" To meet the costs, only twelve hundred pounds in
depreciated continental currency could be raised. But the
Governor and his friends promised to try to secure three hundred
acres of land for each soldier, in case the project should
succeed. The strictest secrecy was preserved, and, even if the
Legislature had been in session, the project would probably not
have been divulged to it.
Men and supplies were gathered at Fort Pitt and Wheeling and were
carried down the Ohio to "the Falls," opposite the site of
Louisville. The real object of the expedition was concealed until
this point was reached. On learning of the project, the men were
surprised, and some refused to go farther. But in a few weeks one
hundred and seventy-five men, organized in four companies, were
in readiness. The start was made on the 24th of June. Just as the
little flotilla of clumsy flatboats was caught by the rapid
current, the landscape was darkened by an eclipse of the sun. The
superstitious said that this was surely an evil omen. But Clark
was no believer in omens, and he ordered the bateaux to proceed.
Pages:
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75