As strangers in unknown lands, Lewis and Clark were often weary of their surroundings. The only hope they had came from the help of the Indians. Showing their peaceful intent, however, sometimes proved difficult.
Obviously, the most trying obstacle to overcome was the language barrier. Without the help of Sacajuwea, this was achieved through sign language, and gift giving. If these acts failed, the Shoshone woman was called in to translate between the men. Quite often first impressions were made as the explorers placed their weapons on the ground, approached the Indians with open arms, and proclaimed what they believed to be the Shoshone word for "friend".
(In class video).
The explorers interviewed the Indians in great detail. These interviews were mainly used to put together a crude biography of each tribe. Strangely many answers given were not written down or recorded in anyway. The two men felt the answers to their questions were pointless, and non-sensical. Clark can be noted as writing: "These answers are useless.".
(Exploring L & C).
At times, later in the journey, trading with the Indians became difficult due to lack of provisions. As shown in an entry from Clark, this bothered the Indians.
"Cuscalah, the Indian who had treated me so politely .
laid before Capt. Lewis and myself each a mat, and a.
parcel of roots two files were demanded As we.
had no files to part with, we each returned our presents,.
which displeased Cuscalah a little." (129).
Lewis and Clark both feared that this may lead to less of an inclination to help them later on. The two men decided to trade all they could, as to implore the Indians for assistance.
(Essential L & C).
Horses were greatly needed at one point in the trip. The two captains decided the only way to get enough horses would be to deal with the Indians. The only problem was the evident lack of Indians. They had been traveling for miles and had yet to see a single one.
