Measure of Despair: the Syndicate for Commerce and Industry,the London Tribune,and German Foreign Policy, 1906–8

Based on fresh archival sources in Germany and Britain, this article offers new insight into the mindest of the German Foreign Ministry in the aftermath of the First Morocco Crisis of 1905/06. Eager to arrest the deterioration in the Anglo-German relationship and concerned about its fallout for US-German relations, the German Foreign Ministry, in league with twenty of the country's top financiers, took a radical initiative which resulted in Germany's largest expenditure, before the First World War, on influencing the press. The article closes with a transnational comparison, detailing a similar influence-buying scheme masterminded by a high-level British political wire-puller.     

Representation in Congress and the Executive: Rethinking the Perspectives of James Madison

This article contributes to the development of a "revised" interpretation of James Madison's views on representation. I suggest that Madison's approach to representation is more complex than has been recognized. Specifically, Madison believed different "styles" of representation are necessary for the House, Senate, and President because of the unique functions served by each institution. "Style" refers both to the nature of the representative-constituency relationship (the "role" of the representative) and the character of the individual most likely to be selected as representative. In Madison's scheme, the proper functioning of each institution is guaranteed only if the method of selection insures the appropriate role is maintained and persons of proper character are selected. Throughout the essay, I note significant differences between the arguments which Madison put forward in the Constitutional Convention and those he defended in the Federalist essays.     

Organisational Needs and Priorities of Heritage Areas in the USA

Academics and practitioners alike know relatively little about the core competencies that are transferable from one heritage-area initiative to another. Often those new to the field have had to look to consultants or peers for advice regarding the essential core competencies needed to make their emerging organisations a success.This research surveyed the executive directors of the known universe of 154 heritage areas in the USA for the purposes of identifying the essential core skills they feel are needed to create and sustain a multi-jurisdictional heritage-tourism initiative. In addition, the importance-performance methodology employed in the survey instrument made it possible to assess their critical needs and priorities for training. Results of this study contributed to the design of the Heritage Development Institute, recently created to serve the executive staff of the nation's heritage areas at the College of Charleston on behalf of the Alliance of National Heritage Areas (www.cofc.edu/~heritage).     

‘It was a bit like the passover’: recollections of family mealtimes during twentieth century Irish childhoods

The article presents an in-depth qualitative analysis of experiences of childhood mealtimes amongst three cohorts of Irish people in different historical periods during the twentieth century. By analysing family mealtimes during respondents' childhoods, the article sheds light on change and continuity to family practices throughout twentieth century Ireland. The analysis shows that patterns of family eating respond to changes in the economy and employment patterns, technological innovation, as well as to shifting family arrangements and structures. But the popular idea that the family meal is in terminal decline is disputed: tendencies towards fragmentation of family mealtimes often meet counter-tendencies. These accounts are important as they problematize normative assumptions about the pivotal role shared family meals play in supporting family life.     

‘She's always the person with a very global vision’: The Gender Dynamics of Migration,Narrative Interpretation and the Case of Jamaican Transnational Families

Migration and gender are two areas in which oral history and life story evidence has been recognised as having a special potential. The article begins with a review of social and historical research on migration, indicating that there has been a surprising lack of in‐depth research published on gender in migration. It then looks at the contribution of oral historians to this literature, and suggests that the focus on narrative styles may not always help us to understand the gender dynamics of migration. Next it presents a case study of Jamaican families who migrated to Britain and North America, showing how women were as often autonomous migrants as men, and that some women, unlike men, were activators of multiple family migration. In conclusion, it argues for more comparative research, using a broader methodological approach.     

Laser scanning for conservation and research of African cultural heritage sites: the case study of Wonderwerk Cave,South Africa

The ‘African Cultural Heritage and Landscape Database’ project, initiated and directed by the senior author and administered by Aluka (www.aluka.org), is aimed at the creation of a digital library of spatial and non-spatial materials relating to cultural heritage sites in Africa. The archaeological site of Wonderwerk Cave (South Africa) is one of the 19 sites documented to date using laser scanning, conventional survey, digital photogrammetry and 3D modelling. To date, it is one of the few archaeological caves worldwide to be fully scanned. This paper explores the different uses to which the spatial data derived from this cave have been, or will be, put – for historical and educational purposes, scientific research and site conservation and development.