Arrest by Tsarina Catherine the Great, spies in the service of Great Britain and a dream of power. Great achievements require great sacrifice, great preparation and great persistence. This is why the Lewis and Clark expedition took place.
Dream about the West
Thomas Jefferson showed an extraordinary interest in discovering North America in the area between the Mississippi River and the Pacific. Even as a young boy, he watched the activities of his teacher, the Reverend James Maury, which led to the exploration of parts of the western part of the Missouri River. The task of the small company sent at that time was to check whether this river was connected with the Pacific. In addition, observations on the areas covered by the mission were conducted and written down.
Over time, Jefferson's dream of discovering the western lands grew stronger, and shortly after independence, he sent a letter to General George Roger Clark expressing concern that the British had raised a significant amount of money to organize an expedition to the areas between the Mississippi River and California. In the book by Stephen E. Ambose, "In Search of America's Borders. The Expedition of Lewis and Clacker ", we can read about Jefferson's specific concerns about these events and words of encouragement to undertake his own expedition:
They pretend that it is only about expanding knowledge. I'm afraid they are thinking of colonizing this region. Some of us have said something about trying to explore this country (…). Would you like to lead such an expedition?
It was not only British actions that made Jefferson increasingly push to go to the western lands. As we read in Stephen E. Ambose:
Two years later, in 1785, Jefferson was in Paris as the US ambassador. There he learned that Louis XVI was sending an expedition to the Pacific Northwest under the command of Jean-François de Galaup, Count de La Pérouse.
Jefferson believed that the real purpose of this trip was to establish a colony on the west coast of America or to create a trading post for the fur trade.
From theory to practice
The first Jefferson-approved attempt to explore the western lands was made by John Ledyard. As we read in Ambose:
This born wanderer, great speaker, man full of energy and enthusiasm, convinced Jefferson that he was able to travel overland from Moscow east through Siberia, cross the Bering Sea on a Russian fur ship, and then cross North America on foot, to get to the Capitol and to announce that he is coming to report on the West. He proposed to do so in the company of only two dogs.
Jefferson liked such a crazy idea the more that according to the above description, it would not generate too much cost. How absurd he was, it turned out when Tsarina Catherine the Great caught Ledyard in Siberia and sent him back to Poland.
In 1790, another attempt was made to "secretly reconfigure the Missouri River." It was planned by Secretary of War Henry Knox and was to be performed by Lieutenant John Armstrong with four or five burly Indians . After reaching the river, the leader stated that "this task is much easier to plan than to complete." And while the expedition didn't even reach the west side of the Mississippi, Armstrong made a list of things he thought were essential for this type of expedition.
French agent and another fiasco
After two unsuccessful attempts, Jefferson did not give up. Another expedition was organized on behalf of the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia, which, thanks to the financial support of Gorge Washington, Robert Morris and Alexander Hamilton, could offer the brave explorer a salary of 1,000 pounds. French botanist André Michaux was chosen as the leader of the expedition. After all instructions and expectations were given, the expedition set off. Ambose tells us very succinctly about what happened next:
Everything ended very prosaically. Michaux left in June 1793, but barely made it to Kentucky when Jefferson discovered that he was a secret agent of the French Republic, his main task was to mobilize forces in the West capable of striking Spanish possessions beyond the Mississippi.
The mission has been canceled.
"Alexander Mackenzie from Canada, by land."
Activities undertaken for the expedition to the West have been temporarily suspended. By the time Jefferson discovered that in the spring of 1801 France and Spain, actually Napoleon and his brother, came to an agreement in which they agreed that Louisiana was to fall back to France. There could be no consent to this in the US. "As long as this place was ruled by Spain, the United States was inclined to delay taking Louisiana," Ambose writes:
But Republican France? Napoleonic France? Expansionist France? Never !. Often criticized as a hopelessly romantic Francophile, Jefferson in this case acted like a relentless follower of Realpolitik.
Eventually, Louisiana was sold to the United States in 1803.
The impulse to undertake another expedition to explore the Western lands of North America came from yet another angle. In 1789, a young Scotsman from the British Northwest Company, Alexander Mackenzie, undertook another expedition in his life, this time to Slave Lake, and then to the river that now bears his name, set out to the Ocean. He achieved his goal, but due to the course of the river, he did not reach the Pacific Ocean but the Arctic Ocean. Tireless, a year later he undertook another expedition to the West. Mackenzie eventually reached the northern part of the Strait of Georgia, where he made British claims to the lands by placing on the rock the words "Alexander Mackenzie from Canada, by road, 23 July, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-three".
An account of Mackenzie's expedition was published in London in 1801 under the title "Journeys from Montreal, the St. Lawrence River, across the North American continent, to the Glacial and Pacific Oceans", and a year later it was owned by Jefferson. Both he and Meriwether Lewis who were with him swallowed her immediately. They were certainly not satisfied with the Canadian's success, but the detailed descriptions of the terrain allowed them to see hope for the western lands as far as the Pacific Ocean. Describing these events, Ambose cites historian and geographer John Logan Allen, according to whom, "It was the perceptions of geography that gave rise to the Lewis and Clark expedition."
A matter of national honor
"Alexander Mackenzie from Canada, by land" - these words had an effect on the future leader of the expedition like a blanket for a bull. These words told the Americans that if they did not take appropriate, even risky actions, Britain would receive a one-of-a-kind chance and spread to western North America. These words made the organization of the expedition through the United States a matter of national honor. As early as 1802, Thomas Jefferson announced that Captain Lewis would lead an expedition in response to Mackenzie's accomplishments. Thus began the tedious preparations, led by Meriwether Lewis' intensive training in all sorts of fields, fundraising and detailed planning of the entire expedition. The total cost associated with it has been estimated at $ 2,500.
Man does not live by honor alone
What did you take with you? Only the most necessary things, including provisions, mathematical instruments for measurements and appropriate materials for their recording, weapons, medicines, boats, tools and gifts for Indians. As provisions, they took, among others, 4,175 food rations, 5,555 flour rations, approximately 120 gallons of whiskey, 4,000 rations of salted pork, plus ground grain.
A large part of the rations was "portable soup", which consisted of dried beans and vegetables and was the main part of the supply. The second important product was whiskey which was usually a huge problem, and was a great help during activities in which a group of men condemned to each other had to travel through foreign lands. On the one hand, disputes could begin to arise over whiskey, on the other hand, as long as it was distributed equally, it could maintain a relative peace among the crew members. As Ambose writes:
Undoubtedly, all participants of the expedition knew perfectly well how much whiskey there was and how much of it was for each of them. They knew the whiskey would end; it had happened before; they could tolerate it, as long as there was not enough whiskey for everyone on the same day and no one got a drop more than was due.
The author of "In Search of America's Borders" also makes another accurate remark - alcohol had to be enough days for it to be too late when it runs out. .
The gifts for the Indians were also extremely important. Thanks to them, the expedition was to avoid unnecessary struggle, and also promote trade in the future. Among the gifts were:
beads, brass buttons, tomahawks, axes, awls for moccasins, scissors, mirrors and other wonders of the early industrial world, as well as tobacco, vermillion for face coloring and whiskey. At Jefferson's direct orders, the expedition also carried two grain mills, probably to teach the tribes how to make groats.
"Rush's thunderbolt pills"
Obviously, medical supplies were essential for the expedition. Lewis, thanks to his mother, had a great deal of knowledge in the field of natural medicine, but together with Jefferson they realized that it was not enough. His medical adviser was Dr. Benjamin Rush, who gave him a lot of advice:
When you feel even the slightest indisposition, do not try to overcome it with work or walk, rest lying down. Also, fasting and diluting alcohol for a day or two can prevent a fever attack. To these preventive measures, mild sweating from warm drinks can be added, or a gentle opening of the gut by administering one, two or three laxatives.
However, the most important medical invention that was taken on the expedition were "Rush tablets". According to their author, they were supposed to be the answer to all human diseases - "they consisted of calomel, a mixture of six parts mercury and one part chlorine, and jalapa. Each ingredient had a strong laxative effect; the combination heightened the effect. ”
Lewis and Clark
Go
On July 4, 1803, all preparations were complete and the Lewis and Clark expedition was ready for the expedition. The purpose of the expedition was primarily to explore the Missouri River and its mainstream, and to answer the question of whether it connects with the Pacific Ocean. In addition, the Columbia, Oregon and Colorado rivers as well as other watercourses that would enable water communication for commercial purposes were also subject to observations. Lewis was also supposed to learn as much as possible about the routes of British merchants, get to know the Indian tribes, make maps and descriptions of everything that he encountered on his way.
This pioneering journey is what Stephen E. Ambose's book entitled:"In Search of America's Borders." The Lewis and Clark Expedition ”.