Read the article and answer the questions. Check only one box per question.
(Lis l’article et répond aux questions. Coche une seule case par question.)
Commissioning and Preparation
On January 18, 1803, U.S. President Thomas Jefferson sent a secret message to Congress asking for $2,500 to send an officer and a dozen soldiers to explore the Missouri River, make diplomatic contact with Indians, expand the American fur trade, and locate the Northwest Passage (the much-sought-after hypothetical northwestern water route to the Pacific Ocean). The proposed trip took on added significance on May 2, when the United States agreed to the Louisiana Purchase—Napoleon’s sale of 828,000 square miles (2,100,000 square km) of French territory for $27 million. Jefferson, who had already sponsored several attempts to explore the West, asked his personal secretary, Meriwether Lewis, to lead the expedition. Lewis was dispatched to Philadelphia for instruction in botany, celestial navigation, medicine, and zoology. As his co-commander he selected William Clark, who had been his military superior during the government’s battles with the Northwest Indian Federation in the early 1790s. The U.S. secretary of war denied Lewis’s request of a shared command, but Captain Lewis and Lieutenant Clark chose to address one another as “captain” to hide this fact from the other members of the expedition.
1. In 1803, President Jefferson asked Congress for:
О money / О permission / О advice
2. The request was publicly announced.
О yes / О no
3. The request was about:
О a rescue mission / О a humanitarian mission / О a trade mission
4. The request also concerned:
О an undercover mission / О a diplomatic mission / О a drilling operation
5. Lastly, the request was also relating to:
О an exploratory mission / О an agricultural mission / О a sporting event
6. When the request was made, the Northwest Passage had already been located.
О yes / О no
7. In 1803 the United States bought a French territory.
О yes / О no
8. The purchase of Louisiana gave even more weight to the request.
О yes / О no
9. When the request was made, President Jefferson had already tried to send
exploratory missions to the west.
О yes / О no
10. The official leader(s) of the expedition was/were:
О Lewis / О Clark / О both of them
11. Lewis was required to go back to school to be prepared.
yes no
12. Lewis and Clark had already met before the expedition.