Cinon Duro (Hokoyel Mutawir), the last hereditary chief at Mesa Grande, a living repository of the knowledge of the past, felt more keenly than any of the old men the lasting value of the ancient rule of life. It was sacrilege to reveal the religious mysteries to a stranger, or even to hint at the sacred ritual so solemnly imposed. His affection for the writer and his consciousness that the past was to die with him, led him to give for friendship what could never have been bought for money. But the struggle between his inbred reluctance to reveal the things of the past, and his promise to do so, led him to give the recital in the briefest way.
A satisfactory rendering of this recital could be given only by an interpreter combining a full knowledge of old Indian terms with a good acquaintance with the English language; and such a one was not often to be found at Mesa Grande, where most of the younger Indians know only enough of their mother tongue for conversation with parents and grandparents in the house. Any Diegueño word not in common use, any allusion to the myths, the gods, or ceremonies, is foreign to them. 1 It is extremely fortunate that in the Manzanita region an excellent interpreter was found, familiar with the rare terminology of the past. The loss is great that in the death of Cinon Duro, September 17, 1906, there must die many a secret of the past.
The ceremonies which Cinon performed and the ancient religion he adhered to had been carefully taught to him by his father, that they might be transmitted to posterity with exact detail. The myths and sacred songs had been acquired in the same way. His father's name was mentioned with the greatest reverence in a half-whisper, since the names of the dead are spoken with reluctance. Where his father gained this knowledge was not distinctly explained, though it was stated that all religious ritual had been devised and directly given by Tuchaipa himself.
It is extremely interesting to trace the reciprocal influence of the two
The words of the Songs of Creation which he sang, and which were recorded on the graphophone, are as follows:-- First song, sung by the Sky father who begot the creator-gods Tuchaipa and Yokomatis:-- Yi-haw-ma-ya-a i The second song by the Earth mother describes the bringing forth of the creator-gods:-- Chu-pa-chu-wha The weird intonation of the chant, and its strange changes, cannot 232:1 The Mesa Grande Chaup story (Journal of American Folk-Lore, 1904, vol. xvii, pp. 217-241) is an exception, being well interpreted.
Yi-haw-ma-ya-a i (repeated six times)
(A long sigh repeated)
Ich-a-pa-wha-chi-ho
Yo-o-o
Ich-a-pa-wha-chi-yo
Yo-o-o
Ma-to Tu-chai-pa
Mai-i-i Yo-ko-mat
Ich-a-pa-wha-chi-yo
Icha-a-pa-wha-chi-yo.
Wi-i-i
Chu-pa-chu-wha
Wi-i-i
Tu-chai-pa
Chu-pa-chu-wha
I-i-i
Yo-ko-mat-is
Chu-pa-chu-wha
Wa
Wi-i-i
Wi-i-i.
