The Moreau river scene shows the men in the morning as three hunters were sent out. The men I’ve chosen for the painting are Drouillard, looking at sign, and the Field brothers with the two horses the Corps had at the time. I’ve painted the horses with pieces of oilcloth on their backs secured with a surcingle to keep both their backs and the meat clean. There is no description in the journals of any horse tack so this is pure conjecture. The Fields are in their issue hunting frocks, round hats and linen trousers with 'gaithers'. They also would have been issued their rifles (I believe 1792 contract rifles), hunting bags and horns, and belts with scalping knives. These were all acquired at Harpers Ferry and are included in Lewis’ manifest. The orders for the period required the men to have short hair and be clean shaven. Drouillard was not military, but hired as a hunter so probably wouldn’t have been under the same uniform requirements. We know Drouillard was of French Canadian and Shawnee ancestry. At an early age his family moved to the Cape Girardeau area where he grew up and, as a young man, was hired as a hunter at Ft. Massac. There is a mention in one of the few physical descriptions of him that he was tattooed from the waist down. Tattooing among the Illinois tribes was fairly common and there was a large village of Delaware and Shawnee living in the Cape area throughout Drouillard’s childhood. I’ve chosen to depict him with these tattoos and used a geometric pattern illustrated in some early manuscripts. There was also mention of his 'straight, black hair'. The rest of his clothing and accouterments were typical of a woodsman of the day. I’ve shown Lewis and Clark conferring about the days activities with both in hunting frocks, which would have been of finer material and cut than the enlisted mens, and linen trousers and boots. The wearing of a sword was a mark of rank and was required at all times when on duty. The two different style boots reflect the fashions of the day and personalities of individuals in them. We know Lewis had his Chapeau de Bras on when summiting the Continental divide so, as odd as it appears today, was probably frequently on his head throughout the expedition. When on fatigue duty officers were allowed to wear unadorned round hats, one of which which appears in Clarks left hand. To their rear the men are tending a fire and 'branding trees', a task we know they worked on that morning. My guess is they used Lewis’ brand found in the Columbia river, or something similar. I’ve chosen to show them working on one of the massive Sycamores common in that day. They regularly grew to a size we would find almost impossible to believe today.
