First American Soldier t ive His Life for the West
Captain Meriwether Lewis. Captain William Clark.
1.HAD15HS OF THIS FAMOUS HXPHMTION--From stool engravings In Klliott CoiioV
"History of tho howls and Chtrk Kxpedltlon."
HOWNINU one of the siiluudiil
bluffs that overlook the Missouri
river and tho city, Insldo the
southern limits of Sioux
City, rises a beautiful
shaft, at whose base Is a tablet
of bronze detailing that It was erected In
honor of Serjeant Charles Floyd, member of
the Lewis and Clark exploring expedition.
It Is only a few weeks since the capstone
was put In place at tho top of the shaft;
only a few days since the scaffolding was
taken down. On Thursday, May 20,
Memorial day, the shaft was dedicated with
Impressive ceremonies, It Is the Joint trib
ute of the state of I own and the govorn-
etn valleys, joined in the plan. He
secured for l.edyard passports from
the czar of UiiHsia and wllh an ex
pedition of such venturesome
as himself the Yankee started
the uteppes of
He actually got
straits. Then he
up. He returned, anil
a failure. Jell'erson
1 1 u h n In and
almoHt to the
was forced lo
the expedition was
was sorely dlsap-
spirits
across
Siberia.
Ilerlng
give n
A
MOMIMKNT TO SEHOEANT CIIAUI.KS
FLOYD Photo for The llee by Stud.o
Grand, Sioux City.
ment of the United States to the first Amer
It an soldier who lojt his life In the great
empire-making adventure of Thomas Jeffer
son. If n more sugg.stlvo Inscription weru
lo be asked for the tablet It might
well be engravtil with such words as
these;
pointed. Ten years 'nter. when he was
president, he had the gi od fortune to b"
able to st1 ml the expedition, but he started
It nt the other end of the rente, and for
tho purp.se of exploring what by that
time. In I lie due developmt nt of his am
bitious, had been made pari f his coun
try. JilTirsrn had many of the instincts
of an oxplrrcr and adventurer, bill greater
things than mere topographical ami noo
graphlc.il exploration wore' d-silned for
him.
IiiiiiIm for II limit I'nel.
The Floyd 1111 niiment is lea 1 1., a cimnitm
orutlon of tin? l.owii and Clark expedi
tion. After he hail bought Louisiana from
Napoleon, Jelferson set about to explore It.
There were wonderful stories told of tho
iiw region. The opponents of tho pur
i base and they were many pointed out
the ridiculousness of such an acquisition.
The couutr) was Inhabited by millions of
lavages, who could nevi r b" contrilled. It
was n great desert, dotted by inaccessible
mountains; civilized men could never oc
cupy It. To buy It wiuld lie t assume
responsibility for the Indians and tho ad
ventures a who would dispute for Its pos
session. Throe nrgumtnts won man.'. Tie
Jefferson crowd, however, was not without
imagination. The story was told that up
near tho headwaters of the Missouri was
a wonderful mountain of salt. It was .1
hundred miles long, and no man could tell
how high It was. Composed of pure crys
tals of rock salt, It glittered In the sun
like the gates of paradise, anil no man
could turn his eyes upon It when it shoii"
in tho full splendor of .1 summer alei
noon's sun without Injury t eye ir t tin- d
to such supernatural beauty Here v,h
all the salt the world could want In all
time, and salt was a mighty desirable thlnr.
In those days, before the supply got s
large that two able-bodied trusts, working
overtime, could not control It! The moun
tain of salt argument actually' had n large
lullutuco in determining public opinion In
favor of tho purennso of Louisiana. Jeffer
son had his way. He and Napoleon, at
least, were two men who could see ftr
enough Into the t
had done n work
have this day ostnhllin
Knglund that will one
pille," said Napoleon a
drcumctits which made Lotilsia.
property. And In this day. who . .uticiu.
iiiumt'iee Auurlcan expansion. American
llnance, American power In every depait
ment of activity Is accepted us the gteat
menace to ihe power, not of Ihiglaml al ne
but of all Europe. It seems that Joffers m
anil Napoleon must have had prophetic
vision. These aie some of the thoughts
thai were suggested to the multitude tila'
on Memorial day guthcicd at the base of
the shaft and rcall.ot! that Ihey weie cele
biallng. In truth, great deeds that changed
the course of history.
I uiici-i'iiliii; t'luirli'M I'lii.til.
Of Charles Flojil, frontiersman, adven
turer, hunter, Indian lighter, boldler and
untimely martyr, not much is known. He
came ol an old Kentucky family and It is
not even known certainly who was his
lather. Mr. Elliott Cones, historian ot
tho Lewis and (Mark oxpcdlilrn. c. nj.c
tures that Sergeant Floyd was tho son of
another Charles Floyd, who Is credited with
deeds of daring In the frontier wars which
Kentucky waged for Its existence, tleorge
ltogcrs Clark, leader of the expeditl n
Into Indiana ami Illinois which assured
lo the new iiilonies the control of thai
territory, was a friend of the Floyds
Colonel John Floyd was one of these de
fenders of tlie frontier. He was killed by
Indians In 17S:i. In ambuseade at Floyd's
Station, Ky , ami his body was carried
from the Held by his brother, Charles
Floyd. This Charles Floyd is believed by
Mr. Cones to have been the father of Ser
geant I'M ij'd.
(Jioigo Itogeis Clark was th.- brother o
William (Mark, one of the two ea.italns
whom Jilfcrsiu placid In Joint command
of his expedition lo explore the new ter
ritory. The other commander was Mori
wether Lewis, a Virginian. wh aflerwarl
beeaiuu governor of the new territory
There is much mystery concerning the
manner of Ills death. Called to Washing
ton while he was governor to explain some
apparent dlscri panties In his accountings
of public funds, he either committed sui
cide or was murdered one night near the
hamlet that has since become Nashville
Tenn. At that time it was believed he
committed suicide, but latterly develop
ments have led lo tho conclusion that he
was murdered. Certainly this Is the more
charitable ami satisfactory conclusion re
gardlng one win hid tindered such serv
Ice lo his country, lie had been I'l evi
dent Jelfersou's prhate secretary two or
three years before the expedition was or
ganlzed and Jelferson sent him with the ex
pedition. In older to prepare himself for the serv
ice Lewis went to Philadelphia, studied
navigation, botany and tho elements of
zoology. He equipped himself as best hn
could to study the flora and fauna of the
new country and his discoveries in IIidsu
regauls were of great value later.
Oll.il-'l III' till- l'.ll-llltlllll.
II was a sturdy little company of twcniy
1 tglit men that set nut from St. LniiU in the
fall of IMill for a trip around the world.
For that was what JeffeiMia designed.
Lewis, chief in cniniii mil, was armed with
letters of ciedli from the Washington gov
ernment. He was Ins-rmiod to follow the
Missouri to Its sourcis. take nstronomi al
observations dally In order to oecuro oxait
locations, wrl'e complete reports on tho
country, tho Indians, the animals and th-
plant llfo. Ho wns to cross the Stony
moiili'alns 111" Heckles were then so called
.ill lake possession ot all ill' .ounliy
fmiii ihe source of the Missouri i.i the
eitlc The Louisiana purchase. It should
- deisiooil. did not Include anything on
vestern slope; Indeed, It wns a very
try proposition as to what it did Includ.1.
but Jefferson proposed to si retch It mi far
as possible. Arrhed on the coast, the torn
pany was to take the first hlp across the
I'aclllc there were occasional fur lining
vessels sailing that way carry his inrtj
around the world, ami come home by ihe
Cape of (lord Hope. Nowhi re In th' annals
of exploration is there rccoid of so mag
nlllcciit tin adventure as was planned (or
this band of frontiersmen.
I'ln.iil'x rniiiieel Inn mill llentli.
Sergeant Charles Floyd was a civilian
and must have been of good family that he
could sccttie appointment as a noii-com-nilssloncd
olllcer tu this expedition, lie Is
mentioned In the Lewis and Clink his ory
only as "one of Ihe nine young nun from
Kentucky" who Joined the parly The
out city of Sioux City Here Floyd wn
taken ill with a trouble Hint alTectid his
bowels. Everything possible was done foi
him. but he died 011 Ihe afternoon of Au
gust L'O. He Is meul lulled in Lewis' jour
mil as u good olllcer and a useful man.
HllllllllIU 1 1 I M Mlllllllllt'llt.
The first soldier to give his llfo In the
new territory was burled 011 the top of a
great bluff overlooking the Mlssoutl. A
cedar post was placed over his grave,
healing his name. It seems remarkable
that tu the midst of an unknown conti
nent, Inhabited by savages, a spot thus
marked should not have been lost. Yel,
when I lie frontiersmen began to push (belt
way Into (his section several decades later
(he cellar post was found where Lewis had
directed, a few miles below the moulh of
I ho river named for the dead soldier.
Floyd's liver, the name It still bears.
Once found the tradition that umlciucnlh
that decaying post lay the bones of Floyd
VIEW OF SEIM 1 KANT'S HLl'FF SURMOUNTED
The llee by Studio (irunil. Sioux City
11Y FLOYD MONUMENT IMu lo for
real start up the Missouri was made In
the spring of l.Mll, in two lingo barges
The history of tho trip, compiled from the
various Journals kept by Patrick Cass, by
Lew is ami (Murk and by Floyd himself, Is
11 voluminous work In two great tomes.
Council lllulls derives its niimo from a
great council bold on the liltllls whole
the elty now Is, with leading chlefH of Ihe
Indian tribes In the country. Almost with
out exception tho net fill leaders succeeded
in maintaining friendly relations with lu
red men, and the powwow al Council
lllulls resulted in a long session with the
pipe of peace and In the distribution of
largo quantities of cheap Jewelry among
tho aborigines. The parly came on up the
Missouri ami about the middle of August,
1 SO 1 . was Just below the site of tho pros-
was preserved for mail) years morn before
the grave was opened. A new post was
placed over tho grave, lint no more. It
was not until 1V.'." that the bones wore
taken up. They w ere I hen moved to an
other liliilf, four miles nearer Ihe present
i lly, and relnterreil. Then came (he move
ment to secure a luoiiiiuient over them,
linn, lieorge D. Perkins, then In congress,
secured an nppropiial Inn of ,r,iiiiii from tho
fedetal government ; the Iowa legislature
gave ,'i,lllill morn as a result of the efforts
of Sinatnr E. II. Hubbard of tills city;
nearly $."1,11110 more was raised by tho Floyd
Memoiinl association. Colonel II. M. Chit
tenden chief of the corps of federal en
gineers for Ihe upper river, was architect
(ContluiKd on Eighth Page.)
Fac Simile Paji.es from Fisher's Narrative Account of the Lewis and Clark Exploring Expedition
To tho Memory of the First Sol-
iller Who (lave Ills Life in Carry-
lug Out the Plans by Which
i homas Jefferson Laid tho Fivm-
ilallons of the (ireatness of the
' American Republic.
If Thomas Jefferson had not been
occupied with such affairs us writing
the Declaration of Indopendonco, rep
resenting the young republic at the
court of France, adopting n cons Itu
tlon nnd serving as president of tho
nation, ho might have been the com
mander of the expedition which left
tho hones of one of Its expedition on
Floyd's Bluff. Long before Amorl an
Independence wns achieved Jeffers n
was n believer in a republic tliat
should Include North America. After
tho revolution, when ho was at tho
lourt of Franco, John Ledyard, a Con
necticut Ynnkeo and adventurer, win
had traveled almost nil over the
world, canio to Jefferson.
I.i-ily iiril'n l.nnu Trip.
"I want to travel fiom St. Peters
burg across Russia nnd Siberia," ho
said, "and thence, crossing Ilerl.ig
straits, down tho western slopo of tho
Ainirl'an continent, ncross the Ore
gon divide, down tho Missouri nnd up
tho Ohio. I vvnnt to c'.rcumnnvlgato
tho globo ns nearly ns It can bo done
by land. I will la claim to the far
west In tho niimo of tho American
republic; I will give it the right of
discovery, to clnlm tho Missouri val
ley, tho Pacific slopo and tho grcnt
northwest part of tho contlnont."
Jefferson, nlrcady confident that
sooner or Inter the republic would ho
ahlo to crowd Europe out of tho wes-
Ticfollowing statement of the Commerce of ('. V.s
sduri, is made tnj a gentleman, which will suffici
ently show the advantages that arise from it .
INTRODUCTION.
X!
"The products which are drawn from the Missou
ri, are obtained from the Indians and hunters in 0,
he pro
e olit a
change lor merchandise. Thev inav lie classed ac
cording to the subjoined tattle :
Castor, -
Otters,
Vi'Hilhs sit
1267 shins
v
20
00
I)
1 i-7.57
50;s
c
20
00
Wi s shins
25 i 1 shins
1
I'oxs )
l'ouha Foxs, .
Titers Cats, J
Uuccoons, -Hears,
hlaek ")
gray k yell, j
Puces, - -Ilullaloes,
-Dressed
cow lis.
Shorn deersks. 'WivuUbs
Deerskins, l
v, illi hair, J
Tallow Mat,
Ilear's oil,
Muskrats,
Martens,
SOM shins 0 50 101 00
0 '.:
'Z 00
I ) shins
iS'.) shins
00
.'1O
id
lOO'i
3S770
00
00
00
rio
iO
(5.5 SI sldns
SMMhs
2310 galls.
0 .'i0 3100 50
'20
2S
K502
CO
00
S77U71 '20
amount of merchandize entering tho Missouri, ami
given in exchange, lor peltries, it is I'ound that it
amounts to S1,'2:(), including cxiienses, equal to
one fourth of the value of the mcrcfiaudi'.e.
"The result is, that this commerce, gives an an
nual profit of Slt5,7'21, or ahout '27 per cent.
"If the commerce of the Missouri, without en
courageincnt, and badly regulated, gives annually
so great a profit, may we. not rest assured that it
will he, greatly augmented, should government di
rect its attention to it t It is also necessary to oh
serve, that the price of peltry, fixed by this fable, is
the current price in the Illinois ; if it were regula
ted by the trices of London, deducting the. expenses
of transportation, the profit, according to our cal
culation, would he much more considerable.
" If the Missouri, abandoned to savages, and
presenting but one branch of commerce, yields such
great advantages, in proportion to the capital em
ployed in it, what might we not hope, if some mer
chants or companies with large capital, anil aided
by a population extended along the borders of the
river, should turn their attention toother branches
of the trade, which they might undertake (I dare
say) with a certainty of success, when wc consider
the riches buried in its banks, and of which I have
endeavoured in theso notes to give an idea.
ESTIMATE
Of the produccof the several Mines.
" Mine a Burton G50,000K?8
mineral, estimated to
produce 66 2-3, is 336,666 2-36
lead, nt 565, is
To which add 830 (on
120,00065 manufactur
ed) to each thousand, is
18,333 S3
3,600 00
" Old MincH, - 200,00063 mi
ueral, estimated to produce
CC 4-3, Is 133 3 331365 lead
at 86 per cwl. is - - 6,666
" Mine a la Mott, 200,0006s
lc.nl, at 25 per cwt. is - - 10,000
" Suppose at all the other mines
30,0006 lead, at S5, is - 1,500 00
21,933 33
67
00
-18,160 67
"The calculations in this table, drawn from the
most correct accounts of the produce of the Mis
souri, during fifteen years, make the average of a
common year 77,071 dollars.
" On calculating, in the same proportion, th
In connection with the very Interesting article on the
unveiling nt Sioux City of a monument to Sergeant
Charles Floyd, who was tho first American soldier to
give up his llfo In line of duty within the limits of tho
l.culsinnn purchase, Tho Hoo presents fac slmllrs of
three pages from a ipinlnl volume published at Ilaltlmoro
in 1S13. Thes" pages form part of the introduction to (he
buik. which Is entitled. "An Interesting Account of the
Voyages anil Travels of Captains Lewis and Clnrh In Mio
Year 1804, 5 nnd 0." etc., by William Fisher, esq. These
Total amount, is SW),100 00
"When the manufacture of white and red lead is
put into operation, the export valuation will be con
siderably augmented on tnc quality of lead."
statements were cvhlinlly itid tided by the aiitli r to
support his assertion that "This 1 1 ho furl Undo would
give employment lo an Immense number of Inhabitants,
ami the country is sullliicntly luxuriant for Ihe popula
tion of an immense colony." Apparently .Mr. Kishor was
an anient expansionist, ami supporter of President Jef
ferson's plan. Hut what would ho say If permitted to
compare his tabulated statement of the commerce of tho
Missouri vall -y and the mineral output of tho west of
his day with I ho llgures of tho present? A more vivid
object lesson in material growth could hardly be fur
nished than 1 H afforded by this