State Library.

TODAY’SHISTORIAN has a new dimension in which to view people and events in their intermingling in the caldron of history. For centuries past, historians have looked at fragments of source material, or even fragments of fragments, often worn and weathered by centuries of time, and from them reconstructed a his-torical sequence. In most cases it can be assumed that the early authors who wrote on clay tablets, parchment, and paper, rarely thought they were writing for tomorrow, and consequently, when their era is recreated from their fragments, much guesswork is, of necessity, included. Today man is recorded as he appears, moves about, and even as he talks and sings. His culture is shown through a camera lens that faithfully records anything moving in front of it, and through a microphone that painstakingly holds all sounds within its range and in their correct dimension... the dimension that recreates the aura of “YOU Were There.” Recently the 93rd anniversary of Lincoln‘s Gettysburg Address was celebrated. From the reconstruction of this event, it is known that the President left Washington, rode a train, delivered his short address, was poorly received by the crowd, and had some pictures taken. Many other bits of information about that day that have come to mean so much to the peoples of the world have been pieced together. Yes, a great deal is known about the actual event, but there is no evidence of how Lincoln sounded as he spoke these compassionate and compelling words. True, accounts were jotted down at the time, others years later by people who were there. Several stirring renditions were recorded rather recently by actors who have given his immortal words new life and meaning. But the fact remains, Lincoln‘s own voice cannot be heard, and he died less than a century ago. Contrast this, with the comings and goings of the Chief Executive today, where all his movements and sayings are covered in minut