Battle River

Journal 2006 07 27
Battle River

Captain Lewis continues the cliffhanger he left us with last night. “This morning at day light the indians got up and crouded around the fire, J. Fields who was on post had carelessly laid his gun down behid him near where his brother was sleeping, one of the indians the fellow to whom I had given the medal last evening sliped behind him and took his gun and that of his brothers unperceived by him, at the same instant two others advanced and seized the guns of Drewyer and myself, J. Fields seing this turned about to look for his gun and saw the fellow just runing off with her and his brothers he called to his brother who instantly jumped up and pursued the indian with him whom they overtook at the distance of 50 or 60 paces from the camp sized their guns and rested them from him and R Fields as he seized his gun stabed the indian to the heart with his knife    the fellow ran about 15 steps and fell dead;…”

“And fell dead…” This force of soldiers has traveled somewhere around five thousand miles and this is the first time they have had to engage in battle with any Indians. Weapons have been drawn before and stand offs engaged in. But they always were able to de-escalate the situation and make peace. Not this time. Lewis indicates days ago that he was trying to avoid an “interview” with this band just for this reason. This was obviously a chance meeting and both sides were cautious. And as I’ve said many times in these pages, never forget that these men were soldiers. They were trained in the ways of war. They knew the main Indian camp was less than a half days ride. Without rifles and horses Lewis and his men were in trouble. So they fought.

“Drewyer who was awake saw the indian take hold of his gun and instantly jumped up and sized her and rested her from him but the indian still retained his pouch, his jumping up and crying damn you let go my gun awakened me    I jumped up and asked what was the matter which I quickly learned when I saw drewyer in a scuffle with the indian for his gun. I reached to seize my gun but found her gone, I then drew a pistol from my holster and terning myself about saw the indian making off with my gun…”

All Lewis’ men regained their rifles and now Lewis realized the rest of his adversaries were attempting to cripple them by another theft. “…as soon as they found us all in possession of our arms they ran and indeavored to drive off all the horses    I now hollowed to the men and told them to fire on them if they attempted to drive off our horses, they accordingly pursued the main party who were drving the horses up the river and I pursued the man who had taken my gun who with another was driving off a part of the horses which were to the left of the camp, I pursued them so closely that they could not take twelve of their own horses but continued to drive one of mine with some others; at the distance of three hundred paces they entered one of those steep nitches in the bluff with the horses before them    being nearly out of breath I could pursue no further, I called to them as I had done several times before that I would shoot them if they did not give me my horse and raised my gun, one of them jumped behind a rock and spoke to the other who turned around and stoped at the distance of 30 steps from me and I shot him through the belly, he fell to his knees and on his wright elbow from which position he partly raised himself up and fired at me, and turning himself about crawled in behind a rock which was a few feet from him.    he overshot me, being bearheaded I felt the wind of his bullet very distinctly…”

Captain Lewis and the men quickly regrouped and realizing most of their “guests” from the previous evening had escaped decided to get to the rendevous point below the Great Falls of the Missouri as quickly as possible. “…my design was to hasten to the entrance of Maria's river as quick as possible in the hope of meeting with the canoes and party at that place having no doubt but that they would pursue us with a large party and as there was a band near the broken mountains or probably between them and the mouth of that river we might expect them to receive inteligence from us and arrive at that place nearly as soon as we could, no time was therefore to be lost and we pushed our horses as hard as they would bear.” “…we had caught and saddled the horses and began to arrange the packs when the Fieldses returned with four of our horses; we left one of our horses and took four of the best of those of the indian's; while the men were preparing the horses I put four sheilds and two bows and quivers of arrows which had been left on the fire, with sundry other articles; they left all their baggage at our mercy.”

“…at 8 miles we passed a large branch 40 yds. wide which I called battle river.”

At about three o’clock that afternoon after sixty three miles of swift travel Lewis and the men stop for an hour and a half rest the horses and let them graze. Can you imagine the conversation and level of alertness and anxiety? The party traveled another seventeen miles before darkness fell. They killed a buffalo cow and ate dinner before realizing they could still travel by moonlight. Lewis estimates they made another twenty “leasurely” miles by the light of the moon passing “immence herds of buffalo” as they had all day. Which I would think gave them confidence that it would be difficult to track them and their horses if the buffalo herds obliterated any sign of their passing under the pulverizing impact of thousands of bison hooves. Just as I’m confident that the men took their dinner of buffalo meat after dark so the smoke from their fire would not be visible. And their fire would have been as concealed as possible behind brush and trees.

“we traveled untill 2 OCk in the morning having come by my estimate after dark about 20 ms.    we now turned out our horses and laid ourselves down to rest in the plain very much fatiegued as may be readily conceived.” Tired and exhausted from a one hundred mile ride the men lay down to reacquire the strength they spent in battle and escape. Even then Lewis is able to look at the day and records as his last sentence in this journal entry the silver lining found in the loss of his horse to the Indian raiders, “… my indian horse carried me very well in short much better than my own would have done and leaves me with but little reason to complain of the robery.”

Soldiers in battle. The men defended themselves well. Lost the advantage, regained strategic strength and then maintained their advantage by fleeing the battlefield before they lost their military advantage. These explorers were now combat tested and proved themselves just as ready in war.

“And You have girded me with strength for the battle; You have bowed under me those rising against me. And you have given me the neck of my enemies that I might cut off those hating me.” (Psalms 18:39-40 LITV) Anyone rising against you?

Proceed on.