396. While the Tháʻpaha lived at Hyíĕtyĭn they had always abundant crops,—better crops than their neighbors had. Sometimes they could not harvest all they raised, and let food lie ungathered in the field. They built stone storehouses, something like pueblo houses, among the cliffs, and in these stored their corn. The storehouses stand there yet. The Tháʻpaha remained at Hyíĕtyĭn thirteen years, during which time many important events occurred, as will be told, and then they moved to Azdeltsígi.
397. Góntso had twelve wives; four of these were from the gens of Tsĭnadzĭ′ni, four from the gens of Dsĭltláʻni, and four from the gens of Thaʻnĕzáʻni. He used to give much grain from his abundant harvests to the gentes to which his wives belonged; but, in spite of his generosity, his wives were unfaithful to him. He complained to their relations and to their chiefs; these remonstrated with the wives, but failed to improve their ways. At last they lost patience with the women and said to Góntso: “Do with them as you will. We shall not interfere.” So the next wife whom he detected in crime he mutilated in a shameful way, and she died in consequence. He cut off the ears of the next transgressor, and she, too, died. He amputated the breasts of the third wife who offended him, and she died also. He cut off the nose of the fourth; she did not die. He determined then that cutting the nose should, in future, be the greatest punishment imposed on the faithless wife,—something that would disfigure but not kill,—and the rest of the people agreed with him.[183] But this had no effect on the remaining wives; they continued to lapse from virtue till all were noseless. Then they got together and began to plot mischief against their husband, Big Knee. They spoke so openly of their evil intentions that he feared to let any of them stay in his lodge at night and he slept alone.
398. About this time the people determined to have a great ceremony for the benefit of Big Knee; so they made great preparations and held a rite of nine days’ duration.[184] During its progress the mutilated women remained in a hut by themselves, and talked about the unkindness of their people and the vengeance due to their husband. They said one to another: “We should leave our people and go elsewhere.” On the last night of the ceremony there was a series of public exhibitions in a corral, or circle of branches, such as the Navahoes have now on the last night of the ceremony of the mountain chant,[185] and among the different alíli, or entertainments of the night, was a dance by the mutilated women. When their time came they entered the circle, each bearing a knife in her hand, and danced around the central fire, peering among the spectators as if searching for their husband; but he was hidden in the wall of branches that formed the circle. As they danced they sang a song the burden of which was “Pésla asilá.” (It was the knife that did it to me.) When they had finished their dance they left the corral, and, in the darkness without, screamed maledictions at their people, saying: “May the waters drown ye! May the winters freeze ye! May the fires burn ye! May the lightnings strike ye!” and much more. Having cursed till they were tired, they departed for the far north, where they still dwell, and now, whenever they turn their faces to the south, we have cold winds and storms and lightning.
399. Not long after this memorable ceremony a number of Utes visited the Navahoes. They came when the corn-ears were small, and remained till the corn was harvested. They worked for the Navahoes, and when their stomachs were filled all left except one family, which consisted of an old couple, two girls, and a boy. These at first intended to stay but a short time after their friends had gone; but they tarried longer and longer, and postponed their going from time to time, till they ended by staying with the Navahoes till they died. They made particular friends with the Tháʻpaha, and got into the way of speaking to the latter people as they would to relations. One of the girls, whose name was Tsáʻyĭskĭd (Sage-Brush Hill), lived to be an old woman and the mother of many children. From her is descended the gens of Tsaʻyĭskĭ′dni, which is so closely allied to the Tháʻpaha that a member of one of these gentes may not marry a member of the other.
400. Soon after the departure of the Utes the Navahoes were joined by a group of people who, when they came to tell their story, were found to have come from Tháʻpaha-halkaí, and to have made wanderings similar to those of the people who first came from that place. The new people spoke, also, the same language as the Tháʻpaha. For these reasons they were not formed into a new gens, but were joined to the gens of Tháʻpaha.
401. Some years later a large band came from the south to the settlement on the San Juan. It consisted of Apaches, who told the Navahoes that they had left their old tribe forever and desired to become Navahoes. They had not come to visit, they said, but to stay. They all belonged to one gens among the Apaches,—the gens of Tseʻzindiaí (Trap-dyke),[186] and they were admitted into the tribe as a new gens with their old name. From the beginning they showed a desire to associate with Tháʻpaha, and now they are closely related to the latter and must not marry with them. Another band of Apaches, which came a little later, was added to the same gens.
402. About this time there was a great famine in Zuñi, and some people from this pueblo came to the San Juan to dwell with the Navahoes. They came first to the Tháʻpaha, and, although they had women in the party, they were not formed into a new gens, but added to Tháʻpaha. The gens of Zuñi was formed later.
403. The famine prevailed also at other pueblos, and some starving people came to the Navahoes from an old pueblo named Klógi, which was near where the pueblo of Jemez now stands. These formed the gens of Klógi, and made special friends of the Tháʻpaha.
404. The next accession was a family of seven adults, who came from a place called Tóʻhani (Near the Water). They first visited the Dsĭltláʻni and remained, forming the gens of Tóʻhani, affiliated now with Dsĭltláʻni.
405. The people who joined the Navahoes next after the Tóʻhani came from a place called Thaʻtsí, Among the Red (Waters or Banks), which was west of the San Juan settlement. From their traditions it appeared that they were not a newly created people; they had escaped in some way from the alien gods, and were for these reasons regarded as dĭnéʻ dĭgíni, or holy people. They were divided into two gentes, Tháʻtsini and Kaídĭneʻ, or Willow People, and for a while they formed two gentes among the Navahoes; but in these days all traces of this division have been lost, and all their descendants are now called, without distinction, sometimes Tháʻtsini and sometimes Kai or Kaídĭneʻ.