Thomas Jefferson to Meriwether Lewis, June 20, 1803 a. At the time that Jefferson wrote this letter, who held official possession of Louisiana? What European nations were present in the Louisiana?
b. What do the details of this letter reveal about Jefferson’s own interest in nature and science?
c. What guidance did Jefferson offer Lewis in regard to natives? What policy toward Native Americans did Jefferson seem to have in mind for the future?
d. What does Jefferson’s metaphor of a "firebell in the night" suggest about his own feelings about the Missouri Compromise and its Mason-Dixon line?