§ 4. History of the "Baile del Güegüence."
Among the scenic representations which have been preserved by the descendants of the Mangues, in the ancient province of Masaya, the only one of length which has been committed to writing is the Baile del Güegüence, ô Macho-Raton. Several copies of this exist in manuscript, and from a comparison of two of them the late Dr. C. H. Berendt obtained, in 1874, the text which is printed in this volume. But he did not obtain, nor did he attempt himself, any translation of any portion of it. He states, positively, that the Nahuatl parts are not understood by the natives themselves at the present day. Its antiquity and authorship are alike unknown. It is certain that it was acted before the beginning of the present century, but with this single fact its external history ceases.
Within the memory of those now living, this Baile has occasionally been acted in fulfillment of a religious vow pronounced in some emergency of life or affairs. The period selected for its performance is, usually, at the festival of St. Jerome, September 30th. The preparations for it are elaborate and expensive. In former times the rehearsals took place daily, sometimes for as much as six or eight months before the public performance. The actors provided their own costumes, which required a considerable outlay. There were, however, always plenty of applicants, as it was not only considered an honor to take part, but also, the patron or patroness of the festival, who had pledged himself to give the drama, was expected to furnish refreshments, in the way of food and drink, at each rehearsal. As the appetites were usually keen, and the libations liberal, it was almost ruinous for one of moderate means to undertake it. For that reason, as Dr. Earl Flint writes me, it has now been dropped, and will probably not again be brought out, at least, in full.
How far beyond the close of the last century we should place the composition of the Güegüence is a difficult question. Dr. Berendt, basing his opinion on what he could learn by local tradition, on the archaisms of the Spanish construction, and on other internal evidence, referred it in general terms to the first periods (los primeros siglos) of the Spanish occupation. It is probable that we may assign the early portion of the eighteenth century as the latest date for its composition, and there is some evidence, which I shall refer to in the notes to the text, that a more remote period is not improbable. Of course, it does not contradict this that a few modern expressions have crept into the text. Nothing else could be expected.
No hint as to the author is anywhere found. There are, however, reasons which I consider weighty ones, to believe that it is the production either of a native Indian or a half-caste. Several of them are of a negative character, and I will give these first.
All the dramas, so far as I know, which were introduced by the Spanish priests as substitutes for the native bailes, are either religious or instructive in aim. As the Germans say, they are strongly tendenciös. Such are the Baile de St. Martin, which gives scenes from the life of the saint, and in which a wheel, called the horquilla, covered with feathers and flowers, is drawn along; the Baile de los Cinco Pares de Francia, which sets forth the conquest of the infidel Moors by the Christians, both of which plays have been popular in Nicaragua; among the Kekchis, of Coban, the Baile de Moros y Cristianos, similar to the last mentioned; the Zaki-Koxol, ô Baile de Cortes, in Kiche, a copy of which I have, and the like. But in the Güegüence there is absolutely no moral purpose nor religious tone; so much, indeed, of the reverse, that we cannot conceive of its introduction by a priest.
On the other hand, had it been composed by a secular Spanish writer, we should hardly fail to find it, in a general way, modeled after the stock Spanish comedy. It differs, however, in several striking and fundamental features, from the Spanish models, and these differences are precisely those which would flow from the native habits of thought. I would note, first, that while females are introduced, they are strictly mutæ personæ, even the heroine not speaking a word; that there are no monologues nor soliloquies; that there is no separation into scenes, the action being continuous throughout; that there is neither prologue, epilogue nor chorus; and especially that the wearisome repetition of the same phrases, and by one speaker of what a previous one has said—a marked characteristic of the native scenic orations[43]—are all traits which we can scarcely believe any Spaniard sufficiently cultivated to write at all, would exhibit.
Furthermore, the "business" of the play is strictly within the range of the native thought and emotion. The admiration of the coarse cunning and impudent knavery of Güegüence is precisely what we see in the modern camp-fire tales of Michabo among the Algonkins, of Tezcatlipoca among the Aztecs, and of a score of other heroes. It is of a piece with the delight which our own ancestors derived from the trickeries of Reynard the Fox.
The devices for exciting laughter are scarcely more than three in number; one the assumed deafness of the Güegüence, the second, a consequence of this, that he misunderstands, or pretends to, the words of the other actors, thus giving rise to amusing quid-pro-quos, and third, the introduction of obscene references. Of course, I am aware that these are the stock resources of many European low comedians; but I also consider it a fact of very considerable importance in deciding the probable authorship of the play, that all of these, especially the first two, are prominently mentioned by old authors, as leading devices of the native Nahuatl comedies. Thus, Benzoni and Coreal tell us that in the bailes in Nicaragua, which they witnessed, some of the actors pretended to be deaf, and others to be blind, so as to excite laughter by their mistakes.[44] And Father Diego Duran tells us of a native Mexican comedy, upon which this of Güegüence may, perhaps, have been founded, full of songs and coarse jests,[45] in which the clown pretends to understand at cross purposes what his master orders, transforming his words into others like them. As to the general leaning to indecent gestures and jokes, it is frequently commented on by the missionaries, and given as a reason for discountenancing these exhibitions.
The absence of all reference to the emotions of love, and the naive coarseness indicated in the passages about women, point rather to a native than a European hand. They are in remarkable contrast to the Spanish school of comedy.[46] The neglect of common rules of Spanish construction seems to arise from the ignorance of one imperfectly acquainted with the language, rather than of deliberate purpose. It must also be remembered that this piece was one acted altogether by the native Indians, and not by the Spanish population.