special candles burned. These duties are 

 rotated so that in the course of 4 years, for 

 example, each barrio will have provided the 

 fireworks. The commissioners collect a sum 

 varying from 80 centavos to perhaps a little 

 more than a peso from each householder in the 

 barrio, which they may use for their expenses. 

 Anyone refusing to pay may be thrown in jail. 

 The costs are not entirely equal for the differ- 

 ent barrios, and, owing to the discrepancy jn 

 size of the different bannos, the individual con- 

 tributions demanded also vary. The commis- 

 sioners seem to have complete responsibility 

 for collecting and expending funds, but if 

 expenses are greater than the amount collected, 

 the commissioners must make up the sum out 

 of their own pockets. 



In addition to the commissioners named for 

 the above purposes, young men are commis- 

 sioned for each barrio who have to provide 

 poles and posts and reconstruct the bull ring 

 or toril. Finally, four commissioners are 

 named for the moros or dancers connected with 

 this fiesta. Each commissioner has to find a 

 dancer, provide him with his costume, and feed 

 and look after the dancer throughout the fiesta. 

 The duties of the commissioners will now be 

 discussed in more detail as they functioned in 

 1940. 



The commissioners for the barrios in 1940 

 were Mateo Ocampo, barrio I, fireworks; Flor- 

 entin Rafael, barrio II, music; Fernando 



