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Subject: A Plea for Full Disclosure
Date:   Fri, 12 Aug 2005
To:     [log in to unmask], [log in to unmask],
[log in to unmask]

[NB: The following are my personal opinions and do not necessarily
reflect those of the Newberry Library, its officers or trustees.]


The case against Mr. Smiley has resulted in unusually wide-spread and
thorough press coverage, probably because it combines a high-profile
dealer (in contrast to the bland Mr. Bland), major libraries in the USA
and abroad, and materials with very high price tags.  As is usual in
these cases, some institutions have been more forthcoming than others.
The arguments for saying little or nothing are pretty obvious:  dont
give the institution a bad name, dont discourage would-be donors by
suggesting that the collections theyve worked hard to form will not be
safe inside your doors, dont call attention to your security lapses lest
someone else think you an easy target.  An argument has been made for
not divulging the identity of items suspected of having been stolen
because said items, if in the hands of other dealers or collectors will
go underground,a view that is not very flattering to dealers or collectors.



I would like to make a plea for the fullest possible disclosure of
information by institutions, dealers, and collectors of missing
materials, materials known to have been used by Mr. Smiley, and
materials acquired from Mr. Smiley.  Only when all this news is out
there will we begin to be able to connect the dots and, begin the
process of returning maps to their rightful owners, obtaining redress
for fraudulent sales, and restoring the sense of civility, fairness, and
integrity that characterizes most transactions in the antiquarian map world.



Full disclosure will be embarrassing, perhaps highly embarrassing for
institutions and individuals, but in our hearts we all know that the
world of antiquarian dealers, libraries and collectors, like the larger
world of scholarship to which it directly contributes, is a world
ultimately sustained by trust.  We must begin now to restore that trust
by telling what we know when we know it and letting the chips fall where
they may.  It seems to me that in this current case there is a
better-than-usual chance that the outcome will be positive.  The high
degree of public awareness of this investigation could result in the
kind of severe punishment that would send a message that the raping of
our common cultural heritage will be taken seriously.

Robert W. Karrow, Jr..
Curator of Special Collections and Curator of Maps,
Roger & Julie Baskes Department of Special Collections
The Newberry Library
60 W. Walton Street
Chicago, Illinois 60610-7324
Tel: 312-255-3554
FAX: 312-255-3646
E-Mail: [log in to unmask]

*www.newberry.org <http://www.newberry.org/>
*For a partial catalog of our cartographic holdings, see
*www.biblioserver.com/newberry* <http://www.biblioserver.com/newberry>


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