466 SIGN LANGUAGE AMONG NORTH AMERIUAN INDIANS. 
CHIPEWAY. See OJIBWA. 
CoMANCHE. 
Imitate, by the waving of the hand or forefinger, the forward crawling 
motion of a snake. (Burton, also Blackmore in introduction to Dodge’s 
Plains of the Great West. New York, 1877, p. xxv.) The same sign is 
used for the Shoshoni, more commonly called “ Snake”, Indians, who as 
well as the Comanches belong to the Shoshonian linguistic family. ‘The 
silent stealth of the tribe.” (Dodge; Marcy in Thirty Years of Army 
Life on the Border. New York, 1866, p. 33.) Rev. A. J. Holt remarks, 
however, that among the Comanches themselves the conception of this 
sign is the trailing of a rope, or lariat. This refers probably to their 
well-known horsemanship. 
Motion of a snake. (Macgowan.) 
Hold the elbow of the right arm near the right side, but not touching 
it; extend the forearm and hand, palm inward, fingers joined on a level 
with the elbow, then with a shoulder movement draw the forearm and 
hand back until the points of the fingers are behind the body; at the 
same time that the hand is thus being moved back, turn it right and 
left several times. (Creel; Sac, Fox, and Kickapoo I.) ‘Snake in the 
grass. A snake drawing itself back in the grass instead of crossing the 
road in front of you.” 
Another: The sign by and for the Comanches themselves is made by 
holding both hands and arms upward from the elbow, both palms in- 
ward, and passing both hands with their backs upward along the lower 
end of the hair to indicate long hair, as they never cut it. (Sac, Fox, and 
Kickapoo 1.) 
Right hand horizontal, flat, palm downward (W), advanced to the 
front by a motion to represent the crawling of a snake. (Dakota III.) 
Extend the closed right hand to the front and left; extend the index, 
palm down, and rotate from side to side while drawing it back to the 
right hip. (Arapaho II; Cheyenne V; Dakota V1, VII, VILL; Ponka UU; 
Kaiowa 1; Panil; Comanche 11; Apache 11; Wichita Il.) This motion 
is just the reverse of the sign for Shoshoni, see Fig. 297 infra. 
Make the reverse gesture for Shoshoni, i. e., begin away from the 
body, drawing the hand back to the side of the right hip while rotating 
it. (Comanche II.) 
CREE, KNISTENO, KRISTENEAUX. 
Sign for WAGON and then the sign for Man. (Dakota Il.) ‘This in- 
dicates the Red River half-breeds, with their carts, as these people are 
so known from their habit of traveling with carts.” 
Place the first and second fingers of the right hand in front of the 
mouth. (utine I.) 
