JAMES H.

HOWARD

PEYOTE JOKES
THE PEYOTE CULT or religion has become well known to students of the American Indian through a series of excellent monographs and descriptive papers. The religion, which entered the Plains area from Mexico around i870, features an all-night ceremony in which the peyote cactus, Lophophora uilliamsii, is consumed to the accompaniment of prayers and ritual music. Although peyotists have sometimes been persecuted, and the possession of peyote is illegal in some states and provinces, the cult continues to flourish and spread in both the United States and Canada. As has been the case with other religions, the peyote cult has extended its influence to areas of culture far outside the religious sphere. Thus, at a Plains Indian Grass or War Dance, one sometimes sees an older peyote man dressed in the costume of the religion, even though war dancing and peyotism have no formal connection. The influence of the peyote cult is also quite evident in contemporary Plains Indian art. In most peyote-using groups it has also given rise to a particular genre of humor known as the "peyotejoke," which is the subjectof this paper. The usual time for telling such jokes is in the morning after the all-night ritual or "meeting." In many peyote-using tribes the ceremony formally ends with a breakfast of coffee, sweet rolls, and bread, provided by those who have "put up" (i.e., sponsored) the gathering.' At this breakfast participants may stand up and stretch their cramped limbs, smoke, and chat freely. In contrast to the seriousness of the previous night's worship, this is a very relaxed affair, and those present are encouraged to tell of their past experiencesin peyotism, either serious or humorous. As Weston La Barre notes in his monograph The Peyote Cult: "Complete social informality now reigns as the food is passed to the man south of the door and thence clockwise. Much joking goes on during this meal, which has none of the seriousnessof the Christian partaking of the Host."2 The small collection of stories given below is a fair sample of the type of joke often heard on these occasions.Unlike the typical Euro-American joke, which depends on a terminal "punch line" for most of its effect, the peyote joke builds up slowly from one ridiculous situation to the next, and the "punch line," if present at all, appears rather weak to one accustomed to the machine-gun delivery of the television or night club comic. Because of this structure, a joke which is hilariously funny when told by one peyote jokester may fall flat in the hands of a less gifted raconteur. The gifted storyteller, however, can keep his audience convulsed for minutes on end, and the ability to tell amusing jokes most certainly adds to the stature of a peyote "road man" or leader. One may wonder how these ribald and often obscene anecdotes have become attached to such an intensely devout form of worship as the peyote ritual. Perhaps the very seriousness of the ordinary peyote ceremony, lasting through some eleven hours, calls forth a release of this sort once the ceremony is ended. Likewise, they provide the peyotists with yet another body of common experience not shared by nonmembers. A familiarity with the peyote ritual is essential to the complete under-

II Peyote Jokes standing of many of the jokes, and hence the jokes serve to bind togetherthose whoseknowledgemakesthe circumstances the jokeintelligible. of find their humor in human miscalculation errorand in and Many peyotejokes this respect similarto certain are La Barrecitestwo jokesof this Euro-American jokes. type: "A Comanche told me a Kiowa ate a lot of peyoteonce and tried to sing a Comanchesong.He sangthe wrongwords,which meant'Mentula est, exposita Mentula

exposita est!' "3

river now!' "4

Likewise: "Koshiway(Oto) told a joke in the morningabout a partiallydeaf man'smisthe understanding song 'Jesusin the glory now, he ya na ha we,' and singing 'Jesus in Missourinow.' Jacksaid laughing,'He must be getting close; He's just over the A story heard by the writer among the PrairiePotawatomiin Kansasinvolves not human, but animal error.As told by a Potawatomipeyotistthe story went as follows:
"It used to be the custom at meetings down here for the road man to gather up everybody'sfeathers [wands of feathers carriedby peyotists in the meeting] just before closing. He would put them down in a pile behind the altar, pray, and then sing the quitting songs. After the meeting everyone would come up and get his feathers back. "Well, this one time they were having a meeting at a place out in the country here, a place where they raised chickens. It was just getting light and the road man had gathered up all the feathers and had them in a pile beside him. There was a little banty rooster running around in the yard outside. It would crow a little, scratch around a bit, then wander in a little closer to where the temple [the peyote tipi] was set up. Finally it saw the big pile of feathers by the road man, and mistook it for a hen. It gave a big run and jumped right on top of the feathers. Boy, you've never seen such a disappointedroosterin all your life!" Several peyote jokes, however, do more than recount a comic mischance, and go on to point a moral. La Barre cites a story of this type, told by O. W. (Comanche) to E. R. (Delaware): "The leader of a Wichita Easter meeting had a fine watch, costing from $I50 to $200. At daylight, before water time, wanting to display it, he put it down by the feathers. A man to the north was singing and making vigorous punches toward the peyote. When he looked at his watch later, 'it was just a mess of works in there loose, and the hands dropped off,' though nobody touched it. 'It don't pay to go in there
and then try to show off.' "5

Two jokes collected by the writer among the southern Ponca were also concerned with the vanity of wealthy peyotists,and its sad consequences: "Once an old peyote man, an Osage, decided to attend a meeting that was being held on his reservationthat night. His companion [peyote term for wife or mistress] told him, 'Here, take this money old man and get yourself some new clothes before you go in; you look a disgrace.'So he went into Pawhuska and bought himself a new shirt, slacks, belt, socks, and finally a pair of those fancy shoes with the thick crepe rubbersoles. "When he showed up at meeting that night the boys [other peyotists] teased him about his new clothes, and it made him kind of sore. Finally he wouldn't talk to them any more. Since he was old, fat, and kind of stiff in the joints, he sat with his legs

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Folklore Journal American of

straightout to the fire insteadof folded underhim goat style.Well, his shoes were awfullycloseto the fire, and prettysoon those soft crepesoleson his shoesbeganto melt. Finally they came loose from the uppers,sort of droopeddown, and fell off [teller uses comicalgesturesat this point to show droopingand falling]. The old man'scirculation poor,so he didn'tfeel anythingwaswrong. was "Aftermidnighthe askedthe road man if he could go outside.As he got up to leavethe boyspointedto his shoes,which were just shoe tops now. He thoughtthey were still teasinghim abouthis new duds and wouldn'tpay any attention.Well, he walked out of the tipi and right into a patchof pricklypear.Man, you could hear his screams miles!" for The second"vanity" involvesmoreaboriginal joke footgear: "Once an old man came to meeting in brand new buckskin clothes.He was proudof his peyotemoccasins. particularly They had fringesat least six incheslong. Everynow and then he would run his fingersthroughthe heel fringesto straighten themout andget ridof the grassandburrs theyhad pickedup. aftermidnighthe went out of the tipi to defecate. forgotaboutthe heel He "Well, and fringeson his moccasins squatted rightoverthem.When he was finishedhe came backinto the meetingand sat down in his place.Prettysoonhe reached down to fuss with the heel fringes on his moccasinsagain. He grabbedsomethingbesides the fringesthis time, and it madehim mad-'S - - t,' he said,'s - - t, s - - t!'" Many peyote jokes tell of serious devotionalacts being interruptedby some occurrence. ludicrous the resentment Perhaps jokesof this type reflectan unconscious of the hardshipand the composure which attendance a ceremonyentails.Here is at fromthe Kiowa: an example "Oncesomeyoungmen in ourtribedecidedthey wantedto hold a peyotemeeting. None of them owned a tipi, so they just built a windbreak, aboutwaist high, using of canvas,and sticks.The young man sittingchief [i.e., actingas old blankets, pieces the leaderof the ceremony]was prettygood at peyotetalk. When he prayedto the sat Almighty,everyone up and listened. and the meetingwas just getting underway, this young man was praying. "Well, a young drunkwanderingaroundoutside,and he camestumblingup just There was at that time. He stoodrightbehindthe moon [altar]and leanedover the windbreak, wine fumes on his neck. The leaderdidn't gaping down at the leaderand breathing noticehim at first,and he was praying,'Our Father,who art in heaven-' and just then he turned a little and saw the drunk, and said, without even pausing for 'Whatin hell areyou doinghere?'" breath, A similarjoke from the Crow in Montanahas the prayerinterrupted an old by horse,which had been grazing outsidethe peyotetipi, flatulating loudly at a critical pointin the prayer. Sometimesa situationoccurringduring the meeting itself is later recalledand told as a joke,suchas the following: went to a PotawaFrankD [northern Iowa] andhis wife Sue [Potawatomi] tomi meetingin Kansas.Frank is a good singer,but it sometimestakes him a little while to get warmedup and readyto go. While he is "waitingfor the song to come," he shakesthe peyotegourd and sings an introductory phrase'He ne ne ne, he ne ne ne' over and over.He did it so long on this occasionthat his companion, seatednext in leanedover and whispered his ear,in a tone audibleto all present,"Come to him, for on Frank,sing! You soundlike an old houndscratching fleas."

Peyote Jokes

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Stories frequently have to do with strange happenings resulting from one or another individual suffering from "peyote effect" after eating an unusually large number of "buttons" (the dried tops of the peyote cactus). La Barre notes that "Jonathan Koshiway (Oto) laughingly told me of a meeting in Kansas where the singer's jaw became locked; the whole meeting was upset while they shook and fanned him with cedar incense until his jaw 'came back.' "6 La Barre comments that this may have been the effect of the strychninelike alkaloids in peyote. Another story concerning "peyote effect" was told by William C (Ojibwa), about an old man he had seen at a Potawatomi meeting in Kansas. This old man wandered from group to group the morning after a peyote meeting. At each stop he would tell the first part of a peyote joke, but due to the amount of peyote he had eaten, he would always forget to finish them. After telling a part of each joke he would laugh loudly, and walk on to the next knot of people and begin again. A classic peyote joke from the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota, and one told in several versions, involves the interruption of a religious procession. It was apparently the custom when peyote first reached Pine Ridge for the adherents to stage these processions, perhaps in imitation of Roman Catholic processions.Various peyotists would take the parts of biblical characters.One such procession which took place in the twenties involved many individuals still prominent in the cult in that area. A male leader took the part of Christ, swathed in a white sheet and riding a mule. Close behind was the Virgin Mary, played by a female devotee. Others were dressed to resemble shepherds, Roman soldiers, and so on. The shepherds, who followed closely behind Christ and the Virgin, had several sheep and a goat for added realism. The procession wound impressively through the hills near Pine Ridge until it neared an Indian cabin. Just as it was passing this cabin, a large dog chased a cat directly under the mule ridden by Christ, causing it to buck the rider into the dust. Worse yet, every time the rider attempted to stand up and remount, the goat would butt him over again from behind. Soon the entire procession was in an uproar, with horses bucking, sheep bleating, and the biblical characters cursing and swearing as they attempted to bring order out of chaos. Later an old Indian woman, scolding the owner of the dog and cat for not keeping them under control as the "holy"processionwent by, commented: "It was bad enough when Christ got bucked off his mule, and the billy goat butted him in the rear end. But when the Holy Virgin tore her dress on the barbed wire fence, that was a terriblething!" More typical of the jokes told at the present time is one currently making the rounds. A young Indian (variously described as a Potawatomi, a Winnebago, or an Omaha) has just come into a bit of money from a land sale, and decides to go "girling" in Oklahoma. He buys himself a new suit of clothes and hops the first bus to Anadarko. Getting off the bus, he sees an old Indian man, obviously of the old school, standing on the corner. The old man wears his hair in braids, neatly wrapped with blue and green yarn, has a dark shirt and trousers, moccasins, and a white sheet wrapped around his waist in lieu of a blanket. The young man thinks, "Aha, here is an oldtimer who can help me out. These old-timers know all about love medicines, and that's what I want right now." Accordingly, he approachesthe old man, introduces himself, and in Indian fashion invites the old man to a restaurant for a fine meal. "Order the biggest steak in the

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Journal of American Folklore

house, Uncle," he urges. "Way ahead! [i.e., good]," answers the old-timer, and does as suggested. After the main course the young man says, "How about pie d la mode, Uncle? Wouldn't that go good about now?" Again the old Indian gratefully accepts. Then, "Would you like a cigar to top off your meal?" Again the old man gladly accepts. "You have been very nice to me, Nephew," he comments at last. "And I appreciate what you have done for a poor old man. Now in our Indian way that might mean that you want me to help you out in some way." "That's true, Uncle," the young man replies, "I do need your help. I am down here for social purposes, and I know you old people are wise in these old Indian medicines. Could you get hold of some love medicine for me ?" At this point the old man smiles, reaches under the sheet around his waist and into his trousers pocket. Pulling out four peyote "buttons" he hands them to the young man, saying, "Here, take these and love everybody!"
NOTES
I. This breakfastfollows the "sacredbreakfast"at which water, parched corn, pounded meat, fruit, and nuts are served to the participantsin small amounts. 2. Weston La Barre, The Peyote Cult, Yale University Publicationsin Anthropology,No. 19 (New Haven, I938), p. 53. 3. La Barre,p. 53, fn. I20. 4. Ibid., p. 82, fn. IIo. 5. Ibid., p. 53, fn. II8. 6. Ibid., p. 17, fn. 32.

University of North Dakota

GrandForks,North Dakota