these dances sounded extremely secular with an emphasis
on the recreational aspects, particularly dancing. However, the consensus
that the ceremonies were not successful because of the introduction of
white-style dancing suggests that the Indian dances still retain some of
their former sacred character. It was agreed that a dance might be held
today or in the future if the crops were poor. Here again the present
economic situation of the Washo tends to limit these affairs to weekends.
The impossibility of holding four-day dances however, is not considered
serious by most Washo. Several informants stoutly denied that there was
any requirement that the dance last four days. They implied that those who
insisted on this were simply trying to make it sound more important (note
that using the figure four makes something more important). Their accounts
report that the dances might last from one or two days to a week during
which time games were played, dances held, and the ritual described
earlier carried out. However, there is no doubt that the dances were
important to the success of the harvest and the well-being of the
harvesters. One informant recalls that: "Sometimes them pine nuts was ripe
before the dance. If we picked them then [before the dance], we took a
bath every day before we started picking but we didn't have to do that
after the dance."

The following incident illustrates the attitude most conservative Washo
have toward the pinyon pine. D'Azevedo (personal communication)
accompanied an elderly woman to her pine-nut allotment where she
discovered that illegal Christmas-tree cutters had topped a number of
trees, which she believed destroyed their ability to bear. Her response
was of sorrow rather than anger. She sat under her trees for a long time
apologizing to her father, from whom she had inherited the plot, and to
the spirits of the trees.

There seems to have been little ritual involved in other gathering
activities, except for the dances to make the seeds grow mentioned in the
element lists (2621). This practice must have been occasional and
relatively old, because it is no longer part of the memories of older
informants.

MISCELLANEOUS RITUAL

Although modern informants do not remember taboos dealing with hair
combing and scratching during menstruation, they do recall being warned
against combing their hair at night. "My father used to say that if we did
it we'd marry out of the tribe. Mike