placed it in a horizontal position on the top of the heap of mesquite wood; as it was, her lead weighed nearly 100 pounds, yet she knelt down, engaged her head under the carrying strap, and struggled to her feet without assistance (c). The method of unloading is shown in d, where, by bending forward, the entire burden is thrown off clear of the head. Figure 65 illustrates the manner in which a kiâhâ net is mended.
As the kiâhâ is distinctively a woman's utensil, so is it closely associated with her life history. The young girls of 8 or 10 begin to use small kiâhâs made especially for them or that have been cut down from old ones. They learn the methods of loading so that the burden may be stable and of proper bulk, they acquire the necessary nerve and muscle coordinations that enable them in later years to lift loads weighing more than do they themselves, they become inured to the fatigue of long journeys, and they learn to preserve their kiâhâs with care from rain. The maiden must have long and gaily-spotted frame sticks at the front of her kiâhâ, which are wound with long hair cords. She uses a helping stick that is ornamented with a long deerskin fringe pendent from the binding at the crotched end (fig. 64). As she walks along with the sharpened end of the stick thrust into the load the fringe hangs above and forward of her head, swinging at every step or fluttering with every breeze. It is indeed a conspicuous object, and it is not surprising that it should have caught the attention of every passing traveler, whose illustrations of it are uniformly bad.[1]
As the age of the owner advances she becomes careless of the appearance of her kiâhâ, the spots on the frame are less frequently renewed, the cordage grows short and worn, and the foresticks of the frame are cut down in length. However, her burdens do not diminish, and the woman here photographed, though her age exceeds the scriptural allotment, is yet able to carry more than 100 pounds at a load.
The kiâhâ is of entirely different materials from the ordinary Pima baskets. Wood is used for the four frame sticks, two at the front and two at the rear. Saguaro ribs are invariably used for the purpose, as they are very light, symmetrical, straight, and sufficiently strong. The hoop is a double band of willow.
- ↑ "They are highly prized by their owners, as they are very useful to them, and are made with much labor. For the only specimen I could obtain I was obliged to give goods to the value of $10." Bartlett, Personal Narrative, II, 236.
