THE PUEBLO DWELLERS. 99 
mentioned but indirect reference by a phrase is made 
if necessary. 
POLITICAL ORGANIZATION. 
The political government of each Rio Grande pueblo 
is in the hands of a governor, council, and a war chief. 
The governor, chosen annually by a formal election, 
is in reality named by the cacique, a permanent officer 
whose duties are chiefly religious. There is usually 
also a lieutenant governor chosen in the same way. 
The war chief too is appointed annually and confirmed 
by the council. 
This council, which is the legislative body, is perma- 
nent in some pueblos but elected annually in others. 
It is believed by some to be a survival of an earlier 
council in which each of the clans was represented by 
its head. 
The governor is the representative of the village in 
its dealings with other villages and with the general 
public and is its nominal head. The war chief directs 
all communal work such as that on the irrigation 
ditches and the communal hunt. In earlier times he 
led the war expeditions and had charge of the defense 
of the pueblo. He is the executive officer of the council 
and carries out its decrees. These frequently have 
involved the death of persons suspected of witchcraft. 
The Hopi pueblos each have a village chief, a crier 
chief, and a war chief who hold their positions for life. 
The older methods of defensive warfare are well 
‘illustrated in the accounts of conflicts between the 
Spanish and certain pueblos in the sixteenth century. 
At Zuni the men withdrew to the house tops and pulled 
up the ladders. When the Spanish advanced within 
reach, arrows were discharged and stones were thrown 
down. The women, children, and old men had been 
