| The
20th annual Lewis and Clark Festival took place at the Lewis and Clark
National Trail Interpretive Center June 26-28, 2009. A gathering of
Seaman impersonators were part of the festivities. Seaman's story
is just as fascinating as other Corps members. He suffered the perils
of nature; mosquito bites, beaver bites, and stabs of pain from needle
and thread grass. He stood guard duty, barking warnings when bears
or buffalo invaded the camp. Retrieving was in his genes, so hunting
came easy. Lewis wrote: "... my dog caught one[a pronghorn antelope]
drowned it and brought it on shore..." Captain Lewis had purchased
Seaman before the journey began. He valued the Newfoundland so much
he was willing to shoot Native Americans to protect him. On the return
trip, three Indians stole Seaman. Lewis sent three men to rescue him.
Lewis ordered them to shoot if the thieves resisted. The thieves left
Seaman and ran away, avoiding being the first Indians killed by Lewis. |
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