he
clay vessels until they are waterproof, and they carry them weary miles
to the railway to sell them to the tourists so that their children may
have food and clothing.

The Hopi woman brings water to the village up a mile or two of
heart-breaking trail, carrying it in great ollas set on her head or
slung on her back. She must have water to make the mush for supper, and
such trivial things as a shampoo or a bath are indulged in only just
before the annual Snake Dance. Religion demands it then!

Where water is plentiful, however, the Indians bathe and swim daily.
They keep their hair clean and shining with frequent mud baths! Black,
sticky mud from the bottom of the river is plastered thickly over the
scalp and rubbed into the hair, where it is left for several hours. When
it is washed away the hair is soft, and gleams like the sheeny wing of
the blackbird. Root of the yucca plant is beaten into a pulp and used as
a shampoo cream by other tribes. Cosmetics are not greatly in use among
these women. They grow very brown and wrinkled at an early age, just
when our sheltered women are looking their best. This is accounted for
by the hard lives they live, exposed to the burning summer suns and
biting winter winds, and by cooking over smoky campfires or hovering
over them for warmth in the winter.

An Indian's hands are never beautiful in an artistic sense. How could
they be? They dress and tan the sheep and deer hides; they make
moccasins and do exquisite bead work; they cut and carry the wood and
keep the fires burning. They cook the meals and sit patiently by until
the men have gobbled their fill before they partake. They care tenderly
for the weaklings among the flocks of sheep and goats. Navajo women
often nurse a deserted or motherless lamb at their own ample breasts.
They make clothes for themselves and their families, although to look at
the naked babies one would not think the dress-making business
flourished.

But with all the duties incumbent on an Indian mother she never neglects
her children. They are taught all that she thinks will help them live
good lives. The girls grow up with the knowledge that their destiny is
to become good wives and mothers. They are taught that their bodies must
be kept strong and fit to bear many children. And when the years of
childhood are passed they know how to establish homes of their own.

Many interesting customs are followed during courtship among the tribes.
The Pueblos,