The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, November 11, 1900, Page 11

/ 2| i A ‘/ > = ’1 > AN Y ther of the whites, n to the lands has xcursic Fe art of August the expe- Froni the four tribes they rty or forty men, each 1 ership of one The mbine on & hunt, but they nds of tk i ten ss one another’s path, and their re always friendly. They are long two or three saddle many burros aplece, for ¥ of meat to carry back, f horns and skulls that The Indians have istry down to a fine er waste a possible mal ng times in the towns when gins 1 came by a Na- vajo hogan when the head of the hoganhold wes gettiug ready. “My blanket—the new one his wite. She was breaking sticks several yards sway, and she discreetly didn’t heay. Bhe broke sticks faster. “My blanket!” he roared. She broke sticks still faster and leaned far over them and saw ouly the sticks. ers bor There & the he shouted to i siowly to her and kicked her. no remark, but went on break- g s. He kicked her again, and 1% mes more to make an Im- pression. Then she rolled over in a heag if she had .become a gO Le sald, and then he saw thay vas past answering, and he Kicked for that He muttered all the k to the hogan, and when h(f got explained the case, between Na- uld weave five large blankets 3 d. “When I go nt 1 wear one and sell the others lers or ranchers. To-morrow we nd I must have the five blankets. ot finished the fifth, that is why 1 not answer when 1 asked for I have kicked her each day for the month in order to hurry her, and 1 go now to kick her still it is undone, agair One blanket is a good three months’ work for the average squaw. It is evi- dent that this Navajo had a high esteem for his wite's abilities. The three neighboring tribes also.wear Navajo blankets on their’ hunts. Each man puts on in the first place as many American clothes as he can beg, borrow or steal, and atop of all these he wraps the blanket with its gorgeous central dia- mond striding his back.- His hat, If he has one, is some white man's cast-off, sometimes ornamented with an eagle’s feather. When the next day came I saw the huntsmen off. Near the entrance of the village they were gathered around their horses and thelr squaws were gathered around them. “He's a great man,” one of them sald, pointing to her husband. He looked a glant on his horse, and his blanket was splendid. 1 Ea “Mine is greater,” put in another wo- man. “He s mot. Mine is the handsomer, and his blanket is of better wool than the other."” “It is not so.” Ang the jangle became a wrangle and 40EY 0 Lyphy BUck” THE SUNDAY CALL. there were two fighting squaws in the crowd. . “Mine always shoots the most ante- lope,” one screamed. “Mine will bring three times as many deer as yours. You shall see,” shrieked the other. The respective husbands looked calmly s o440 A’flo’fi/r‘é/ Jown upori the distirbance without offer- ng to settle it. Then came the order to start and away rode the train, leaving the quarrel to settle itself as it might. They were a more gorgeous sight, these braves, than they would be after a month’s hard wear of the new blankets should dim thelr brightness. They were new and shiping now, gayly colored with the American dyes that had been acquired in trade. Delow them swung in the stir- rup long buckskin-clad legs. The headdresses were according to the wearer's fortune. Some had soft felt or straw hats, one splurged in a derby, and some consoled themselves with the head- band of thefr tribe. In every case there was @& knot of hair at the back of the head; the knot that picks out a Navajo man for you wherever you may see him by its twist up and its twist down and its cord around the middle. They wore parting gifts of their wo- men—the _tejuas, or buckskin moccasins that curl up at the toe like a Turkish slipper. These are not embroidered, for they have to stand wear that would spoil the embroidery in no time, Proudest ornament of all wers the strings of turquoises that some dlsplayed un thelr necks. The turquoise mines of Northern New hands until Tiffa them for his own. Up Es/0 ) //YP/A/yJ 5(\:’”6 AN/ opE \ o &= K9 > natives had mined stones in their own way and for themselves, and had punched holes In them and strung them. Now the mine$ have passed out of their hands, but they cling to what stones they have and wear them as they are privileged. A stone for a horse and you have every man's wealth registered in his necklace. Beyond the plains lle the mountains and the canyons and all the ruggednesses where game may be stalked and the hunt is merry. There the band of men is busy from the snows of early September until the storms grow so flerce that they are driven home to stay. This happens in Oc- tober or sometimes not until November. The fall hunt is more fun than work to every man who joins it. A hogan is more to an Indian's liking than any stone or ‘dobe house can ever come to be, and the hogan is what every man camps In while on the hunt. All the tribes bup the Nav- ajos ltve in stone or adobe héuses while at home and the hunt is a gay outing to them, the vacation trip of the year. . The hogan is quickly bullt. It is noth. ing more than a circle of piled-up branches that reach about eight feet high. A fire is bullt in the middle of this and around the fire the men stretch them- selves, feet toward jt. There is no roof 11 wver their heads and the pler Usually they camp at a time. Sometim ) one meal and yver. All nd all th fan bhas lope or ¢ are sacredly religion t kely bec Indian to fixing their re There is one that w me x ways bes to them mal a ter. then pit E away after they T fil w a ea imal at a e only object of wches whera - <ht in always alert fe Besides the are horns and time t let the ight home thera hides; If not, thev ie squaws always do the ng. The scraping is done with horse ribs, and whenever a band of In- dians comes upon a horse's skeleton there is a great scramble for riks Eagles are prizes. They shoot and the brave who bri has several feathers The heads of antelopes are always pre- served. A hoop is fastened in the skin and the head used as a pouch while trav- eling. There is still another use for it in the hunt meat bro ey scrape the quaws do it are sard to £s one down “Nearly shot an Indian to-day,” sald a cow puncher to me. “How?" “Saw an antelope’s head stickin' out trom behind a clump of sagebrush and so I got my rifle and sighted. Just before I said ‘bing’ the thing came out from the brush and if it wasn't a Zuni with a black botch painted on his shirt front to look like an antelope’s breast, and an antelope’s head fitted over his own with a hoop to hold it. He was stalking game and he came near being the game him- self.” miss is as good as a mile,” T sald. “I believe it was the worst miss I could have made,” reflected the cow punchen,