and wears, in consequence, an appearance of varied life and activity.
Some of the pilgrims are Moslems returning from their journey to Mecca;
others are Jews who have come to see that the massive stones of the old
temple are being duly wailed over by their brethren; but by far the
greater number are adherents of the Eastern Church.
Their purpose in making the pilgrimage is to anoint themselves with the
fire which, according to their belief, is sent down from heaven each
year at Easter-time to light the candles on the altar in the tomb of
our Saviour in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Can they but ignite
their little bundles of wax tapers by the holy flame and with it bathe
their faces and breasts they believe that all their sin-stains are
purged away. The great crowds of devotees become so wrought up with
excitement over this divine manifestation that it is safer for those
who would witness the ceremony to go to the church under consular
protection.
Accordingly we assembled, about eleven o'clock on the morning of one
Easter Sunday, at the American Consulate and from thence proceeded,
with a number of fellow-countrymen, to the Church under the guidance
of the _cawass_, or consular servant, whose heavy staff of office--a
veritable drum-major's bâton--inspired respect on the part of the
natives and opened a way for us through the dense crowds.
Arriving at the Church we were led to one of the galleries which run
around the building in three tiers. The main portion of the structure
is circular in form, and in the centre of the rotunda is a small chapel
which, according to the tradition of the Greek Church, guards within
its walls the Sepulchre of our Lord. The entrance to this little
building is so lowly that one has almost to crawl on hands and knees
to gain admittance; and when once inside there is only a shabby altar
worn down by the lips of countless thousands of pilgrims, and shabbier
candles which make the atmosphere most disagreeable.
From our vantage-point in the gallery we looked down upon a curious
scene. Men, women and children armed with little bundles of tapers
covered every foot of the spacious floor, save an aisle which a double
line of some two hundred Turkish soldiers kept open around the Holy
Sepulchre as best they could. The officers of the guard had difficult
work in preserving order. Serious outbreaks were of frequent occurrence
among the excited people which could only be quelled by a vigorous
application of the officers' rawhides to the backs of the ringleaders,
and, in some instances, a gentle prod from a soldier's bayonet was
necessary to remind the individual that he was forgetting his good
behavior.
The space between the inner line of soldiery and the Sepulchre seemed
to constitute a sort of prison-pen, for here were thrust the most
turbulent spirits. In a short time an assortment of these leading
rascals was thus gathered together and, as might have been expected,
they soon began to make things lively among themselves; the result
being a vivid representation of pandemonium. In fact, rough-and-tumble
fights were now the order of exercises, for all were endeavoring to
elbow their way to a position nearer the chapel that they might be the
first to secure the coveted fire. Such was the conduct of the adherents
to the Greek Faith in their holiest sanctuary and at their holiest
ceremony!
After waiting for nearly three hours, surveying the hubbub below us
which had been, if possible, increasing, we noticed an unusual stir;
and soon from one of the ante-rooms issued a procession made up of
priests bearing large banners of various hues, and numerous surpliced
boys swinging silver censers of incense, while in the centre of this
company walked the Patriarch of the church clad in robes of heavy silk
and satin richly embroidered with gold and silver thread as befitted
the dignity of the High Father.
Three times this band moved round the Sepulchre while the crowds were
awed to silence by the magnificent spectacle. After the procession
passed out the pent-up excitement of the people broke out with renewed
energy and those in the rear redoubled their efforts to gain a front
place, for this pageant of priests seemed to herald the advent of the
fire.
Soon two of the priests approached apertures in opposite walls of the
Chapel and through these received from the Patriarch, who had meanwhile
entered the Sepulchre alone, the heaven-sent flame. As the priests drew
forth handfuls of tapers ignited by the holy fire, the agitation of
the multitude knew no bounds. The great surging crowd seemed frenzied
in their eagerness to light their own tapers. The women and children
in the throng were entirely ignored and, as the stronger pushed them
aside, more than one went down and were trampled under feet. But
gradually now the divine flame was passed from one to another, those
in the galleries letting down their tapers to be lighted until the
whole church was soon ablaze.
Strife and wrangling speedily gave way now to smiling good-nature,
and all were anointing their faces and breasts with the holy fire.
The dark recesses of the old building, which the sunlight could never
penetrate through the dingy dome, were lighted up with the flickering
glow of the little candles which, with the constant darting to and fro
at the flames, like so many will-o'-the-wisps, made up a weird picture
never to be forgotten. Soon, however, the smoke and heat rendered the
atmosphere intolerable and we were glad to elbow our way out through
the now happy throng to the open air.
Such is the ceremony gone through with each year at Jerusalem. Many
of the people try to carry the fire away with them that they may keep
a candle which has been lighted with it continually burning, as it is
reputed to possess wonderful restorative properties both for body and
soul.
XII.
THE MOQUI SNAKE-DANCE.
I ONCE attended an interesting Indian fête in the Southwest at the
Moqui (Moki) village in Northern Arizona. It was the strangest
spectacle altogether I ever looked upon, and was performed by Indians
who are perhaps the least civilized of any in the great Western
Territory. No words can fully describe the dance that was given. It was
a wild, weird sight and made one with delicate nerves uncomfortable, to
say the least. To the Moquis, however, the spectacle was the reverse of
unpleasant. An Indian never indulges in noisy approval, but he enjoys
laughing as much as a white man does; and in this particular dance the
performers were constantly encouraged by their friends.
The Moquis are a people whose origin dates far back. How long ago
their present village was built no one can tell. That it is very old
is evident from the fact that in 1540 it looked exactly the same to
Coronado as it does to us to-day. He could not discover from the
Indians living there how long their town had been founded, and as the
people have no written history we can only speculate upon the age of
their houses. There are seven villages altogether and all of them are
built upon the very tops of high _mesas_, or table-lands, rising fully
six hundred feet above the level of a wide valley. The _mesas_ are
rarely more than forty feet wide and are so steep that to gain the
summit one has to climb a narrow footpath that has been hewn in the
rocky sides. The houses are of stone, cemented with mud, and are piled
together one on top of the other.
The tribe is given a Reservation by the Government to live on nearly
as large as the State of Massachusetts, and on which they have perfect
freedom. They raise sheep and goats, and live and dress nearly as they
did centuries ago, and have but little intercourse with white people.
An hour before sunset the Indians, robed in their very best, moved
toward the town of Walpi that occupies the western end of the _mesa_.
Following the crowd my friend C---- and I reached an open square formed
by the walls of the houses on one side and the edge of the _mesa_ on
the other. In the centre of the place stood a tall, tower-like stone
fifteen or twenty feet high and of a fantastic shape. It was here that
the dance was to be held. Every housetop having a view of the spot
was covered with Indians, and children had grouped themselves on the
ladders that lead from roof to roof. Making our way to a good place we
sat down with a party of the natives and waited for the fête to begin.
Far below where we were, lay the valley we had crossed, and in the
distance were the mountains of Utah and Central Arizona. It did not
require much imagination to believe ourselves standing on some high
cliff overlooking the ocean, for the valley was like the sea, and the
feeding sheep like little boats.
This Moqui snake-dance is given once in every two years. Nearly one
hundred Indians take part in it and the custom has been observed for
many centuries. It is commonly supposed that the ceremony is a prayer
for rain, but why snakes are used no one surely knows. The reptiles are
caught during the four days preceding the dance and are confined in the
_estufas_ or council chambers until the hour comes when they are to be
used. Most of the snakes are "rattlers." Their fangs are not removed
and the only precaution the Indians take against being bitten is to
paint their bodies with a preparation that counteracts the effects of
the poison. At the conclusion of the dance the snakes are carried down
to the valley and allowed to go where they will, while the dancers
return to the _estufas_ and wash off the paint that has covered their
bodies.
Directly beneath where we stood was a bower made of cotton-wood
branches. Soon after we were seated an Indian brought three large bags
and placed them within the bower. These contained the snakes. The man
had barely got out of sight before a party of fifteen Indians filed
rapidly into the square. All were naked except for short, reddish
tunics reaching from the waist to the knees, and their bodies and faces
were thickly painted in various hues. Each man carried a rattle, made
by stretching a piece of dried skin over a squash gourd, and a basket
of sacred meal, and several wore strings of antelope hoofs around their
ankles. Marching four times around the stone pillar, and shaking their
rattles all the while, the dancers stamped upon the ground as they
passed the snake bower and sprinkled meal upon it. After that they
formed a long line and began the rather monotonous dance and song which
is given in the same manner by nearly every tribe. The song consists of
a few words repeated in a sing-song fashion over and over again, and
in the dance the bodies are swayed slowly back and forth and the feet
alternately lifted a few inches from the ground.
While this dance was being given a second party, dressed as those who
had first appeared, and numbering fifty-seven men, marched into view
and began their walk around the stone. These were the snake-dancers,
and their coming was hailed with great joy by the assembled
spectators. Instead of rattles were carried little wands made of
eagle feathers which were moved rapidly through the air in imitation
of the hissing of serpents. The men looked wild and sober, as though
frightened at the prospect before them, and their faces were blackened
and painted beyond all recognition. During the march around the stone
pillar a party of maidens, each one wearing a bright red shawl and
having her face thickly powdered, grouped themselves near the dancers
and stood ready to sprinkle them with the meal which they carried in
baskets.
Finishing the march both parties formed into two parallel lines near
the bower of cotton-wood boughs and indulged in a grand song and dance
which appeared to carry not only the performers but the dancers to
the highest pitch of excitement. At its conclusion an old man stepped
before the snakes and chanted a prayer, which he had barely finished
before there was an unruly rush made for the bower. Reaching their
hands into the place each man quickly reappeared with a hissing,
squirming, biting snake, which he immediately placed between his teeth
while beginning once more his walk around the open square. In time
fully forty men had each his snake, and the scene became intensely
hideous. At the side of each dancer walked an attendant who tickled
the snake's head with his wand of eagle feathers, but in spite of this
soothing caress the serpents made savage attempts to bite and get away.
One man had his cheek severely bitten and another his hand, while often
a snake would coil its body around the neck of its tormentor so that
it would have to be unwound by main force. We were glad to be as high
above the dancers as we were, for at times a snake would escape and go
darting off among the spectators, to their great confusion. The girls
who were throwing sacred meal upon the men were often so frightened
that they made frantic rushes to get away, but when the snake had been
caught, they returned again to their places. For fully half an hour
the strange dance was continued, the men holding the snakes growing
more excited every moment, and the members of the first party that had
appeared giving new life to their song, which was continued without
interruption all the while.
At last, perspiring, bitten, excited until their eyes gleamed, the
men threw the snakes together into a common pile in the centre of the
square, where they formed a hideous mound of squirming forms. Then at
a signal, a second scramble took place, and in a moment the pile had
disappeared and every dancer held in his hands a reptile with which he
ran swiftly down the trail and out into the valley, madly leaping down
the narrow path, and later hurrying over the valley, dropping as they
ran, the snakes they carried.
By this time the sun had set. Waiting only long enough to watch the men
come slowly back to their _estufas_, we left our housetop and were soon
riding slowly away. For another two years the snakes in the vicinity
of the Moqui village will go unmolested along their way. At the end of
that time some of them probably will figure again in the dance which
some strange decree has ordered.
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