A16 THE MOUNTAIN CHANT 
73. On the afternoon of the eleventh day, when they had reassembled 
according to their promises, the Navajo chief arose and addressed them. 
He invited the chiefs of the other tribes to come forward and complete 
the arrangements for the race. So the headmen all came together at 
the place where the Navajo was speaking, and, after some consultation, 
they agreed that the race should be around the peak of Tsotsil, but not 
around the entire range of mountains. The Navajo separated them- 
selves into one party and the alien tribes into another, the two parties 
standing at a little distance from one another. The aliens were given 
the first choice, and-they chose Indsiskai; therefore Tla¢es¢ini fell to the 
Navajo. Then the betting began. The stakes consisted of strings of 
coral, turquoise, and shell beads, of vessels of shells as large as the 
earthen basins of the Zuni, of beautifully tanned buckskins, of dresses 
embroidered with colored porcupine quills, and of suits of armor made 
of several layers of buckskin. The warriors in those days wore such 
armor, but they wear it no longer. The beads and shells were laid in 
one pile; the buckskins, the embroidered dresses, and the armor in 
another; and the piles were of vast size. 
74. The homes of these young meu were at Kag-saka¢ tsé“eqa (Lone 
Juniper Standing Between Clifis), now Cobero Canon. There is seen 
to day a rock shaped like a Navajo hogan. It stands near the wagon 
road and not far from the town of the Mexicans (Cobero). This rock 
was once the hut where Tla¢escini dwelt. Not far from it is another 
rock of similar appearanee, which once was the home of Indsiskai. For 
this reason the runners were started at the Lone Juniper. They ran 
towards the west and five of the fleetest runners among the assembled 
Indians set out at the same time to see how long they could keep up 
with them. By the time these five men had reached the spur of the 
mountain opposite Qosago (Hot Spring, Ojo de los Gallinos, San Ra- 
fael), the two champions were out of sight. Then the five turned back; 
but before they could return to the Lone Juniper the runners had got 
in and the race was decided. Tla¢escini had won by about twice the 
length of his own body, and all the wagered wealth of the other nations 
passed into the hands of the Navajo. 
75. When all was done the strangers were dissatisfied; they mourned 
over their losses and talked about the whole affair among themselves 
for a long time. Finally they decided to give the Navajo another 
challenge if the latter would agree to a longer racecourse, which should 
include all the foothills of the San Mateo range. The Navaje accepted 
the challenge and agreed to have the race at the end of another twelve 
days. Early on the eleventh day the strangers began to assemble 
from all quarters; they continued to arrive all day, and when night 
tell they were all in. Then the headmen addressed them, explaining 
all the conditions of the challenge and describing carefully the race- 
course decided on. The betting did not run as high this time as before. 
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