Sacajawea, the Amazing Discovery.... or, The Lost Journal of Sacajawea Following is a section of my Lewis and Clark bicentennial contribution, having to do with the adventures of Sacajawea. Originally, I had followed the Lewis and Clark expedition from the mouth of the Missouri River in a standard research writing, adding some of my recollections as a shovelhand on a Natl. Park Service River Basin Survey in South Dakota (before the big dams)and some excavations and explorations as a student at Mizzou in the sociology-anthropology department. The work was along the Missouri River in the state of Missouri. This Lewis and Clark project was all going along just fine until I reached the Mandan Village and Sacajawea. She just took over, and the rest of the story centered around her. I used the historical fiction technique for Sacajawea's adventure..or the trip through her eyes. Since I ran out of space here on the web site to include it all (it became book length). I'm just going to include Sacajawea's story, the introductory poem and some concluding thoughts. The entire series was published in the Branson (MO) Daily News from May, 2004 to May 2005. If anyone wants a complete copy of all 24 columns or chapters query us; we should have the cost figured out soon. Sincerely, Ron Miller - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - America's Spirit Vast western land of America, pristine, natural wonder, now feeling the unusual winds blowing across the white glacier approaching from the east. Argonauts of the west are needed to explore, map and officially claim. There must be a golden fleece, a northwest passage through the mysterious geographical vale. From the President's office would come the momentous decision, Jefferson's idea, and his command to action. Gather a small group of sturdy, fearless, souls, young, resourceful, bright, eager for adventure, strong as freedom's idea...with no limitation, sons of the frontier. To be lead by the elite of the elite...Lewis in command, Clark second, and Ordway 1st Sgt. A great journey awaits. Old maps and legend must be examined, traders questioned...scientific method studied. Crucial will be the Quartermaster, life and death hinging on good supply. Also arms a must for game and protection in a land owned by native Americans since times of the woolly mammoths....now claimed by the whites! Call also for the craftsmen; fashion a special boat, sturdy for the mighty rivers, a keel to withstand sand, mud and rocks...a craft of hope built for stoic relentless movement on and on helped with sail, poles, oars, ropes and sweat down the Ohio, up the Mississippi and northwest on the Missouri. At last, time to depart, but fill lungs deeply with the last air of white civilization....new cultures and environments await. Camp DuBois on the eastern shore of the Mississippi...first point of departure...in the land of giant temple mounds, silent, now dead, at the once magnificent village of the great Mississippi culture close by. What must lie ahead? Where did this culture go? To eternity? Or west? Finally, farewell to cheering folk of St. Charles near the mouth of the Missouri River, friendly people here with trader explorer blood...on the frontier...only one small camp of French traders left on up the Missouri course...then, maybe a few trappers and traders. Press on! Get as far as possible before winter's freeze. A protective camp will be needed on the upper Missouri...a land of bitter cold and uncertainties. For strength stick to tough military discipline, eyes on unerring goals, pleasing the President, discovery a unique glory, and the discipline of Aristotilian science...and most important of all, THE JOURNAL...writing, the difference between history and prehistory...silence or knowledge. The priceless record...kept as if by historians of old on the trek of Alexander the Great exploring the east and Napoleon in Egypt. Great Captains knew about the record. Great stories of glory, discoveries and the human trial cannot be of naught. God knows, but Man must also know. Up the majestic Missouri, past the old abandoned village of the Missouri Indians, who feeling those strange winds of the east had already moved up stream to the land of the Oto their kin, although eventually there would be no escape. But, for the explorers, relentless sweating, pulling, cursing the hardest work, slowly moving, thankful for camps, eating of catfish and deer, passing old Native American mounds along the way...silent sentinels of the past attesting to thousands of years of ownership...but not so silent up stream where living history and prehistory awaits. Always, care is taken to observe nature and features along the meandering channel. What amazing wonders are recorded, vegetation, animal life, geology, a whole new museum of the west. Still, relentless duty calls to press on. Feel the winter chill? On up to the land of the earthen home-builders, domed structures, great protection from the northern, freezing blast. An important milestone has now been achieved with the arrival of the explorers in the country of the Arickira, Mandan and Hidatsa. Hurriedly cut the timbers now for the building of "Fort Mandan" in the fashion of the white man. Across the river would be a meeting, a fortunate gift of the Great Spirit, Sacajawea, the Shoshone girl, taken captive by the Hidatsa. Sacajawea then won in a gambling game by the French-Canadian trader Tousaint Charbonneau...who then married her...and now she was six months pregnant. Charbonneau was hired by the explorers, but Sacajawea would be needed more than anyone...superior guide, the peace woman in hostile lands, finder of natural foods, horses and rescuer of the Journal swept overboard in rough water. With papoose Jean Baptist on her back, she would plunge in and swim to the treasure. Safely now after difficult portage, battling big bears, wild buffalo, many hardships, to her home country the land of the Shoshone. Joyous reunion with her brother the chief Cameahwait and girl friends. Here at "Camp Fortunate" was the finding of another Indian guide "Old Toby" who knew about the Columbia headwaters. Still ahead would be many challenges of mountains, water and native Americans, then, at last, the glorious Pacific was reached...but it would be a dreary camp...and there would be waiting. Finally, came back-tracking and even some short cuts, heading home, down stream, faster pace now. Amazingly, the explorers arrived home to a world that thought they were lost! Victory! The welcome for heroes! Unfortunately, the journals were slow to be published. Lewis had many personal problems, and his young story became a tragedy of death...a sad unpublished chapter in the Journal. Sacajawea's story now fades in history. Young Jean Baptiste and sister Lizette went to the home of Clark in St. Louis. Sacajawea's final resting place is still debated, although certainly resting in the Great Spirit's arms is one of America's greatest heroines. The story of the explorers of the northwest lives on 200 years now. And 200 years hence it will still live...the search for the northwest passage, the American golden fleece, the claiming of a great land...the conquering of one hard challenge after another...America's spirit! RM - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The Great Expedition, Part 6 - Sacajawea, The Amazing Discovery... Or, The Lost Journal of Sacajawea I want to let readers know that the following is a fictionalized story about Sacajawea, the famous Shoshone Native American, woman guide for the Lewis and Clark expedition. There is quite a lot of fact here, but also some imagination and deduction. This is unusual to insert a fictionalized story suddenly in a series of narrative columns (no. 6 in Lewis and Clark). However, the following idea - a revision - came to me, and just wouldn't let go. The story kept right on developing while doing chores, going to town and trying to work on other pieces. Sometimes in writing stories I notice, and other writers have discovered the same thing, a character is so powerful - in this case Sacajawea - that he or she takes the pen from your hand and dominates completely. I just went with the flow and herewith relate the following story: Sacajawea; The Amazing Discovery, Or, The Lost Journal of Sacajawea, Part I A young couple Sarah and Pierre Laval living in present day St. Louis, Missouri had one of those great experiences of life; they were finally able to have their own home. The house, an old rambling place, had been willed to them by Pierre's Aunt Marcie a reclusive person. Pierre came from a long line of old residents of St. Louis. His Aunt Marcie had died at the age of 102, and her parents were also long lived. As amazing as it might seem, her parents were little children during the 1800s. And their parents could even remember the famed Meriwether Lewis and William Clark of the great expedition to the northwest in 1804. And, they also remembered when Lewis and Clark their men and Sacajawea and family returned,  At that time Clark had become prominent in the militia as a Brigadier General and also became Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the upper Louisiana Territory (1807), and later  he became the Governor for The Missouri Territory (1813 - 1820). Pierre's early relatives could also well remember the Hawken Brothers of St. Louis in the early 1800s who made the heavy duty "Hawken Rifles" prized by the scouts, hunters and wagon masters striking out to the west. Pierre's ancestors were there when the Butterfield Overland Mail first left St. Louis by train to the last point on the line at Tipton, Missouri and from there traveled south by stagecoach, kicking up sparks at night on Ozark chert - meeting the stagecoach from Memphis at Fort Smith, Arkansas, and then rumbling all through the southwest U.S. to San Francisco, California...and returned from California to St. Louis and also to Memphis. The young Lavals were happy to have the old house, even though it was very cobwebby, and they knew they had much work ahead of them. But with the vigor and hope of youth they plunged in exploring old rooms and ancient features such as winding banisters and wonderfully crafted antique chairs and dressers made in France and shipped up the Mississippi from New Orleans. It was like exploring a museum. The most fascinating place for the couple was the attic. They had to file through an old rusty padlock to get in. Inside it was very dusty and cobwebby. Shafts of light cut through the dingyness as an old Carravagio painting. Probably the last human to have been there was before either of the two young people had been born. They gingerly worked their way through old dressers, boxes and chests. They found old clothes that had long gone out of style by the time of the St. Louis World Fair in 1804. There was a spinning wheel, hand churn, old tarnished copper pots and pans as well as violet colored glassware that went back to early colonial days in the 1700s in the northeast...and also rose colored glassware of the 1800s. One unusual find especially fascinated both of them, a wooden container about five inches thick, the size of a large painting. The wood was of Aromatic Red Cedar. Pierre, using a screw driver, pried the boards loose on one end and could see the edge of an ornate, gold, picture frame. He carefully pulled it out, and he and his wife were astounded to see the painting of a striking, young, Native American woman in wonderful color. The Aromatic Red Cedar and darkness as well as the excellent well fitted workmanship of the container had protected the canvas and paint remarkably. The painting had been as an object in a dry tomb of ancient Egypt. The two stared at the picture hypnotized. The woman had large dark eyes that shown with intelligence. Her hair was black and shiny as a Raven. Her skin was a reddish color. She wore a dress of fine white buckskin and around her neck was a medallion of silver showing two hands clasped in friendship beneath a crossed peace pipe and hatchet. Down in the right hand corner of the painting the artist had written: "Sacajawea, Shoshone, Guide for Lewis and Clark, by Francois Charcot, 1815." The two were dumbfounded. They had to sit down and get their breath. This was too much...the only known picture of Sacajawea. They were later to learn that the artist was a well known painter from New Orleans who had studied in Paris and had made a trip to St. Louis painting a number of notables there. But, the painting was just part of the discovery. Also in the container they found a leather packet containing a manuscript. Fortunately the paper was made from fine linen rag and as good as the day it was made. Pierre carefully removed the papers and sitting on a stool commenced to read: "I, Sacajawea would like to tell my story. I first must thank Captain Lewis and General Clark for many things. General Clark has most kindly taken care of my two children, Jean Baptist and Lizette in his own home here in St. Louis. There he provided an education for them. I am eternally grateful for his kindness." Sacajawea went on to tell of her happy early life in the Shoshone village of her birth. "My childhood girl friend "Yellow Flower" and I had a lot of fun picking berries and digging roots down by the river. But our happy life was soon to come to an end tragically. One nice afternoon our little band was attacked by fierce Hidatsa. We ran for the woods, but they kept coming after us. It was horrible. There was much screaming and killing. Many of my good friends were slaughtered. Somehow Yellow Flower and I survived along with some more women and boys. We were taken prisoners put on horses and all charged off down the bank of the river heading toward the east. The dreaded Hidatsa raiders came from the Mandan and Arickira land along the Missouri River far to the east. We traveled days and days until we finally reached their big camp. Not far away was a large Mandan village of several thousand and nearby were three Arickira villages. All of them lived in round topped, semi-subterranean, earthen lodges. The smoke from all the smoke holes in the homes hung over the village as a grey blanket. We were shoved into a lodge of the leader of the raiding band. This would be our home. We were watched closely so we wouldn't excape. We were trophies and paraded at loud ceremonies at night around a big campfire and treated as slaves. We did the most menial work, gathering firewood, digging cache pits and big round pits for earthern homes. At the end of the day we were exhausted. Yellow Flower and I longed for home back in the land of the Shoshone and prayed to the Great Spirit to return us. Unfortunately, our bad situation was going to get worse. There was a rough French trader in camp named Toussaint Charbonneau. He and the braves would get together and gamble often in a big earthern lodge. They were loud and wild. During one game, our new owner the leader of the raiding party was in a game with Charbonneau. Our owner was losing badly, and, then, in desperation bet the two of us. Charbonneau won, and we became his property. He stood there looking at us with grease caked beard, dressed in dirty, stinking, old buckskins, drunk and held out his weaving arms to us. "My new wives; how lucky can can old Toussaint be? You with the big eyes, they call: "Sacajawea". I have had my eyes on you. You will be wife no. one. And you Yellow Flower will be no. two. We will all be very happy." (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sacajawea, the Amazing Discovery, Or, The Lost Journal of Sacajawea, Part III In the last episode, as recounted in an old manuscript by Sacajawea the famed Shoshone guide, and read by Pierre Laval to his wife Sarah, Sacajawea and her friend Yellow Flower both fourteen years of age, suddenly became the property and brides of the seedy French trader, Toussaint Charbonneau. They moved into one of the mandan earthen lodges, where Charbonneau roomed thanks to the generosity of an Indian family. It was often smoky inside unless the bison skin was parted a little on the entrance and allowed a draft. The home was one large oven. At night sometimes, the entrance was closed and a bull boat was turned upside down on the center smoke hole. While the fire was burning out, some smoke collected inside. Hanging from the ceiling rafters were bison and elk hides that served as partitions for small rooms. Pierre continued to read Sacajawea's account. "Yes, Yellow Flower and I exchanged one form of slavery for another. To make matters worse, Charbonneau was an animal. Yet, Yellow Flower and I decided to make the most of this bad situation and attempt to clean up the Frenchman. This cleaning was no small job, but we simply dragged the man into the Missouri River clothes and all. We made him new buckskins, moccasins, and cloth leggings, and even sewed some beadwork on his shirt. He had a large box of beads, trinkets and cloths that he traded with the Hidatsa, Mandans and Arickira. When Charbonneau wasn't drunk, he wasn't too bad, although he was outrageously boastful, and went about loudly telling people about his wonderful new wives. meanwhile, we worked like dogs, scraping bison hides, cooking, cleaning, digging casche pits, hauling water from the river in skin bags, husking and hulling corn, gathering squash, picking berries and many other chores. One day, an Arickira Swift Hawk came riding hard to the village. He was so excited that he had a very difficult time trying to talk. He had been riding for days. Many people gathered around him. He finally got out his story. "They are coming. The white soldiers are coming. They are in a large boat followed by several dugouts. I have seen them myself. I have been all the way to the Oto country trading the sacred red pipe stone. This is beyond the peaceful Yankton Sioux and the very warlike Teton Sioux closer to us. Since the pipestone is sacred they let me through. I learned that the whites stayed a while with each tribe, and now they are coming up the river toward us - in the land of the Hidatsa, Mandan and Arickira." "What do they want?" people asked. "Are they traders?" "Are they French...or English...or others?" "They proclaim to be the new owners of this land, and have come to claim it for a Great Chief far to the east." "But, how can this be," people questioned. "This land is owned by the Great Spirit...and He has chosen us to live here." "All I know is what I hear," said the scout. The town people, and especially the chiefs, looked at each other in a very concerned way." "This I can say," added the scout, they are very different whites...and they have one person with them who is all black!" The tribes people uttered cries of astonishment. "They also have a very large dog with them that is black." "And mounted on the front of their boat is a very large rifle, bigger and louder than any rifle I have ever seen!" said the scout. "Needless to say, all of us were very anxious to see these curious people" continued Sacajawea. "Some felt that they were probably just traders, and who knows, they might have some trade materials that the tribe needed, knives, iron pots, hatchets and cloth, maybe even rifles, copper sheets for cutting out little arrowheads and making rolled type beads...and other items? It was no doubt going to be an interesting meeting, but little did I know how important it was going to be for me personally!" (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sacajawea, the Amazing Discovery, 4 "The village people in our area were excited about news of the approaching white men and their big boat. They would first meet the three villages of the Arickira on a large island in the river, then, no doubt they would come upstream five miles farther to the big Mandan village on the left bank. And from there, they would not be far from the Hidatsa village. Charbonneau, Yellow Flower and I were soon to meet the whites in an unusual way. One of the lessor Mandan chiefs came to our lodge and told us we were to come and meet with Black Cat, Chief of the Mandans and with the white chiefs in the big lodge of the Mandans. We were to come right now! At the meeting, Charbonneau was happy to find one of his own race, someone with whom he could converse in his own language. This scout, hunter with the whites was called Drouillard. Drouillard had a short black beard and his eyes were steady and keen. Black Cat and his chiefs and the whites got along very well. The Chief of the whites was called: "Captain Lewis." He wore an unusual three cornered black hat. He was especially happy to learn of Charbonneau and myself. "We must make camp nearby for the winter, but in the spring we will continue up the river, and then to the west until we come to the great lake of the Pacific. We would like to hire Charbonneau to help with scouting and also his wife Sacajawea will be of great help translating with the Shoshone her people who live in the land to the west," said Lewis. Charbonneau was quick to accept the offer, but later when he found that he would have to work hard along the way for his pay, he balked and went off and sulked. Lewis told him that there would be no easing of his offer, and he would have to pull his weight. Finally, Charbonneau, thinking of the money he would lose, agreed and all was settled. The soldiers immediately set about building a place for the winter on the other side of the river. They cut down many trees and made them into log structures protected by a palisade of pointed poles set in the ground. This wall would serve both as protection from raiders and the cruel blizzard winds from the north. Charbonneau and I would live in the white fort in a hut. The whites called their little village of wood: "Fort Mandan." Poor Yellow Flower had to be left behind. She would have been one too many people on the upcoming journey. It was sad, because she would not be able to see our people once again or the old homeland. Captain Lewis and his second in command spent much of the winter trying to learn from the Hidatsa about the mysterious land to the west. Much of that land had never been visited by any whites, not even the French or English traders. I was able to help here. I had picked up some Hidatsa language. A trader, Rene Jessaume, who had lived in the Mandan village for fourteen years knew English and would relay a question from Lewis to Charbonneau (in French) and then to me and both of us, with some sign language, would try and get the answer from the Hidatsas. It was a laborious process, often frustrating for all involved, but slowly a picture began to materialize of the various landmarks leading to the land of the Shoshone and even a little beyond. After being captured, I had been in such a state of shock, that I didn't remember much, although, there were a few fuzzy landmarks I described to Lewis that helped, and I did, of course, remember well the land of the shoshone itself and when our little band traveled around. The Hidatsa were very emphatic and told with much awe and animation about a wonderful landmark called: "The Great Falls of the Missouri." They said that it would be impossible to go by boat through this treacherous course, and that the boats would have to be taken overland by portage, a very difficult trek. They also told that beyond would be the three forks of the Missouri. Lewis was frustrated, because it was not clear which of the forks would lead over the great divide to the mighty Columbia River on the other side, which in turn would lead to the Pacific. The mouth of the Columbia was known to the whites as their great boats had pulled in there for trade. And what would the Shoshone, great light cavalry, some of the best horsemen in the world and very brave, think of this incursion into their sacred land? There were still many mysteries about this journey, and it would not be easy. At this time I also had to disclose to everyone a small problem. I pointed to my stomach, rocked my arms and smiled. Everyone could easily understand this universal language." (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sacajawea, The Amazing Journey, Or, The Lost Journal of Sacajawea, Part 5 (This segment is scheduled for publication in the Branson (MO) Daily News, Mar. 1st, 2005) "Charbonneau and I moved to the white soldier's Fort Mandan across the river on the east bank. Here we would live for the winter in a tiny cabin the soldiers built for us. They were all very busy preparing for the winter and also the continuation of the expedition up river in the spring. There was much to do. New dugouts must be made, clothing repaired, food stores built and more. Much of this preparation was in the hands of a man called: "Sergeant Ordway." He was third in command and also called: "The First Sergeant." He was not as quiet as Captains Lewis and clark who were often writing in their journals, checking on progress and planning. Sergeant Ordway dressed in buckskins, red leggings and a felt hat would shout orders in no uncertain terms: "You men hollowing out the canoes better speed things up. Spring will be upon us before you know it. And keep the bellows pumping at the blacksmith forge. We need those hatchets to trade with the natives for corn, dried squash and meat for the winter and the trip. You two go out and see if you can shoot us some deer. Don't let some wild Sioux get your scalp. And get back before dark; it's getting colder and colder. Guards get ready for guard duty tonight on the wall. It's going to be bitter cold, so, thirty minutes a spell will be enough." The men were all happy and sang as they worked away. Charbonneau became the cook. I brought him wood for the fire and also helped a friend of mine Pottery Woman bring corn and dried squash from the Mandan village. We loaded a bull boat and paddled hard against the current. We carried the food on our backs, while Pottery Woman's husband came along and carried nothing. Of course, the men hunted buffalo and fought enemies - all very dangerous. The soldiers gave Pottery Woman's husband a little mirror and a hatchet for the supplies, and they were happy. The food was always welcome by the soldiers who were constantly hungry doing very hard work in the cold. When Pottery Woman and I were in the Mandan village and snow was on the ground we would often watch the men play "Snow Snake" a favorite game. Each man would stand in one place and throw a short wooden spear called a "snow snake" with a head like a snake, along the surface of the snow. The man who threw his snow snake the greatest distance was the winner. There weas a large shouting crowd watching the game and many wagers made. The winter brought another problem for both the whites and the local tribes. Even though it was very cold there were always a few renegade marauders, Sioux, Minnetaries, Arickira out in the surrounding countryside trying to steal horses. Horses were the wealth of individual and tribes. To keep horses safe, they were kept at night in the round earthen lodges, and also within the compound of Fort Mandan. The whites would try and feed the Indian horses, rough meal but the horses would turn their noses up at such feed. They much preferred what the Indians gave them, the bark of the cottonwood trees. This amazed the whites who could not see how the ponies durvived. Yet the Indian ponies could go days on very hard buffalo hunts with just a little bit of bark at times. It now came time for my delivery. This was my first baby, and it was very difficult and painful. The baby would just not come out. Captain Lewis the medical doctor of the expedition was very concerned. He consulted with Jounneau, a trader who had lived with the Mandan many years and had experience with native medicines. Jounneau recommended something he had used often...ground up rattlesnake rattle. Lewis just happened to have such a rattle and cut off two segments and ground them up. He gave the chunky powder to me with some water. To everyone's amazement, ten minutes later I delivered a boy...Jean Baptist Charbonneau. Captain Clark called him "Pomp" or "Pompy." It was fourteen below zero outside, and by the white's reckoning February 11th, 1805. There was no wind, and smoke from many lodges and Fort Mandan settled low in the river valley." (to be continued) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The following segment, No. 6, is scheduled for publication on the Opinion Page of the Branson (MO) Daily News, Mar. 8th, '05. -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sacajawea, the Amazing Discovery, Or The Lost Journal of Sacajawea, Part 6 Sacakajwea's account continues as read by young Pierre Laval to his wife Sarah in the attic of their newly aquired old home in present day St. Louis. "The signs of spring began to appear around Fort Mandan and along the river. The ice was breaking up to the north and big pieces were floating by. An occasional carcass of a buffalo caught in the breakup could also be seen amongst the floes. Women of the Mandan village would jump in their round bull boats and paddle out and scamper nimbly around on the floes and retrieve the buffalo. This was a great find. All of the natives worshipped the buffalo because it supplied so many of their needs. The shoulder blades "scapulas" as Captain Lewis calls them served as shovels for digging bell shaped casche pits, semi-subterranean lodges and moats all around the villages. My friend Pottery Woman also used a scapula to dig out the grayish pottery clay along the river banks. Buffalo robes were invaluable in the bitter winters. Buffalo hides were also used for making tipis that some plains tribes used. it took twelve large hides for a single tipi, and twenty-three for the largest homes. Sinues were used for stout cord. The buffalo skulls were placed on the outer roofs of the domed semi-subterranean lodges to protect the home and honor the spirits of the dead buffalo. The snow was melting and boys and men of the village commenced playing the bow and arrow game. They would see who could keep the most arrows in the air all at once. Eight arrows was a record and a great honor. Both the Mandans and neighboring Arickiras and Hidatsa were preparing for spring hunts. There was much excitement at Fort Mandan. Lewis and Clark had made their final plans. The big keel boat was made ready to go back down stream and return to the country of the whites far to the east. The Missouri River would be too shallow up stream for such a boat. The boat was loaded with native bows and arrows and other artifacts, rock samples, plant and animal specimens as well as treasured journals all for the great white chief. Twelve men would return on the keel boat. Corporal Richard Warfington would be in command. A small pirogue with two French traders would accompany the keel boat. The rest of us would contine on up river. We would have two large pirogues and six smaller dugouts. The larger pirogue was white in color and the other was red. The larger pirogue, the lead vessel, had two sails a large square sail and a sprit sail that could be used at times York, the black man had amazed the natives. At first they thought his black color was paint, and the medicine men tried to rub it off. Of course, much to their surprise it just wouldn't come off. They had never seen anyone like this, nor had they seen such a big dog "Seaman" belonging to Captain Lewis. Lewis said that he was a Newfoundland Retriever. Seaman loved to jump in the river and chase sticks thrown by happy native children. Seaman was also a good guard dog and with his loud barking would warn the compound of approaching strangers. Strong York helped me pack a new, large tipi Captain Lewis had traded from some local natives. I helped with the trade as I knew a great deal about this type home. I pointed out that the poles were in excellent condition with the bark shaved off just the right depth. Also there was no rot in the hides close to the ground. This tipi is where Lewis and Clark, Charbonneau, Jean Baptist and myself and Drouillard would all sleep together. Earlier, when spring was approaching I was helping Pottery Woman dig clay on the bank. Jean Baptist my papoose was on my back. We talked about many things. "Might an old woman express a few thoughts for a younger woman?" "Certainly, dear friend." "I have noticed an interesting things. When you Sacajawea are amongst the white men, they are happier and work harder." "How can this be?" "It is the magic effect of the woman on man, dear child. You are their mothers, wives, daughters, sisters and women friends at home, that they so dearly miss. You are great medicine for their expedition. I know it will be a success." (to be continued) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Note. The sources are stacking up; some will be listed at the end of Part 8 and the rest at the very end when everything is complete. You are looking at a "work in progress." RM - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The following chapter on Sacajawea is scheduled for publication in the Branson (MO) Daily News, Mar. 15, '05. Sacajawea, The Amazing Discovery, Or, The Lost Journal of Sacajawea, Part 7 The whites were loading the six smaller and two larger pirogues for the trip up stream and also the keel boat and one small pirogue for the journey down stream. The keel boat shoved off with the firing of the cannon, much waving, shouting and good wishes, and then the rest of us climbed aboard our pirogues and departed. There were tears in my eyes and those of Pottery Woman standing on shore. We made good time, and before long we passed the village of the Hidatsa where Yellow Flower lived. The French traders called the Hidatsa: "Gros Ventre" or "Big Bellies." Sure enough as we passed I could see Yellow Flower on the shore. She jumped in a bull boat and paddled out to us. When alongside she handed me a medicine bag. "Give to my Mother in the Shoshone village when you get there. Tell her I am well, and someday I hope to return. Good bye dear Sacajawea!" "Good bye Yellow Flower!" I shouted. We both waved and the tears flowed again. Then, our, lead, white dugout slowly pulled out of sight. We travelled about 20 or so miles a day as the whites reckoned distance. The men were in a constant battle to supply enough food. They wanted to save some tins and salt pork for when we had to cross the bleak mountain ranges of the west. Therefore, they had to continuously hunt. they hunted deer, elk, buffalo, geese, beaver, goats and bear. Even Seaman, Captain Clark's great dog, hunted. Once he jumped in the cold water and attacked, killed and retrieved a goat that was swimming the river. However, with all the meat diet an unfortunate thing began to happen. The men developed skin and eye problems. Capt. Lewis applied poultices to boils and used concoctions for eye problems, but with not much success. I had an idea that much of this problem was the lack of fresh vegetables. Remembering some tricks learned in my old Shoshone camp and some things taught to me by Pottery Woman I dug up some roots called: "The Prairie Turnip." These were white in color and easily cooked and eaten. I also dug up some wild licorice roots for the men to chew. Captain Lewis was very happy to have these foods, which helped the men's health greatly, although he felt that the white roots were tasteless. We had one adventure after another. The most fearful event happened when a sudden wind came up and hit our sail and craft - the lead white pirogue - so hard that we tipped over. We would have completely rolled had it not been for the sail. Poor Charbonneau was at the helm oar and panicked. "Dear God, save us! Have mercy on us!" he cried out to the Great Spirit. Cruzat an experienced French river man and trader hung on to the boat in the bow and shouted at Charbonneau who was petrified: "Charbonneau, turn the boat into the wind, man or so help me I will shoot you!" Meanwhile, with the craft now righted but practically full of water, the most important cargo, journals, maps, instruments, medicines and other valuables that had been placed in this lead craft for protection was all floating downstream. While two crew members bailed, I swam in the icy cold water and high waves, with Jean Baptist on my back and regrieved all the floating items. It was up to me as two of the men and Charboneau could not swim and would have drowned. And Cruzat had his hands full righting the boat and getting Charbonneau to turn it into the wind. Three-hundred yards away on shore Lewis and Clark were frantic at this sight, the apparent loss of all the valuables and several lives. They fired their rifles and shouted orders, "Turn it into the wind Charbonneau! Cut the halyards," but to no avail. The distance was too great and high wind too noisy. Lewis took off his coat and boots and almost dived in, but realized it would be futile, and he would probably die in the cold water and high waves. I put all the valuables back in the boat that was now in much better condition. Charbonneau had come to his senses. The men pulled me back on board. Jean Baptist seemed to enjoy the adventure! All the men were so greatly relieved at my saving the valuables and that no one was lost or hurt that they had a celebration on shore that night while the items and everyone dried out by the fire. They even broke out their treasured fire water. (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The following episode is scheduled for publication in the Branson (MO) Daily News, Mar. 22, '05. Sacajawea, The Amazing Discovery, Or, The Lost Journal of Sacajawea, Part 8 "We now found ourselves in the land of the big bears along the upper Missouri River. Even my own people the very brave Shoshone farther west and other native tribes greatly feared these giant ferocious creatures. The beasts were very hard to kill and would charge their attackers no matter how many arrows were sticking out of their bodies or how many times they were shot with the white man's rifles. The whites soon found out about the big bears. 'One day one of their hunters came running into camp out of breath and with much rear in his face. "I shot the critter, but he just kept on coming at me. I just barely escaped with my life." Lewis and Clark were determined not to let a bear get the best of them, so formed a party and went after the creature to dispatch it. they found it in a thicket and managed to kill it, but were amazed at its endurance after the first man's hot; it had managed to travel a long distance. They tried different methods of hunting the big bears. They would have four men fire, then, keep two men in reserve for more firing if needed - and it was always usually needed. Even though the berats were shot through the lungs and sometimes even in the heart they would keep coming. The only sure shot they found was to the brain but that was not easy, because the skull was covered with thick muscle.' Once a wounded giant bear chased two of our hunters off a twenty foot bluff into the river...and itself plunged into the water and swam after them. It was fortunately killed with a lucky head shot by another hunter on shore.' 'The explorers felt that nothing should stop their mission, and they had to try and exert domination over such incredible resistance of nature as found in these bears. This battle with the bears became as formidable as the river itself or hostile natives along the way and various elements.' 'As with many other obstacles they barely managed to endure and only solved the problem by pressing on, which seemed to just lead to some other formidable obstacle. It was always a journey of formidable obstacles - one after the other, and the explorers were all bound and determined to overcome each one, although at times their reservoir of strength was very close to running out.' The whites needed the big bears for oil, grease and food. They would cook with the oil and also use the grease for caulking their boats. They also saved the grease for use later for the axels and crude wheels to transport boats on trams during portage. They also needed the hides for warmth.' 'One of the favorite foods of the explorers was buffalo. Fortunately, there were usually lots of these animals that the natives worshiped. Buffalo were even found close by the complex of villages near Fort Mandan. But, the buffalo, as the bears, were also very dangerous. They were giant muscular hulks. They were ten feet in length and six feet in height. While their eyes were weak they had very keen hearing. Their sense of smell was very good. They weighted up to 2,000 pounds, yet, amazingly, could jump six feet and travel at a speed of 35 miles per hour. they actually had more stamina than a horse.' 'You can imagine the horror in the middle of one night when a lone bull buffalo swam the river and ended up right in our camp when everyone was asleep. He clambored across the biggest dugout, mangling a long rifle barrel as a piece of fine wire and also destroying a blusterbus in the boat. The guard sounded the alarm.... "WATCH OUT FOR THE CRITTER!!" He then fired his rifle but with no effect. Here came the beast charging, snorting and crashing right through the camp. One man set up suddenly and caused it to veer just in time to miss some other men. Then, the buffalo headed straight for our tipi, but, fortunately, fearless Seaman barked at it furiously and caused it to change course, again, just barely missing by inches more men on the ground. Finally, mercifully, it charged off into the underbrush and disappeared. the entire expedition could have been over in an instant, because of one bull buffalo's rampage, and the group only survived by the grace of God." (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sources are the Journals of Lewis and Clark (the Bakeless edition), The Sgt. John Ordway Journal (Moulton edition), Ambrose's Undaunted Courage... and Buffalo Info. Sheet, Natl. Park Service. More sources will be given at the conclusion of series. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The following, Part 9, is scheduled for publication on the Opinion Page of the Branson, MO Daily News, Mar. 29, '05. Sacajawea, the Amazing Discovery, 9 Our little group of explorers, led by Captain Lewis with Captain Clark second in command was now rounding the Big Bend area of the River named by the whites after the Missouri tribe. While staying with the Hidatsa I had heard mention of the Missouri tribe who at one time had lived far down the Missouri River but had moved up river and were now living with their kin the Oto. We were still very much in the land of the big Brown Bears, fearsome creatures, several feet taler than a man when they stood on their hind legs. My poor husband Charbonneau proved to be the worst bear hunter. He and another hunter encountered a big bear. The other hunter got off a shot, but Charbonneau was paralyzed and couldn't fire. Then, the bear came charging at him. He turned and ran and instead of firing at the beast, he just fired his rifle into the air in a panic. Miraculously, he found a place to hide and escaped being mangled. Captain Lewis said: "Charbonneau, it is a fortunate thing you are a good cook. From now on, please just cook, paddle and help with odd jobs." "Oui, Captain Lewis. Your faithful servant Charbonneau is the best chef, not cook mind you, heh, heh, heh...there is a difference, in all of the upper Missouri, maybe even in all of Canada! Now, if my faithful little chef's helper Sacajawea will fetch the Master some firewood, I will prepare a masterpiece...variation no. 82 of venison, voila!" I helped Charbonneau great building fires and hauling forewood. I had to find dry wood, usually drift wood, along the shore. The shoreline now had more sharp rocks and since the water was becoming more and more shallow and rough, the men walking along the shore often had to pull the pirogues by straps. But walking on the sharp rocks wore out their moccasins very fast, and their feet were bloody. The men and I had much work to do to prepare hides for moccasins and hauling straps. I knew how to make and repair the footwear, which I fashioned in the style of the Shoshone. Each tribe made their own distinct style of moccasins. My knowledge of preparing hides and making things with leather was much needed. I knew how to tan hides using the brains of animals. I was also expert at the scraping of fat and flesh from the inside of the new hides. Our people used a stone hide-scraper, although the whites had metal scraping devices. However, I preferred the old stone scraping method. The edges of the stone scraper had some tiny serrations that seemed to help better. Captain Lewis also needed hides with which to cover a metal framed boat to be used after the Great Falls portage. We knew this obstacle was not too far away. All of the natives spoke of the Great Falls and that it was a beautiful and awesome creation of the Great Spirit. Now, another problem presented itself to our group of explorers. We came to a fork in the river. One stream went to the right and the other to the left. But which stream went to the right and the other to the left. But which stream should we take? Which stream would lead to the Rocky Mountains...and hopefully even to a pass that would get us through to the other side and a river that would carry us to a big ocean the whites called: "the Pacific." The river flowing in on the right was muddy, and the one on the left was clear. All the men unanimously felt that the river to the right was the one we should take. It was muddy as the Missouri had always been. Only Captain Lewis felt that the one to the left was the right one. It was finally decided that a group of explorers under Clark would explore the left river and Captain Lewis would explore the one on the right and see if they could get some clue. It would turn out that Captain Lewis was right. All the mud in the stream on the right was coming from flatter, more fertile land to the north, whereas, the clear river signaled the pure water of the mountains. After the two parties had returned to the junction, Lewis after a much needed rest - his trip had been filled with hardship - would take a party up the left stream. But, before we left, the Captains decided to make a cache of supplies near the junction. We had to begin to lighten our loads. I knew about building cache pits as those of the Arickira, Mandan and Hidatsa. Pottery Woman had shown me. We had removed many vegetables from her own cache pits and traded to the whites the previous winter. I showed the men that a buffalo shoulder blade was better for digging in cramped quarters than their long handled shovels. A hole was first dug just big enough to let a person down. One of the soldiers said that the pit looked like a bell from the side. It was about the height of a man. (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The following segment, Part 10, is schudled for publication on the Opinion Page of the Branson (MO) Daily News, Apr. 5th, '05. This chapter illustrates the great importance of leather and leather working to the Native Americans and early pioneers. At most archaeological sites the leather itself has long gone, but, nevertheless, it was a big industry for every early culture, even the smallest little group. We often don't think about it too much, but the following will give some idea. Also, I wanted to note that we found the most interesting artifact when excavating an old Arickira site (39ST1 at mouth of Cheyenne River along the Missouri. This was a well polished bone tube, a medicine man's device for sucking out evil spirits. While the Journals of Lewis and Clark didn't mention the device, I'm almost positive that Sacajawea must have known about it and seen its use by her captors and neighboring tribes. Today, you can ask any medical person and they will tell you that the human mind is the greatest of all medical devices and medicines. The ancients well knew about this, whether in the days of Hippocrates or by ancient medicine men along the Missouri River or elsewhere in the Americas. In fact the powers of the human mind for healing were probably known by medicine men or women or shamans if you will long before the time of Christ here. Also, drama as practiced by the medicine men and women "dramatists" is seen to be an important curative as well. Now, let us resume our adventures of Sacajawea as she narrates happenings past the Big Bend of the Missouri River. Sacajawea, the Amazing Adventure, Part 10 "The preparation of hides for use as boat pulling straps and for moccasins for the men trudging along the rocky shoreline pulling pirogues continued to be a constant battle. Also our hunters fanning out along our course had to now walk on prickly pears and more rocky terrain at times. From the time I was a little girl I had learned well how to prepare rawhide and the soft skins. The white explorers knew quite a bit about hides, but I knew more and was more skilled and faster with the use of the awl for punching holes in moccasins and sewing.' 'Sometimes we would camp for a few days and we would have more time for preparing hides, but much of the time we were on the go. When sitting in the largest pirogue and with the men paddling and pulling, I busily sewed pieces of rawhide to the soles of the men's moccasins. I had to improvise a great deal. For rawhide the new skins had to be scraped of flesh and hair with help from ashes that contained lye. Then, they had to be stretched tight on a wooden frame to dry. Often I had to place stretched frames of hides in the boats. For the hides that needed to be softened, it was necessary to soak them, so I just threw them in the water and tied to the boats.' 'The men knew how to scrape hides, but they had to be reminded to take great care and not scrape spots too thinly. The skins had to be of a uniform thickness, a great art, or they might burst at some time in the future. And especially was this true for the elk hides that Capt. Lewis was collecting to cover his metal framed boat he hoped to assemble at the end of the Great Falls portage. Our hunters ranging up ahead of us were constantly on the lookout for these big elk with the tougher hides. We began to collect such hides and stacked them in the pirogues, but this meant more and more preparation of the hides.' And, as usual, Charbonneau's cooking fire required much wood. Despite this constant work, and much more, I had to take time each day to bath baby Jean Baptist and myself. The water was still very cold in this northern land even in early summer, but it was our native custom as with all native Americans that I ever knew or heard about to bath often.' 'The white men were amazed that I would bath this often and would shake their heads and mutter things like..."woman, you must be daft!" And I would reply..."Go ahead and be animals and smell like old bull buffaloes!" 'Once, one of the men became very ill. He had a severe stomach ache. Captain Lewis, who was the physician for the group, tried everything he knew including giving him strong salts, and they even made a cut in his arm and bled him. I thought to myself, "they must be trying to let the evil spirits out of the man. Strange, I had never seen the medicine men use this method in the lodges." 'Nothing seemed to work for the poor man, and he continued to wreath in agony. Then, I remembered a trick that the medicine men sometimes used. I knew it was a trick, but it often worked. I asked Lewis if I might try this method.' "Sure, dear Sacajawea, it won't hurt to try I suppose: we have tried everything in the medicine chest." 'I first covered myself with a fur with only my face showing and performed a strange dance beside the man, just as the medicine men. I cried out loudly in Shoshone.."Oh, evil spirit come out of this man." This definitely got his attention. My continued dancing and crying out I think even startled Capt. Lewis and the others. The medicine men, of course, put on a fearsome performance to drive out the evil spirits. 'When my back was turned to them I secretly put a small pebble in my mouth and then went to the man, reached in a bag tied to my belt and took out a polished bone tube that was hollow and put one end on his stomach, and, then, put the other end in my mouth. I pretended to suck the evil spirit out of his stomach and then spit the pebble out on the ground with a loud dramatic "spittouie"! Everyone was amazed and especially my patient. There was a deafening silence. He suddenly quit squirming, and a strange look of awe came over his face. After a little more silence he exclaimed: "It's gone...the pain's all gone!" (to be continued). Note: Special thanks to "The Indian How Book," by Arthur C. Parker. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Following is part II of Sacajawea, The Amazing Discovery (or the lost Journal of Sacajawea). This one is scheduled for publication in the Branson, MO Daily News Apr. , '02. I continue to be amazed at how the ghost of Sacajawea grabbed hold of my pen, or I should say my fingers on the computer keyboard and commenced writing away on her own story. It's as if she were saying , "hey, there's a lot being missed in this story." Sacajawea literally took over this project at the very time the Lewis and Clark expedition reached the Mandan, Hidatsa, Arickira tribal area where Sacajawea was a slave. Enough comment. Let's rejoin Sacajawea and the Lewis and Clark expedition as they are nearing one of the great landmarks on their journey, the Great Falls of the Missouri. They all continue to fall out of the frying pan into the fire, time after time. Sacajawea, The Amazing Discovery 11 "By all accounts of the Hidatsa raiders and native hunters we must be near the awesome landmark, The Great Falls of the Missouri. Captain Clark on his last scouting trip, we later learned, came within 10 miles of the falls, too far to hear the roaring sound of the first big "cataract" as Captain Lewis would call it.' 'We made camp, and Lewis sent out hunters for our never ending need for meat. Also, he still needed hides to cover his metal framed boat. This was a pet project of his about which he was very excited. He felt that this boat would answer many of our transport problems, however, he was very worried about caulking seams. there were no pine trees around for pitch. In place of pitch he was hoping that tallow and ground charcoal would do.' 'At this camp I began to feel ill. I had severe pains in my stomach, a fever and I was just barely aware enough to hear Captain Lewis tell everyone very worriedly that my pulse was erratic. It would be slow and then speed up for a while. He decided on giving me quinine bark and some drops of laudanum. He said: "Here dear girl take a spoonful of Laudanum. The opium will kill the pain and put you to sleep." 'That's all I remember, until I awoke the next morning and still felt very bad.' 'Again, I heard Captain Lewis worriedly tell some of the soldiers and Charbonneau in the tipi. "We have got to keep her alive; she is our white flag among the Shoshone and can also help us get horses." "I will have to try some other medicine," said Lewis. Here girl, take some salts and maybe this will clean out the problem. he also gave me another spoonful of laudanum, "This will kill the pain, and you can get some more rest." 'When I awoke this time I felt a little better. Lewis and the rest seemed to be greatly relieved.' 'Meanwhile, the men were undergoing much pain of their own. On all the scouting and hunting trips they were faced with the curse of having to walk on prickly pears, endles seas of devilish spikes that went right through the soles of their moccasins. It was necessary for them to put two layers of rawhide soles on their moccasins, but even this didn't always work. I could not help them sew on the extra soles or help prepare rawhide. 'While I was recuperating, Lewis decided to set off on a scouting trip up river, to find the falls once and for all. He also wanted to find a good route for portage around the falls. 'Lewis first heard the mighty roar from a long distance, and, then, was astounded when he first saw the great natural spectacle of the first cataract. there was much mist. Dead buffalo that had been pushed by the herd out into the river at watering holes above could be seen in areas near the shore below the falls. Bears and wolves feasted on their carcasses.' 'Lewis sent word of the discovery to Clark saying that we should move on up as close as we could and prepare trailers for the pirogues.' 'We found a good place for a camp, but soon after landing were hit by a ferocious rain and hail storm. We didn't have time to erect the tipi, but Clark found a shelter, some outcrops of limestone in the bottom of a ravine nearby, but this turned out to be a terrible choice. A flash flood came roaring down the ravine carrying much drift wood that itself proved to be dangerous. I was still very weak and Clark had to push my bottom up the slope. I was holding on to naked Jean Baptist with all the strength I had. Charbonneau, again, in the face of great danger became useless. The water was up to Clark's chest and rising quickly. It was all we could do to dodge drift wood and hang on to roots and bushes on the steep bank. There was much screaming and yelling to hurry up.' 'Fortunately, everyone just made it out in time. Afterwards, we were all limp from exhaustion, soaking wet, bloody and bruised from the hail, branches and drift wood. The rest of the men returned to camp all bruised and bloody from the hail. It was a sad moaning group. Clark then announced: "allright, everyone, this deserves a dram; break out the grog!" Everyone began to slowly revive. (To be continued) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The following chapter, no. 12, will appear in the newspaper column, April 19th, '05. Sacajawea, the Amazing Discovery, 12 Our harrowing escape from the steep draw and the flash flood didn't help my illness. Fortunately, thanks to Sgt. Ordway, the First Sgt., I didn't have to undergo the bleeding treatment anymore. The Sgt. had earlier said to Capt. Lewis..."Capt., it seems needless to bleed the poor girl any more. She is weak as it is, and it appears that the blood loss will just make her weaker." "Very well, Sgt., you may have a point." About that time, some of the men discovered a sulphur spring nearby. Capt. Lewis was estatic and proclaimed: "The water will be wonderful medicine for Sacajawea. This is just like the helpful sulphur springs back in Virginia. Give her all the sulphur water she can drink!" Now, Sgt. Ordway was worried that little Jean Baptist or "Pompey" as he was called by Capt. Clark, was starving to death as I could not nurse. I could hear him shouting outside the tipi to the men as a worried mother goose. "We've got to figure out a way to feed Pompy. You there, try pounding up the pemican finer and mix with water." Unfortunately, Pompy just spit it up. Another soldier ground up some of the white sunflower root and mixed with water. He twisted the end of a cloth and dipped in the mixture. This food worked, and Jean Baptist seemed happy. Captain Lewis had said that this root looked to him like the artichoke. York, Captain Clark's man and Seaman, Captain Lewis's dog, often visited me in the tipi. I was thankful that everyone cared. Fortunately, I began to heal, and none to soon. We all prepared to set off on an 18 mile portage of the Great Falls. This proved to be an arduous journey that would take us one entire moon. Charbonneau reluctantly had to carry the papoose. Crude wheels made of tree trunks were used for the canoe trucks. The trucks or long carts had to be wrestled down and up draws. They were dragged laboriously across seas of prickly pears that cut into our moccasins. All the while hunters had to be sent out to kill game for the necessary constant supply of food. Along the way we all marveled at a giant spring located just above the shore. It was very clear and gushed into the main river. Captain Lewis believed it may have been the biggest spring in America. Finally, we were back in canoe water again. Our next big landmark was especially meaningful to me, the three forks of the Missouri. I remembered this area well. My Shoshone people or "Snake Indians" as some called us had had traveled to this area a number of times on hunting trips. I had been captured in this area. Captain Lewis named the center stream after the Great White Chief called: "Jefferson." This is the stream that we would follow to the main camp of my people living along the Lehmi River. Now, the little groups of white hunters and scouts began to run into more and more Indian signs. There were horses hoof prints and signs of camps that were not too old. Soon, little paths turned into roads they were so well traversed. Captain Lewis was very anxious to meet with the Shoshone and establish good relations and he set off with a small detachment to make contact. This worried me greatly. I wished that I could have gone along on this trip. A woman with a group would immediately show that it was not a war party. Also, I didn't feel that the white men understood the fact that the Shoshone had to constantly guard against marauding goups. Some wanted to steal horses; some wanted to steal slaves, as was my case. There was a constant battle going on. also, I don't think the whites understood the great bravery of the Shoshone. They were distinguished warriors on horseback, fighting mostly with bows and arrows. They had little contact with whites, except maybe in times past with a few Spainerds. The people had a hard time, with little food. They were too far west for the big herds of Buffalo. It would be very easy for Lewis and a small group of whites to be massacred...if not by the Shoshone, then, by the Blackfeet or Hidatsa. Nevertheless, Lewis was a determined man. His great goal was to peacefully if possible, get horses from the Shoshone and keep plunging on west across the mountains then down the Columbia River to the great Ocean. Very shortly, Lewis and two men with him would encounter their first Shoshone warrior. He sat motionless on his paint horse several hundred yards away coolly staring at them. (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The following segment No. 13 will be published in my newspaper column Apr. 26th, 2005. Today is Apr. 20, '05. By the way, the reaction to this series has been amazing. People like the grand old adventures of Lewis and Clark and especially those of Sacajawea - as related in her "Lost Journal" found in an attic in modern day St. Louis. This is something else amazing and I am still trying to figure out. Sacajawea took over the entire story when Lewis and Clark and their group of explorers reached the Mandan/Hidatsa/Arickira area. She was going to tell her story come heck or high water! Yes, this is a historical fiction approach. I have to tell you, that this is a fascinating method that enables me to get at things in a 3-D way. It adds another element to a non-fiction story. It is a lot of fun. You let your imagination go, drawing on much trivia that you have collected in your archaeological wheelbarrow of life. But enough analysis, let us get back to Sacajawea's story in her own words... Sacajawea, The Amazing Journey, 13 ...Or, the Lost Journal of Sacajawea "Captain Lewis and his small group of men were up ahead, and the rest of us led by Captain Clark, made camp in the three rivers area of the upper Missouri. We would continue to move up stream, but very anxious to hear if Lewis made contact with my people the Shoshone. 'Meanwhile, an incident occurred that would be of great importance in my life and would have a good effect on the rest of the journey. I had noticed a strange thing when I was ill recently. My very own husband Charbonneau visited me fewer times than any of the others. Charbonneau was as an immature child who had never grown up. The responsibility of a wife and child or any other responsibility, whether it was being sent on a hunting trip or work around camp seemed too much for him. His heart was never in it. "Finally, his inner battle with responsibility finally built up to such a point in his mind that it all burst out in a rage...and he took things out on the nearest, weakest, person at hand, me! He commenced beating me with a rope! "Fortunately, for me, Captain Clark was near, heard the ruckus and came running toward us. He wrestled the rope from Charbonneau's hand and shoved him to the ground. Enraged at what he had found, Clark drew his sword and held the point at Charbonneau's throat. "Charbonneau, so help me, I don't know what is stopping me this moment from running you through!" A crowd of men gathered around. "Charbonneau was shaking with fear, and his eyes I thought would pop out of his head. "Charbonneau, promise me that you will never again harm Sacajawea. If you hurt her, I won't hesitate to use this sword on you! Do you understand what I am telling you?" "Speak up man!" "Yes, yes, I understand, Captain Clark." "Louder!" "Yes, I understant; never will I harm her again." "And, do you promise to be a good, loving, responsible husband?" "Yes, yes, Captain," Charbonneau said with the sweat pouring down his face. Captain Clark drew a little blood on Charbonneau's throat with his sword point. He then sheathed his sword and stormed away, still boiling with rage. This episode had a profound effect on Charbonneau. He became a changed man. It was as if he grew up in a matter of minutes. The fog of weakness and irresponsibility that had plagues him - and the rest of the party - for so long was cut through instantly by Captain Clark's sword. We were to learn shortly of an other dramatic even up ahead as Captain Lewis and his men first encountered a Shoshone warrior. He was no doubt a scout looking for Blackfeet or Hidatsa raiders. But, here he saw something completely different, like nothing he had ever seen in his life. He saw men who were darkly tanned as natives, but their clothes were different than those worn by natives. The scout studied them carefully. His quiver of arrows and unstrung bow were on his back. A war club hung from his belt. He didn't attempt to string his bow. He just studied the new people. "Lewis made every sign of peace of which he could think, and uttered a friendly phrase, he thought, which turned out to have an unfriendly meaning. There had been a translation error earlier when preparing for this moment. "He reached out with friendly open hands - pleading for understanding. The scout remained motionless. Lewis and his men walked forward. "Suddenly, the scout quickly turned around and rode away. "Lewis was frustrated, but with his indomitable spirit he kept right on following...directly into the land of the Shoshone. "Shortly, Lewis came upon two Indian women digging for roots. When the women could see that they had no chance of escape they just remained sitting on the ground afraid they would be killed. "Lewis gave them some trinkets and showed in sign language that they were frinds and had come in peace. "Shortly, the scout brought back a large roup of warriors. "The pulses of Lewis and his small group no doubt raced, for there could be few things on this planet more formidable than facing a group of Shoshone warriors ready for battle, mounted on strong healthy horses. The warriors were lean and fearless, products of centuries of war and defending the land of their forefathers in the Lehmi River area just east of the big mountain range (to be continued) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - This segment is scheduled for paper-publishing next Tues., May 3, '05. Sacajawea, The Amazing Journey 14 Note: Yes, in the last installment, Sacajawea really was beaten by her seedy husband Charbonneau, and Captain Clark really did break it up. Whether Clark really drew his sword I can't say, but he did carry one. Also, always keep in mind Sacajawea was only a teen and a mother during all these momentous grueling adventures of the Lewis and Clark expedition and had become an invaluable part of the trip, one of the outstanding "team members," proven over and over. It should also be mentioned that Lewis as an other Alexander the Great, was a true leader out in front. As Alexander led the way on a long journey, at the front of one crisis after another, so did Lewis. Their actions looked like reckless abandon at times, but as the old saying goes: "Fortune favors the bold." Perhaps Lewis and surely Jefferson read Plutarch's Lives with the story of Alexander. I strongly suspect that Lewis was inspired by the famous old Macedonian. The similarities are fascinating. Before the expedition commenced, Jefferson himself could have even reached for this great source from his classics book case and showed to Lewis? Now, back to the adventures of what could also be called: "The Lost Journal of Sacajawea." (our contribution for the Lewis and Clark bicentennial, 1804 - 1806). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - "Captain Lewis and only three of his men, which fortunately included the trusty steady scout Drouillard, had come upon a man, a couple of women and some barking dogs. They all fled at the sight of the whites. Lewis and the men proceeded a little farther and this time came upon an older woman, a little girl and a teen girl. The teen ran away. The older woman no doubt felt that she was about to die. but, Lewis in a most sympathetic and friendly way, the the manner of the Virginia gentleman, lifted her up by the hand. With Drouillard's sign language help, the woman recalled the teen. The men gave the three some trinkets. Lewis daubed some red paint on the old woman's cheeks and showed the results in a little trade mirror, which he gave her. Lewis conveyed that he wanted them to take their group to the main camp. They walked a little way, but it was too late. The earlier Indian scout had raised the alarm, and here came charging and whooping a Shoshone war party. Their bows were strung and their war clubs swinging. When they saw the whites with the Indian women they pulled up. The older Indian woman ran to them vigorously telling the warriors that the whites were friendly and wanted peace and to trade. At the same time, Lewis spread a blanket on the ground, and he and his men laid downtheir rifles. It was obvious peace. the Indians suddenly turned into friends. their Chief Cameahwait walked toward Lewis and happily placed his hand on his shoulder and rubbed his cheek with Lewis' cheek smearing greasy war paint all over him. The whites were probably the first whites that the natives had ever seen. The Shoshone band did have a few pitiful flintlocks traded from some neighbors, who had obtained them from British and French. And, the horses had all originally come from Spain. We would realize much later that this event today was a major episode in the history of America...the meeting of the isolated Shoshone, my people in the Lemhi River area, with the whites. Meanwhile, Lewis and Clark had been exchanging notes tied on poles down the Jefferson River at the three rivers area. Clark and our larger party had decided to move upstream. But it was very difficult travelling by dugout. The water was swift shallow and boiling. the shores were rocky. It was brutal pulling, poling, paddling against this force of nature. The men were exhausted. For that matter, Lewis and his group were also worn out and hungry, but knowing they had to save what food they had for the upcoming mountain trek. Also, they learned that the Shoshone were hungry also. It was near their time to go east along the Missouri River and hunt buffalo. The big objective for Lewis was the need for horses. He had to go meet with Clark, which would also require horses to transport all their baggage to near the Shoshone camp. But, there was a major problem. The Shoshone were hesitant to go with them to meet Clark. Many felt it was a trap! (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The segment coming up is scheduled for publication next Tues. May 10, 2005 in the Branson (MO) Daily News. Interested in horses? The first Appaloosa shows up in this installment. They are great horses. You have heard of them perhaps in connection with Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce and his people who with these sturdy mounts evaded the U.S. Cavalry for a long time. But, now let us get back to our story about the Lewis and Clark expedition as related by Sacajawea: Sacajawea, The Amazing Adventure, 15 Captain Lewis and his three men found themselves in a fix. They needed Shoshone horses and help to go back and get all their baggage with Clark and the main body of the expedition. Unfortunately, the Shoshone felt that this was a trick; they would be ambushed and massacred. Lewis appealed to the manhood of the Shoshone warriors. "Mighty Cameahwait, Chief of the Shoshone, can it be what I am hearing. The brave Shoshone warriors feared by all the tribes, listen to women's gossip in the tribe and don't show trust to their new white friends. If there should be an ambush, we whites would probably be the first killed. So, show your bravery, trade us some horses and come with us to meet our good group down the Jefferson branch near the three forks headwaters of the great Missouri River. This will help the Shoshone greatly. For after we have gone to the great ocean and returned to our people, there will be many traders return and then the Shoshone can have rifles to protect themselves and trade for other goods much needed by the people." Cameahwait as well as two lessor chiefs said that they would go and some other warriors stepped forward including several women. One of the women named "Jumping Fish" had heard that there was a Shoshone woman with Clark's group. Jumping Fish had been a friend of mine when we were girls and escaped capture during the Hidatsa raid. She received her name for her "jumping" through the shallow water to get away. But could it be that I was her lost friend? She had to come along. Lewis and the Shoshones set off to meet Clark. Finally, one of the Shoshone scouts came running back with the good news that our Clark group was not far away and coming toward them. It was a grand meeting. Jumping Fish and I were overjoyed. The white men were amazed at my exuberance because I was usually very quite. But what a joyous reunion! There were many tears. Then, the most amazing thing of all happened. I kept looking at the chief Cameahwait and he at me. Then, it dawned on us. Cameahwait was my brother and I his sister! Here was another great reunion with much emotion and tears. All the Shoshone were happy and greatly relieved. There definitely could not be a trap now. I had been the key to unlocking the door of mistrust. If I had not been there it would have been a very bad situation for the whites. They were greatly outnumbered by the Shoshone who were very skittish. We all travelled to the Shoshone village site located along the Lehmi River, a beautiful, clear, fast running stream. My people gave the hungry whites some berries and a few roots, but in truth they were also starving. Before trading for much needed horses, the whites were startled to learn that my people were going to leave on a buffalo hunt back along the Missouri River. Lewis had to get busy and convince the Shoshone that it was in their best long range interest to trade right now. The Shoshone proved to be very tough traders. They knew that the whites were desperate for horses, so, as a result, the horses that the whites finally received were not of the best quality. This was not good as the journey west over the mountains would be very difficult. However, the whites had to be content with what they received. Charbonneau traded and got me a good horse. It had spots on the rump. My people said that it had been won in a battle with Blackfeet who had probably stolen it from the Nez Perce who lived to the west on the other side of the great mountains. It was a very unusual horse, strong and silent. It was a famous type of horse of the Nez Perce. The warriors said that legend had it that the Nez Perced killed any horse that was noisy. Their bands needed perfect quiet to keep from being detected by enemy raiders. We left on our journey toward the big mountains on the first day of the moon that the whites called "September." We kept going higher and higher over extremely difficult terrain...fallen timbers, loose rock, very steep slopes and with little game. Pack horses kept falling down the slopes. What was even worse, higher white capped mountains loomed awesomely still farther west. (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - This one is scheduled for publication in the Branson(Mo) Daily News, Tues., May 17 '05. This is now May 10th, '05. Note. One of the tough things about a writing on the Lewis and Clark expedition is tracing their travels on a map hither and yon up the smaller streams of the headwaters of the Missouri River and then through the Rocky Mountains and including the "Bitter Root Mountains." The party had no good maps...maybe some crude ones engraved with a stick on the floor of some chief's tipi or earthen lodge...plus a lot of hearsay and old legend...flimsy mind maps. They had to explore the hard way and make their own maps, find their own passes, often making many costly errors. I've checked numerous maps. The standard journal sources have them, but when you try and pin details down, they just don't quite fill the bill. I have also carefully scrutinized various atlases...and with the ole' Sherlock Holmes magnifying glass...but no one atlas seems to do the job. It just takes a lot of bits and pieces. I found one of the better maps in the front of a book: A CYCLE OF THE WEST by John G. Neihardt. And, this book, too, has been helpful getting a feel of the old Indian country and the explorers, although his epic verses therein don't commence until around 1840. Dr. Neihardt and I used to meet and say "Hi" each day on the marble steps going up Jessie Hall at the Univ. of Mo., Columbia. Also, I used to stand outside the door of his class room, along with the janitor and his mop and bucket and another student or two, listening to him recite these very epic poems as in "A Cycle..." Probably his most famous work, or I should say writing down...was BLACK ELK SPEAKS (the words were Black Elks). The west of Lewis and Clark, the natives and the mountain people, explorers and settlers was very unique. But, enough background and research notes for the time being. Let us continue with Sacajawea's account of the journey. Sacajawea, The Amazing Adventure, 16 "In a way, I hated to leave my people, the Shoshone, living along the Lemhi River. I knew I would miss my friend Jumping Fish and my brother Cameahwait the Chief, but there was little for me there. The warrior to whom I was bethrothed had married, and while he could have a second wife, he didn't want me, because I was married to Charbonneau and had had a child.' "Captains Lewis and Clark encourgaged me to go on with them to the great ocean of the west. They were beginning to realized the importance of having a woman along. A woman traveling with a group signaled a part of peace, not war. A woman was as the white flag of the whites, a peace symbol. From all accounts we would be encountering numerous native tribes. Many of these people had never seen a white person. If strangers carried firearms, they were definitely soldiers and that meant war...unless a woman, the peaceful symbol of the hearth and home, was along. "Lewis and Clark had acquired all of the information they could of the upcoming route...first following north for 75 miles along the Great Divide...then another 75 miles in high country before turning west. Not a lot was known except this first 150 miles was rugged with little grass for horses, it would be cold. Some of the far western tribes crossed the mountains some unknown way, to go hunting for buffalo but little was known of paths. Cameahwait said that there was one older man in the village who knew the way west and this person, called: "Old Toby" by the whites could lead them. It was finally settled, Old Toby would be the guide.' (to be continued). There were no illusions. the trek would be incredibly difficult, likely more difficult than any part of the journey so far...and that would seem impossible to endure as the journey I personally knew from the Mandan villages on the Missouri had been grueling, especially the portage around The Great Falls. The men were in poor condition...hungry and tired both in body and and mind. How could they keep going? The secret I believe was in their iron military discipline and leadership of Captain's Lewis and Clark and just as important the leadership of the three sergeants of the three squads...and especially that of Sgt. Ordway leader of one of the squads and the overall First Sgt. All the soldier's original clothes were wearing very thin and now they wore a lot of buckskins. Leather and cloth leggings - some of the color red a favorite trade cloth - were worn to protect against wild rose briars and rattlesnakes. A few soldiers still wore black soldier's hats. They all carried flintlock rifles and horns of powder that they guarded religiously. All of the men were good shots, especially the scout Drouillard and a soldier who was a particularly good scout named "John Coulter." He would later become a famed mountain man. I could see that Sgt. Ordway above all kept things in order and moving along: "Wake up there, your break is over...you can sleep in the grave. Hungry you say! When you get back home, you can have plenty to eat. When this is over, the government will give you a good parcel of land where you can plant all the corn, beans and squash you want..." "You men there load what little rations we've got - our most precious cargo - on our one mule. It's the most sure footed critter. Load Captain Lewis' sextent, compass and air gun on a good horse." "If you people quit now, you'll be the sorriest bunch of hang dog loosers that have ever gone back home in disgrace. Stand tall: keep the flag high. Act like soldiers. Look at little Sacajawea; she works twice as hard as the rest of you and she's got Pompy on her back! Let me see some movement here!" And, so our procession of explorers and pack animals commenced moving up and along the Great Divide. No one dared to look down the steep slopes. Each step had to be watched carefully. The pack horse with Captain Lewis' sextand and other instruments was the first to fall and roll over and over to the very bottom. There was much groaning and yelling from the men and Lewis - including words that would never appear in any of the journals. But to everyone's amazement, far down at the bottom, the horse staggered up alright...amidst cheers from the men. "Pvt. Willard, go down and get the horse. The rest of you keep movin'," yelled Sgt. Ordway, "Haven't you ever see a horse roll down a mountain?" I glanced to the west and there could still be seen the white topped mountains, "The Bitterroots" another "impossible obstacle," still looming on the western horizon. (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Notes: Ambrose thought the reason for the success of the expedition in very tough times was that Lewis and Clark had galvanized a strong group. True, but I got to thinking from my own Army experiences that the way things really got done was because of the Sergents. Commissioned officers can be great leaders I know, but the Sgts are the ones closest to the troops day and night, every minute of the day. With this in mind I thought of Sgt. Ordway the First Sgt. He had to have exerted a galvanizing influence. And, also the other two Sgts. must have done the same. I believe those three Sgts deserve tremendous credit for the success of the expedition. There had to have been much leadership constantly going on. That's the way it has always been with Sgts. down through the centuries. Julius Caesar depended on the heads up Centurions in the middle of battle. Thutmosis III leading one of the early blitzs in present day Iraq, had to have depended on the Sgts. Good Sgts have always known what had to be done and they got it done. Good Sgts. have always been thinkers and doers. They never rest. Lewis and Clark were blessed with extraordinary Sgts. Now, on to the next installment that will run 24 May, '05. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sacajawea, the Great Discovery, 17 We were truly in a life or death struggle now with the harsh mountains. There was no trail, only loose rock, fallen trees, thickets and cold. We had to cut our way through the thickets. We led our horses and the mule. If a mount lost its footing and rolled down a steep slope we wouldn't be on it. the Sergents and two Captains, Lewis and Clark kept spirits up with encouraging words. Even if one is strong and has plenty of food in the belly, trying times are difficult, but we were always short of food - there were only a few grouse - and had little stored food left. We still had to cross the Bitterroot Mountains. The men were constantly rationing and hungry but saw to it that I had an extra tid-bit of grouse. I was thankful. It snowed. Charbonneau, Jean Baptist and I slept beneath a large buffalo skin. Old Toby our Shoshone guide was a stalwart soul, small and wirey. He carried a rawhide bag - a parfleche with his belongings and wore a buffalo robe. He was always ahead, looking for landmarks that he had remembered from long ago. He pointed to familiar mountains with his walking stick. It was a fearful situation. Most of the elders and warriors of the Shoshone village from where we came, said that our chances of getting through were very slim. Still, Old Toby seemed to know what he was doing and where he was going and plunged ahead with confidence. We wondered how many murderous raids he and some other warriors of his youth had been on long ago on western trips over these mountains? Finally, we began to descend and headed west, always wondering which valley, which stream to follow. Old Toby would study the situation carefully and then point the right way with his stick. We entered into a nice plain and there met a band of Salish. They had a large herd of horses. Lewis and Clark were overjoyed for they could get a fresh supply of pack animals and mounts. Fortunately, the Salish were the best natured natives that the expedition had encountered. They were happy to trade. The Salish also gave us some berries and roots for which we were very grateful. They gave us some ideas for going through the next range of mountains, but it was all still sketchy, and we were depending almost totally on Old Toby. After a little rest we continued on west and the Salish went east on a buffalo hunt. The scout Coulter found a Shoshone who gave us some directions, but ran away very soon. We were now faced with an even worse obstacle, the snow covered mountains of the west -- the Bitterroots. Even with some new pack horses, we were really in no condition for such a trip, but Lewis was bound and determined to push on. All of us were to learn that there was more in us than we ever thought. Very soon Old Toby made a drastic mistake, and we got lost. Finally, though he figured out where he had gone wrong, and we had to climb and battle our way over more treacherous terrain. We were starving now, and we had to kill a colt for food. With so many hungry mouths it didn't last long and another colt had to be killed. Things were very desperate now, and Lewis and Clark decided it would be best for Clark to take six men and go ahead and search for food and try and make contact with some natives for help. the main body would keep plodding along and try and somehow keep alive. We had to kill our third colt. Sgt. Ordway shouted. "Just like old forced march days, aint it boys...and excuse me, Girl too. Everybody dreamin' about a big pot of beef stew, roastin' ears and Ma's apple pie. Remember, as hard as it was, we always made it through and finally got fed." The fourth and last colt had to be killed. We were all greatly relieved when we began to descend and could see up ahead a plain as far as we could see. Then, we found half a horse that Clark had left for us. This raised our spirits. Clark and his men hadn't been killed and were still pushing on ahead. Finally, we met with Clark, and a Chief named Twisted Hair, a Nez Perce he had brought along. He also brought some fish and roots. Even though Clark had warned us not to eat too much, we gorged ourselves and became ill. We were a "sorry mess" as Sgt. Ordway put it. But we were thankful to have survived the mountains. Very shortly it would be down stream all the way to the ocean - with the exception of some rough stretches and a big falls. (to be continued). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The date of the entry on this site of the following episode of "Sacajawea" is May 27th, 2005. It will be run in the Branson Daily News shortly but due to the Labor day weekend and their running of another of my columns about Dr. George Washington Carver, can't give an exact time. We are getting close to the end. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sacajawea, The Amazing Adventure 18 ....Or The Lost Journal of Sacajawea. We had finally passed the Great Divide and then the Bitterroot Mountains and found ourselves in the middle of the famous Nez Perce nation. Our group continued to be ill with stomach problems. No one was certain if it was because of the sudden eating of too many roots and berries or bad dried fish. To make matters worse, everyone was given the dreaded Dr. Rush's Pills a powerful laxative. This was like throwing logs on the campfire. Charbonneau, Drouillard and I managed to learn a startling fact. While the Nez Perce seemed very peaceful, they came very close to killing us to get our rifles. We were saved by a woman by the name of Warkuweis. She had been captured by the Blackfeet and then married a white man. She had been treated very well by the whites, who probably saved her. Later, she excaped back to her home tribe. She told Twisted Hair not to kill the whites! Again, the explorers were saved by a native woman! I would save our group again myself. After, the men could finally travel and Clark with a small group ahead had managed to burn out four large dugouts and a small one from big pine logs. Twisted Hair and another Chief went on ahead to pave the way for our group. This respected Chief told many tribes related to the Nez Perce and living along the shore that a woman (myself) was traveling with this group, therefore, we were coming in peace. Thanks to Twisted Hair we knew where we were going. We still faced many dangers, especially the raging rapids. The men who could swim traveled the rapids in dugouts while the men who could not swim traveled by land carrying valuables. Charbonneau would have to go by land and since I could swim I would go by boat with Jean Baptist on my back; I felt that he would be safer with me than with Charboneau. Jean Baptist and I often braved the rapids with the men. The natives along the way were amazed that we all survived. The heavy log dugouts set low in the water, helped. Old Toby was scared of the rapids and suddenly without pay left our group to go back home to the Shoshone. We were short of food again and the men traded with the natives for dogs. Captain Clark didn't like this practice and preferred to eat grouse. Nevertheless, everyone else thought dog meat was just fine. We finally came to a place on the Columbia River where we could detect ocean tides. I had never heard of such a magic thing, the raising and lowering of the big water. Truly, the Great Spirit was awesome. This powerful spirit also helped our group of explorers time after time. We also noticed that some of the natives were wearing what Sgt. Ordway explained were "sailor's clothes" traded to them by seamen who traveled all around the world in big boats with big sails. We still had a difficult time. We could not find good places to sleep -- the beds were rocky -- and there was much rain and fog. We had met the Chinooks, enemies of the Nez Perce. When our men were trading with the Chinooks, the whites were trying to obtain a beautiful otter skin robe. The native trader pointed to my belt of blue beads. I hated to part with this prized possession and said that I must have something for it. I ended up with a blue coat of wool and the white men the otter robe. It had been a long difficult journey, but we finally arrived at the giant mouth of the Columbia River. We were in winter now and had to hurriedly construct Fort Clatsop. Here we spent the winter of 180-5-1806 before returning to the east. It was a rainy and dreary time. This journey would not last as long, but we had many many more adventures. Besides the bad times of the expedition, there were good times. I remember fondly the fiddle music of Pvt. Cruzette by the campfire with York and the others lively dancing. This entranced the natives. Sometime, perhaps I can put down all these other adventures as well. General Clark has been more than kind to have his private secretary transcribe my thoughts for me. I learned some English from the explorers. I often asked questions about English and they kindly explained. Thanks to General Clark and the late Capt. Lewis and all the men for their many kindnesses. Again, my special thanks to General Clark for taking care of my children and giving them an education. Jean Baptist wants to be a guide. Lizzette wants to be a teacher as the children's tutor hired by General Clark. Charbonneau and I will return down the Missouri to the Mandans and perhaps even to the land of my people someday the Shoshone. May the Great Spirit smile on all those who might read this writing. He has certainly smiled on me." Sincerely, Sacajawea, member of the Lewis and Clark expedition, 1803-1806. Faithfully transcribed by order of General William Clark, Governor of Missouri in this year of our Lord, 1815, in St. Louis, Missouri Territority. Durward Norris, Sec'y. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The above segment appeared in the Wed. June 1st issue of the Branson (MO) Daily News - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (Next and final column on Sacajawea will have final thoughts as well as a listing of sources). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sacajawea, Final Thoughts Sacajawea is certainly a standout as we look back at the Lewis and Clark Expedition (1804 - 1806). She just kept rising to the top like cream. She was a teenager and a mom. In many ways the various journals kept on the journey were men oriented. There were more men of course; she was the only woman. Fortunately, there are a few descrptive references that tell a lot, although not enough(for we writers). Many blanks have to be filled in. I took the liberty, using the historical fiction technique when Sacajawea came into the picture of my series to try and fill in some of the blanks. She just took over the entire series actually forcing me to do an unprecendented thing of switching from standard article/column non-fiction technique to fiction with her as the center of interest. Sacajawea was a special American. There were a number of times that the little expedition could have been wiped out in the blink of an eye, save for the fact that her womanly presence, the universal sign of hearth, home and peace was present. When the main dugout she was in, was swamped and the invaluable journals and various important instruments were floating away - headed for the Mississippi delta, she, with papoose on her back, swam out in waves, wind and strong current and rescued them. She had to have been as sharp as a tack. Most people would have been thinking about saving their own skins (as her husband Charbonneau in the same boat). She knew the great value of the journals. Sacajawea also gathered needed roots for food. She had to have helped with the preparation of leather (a constant need) in Indian ways and in other knowledge-of-the woods ways. Was that snake poisonous? Where were the buffalo? Is that an edible food? Is that native friendly? How helpful, the scapula of the buffalo can be used as a shovel. Snake root is a pain-killer. I'm guessing at some of these situations; we'll never know all the ways she helped (maybe even as a reminder of the women at home), but, undoubtedly, she was an invaluable person to have along. All the soldiers, including Lewis and Clark themselves were excellent woodsmen, but they were now in a new land of the Sioux, Mandan, Hidatsa, Arickira, Shoshone, Nez Perce and others...plains and mountain tribes. They were in Sacajawea's ball park now. I have an idea. The dollar cast by the U.S. mint was nice. How about switching it to solid gold or silver? If we don't take our history and country seriously, who will? Also mint coins with pictures of each of the soldiers and other expedition members. Do this in the fashion of the state quarters. And mint them with precious metal. This will insure popularity. If the Susan B. Anthony dollar had been minted with a precious metal it would be extremely valuable today. The value might be so much with precious metal that the mint might want to make the expedition series higher denominations than a dollar? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The above segment, although, a little different (this is the final form here on the web site) will appear, in the June 7th, 2005 issue of the Branson (MO) Daily News. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Now, finished with the Sacajawea section, it is on to the final analysis of the Lewis and Clark expedition. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The Great Expedition 7: Appreciation There were few days went by that I didn't think of the old Lewis and Clark expedition in 1804 when a student helping with archaeological research along the Missouri River in Missouri and up in South Dakota and also during a visit to the Ft. Lincoln site in the 3 Tribes area of North Dakota (close to where Lewis and Clark spent the first winter). The impact of those famous explorers has been deeply etched in our country's historical psychics. In many ways, those in archaeology can well identify with Lewis and Clark. When we are out in the boondocks piecing together the story of humanity in both historical and prehistorical times we are searching for many of the same things as Lewis and Clark. We have to paint the natural history and ethnological setting - the geography, the geology, the people and their culture, the plants that they grew and ate, animal life...everything about them and around them. We try to see and capture the entire picture. Archaeologists are human cameras, who actually go a step farther than 2-dimensional film and study the 3-D picture. Archaeologists have to work with farmers to get permission to go through their gates and promise to shut gates to keep cattle in. Lewis and Clark had to get on good terms with the Native Americans. Students of antiquity have to camp out and carefully plan supplies and also think about transportation. Sometimes archaeologists also use boats on surveys (was in a john boat that swamped on a raging river. It was all I could do to save my life let alone think of bags of artifacts, clipboards, etc. I have unbounded respect and admiration for Sacajawea saving the journals!) Scientific equipment...compasses, mapping equipment, maps are needed by the archaeologists. Archaeologists make both sketch maps and very detailed maps showing contour intervals using instruments. Writing is very important in archaeology. The dig director must keep a daily journal. Everyone must keep notes as they excavate down through the levels in their individual areas. they carefully record in place what they find. The final report shows the setting, results of work in a 3-D way, pictures of finds, comparisons with other digs and findings, conclusions and recommendations. All of this, of course, is science in action. It is a mega step up the civilized ladder. Amazingly, Jefferson saw to it that Lewis was up on this scientific metholology. This approach is not easy. Even today, it is very difficult to get society to slow down, observe and record and save the heirlooms of the past and study their lives and surroundings. The daily loss of the story of America is shocking and unfortunately irretrievable, being covered with asphalt, cement and lakes. Humans are very slow learners. A good analogy that is often used about the importance of the past, is that prehistory and history are as the enormous unseen portion of the iceberg, and the present is just the tiny tip top. Most states have State Archaeologists, but as far as I know they are greatly underfunded. Besides survey, excavation, study and publication funds they need funds for publicising the importance of saving the past...and in general education. This goes for history as well. Our Executive branch of the Federal government has a Sec'y of the Interior, but I am going to boldly venture the idea that there is need for a special Sec'y of archaeology/anthropology/history...or perhaps Sec'y of Culture and include the Arts. We really must save things or our descendents will never cease to curse us for being so blind and selfish. Also, governments can greatly improve laws to save the antiquities. There is a federal law to protect federal lands, but the states need to pass laws to save antiquities on private lands...or at least educate citizens as to the importance of such antiquities and tell them what they can do. The state could have first aid helpers to come to the rescue and excavate and give landowners the first publication of research results. Of course, this would cost money for publication, staffs, etc., but it is needed. There is also a law saying there will be research if some building project uses Federal funds. Carl Chapman of Mizzou went to Washington to testify for this law. Notice that all the information and items - every bit of information - Lewis and Clark saved are treasured and carefully studied today 200 years later. And people 200 years from today will be just as interested in every bit of priceless information that those old explorers collected. And they will also be interested in every bit of information about any story of humanity that we collect today on our own expeditions. It is a tremendous responsibility. Jefferson had scientific as well as economic information gathering goals, but he went about it in a careful "scientific" way. Learning from Lewis and Clark and Jefferson we must take a little time to observe, think about, appreciate and save what we have and share with people in the future. It's an unselfish, mature approach to life. Each of us are on a continuing, big learning expedition, and there are always new vistas right around the bend of the river and wonderful things along the way, if we will only look. Fortunately, the exciting expedition goes on for everyone. RM - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Note: Your writer keeps excavating this series on Lewis and Clark. "Sterile soil" as the field archaeologists say, is yet to be reached. It's fun to keep scraping with the trowel and whisking with the whisk broom always trying to see a little clearer horizontal and vertical profiles. More wonderful old memories working along the Missouri River are jiggled as we proceed down in the writing excavation. The late dean of all the biblical archaeologists, William Foxwell Albright Head of the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Johns Hopkins said that "one source always leads to a dozen other sources." It's an old research rule. Hopefully, the reader will bear with this "sculpting type" methodology. This method is greatly aided by being able to work right here - using the editing tools of the site. You might want to keep checking in. Will use as fine a sifting screen as possible. Good excavating on your own research projects of life. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -