CHERAN: a sierra TARASCAN village — BEALS 



191 



both the bride and groom organize a group to 

 carry the atole. A large olla is filled with atole. 

 The olla is decorated with green branches, 

 flowei's, and paper streamers. A carrying 

 basket full of bread and bottles of aguardiente 

 is also carried. The atole can be of whatever 

 type is usual at the season of the year, while 

 the bread must be of the type known as pan 

 grueso, "thick bread." Various members of 

 the group take turns carrying the bread and 

 atole. At each corner the person carrying the 

 bread or atole dances, while his companions 

 circle about him. 



A group of relatives by marriage of the 

 groom known as the "cats" now attempt to take 

 away the olla of atole. They carry bundles 

 of nettles and similar plants and strike the 

 bearers of the atole until they succeed in get- 

 ting it away. They carry it to a store and 

 "sell" it for aguardiente or cigarettes. 



Another group, known as the sisters, 

 hermanas, composed of consanguineal relatives 

 of the groom, attempt to defend the olla of 

 atole. When it is finally stolen, they must 

 "buy" it back from the storekeeper for the 

 value of the goods given to the "cats." This is 

 repeated several times before the atole is finally 

 brought to the house of the godparents about 

 sundown. 



The godparents of the wedding meantime 

 have strung a rope across the street and receive 

 the group with the atole with lighted splinters 

 of pitch pine to symbolize their late arrival. 

 For a time the party with the atole are not 

 allowed to pass the rope, but eventually they 

 climb over or under it and get into the house. 



The godparents of baptism now give the god- 

 parents of the marriage charape, mescal, and 

 cigarettes. In return they receive presents of 

 clothing and mescal. In the Tarascan villages 

 of La Canada it is said the exchange of cloth- 

 ing is much more extensive. A supper is 

 served of tamales, hunnelos (a sort of fried 

 bread dough dipped in sugar) , and charape, and 

 there is more dancing. Later the bride is 

 carried to the house of the parents or relatives 

 of the groom. The relatives of the bride are 

 present. Female relatives of the bride toast 

 chiles on a comal, and the groom has to enter 

 the smoke to prove that he is a man. The 

 bride is now given to the groom. 



596569 — 46 tl 



The following day there is a ritual meal in 

 the house of the bride to which come the bride's 

 relatives and many friends. The women of 

 Chilchota often dress in traditional Tarascan 

 costume for this meal, wearing the rollo or 

 pleated skirt. They also wear straw hats much 

 decorated with flowers and paper streamers. 

 Men dress in calzones or trousers of Indian 

 style. If they have money, a band is hired and 

 the group dances at every corner. The meal 

 served consists of boiled cabbage (without 

 meat or meat broth) and beef tripe cooked with 

 herbs and chile. 



Soon after the wedding, the groom takes the 

 bride's parents one or two large baskets of 

 bread, chocolate, sugar, and from $10 to $100 

 (depending on his economic status) to show 

 his thanks. There is some sort of ceremony 

 in the house of the bride's parents. 



In San Juan Parangaricutiro, also primarily 

 a Mestizo town, the male and female relatives 

 of the bride dance in the streets on the day of 

 the wedding. The group has a band and dances 

 at each street intersection in the town, the men 

 in one file, and the women in another. The 

 men make a circuit of the wom.en's file and 

 return to their places. The women do the 

 same and then the group moves to another 

 corner. The persons in the files are arranged 

 according to their stature. A sister of the bride 

 accompanies the group, and represents her. 

 The night after the wedding the relatives of 

 the groom do the same, lighting their way with 

 pitch pine torches. 



A dozen or more families in Cheran live in 

 "free union," that is, a couple lives together 

 without marriage. In most cases one or both 

 parties to the arrangement have been married 

 previously and divorced according to Cheran 

 standards but not according to law. The 

 majority of such free unions are said to result 

 in successful households, and children of such 

 unions suffer no stigma. Children of free 

 unions inherit from their parents in the same 

 fashion as children of legal or church mar- 

 riages. This type of union is said to be fairly 

 recent, and at first persons living in this fashion 

 were not permitted by the priest to hold any 

 church office or to act as godparents. Children 

 of free unions were also refused baptism. In 



