EXPLORING THE MISSOURI

Press, Volume XCIV, Issue 28128, 17 November 1956, Page 3

EXPLORING THE MISSOURI

The Journals of Lewis and Clark. Edited and interpreted by Bernard De Voto. Eyre and Spottiswoode 494 pp.

Louisiana, ceded by the French to Spain in 1762. remained in Spanish hands until 1800, when it was returned to France after the Treaty of San Idelfonso. About the time of this treaty the French were trying to establish a link between Canada and Louisiana through the Middle West. Mid-west-ern settlers were becoming uneasy in the backwash of the struggle for power in Europe and in the lack of a suitable outlet, for their produce down the Mississippi to the sea. The Missouri, the other great river in the Middle West, lay unexplored. It was thought that down its waters a back door could be opened to the rich fur trade in Canada. These considerations, among others, influenced the far-seeing President Jefferson to request Congress to finance an expedition up the unknown Missouri and to explore the western territories.

The expedition was headed by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, and it resulted in the first recorded crossing of the American continent. These two Army officers chronicled more than the day-to-day happenings as they had been commissioned to make a close study of the flora and fauna of the region they entered and to learn as much as possible about the habits of the Indians. In this edition of the journal of the well-known adventure some pruning has taken place, some annotations have been added and extracts from diaries of other members of the expedition have been included.