The "Smoki Tribe" of white men who stole the Hopi Snake Dance - part 1

One of the worst cases of cultural appropriation against Native American people started in May, 1921, in Prescott, Arizona. The people of that town literally stole a religious ceremony from the Hopi, and not just stole the ceremony, they also stole a money-making event that was very much needed in the impoverished, indigenous community.

Let me set the scene for you: 1849, Feb 28. The Burlington Free Press 
For decades the Hopi people were known for their Snake Dance. The earliest Snake Dance performance I could find is from 1849. I cannot guarantee it's from the Southwest, but I couldn't find many other tribes who performed this same dance, so I'm including it. The second article is definitely from the Southwest - it's from the Niblo - which is what the Navajo were sometimes called.

1872, March 6 The Newberry Weekly Herald 

In 1879, the Snake Dance was explained to the public in this Oct 3 article from Marion County Record. It's a little long, but it adds to the backstory. 

1879, Oct 3. Marion County Record 

          Mr. W R Mateer, Indian Agent of the Morquis [Hopi] Pueblos, of Arizona, gave our reporter, a day or so ago, a thrilling account of a strange ceremony practiced by that tribe, called the "Snake Dance." The Moquis regard the serpent as a sacred reptile, possessed of the power of controlling the elements, and disposed to be friendly to man. They never kill a snake, and frequently handle the most poisonous serpent with impunity. The rattlesnake is regarded with special veneration, and their bite is no more dreaded than the scratch of a mesquit thorn or the pricking of a cactus. They have an antidote for the bite of a rattlesnake which is infallible, and never fails to effect a cure in a few minutes when administered immediately. An Indian of this tribe, when bitten by a rattler, swallows the antidote at once, and after being stupefied for a moment, becomes entirely restored and never feels any pain or inconvenience afterwards. All attempts of white men to learn the ingredients of this antidote have proved futile, as the secret is regarded with religious fidelity, and an Indian would lay down his life rather than communicate the recipe for snake bites to a pale face. If a white man is bitten by a rattlesnake the Indians will not hesitate to give him the antidote, but he must not inquire what it is composed of.

          The snake dance is performed by the Moquis every two years, and is resorted to as a means of propitiating the Spirit of the Summer Rain to send abundant of the Simmer Rain to send abundant showers to fructify the earth and make the crops grow. The corn is planted in the moist sand of the mesa, without previous preparation of the ground, for the plow is unknown to the tribe, and, after it has grown to a certain height and needs moistening from the clouds, preparations are made for the grand snake dance. A deep and wide excavation is made in the dirt floor of one of the largest houses in the village, and the whole tribe go out to hunt snakes. These they catch with their hands and bring them in twined around their necks, coiled in their bosoms, or wrapped around their legs and arms. All kinds of snakes are captured - the rattler, the viper, the moccasin, the blue racer, the black, the garter, the green, spotted -- in fact, every variety existing in the country. These to the number of several hundred are placed in the pit in the floor, and the mouth is covered over with a buffalo robe, the hairy side down, to prevent the reptiles from crawling out of escaping. Then a certain number of the old men dance around the pit, chanting monotonous songs and calling upon the imprisoned serpents to intercede with the Spirit of the Clouds to send rain upon the thirsting corn-fields. A body of younger men next form a circle around the pit, and go through a similar ceremony. Then come the old women, who have a different chant, then the young married women, then the boys, and finally the virgins with their hair done up in loops, and then for a few moments a solemn silence prevails, during which the hissing of the serpents and the shrill sounds of their rattles are heard under the buffalo robe. These sounds are taken as favorable tokens that the incantations have been successful, and that a copious fall of rain will follow. Then the buffalo robe is removed, and then the men and boys leap into the pit, and each one brings forth a snake, which he holds in his mouth. Sometimes a man will emerge with two or three small snakes in his mouth. As each man emerges from the pit with his mouth full of snakes, he runs at full speed down the almost perpendicular side of the mesa until he comes to the plain, and there gently releases his captives, who at once take to the grass and quickly disappear. After the pit has been emptied the men examine the wounds on their arms, breast and faces, and if blood has been drawn, they know that the fangs of a rattler have entered their flesh, and they lose no time in applying the antidote.

          The wounds inflicted by the rattlesnakes are very painful. The rattler, when provoked, is the most savage of all serpents, and will continue to strike and lacerate an enemy as long as he is within reach. Sometimes an old snake with full grown fangs will fasten upon the cheek or arm of an Indian and hold on until the fangs are torn from his jaws. Mr Mateer witnessed one of these snake dances of the Moquis recently, and was horrified at the sight. He saw the blood streaming from the arms and breasts of the Indians, who bore the pain with stoic indifference, and seemed to take pleasure in the infliction. They believe that the more savage the snakes became and the deeper the wounds inflicted the more copious would be the shower. On the occasion of the last snake dance the Indians of one of the villages refused to participate. For some reason they believed the rain would come without the dance, and while the other villages were engaged in the ceremony they sat idly in their houses listening to the noise and smiling at the unnecessary trouble their neighbors were taking. Subsequently they had good cause to repent, for when the rain came sweeping down from the mountains it poured a copious flood upon the snake-worshiping villages and their fields and passed around the heretic village and their parched corn-fields, leaving them as dry as a powder-horn. The result was that six of the seven villages raised abundant crops, and the other had to call on the Agent for Government rations.

          Mr Mateer was formerly a resident of this city, and appears to be a truthful man. He was a spectator of the strange snake dance, but witnessed it from a safe distance, sitting on a wall overlooking the scene. 

1893, April 13   The Kansas City Gazette