amed, and their partners rushed toward the
doors.

"Go on with your dance," said Clark, "but remember that henceforth
you dance under the American flag, and not under that of Great
Britain."

[Illustration: Clark interrupts the Dance]

The surprise was complete. Nobody had a chance to resist. The town
and the fort were in the hands of the riflemen.

Clark now began to make friends with the Creoles. He formed them into
companies, and drilled them every day. A priest known as Father
Gibault, a man of ability and influence, became a devoted friend to
the Americans. He persuaded the people at Cahokia and at other Creole
villages, and even at Vincennes, about one hundred and {9} forty
miles away on the Wabash, to turn from the British and to raise the
American flag. Thus, without the loss of a drop of blood, all the
posts in the Wabash valley passed into the hands of the Americans,
and the boundary of the rising republic was extended to the
Mississippi.

Clark soon had another chance to show what kind of man he was. With
less than two hundred riflemen and a few Creoles, he was hemmed in by
tribes of faithless savages, with no hope of getting help or advice
for months; but he acted as few other men in the country would have
dared to act. He had just conquered a territory as large as almost
any European kingdom. If he could hold it, it would become a part of
the new nation. Could he do it?

From the Great Lakes to the Mississippi came the chiefs and the
warriors to Cahokia to hear what the great chief of the "Long Knives"
had to say for himself. The sullen and hideously painted warriors
strutted to and fro in the village. At times there were enough of
them to scalp every white man at one blow, if they had only dared.
Clark knew exactly how to treat them.

One day when it seemed as if there would be trouble at any moment,
the fearless commander did not even shift his lodging to the fort. To
show his contempt of the peril, he held a grand dance, and "the
ladies and gentlemen danced nearly the whole night," while the sullen
warriors spent the time in secret council. Clark appeared not to
care, but at the same time he had a large {10} room near by filled
with trusty riflemen. It was hard work, but the young Virginian did
not give up. He won the friendship and the respect of the different
tribes, and secured from them pledges of peace. It was little trouble
to gain the good will of the Creoles.

Let me tell you of an in