among whom are the Hopis, have a pretty way by which the
maidens announce their matrimonial aspirations. How? By putting their
soft black hair, which heretofore has been worn loose, into huge whorls
above the ears. This is called the squash-blossom headdress and
signifies maturity. When this age is reached, the maiden makes up her
mind just which lad she wants, then lets him know about it. The Hopi
girl does her proposing by leaving some cornmeal piki or other edible
prepared by her own hands at the door of the selected victim under cover
of darkness. He usually knows who has left it, and then, if "Barkis is
willin'," he eats out of the same bowl of mush with her, the medicine
man holds a vessel of water into which both dip their hands, and the
wedding ceremony is finished. He moves into the bride's house and they
presumably live happily ever afterward. However, squalls do arise
sometimes, and then the husband is likely to come home from work in the
fields or a night at the lodge and find his wardrobe done up in his
Sunday bandanna waiting on the doorstep for him. In that case all he can
do is take his belongings and "go home to mother." His wife has divorced
him by merely throwing his clothes out of her house.

Navajo bucks purchase their wives for a certain number of sheep or
horses, as do also the Supai, Cheyenne, Apache, and other desert tribes.
There is not much fuss made over divorce among them, either. If a wife
does not like her husband's treatment of her, she refuses to cook for
him or to attend to any of her duties, and he gladly sends her back to
her father. He, like Solomon of old, agrees that "it is better to dwell
alone in the wilderness than with an angry and contentious woman." The
father doesn't mind getting her back, because he keeps the original
purchase price and will also collect from the next brave that wants to
take a chance on her; why should he worry? In a few instances braves
have been known to trade wives and throw in an extra pony or silver belt
to settle all difficulties. The missionaries are doing much to
discourage this practice and are trying to teach the Indians to marry in
a civilized manner. In case they do succeed let us hope that while the
savages embrace the marrying idea they will not emulate civilized people
in divorce matters.

For a primitive people with all the untrained impulses and natural
instincts of animals, there is surprisingly little sexual immorality
among the tribes