Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-08-23
A NATIONS HISTORY.
Stupendous Task Before Historian Of
the Republic Fifty Years Hence.

Stupendous Task Before Historian Of
the Republic Fifty Years Hence.
From the Baltimore Herald.
A recent work on China which has claim
upon consideration above the average Of
the books written about that empire since
the sluicegate of war permitted the tide OF
sommon interest to run toward the orient
records the method OF history recording
which obtains in that empire. The writer
states that number of men selected for
their impartiality and wisdom record daily
and infinitely the acts and words OF the
emperor, as we'll as the affairs of gov
eminent. These records at the close of
each day are deposited through a chink into
an Office set apart for the purpose. That
the historians may be uninfluenced by fear.
this room is never opened until the death of
the emperor, when the sheets of paper are
collected by his successor and from them
ten. The Chinese method Is cruder than
ours, but 1t is hardly open to question that
the records are more yeracious than many
OF those which returned out in bulk from
our government printing office.
China has long held repute for the pos
session Of completer set Of records. ex-
tending through longer period Of years
than any nation on the face OF the globe.
But the United States shares with China the
histOry-writing propensity. With that one
ancient exception 1t Is the greatest chron-
icler among the peoples. The task that
faces the historian of American life and
affairs, say half century from now. will
be inconeeivably stuDendous. Even today
the handling of the materials relating to
the past of the country. the collation. OF
facts, the weighing OF these, their assimlla-
ton and setting forth are task Of magni-
tude. The accumulation of congressional
and departmental records has suggested the
need Of editing. There are one or more
induces Of the Congressional Record and
the Congressional Globe in course Of prepa-
ration by qualified persons. having COM
mand Of sufficient corps of assistants,
to accomplish the stupendous task. But
congressional proceedings are only a part of
the general record of government. Yet
to have these made easily available will
go far toward solving a difficult problem
of research.
In addition to official records. the his
tory of the life of the people as told in its
literature. and the record of happenings, and
the history Of comment. as found In the
newspapers. will contribute greatly to the
aggregate of the task of the half-cycle-
removed historian. All historians agree
that the needs Of history can better be sat-
isfed by scarcity of materials than by
an Overplus. The history Of medieval
England, for the most part, is contained
In a comparatively few chronicles kept by
the patient monks of the great monasteries
of that period. Yet the life of the people
Is adequately reflected. and, by the aid OF
contributing sources. the splendid histories
Of that period of England have been COM
piled.
Perhaps a half century from now the
writing of the history of this country will
assume the proportions OF a corporate I'M
dertaking, and will be done under govern
ment or endowed direction by a large corps
of capable men. STARE on their task in
the rudy glow Of youth and consecrated
to it up to the period Of gray hairs. When
one notes the simplicity and the concise
ness Of the Chinese method he Is prone to
lament the prolixity which is an outgTowth
of civilization.