The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-03-01
INDIAN SIGNALS AND SIGNS.
How the Abordgines Used Smoke and Fire and Other Means to
 Convey Information to
 Friends and Enemies.

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 and Fire and Other Means to
 Convey Information to
 Friends and Enemies.
 Portland Oregonian.
 Previous to the advent of ldvilizing in- tenn of signals, some of a friendly char acter. but the majority having reference to war. As time has passed many of his signs and signals have become lost and the present generation. with few excep- tons, have little or no knowledge of them as they were practiced until the middle of the nineteenth century.
 The smoke signals were probably the most universal and best known. Many of the early settlers. who located far from the confines of civilization, were fully competent to read and interpet the most of them. First" signals were also quite commonly employed, especially by tribes inhabfting a mountainous country. Signals by means of the branches of trees. arrows, stones, and sticks were less fre- quently used, though they were by no means rare Their interpretation varied considerably, so<khuch so that few whites ever thoroughly understood them. Many were in reality purely local and pertained particularly to the tribe using them. This was not true of the smoke" and fire" signals These, with possibly a few oth- CTS. were understood generally by all tribes of Indians
 The Smoke Signal.
 Smoke" signals were made by means of a small fire built of some material that would cause quantity of smoke. with very little active combustion. The high est accessible butte or mountain was se- lected from which to send either these or fire" signals. The commonly accepted statement that rings of smoke were caus- ed to ascend Is wrong Properly speak ing they were not rings. but rather puffs or balls of smoke. Occasionally, on still I l,- >H -.1Nra uvAA 4N ascend. Primarily 1t was not signal, but used principally to attract attention. | The ball of smoke was produced by covering, momentariiy, small fires using buffalo, elk or deer hide. or in later days, a blanket removing the covering, permitting a puff of smoke to escape and immediately recovering the fire. In this | manner quite a variety of signals could be produced. One pun of smoke at compara- lively long intervals meant "an enemy Is near" Two puffs indicated "a camp here." Three puffs. quite near together, with a longer interval between each set of three denoted great danger" or "at- lacked by enemy; % Four pp1s, hs in pairs, tns two pairs, signifed. large band of ene- my, help wanted"
 Some tribes varied this method of sig naling by building the number of sepa- quired to express their meaning, as one, two or three. Such signals could be read | fly distinguished at from ten to thirty miles and they were seldom confounded with camp fires. The lookout or scout that was a necessary adjunct of every war party, especially when in hostile neighborhood, rarely failed to see and report all signsis occurring within the limit of his vision.
 The Fire by Night.
 Fire" signals were used for the same purpose at night and with from one to four bright fires in line. the same mean , lngs were expressed as with the "smoke' signals during daylight. In the vicinity of the section of country claimed as home or where the larger number spent the winter months, there was usually some high butte or mountain called signal hill," or in at least one Indian tongue "We-was-tos-po.' From this eminence fire signals were always made and any nicated to the people. Signals from this hill were almost invariably made by or der of the chief, and their principal use was in calling the people together for a council meeting, dance, or feast. The Indian from whom this information was obtained stated that many of the nor, experienced among the old people couId readily distinguish if it was to be a war scalp or sun dance.
 The same system of signaling was uset at night, by means of fire arrows;' though they could not be seen at so grea a distance as the smoke or fire signals yet a clever operator could make his wish es known without difficulty. One, two o three fire arrows had the same signifi canoe as an equal number of smokes or fire" signals. with the addition that number of arrows shot rapidly into tn air conveyed the information that the! were greatly outnum bered and that hell was imperatively required. The Indianl made these arrows very ingeniously b! wrapping the head of the shaft in a va riety of slow burning. soft bark, whicl made quite bright flame. and lasted some length of time. In replying to an! of these signals 1t was the custom tt make the same signal as had been re ceived. In times of war no answer wa over; returned for obvious reasons. but possible the requested aid was dispatched as soon as 1t could conveniently be done.
 The Turned Stones.
 In mountainous countries, signals, or more properly speaking. signs, were mad by the use of stones. A band of Indians travelling and wishing or expecting other to follow would frequently turn owe stones, selecting those possessing com paratively rounded base, with the othe extremity as sharply pointed as possible placing the point in the direction the, were travelling. By this simple procedur they easily and surely marked the cours taken to any who might encounter thes, signs. If they had found and were fol lowing the buffalo. three small stone were placed on the surface of that whicl | indicated that they were following a par ty of the enemy, while but one smal stone In a similar position was given thu same interpretation, with the addition that they required assistance. A numbe of small sticks stuck in the ground nea the large stone indicated the number il the party, and a stick split in halves wal used by at least one tribe to express thu number 10. As an illustration, an in stance is recalled that occurred a numbe of years since. A party of white men on a hunting trip, met an Indian. InquirI was made as to :he proba bility of finding antelope at a butte distant some sixtI miles. He confidently replied in the af firmative, and upon being questioned al to his reasons for supposing game existed there answered that he had just seer an Indian sign so stating. and at @ little distance he showed pointed rock weighing probably twenty pounds, witt the point directly toward the butte 1T question. It was quite evident that il had been recently turned over, and three small pebbles were lying at it's surface with nine short sticks fixed In the eartf by its side. The information conveyed tc the Indian by this sign was subsequently found to have been correct.
 Coughs, Branches and Twigs.
 Information corresponding to the above was also given by means of the boughs of tree. A large low-hanging branch was partially broken off, turned hori- zontaily and fixed with the top pointing in the direction taken by travellers. One, two, or three. of It's smaller branches when broken so as to hang perpendicular made meanings identical with the small stones. Signs made in this manner were quite commonly employed by the tribes inhabiting a heavily timbered country, es7 | peciaIly the sign denoting the finding of game. The green boughs of trees were