[Illustration: WHISTLES FROM NICARAGUAN BURIAL MOUNDS.]
The long _Flute_, either of cane, or of earthenware, was found in
common use by the early explorers in Central America, Mexico and
Florida. The Nahuas of Nicaragua do not seem to have made so much
use of it as their relatives in Mexico.
The _Juco_ is employed in the noisier dances, such as the _Baile de
Diablitos_. It is a drinking gourd (_nambira_), or jar, over the
aperture of which is stretched a skin. This is crossed by a cord, to
which is attached a small piece of wood, which serves as a clapper
when the instrument is shaken.
The _Quijongo_ is a stringed instrument, made by fastening a wooden
bow with a stretched cord over the mouth of a jar. A hollow reed,
about five feet long and an inch and a half thick, is bent by a wire
attached to the ends. This wire is then tied to the reed at
one-third the distance from one end, and at the same point, on the
convex surface of the reed, a gourd, or thin earthen jar, is
fastened, with its mouth downward. The notes are produced by
striking the two sections of wire with a light stick, and at the
same time the opening of the jar is more or less closed by the palm
of the left hand, thus producing a limited number of notes, which
are varied by changing the intervals.
[Illustration: THE QUIJONGO OF NICARAGUA.]
Among the Nahuatl tribes of the Balsam coast, this is called the
_Carimba_. It appears to have been an aboriginal invention, although
some writers have asserted that the Aztecs had no knowledge of any
stringed instrument. Something like a harp, however, is represented
in the following cut, from the Aztec funerary ritual, where a priest
or hired mourner is shown, chanting the praise of the departed, and
accompanying his words with music, on what appears to be a rude
stringed instrument. (See page xxxvii.)
The _Chilchil_ is a small bell, a number of which are strung
together and shaken. This is an ancient Aztec instrument, the term
for it in Nahuatl being _Ayacachtli_.
The _Cacho_ is a sort of trumpet, constructed of a horn. A blast
upon it can be heard a long distance, and it has thus become a
measure of length, a _legua de cacho_ being the distance at which
one can hear the horn when lustily blown. It is said to be rather
longer than a Spanish league.
[Illustration: AZTEC MOURNER SINGING AND PLAYING.]
As to the value of the music which was obtained from these
instruments, it is difficult to arrive at an opinion from capable
judges. Nearly all who have been in a position to study the subject
have lacked acquaintance with the scientific principles and
developmental history of music as an art.
Hence it has usually been stated, and accepted without inquiry, that
the aborigines of America were exceedingly deficient in musical
ability, and that their best efforts rarely went beyond creating
discordant noise. Late investigations by competent critics have
disproved this opinion, and show that the melodies of the natives
are in accordance with a recognized scale, though not that to which
we are accustomed. For a parallel we must go back to the ancient
Phrygian and Lydian measures, where we shall find a development of
the art in a similar direction to that among the natives of this
continent.[39] As is remarked by Mr. A. S. Gatschet, "Although the
Indian uses all the seven notes of our musical scales, he avoids
many of our melodial sequences; the majority of his tunes follow the
_dur_ or _sharp_ scales, and the two-eighths or two-fourths
measure."[40]
In Central America, the native race has a keen musical sense. Von
Tempsky found that they learned by ear, with great ease, the
compositions of Bellini; and in Vera Paz and among the Lacandons,
Morelet heard upon the _Chirimoya_, an aboriginal wind instrument,
an air which he characterizes as "very remarkable" and "extremely
touching." What brings this air into relation to my present theme is
the singular fact that it was known as _la Malinche_, but Morelet
could not learn from what connection.[41] Quite possibly it was from
the character of that name in the play of _Güegüence_.
[Illustration: MALINCHE.]
In the public _bailes_ in ancient times, as we are informed by both
Oviedo and Benzoni, the musicians were separated from the singers
and other performers, forming an actual orchestra, and this is also
intimated in the Güegüence. Having thus the position of a class by
themselves, it may fairly be presumed that they cultivated with
assiduity their peculiar art.
In later days, the _cofradias_, the brotherhoods and sisterhoods
organized in connection with the churches, made it part of their
business to learn singing and music, so as to take part in the
celebration of church festivals. It was through these _cofradias_
that the art of playing on the ancient instruments was preserved. By
the loss of influence of the church at the separation of the
colonies from the mother country, the _cofradias_ were mostly
dissolved.[42]
The music which accompanies the ballets in the Güegüence has been
written down, and is familiar to many in Nicaragua. I have obtained
a portion of it, through the obliging efforts of Dr. Earl Flint, of
Rivas, an earnest cultivator in the field of archaeological
research. The score appears, however, on examination by competent
persons, to be probably of Spanish origin, and it would not be worth
while to give more than a specimen of it. (See p. xl.)
[Illustration: MELODIES FROM GUEGUENCE.]
§ 4. _History of the_ "_Baile del Güegüence._"
Among the scenic representations which have been preserved by the
descendants of the Mangues, in the ancient province of Masaya, the
only one of length which has been committed to writing is the _Baile
del Güegüence, ô Macho-Raton_. Several copies of this exist in
manuscript, and from a comparison of two of them the late Dr. C. H.
Berendt obtained, in 1874, the text which is printed in this volume.
But he did not obtain, nor did he attempt himself, any translation
of any portion of it. He states, positively, that the Nahuatl parts
are not understood by the natives themselves at the present day. Its
antiquity and authorship are alike unknown. It is certain that it
was acted before the beginning of the present century, but with this
single fact its external history ceases.
Within the memory of those now living, this _Baile_ has occasionally
been acted in fulfillment of a religious vow pronounced in some
emergency of life or affairs. The period selected for its
performance is, usually, at the festival of St. Jerome, September
30th. The preparations for it are elaborate and expensive. In former
times the rehearsals took place daily, sometimes for as much as six
or eight months before the public performance. The actors provided
their own costumes, which required a considerable outlay. There
were, however, always plenty of applicants, as it was not only
considered an honor to take part, but also, the patron or patroness
of the festival, who had pledged himself to give the drama, was
expected to furnish refreshments, in the way of food and drink, at
each rehearsal. As the appetites were usually keen, and the
libations liberal, it was almost ruinous for one of moderate means
to undertake it. For that reason, as Dr. Earl Flint writes me, it
has now been dropped, and will probably not again be brought out, at
least, in full.
How far beyond the close of the last century we should place the
composition of the Güegüence is a difficult question. Dr. Berendt,
basing his opinion on what he could learn by local tradition, on the
archaisms of the Spanish construction, and on other internal
evidence, referred it in general terms to the first periods (_los
primeros siglos_) of the Spanish occupation. It is probable that we
may assign the early portion of the eighteenth century as the latest
date for its composition, and there is some evidence, which I shall
refer to in the notes to the text, that a more remote period is not
improbable. Of course, it does not contradict this that a few modern
expressions have crept into the text. Nothing else could be
expected.
No hint as to the author is anywhere found. There are, however,
reasons which I consider weighty ones, to believe that it is the
production either of a native Indian or a half-caste. Several of
them are of a negative character, and I will give these first.
All the dramas, so far as I know, which were introduced by the
Spanish priests as substitutes for the native _bailes_, are either
religious or instructive in aim. As the Germans say, they are
strongly _tendenciös_. Such are the _Baile de St. Martin_, which
gives scenes from the life of the saint, and in which a wheel,
called the _horquilla_, covered with feathers and flowers, is drawn
along; the _Baile de los Cinco Pares de Francia_, which sets forth
the conquest of the infidel Moors by the Christians, both of which
plays have been popular in Nicaragua; among the Kekchis, of Coban,
the _Baile de Moros y Cristianos_, similar to the last mentioned;
the _Zaki-Koxol, ô Baile de Cortes_, in Kiche, a copy of which I
have, and the like. But in the _Güegüence_ there is absolutely no
moral purpose nor religious tone; so much, indeed, of the reverse,
that we cannot conceive of its introduction by a priest.
On the other hand, had it been composed by a secular Spanish writer,
we should hardly fail to find it, in a general way, modeled after
the stock Spanish comedy. It differs, however, in several striking
and fundamental features, from the Spanish models, and these
differences are precisely those which would flow from the native
habits of thought. I would note, first, that while females are
introduced, they are strictly _mutæ personæ_, even the heroine not
speaking a word; that there are no monologues nor soliloquies; that
there is no separation into scenes, the action being continuous
throughout; that there is neither prologue, epilogue nor chorus; and
especially that the wearisome repetition of the same phrases, and by
one speaker of what a previous one has said--a marked characteristic
of the native scenic orations[43]--are all traits which we can
scarcely believe any Spaniard sufficiently cultivated to write at
all, would exhibit.
Furthermore, the "business" of the play is strictly within the range
of the native thought and emotion. The admiration of the coarse
cunning and impudent knavery of Güegüence is precisely what we see
in the modern camp-fire tales of Michabo among the Algonkins, of
Tezcatlipoca among the Aztecs, and of a score of other heroes. It is
of a piece with the delight which our own ancestors derived from the
trickeries of Reynard the Fox.
The devices for exciting laughter are scarcely more than three in
number; one the assumed deafness of the Güegüence, the second,
a consequence of this, that he misunderstands, or pretends to,
the words of the other actors, thus giving rise to amusing
quid-pro-quos, and third, the introduction of obscene references. Of
course, I am aware that these are the stock resources of many
European low comedians; but I also consider it a fact of very
considerable importance in deciding the probable authorship of the
play, that all of these, especially the first two, are prominently
mentioned by old authors, as leading devices of the native Nahuatl
comedies. Thus, Benzoni and Coreal tell us that in the _bailes_ in
Nicaragua, which they witnessed, some of the actors pretended to be
deaf, and others to be blind, so as to excite laughter by their
mistakes.[44] And Father Diego Duran tells us of a native Mexican
comedy, upon which this of Güegüence may, perhaps, have been
founded, full of songs and coarse jests,[45] in which the clown
pretends to understand at cross purposes what his master orders,
transforming his words into others like them. As to the general
leaning to indecent gestures and jokes, it is frequently commented
on by the missionaries, and given as a reason for discountenancing
these exhibitions.
The absence of all reference to the emotions of love, and the naive
coarseness indicated in the passages about women, point rather to a
native than a European hand. They are in remarkable contrast to the
Spanish school of comedy.[46] The neglect of common rules of Spanish
construction seems to arise from the ignorance of one imperfectly
acquainted with the language, rather than of deliberate purpose. It
must also be remembered that this piece was one acted altogether by
the native Indians, and not by the Spanish population.
Nor are we without examples of persons of native lineage preparing
comedies for their fellows. About 1625, Bartholome de Alva, a
descendant of the native kings of Tezcuco, wrote three comedies, in
Nahuatl, drawing his plots from Lope de Vega. It is quite as likely
that another Alva rose from the Nahuas of Nicaragua, and prepared
for their amusement the production I now present.
For these various reasons I class it among aboriginal productions.
§ 5. _The Dramatis Personæ of The Güegüence._
The central figure of the drama, and the personage from whom it
derives its name, is _The Güegüence._ This is a Nahuatl word, from
the root _hue_, old; _huehue_ is "old man;" to this is added what
grammarians call the "reverencial" termination _tzin_, denoting
reverence or affection, and we have, intercalating the euphonic _n_,
_huehuentzin_, which, in the vocative, becomes _huehuentzé_. It
means, therefore, "the honored elder," or "the dear old man," and
may be used, as it is in the play, either as a proper name or as a
common noun. In his description of the Nahuas of Nicaragua, Oviedo
gives the word _huehue_, and tells us that it was applied to certain
old men of influential position, who were elected by the natives as
rulers of the villages, and that they in turn selected the
war-chief, whose duty it was to look to the defence of the
community. The name was, therefore, one familiar to the Nicaraguans,
though the character would seem to be drawn as a burlesque or
satire.
He is, in fact, anything but a respectable person. His indifference
to truth, his cynical impudence, his licentious jokes about and
before his sons, and the unscrupulous tricks of which he boasts, are
calculated to detract from the element of the comic in his
portraiture, for those who have been accustomed to the higher
productions of humor. But it would be an error to allow this
sentiment to affect much our estimate of the influence of the play.
As Lessing very well observes, the true value of comedy is to train
us to see the ridiculous and the absurd, wherever it is, in
flagitious as well as in merely inconsiderate actions, as thus the
observer is prompted to morality as well as forethought.[47]
As I have said, his character is a marked type of the peculiar form
of humor which the native mind preferred, and of the class of
actions in which it especially found amusement, to wit, in that
jocularity which is assumed to deceive and get the better of one's
neighbor. This is strikingly shown by the number of words in the
Nicaraguan patois which express such actions. Thus, _chamarrear_ is
to take advantage of some one by a joke; _trisca_ is a conversation
in which some one is made ridiculous; _féfere_ is an idle tale with
which a hearer is cajoled; _dar un caritazo_ is to deceive a person
by a trick, etc. This is the humor in the Güegüence. The old man
nearly always has a selfish aim to gain by his jokes and his
stories; they are intended to further his own interests, and, at the
close of the play, he, on the whole, comes out victorious by these
questionable measures.
As the drama was formerly represented, the Güegüence wore the most
magnificent apparel of any of the actors. Chains of gold, strings of
silver coins, and ornaments of steel draped his person. Indeed, all
the participants vied with each other in extravagant costumes. Their
garments were fantastically adorned with feathers and flowers, and
set off with sashes and handkerchiefs of brilliant colors.
The two sons of Güegüence, _Don Forcico_ and _Don Ambrosio_, are
drawn in as strong contrast as possible. The former follows the
paternal example faithfully, and sustains his parent in all his
tricks and lies; the latter as invariably opposes and exposes the
old man's dishonesty. The bitter words which pass between them,
however, must not be taken in dead earnest; they, too, are only half
serious, and do not lead to any separation of interests.
The _Governor Tastuanes_ appears on the scene in Spanish costume,
with a staff and sabre. His name, however, seems to be from the
Nahuatl, probably a corruption of _tlatoani_, chief, lord.[48] He is
little more than a lay figure, designed to draw forth the ruses of
Güegüence.
The _Alguacil_, the _Secretary_ and _Registrar_ appear in what is
supposed to be full official dress, with their staffs of office.
The _mutæ personæ_ of the drama are the women and the _machos_, or
mules. Of the former, only one is named, the lady _Suchi-Malinche_,
daughter of the Governor. She enters clothed in a sort of tunic,
fastened to her person with gay silken sashes; chains of gold and
costly jewels adorn her garments, and a wreath of flowers crowns her
hair. The latter may be a reference to her name. _Suchi_ is a
corruption of the Nahuatl _xochitl_, flower; _Malinche_, it may be
remembered, was the name of the famous Indian girl who served Cortes
as interpreter in his first campaign in Mexico, and became his
mistress. Some have supposed that it was a corruption of the Spanish
Christian name _Marina_, but, as Señor Icazbalceta has conclusively
shown, it is the name of one of the days of the Aztec month,
_malinalli_, with the termination _tzin_, signifying affection. It
was the custom in Mexico and Central America, and still is in many
parts, for the natives to name their children after the day on
which they were born, led thereto by certain ancient astrological
notions.[49] In Nicaragua, _malinche_ is also the name of a tree, a
species of _Poinciana_, which bears a handsome red flower.
The _Machos_, or mules, are twelve or more in number. They give the
second title to the piece,_ El Macho raton_, an appropriate
translation of which I am at a loss to give. Literally it means "The
Male Mouse." As used at present, it signifies a masker, or
masquerading dress. An acquaintance, who has lived in Nicaragua,
tells me that he has heard the children call out: "See, there goes
the _Macho-raton_," which would prove to be an Indian in a fantastic
costume. In the play, they wear heads of skins, imitating those of
mules, surmounted with horns of goats, and a _petaca_, or wicker
basket frame draped with sashes, etc. In their hands they carry
bells.
Among the ancient Nahuas, and probably to this day, there were
various curious superstitions relating to mice. If they gnawed a
hole in the dress of a wife, her husband took it as a sign that she
had been unfaithful to him; and she entertained the same suspicion
were his garments attacked. When food was attacked by mice, it
indicated that the people of the house would be falsely accused of
something.[50]
§ 6. _Epitome of the Story of The Güegüence._
[Sidenote: p. 6.]
The Governor and the Alguacil meet and enter into conversation. The
Governor directs that the songs and dances which are for the
diversion of the Royal Council should cease, and bewails its
poverty.
[Sidenote: p. 8.]
[Sidenote: p. 10.]
He also directs that no one shall be allowed to enter his province
(or presence?) without a permit from the patrol. The Alguacil
complains that their poverty is so great that they have no fit
clothing, and lays the blame on Güegüence. The Governor refers to
Güegüence in severe terms, and orders that he be brought before him,
by any means.
Güegüence, who with his two sons is within earshot, hears the
Governor's orders, and pretends to think that it refers to a calf or
a colt.
[Sidenote: p. 12.]
[Sidenote: p. 14.]
[Sidenote: p. 16.]
[Sidenote: p. 18.]
[Sidenote: pp. 20-22.]
[Sidenote: p. 24.]
[Sidenote: p. 26.]
[Sidenote: p. 28.]
The Alguacil announces himself as a servant of the Governor.
Güegüence professes to understand that it is a female servant who
desires to see him. The Alguacil corrects him in this, and informs
him that he is to fly to the Governor. Güegüence takes the word in
its literal sense, and chaffs about an old man flying. The Alguacil
suggests to him that he had better learn how to salute the Governor
properly on entering his presence, and offers to teach him the
customary salutation for a consideration. This proposal Güegüence
accepts, but chooses to misunderstand the considerations suggested
by the Alguacil, and replies in a series of quid-pro-quos and gibes.
At last, he produces some money, which, however, he will not pay
over until the Alguacil gives the promised instruction. The Alguacil
recites the formal salutations, which Güegüence pretends to
misunderstand, and repeats, instead, some phrases of similar sound,
which are discourteous to the Governor. For this the Alguacil
threatens to whip him, and on Güegüence continuing in his taunts,
gives him two blows, and recommences his lesson.
[Sidenote: p. 30.]
[Sidenote: p. 32.]
At this juncture the Governor appears, answers Güegüence's salute,
and asks him why he has entered the province without a permit. At
first Güegüence answers by relating how he had traveled without a
permit in other provinces. Finding this does not meet the case, he
seeks to turn the inquiry by a dubious story how a girl once gave
him a permit for something besides traveling. The Governor, not
choosing to be put off with this, Güegüence proposes they shall be
friends, and that the Governor shall have some of the immense riches
and beautiful clothing which Güegüence possesses. The Governor
expresses some doubt as to this wealth, and proposes to examine,
apart, Güegüence's oldest son, Don Forcico.
[Sidenote: p. 34.]
He does so; and Don Forcico corroborates, in the most emphatic
terms, the statements of his father: "the day and the night are too
short to name all his possessions."
[Sidenote: p. 36.]
[Sidenote: p. 38.]
The Governor remains, however, uncertain about the truth, and
requests a similar private talk with Güegüence's younger son, Don
Ambrosio. The latter tells a very different story, asserting that
all his father's boasts were lies, and that he is, in fact, a poor,
old, thieving ragamuffin. Güegüence, who overhears him, rails at him
as a disgrace to the family; and Don Forcico assures the Governor,
in very clear terms, that Don Ambrosio has none of Güegüence's blood
in his veins.
[Sidenote: p. 40.]
[Sidenote: p. 42.]
To settle the question, Güegüence proposes to show the Governor the
contents of his tent-shop, and has the two boys bring it forward and
raise the sides. He then offers the Governor several impossible
things, as a star, which is seen through the tent, and an old
syringe, which he suggests might be profitably applied to the Royal
Council. As the Governor replies roughly, Geügüence at once changes
the subject to a laudation of the remarkable skill of Don Forcico in
many vocations. The Governor is interested and proposes to inquire
of Don Forcico himself as to the truth of this. The latter repeats
the boasts, and on the Governor inquiring as to whether he knows
some diverting dances, with his father and his brother, he dances a
ballet.
[Sidenote: p. 46.]
[Sidenote: p. 48.]
The Governor wishes to see another ballet, which the three perform,
also; and this is followed by two others, in which the Governor and
Alguacil also take part.
[Sidenote: p. 50.]
[Sidenote: p. 52.]
[Sidenote: p. 54.]
[Sidenote: p. 56.]
[Sidenote: p. 58.]
[Sidenote: p. 60.]
[Sidenote: p. 62.]
Following these the Governor asks for the masquerade of the
_macho-raton_, or the mules. They are led in by Don Forcico, and
march around the stage. Güegüence avails himself of this auspicious
moment to ask for the hand of the Lady Suche-Malinche, the
Governor's daughter. The Governor sends the Alguacil for the Chief
Secretary, who returns with Suche-Malinche and other young women.
The Secretary describes what an elegant costume is expected of the
son-in-law of the Governor, and the latter suggests that Güegüence
has cast his eyes too high. The old man explains that it was not for
himself, but for Don Forcico, that the request was made, and
pretends to feel quite badly about the marriage. He, nevertheless,
brings up the young women, one by one, who are rejected by Don
Forcico, with very uncomplimentary remarks, until Suche-Malinche
comes forward, who pleases him, and with whom he is married. The
Governor then suggests that Güegüence treat the Council with some
Spanish wine. This the old man does not find it convenient to
understand, and when he can no longer escape, and is at a loss where
to obtain the liquor, is relieved by Don Forcico, who has secured
it in a questionable manner.
[Sidenote: p. 64.]
[Sidenote: p. 66.]
[Sidenote: p. 68.]
The mules, that is, the masqueraders who represent them, are then
brought up, and as Güegüence examines first one and then another,
they give him opportunity for a series of extremely broad jokes and
vulgar allusions.
Finally, the loads are placed on the mules, the boys mount them and
move off, while Güegüence, having offered his wine to the Governor,
the Secretary, the Registrar and the Alguacil, who each in turn tell
him to be off, leaves the stage shouting to his sons that they will
all have a rouse that will cost them nothing.