The Osage may have been seeking signs and answers to the many problems facing their tribe. Suffering from the pressure of westward expansion and increasingly difficult relations with the United States government, settlers, and displaced eastern tribes, the Osage were experiencing difficult times. The Osage may have wanted to discuss their problems directly with the French, people with whom the Osage had a longstanding connection. Or the group may have wanted to take the trip to gain a higher position in their tribe or simply for the sake of adventure.