Within twenty-four hours the corpse is taken away to be buried.  It is tied in three or four places to one or two poles and carried by two men.  Women never go with them to the funeral.  As soon as the undertakers have accomplished their task, they immediately wash their persons well.  Upon their return, branches of the mountain cedar are burned inside of the house, to “cure” it.

The body is laid at rest in a shallow grave inside of a cave or just outside of it, with the head to the east and the feet to the west.  In some caves, however, this rule is not adhered to, for I found corpses placed in accordance with the formation of the floor of the cave.  The body is covered with an inch of earth, then with a row of pine or palm sticks put on lengthwise, and over this a layer of earth is spread five or six inches deep.  On top of all, stones are thrown.  The bodies of grown persons are stretched out to their full length, but with children the knees are generally drawn up.

This is one Way in which the pagan Tarahumares bury their dead.  Another mode, equally common, is to place the body lying on its back, on the surface, without any earth to cover it; in this case the mouth of the cave is walled up with stones, or stones and mud, and several bodies may be found inside.

When exhuming skeletons I have frequently found bits of charcoal, which was explained by the fact that during the first night the mourners keep a fire near the grave, which to-day serves the same purpose as candles.  This also accounts for the smokiness of the interior of the burial-caves, even of the ancient ones.

The dead keeps his buckskin pouch and three small gourds with beans.  Three ears of corn are placed to the left of his head, as well as a small jar of tesvino.  Another small jar of tesvino is placed near his feet, as well as his bow and arrows, the stone with which the arrows are stretched, reeds and sinews, his steel for striking fire, the small stick with which paint is put on the arrows, his sucking-tubes when the deceased has been a shaman, in fact all his light-weight belongings, besides balls of gum from the pine-tree, necklaces of Coix Lachryma-Jobi and a hikuli plant.  Everything heavy, such as his axe, machete, beads, and money, he leaves, as it is thought that the weight would hinder him from rising to heaven.  This is the practical view the Indians have taken since their contact with the whites, as valuables frequently attract marauders.  The dead man’s sandals, his violin, and the vessels from which he used to take his food, are kept in a separate place for a year, that is, until after the last function for the dead is over; then at night the shaman and other men take them away and bury them somewhere, but not with the dead.  The skins on which he died are treated in the same way, and are never used again, lest a very ugly dog might be born of them.  The house is always destroyed, and the me-tare and many jars and baskets are broken.