Lewis: February 6, 1805
On a fair, windy day at Fort Mandan, Lewis prepared a sled to await the return of horses Clark had promised to send once he secured meat. Several Mandan leaders, including Big White, the Coal, Big Man, Hairy Horn, and the Black Man, visited and smoked before unusually departing early. Shields killed three antelope. The blacksmiths earned substantial corn for their work, with the natives eagerly trading seven to eight gallons for small squares of sheet iron used to make arrow points and hide-scraping tools.
6th February Wednesday 1805. Fair morning Wind from N. W. had a sley
prepared against the return of the horses which Capt Clark had promised to
send back as soon as he should be able to procure a load of meat. visited
by many of the natives among others the Big white, the Coal, big-man,
hairy horn and the black man, I smoked with them, after which they
retired, a deportment not common, for they usually pester us with their
good company the ballance of the day after once being introduced to our
apartment. Shields killed three antelopes this evening. the blacksmiths
take a considerable quantity of corn today in payment for their labour.
the blacksmith’s have proved a happy resoce to us in our present situation
as I believe it would have been difficult to have devised any other method
to have procured corn from the natives. the Indians are extravegantly fond
of sheet iron of which they form arrow-points and manufacter into
instruments for scraping and dressing their buffaloe robesI
permited the blacksmith to dispose of a part of a sheet-iron callaboos
which had been nearly birnt out on our passage up the river, and for each
piece about four inches square he obtained from seven to eight gallons of
corn from the natives who appeared extreemly pleased with the exchange-
Read this entry in modern English AI-translated
6th February, Wednesday 1805. Fair morning, wind from N.W. Had a sleigh prepared for the return of the horses which Capt Clark (Capt. Clark) had promised to send back as soon as he was able to procure a load of meat. Visited by many of the natives, among others the Big White, the Coal, Big Man, Hairy Horn, and the Black Man. I smoked with them, after which they retired—a behavior not common, for they usually pester us with their good company the rest of the day after once being introduced to our apartment. Shields killed three antelope this evening. The blacksmiths took a considerable quantity of corn today in payment for their labor.
The blacksmiths have proved a happy resource to us in our present situation, as I believe it would have been difficult to have devised any other method to have procured corn from the natives. The Indians are extravagantly fond of sheet iron, from which they form arrow-points and manufacture instruments for scraping and dressing their buffalo robes. I permitted the blacksmith to dispose of part of a sheet-iron caboose which had been nearly burnt out on our passage up the river, and for each piece about four inches square he obtained from seven to eight gallons of corn from the natives, who appeared extremely pleased with the exchange.
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