Although convinced that his plan was bad, we arranged to begin work the following morning; with instruments and regidor we presented ourselves in the market, picking out a suitable spot and preparing for work. Then I told the regidor to bring a subject. The market-place was crowded, probably two or three hundred women being there gathered. Approaching the nearest of them, the regidor politely asked her to step up and be measured. We were not, however, dealing with Triquis. The women of Tehuantepec are certainly the heads of their houses; the men occupy but an inferior position. Possibly, they are really larger than their husbands, but, whether that be true or not, they give that impression to the spectator. The lady indicated lost no time in assuring the regidor that she had no intention of being measured, and he returned crest-fallen to report results. He met with no sympathy. I told him he had been sent to bring the women, that my business was simply to measure them; that if he would do his duty, I would do mine. He made two other efforts, equally futile, and finally returning, said he thought an order would be necessary. I told him, if he had not already an order I did not know what an order was; that the jefe had distinctly told me what he was to do; that he was not doing it. He then said he had better go to the palace a moment; would I kindly wait. I waited. He soon reappeared, and started in bravely with a new subject, but was again repulsed. Returning, he said that we had better go up to the palace and interview the jefe again. I replied that I had no time to spare; that we had already lost two hours at the palace, waiting for the jefe to appear, and that I did not propose to lose more time; that he knew what I expected, and must either do it, or I would return to my hotel. He helplessly remarked that we had better see the jefe, whereupon I picked up my instruments and departed to the hotel. Leaving my instruments at the hotel, I decided, while matters were adjusting themselves—for I had no thought of bothering myself further—to call upon the bishop. Sallying from the hotel, I met upon the street the regidor and two other town officials, who were awaiting me. "Sir," said he, "will you not measure the women?" "No," said I, "I am going to call upon the bishop. I have no time to waste. We went once to measure the women, but you had no power; your jefe plainly is a man without authority." "No, sir," cried he, "the jefe has issued a strict order that the women must be measured." "No matter," I replied, "I have no time to waste. I shall make my call." With this I entered the bishop's palace, and had an interesting visit with that prelate. When leaving the palace, I found the regidor and four town officials, awaiting my appearance. He at once demanded whether it was not my intention to measure the women. He said that he had been to see the jefe, and that the jefe said my wishes must be obeyed. I asked him where it was proposed to measure the women, and he replied that it should be wherever I pleased. "Very good," said I. "We will measure them in the court-yard of the jefe's palace; have subjects brought there at once, and send a man to my hotel for my instruments."
To the palace we went, and thither shortly four policemen brought a woman from the market. With bad grace, she submitted to be measured, after which the four policemen went again to the market, and soon after reappeared with a second subject. So the work went on, with four policemen to each woman, until our full number was finally secured and the work completed.
Three years ago, on my return from Guatemala, I met in this city an English doctor named Castle, who has lived here for many years—a man of scientific tastes and interests, who has employed his leisure in studying the botany, zoology, and indians of the district. He is well-informed, and one of the few persons acquainted with the Juaves. I counted on his help in approaching that curious and little-known tribe. The doctor's house is full of pets; eight different kinds of parrots, a red and yellow macaw, a brilliant-billed, dark-plumaged toucan, an angora goat, a raccoon, dogs and cats, are a part of the happy family that prowls at large in his house. A little creature, an indian, no more than eight years old, has adopted the doctor for her father. She had come to him as a patient for a trouble by no means uncommon here—night-blindness; in caring for her, he gained the little creature's heart, and she will hardly hear of leaving him to return home. The doctor accompanied us on our first visit to San Blas, and told us many things, not only of the Juaves, but of the Zapotecs and other indians of the region.
From the hotel, in the heart of Tehuantepec, to the town-house of San Blas, is a walk of only twenty minutes. Here for three days we did our work, returning to our hotel for meals and lodging. The work went easily, the men presenting little or no objection to our operations; measurements, busts, portraits—all were taken. On the whole, the Tehuantepecanos do not present a simple, pure indian type. The women seemed to be purer than the men. The secretario at San Blas has been to school. He is one of the few indians of the district who has taken an interest in the study of his native tongue. He has already published a grammar of the Zapotec, as spoken in his village. He has also printed a little tract for lovers, in which high-sounding phrases are translated from the Spanish into Zapotec. He has also prepared, and holds in manuscript, a dictionary of the dialect containing some 4,000 words.
The visit to the Juaves we considered one of the most important and interesting of our journey. These people are conservative, and among the least known of the native populations of Mexico. There are but four towns, with a total population of probably less than three thousand persons. These towns are situated at a few leagues' distance from Tehuantepec, near the Pacific, upon narrow tongues of land, washed by salt lagoons. The nearest, largest, and according to Dr. Castle, the most conservative of the four towns, is San Mateo del Mar. We had hoped that Dr. Castle might accompany us on our journey. This, however, was impossible, but he suggested that he would go with us part of the way. To avoid the great heat, we travelled by night, as there was moonlight. Hiring a carretero at San Blas, we loaded our materials and instruments into the cart, and started it upon its way. At about four o'clock in the afternoon, we rode from Tehuantepec, taking a roundabout road in order to see the hill which gives name to the town. It was Sunday, and many women and girls had been visiting the cemetery, carrying bowls filled with flowers to put upon the graves of friends. We saw numbers of young fellows sitting by the roadside, and learned that they were the lovers of the young women, awaiting their return from the cemetery.
The name Tehuantepec means the mountain of man-eaters. These man-eaters were not men, but tigers, or ocelots. The story runs that long ago this mountain was infested with wild beasts who destroyed the people of the neighboring villages. Fearing extermination, the people of the town decided to consult the Juaves, who were famous for their naguales, or witches. The oldest and most skilled naguál of the tribe was employed. Having performed his incantations, he told them they might expect immediate deliverance; that he had conjured a deliverer from the sea. Soon there came forth from the water a gigantic turtle, who made his way slowly inland, until he reached the bottom of the hill, which was the home of the tigers. The dangerous animals were just descending from the mountain in a double line, but the moment they caught sight of the mammoth sea-monster, their bodies froze with terror and they were turned to stone. Terrified at the power of the creature he had conjured, the old naguál quickly made use of his most powerful incantation, with the result that the turtle also was transformed into stone. The proof of the truth of the story we saw in the lines of stone tigers on the mountain side and the stone turtle at the foot of the hill, as we rode by.
The doctor suggested that it would be well to take a guide with us from San Blas as far as Huilotepec, as there were many side-roads before we reached that town, and that, from there, we would need no help. We followed his suggestion. The road was almost level. It passed through a district covered with a dense growth of brush and thorny trees, except where the land had been plowed for planting corn. In the early evening we saw many birds. Flocks of parrots rose from the trees as we passed by; at one point Manuel shot a little eagle, which fell wounded to the ground. Our guide concluded to carry it on alive. All went well for some time, but at last, with no warning, the bird made a vicious dash, and with its claws tore through the trousers of the guide, making a great gash in his leg. The man promptly decided it was better, on the whole, to carry it further dead than living.
The doctor turned back at sunset. We reached Huilotepec something before eight, and found it a large pueblo with houses built of bamboo or cane. Here we had a good supper, and dismissing our guide started out, by brilliant moonlight, for the last part of our journey. Shortly beyond the town, the road turned, for a moment, into the river, and after passing for a few rods in the river-bed, struck up again onto the bank. At this place we made a fatal blunder. When the road went down into the river, supposing that we were about to ford, we kept straight across the stream. Finding a road upon the other side we had no suspicion but what we were going well and travelled onward. For a long time we found trails of varying degree of badness. Sometimes the branches formed a complete tangle which, even in the daytime, would have required careful watching. As it was, the faces of the party were well scratched with thorns. Sometimes, we seemed to be on a good road; at others, we had hardly found a trail. At one place we passed a ranch—Corral de San Diego. A host of barking dogs announced our coming, and we cried out to the old man living there to tell us the road. His directions were not clear, but in attempting to follow them, we retraced our trail, and then struck into another road. Keeping to it until we really could not follow it further for the tangle, we retraced our steps until we came to a cart-road crossing that on which we were. We started first to the right upon this; then, concluding we were wrong, turned about and went the other way. We soon found ourselves off the road again, and travelling blindly through the brush. Coming to a round patch of clear sand, to which the trail on which we were seemed to have led us, we could find no way out. Convinced that we were hopelessly lost, we camped out upon the sand for the night. Fortunately we had a little corn with us which we gave to the horses, after which we tied them to the trees. As we lay upon the sand in the bright moonlight, we could hear the dashing of the sea waves not far away. The heat was intolerable and the mosquitoes venomous. We secured no rest, and, at the first signs of day, were ready for our start. The two boys went out to hunt a rabbit, but returned with most discouraging reports. While they were absent, Don Anselmo and myself were left in camp. Suddenly he cried out that our horses were running away; such was really the case. The last one was just disappearing in the brush and Anselmo started after them, leaving me to keep the camp. When the other two returned, they, too, started in pursuit. After a hard chase, the animals were captured and brought back. By seven we had mounted and were on our way. We retraced our trail of the night before, going back to the cart-road. A little before eight we came upon a ranch, the Ranchito del Boca del Rio. Here we asked our way, and found that we were still as far from San Mateo, as when we left Huilotepec the night before. Eating a light breakfast, we secured a guide who took us, by the shortest way across the river, back to the main trail for San Mateo, where he left us. The road was long and hot and sandy. Our horses could hardly keep up a decent walk. It seemed that we would never reach the town. More than an hour before we arrived at the town, we encountered little ranches belonging to it. Everywhere we saw flocks of sheep, cows and horses. Curiously, the Juaves have always had herds, since our first records of them, but they eat no meat. The country was more tropical than any through which we had passed. Clumps of palmtrees were to be seen here and there. Pools of standing water, where horses and cattle stood cooling themselves, were frequent. The people whom we met wore little clothing. Men frequently had nothing but the breech-clout and hat. Women wore a skirt, but no upper garment. Children up to ten and twelve years of age ran naked. Reaching San Mateo at twelve o'clock, we found the village excited at our non-appearance. Our carretero had arrived long before with our luggage. He had told the presidente of our intended coming, and men from the town had been sent through the by-roads to seek for us. The town lies on a level stretch of sand, and the houses are built of canes and thatched with palm. Most of the trees in the village are palms; some, cocoa palms. The plaza is a large open space. On one side of it is the church, of stone and brick; on another side is the town-building made of brick, covered with plaster, and consisting of three portions,—the presidencia, curato, and jail. A brick-paved corridor, roofed above, runs before the whole building. We were given the jail and presidencia with the corridor. Here hammocks and a bed of palm stalks were prepared for us, and orders issued that eggs and tortillas should be brought us. The Juaves raise no crops. They are fishermen, and their food and living come from the sea. Their dried fish and shrimps, and the salt, which they make from the brine-soaked bottoms of dried lagoons, go far and wide through the country, and for these they get in trade the corn, coffee, chocolate, and raw cotton which they need. We have already spoken of their cattle, which is a source of income, though, as stated before, the Juaves rarely eat meat food.
JUAVE INDIANS; SAN MATEO DEL MAR