This describes the method pursued formerly and which some of the old men have witnessed. Now the Hopi eagle hunters take upon themselves the difficult and somewhat hazardous task of visiting the eyries to seize the eaglets. Not all are taken from the nest, since a wise prohibition requires that some be left to continue the species. The eaglets are brought to the pueblo, where their heads are washed with due ceremony, and they are sprinkled with sacred meal. Then the feathers are plucked out and the birds are killed by pressure on the breastbone so as not to shed blood, and they are buried in a special cemetery in a cleft among the rocks where a few stones are put upon the bodies after the ritual. At the close of the ceremony of the departure of the gods, called the Niman, or Farewell ceremony, small painted wooden dolls and little bows and arrows are placed upon the eagle graves and liberally sprinkled with sacred meal. But this does not end the Hopi eagle customs. Near the school at Dawapa, below Walpi, one may stumble upon a collection of oval objects of wood, placed among rocks, some weathered and some bearing traces of spots of white paint and feathers. He may learn also that this is an eagle shrine and that these wooden eggs are prayers for the increase of eagles prepared during the Soyaluna or Winter Solstice ceremony. At present figurines of the domestic animals are also offered for the same purpose. Perhaps we have here a step toward the domestication of animals which was carried out with the turkey, parrot, and dog. In any case, however, there is shown the veneration of the Hopi for the birds of the air and especially the eagle, which is honored in the symbols of so many peoples. Among the sacred animals of the Hopi the turkey is of great importance. In accord with the belief that the markings on the tail feathers were caused by the foam and slime of an ancient deluge, the feathers are prescribed for all pahos; since through their mythical association with water they have great power in bringing rain. The Spanish Conquerors of the sixteenth century when they visited the pueblos spoke of "cocks with great hanging chins" they saw there, and this is the first notice of the bird for which the world is indebted to America. In the villages turkeys roam around without restraint and become household pets. Sometimes also they dispute the entrance of a village by a stranger and put him to a great deal of annoyance by their attacks, which are usually in the nature of a surprise from the rear. At present the Hopi keep them for their feathers, which are plucked as occasion requires, so that the village turkey commonly has a ragged appearance.