Chapter II: Part 2

While the sides are being inclosed by some of the workers a door-frame is constructed by others. This consists simply of two straight poles with forked tops driven into the ground at the base of and close inside of the doorway timbers, as shown in figure 232. When in place these poles are about 4 feet high, set upright, with a straight stick resting in the forks, as shown clearly in plate LXXXIV. Another short stick is placed horizontally across the doorway timbers at a point about 3-1/2 feet below the apex, at the level of and parallel with the cross-stick of the door-frame. The space between this cross-stick and the apex is left open to form an exit for the smoke. Sometimes when the hogán is unbearably smoky a rough chimney-like structure, consisting of a rude cribwork, is placed about this smoke hole. Such a structure is shown in plate LXXXIII.

The doorway always has a flat roof formed of straight limbs or split poles laid closely together, with one end resting on the crosspiece which forms the base of the smoke hole and the other end on the crosspiece of the door-frame. The whole doorway structure projects from the sloping side of the hogán, much like a dormer window. Sometimes the doorway roof is formed by a straight pole on each side of the smoke hole crosspiece to the crosspiece of the door-frame, supporting short sticks laid across and closely together with their ends resting on the two poles. This style of doorway is shown in plate LXXXIV.

The sides of the projecting doorway--that is, the spaces between the roof and the sloping doorway timbers--are filled in with small sticks of the required length. Sometimes the ends of these sticks are bound in place with twigs of yucca, being made fast to the door-frame, but generally they are merely set in or made to rest against the outer roof covering. Usually the larger timbers are roughly dressed on the sides toward the interior of the hut, and the smaller poles also are stripped of bark and rough hewn.

The entire structure is next covered with cedar bark; all the interstices are filled with it, and an upper or final layer is spread with some regularity and smoothness. Earth is then thrown on from base to apex to a thickness of about six inches, but enough is put on to make the hut perfectly wind and water proof. This operation finishes the house, and usually there are enough volunteers to complete the work in a day.

It is customary to make a kind of recess on the western side of the hut by setting out the base of the poles next to the west timber some 8 to 15 inches beyond the line. This arrangement is usually placed next to and on the south side of the west timber, and all the poles for a distance of 3 or 4 feet are set out. The offset thus formed is called the “mask recess,” and when a religious ceremony is performed in the hogán, the shaman or medicine-man hangs a skin or cloth before it and deposits there his masks and fetiches. This recess, of greater or less dimensions, is made in every large hogán, but in many of the smaller ones it is omitted. Its position and general character are shown in the ground plan, plate XC. In the construction of a hogán all the proceedings are conducted on a definite, predetermined plan, and the order sketched above is that ordinarily followed, but nothing of a ceremonial nature is introduced until after the conclusion of the work of construction.

SUMMER HUTS OR SHELTERS

The rules which govern the building of a regular hogán or winter house, although clearly defined and closely adhered to, do not apply to the summer huts or shelters. These outnumber the former and are found everywhere on the reservation, but they are most abundant in the mountain regions and in those places where horticultural operations can be carried on.

These structures are of all kinds and of all degrees of finish, although certain well-defined types, ancient in their origin, are still closely adhered to when the conditions permit. But under other circumstances the rudest and most primitive shelters are constructed, some of them certainly not so high in the scale of construction as an ordinary bird’s nest. There is a certain interest that attaches to these rude attempts, as they exhibit the working of the human mind practically untrammeled by precedent.

Perhaps the most primitive and simple shelter the Navaho builds is a circle or part-circle of green boughs, generally pine or cedar. Half an hour of work by two men with axes is all that is required to erect one of these. A site having been selected, a tree is felled on the windward side, and the branches trimmed from it are piled up to a height of 4 or 5 feet on three sides of a circle 15 or 20 feet in diameter. A fire is built in the center and the natives dispose themselves around it. Blankets are thrown over outstanding branches here and there, affording an abundance of shade in the hot summer days when even a little shade is agreeable. Rude as this shelter is, it is regarded by the Navaho as sufficient when no better is available. During the recent construction of some irrigating ditches on the reservation, when from 50 to 100 men were employed at one time, this form of shelter was the only one used, although in several instances the work was carried on in one place for five or six weeks. Shelters of this kind, however, are possible only in a wooded region, and are built only to meet an emergency, as when a man is away from home and there are no hogáns in the vicinity where he can stop.

Another form, scarcely less rude, is sometimes found in localities temporarily occupied for grazing or for horticulture. It consists of a circle of small branches, sometimes of mere twigs, with the butts stuck into the ground, and not over 2-1/2 or 3 feet high. The circle is broken by a narrow entrance way on one side. This form of shelter, hardly as high as a man’s waist, does little more than mark the place where a family have thrown down their blankets and other belongings, but it may afford some protection against drifting sand. Shelters of this type are occupied several months at a time. They are often seen on the sandy bottom lands of Canyon Chelly and in other regions of like character, and the same sites are sometimes occupied several years in succession.

From these rude makeshift types there is an unbroken range up to the standard winter hut, which also meets the requirements of a summer house, being as comfortable in warm weather as it is in cold weather. The kind of house which a man builds depends almost entirely on the purposes which it is to serve and very little on the man or his circumstances. The houses of the richest man in the tribe and of the poorest would be identical unless, as often happens in modern times, the former has a desire to imitate the whites and builds a regular house of stone or logs. If, however, a man builds a summer place to which he intends to return year after year, and such is the usual custom, he usually erects a fairly substantial structure, a kind of half hogán, or house with the front part omitted. If it is possible to do so he locates this shelter on a low hill overlooking the fields which he cultivates. The restriction which requires that the opening or doorway of a regular hogán shall invariably face the east does not apply to these shelters; they face in any direction, but usually they are so placed as to face away from the prevailing wind, and, if possible, toward the fields or farms.

Figure 233 is a ground plan of a shelter of this type, which is shown also in plate LXXXV. The effect is that of a half hogán of the regular type, but with a short upright timber in place of the usual north piece. The example shown is built on a somewhat sloping site, and the ground inside has been slightly excavated, but on the front the floor reaches the general level of the ground. The principal timbers are forked together at the apex, but not strictly according to rule. The structure is also covered with earth in the regular way, and altogether appears to occupy an intermediate position between the summer shelter and the winter hut. It is a type which is common in the mountain districts and in those places where a semipermanent shelter is needed, and to which the family returns year after year.

The supporting post in front in this case was so short that the use of its fork would have made the roof too low. To overcome this the side beams were not laid directly in the fork, but a tablet or short piece of wood was inserted, as shown in figure 234, and the timbers rest on this. The entrance or open front faced to the northwest, and to protect it from the evening sun a temporary shelter of piñon brush was put up, as shown in the illustration. This feature is a common accompaniment of summer shelters and is often found with the regular winter hogán.

Figure 235 shows another type of summer shelter in plan, and figure 236 is a section of the same. It is of the “lean-to” type, and consists of a horizontal beam resting on two forked timbers and supporting a series of poles, the upper ends of which are placed against it. The structure faces the east, and the southern end is closed in like a hogán, but it was covered only with cedar boughs laid close together without an earth facing.

This shelter stood upon a slope and the timbers used in its construction were small and crooked. Perhaps on account of these disadvantages the interior was excavated, after the shelter was built, to a depth of nearly 24 inches on the higher side, as shown in figure 236. By this expedient the space under the shelter was greatly enlarged. The excavation was not carried all the way back to the foot of the rafters, but, as shown in the section, a bench or ledge some 18 inches wide was left, forming a convenient place for the many little articles which constitute the Navaho’s domestic furniture.

Mention has been made before of this interior bench, which is an interesting feature. It has been suggested by Mr Victor Mindeleff, whose well-known studies of Pueblo architecture give his suggestions weight, that we have here a possible explanation of the origin of the interior benches which are nearly always found in the kivas or ceremonial chambers of the Pueblo Indians, that the benches in the kivas may be survivals of archaic devices pertaining to the primitive type from which Pueblo architecture developed. If a low wall of masonry were used as a support for rafters, in the manner shown in figure 237, and additional space were sought by excavation, the form shown in the illustration would be retained, for the construction would be seriously weakened if the rude stonework were placed directly on the edge of the excavation. Possibly this practice has some bearing on the Pueblo requirement that the kivas should be at least partly excavated, a requirement still rigidly adhered to. The conservatism of the Indian mind in matters connected with their ceremonials is well known, and forms and practices long abandoned in ordinary house construction still survive in the building of the kivas.

Plate LXXXVI shows a shelter somewhat resembling that last described, but of more simple construction. Here the main crosspiece which forms the front of the shelter is supported by forked upright timbers, as in the previous example, and here also the fork of the main upright is too large and has been filled in.

Aside from the types described, which illustrate the more common forms of summer shelters, all kinds and degrees of variation are found. As they, unlike the regular hogán, do not follow any rule or precedent, their form depends largely on the facilities or the particular requirements or abilities of the builder. Figure 238 shows a shelter in the mountains, where timber is abundant. Except that it is not covered with earth and has no door-frame, it might be classed as a regular hogán.

Figure 239 shows a form that occurs in the valley regions where driftwood can sometimes be obtained. It is closely related to the “lean-to” type, but it is formed partly by excavating the side of a hill and is well covered with earth. It will be noticed that the front is partly closed by logs leaned against it and resting against the front crosspiece or ridgepole.

Figure 240 shows a type which is common in the valleys where timber is scarce and difficult to procure. Sage and other brush is used largely in the construction of shelters of this sort, as the few timbers which are essential can be procured only with great difficulty, and usually must be brought a great distance.

Plate LXXXVII shows a structure that might easily be mistaken for a summer shelter, but which is a special type. It is a regular hogán, so far as the frame and timber work go, but it is covered only with cedar boughs. The illustration shows a part of the covering removed. This structure was a “medicine hut,” put up for the performance of certain ceremonies over a woman who was ill. There are no traces of any fire in the interior, perhaps for the reason that the women’s ceremony is always performed in the day time. Aside from its lack of covering, it is a typical hogán, and the illustration conveys a good impression of the construction always followed. This kind of hut is called an _ĭnçá qoġán_.

Rude and primitive as these structures seem, a certain amount of knowledge and experience is necessary to build them. This has been discovered at various times by whites who have attempted to build hogáns and failed. An instance occurred not long ago where a trader, finding it necessary to build some kind of a travelers’ house, where Indians who came in to trade late in the evening or on Sunday could spend the night, decided to build a regular hogán. He employed several Navaho to do the work under his own supervision. The result was a failure, for, either on account of too much slope to the sides or for other reasons, the hogán does not remain in good order, and constant work on it is necessary to maintain it in a habitable condition.

SWEAT HOUSES

All over the reservation there are hundreds of little structures which are miniature models, as it were, of the hogáns, but they lack the projecting doorway. These little huts, scarcely as high as a man’s hip, look like children’s playhouses, but they occupy an important place both in the elaborate religious ceremonies and in the daily life of the Navaho. They are the sweat houses, called in the Navaho language _çó‘tce_, a term probably derived from _qáço‘tsil_, “sweat” and _ĭnçĭníl‘tce_, the manner in which fire is prepared for heating the stones placed in it when it is used. The structure is designed to hold only one person at a time, and he must crawl in and squat on his heels with his knees drawn up to his chin.

In the construction of these little huts a frame is made of three boughs with forked ends, and these have the same names as the corresponding timbers in a hogán. They are placed, as in the hogán, with the lower ends spread apart like a low tripod. Two straight sticks leaned against the apex form a narrow entrance, which, as in the hogán, invariably faces the east. Numerous other sticks and boughs inclose the frame, and enough bark and earth are laid on to make the structure practically air-tight when the entrance is closed.

When the place is to be used a fire is made close beside it, and in this fire numerous stones are heated. The patient to be treated is then stripped, placed inside the little hut, and given copious drafts sometimes of warm or hot water. The nearly red-hot stones are rolled in beside him and the entrance is closed with several blankets, forming in fact a hot-air bath. In a short time the air in the interior rises to a high temperature and the subject sweats profusely. When he is released he rubs himself dry with sand, or if he be ill and weak he is rubbed dry by his friends. This ceremony has a very important place in the medicine-man’s therapeutics, for devils as well as diseases are thus cast out; but aside from their religious use, the _çó‘tce_ are often visited by the Indians for the cleansing and invigorating effect of the bath, with no thought of ceremonial. The Navaho, as a race or individually, are not remarkable for cleanliness, but they use the _çó‘tce_ freely.

During the _Yébĭtcai_ dance or ceremony four _çó‘tce_ are set around the song house, about 40 yards distant from it, one at each cardinal point. The _qaçál‘i_, or chief medicine-man, sweats the patient in them on four successive mornings, just at dawn, beginning with the east and using one each morning. The _çó‘tce_ on the east is merely an uncovered frame, and after the patient enters it and hot stones have been rolled in it is covered with many blankets and a large buckskin is spread over all. On this skin the _qaçál‘i_ sprinkles iron ochers and other colored sands in striated bands, symbolic of the rainbow and sunbeams which covered the early mythic houses. He and his assistants stand near the hut shaking rattles and singing a brief song to Qastcéjĭni, at the conclusion of which the patient is released. The initial spark of the fire used at these ceremonies and for all religious purposes is obtained by friction, and is regarded as essentially different from fire produced by flint and steel or otherwise, because the first spark of friction fire was brought from Qastcéjĭni, who is the god of the underworld fire. The production of fire by friction is a very simple matter to these Indians and is often done in play; frequently, under the windy conditions that prevail in their country, in but little more time than a white man can accomplish the same result with matches. For this purpose they often use the dry, brittle stalks of the common bee weed (_Cleome pungens_). The drill, which is whirled between the palms of the hands, consists of a stalk perhaps a quarter of an inch in diameter. This is made to revolve on the edge of a small notch cut into a larger stalk, perhaps an inch in diameter. A pinch of sand is sometimes placed under the point of the drill, the rapid revolution of which produces a fine powder. This powder runs down the notch or groove, forming a little pile on the ground. Smoke is produced in less than a minute, and finally, in perhaps two minutes, tiny sparks drop on the little pile of dry powder, which takes fire from them. By careful fostering by feeding with bits of bark and grass, and with much blowing, a blaze is produced.

It is said that First-man made the first _çó‘tce_. After coming up the _qadjinaí_, or magic reed, he was very dirty; his skin was discolored and he had a foul smell like a coyote. He washed with water, but that did not cleanse him. Then Qastcéjĭni sent the firefly to instruct him concerning the _çó‘tce_ and how to rotate a spindle of wood in a notched stick. As First-man revolved the spindle, or drill, between his hands, Firefly ignited the dust at its point with a spark of fire which Qastcéjĭni had given it for that purpose. There is another myth concerning the origin of these little sweat houses which does not agree with that just stated. According to this myth, the _çó‘tce_ were made by the Sun when the famous twins, Nayénĕzgani and Ço‘badjĭstcíni, who play so large a part in Navaho mythology, were sent to him by Estsánatlehi. When they reached the house of the Sun they called him father, as they had been instructed to do, but the Sun disowned them and subjected them to many ordeals, and even thrust at them with a spear, but the mother had given each of the youths a magic feather mantle impervious to any weapon. Kléhanoai (the night bearer--the moon) also scoffed at them and filled the mind of the Sun with doubts concerning the paternity of the twins, so he determined to subject them to a further ordeal.

He made four _çó‘tce_, but instead of using wood in their construction he made them of a metallic substance, like iron. He placed these at the cardinal points and sent the moon to make a fire near each of them. This fire was obtained from the “burning stars,” the comets. The _çó‘tce_ were made exceedingly hot and the twins were placed in them successively; but instead of being harmed they came out of the last one stronger and more vigorous than ever. Then the Sun acknowledged them as his sons and gave the elder one the magic weapons with which he destroyed the evil genii who infested the Navaho land. This is the reason, the Navaho say, why it is well to have many _çó‘tce_ and to use them frequently. Their use gives rest and sweet sleep after hard work; it invigorates a man for a long journey and refreshes him after its accomplishment.

First-woman, after coming up the _qadjinaí_, was also foul and ill smelling, and after First-man she also used the _çó‘tce_. Hence the Navaho women use the _çó‘tce_ like the men, but never together except under a certain condition medical in character. The _çó‘tce_ is built usually in some secluded spot, and frequently large parties of men go together to spend the better part of a day in the enjoyment of the luxury of a sweat bath and a scour with sand. On another day the women of the neighborhood get together and do the same, and the men regard their privacy strictly.

EFFECT OF MODERN CONDITIONS

Up to a comparatively recent period the Navaho have been what is usually termed a “wild tribe;” that is, they have existed principally by war and plunder. Since the conquest of the country by General Kearny and the “Army of the West,” in 1846, they have given us but little trouble, but prior to that time they preyed extensively on the Pueblo Indians and the Mexican settlements along the Rio Grande. Practically all their wealth today, and they are a wealthy tribe, consists of thousands of sheep and goats and hundreds of horses, all descended from flocks and herds originally stolen. When the country came into the possession of the United States marauding expeditions became much less frequent, and almost insensibly the tribe changed from a predatory to a pastoral people. But aside from the infrequency or absence of armed expeditions the life of the people remained much the same under the changed conditions. When the Atlantic and Pacific railroad entered the country some sixteen or seventeen years ago traders came with it, although there were a few in the country before, and numerous trading posts were established in the reservation and about its borders. The effect of this was to fix the pastoral habits of the people. Wool and pelts were exchanged for flour, sugar, and coffee, and for calico prints and dyes, and gradually a demand for these articles was established.

The men looked after their herds of horses and took very good care of the few cattle that drifted into the reservation; the women attended to their domestic duties and, with the aid of the children, took care of the sheep and goats, which, according to long-established custom, belonged exclusively to them. Agriculture was practically unknown. But with the removal of the duty on wool a new era opened for the Navaho. The price of wool fell to about one-half of the former figure, and a flock of sheep no longer furnished the means for procuring the articles which had grown to be necessities. The people were gradually but surely forced to horticulture to procure the means of subsistence. It is this tendency which is especially destructive of the old house-building ideas, and which will eventually cause a complete change in the houses of the people. Recently the tendency has been emphasized by the construction, under governmental supervision, of a number of small irrigating ditches in the mountain districts. The result of these works must be eventually to collect the Navaho into small communities, and practically to destroy the present pastoral life and replace it with new and, perhaps, improved conditions.

But many of the arts of the Navaho, and especially their house building, grew out of and conformed to the old methods of life. It is hardly to be supposed that they will continue under the new conditions, and, in fact, pronounced variations are already apparent. Up to ten years ago there was so little change that it might be said that there was none; since then the difference can be seen by everyone. Should the price of wool rise in the near future the change that has been suggested might be checked, but it has received such an impetus that the Navaho will always henceforth pay much more attention to horticulture than they have in the past, and this means necessarily a modification in the present methods of house building. The average Navaho farm, and almost every adult male now has a small garden patch, comprises less than half an acre, while two acres is considered a large area to be worked by one family at one time.

One result of this industrial development of the people is an increased permanency of dwellings. As the flocks of sheep and goats diminish and their care becomes less important, greater attention is paid to the selection of sites for homes, and they are often located now with reference to a permanent occupancy and with regard to the convenience of the fields, which in some cases furnish the main source of subsistence of the family. As a collateral result of these conditions and tendencies an effort is now sometimes made to build houses on the American plan; that is, to imitate the houses of the whites. Such houses are a wide departure from the original ideas of house structures of the Navaho. They are rectangular in plan, sometimes with a board roof, and occasionally comprise several rooms. When the local conditions favor it they are constructed of stone, regular walls of masonry; but perhaps the greater number of those now in existence are in the mountain districts, and were built of logs, often hewn square before being laid in place. Plate LXXXVIII shows a stone house belonging to one of the wealthiest men in the tribe, Bitcai by name. It is situated on the western slope of the Tunicha mountains and was built some years ago, but it is a type of house which is becoming more and more frequent on the reservation. There is practically nothing aboriginal about it except a part of its interior furniture and its inhabitants, and the only one of the old requirements that has been met is the fronting of the house to the east, while the character of the site and the natural conditions demand a western front.

The log houses referred to are constructed much like the stone house shown in the illustration, except that they are built usually by Indian labor and ordinarily are covered with flat earthen roofs. Frequently the logs are hewn square before being placed in the walls, which present a very neat and finished appearance. Sometimes door and window frames are procured from the sawmill or from the traders, and add to such appearance, while nearly always one or more glazed sashes occupy the window openings and board doors close the entrances. In nearly all cases the requirement that the entrance should face the east is observed, but it is being more and more ignored, and in the houses constructed within the last few years the ancient custom is frequently violated. Unless the principal entrance were made to face the east, the performers in the dedicatory ceremonies could not take their prescribed positions and the ceremony would have to be either modified or omitted altogether.

CEREMONIES OF DEDICATION

Among the Pueblo Indians there are certain rituals and ceremonial observances connected with the construction of the houses, but in the Navaho system nothing of a ceremonial nature is introduced until the conclusion of the manual labor. Usually there are enough volunteers to finish the work in one day, and by evening everything is ready for the dedication. The wife sweeps out the house with a wisp of grass and she or her husband makes a fire on the floor directly under the smoke hole. She then goes to her bundles of household effects, which are still outside, and pours a quantity of white cornmeal into a shallow saucer-shape basket. She hands this to the _qasçíŋ_, or head of the family, who enters the hogán and rubs a handful of the dry meal on the five principal timbers which form the _tsá¢i_ or frame, beginning with the south doorway timber. He rubs the meal only on one place, as high up as he can reach easily, and then does the same successively on the south timber, the west timber, the north timber, and the north doorway timber. While making these gifts, as the proceeding is termed, the man preserves a strict silence, and then, as with a sweeping motion of his hand from left to right (_cabĭkégo_, as the sun travels) he sprinkles the meal around the outer circumference of the floor, he says in low measured tones--

_Qojónli_ _coġán_
May it be delightful my house;

_Cĭtsĭ´dje_ _qojónli_
From my head may it be delightful;

_Cĭké¢e_ _qojónli_
To my feet may it be delightful;

_Ciyá¢e_ _qojónli_
Where I lie may it be delightful;

_Cĭkígĭ ¢áltso_ _qojónli_
All above me may it be delightful;

_Cĭná ¢áltso_ _qojónli_
All around me may it be delightful.

He then flings a little of the meal into the fire, saying--

_Qojónli hóçe_ _cĭkóŋ_
May it he delightful and well, my fire.

and tosses a handful or two up through the smoke hole, saying--

_Qojónli_ _Tcíŋhanoaí_ _cĭçá naiĭcní‘_
May it be delightful Sun (day carrier), my mother’s ancestor,
for this gift;

_Qojónli_ _nacále_ _coġán_
May it be delightful as I walk around my house.

Then two or three handfuls of meal are sprinkled out of the doorway while he says--

_Qojónli_ _caĕ´çin_ _cĭçá_
May it be delightful this road of light, my mother’s ancestor.

The woman then makes an offering to the fire by throwing a few small handfuls of meal upon it, and as she sprinkles it she says in a subdued voice--

_Qojónli_ _cĭkóŋ_
May it be delightful my fire;

_Qojónli_ _caltcíni_ _¢áltso yahóçe_
May it be delightful for my children; may all be well;

_Qojónli_ _cibeaçán_ _¢áltso yahóçe_
May it be delightful with my food and theirs; may all be well;

_¢áltso cĭnalgéya_ _yahóçe ¢olel‘_
All my possessions well may they be made
(that is, may they be made to increase);

_¢áltso cĭl‘íŋ_ _yahóçe ¢olel‘_
All my flocks well may they be made (to increase).

When a hogán is built for a woman who has no husband, or if the husband is absent at the time, the wife performs all these ceremonies. In the absence of white cornmeal, yellow cornmeal is sometimes used, but never the _çqa¢ĭçíŋ ¢oçlĭ´j_, the sacred blue pollen of certain flowers, which is reserved exclusively for the rites of the shaman.

By the time these forms have been observed night will have fallen. During the day, while the house building was in progress, the women were busily engaged in preparing food; all now gather inside the hogán, a blanket is suspended over the door frame, all the possessions of the family are bought in, sheepskins are spread on the floor, the fire is brightened and the men all squat around it. The women bring in food in earthen cooking pots and basins, and, having set them down among the men, they huddle together by themselves to enjoy the occasion as spectators. Every one helps himself from the pots by dipping in with his fingers, the meat is broken into pieces, and the bones are gnawed upon and sociably passed from hand to hand. When the feast is finished tobacco and corn husks are produced, cigarettes are made, everyone smokes, and convivial gossipy talk prevails. This continues for two or three hours, when the people who live near by get up their horses and ride home. Those from a long distance either find places to sleep in the hogán or wrap themselves in their blankets and sleep at the foot of a tree. This ceremony is known as the _qoġán aiíla_, a kind of salutation to the house.

But the _qoġán bĭgĭ´n_, the house devotions, have not yet been observed. Occasionally these take place as soon as the house is finished, but usually there is an interval of several days to permit the house builders to invite all their friends and to provide the necessary food for their entertainment. Although analogous to the Anglo-Saxon “house warming,” the _qoġán bĭgĭ´n_, besides being a merrymaking for the young people, has a much more solemn significance for the elders. If it be not observed soon after the house is built bad dreams will plague the dwellers therein, toothache (dreaded for mystic reasons) will torture them, and the evil influence from the north will cause them all kinds of bodily ill; the flocks will dwindle, ill luck will come, ghosts will haunt the place, and the house will become _bátsĭç_, tabooed.

A few days after the house is finished an arrangement is made with some shaman (_qaçál‘i_, devotional singer) to come and sing the ceremonial house songs. For this service he always receives a fee from those who engage him, perhaps a few sheep or their value, sometimes three or four horses or their equivalent, according to the circumstances of the house builders. The social gathering at the _qoġán bĭgĭ´n_ is much the same as that of the _qoġán aiíla_, when the house is built, except that more people are usually invited to the former. They feast and smoke, interchange scandal, and talk of other topics of interest, for some hours. Presently the _qaçál‘i_ seats himself under the main west timber so as to face the east, and the singing begins.

In this ceremony no rattle is used. The songs are begun by the shaman in a drawling tone and all the men join in. The _qaçál‘i_ acts only as leader and director. Each one, and there are many of them in the tribe, has his own particular songs, fetiches, and accompanying ceremonies, and after he has pitched a song he listens closely to hear whether the correct words are sung. This is a matter of great importance, as the omission of a part of the song or the incorrect rendering of any word would entail evil consequences to the house and its inmates. All the house songs of the numerous _qaçál‘i_ are of similar import but differ in minor details.

The first song is addressed to the east, and is as follows:

_House song to the East_

_Qa‘ádje_ _biyádje_ _beqoġán_ _aiíla_
Far in the east far below there a house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Qastcéyalçi_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
God of Dawn there his house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Qayol‘kál‘_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
The Dawn there his house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Naçáŋ l‘akaí_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
White Corn there its house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Yu´¢i alçqasaí_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Soft possessions for them a house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Ço‘l‘á_ _nastcín_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_,
Water in plenty surrounding for it a house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Çqa¢ĭçíŋ_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Corn pollen for it a house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Sáŋa nagaí_ _aiíla bĭké_ _qojón_
The ancients make their presence delightful;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

Immediately following this song, but in a much livelier measure, the following benedictory chant is sung:

_Cĭtsĭ´dje_ _qojógo_
Before me may it be delightful;

_Cĭké¢e_ _qojógo_
Behind me may it be delightful;

_Cĭná¢e_ _qojógo_
Around me may it be delightful;

_Ciyági_ _qojógo_
Below me may it be delightful;

_Cĭkígi_ _qojógo_
Above me may it be delightful;

_¢áltso_ _qojógo_
All (universally) may it be delightful.

After a short interval the following is sung to the west:

_House song to the West_

_Iŋiŋádje_ _biyádje_ _beqoġán_ _aiíla_
Far in the west far below there a house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Qastcéqoġan_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
God of Twilight there his house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Naqotsói_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_,
Yellow light of evening there his house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Naçáŋ ĭl‘tsói_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Yellow corn there its house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Ĭntlĭ´z alçqasaí_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Hard possessions there their house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Ço‘biáji_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Young rain there its house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Çqa¢ĭçíŋ_ _bebiqoġán_ _aiíla_
Corn pollen there its house was made;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

_Sáŋa nagaí_ _aiíla bĭké_ _qojón_
The ancients make their presence delightful;

_Qojón_ _qoġáne_
Delightful house.

The song to the west is also followed by the benedictory chant, as above, and after this the song which was sung to the east is repeated; but this time it is addressed to the south. The song to the west is then repeated, but addressed to the north, and the two songs are repeated alternately until each one has been sung three times to each cardinal point. The benedictory chant is sung between each repetition.

All the men present join in the singing under the leadership of the shaman, who does not himself sing, but only starts each song. The women never sing at these gatherings, although on other occasions, when they get together by themselves, they sing very sweetly. It is quite common to hear a primitive kind of part singing, some piping in a curious falsetto, others droning a deep bass.

The songs are addressed to each of the cardinal points, because in the Navaho system different groups of deities are assigned to each of these points. The Navaho also makes a distinction between heavy rain and light rain. The heavy rain, such as accompanies thunderstorms, is regarded as the “male rain,” while the gentle showers or “young rains,” coming directly from the house of Estsánatlehi, are regarded as especially beneficent; but both are deemed necessary to fertilize. A distinction is also made between “hard possessions,” such as turquois and coral beads, shell ornaments, and all articles made from hard substances, and “soft possessions,” which comprise blankets and all textile substances, skins, etc. The Navaho prays that his house may cover many of both hard and soft possessions.

The songs given above are known as the twelve house-songs, although there are only two songs, each repeated twelve times. These are sung with many variations by the different _qaçál‘i_, and while the builders are preparing for this ceremony they discuss which _qaçál‘i_ has the best and most beautiful words before they decide which one to engage. But the songs are invariably addressed to the deities named, Qastcéyalçi, the God of Dawn, and Qastcéqoġan, the God of Twilight; and they always have the same general significance.

After the “twelve songs” are finished many others are sung: to Estsánatlehi, a benignant Goddess of the West, and to Yol‘kaí Estsán, the complementary Goddess of the East; to the sun, the dawn, and the twilight; to the light and to the darkness; to the six sacred mountains, and to many other members of a very numerous theogony. Other song-prayers are chanted directly to malign influences, beseeching them to remain far off: to _ĭntcóŋgi_, evil in general; to _dakús_, coughs and lung evils, and to the _bĭ¢akúji_, sorcerers, praying them not to come near the dwelling. The singing of the songs is so timed that the last one is delivered just as the first gray streaks of dawn appear, when the visitors round up their horses and ride home.

THE HOGÁN OF THE YÉBĬTCAI DANCE

Despite the ceremonies which have been performed, it frequently happens that malign influences affect the new dwelling. The inmates suffer from toothache, or sore eyes, or have bad dreams, or ghosts are heard in the night. Then the house ceremony is repeated. If after this the conditions still prevail and threatening omens are noted, an effort is made to ascertain the cause. Perhaps the husband recalls an occasion when he was remiss in some religious duty, or the wife may remember having seen accidentally an unmasked dancer, or they may be convinced that a sorcerer, a _¢ĭlkúji_, is practicing his evil art. Such malign influences must be due to some definite cause, and it must be found. Then, if the cause be grave, resort must be had to a very elaborate ceremony, the dance of the _Yébĭtcai_.

For the observance of this ceremony it is usual to construct a flat-roof hut called _iyá¢askuni_, meaning, literally, “under the flat.” The roof is nearly square as well as flat, and the edifice, with its spreading base, suggests a truncated pyramid; but as it is roughly covered with earth heaped over the entire structure it is externally little more than a shapeless mound. Plate LXXXIX is an exterior view of one of these special hogáns, which is also shown in plan in figure 241.

When it has been decided to build an _iyá¢askuni_ all the young men of the neighborhood join in the labor while some of the older men direct them in the prescribed methods. The procedure is much the same as that employed in building the regular hogán, but larger timbers are required. Any kind of timber growing in the vicinity is used; but as groves of piñon and juniper are most abundant in the Navaho country, these are the kinds usually employed. The stunted, twisted trunks of these trees make it a matter of some difficulty to find the necessary timbers of sufficient size, for they must be at least a foot in diameter. When found, the trees are cut down and carried to the site selected, which must have fairly level surroundings, free from dense wood and underbrush, so as to afford a clear space for the ceremonial processions and dances. Four heavy posts are necessary--“legs,” the Navaho call them--and these must be trimmed so as to leave a strong fork at the top of each at least 6 feet from the ground when set upright. Four others, for the horizontal roof-beams, must be 10 feet long, but without forks; and two more, the straightest and longest, are necessary for the doorway passage. These ten timbers are called _tsá¢i_, the same term that is applied to the five main timbers of the ordinary hogán.

The four posts are set firmly in the ground in shallow holes at distances apart corresponding to the length of the main roof-beams, and so arranged as to describe a square, the sides of which face the cardinal points. The prescribed position of the doorway is the center of the eastern side, and it must face the east exactly. The post at the southeastern corner is the first to be set, then the one at the southwestern corner, with the forks arranged on the same line. The northwestern post is then set, and finally the one at the northeastern corner, and the forks of the last two are also placed on the same line. In the ground plan (figure 241) the posts are numbered in the order in which they are set up. This sequence is not always strictly followed, but the old men say that this is the proper way.

The beam for the southern side of the roof is next lifted into place and laid so as to rest in the forks of the two posts on that side, with the ends projecting a little beyond them. The beam on the northern side is similarly placed, and the western and the eastern beams are next laid so that their ends rest upon the ends of the beams already in place. Another timber is then placed parallel with the eastern beam, as shown on the plan. This forms the western side of the smoke-hole and also a support for the smaller roof-timbers to rest upon. Sometimes an additional timber is laid across for this purpose between the one last named and the next beam. The two timbers for the sides of the doorway passage are then placed in position about 3 feet apart and leaning against the eastern roof-beam. The butt ends rest upon the ground, and the space between them should be in the center of the eastern side. All the main posts and beams are stripped of bark, the rough knobs and protuberances are hewn off, and they are finished according to the skill of the builders or the exactions of the old men who superintend the construction.

While this work is in progress a great number of smaller and less shapely timbers are procured for the sides and roof. To determine a pitch for the sloping sides all the workers arrange themselves so as to encompass the square frame, and a few of the longest of the irregular timbers are placed here and there around it, leaning against the beams. They are roughly aligned, and some attempt is made to have the sides of the same slope. The floor area thus determined, the outer edge of which would fall 4 to 6 feet outside the posts, is then lightly dug over to remove all irregularities, and is made as level as possible.

As in the ordinary hogán, the upright posts of the door-frame are set near the lower ends of the doorway timbers, and the roof and sides of the doorway are covered in when the sides of the hut are inclosed, which is the next step in the construction. Small tree trunks and timbers are placed closely around the excavated floor area, with their upper ends leaning against the roof beams. They are not set very regularly and boughs are often used to fill the larger crevices, while the corners are turned in a clumsy manner, with the tops of the timbers overlapping each other, while the butts diverge in a haphazard curve.

The roof is laid with smaller timbers, the longest resting on the smoke-hole timber and the western beam, while the shorter pieces span the smaller interval from the former timber to the eastern beam. The arrangement of the smoke exit differs from that of the ordinary hogán. In the latter an open space is left between the doorway timbers at their upper ends; in the _iyá¢askuni_ the doorway roof is continued up to the eastern beam, which forms the eastern side of the smoke hole. This hole is in the main roof, in line with the doorway but just beyond the ends of its timbers, and it is usually about 3 feet square. Figure 242 is an interior view of the frame, looking outward. The structure is finished like the hogáns; the frame is covered by heavy layers of cedar or juniper bark over the sides and roof, and finally with a deep covering of earth packed firmly over the whole exterior. The door frame is usually about 4 feet high and 2-1/2 feet wide; the roof is about 7 feet high in the interior, and the floor area measures roughly 20 feet square, with the four posts standing about 5 feet from the base of the sides. Figure 243 shows some actual measurements.

While the _Yébĭtcai_ ceremony is in progress the hut is occupied by the _qaçál‘i_ and his assistants and by the young men who assume the sacred masks and personate the various deities in the nightly dances. In the mornings the _qaçál‘i_ sits under the western side of the hut and directs the young men in the process of sand painting, the making of curious sand mosaics delineating mythologic subjects. The materials used are dry sand, charcoal, and powdered ochers of different colors, which are poured from the hand between the thumb and fingers. Without the use of a brush or other implement the trickling stream is guided to form intricate designs. These designs are made directly on the earthen floor in a zone about 3 feet wide and extending nearly the entire length of the hut from north to south. This zone, called the _iká‘_, is made in front of the _qaçál‘i_, and between him and the fire, which is reduced to small dimensions to enable him to work close under the opening in the roof. During the process the door is closed with the usual hanging blanket, and to increase the light from above a buckskin or white cloth is sometimes suspended as a reflector on a light frame of boughs erected on the roof on the western side of the smoke hole.

The mask recess, which is found in all the larger hogáns, is always made in the middle of the western side of the _iyá¢askuni_. It is usually somewhat wider and deeper than in the ordinary dwelling. The bundles containing the masks and other paraphernalia to be used in the ceremony are placed in the recess by the _qaçál‘i_, who then fastens a skin or cloth across it. The upper edge at a height of about 3 feet from the floor is fastened with strings to the sloping timbers. The lower edge is held by small pegs driven into the edge of the bench-like ledge of earth which marks the limits of the floor. When he needs them the _qaçál‘i_ reaches behind the curtain for the paraphernalia he has previously prepared and deposited there. The masks must never be seen except when worn by the dancers, nor are the fetiches exposed except when certain rites demand their display.

This recess is called by the Navaho _djĭc bĭnasklá_, literally “mask recess.” Besides its practical use it has a mythic significance, as it indicates the position occupied by First-man, who sat there with Qastcéyalçi (Dawn) and Qastcéqoġan (Twilight) on either hand, in the house where the Corn people were made. They also occupied similar positions in the house in which they made the celestial bodies, and also in the first _iyá¢askuni_, which was made by them to celebrate the occurrence of the first menstruation of Estsánatlehi.

No special veneration attaches to the _iyá¢askuni_ except when a ceremony is in progress. At that time it is devoted exclusively to the _qaçál‘i_ and the other actors in the rites, and it is then known as _qaçál‘ biqoġan_, the song house. Perhaps the family for whose benefit it was first used may have contributed the larger share of the food for the workers who constructed it, but it is not held to be the exclusive property of any one person; it is for the use of the neighborhood. In the summer time, during which season no important rites are celebrated, the women often erect their vertical looms there and use it as a workroom. Some of the neighbors may find it convenient to occupy it temporarily, or when some occasion brings an influx of visitors they adjourn to the flat-roof house, if there be one near, to smoke and gamble and sleep there. But it is rarely used as a dwelling in winter, as it would have to be vacated whenever one of the neighbors wished to have a ceremony performed. Moreover, owing to its large size, it would be more difficult to keep warm than the more compact hogán.

HOGÁN NOMENCLATURE

_qoġán ĭl‘tcĭ´n ¢ezá‘_--conical hut; probably from _siníl_, a plural
article pronoun; _tsĭn_, a timber; and _¢ezá‘_, a point.

_qoġán ¢ĭtcóli_--round, inclosed hut. Both this term and the preceding
are used to designate the ordinary dwelling hut, but the former is
more commonly used.

_qaá‘a_--east.

_ca¢aá_--south.

_iŋiŋá_--west.

_náqokos_--north.

_náni_--flat, bevel.

_iiái_--vertical.

_hĭ´nia‘_--slanting.

_nanaái_--a long straight object, as a timber.

_ca¢aá¢e naaí_--south timber. } The (five) principal
_iŋiŋá¢e naaí_--west timber. } timbers composing the
_nâqokos¢e naaí_--north timber. } frame, collectively
_tcíŋĕçin¢e naaí_--doorway timbers (two). } called--

_tsá¢i_--frame. Sometimes these timbers are called--

_ca¢aádje naaí_, _iŋiŋádje naaí_, etc. _¢e_ means “here,” or “brought
here;” _dje_ means “there” or “set there.” The western timber is also
specially designated--

_bigídje nolká¢_, brought together into it; an allusion to its function
as the main support of the frame, as the other two timbers rest within
its spreading fork. The two doorway timbers are also designated as
north or south timber respectively. They are also called--

_tcíŋĕçin bĭnĭnĭ´li_, those in place at the doorway passage.

_¢ezá‘_--a point; the forked apex.

_l‘éjça_--the ground; the floor.

_bitúça_--surrounding projection; the ledge or undisturbed margin of the
floor area.

_tcíŋĕçin_--the road there; the doorway. This term appears to mean “the
road there” to the east--that is, to _tcíŋhanoai_, the sun. The word
_tciŋ_ also means day.

_tcíŋĕçin sĭlái_--the uprights of the door frame. They are also called--

_tcíŋeçin iái_--but this, strictly speaking, means one upright.