Chapter 4

A few other fragments of Nahuatl poetry, all probably modern, but some of them the versification of native bards, might be named; but the whole of it, as now existing, could give us but a faint idea of the perfection to which the art appears to have attained in the palmy days of the great Tezcucan poet-prince.

In the literature of the Maya group of dialects, there have been preserved various sacred chants, some in the _Books of Chilan Balam_, others in the Kiche _Popol Vuh_. What are known as the "Maya Prophecies" are, as I have said, evidently the originals, or echoes of the mystic songs of the priests of Kukulkan and Itzamna, deities of the Maya pantheon, who were supposed to inspire their devotees with the power of foretelling the future.

The modern Maya lends itself very readily both to rhyme and rhythm, and I have in my possession some quite neat specimens of versification in it, from the pen of the Yucatecan historian, Apolinar Garcia y Garcia.

When we reach Peru we find a race not less poetical in temperament than the cultured Mexicans. Nothing but their ignorance of an alphabet, and the indifference or fanatical hatred of the early explorers for the productions of the native intellect, prevented the perpetuation of a Qquichua literature, both extensive and noble. As it is, we may expect many valuable examples of it when the learned Peruvian scholar, Senor Gavino Pacheco Zegarra, shall publish his long promised _Tresor de la Langue des Incas_. Among them he has announced the first appearance of a number of _Yaravis_, or elegiac chants, composed by the Indians themselves, and sung in memory of their departed friends.

We know, from the testimony of Garcillaso de la Vega, that the Inca bards formed a separate and highly respected class, and that in their hands the supple Qquichua tongue had been brought under well recognized rules of prosody. He mentions the different classes and subjects of their poems, compares them to similar compositions in Spanish, and even gives specimens of two short ones, of undoubted antiquity, and adds that, when a boy, he knew many others. "What would not one now give," exclaims Mr. Markham, "for those precious relics of Inca civilization, which the half-caste lad allowed to slip from his memory."[78] All that Mr. Markham could collect, in his extensive journeys in Peru, were not above twenty songs of ancient date, and I regret to say that these have not yet been published.

Of those charming Tupi songs, to which I have already referred, I fear that we have but very few preserved in the original tongue. Not that there is any lack of poems in the _lingoa geral_, or "common language" of Brazil, as the ordinary and corrupt Tupi there spoken is called. It is a melodious idiom, lending itself easily to rhyme and rhythm, and several Brazilian writers of European blood have gained reputation by their compositions in it. But of genuine aboriginal productions, there are not many.

The entertaining old voyager, Jean de Lery, who visited Brazil with Villegagnon in 1557, has recorded a few simple airs, which appear to be merely choruses or refrains of songs, the delivery of which was, however, so effective, that to hear them carried him out of himself; and ever, when his memory recalled them, his heart beat, and it seemed that he heard the wild cadence once again resounding in his ears through the tropical forests.[79]

Some strange old poetic invocations in archaic Tupi addressed to the moon and to the god of love, Ruda, who dwells in the clouds, have been collected and printed by Dr. Couto de Magalhaes, a writer whose studies on Tupi poetry, its character and development, merit high praise.[80] Both the songs and music of the modern natives of that country attracted the attention of the learned Von Martius, and in his volumes of _Travels in Brazil_ an appendix is devoted to their discussion.[81] Many excellent hints for preparing a Tupi anthology are also contained in an erudite note of Ferdinand Denis to his description of the visit of fifty native Tupis to France, in 1550.[82]

Section 7. _Dramatic Literature_.

The development of the dramatic art can be clearly traced in the American nations. When the Spaniards first explored the West Indian Islands they found the inhabitants much given to festivals which combined dancing with chanting, and the introduction of figures with peculiar costumes. The native name of these representations was adopted by the Spaniards, and applied to such performances elsewhere. The word is _areytos_, and is derived from the Arawack verb, _aririn_, to rehearse, recite.[83]

Such dramatic recitations were found among most of the tribes of North and South America, and have been frequently described by travelers. Often they were of a religious nature, having something to do with devotional exercises; but not seldom they were simply for amusement. Occasionally they were mere pantomimes, where the actors appeared in costume and masks, and went through some ludicrous scene. Thus, to quote one example out of many, Lieutenant Timberlake saw some among the Cherokees, about the middle of the last century, which he speaks of as "very diverting," where some of the actors dressed in the skins of wild animals, and the simulated contest between these pretended beasts and the men who hunted them, were the motives of the entertainment.[84]

From the solemn religious representations on the one hand and these diverting masquerades on the other, arose the two forms of tragedy and comedy, both of which were widely popular among the American aborigines.[85] The effete notion that they were either unimaginative or insusceptible to humor is, to be sure, still retained by a few writers, who are either ignorant or prejudiced; but it has been refuted so often that I need not stop to attack it. In fact, so many tribes were of a gay and frolicsome disposition, so much given to joking, to playing on words, and to noticing the humorous aspect of occurrences, that they have not unfrequently been charged by the whites best acquainted with them, the missionaries, with levity and a frivolous temperament.

Among the many losses which American ethnology has suffered, that of the text of the native dramas is one of the most regretable. Is is, however, not total. Two have been published which claim to be, and I think are, faithful renditions of the ancient texts as they were transmitted verbally, from one to another, in pre-Columbian times.

The most celebrated of these is the drama of _Ollanta_,[86] in the Qquichua language of Peru. No less than eight editions of this have been published, the last and best of which is that by the meritorious scholar, Senor Gavino Pacheco Zegarra. The internal evidence of the antiquity of this drama has been pronounced conclusive by all competent Qquichua students.[87]

The plot is varied and ingenious, and the characters agreeably contrasted. Ollanta is a warrior of low degree, who falls in love with Cusi Coyllur, daughter of the Inca, who returns his affection. The lovers have secret meetings, and Ollanta asks the sovereign to sanction their union. The proud ruler rejects the proposal with scorn, and the audacious warrior gathers his adherents and attacks the State, at first with success. But Cusi Coyllur is thrown into prison and her child, the fruit of her illicit love, is separated from her. The Inca dies, and under his successor Ollanta is defeated and brought, a prisoner, to the capital. Mindful, however, of his merits, the magnanimous victor pardons him, restores him to his honors, and returns to his arms Cusi Coyllur and her child. Minor characters are a facetious youth, who is constantly punning and joking; and the dignified figure of the High Priest of the Sun, who endeavors to dissuade the hero from his seemingly hopeless love.

The second drama to which I refer is that of _Rabinal Achi_, in the Kiche tongue of Guatemala. The text was obtained by the Abbe Brasseur de Bourbourg, and edited with a French translation. The plot is less complete than that of the _Ollanta_, and the constant repetitions, while they constitute strong evidence of its antiquity and native origin, are tedious to a European reader.[88]

Rabinal-Achi is a warrior who takes captive a distinguished foe, Canek, and brings him before the ruler of Rabinal, King Hobtoh. The fate of the prisoner is immediate death and he knows it, but his audacity and bravery do not fail him. He boasts of his warlike exploits, and taunts his captors, like an Iroquois in his death song, and his enemies listen with respect. He even threatens the king, and has to be restrained from attacking him. As his end draws near, he asks to drink from the royal cup and eat from the royal dish; it is granted. Again, he asks to be clothed in the royal robe; it is brought and put about him. Once more he makes a request, and it is to kiss the virgin mouth of the daughter of the king, and dance a measure with her, "as the last sign of his death and his end." Even this is conceded, and one might think that it was his uttermost petition. But no; he asks one year's grace, wherein to bid adieu to his native mountains. The king hears this in silence, and Canek disappears; but returning in a moment, he scornfully inquires whether they supposed he had run away. He then, in a few strong words, bids a last farewell to his bow, his shield, his war-club and battle-axe, and is slain by the warriors of the king.

The love of dramatic performances was not crushed out in the natives by the Conquest. In fact, in the Spanish countries, it was turned to account and cultivated by the missionaries as a means of instructing their converts in religion, by "miracle plays" or _autos sacramentales_, as they are called. It was even permitted to the more intelligent natives to compose the text of plays. One such, manifestly, I think, the work of a native author, in the mixed Nahuatl-Spanish dialect of Nicaragua, I have prepared for publication. The original was found by Dr. Berendt in Masaya, and his copy, without note or translation, came into my hands.

The play is a light comedy, and is called "The Ballet of the Gueegueence or the Macho-Raton." The characters are a wily old rascal, Gueegueence, and his two sons, the one a chip of the old block, the other a bitter commentator on the family failings. They are brought before the Governor for entering his province without a permit; but by bragging and promises the foxy old man succeeds both in escaping punishment and in effecting a marriage between his scapegrace son and the Governor's daughter. The interest is not in the plot, which is trivial, but in the constant play on words, and in the humor, often highly Rabelaisian, of the anything but venerable parent.

The "Zacicoxol," or Drama of Cortes and Montezuma, written in Kiche, of which I have a copy, may possibly be the work of an Indian, but is probably largely that of one of the Spanish curas, and appears to have little in it of interest.

Another and peculiar form of dramatic recitation is what are called the Loas or _Logas_, of Central America. In these, a single individual appears in some quaint costume, in a little theatre erected for the purpose, and recites a burlesque poem, acting the different portions of it to the best of his ability. At present, most of these _Logas_ are of a semi-religious character. The one I have is entitled "The Loga of the Child-God," _Loga del nino Dios_, and is written in Spanish intermingled with words from the Mangue or Chorotegan language. This tongue, spoken by a few persons in Nicaragua, is closely akin to the Chapanec of Chiapas, and was a sonorous and rich idiom. Those who spoke it were much given to scenic representations, as we learn from the historian Oviedo, who lived among them for nearly a year, about 1527. None of these remain, though as late as about 1820, one of great antiquity, believed to be an original native production, continued to be acted. Its title was _La Ollita_ or _El Canahuate_, the former word meaning the peculiar musical instrument of that locality, the "whistling jar." The subject was a tale of love, and one of these primitive flutes was used as an accompaniment to the songs.

Section 8. _Conclusion_.

Thus do I answer the questions which I proposed at the outset of my thesis. If I have failed to justify the expectations which I may have raised, at least I have thrown into strong relief the cause of my failure, to wit, the utter and incredible neglect which, up to this hour, has prevailed with regard to the preservation of what relics of native literature which we know have existed,--which do still exist.

Time and money are spent in collecting remains in wood and stone, in pottery and tissue and bone, in laboriously collating isolated words, and in measuring ancient constructions. This is well, for all these things teach us what manner of men made up the indigenous race, what were their powers, their aspirations, their mental grasp. But closer to very self, to thought and being, are the connected expressions of men in their own tongues. The monuments of a nation's literature are more correct mirrors of its mind than any merely material objects. I have at least shown that there are some such, which have been the work of native American authors. My object is to engage in their preservation and publication the interest of scholarly men, of learned societies, of enlightened governments, of liberal institutions and individuals, not only in my own country, but throughout the world. Science is cosmopolitan, and the study of man is confined by no geographical boundaries. The languages of America and the literary productions in those languages have every whit as high a claim on the attention of European scholars as have the venerable documents of Chinese lore, the mysterious cylinders of Assyria, or the painted and figured papyri of the Nilotic tombs.

* * * * *

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 1: What Dr. Washington Matthews says of one of the Sioux tribes is, in substance, true of all on the Continent:--

"Long winter evenings are often passed in reciting and listening to stories of various kinds. Some of these are simply the accounts given by the men, of their own deeds of valor, their hunts and journeys; some are narrations of the wonderful adventures of departed heroes; while many are fictions, full of impossible incidents, of witchcraft and magic. The latter class of stories are very numerous. Some of them have been handed down through many generations; some are of recent origin; while a few are borrowed from other tribes. Some old men acquire great reputation as story tellers, and are invited to houses, and feasted, by those who are desirous of listening to them. Good story tellers often originate tales, and do not disclaim the authorship. When people of different tribes meet they often exchange tales with one another. An old Indian will occupy several hours in telling a tale, with much elegant and minute description."--_Ethnography and Philology of the Hidatsa Indians_, pp. 62-3. (Washington, 1877.)]

[Footnote 2: That these assertions are not merely my own, but those of the most profound students of these tongues, will be seen from the following extracts, which could easily be added to:--

"This language [the Cree] will be found to be adequate, not only to the mere expression of their wants, but to that of every circumstance or sentiment that can, in any way, interest or affect uncultivated minds."--Joseph Howse, _A Grammar of the Cree Language_, p. 12. (London, 1865.)

"J'ai affirme que nos deux grandes langues du Nouveau Monde [the Iroquois and the Algonkin] etaient tres claires, tres precises, exprimant avec facilite non seulement les relations exterieures des idees, mais encore leur relations metaphysiques. C'est ce qu' out commence de demontrer mes premiers chapitres de grammaire, et ce qu'achevera de faire voir ce que je vais dire sur les verbes."--Rev. M. Cuoq, _Jugement Errone de M. Ernest Renan sur les Langues Sauvages._ p. 32 (2d Ed. Montreal, 1869.)

"Affermo che non e facile di trovare una lingua piu atta della Messicana a trattar le materie metafisiche; poiche e difficile di trovarne un' altra, che tanto abbondi, quanto quella, di nomi astratte."--Clavigero, _Storia Antica del Messico_, Tomo IV, p. 244. (Cesena, 1781.)

"Todos los bellisimos sentimientos que se albergan en los nobles corazones en ninguna otra de aquellas lenguas (Europeas) pueden encontrar una expresion tan viva tan patetica y energica como la que tienen en Mexicano. ?En cual otra se habla con tanto acatamiento, con veneracion tan profunda, de los altisimos mysterios de ineffable amor que nos muestra el Cristianismo?"--Fr. Agustin de la Rosa, in the _Eco de la Fe_. (Merida, 1870.)

Alcide d'Orbigny argues forcibly to the same effect, of the South American languages:--"Les Quichuas et les Aymaras civilises ont une langue etendue, pleine de figures elegantes, de comparaisons naives, de poesie, surtout lorsqu'il s'agit d'amour; et il ne faut pas croire qu'isoles au sein des forets sauvages ou jetes au milieu des plaines sans bornes, les peuples chasseurs, agriculteurs et guerriers, soient prives de formes elegantes, de figures riches et variees."--_L'Homme Americain_, Tome I, p. 154.

For other evidence see Brinton, _American Hero Myths_, p. 25. (Philadelphia, 1882.). Horatio Hale, _The Iroquois Book of Rites_, p. 107. (Philadelphia, 1883.)]

[Footnote 3: _Ethnography and Philology of the Hidatsa Indians_, p. 18.]

[Footnote 4: _The Tribes of California_, p. 73. (Washington, 1877.)]

[Footnote 5: "Il n'est pas rare de trouver des individus parlant jusqu'a trois ou quatre langues, aussi distinctes entr'elles que le francais et l'allemand."--Alcide D'Orbigny, _L'Homme Americain_, Tome I, p. 170. The generality of this fact in South America was noted by Humboldt, _Voyage aux Regions Tropicales_, T. III, p. 308.]

[Footnote 6: "Hay muchos de ellos buenos gramaticos, y componen oraciones largas y bien autorizadas, y versos exametros y pentametros."--Toribio de Motilinia, _Historia de los Indios de la Nueva Espana_, Tratado III, cap. XII.]

[Footnote 7: _Menologio Franciscano de los Varones mas Senalados de la Provincia de Mexico_, Tomo IV, pp. 447-9. (Mexico, 1871.)

In the Prologue to the _Sermonario Mexicano_ of F. Juan de Bautista (Mexico, 1606), is a well-written letter, in Latin, by Don Antonio Valeriano, a native of Atzcaputzalco, who was professor of grammar and rhetoric in the College of Tlatilulco. Bautista says of him that he spoke extempore in Latin with the eloquence of a Cicero or a Quintilian; and his contemporary, the academician Francisco Cervantes Salazar, writes: "Magistrum habent [Indi] ejusdem nationis, Antonium Valerianum, nostris grammaticis nequaquam inferiorem, in legis christianae observatione satis doctum et ad eloquentiam avidissimum."--_Tres Dialogos Latinos de Francisco Cervantes Salazar_, p. 150 (Ed. Icazbalceta, Mexico, 1875).]

[Footnote 8: Francisco de Paula Garcia Pelaez, _Memorias para la Historia del Antiguo Reyno de Guatemala_, Tomo III, pp. 201 and 221 (Guatemala, 1852).]

[Footnote 9: _Ritos Antiguos, Sacrificios e Idolatrias de los Indios de la Nueva Espana_, in the _Coleccion de Documentos Ineditos para la Historia de Espana_, Tom. 53, p. 300.]

[Footnote 10: _A Study of the Manuscript Troano_. By Cyrus Thomas, Ph.D., with an Introduction by D.G. Brinton, M.D., p. xxvii. (Washington, 1883.)]

[Footnote 11: "Tenian libros de pergaminos que hacian de los cueros de venados, tan anchos como una mano o mas, e tan luengos como diez o doce passos, e mas e menos, que se encogian e doblaban e resumian en el tamano e grandeza de una mano por sus dobleces uno contra otro (a manera de reclamo); y en aquestos tenian pintados sus caracteres o figuras de tinta roxa o negra, de tal manera que aunque no eran letura ni escritura, significaban y se entendian por ellas todo lo que querian muy claramente."--Oviedo, _Historia General y Natural de Indias_, Lib. XLII, cap. I.]

[Footnote 12: "Une ecriture consistant en raies tracees sur de petites planchettes."--Alcide D'Orbigny, _L'Homme Americain_, Tomo L, p. 170, on the authority of Viedma, _Informe general de la Provincia de Santa Cruz, MS_.]

[Footnote 13: _Legends and Tales of the Eskimo_. (Edinburgh and London, 1875.)]

[Footnote 14: _Pok, Kalalek avalangnek, etc._, Nongme, 1857; or, _Pok, en Groenlaender, som har reist og ved sin Hjemkomst, etc. Efter gamle Handskrifter fundne hos Groenlaendere ved Godthaab._ Godthaab, 1857.]

[Footnote 15: _Kaladlit Assilialit, etc._ See Thomas W. Field, _Indian Bibliography_, p. 199. (New York, 1873.)]

[Footnote 16: First printed in _The American Whig Review_, New York, Feb. 1849; reprinted in _The Indian Miscellany_, edited by W.W. Beach, Albany, 1877. I have not been able to find the original.]

[Footnote 17: Horatio Hale, _The Iroquois Book of Rites_. (Philadelphia, 1883.) It is No. II of my "Library of Aboriginal American Literature."

The introductory essay, in ten chapters, treats at considerable length of the ethnology and history of the Huron-Iroquois nations, the Iroquois League and its founders (Hiawatha, Dekanawidah, and their associates), the origin of the Book of Rites, the composition of the Federal Council, the clan system, the laws of the League, and the historical traditions relating to it, the Iroquois character and public policy, and the Iroquois language. A map prefixed to the work shows the location of the United Nations and of the surrounding tribes.]

[Footnote 18: _Recit de Francois Kaondinoketc, Chef des Nipissingues (tribu de race Algonquine) ecrit par lui-meme en 1848.--Traduit en Francais et accompagne de notes par_ M.N.O., 8vo. pp. 8. (Paris, 1877.)]

[Footnote 19: _The National Legend of the Chata-Muskokee Tribes_. By Daniel G. Brinton, M.D. Morrisania, N.Y., 1870. 4to. pp. 13. Reprinted from _The Historical Magazine_, February, 1870.]

[Footnote 20: "Les chefs des vieillards m'avoient souvent parle de leurs ancetres, des courses qu'ils avoient faites, et des combats qu'ils avoient eu a soutenir, avant que la nation put se fixer ou elle est aujourd'hui. L'histoire de ces premiers Creeks, qui portoient alors le nom de Moskoquis, etoit conservee par des banderoles ou chapelets," etc.--_Memoire ou Coup-d'Oeil Rapide sur mes different Voyages et mon Sejour dans la Nation Creck,_ Par le Gen. Milfort, pp. 48, 229. (Paris, An. XI, 1802).]

[Footnote 21: "We burned all we could find of them," writes Bishop Landa, "which pained the natives to an extraordinary degree."--_Relacion de las Cosas de Yucatan_, p. 316. For a discussion of what was destroyed at Mani see Cogolludo, _Historia de Yucatan_, 3d Ed., Vol. I, p. 604, note by the Editor. The efforts which have of late been made by Senor Icazbalceta and the Reverend Canon Carrillo to modify the general opinion of these acts of vandalism cannot possibly be successful. The ruthless hostility of the Church to the ancient civilization, an hostility founded on religious intolerance, could be proved by hundreds of extracts from the early writers.]

[Footnote 22: Boturini's work is entitled _Idea de una Nueva Historia General de la America Septentrional fundada sobre material copioso defiguras, Symbolos, Caracteres, y Geroglificos, Cantares y Manuscritos de Autores Indios_. Madrid, 1746. The fate of his collection is sketched by Brasseur de Bourbourg, in the introduction to his _Histoire des Nations civilisees de Mexique et de l'Amerique Centrale_, Vol I.]

[Footnote 23: The following extract from Ixtlilxochitl sums up the native authorities on which he relied for the particulars of the life of the last prince of Tezcuco, and merits quotation as a bit of literary history:--