In The Old Houses, Found When The White Man First
Visited The Pueblos, There Was No Means Of Entrance To The First Stories
Save By Means Of The Ladders Which Stood Outside Against The Walls, And
Thence Through Hatchways Made In The Roofs.
This was for the purpose of
defence against hostile tribes, who were constantly warring with these
home-loving Indians in order that they might steal from them the fruits of
their persistent labor and thrift.
The ladder, during times of expected
attack, could be lifted upon the second story, out of reach, and thus these
houses became the forts of their inhabitants. Nowadays entrances are
provided on the ground floor, and this house at El Tovar follows the modern
custom, as well as the later innovation (which of course is essential in
this building) of using glass for windows. For convenience and safety,
another anachronism is tolerated in the electric light. In practically
everything else, the building is a true model of a Hopi community house.
With these people, the women are generally and mainly the builders of the
houses, the men merely assisting in the heavier work.
Quaint Stairways. In addition to the quaint ladders, quainter steps, cut
into flat or round trunks of cottonwood trees, are used. Stone steps
connecting the two upper stories, are also built outside in the partition
walls. The chimneys are constructed, in true pueblo fashion, of pottery
water ollas, the bottoms of which have been broken out. Three or more of
these, fastened with cement or mortar, are placed one above another.
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