Lewis and Clark said to every tribe that President Thomas Jefferson was the new great father of the land and gave the Indians a peace medal "with Jefferson on one side and two hands clasping on the other" as well as some supplies ("The Native Americans," PBS.com, 2007). Then the Corps members would perform a kind of parade, marching in uniform and ritualistically firing their guns into the air ("The Native Americans," PBS.com, 2007).
The positive contact between Europeans and Native Americans is perhaps best exemplified in the persona of Sacajawea and her husband the French-Canadian trapper and fur trader, Charbonneau. Lewis and Clark admitted that it were not for Sacajawea the expedition would have met with disaster many times. Once, one of the boats capsized in a sudden squall. Sacajawea, despite the fact she was carrying a papoose on her back was able to retrieve all of the records, books and surveying instruments before they sank to the bottom of the river ("Sacajawea," Notable Women Ancestors, 2007).
The difficulties and momentary friendships experienced between the members of the expedition and Native Americans have been well-documented. However, less publicized is the final,...
The members of their officer corps came from a diversity of regions, and their numbers were quite pluralistic in terms of religious, ethnic, educational, and social backgrounds. Many of the men were frustrated with the expedition and deserted to establish squatters' rights on the frontier and escape the strict military discipline enforced by Lewis and Clark. "Desertion was a serious problem and was severely punished, because the loss of just a few men in the small garrisons would damage fighting capability in the event of an Indian attack" ("Circa 1803,"PBS.com, 2007).
Works Cited
Challenges of the Lewis and Clark Expedition." National Geographic Society, 2001
Dec 2007. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/activities/01/lewis_gallery_1.html
Circa 1803." Lewis and Clark. PBS.com. 2007. 3 Dec 2007. http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/inside/idx_cir.html
The Native Americans." Lewis and Clark. PBS.com. 2007. 3 Dec 2007. http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/native/index.html
Sacajawea." Notable Women Ancestors. 3 Dec 2007. http://www.rootsweb.com/~nwa/sacajawea.html
