The men of the Lewis and Clark expedition had emerged onto one of the largest grasslands of the

world, the Great Plains. Travelling though land covered with trees they were astonished to come across the different landscape of the Great Plains, where there were no trees, rolling hills and no obstructions for as far as their eyes could see. Buffalo, elk and deer were plentiful, Im sure so many buffalo in one view was different than having to really hunt for their food. As they said in the video it must have been stupefying to them and somewhat fearful not knowing what was out in the horizon, similar to how you feel if you move to a completely different place, ex. NYC to Utah. It must have been entertaining to see a bunch of them try to catch a prairie dog, which they eventually did and sent it to Thomas Jefferson in Washington. As they moved up to Nebraska and South Dakota they met several tribes of Native Americans . They told each tribe that their land now belonged to the United States and that the man in the far east was now their new Great Father. I thought it was interesting that the explorers were smart and knew to word it this way so the Native Americans would understand and it was a positive thing, meaning using the word Great Father rather than President. They gave out peace medals with Jefferson on one side and two hands shaking on the other, they gave out certificates and gifts such as cloth , tobacco and whiskey. One tribe rejected the whiskey and said why would you give us something that would make us fools. I found this very interesting since in Lesson 5 we learned that one key aspect of the Handsome Lake religion of the Iroquois was never drink alcohol. The speeches that Lewis and Clark gave the tribes were full of promises; promise of peace, promise of nothing to fear and a promise of friendship and to help them survive. I liked that one of the Chiefs warned the explores that the next tribe they may encounter will not open their ears and I fear you will not be able to open them. Not only did the Native Americans accept the explorers friendship and promise to help them survive but this is an example of how the Native Americans also reciprocated and helped the explorers. Lightning Crow also said , his heart was gladder than ever before to see a white man and welcomed the explorers back any time. Thomas Jefferson had already known of the Teton Siouxs reputation and warned the explorers to make friendly relations with them because of their immense power. According to the Yankton Sioux, during the visit a baby was born and wrapped in an American Flag as a blanket, declaring him an American. Im sure this was a big moment to the babys mother, father and to all the Native Americans surrounding them. I imagine this moment being similar to when someone has the honor of meeting our troops or someone receiving something from the President of the United States. Large numbers of the Lakotas stood by and Three chiefs along with 30 warriors came over to see This was intimidating to even Clark, who had been in scuffles before. The Teton Sioux was not satisfied with the goods that the expedition gave them, they wanted more. The Black Buffalo interviened and said their only request

Clark quickly agreed. The expedition nervously stayed among the Lakota. They witnessed the Lakota doing war dances until 1 am. The Lakota women were dancing with poles that had scalps attached to them, scalps of the 65 men they killed in a battle with the Omahas, some 15 days earlier. Clarks opinion of the Lakotas was so different than any other Indians, These are the violest mystrientts of the Savage race. They must ever remain the Pirates of the Missouri. The expedition moved on and arrived to their last fixed point on their map of the river. The captains realized they would need to find a safe place to survive the winter. When you white people met the Mandan people we gave to the whites the name Machi meaning Nice People, Pretty People. We will call these people our friends. The Mandans welcomed the explorers and invited them to build a fort across the river. The Mandans wish was to be at peace with all. Lewis writes in a letter to his mother, the most friendly and well disposed savages that we have yet met with. Give yourself no uneasiness with rescept to my fate for I assure you I feel perfectly safe. The way Lewis and Clark felt around the Mandans is polar opposite of how they felt among the Teton Sioux. The Mandans would go across the river and bring the explorers corn, beans and buffalo robes in exchange for repairs on their knives and kettles. The Mandans and the explorers danced for each other and were friends. I believe the Mandans and the explorers shared a curiosity and a high degree of respect for one another. The explorers were fortunate to come across this tribe during the winter.