In Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger, if you want to search your Mail messages by typing keywords in the application's search box, Spotlight won't find any messages if it isn't allowed to index and search your Home folder. This is because Mail messages are stored in each user's Home folder.
Note: By default, Spotlight includes your Home folder in its searches. This issue only occurs if you specifically added your Home folder to the Privacy list.
To resolve this issue, use Spotlight preferences to remove your Home folder from the Privacy list. Then give Spotlight a few minutes (or more, depending on how large your Home folder is) to index your stuff, including your Mail messages. If you want to check indexing progress, click the Spotlight icon.
