356 PICTURE-WRITING OF THE AMERICAN INDIANS. 
placed as a notification of direction to those Indians who might have 
come up the canyon instead of on the regular trail. Farther west, at 
the spot marked @ on the map, is a granite bowlder bearing a large 
number of paintings, part of which have become almost obliterated. 
These were drawn with red ocher (ferric oxide). A selection of these 
is shown in Fig. 469. 
This is on the almost vertical western face of the rock. These char- 
acters also appear to refer to the course of the trail, which might 
readily be lost on account of the numerous mountain ridges and spurs. 
The left-hand human figure appears to place its hand upon a series of 
ridges, as if showing pantomimically the rough and ridged country 
over the mountains. 
The middle figure is making a gestwre which in its present connec- 
tion may indicate direction of the trail, i. e., toward the left, or north- 
ward in an uphill course, as indicated by the arm and leg, and south- 
ward, or downward, as suggested by the lower inclination of the leg 
and lower forearm and hand on the right of the painting. 
These illustrations, as well as other pictographs on the same rock, 
not now represented, exhibit remarkable resemblance to the general 
type of Shoshonean drawing, and from such evidence as is now attain- 
able it is probable that they are of Chemehuevi origin, as that tribe at 
one time ranged far to the west, though north of the mountains, and also 
visited the valley and settlements at Los Angeles to trade. It is also 
known that the Mojaves came at stated periods to Los Angeles as late 
as 1845, and the trail indicated at point a of the map would appear to 
have been their most practicable and convenient route. There is strong 
evidence that the Moki sometimes visited the Pacifie coast and might 
readily have taken this same course, marking the important portions 
of the route by drawings in the nature of guideboards. 
The following curious account is taken from The Redman, Carlisle, 
October, 1888: 
A ranchman visiting a deserted camp of Piegans found the following 
notice: 
We called at this ranch at dinner time. They treated us badly, giving us no din- 
ner and sending us away. There is a head man who has two dogs, one of which has 
no tail. There are two larger men who are laborers. They have two pairs of large 
horses and two large colts, also another smaller pair of horses and two ponies which 
have two colts. 
The notice was composed thus: A circle of round stones represented the horses 
and ponies, the latter being smaller stones; the stones outside of the circle meant 
there were so many colts. Near the center was a long narrow stone, upon the end 
of which was a small one. This denoted the head man or owner, whose two dogs 
were shown by two pieces of bark, one with a square end while the other had a twig 
stuck in fora tail. Two other long narrow stones, larger than the first, stood for 
the laborers; these had no small stones on them, Some sticks of wood, npon which 
was a small pile of buffalo chips, meant that dinner was ready; and empty shells 
turned upside down told they got nothing to eat, but were sent away. 
Mr. Charles W. Cunningham, formerly of Phoenix, Arizona, reports 
