﻿Vol. 
  2] 
  HIGHLAND 
  TRIBES, 
  S. 
  COLOMBIA 
  — 
  HERNANDEZ 
  DE 
  ALBA 
  945 
  

  

  civilized 
  tradesman, 
  the 
  Indian 
  turns 
  to 
  drinking 
  guarapo 
  or 
  chicha 
  

   and 
  becomes 
  drunk. 
  Often 
  a 
  heated 
  discussion, 
  always 
  spoken 
  in 
  

   Spanish 
  and 
  not 
  in 
  Pdez, 
  leads 
  to 
  insults 
  and 
  perhaps 
  to 
  blows 
  and 
  in- 
  

   juries. 
  A 
  man's 
  wife 
  usually 
  maneuvers 
  him 
  from 
  the 
  village 
  and, 
  if 
  

   he 
  falls 
  asleep 
  on 
  the 
  road, 
  she 
  sits 
  by 
  him 
  warding 
  off 
  dangers. 
  

  

  SOCIAL 
  AND 
  POLITICAL 
  ORGANIZATION 
  

  

  Political 
  structure. 
  — 
  The 
  Moguex, 
  Pdez, 
  Guanaca, 
  Timand, 
  and 
  

   Yalcon, 
  despite 
  their 
  great 
  similarity 
  in 
  language 
  and 
  culture, 
  formed 
  

   separate 
  groups 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  Conquest. 
  Each 
  was 
  divided 
  into 
  

   several 
  communities 
  (parcialidades), 
  of 
  which 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  Pdez 
  were 
  

   the 
  most 
  numerous. 
  The 
  Guanaca 
  were 
  split 
  between 
  two 
  principal 
  

   caciques, 
  one 
  of 
  whom, 
  Anabeima, 
  joined 
  the 
  Spaniards 
  against 
  the 
  

   Pdez 
  of 
  Avirama. 
  The 
  other 
  cacique 
  was 
  Esmisa, 
  Anabeima's 
  

   brother-in-law. 
  Each 
  Pdez 
  community 
  had 
  its 
  own 
  chief, 
  but 
  the 
  

   communities 
  were 
  grouped 
  into 
  three 
  great 
  divisions. 
  One 
  consisted 
  

   of 
  the 
  Pdez, 
  Tdlaga, 
  Simurga, 
  and 
  Taravira, 
  on 
  the 
  shores 
  of 
  the 
  Paez 
  

   River. 
  The 
  chiefs 
  of 
  three 
  of 
  these 
  groups 
  were 
  brothers 
  ; 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  

   fourth 
  was 
  their 
  sister, 
  whose 
  name 
  was 
  Taravira. 
  Another 
  group 
  

   was 
  headed 
  by 
  Suin, 
  and 
  his 
  son, 
  Esmisa. 
  In 
  the 
  third 
  group, 
  Avi- 
  

   rama 
  was 
  joined 
  by 
  other 
  neighboring 
  chiefs 
  of 
  less 
  importance. 
  

  

  Each 
  community 
  (cacicado) 
  consisted 
  of 
  several 
  polygynous 
  families 
  

   under 
  a 
  male 
  chief 
  (pi. 
  185, 
  top, 
  left). 
  Each 
  family 
  had 
  its 
  own 
  house, 
  

   located 
  some 
  distance 
  from 
  its 
  neighbor's. 
  All 
  the 
  members 
  of 
  a 
  com- 
  

   munity 
  gathered 
  for 
  general 
  work, 
  and 
  all 
  or 
  several 
  of 
  the 
  communities 
  

   united 
  for 
  war, 
  either 
  against 
  the 
  Pijao, 
  their 
  feared 
  neighbors, 
  or 
  

   against 
  the 
  Spaniards. 
  

  

  The 
  place 
  of 
  a 
  cacique's 
  residence 
  was 
  a 
  sort 
  of 
  focal 
  point 
  and 
  

   meeting 
  place, 
  and 
  today 
  most 
  of 
  such 
  places 
  are 
  Indian 
  villages 
  

   with 
  the 
  same 
  names, 
  such 
  as 
  Suin, 
  Talaga, 
  Avirama, 
  Togoima 
  (for- 
  

   merly 
  Toboima), 
  etc. 
  The 
  present 
  Pdez 
  Indian 
  reservation 
  of 
  Tier- 
  

   radentro 
  is 
  divided 
  politically 
  into 
  two 
  municipios 
  — 
  Paez 
  or 
  Belal- 
  

   cazar 
  and 
  Inza 
  — 
  with 
  22 
  communities, 
  each 
  governed 
  by 
  its 
  own 
  

   councils 
  (cabildos, 
  of 
  Colonial 
  origin) 
  and 
  by 
  the 
  municipal 
  authori- 
  

   ties. 
  The 
  cabildo 
  is 
  elected 
  annually. 
  The 
  Indians, 
  however, 
  are 
  

   jealous 
  defenders 
  of 
  their 
  traditions, 
  and 
  insist 
  on 
  a 
  captain 
  and 
  sin- 
  

   dico, 
  each 
  with 
  life 
  tenure, 
  to 
  act 
  as 
  their 
  own 
  leaders 
  and 
  as 
  true 
  

   representatives 
  of 
  the 
  cacique. 
  Their 
  duties 
  are 
  moral 
  and 
  fiscal 
  

   and 
  carry 
  a 
  certain 
  divine 
  authority, 
  as 
  they 
  are 
  inaugurated 
  in 
  the 
  

   local 
  church. 
  The 
  cabildo, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  has 
  only 
  administra- 
  

   tive 
  and 
  police 
  powers; 
  it 
  divides 
  the 
  land, 
  orders 
  work 
  to 
  be 
  done, 
  

   and 
  executes 
  the 
  municipal 
  orders. 
  The 
  members 
  of 
  a 
  cabildo 
  hold 
  

   office 
  for 
  1 
  year 
  and 
  receive 
  no 
  remuneration. 
  They 
  are 
  elected 
  on 
  

   the 
  first 
  of 
  December 
  by 
  all 
  the 
  male 
  adults, 
  or 
  "macaneros," 
  that 
  is, 
  

   the 
  Indians 
  who 
  participate 
  in 
  the 
  communal 
  work 
  according 
  to 
  a 
  

  

  