who wishes to send a message to a party of his friends a long way off,
builds a fire. When it blazes, he throws an armful of green grass on
it. This causes the fire to send up a stream of white smoke hundreds of
feet high, which can be seen fifty miles away in clear weather. Among
the Apaches, one column of smoke is to call attention; two columns say,
"All is well, and we are going to remain in this camp;" three columns
or more are a sign of danger, and ask for help.

[Illustration: A Smoke Signal.]

Sometimes longer messages are sent. After building a fire and putting
green grass upon it, the Indian spread his blanket over it. He holds
down the edges, to shut the smoke in. After a few moments he takes his
blanket off; and when he does this, a great puff of smoke, like a
balloon, shoots up into the air. This the Indian does over and over.
One puff of smoke chases another upward. By the number of these puffs,
and the length of the spaces between them, he makes his meaning
understood by his friends many miles away.

At night the Indians smear their arrows with something that will burn
easily. One of them draws his bow. Just as he is about to let his arrow
fly, another one touches it with fire. The arrow blazes as it shoots
through the air, like a fiery dragon fly. One burning arrow follows
another; and those who see them read these telegraph signals, and know
what is meant.

TELEGRAPHS IN THE REVOLUTION.

Our forefathers sometimes used fire to telegraph with in the
Revolution. Whenever the British troops started on a raid into New
Jersey, the watchmen on the hilltops lighted great beacon fires. Those
who saw the fires lighted other fires farther away. These fires let the
people know that the enemy was coming, for light can travel much faster
than men on horseback.

Have you heard the story of Paul Revere? When the British were about to
send troops from Boston to Lexington, Revere and his friends had an
understanding with the people in Charlestown. Revere was to let them
know when the troops should march. They were to watch a certain church
steeple. If one lantern were hung in the steeple, it would mean that
the British were marching by land. If two lanterns were seen, the
Charlestown people would know that the troops were leaving Boston by
water. Revere was sent as a messenger to Lexington. He sent a friend of
his to hang up the lanterns in the church steeple.

"Then he climbed the tower of the Old N