Christmas on the Prarie
Journal 2004 12 27
Christmas on the Prarie
Privates Shields and Willard are the Corps blacksmiths. They have set up their forges and begun to repair equipment and find the hot furnaces fascinate the Indians. Over the course of the winter the blacksmiths are a source of food for the Corps because of the Indians desire to trade food, like corn, for items made from metal.
Christmas has come and gone and the men celebrated by singing and dancing and “frolicking” until 9:00pm. The men ate food, “the best of what they had”. Each was allowed a small portion of rum and to shoot their rifles in celebration. In addition, they shot the “Swivels”, the larger guns that had been mounted on the bows of the boats and were now in the Fort.
Even on Christmas a small group of men were hunting to keep a constant supply of meat coming in.
Christmas on the Prarie
Privates Shields and Willard are the Corps blacksmiths. They have set up their forges and begun to repair equipment and find the hot furnaces fascinate the Indians. Over the course of the winter the blacksmiths are a source of food for the Corps because of the Indians desire to trade food, like corn, for items made from metal.
Christmas has come and gone and the men celebrated by singing and dancing and “frolicking” until 9:00pm. The men ate food, “the best of what they had”. Each was allowed a small portion of rum and to shoot their rifles in celebration. In addition, they shot the “Swivels”, the larger guns that had been mounted on the bows of the boats and were now in the Fort.
Even on Christmas a small group of men were hunting to keep a constant supply of meat coming in.
posted by @2007 Dick Cinkovich | 11:43 PM
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