the proceedings in the Congress of the Confederation and the several State legislatures and conventions and the discussion of the subject in contemporary newspapers, pamphlets, and correspondence.

(4) That relating to the revision of the Constitution, including the proposal, discussion, ratification, and proclamation of the later amendments to the Constitution.

Of these four groups the Commission believes that nos. 2 and 3 are of the greatest interest and pertinence at the present time. No. 2, however, has been quite adequately collected, edited, and published in a work entitled The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787, edited by Dr. Max Farrand and published in three volumes by the Yale University Press in 1911, with reprints in 1923 and 1927. Much of it has also been included in the Documentary History of the Constitution, published by the Department of State in five volumes (18941905) and in Documents Illustrative of the Formation of the Union of the American States, compiled by the Library of Congress and issued as a Congressional document in 1927.

On the other hand, of no. 3-original material on ratification-only a small portion has been collected and so edited and published as to serve the purposes of scholars or general readers. The articles by Madison, Hamilton, and Jay known as The Federalist are available in many editions, some of which are well edited; and some of the other newspaper essays and pamphlets have been assembled and reprinted in limited editions now out of print. Some of the debates in the State conventions were published in 1827 in a work known as Elliot's Debates, but the editing was crudely done and the texts are unreliable. The second edition of this work (1836) was somewhat enlarged, but there was no improvement in the editing and additional records of debates have since come to light. Only the formal ratification documents have been printed in the two Government publications referred to above.

The Commission believes that a thorough search of contemporary newspapers, magazines, and pamphlets; of published and unpublished State archives; and of published and unpublished correspondence of the period would disclose a large amount of material that would shed new light on the ratification of the Constitution. The assembling and publication of this material, together with the pertinent material in Elliot's Debates, all taken from the original sources and edited in accordance with the canons of modern historical scholarship, would be a valuable service to scholars, lawyers, teachers, and the public generally and would promote a more adequate comprehension of the significance of the Constitution on the part of the American people. The importance of the work of the Federal Convention in framing the Constitution is generally recognized; it is not so well understood, however, that the Convention did not and could not adopt the Constitution in the sense of giving it legal validity. That was done by the people of the several States acting through their elected representatives in the State conventions, and, without the ratifications by these conventions, the work of the Federal Convention would have been in vain. It is obviously important, therefore, in assessing the significance of the Constitution, to know as fully as possible what the people who were responsible for its ratification understood it to mean, why they ratified it, and what forces and issues were involved in the struggle over ratification.

On the basis of the preliminary survey the Commission estimates that six volumes with a total of about four thousand pages would be needed for the publication of the pertinent original material on the ratification of the Constitution and the first ten amendments. It thinks that the material on the first ten amendments should be included because they were proposed in principle by several of the conventions in their documents of ratification, it was understood while the process of ratification was under way that such amendments would be adopted, and they are, therefore, an integral part of the Constitution as originally agreed upon. It would not be necessary, as a rule, to reprint in the proposed work material, such as The Federalist, already conveniently available in print in welledited form. References to such material should be included, however, in the appropriate places; and the last volume should contain a list of all pertinent documents, whether or not included in the work; a comprehensive bibliography of books, pamphlets, articles, and collections of manuscript material relating to the ratification of the Constitution and the first ten amendments; and an analytical index to the entire work.

The total cost of locating, assembling, and editing the material for the proposed work, preparing copy for the printer, and printing and binding a limited edition (with the understanding that the Public Printer would then print additional copies for sale at cost) is estimated at $85,000; and the length of time required for the work is estimated at 3 years. It is believed, however, that, if provision is made for beginning the work not later than July 1, 1936, part of the volumes can be ready for distribution in 1938-the sesquicentennial anniversary of the completion of the ratification of the Constitution by the nine States required to put it in operation.

The Commission recommends, therefore, that Congress authorize and direct the collection, copying, and editing, under the supervision of the National Historical Publications Commission, and the issuance as a Government publication of such papers, documents, and other original materials relating to the ratification of the Constitution of the United States and the first ten amendments thereto as in the opinion of the said National Historical Publications Commission are appropriate for inclusion in such a publication.

Respectfully submitted,

R. D. W. CONNOR, Chairman,

Archivist of the United States. HUNTER MILLER,

Historical Adviser, Department of State.

OLIVER L. SPAULDING,

Chief, Historical Section, Army War College.
DUDLEY W. KNOX,

Superintendent of Naval Records, Navy Department.

J. F. JAMESON,

Chief, Division of Manuscripts, Library of Congress.
ST. GEORGE L. SIOUSSAT,

Member of the American Historical Association.
DUMAS MALONE,

Member of the American Historical Association.

APPENDIX IV

REPORT OF THE NATIONAL DIRECTOR OF THE SURVEY OF FEDERAL ARCHIVES TO THE WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1936.

By act of Congress, approved June 19, 1934 (48 Stat. 1122-1124), provision was made for the establishment of The National Archives. The purposes of this new agency of the Government of the United States, generally stated, are (1) to preserve such relatively inactive records of the Government as are of administrative value or historical interest, and (2) to make these records readily available for use by officials of the Government and others who may be authorized to obtain information from them.

The first Archivist of the United States, Dr. R. D. W. Connor, was appointed on October 10, 1934. For the effective fulfillment of the purposes for which The National Archives had been established it was necessary that he secure information as to the location, the volume, the conditions of storage, and the general content of all archives (i. e., in general, all official records) of all branches and agencies of the Government of the United States. Authority to secure this information had been provided by section 3 of the act establishing The National Archives, which states that the Archivist "shall have full power to inspect personally or by deputy the records of any agency of the United States Government whatsoever and wheresoever located, and shall have the full cooperation of any and all persons in charge of such records in such inspections." The duty of obtaining this information, insofar as the archives within the District of Columbia are concerned, was assigned to the Division of Accessions of The National Archives, and in June 1935 a preliminary survey of such archives was begun by a group of deputy examiners appointed by the Archivist.

ORGANIZATION OF THE SURVEY

Circumstances were such, however, that The National Archives could not itself undertake a survey of archives of the Government of the United States (hereafter referred to as Federal archives) outside the District of Columbia. Fortunately, the Works Progress Administration was making plans for the organization of a group of Nation-wide Federal projects primarily designed to provide useful employment for unemployed and needy persons of the so-called "white-collar" class. The National Archives made application to the WPA for the organization of a project that would have as its purpose the surveying of Federal archives in the 48 States of the Union. This application was approved and, late in 1935, a Presidential Letter authorized the expenditure of $1,176.000 for the project during a 6-month period ending June 30, 1936. To serve as National Direc

tor of this "Survey of Federal Archives" the Archivist recommended Dr. Philip M. Hamer, deputy examiner in the Division of Accessions of The National Archives, and on January 1, 1936. Dr. Hamer was given leave of absence from The National Archives and appointed to the staff of the WPA. A committee from the staff of The National Archives was appointed by the Archivist to serve in an advisory capacity. This committee consisted of Mr. Dorsey W. Hyde, Jr., Director of Archival Service, Mr. Marcus W. Price, Assistant Director of Archival Service, and Dr. Solon J. Buck, Director of Publications.

While the National Director had given some preliminary consideration to problems of the Survey late in December, nothing had been done other than (1) to formulate certain general ideas as to the manner in which the Survey should be conducted, with particular reference to the information that should be sought, and (2) to examine applications of individuals for positions with The National Archives, with a view to the selection therefrom of persons who could be offered local direction of the Survey. It was apparent that it would be necessary (1) to plan the organization of the Survey as a unit of the WPA so that it might work in harmony with the administrative organization and the purposes of that agency, (2) to develop the Washington office of the Survey for the purpose of undertaking effective planning for and direction of the work outside the District of Columbia toward the achievement of the ends desired by The National Archives, and (3) to select the best qualified persons available to undertake direction of the Survey in the 48 States according to plans prepared in the Washington office. It was kept constantly in mind that the Survey was expected to complete its work by June 30, 1936, and that, accordingly, every effort must be made to get work started in the States at the earliest possible moment.

The first work of the National Director was the preparation of a notice setting forth the organization and a description of the project. With the assistance of members of the WPA staff who were familiar with the procedure of that organization, this was completed within a few days, approved by the proper officials, and issued in mimeographed form under date of January 17, 1936, to State administrators and others who would be concerned with the administration of the project. By this notice the Survey was designated as WPA Sponsored Federal Project No. 4, with The National Archives as cooperating sponsor, and was entitled "Survey of Archives of the Federal Government outside the District of Columbia", or, by brief title, "Survey of Federal Archives." Its purpose was stated to be "to ascertain the exact location, the volume, and the conditions of storage of such archives, to identify them as regards their contents, and to furnish other information which may be of assistance in the formulation of recommendations designed to insure their safe preservation and to facilitate their use by officials and students." Supervision of the Survey was placed in the hands of a National Director and a staff of regional directors to be appointed on his recommendation for such regions as he might designate. Provision was made for the operation of the Survey in accordance with a manual of instructions to be issued later by the National Director.

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Headquarters for the Washington office of the Survey of Federal Archives were established in the National Archives Building. On January 16, 1936, Dr. Theodore R. Schellenberg, deputy examiner in The National Archives, was appointed Associate National Director; Mr. Herbert E. Day was appointed business manager; and Miss Paula M. Jenkins was appointed secretary to the National Director. On January 17, Dr. Henry P. Beers was added to the staff as research assistant. Subsequently other additions were made to the professional staff: On February 3, Dr. Erik Achorn as special assistant; on February 17, Miss Elizabeth Edwards as research assistant; on March 2, Dr. Coralie Parker as research assistant; and on April 16, Dr. G. Philip Bauer as research assistant. On March 24, Mr. Carl Louis Gregory was appointed special assistant in charge of collections of motion pictures, other photographic records, and sound recordings. Stenographers and clerks were added as needed. On June 30, 1936, 26 persons were employed in the Washington office.

MANUAL OF THE SURVEY

Before work could begin in the States it was necessary to prepare detailed instructions for the organization and conduct of the Survey and to devise forms upon which could be reported the information obtained by field workers. By January 28, the Manual of the Survey of Federal Archives had been completed by the National Director and the Associate National Director and sent to the WPA office. Approved by officials there, it was mimeographed for distribution to regional directors and members of their staffs.

In the preparation of the Manual an attempt was made to foresee the problems that workers would face, to instruct them carefully regarding the solution of these problems, and to answer in advance such questions regarding the work as they would be likely to ask. It was kept constantly in mind that the great majority of workers on the Survey would be untrained persons to whom even the word "archives" would at first convey no clear meaning, and every attempt was made to make the instructions in the Manual perfectly clear and to require of workers no more than could reasonably be expected.

The Manual could not have been produced as it was had it not been for the experience of members of the National Archives staff, particularly the deputy examiners, during the preceding 6 months. Detailed plans for its production were discussed with the Director of Archival Service and the deputy examiners, and the first draft was submitted to them for criticisms and suggestions.

The Manual describes the general purposes of the Survey and defines its scope. It outlines the organization of the Survey and describes in detail the duties of each person on its staff. This organization consists of (1) the National Director and his assistants, (2) regional directors appointed by and immediately responsible to the National Director, (3) project superintendents selected by and immediately responsible to the regional directors for the work of the Survey in certain cities or districts, and (4) local field workers by whom, under direction of the above, most of the work of surveying is done.

The Manual contains also copies of the forms to be used in reporting the results of the surveying and detailed instructions for filling out