The Smith signal (also known as Smith echo or Smith Peter) is an attitude carding signal in contract bridge showing additional values (or lack thereof) in the first suit led by the defence, while the signal itself is given in the first suit played by declarer.
| ♠ 7 3 | ||
| ♠ A 10 9 5 4 | W N↑ S↓ E | ♠ Q J 2 |
| ♠ K 8 6 |
Example: Against 3NT, West leads the spade five to East's jack and declarer's king. Declarer then attacks diamonds to establish the suit and West wins the ace on the second round. Now, how can West know who holds the spade queen? Playing the Smith Peter signal, East plays high-low in diamonds to show the queen of spades or low-high to deny it.
There are several variations, depending on partnerships agreement, as to exactly when this signal applies. It can be played either against NT-contracts only, or against all contracts. It can be used by both players, or used only by the opener, or used only by his partner. Alternatively, it can be played "upside-down" -- i.e. low-high shows values in the opening-lead suit, while high-low denies it.
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—Adam Smith (1723–1790)
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—Selma H. Fraiberg (20th century)