Remembering Sacagawea

An Original Play by Mack Lewis

Originally published in Scholastics Storyworks magazine

Cast of Characters:
Narrator
Historian
Bird GirlSacagawea (sak-uh-juh-WAY-uh)
as a young girl
Jumping Fisha Shoshoni (shoh-SHOH-nee) girl
Toussaint Charbonneaua French trader
Hidatsa (hih-DAHT-suh)an enemy warrior
Capt. Meriwether Lewis
Capt. William Clark
Chief Cameahwait (cah-MAY-ah-wait)
a Shoshone chief

Scene One
1800, Near a Shoshoni Village in what is now Idaho

NARRATOR: A man from the village has

ordered Bird Girl to gather cattails from the
Sacagawea depiction by E.S. Paxson (Public domain) stream. As she works she hears her friend,
Jumping Fish, screaming in the distance.

JUMPING FISH: Bird Girl! Run! Warriors

attack the village!

Remembering Sacagawea -- Page 2 of 10 ReadAloudPlays.com 2009 Mack Lewis. All Rights Reserved
NARRATOR: Jumping Fish plunges into the
stream. Bird Girl follows. They try to hide in the
reeds.
BIRD GIRL: Who are they?
JUMPING FISH: Hidatsas! They come for
horses.
HISTORIAN: Native tribes often attacked one
another, taking horses, weaponsand slaves.
NARRATOR: A painted warrior appears on
horseback. The girls run, but a moment later
they are caught and carried away. They are
headed to another village many days to the
East.
BIRD GIRL: Will we have to marry him?
JUMPING FISH: No, we are still too
young. We will be slaves for the women
of his village.
HISTORIAN: In some tribes,
warriors had more than one wife.
Bird Girl was just twelve years
old. Yet in only a few years,
she would be old enough to
be taken as a wife.
NARRATOR: The war
party pauses. The
warrior leaves his
horse and goes
to confer with
the others. Jumping Fish quietly
slides off the horse.
JUMPING FISH (whispering): Come, Bird Girl.
We can escape.
BIRD GIRL: You go, Jumping Fish. He might
not notice if one is missing, but he will surely
notice two.
JUMPING FISH: I will tell our people. Perhaps
they will send a war party to rescue you.
Remembering Sacagawea -- Page 3 of 10 ReadAloudPlays.com
BIRD GIRL: I am not important to our people,
and they do not have guns to fight. No, this is
my fate. Goodbye, Jumping Fish. Remember
me.
Scene Two
A Hidatsa Village, a few years later
HISTORIAN: Life changed little for Bird Girl
among the Hidatsas. She was ordered about just
as she had been in the
Shoshoni village. Her name
was changed to Bird Woman,
or in her new language,
Sacagawea.
NARRATOR: Sacagawea is doing chores
when a French-Canadian fur trapper comes
to the village hoping to trade with the chief.
HISTORIAN: Toussaint Charbonneau had
learned the language of the Hidatsa tribe.
CHARBONNEAU: Chief, I will trade
you this rifle for ten buffalo skins.
HIDATSA: Not good trade. Five skin
maybe.
CHARBONNEAU: Not a good trade
for me, Chief. Lets make a
game of it.
HISTORIAN: Charbonneau
believed he could trick the Hidatsas into better
deals by gambling.
NARRATOR: Sacagawea watches him take two
strange-looking stones from his sack. He
explains how to play.
CHARBONNEAU: If you roll a seven, you may
have the rifle. But if you roll anything else, you
must give me ten skins.
2009 Mack Lewis. All Rights Reserved
NARRATOR: The Chief thinks for a moment.
He is curious about the game. He rolls. A three
and a four turn up. Sacagawea is happy to see
Charbonneau give up the rifle.
HIDATSA: Good trade.
CHARBONNEAU: Lets try again. I have two
bags of coffee. Very strong. If you roll a seven,
you take the coffee. But if you roll anything
else, you must give me ten buffalo skin.
NARRATOR: The chief seems confident now.
He rolls a two and a five. Sacagawea is startled
by his shout.
HIDATSA: Trade more!
CHARBONNEAU: I havent anything else to
trade.
HIDATSA: You lose, you stay here as slave.
One season.
CHARBONNEAU: Thats worth more than ten
skins, Chief.
NARRATOR: The chief glances around. He
sees Sacagawea watching.
HIDATSA: You win, you take Sacagawea!
NARRATOR: Charbonneau examines her.
CHARBONNEAU: She seems strong enough.
She will make a good wife.
NARRATOR: Sacagawea watches as the Chief
rolls the dice. This time, its Charbonneau who
shouts for joy.
CHARBONNEAU: Four! Good trade!
NARRATOR: The chief takes Sacagawea and
places her hand in Charbonneaus. She is now
married.
Remembering Sacagawea -- Page 4 of 10 ReadAloudPlays.com
Scene Three
Fall 1804, Upper Missouri River
HISTORIAN: Charbonneau remained in the
area, sometimes working for the local tribes as
an interpretera person who helped them
communicate with French traders.
NARRATOR: Sacagawea is pregnant when a
large group arrives in the area.
CHARBONNEAU: These men are from the
Corps of Discovery. Theyve been sent by the
American president to find a passage to the
Pacific Ocean.
SACAGAWEA: Ocean?
CHARBONNEAU: A great water far from here.
They will need an interpreter. I will offer them
my services.
SACAGAWEA: But I am with child.
CHARBONNEAU (irritated): If only the
Hidatsas would take you back! The men plan on
staying here through the winter. By then you
will give birth.
Scene Four
Winter 1804, Fort Mandan
HISTORIAN: The Corps of Discovery was
headed by Captains Meriwether Lewis and
William Clark. To wait out the winter, they built
a fort nearby. Sacagaweas baby is born.
NARRATOR: The time draws near for the
expedition to depart. Captain Clark finds Lewis
frowning over his maps.
LEWIS: Well need horses to pass the
mountains. The whole expedition depends on it.
2009 Mack Lewis. All Rights Reserved
CLARK: The Hidatas say they got their horses
from the Shoshoni. We can trade with them.
LEWIS: The Shoshoni language is obscure.
Wed have to communicate well to trade.
CLARK: What
about the
Frenchman? His
Indian woman is
Shoshoni, and he
has asked to hire
on.
LEWIS: Take
them with us? An
Indian woman and
her newborn baby?
Think of the Lewis & Clark on the lower Columbia.
hardships of the Painted in 1905 by Charles Marion Russell. (PD)
journey.
CLARK: Well take her as far as the Shoshoni
camp. Shell want to reunite with her people.
LEWIS: And what of the husband? The Indians
insult him behind his back.
CLARK: But he has a valuable wife.
LEWIS: Very well. Let us hire his servicesbut
only if the Indian woman comes along.
Scene Five
Spring 1805, Upper Missouri River
HISTORIAN: The Corps set out for Shoshoni
territory that spring. During the trip, Sacagawea
would frequently prove her worth.
LEWIS: The Indian woman has performed
bravely enough.
HISTORIAN: On two occasions, when boat
nearly overturned, Sacagawea saved important
papers and journals.
Remembering Sacagawea -- Page 5 of 10
CLARK: Were fortunate we didnt lose her.
HISTORIAN: She almost died of an infection,
then was nearly lost in a flash flood.
LEWIS: It was a good decision to bring her.
NARRATOR: Four
months have passed. The
group makes camp.
Sacagawea turns to
Charbonneau.
SACAGAWEA: My
people are nearby!
CHARBONNEAU: Lets
keep that to ourselves
until the time is right.
Youre just anxious to
find your kin. Dont get
any ideas about staying.
SACAGAWEA: Tell them! If we dont find the
village soon, there will not be time to pass
through the mountains.
NARRATOR: Sacagawea tugs on his arm and
gestures toward the captains. Charbonneau loses
his patience and strikes her across the face.
CHARBONNEAU: Youre my property, not
theres. Ill decide what and when to tell them.
HISTORIAN: Like many Native women,
Sacagawea was accustomed to being beaten.
NARRATOR: She lowers her head, awaiting
another blow. But Captain Clark grabs
Charbonneaus wrist and twists it backwards.
CLARK: There shall be no beatings under my
command. If you strike her again, you shall be
dismissed and well leave you in the wilderness!
NARRATOR: Sacagawea dares not look up.
CLARK: Now, tell me what she was saying.
ReadAloudPlays.com 2009 Mack Lewis. All Rights Reserved
 Reading Comprehension Bird Girl Quiz
Name: _____________________________________________________ Date: _________________

1. What are the strange-looking stones
Charbonneau displays?
A. gold nuggets
B. painted rocks
C. shapes carved from the tusks of wild boar
D. dice
2. What is meant by the word confer in
the first scene?
A. talk
B. congratulate
C. an evergreen tree
D. consult maps and check bearings
3. At the end of Scene Three, Charbonneau is
irritated with Sacagawea. Why?
A. She doesnt know what an ocean is.
B. Shes become a burden to him.
C. He thinks having a pregnant wife will keep
him from getting hired as an interpreter.
D. All of the above.
4. Can you blame her? Why doesnt
Sacagawea understand the word ocean?
A. He said it in French instead of English.
B. Neither she nor her people had ever seen an
ocean.
C. She did understand it; she was just
trying to irritate him.
D. All of the above.
5. In Scene Four, which answers show what
Captain Lewis is implying when he says the
Indians insult him behind his back?
A. the Indians are rude
B. Charbonneau is a buffoon
C. Charbonneau cant be trusted
D. they probably shouldnt hire him
6. Charbonneau believed he could trick the
Hidatsas. How is his game a trick?
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
7. That Sacagawea chooses not to stay with
her people is a key point of the play. Why does
she make this decision?
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________
__________________________________

II. The author intends for you to draw conclusions about the plays main characters. Match each character with
a descriptive word from the box, then tell which line or lines from the play support youre position.

Jumping Fish: simple Sacagaweas words would not have moved .

insignificant
Jumping Fish. .
simple
8. Charbonneau: ___________ _________________________________________
absent-minded
honorable
________________________________________________________
glad
9. Captain Clark: ___________ _________________________________________
foolish
________________________________________________________
indifferent
10. Cameahwait: ___________ ____________________________________ intelligent
________________________________________________ proud
11. Bird Girl: ___________ ____________________________________
_________________________________________________

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