[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 30 (Wednesday, March 18, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E412-E413]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               CONSIDERING SACAGAWEA FOR NEW DOLLAR COIN

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DOUG BEREUTER

                              of nebraska

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 18, 1998

  Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, as the new dollar coin receives further 
consideration, this Member encourages his colleagues to read the 
following opinion piece by Harold W. Anderson which appeared in the 
November 20, 1997, Omaha World-Herald. The article highlights the 
contributions of Sacagawea during Lewis and Clark's expedition to 
explore the Louisiana Purchase and the important role she played in the 
development of the country.

            [From the Omaha World-Herald, November 20, 1997]

                        (By Harold W. Andersen)

               Sacagawea's Likeness Good Choice for Coin

       It's not often that I find an opinion on The Washington 
     Post editorial page with which I agree. (To be fair, I must 
     concede that I doubt that my friend Kay Graham, former 
     publisher of The Post, would find very many opinions in my 
     column that she would agree with).
       There was a letter from a Post reader that caught my eye--a 
     letter with a suggestion well worth considering.

[[Page E413]]

       The letter writer, a resident of Washington, noted that 
     there was a debate in the Senate over the likeness that 
     should appear on the new dollar coin that is to be minted. 
     The competing proposals include one for a replica of the 
     Statue of Liberty and a proposal for a likeness that would 
     depict a ``woman of historical significance.''
       The Post's correspondent said this is his opinion.
       ``The introduction of the new coin provides a unique 
     opportunity to give the recognition that is long overdue to 
     Sacagawea, a great American woman of historical significance, 
     a woman of indomitable spirit and undaunted courage whose 
     image on a coin would be an inspiration to American women of 
     all races.''
       The letter writer recalled that Sacagawea was a young 
     Shoshone Indian woman who, with her newborn baby, accompanied 
     Lewis and Clark on their epic expedition to explore the 
     Louisiana Purchase. The letter recalled some of the details 
     of Sacagawea's remarkable contributions to the success of the 
     Lewis and Clark expedition--details recounted in Stephen 
     Ambrose's beautifully written ``Undaunted Courage, an Account 
     of the Lewis and Clark Expedition,'' and told also in a 
     recent splendid PBS documentary, ``Lewis and Clark: the 
     Journey of the Corps of Discovery.''
       The Post correspondent summarized his case for recognizing 
     Sacagawea on the new dollar:
       ``To put her likeness on the dollar coin would be a tribute 
     both to the contributions that women and Native Americans 
     have made to the development of our nation and would be an 
     inspiration to women from all facets of our society to be as 
     great as they can be.''
       Sounds like a good idea.

       

                          ____________________