Anyway, I recall his telling me about the old canal locks in front of his house—long since inundated by the dam built largely on what used to be their property. These canal lock ruins clearly demonstrated the relationship of past events to the present—and of the usefulness of being able to interpret such relevance. Even submerged, they are mute evidence of a dream of mass transportation—movement of Loudoun County produce to the Potomac. This dream was a bubble pricked by the unexpectedly rapid growth of the railroads. The local railroad, in turn, has given way to the equally unexpected rapid growth of road transportation, which has not only brought this rural region into the suburban circle of the nearby metropolis, but has actually brought about the appearance within the county of the major metropolitan terminus for a still newer means of mass transportation—and of course I am speaking of Dulles Airport. This is only one of the many manifestations of the fact that history is certainly sweeping Loudoun County into the Eastern Seaboard Megalopolis. This historical fact has great relevance and use to this county—and I should think poses a challenge to this Historical Society. I am sure the county must have some plans for coping with this historical fact, and I imagine that this Society has probably done much thinking about its role in these plans. But let me mention anyhow, at the risk of telling you things you have already thought of, how I visualize using history for planning purposes in Loudoun County right now. I understand that Fairfax County has recently begun to prepare to identify its historical landmarks. There are several reasons for such identification, particularly to permit the county to preserve the essentials of its past history, as embodied in places, objects and memories, while still participating in present history. I would hope that Loudoun County has done, or will do, the same, relying upon this Society for advice and counsel. I should like to spend the next few minutes in telling you about some examples of practical use of history by an organization created for the specific purpose of making use of history. This is the Historical Evaluation and Research Organization—which we modestly call HERO. HERO is dedicated to stimulating improved use of historical experience—as well as improved use of the professional historians who are most competent to marshal and to evaluate historical experience—in the development of national security policy.