Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1936-06-20
Nv WALTER %. TAYLOR

The story Of the strange death Of
Mcriwether Lewis, he who was CO.
leader of the great Lewis and
Clark expedition Of exploration 70
the northwest and whose name is
so intimately connected with Mon
tana's earlier history, Is one Of the
dark spots and uns0Ived mysteries
Of American history. 1t is a puzz-
ling, mot always pleasant tale which
has all the elements necessary to
a modern popular mystery novel,
except that In the case Of Meri-
wether Lewis there was no Sher-
lock Holmes, no PhilO Vance 20
step Ia and unraveI the tangled
threads Of the mystery. Was IL
murder or a suicide2 Did the great
man really die by his own hand,
or was he the victim Of a murder
Gus servant or the owner of the
house where he stopped to spend
the night that fateful evening Of
Oct. 10, 1903?
The setting of this real-life murder
mystery yarn was a house, sort Of
tavern-in the frontier wilderness Of
the region now included in the state
of Tennessee. The characters In the
drama were frontier folk, a strange
group indeed. For that touch of rO-
nance so necessary 10 any story, we
have Lewis long drawn-out romance
with the beautiful Mrs. TheodoSia Burr
Aston, daughter of the much-maligned
Aaron Burr and one Of the reigning
beauties of Washington society Of the
1907, Just two years before Lewis death,
and short time later Mrs Aston dis
appeared mysteriously from a ship
while on 8 cruise along the Atlantic
coast. Her death, like that of her
lover, remains an unsolved mystery
to this day. For further touch Of the
bizarre we have the Lewis family jew
els which are said to have disappeared
at the time of Lewis death. The en-
tire story is full of contradictions; |
historians contradict each other IN tell |
ing it, and while 1t is now much too |
late to decide definitely just how Meri-
wether Lewis did die, we can, at least. |
marshal the evidence and draw our
own conclusions.
Almost Immediately after the close Of
the Lewis and Clark expedition, Meri
wether Lewis was appointed governor
Of the Louisiana Territory, a vast re-
gion including all the territory west Of
the Mississippi river and drained by
It's tributaries. He arrived in st. Louis,
his capital, amidst much celebration.
It was a personal triumph for him, fer
be had once lived in st. Louis as an
obscure army officer: now he was gov
ernor Of the greatest piece of territory
ever annexed by a nation in modern
times. Upon arrival In st. Louis, Lewis
took up residence in sprawling man
sion Of M. Auguste Chouteau, member
Of a family of fur traders famous in
the history of the northwestern fur
trade. Lewis had been invited to live
IN the home of his old friend William
Clark. but as Clark had but recently
been married Lewis probably refused
the invitation because he did not want
TO intrude upon the happiness Of the
newlyweds.
Governing Louisiana was no bed Of
roSe5 and Lewis soon found 1t out. His
domain was q trackless forest with
only a few scattered settlements. St.
Louis itself was only a small frontier
where saloons outnumbered
other places of business three to one
and where most of the representatives
of the federal government spent their
time gambling and general carousing.
Lewis did his best IS governor, but
by the fall of 1909 his accounts were
so badly scrambled that he decided he
must go to Washington and straighten
them out. Although he was a Virginia
gentleman, Lewis had had little edu-
cation; he knew nothing about keeping
accounts. Government authorities in
Washington knew as little about con-
ditions on the frontier They had ques-
toned Lewis accounts of his handling
Of certain Indian affairs. He had pro-
vided money for the purchase of medi-
cine for diseaSe-ridden tribes and when
he presented his bill to the treasury
officials In Washington they refused (
10 pay. So Lewis decided to go to ]
Washington and clear his name. He {
had also another reason for making I
he journey, for Thomas Jefferson had I
been writing letters for two years urg-
ng him to prepare for publication his /
journals Of the expedition to the Pa c
;ific coast. I
One day in September, 1909, Lewis +
et out from st. Louis on the long e
Quincy to Washington with two SER q
ants, leaving william Clark in charge n
+ affairs in Louisiana. In his trunk he h
arried his proof that his accounts of h
he handling of Indian money and c
ther affairs we're correct. He also car b
led his journals of the northwestern Il
Expedition 1t was his plan to go down 81
be Mississippi river to New Orleans, il