THE SNAKE DANCE 



133 



coil; then, with a long swing of the arm, 

 the priest would pick it up with about 

 as much unconcern as most people would 

 pick up a rope. 



Two of the Snake priests were little 

 boys who were serving their novitiate, 

 and who could not have been more than 

 eight years old. I saw one of them 

 dancing with a bull snake bigger than 

 himself, and the little boy had to hold 

 it with both hands as well as with his 

 teeth to prevent it from getting away. 



The chanting became louder and 

 louder, and on and on went the priests 

 until every snake had been danced with. 



A group of Hopi maidens now entered 

 the plaza. Their hair was done in the 

 great wheel-like coils on either side of 

 their heads, to resemble the squash blos- 

 som, and they were dressed in their very 

 brightest and best and carried ceremonial 

 baskets filled with sacred meal. As they 

 neared the altar the priests rushed for- 

 ward and threw all the snakes on the 



Photo by Mrs. Herbert Wadsworth 



a snake: priest, oraibi : note the pong 

 snake held in the pe^t hand 



Photo by Mrs. Herbert Wadsworth 



One of the four snake priests who was sta- 

 stioned to gather up the snakes that had been, 

 danced with (see page 131). 



ground in a great squirming mass at 

 their feet, and the maidens sprinkled the 

 hideous reptiles with the meal. 



Then, at a signal from the chief priest, 

 the Snake priests bent down and each 

 seized two handfuls of snakes, and turn- 

 ing ran with incredible swiftness out of 

 the plaza, some to the north, some south, 

 some east and west. We watched and 

 saw them rush over the mesa and down 

 its almost perpendicular sides until they 

 reached the desert. There with a part- 

 ing message to their spirit brothers they 

 left them at the four points of the com- 

 pass to go whither they would. 



Then, mounting the mesa once more, 

 the priests halted where some hollowed- 

 out rocks had formed basins and had 

 caught the rain-water. There they 

 stripped and washed off the ceremonial 

 paint. Then, to my dismay, they drank 

 something that proved to be a strong 

 emetic, and for a few minutes I found 



