ARCHIVIST OF THE HALL OF RECORDS 7

Perhaps this is as far as we can plan. But many questions remain
unanswered. What should be done about all the court records? We have
an especially rich collection in Maryland and it exists from the begin-
ning to the present in the original only at the several courthouses or at
the Hall of Records. And all of the papers, and all of the so-called
''miscellaneous" records? But if the post-bomb world can do without
so much of its cultural heritage as is represented in the historical records
of its past, it probably cannot do without a functioning government
and the records required for this purpose. The Records Management
Division is now preparing—with the assistance of qualified officers of
other State agencies—lists of records which would be required for the
most elementary functioning of government. These records will be
microfilmed from day to day, and others which will be required for the
resumption of normal government are to be segregated and perhaps
stored in safe areas.

How much all of this will cost no one can tell. No one knows
whether there will be time to do any of it. It would be helpful to know
approximately how long the present crisis will last—a month, a year, a
decade. But no one knows this either. It is shocking to think of such
enormous waste, so many risks, calculated and otherwise! The historian
takes some consolation, however little, from his knowledge that man
and his culture have persisted in spite of the crises and shocks of the
past—but he is at the same time dismayed at the cost!

Respectfully submitted,

MORRIS L. RADOFF

Archivist and Records Administrator