Abstracts of the Will records have been published but otherwise
none of the probate group has been treated in detail. The several
series were accounted for in the Catalogue published by the Hall of
Records Commission several years ago, but the usefulness of such a
work is, of course, extremely limited.

First drafts of these studies were prepared by the authors several
years ago as term papers for the course in Archival Administration
offered by American University and the National Archives under
the direction of Dr. Ernst Posner. Since that time they have been,
expanded and thoroughly revised. The authors, Dr. Elisabeth Hart-
sook, Senior Archival Assistant at the Hall of Records and Gust
Skordas, Assistant Archivist, have applied themselves to their diffi-
cult and tedious tasks with exceptional perseverance and under-
standing. Doubtless they will have omitted details or committed
minor errors but this is to be expected in pioneering efforts of this
kind. That their work is fundamentally sound does not seem subject
to doubt.

In addition to the two lists of records the reader will find ex-
tremely valuable the historico-legal introductions which precede. A
single index for both studies has also been provided.

MORRIS L. RADOFF,
Archivist.

Annapolis,
June 28, 1946.