Hiding directory contents from HTTP

I have a file named index.html in the top-level
directory where my ISP hosts web space for me, and
people browsing to that directory see the contents
of index.html rather than a directory listing. How
effective is this way of hiding files? Is there
a variant of the HTTP "GET" command that says,
"Give me the directory listing, not index.html"?

The URL is http://webpages.charter.net/curryfans/.

I've tried creating a subdirectory with permissions
rwx------ and ownership curryfans.apache, but if
you guess its name, its contents are presented
without visible reluctance.

I'm not looking for CIA-proof security, just a way
to share with friends stuff that I might not want
to lay before all the weirdos on the Internet,
no offense, present company excepted of course.

--
Peter Pearson
To get my email address, substitute:
nowhere -> spamcop, invalid -> net

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