The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1893-03-25
THE FIRST EXPLORERS OF THE
GREAT WEST.
Lewis and Clark's Expedition to the
Pacific in the Early Part of This
Century, and Dir. Coues' Re-
cent Discovery.

CNhU blsCuNCiJs
The first white men to cross our con-
tinent, between British and Spanish pos
sessions, in what is now the United
States, were Captains Lewis and Clark
and their little band of brave followers.
Upon acquiring from France, in 1903,
the territory of Louisiana, which in
cluded under that name nearly all the
present states and territories of the
Great West, President jefferson dele
gated to his private secretary and warm
personal friend, Meriwether Lewis, the
task of exploring this vast and then I'M
known region.
Captain Lewis was appointed at his
own earnest solicitation, and at his sug-
gestion: Captain william Clark was also
commissioned; and these two officers
were associated inseparably in the COM
mand of this great undertaking.
The route of the expedition was from
st. Louis, through what is now the
states of Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Ne
braska, South Dakota, North Dakota,
Montana, Idaho, Oregon and Washing
ton. At that time no white man had
assembled the Missouri river much above
the present site of Bismark, North Da-
kota, none had been up the Columbia
river above tidewater, and none had
crossed the Rocky mountains in United
States territory.
Leaving Wood river, near st. Louis,
in May 1904, the invincible band of adj
%venturers plunged into an unknown
region, to encounter for owe two years,
the hardships and perils of the wilder
ness.
The courage, skill and good fortune,
| with which this ever famous expedition
was conducted to a successful issue with
scarcely a casualty, for over 5000 miles
and back, have never been surpassed i'll
the ANIMALS of exploration.
The narrative they have left behind
them which was published i'll 1914, is a
worthy monument to the undertaking
and to the men, its veracity and minute
accuracy have never been called into
question. 1t remains to-day a model
history of travel and adventure.
Prof. Elliott Coues, the eminent scien-
test and one of the editors of 1.-The
Century Dictionary" during his long
connection with the United States army
and the geological and geographical ex-
plorations carried on by our government,
directed his attention specially to this,
the first and greatest of all western ex-
plOrations. He made a study of the
subject and in 1876 published a list of
all books and pamphlets that had been
written upon the expedition, and found
that there was no less than thirty-five
titles.
1t has always been his desire to make
a thorough investigation of the whole
subject, but it was only twelve months
ago, that his pressing literary and other
engagements allowed him to devote the
time he thought necessary to such a
great work. His happy discovery of a
treasure house of new information de-
cided him at once to relinquish all other
occupations:
Prof. Cones has since been actively
engaged in the work, and has brought
together all available material bearing
upon the expedition. His own name,
and his purpose to reconstruct the whole
history have been the ''open sesame" to
all the manuscript records in the
archieves of the departments at Wash
ington; he has had at his disposals the
original journals and field note books of
the expedition in the handwriting of
Lewis and Clark, and other precious
manuscripts in private hands besides all
printed matter bearing on the subject.
Such a wealth of material placed in
the hands of DR.. Coues could not fail to
throw a flood of new light on the whole
subject. His discoveries clear up almost
every doubtful or disputed point, enable
him to locate nearly all of the original
camping-grounds, streams and other
geographical features of the Great West,
now well known by other names and
many of them the sites of flourishing
towns and cities. Our people have yet
to learn how much they own to Lewis
and Clark, and be taught to give due
credit to these foremost pioneers of
progress in the opening up and develop
ment of the Freat West.
All interested in western history, geo.
graphy, ethnology, zoology and botany,
will be glad to hear that DR.. Coues will
embody the full results of his researches
in a new edition of 1.-THE History of the
Expedition of Lewis and Clark" very
fully illustrated with the required maps,
even to a Photographic facsimile of the
map Lewis and Clark sent to President
Jefferson from the Mandans, in April,
1907.