Rocky Mountains. 579 



horizon, and then gradually elevated, to show the ascent of 

 that luminary, until the hand arrives in the proper direction, 

 to indicate the part of the heavens in which the sun will be 

 at the given time. 



2. Night, or sleeping — The head, with the eyes closed is 

 laterally inclined for a moment upon the hand. As many 

 times as this is repeated, so many nights are indicated; very 

 frequently the sign of the sun is traced over the heavens, 

 from east to west, to indicate the lapse of a day, and pre- 

 cedes the motion; it also precedes the following — 



3. Darkness — The hands extended horizontally forwards, 

 and back upward, pass one over the other, two or three 

 times touching it. 



4. Combat — The clenched hands are held about as high 

 as the neck, and five or six inches asunder, then waved two 

 or three times laterally, to show the advances and retreats of 

 the combatants; after which the fingers of each hand are suf- 

 fered to spring from the thumb towards each other, as in the 

 act of sprinkling water, to represent the flight of missiles. 



5. Prisoner — The fore finger and thumb of the left hand, 

 are held in the form of a semicircle, opening towards, and 

 near the breast, and the fore finger of the right representing 

 the prisoner, is placed upright within the curve, and passed 

 from one side to another, in order to show that it will not be 

 permitted to pass out. 



6. Man —A finger held vertically. 



7. Seeing — The fore finger, in the attitude of pointing, is 

 passed from the eye towards the real or imaginary object. 



8. Seen, or discovered — The sign of a man, or other ani- 

 mal, is made, after which the finger is pointed towards, and 

 approached to your own eye; it is the preceding sign re- 

 versed. 



9. Entering a house or lodge — The left hand is held with 

 the back upward, and the right hand also with the back up, 

 is passed in a curvilinear direction, down under the other, 



