364 SIGN LANGUAGE AMONG NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS. 
as-follows: Place the clinched left fist horizontally in front of the breast, 
back forward, then pass the palmar side of the right fist downward in 
front of the knuckles of the left. 
Dr. W. H. Corbusier, assistant surgeon U.S. A., writes as follows 
in response to a special inquiry on the subject: “ By carrying the right 
fist from behind forward over the left, instead of beginning the motion 
six inches above it, the Arapaho sign for strong is made. For brave, 
first strike the chest over the heart with the right fist two or three 
times, and then make the sign for strong. 
“The sign for strong expresses the superlative when used with other 
signs; with coward it denotes a base coward; with hunger, starvation ; 
and with sorrow, bitter sorrow. I have not seen it used with the sign for 
pleasure or that of hunger, nor can I learn that it is ever used with them.” 
OPPOSITION. 
The principle of opposition, as between the right and left hands, and 
between the thumb and forefinger and the little finger, appears among 
Indians in some expressions for “above,” “below,” “forward,” “back,” 
but is not so common as among the methodical, distinguished from the 
natural, signs of deaf-mutes. It is also connected with the attempt to 
express degrees of comparison. Above is sometimes expressed by 
holding the left hand horizontal, and in front of the body, fingers open, 
but joined together, palm upward. The right hand is ther placed hori- 
zontal, fingers open but joined, palm downward, an inch or more above 
the left, and raised and lowered a few inches several times, the left hand 
being perfectly still. If the thing indicated as “above” is only a little 
above, this concludes the sign, but if it be considerably above, the right 
hand is raised higher and higher as the height to be expressed is greater, 
until, if enormously above, the Indian will raise his right hand as high 
as possible, and, fixing his eyes on the zenith, emit a duplicate grunt, 
the more prolonged as he desires to express the greater height. All 
this time the left hand is held perfectly motionless. Below is gestured 
in a corresponding manner, all movement being made by the left or 
lower hand, the right being held motionless, palm downward, and the 
eyes looking down. 
The code of the Cistercian monks was based in large part on a system 
of opposition which seems to have been wrought out by an elaborate pro- 
cess of invention rather than by spontaneous figuration, and is more of 
mnemonic than suggestive value. They made two fingers at the right 
side of the nose stand for “friend,” and the same at the left side for 
“enemy,” by some fanciful connection with right and wrong, and placed 
the little finger on the tip of the nose for “fool” merely because it had 
been decided to put the forefinger there for “wise man.” 
PROPER NAMES. 
It is well known that the names of Indians are almost always conno- 
tive, and particularly that they generally refer to some animal, predicating 
