New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-10-01

A WORTHY EDITION OF THE JOURNAL OF
THEIR EXPLORATIONS.

HISTORY OF THE EXPEDITION, UNDER e. The tbc
COMMAND or LEWIS AND . SLARh acro do the me
Rocky Mountains and down the Coiumoi,a i.aa ars
the Pacific Ocean performed d1r IN ,b ble Inited
States new edition. faithfully repr1seo , hica
the only authorized OF 1874 with oGp,1Hs Of u%
commentary prepared upon examination anon s oi c
published official archives and many other sou'.ss
original manuscript journals and field note books
Of the explorers. together with ne" oos mar.
and other illustrations and complete index. q BY
Elliott Coues. -Four volumes PP CIVIL d.'I y
vi, $3.50; vi, S21-l29S; 12@-lSGL FRANCIS l.
Harper.
This title rivals those of an age long gone by
1t is certainly far more terrifying than the wonder
full book to which it belongs The American who
in boyhood or youth has never rcad at least one
of tho many more or less accurate narratives q!
Lewis and Clarks famous journey twice across
the continent of North Lmerioa, then unknown
west of the Mississippi and east of narrow margin
on the Pacific Coast, has cogent reasons for being
ashamed of himself. The story is, as DIR. Coues
says our national epic of exploration, concelVed
ly Thomas Jefferson wrought out by Lewis and
Clark. and gwen to the world by Nicholas Blddlc
Yet az his work abundantly shows, it has never
been told with completeness Tie main reason
for this was maniestly literary one, which even
DR. Coues himself cannot remedy. Az Odyssey in
the form of a dry daily journal of travel cannot
reach the imagination of the people save BY IN
direction But that was the form to which Lewis
and Clark were bound by the necessities of the
case They might, indeed, have supplemented
their formal statement by one less minute for
popular reading. But they were men of action, Ill
whom the literary faculty remained inchoate. a.
they looked over the writing, which had grown
10 series of volumes under their hands. memory
supplied unconsciously the picturesqueness or the
sentiment which was lacking, and it never oc-
Cured to them to furnish the reader some suDstl-
tutc for their vivid rcminiscencc. Ever: III
the form given TO the narrative by DR. Coues, with
explanatory notes out Of the manuscripts that
were the raw material of the original version of
tho journal. the most profit will be obtained by
those readers who have the gift of putting them
selves in the authors place and Of understanding
him better than ne understands himself
The two explorers were doubtless conscious oil
their literary defects They hoped TO overcome these
by the assistance of an expert. But mhicul'y
occurred here which nobody III that age seems TO
have appreciated. To edit Lewis and Clark one
must have travelled the course which they
traced Otherwise, in the effort to choose par
ticulars that are of value out OF the mass OF
writing left by the explorers, one will infalilbiy
select the less important, and IN putting HIS
fragments together will destroy their sequence.
the Yellowstone as one in which the relactor
failed dismally to comprehend the meaning or
what was in his hands. IL have heard LOWS
and Clarks Yellowstone narrative says he,
"belittled by competent critics who knew what
they were talking about, and justly compalned
that they could find little in it but Pompey
Pillar Rivers-across, and some OF the largest
tributaries But that does Captain clark a
cruel injustice. He missed very little as we
now see by the many new points | am picking
ont Of the codex and if l were to transcrloe
his formal courses and distances IN Iull, we
should find almost every buh bottom, ana
island as well rs almost every tributary. NO
mart of the whole expedition is so inadequatcly
represented in the published narrative as this
Yellowstone exploration, which may not be I'M
fairly regarded as slurred." If the two mon
coud have worked together their manuscripts
for some months after their return; or, better
still seeing how Indifferent their skill with the
nen really was. if they could have sat down with
Nicholas Biddle and gone over the material with
care. the result would have been different Dut
they must have thought that books were an
almost spontaneous product. No matter what
the orthography syntaX or punctuation OIL
manuscript might be, all would be perfect aiter
the printer had waved his magic stick over It,
For neither Of the authors saw any part OF the
work from the time it left their hands until 10
was published. The melancholy fate of Lewis
prevented his ever seeing the hook at all. Ana
bluff CAPTAIN Clark wore all interest he had in
the subject ont while trying 10 get the work on
the press and possibly never looked inside the
covers of the printed volume. The book came
ont in February 1914, and seven eight months
after,yard we find him writing to 3iddle and r.
marking almost by accident: Il have borrowed
copy of my Book, which has reached this place
(St LOUIS but have not had time to read it as
vet. Catch a man with the real literary disease
in him playing his own book so rusty trick
that!
Between the time the book was first thought
Of and the time when it actually appeared. it had
been subject 10 startling vcissitudes. One printer
John Conrad went into bankruptcy with it az the
outset, and those who took it up later turned il
over to an assignee, and Clarks " total receipts
were some copper plates and the right to bring out
a second edition" Not even tbs ending to his
labors served to awaken than passing
thought in the mind Of the great explorer. lie
heartily approved Of all that had been done by
BiddIe. and added, as if lie were glad TO dismiss
the whole matter l have written TO the mother
of the late Governor Lewis Mrs. Marks and sent
her a statement Of the accounts, and asked her "a
assent TO the arrangement. This measure is i'm
portant to me- as it enables me 70 satisfy the old
lady, who I have reasons TO believe has been per
suaded that profit arising from tie work has been
received i wish something done with the copy
right. but what should be done can't say; must
leave it to your judgment and better eX-
pericncc am really sorry that you have been al
80 much trouble in acting for me. console my
vlf that may yet have it IN my power TO do you
service"
Fate was against the book. II had also TO bcai
on its face the marks of imperfect ediofship and
proofrcadng, characteristic of the times IN which
il first appeared. And here DR.. Coues il happy
in having found a scapegoat on which he can
throw the blame for most Of the defects of the
edition of 1914 He would doubtless include
Nicholas BlAdle, as he does Lewis and Clark
among what he calls American patricians But