their high mesas the people
have been safe from every attack of an enemy, but their fields and
flocks in the valley below were defenseless. The top of the several
mesas can only be reached by ascending steep and difficult trails which
are hard to climb but easy to defend. The paths on the mesas have been
cut deep into the hard rock, which were worn by the soft tread of
moccasined feet during centuries of travel, numbering, perhaps, several
times the four hundred years that are known to history.

The houses are built of stone and mortar, and rise in terraces from one
to five stories high, back from a street or court to a sheer wall.
Some of the remodeled and newly built houses have modern doors and
windows. The upper stories are reached from the outside by ladders and
stone stairways built into the walls. The rooms are smoothly plastered
and whitewashed and the houses are kept tidy and clean, but the streets
are dirty and unsanitary.

In these sky cities the Moquis live a retired life that is well suited
to their quiet dispositions, love of home life and tireless industry.
The men are kind, the women virtuous and the children obedient.
Indeed, the children are unusually well behaved. They seldom quarrel
or cry, and a spoiled child cannot be found among them. The Moquis
love peace, and never fight among themselves. If a dispute occurs it
is submitted to a peace council of old men, whose decision is final and
obeyed without a murmur.

They are shy and suspicious of strangers, but if addressed by the magic
word lolomi, their reserve is instantly gone. It is the open sesame to
their hearts and homes, and after that the house contains nothing too
good to bestow upon the welcome guest. They are true children of
nature, and have not yet become corrupted by the vices of white
civilization. The worst thing they do is that the men smoke tobacco.

Their industries are few, but afford sufficient income to provide for
their modest needs. They are primarily tillers of the soil, and as
agriculturists succeed under circumstances that would wholly baffle and
discourage an eastern farmer. Several years ago a man was sent out
from Washington to teach the Moquis agriculture, but before a year had
passed the teacher had to buy corn from the Indians. They make baskets
and pottery, weave cloth and dress skins for their own use and to
barter in trade with their neighbors. They like silver and have
skilled workmen who make the