Fort Mandan, preparing for departure — Patrick Gass: April 5, 1805
Under cold northwesterly winds, the party unloaded all their goods, stores, and baggage and redistributed them among their boats in preparation to resume the voyage upriver. Gass uses the entry to reflect on the journal itself, explaining why he avoids recording romantic or sexual anecdotes about Native women, citing both the need to keep the journal compact and a focus on useful information. He notes that chastity is little valued among the local nations, that venereal disease is present, and gives an example of a man trading a tobacco box for a night with a Mandan chief's daughter.
and cold from the N.W. We took all our goods, stores and
baggage out, divided and put them aboard our craft, that we
might be ready to continue our voyage.
If this brief Journal should happen to be preserved, and
be ever thought worthy of appearing in print: some readers
will perhaps expect, that, after our long friendly intercourse
with these Indians, among whom we have spent the winter;
our acquaintace with those nations lower down the river and
the information we received relative to several other nations,
we ought to be prepared now, when we are about to renew
our voyage, to give some account of the fair sex of the Mis-
souri: and entertain them with narratives of feats of love as
72 GASS’S JOURNAL OF THE
well as of arms. Though we could furnish a suffictent num-
ber of entertaining stories and pleasant anecdotes, we do not
think it prudent to swell our Journal with them; as our views
are directed to more useful information. Besides, as we are
yet ignorant of the dangers, which may await us, and the dif_i-
culty of escape, should certain probable incidents occur, it
may not be inconsistent with good policy to keep the Journal
of as small and portable a size as circumstances will make
practicable. It may be observed generally that chastity is not
very highly esteemed by these people, and that the severe and
loathsome effects of certain French principles are not uncommon
among them. The fact is, that the women are generally con-
sidered an article of traffic and indulgencies are sold at a very
moderate price. As a proof of this I will just mention, that
for an old tobacco box, one of our men was granted the hon-
our of passing a night with the daughter of the head-chief of
the Mandan nation. An old bawd with her punks, may also
be found in some of the villages on the Missouri, as well as
in the large cities of polished nations.
LEWIS AND CLARK EXPEDITION 73
CHAP. VII.
Gime 6th. The day was clear and pleasant. This
morning we heard that some of the Rickarees had come
up to the Mandan villages. Our interpreter and some of the
men were sent over to ascertain the truth of the report; and
we were detained all day waiting their return.
Read this entry in modern English AI-translated
The wind was cold and from the northwest. We took all our goods, stores, and baggage out, divided them, and put them aboard our craft so that we might be ready to continue our voyage.
If this brief Journal should happen to be preserved, and ever be thought worthy of appearing in print, some readers will perhaps expect that, after our long friendly contact with these Indians among whom we have spent the winter, our acquaintance with those nations lower down the river, and the information we received about several other nations, we ought to be prepared now, when we are about to renew our voyage, to give some account of the fair sex of the Missouri, and entertain them with stories of feats of love as well as of arms. Though we could provide a sufficient number of entertaining stories and pleasant anecdotes, we do not think it prudent to fill our Journal with them, as our aims are directed to more useful information. Besides, as we are still ignorant of the dangers that may await us, and the difficulty of escape should certain probable incidents occur, it may not be inconsistent with good policy to keep the Journal as small and portable in size as circumstances will allow. It may be observed generally that chastity is not very highly esteemed by these people, and that the severe and loathsome effects of certain French principles (venereal disease) are not uncommon among them. The fact is that the women are generally considered an article of trade, and their favors are sold at a very moderate price. As proof of this, I will just mention that for an old tobacco box, one of our men was granted the honor of passing a night with the daughter of the head chief of the Mandan nation. An old bawd with her prostitutes may also be found in some of the villages on the Missouri, as well as in the large cities of more refined nations.
CHAP. VII.
June 6th. The day was clear and pleasant. This morning we heard that some of the Rickarees (Arikaras) had come up to the Mandan villages. Our interpreter and some of the men were sent over to determine the truth of the report, and we were detained all day waiting for their return.
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