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On the day of candle working the town officials & all ex-mayordomos are given a dinner by the m-d. acting. The night preceding saint's day he gives a dance. The one I saw being at this time, and during the year it is customary for him to give 2 more dances, furnishing food, drink & music. no ¶In the val. of Oaxaca the m-d-. is not chosen to succeed himself but is expected to serve 2 or 3 terms at intervals of a year or [[strikethrough]] two [[/twostrikethrough]]. Then he is an ex. m-d-. and is looked upon as one of the head men of the place and with his companions forming a kind of unofficial council that is consulted by the officials when anything of special importance is to be decided. These men are called ancianos or principales.
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On June 14th we left Huilotepec and went on to San Mateo Del Mar a distance of about 13 miles. This is a fishing village of several hundred Indians many of whom speak no Spanish. The tribe is known as Huavi and is a very small one confined to the four towns of San Mateo Del Mar. The main place--Santa Maria, San Francisco, & San Dionisio. The towns are all located immediately about the lagunas near the coast-San Mateo & Santa Maria being a narrow sand spit of low ground partly covered with sand dunes lying between the sea & the lagoon. The other towns are on the oppo-