[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 77 (Monday, June 19, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H4597-H4600]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 ABRAHAM LINCOLN INTERPRETATIVE CENTER

  Mr. SOUDER. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 3084) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 
contribute funds for the establishment of an interpretative center on 
the life and contributions of President Abraham Lincoln, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 3084

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. CONTRIBUTIONS TOWARD ESTABLISHMENT OF ABRAHAM 
                   LINCOLN INTERPRETIVE CENTER.

       (a) Grants Authorized.--Subject to subsections (b) and (c), 
     the Secretary of the Interior shall make grants to contribute 
     funds for the establishment in Springfield, Illinois, of an 
     interpretive center to preserve and make available to the 
     public materials related to the life of President Abraham 
     Lincoln and to provide interpretive and educational services 
     which communicate the meaning of the life of Abraham Lincoln.
       (b) Plan and Design.--
       (1) Submission.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the entity selected by the Secretary 
     of the Interior to receive grants under subsection (a) shall 
     submit to the Secretary a plan and design for the 
     interpretive center, including a description of the 
     following:
       (A) The design of the facility and site.
       (B) The method of acquisition.
       (C) The estimated cost of acquisition, construction, 
     operation, and maintenance.
       (D) The manner and extent to which non-Federal entities 
     will participate in the acquisition, construction, operation, 
     and maintenance of the center.
       (2) Consultation and cooperation.--The plan and design for 
     the interpretive center shall be prepared in consultation 
     with the Secretary of the Interior and the Governor of 
     Illinois and in cooperation with such other public, 
     municipal, and private entities as the Secretary considers 
     appropriate.
       (c) Conditions on Grant.--
       (1) Matching requirement.--A grant under subsection (a) may 
     not be made until such time as the entity selected to receive 
     the grant certifies to the Secretary of the Interior that 
     funds

[[Page H4598]]

     have been contributed by the State of Illinois or raised from 
     non-Federal sources for use to establish the interpretive 
     center in an amount equal to at least double the amount of 
     that grant.
       (2) Relation to other lincoln-related sites and museums.--
     The Secretary of the Interior shall further condition the 
     grant under subsection (a) on the agreement of the grant 
     recipient to operate the resulting interpretive center in 
     cooperation with other Federal and non-Federal historic 
     sites, parks, and museums that represent significant 
     locations or events in the life of Abraham Lincoln. 
     Cooperative efforts to promote and interpret the life of 
     Abraham Lincoln may include the use of cooperative 
     agreements, cross references, cross promotion, and shared 
     exhibits.
       (d) Prohibition on Contribution of Operating Funds.--Grant 
     amounts may not be used for the maintenance or operation of 
     the interpretive center.
       (e) Non-Federal Operation.--The Secretary of Interior shall 
     have no involvement in the actual operation of the 
     interpretive center, except at the request of the non-Federal 
     entity responsible for the operation of the center.
       (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to the Secretary of the Interior a total 
     of $50,000,000 to make grants under subsection (a). Amounts 
     so appropriated shall remain available for expenditure 
     through fiscal year 2006.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Indiana (Mr. Souder) and the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands (Mrs. 
Christensen) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Souder).


                             General Leave

  Mr. SOUDER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 3084.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Indiana?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SOUDER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3084, as amended, introduced 
by the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Shimkus). This bill authorizes the 
Secretary of Interior to contribute up to $50 million in matching funds 
for the construction of an Abraham Lincoln Interpretative Center. H.R. 
3084 assures that every dollar of Federal contribution must be matched 
by at least $2 from the non-Federal side.
  The center would consist of a museum and an archive library which 
would house the world's largest collection of Lincoln material. H.R. 
3084 allows 18 months from the time of enactment for the entity 
selected by the Secretary of Interior to submit the design, method of 
acquisition, and estimated cost of the center.

                              {time}  1415

  The selected entity is also responsible for describing the manner and 
role that non-Federal entities will participate for this center.
  Madam Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 3084, as 
amended.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mrs. CHRISTENSEN asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
her remarks.)
  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Madam Speaker, H.R. 3084 authorizes the Secretary 
of the Interior to make available $50 million in grants as a 
contribution of funds for the establishment of an interpretive center 
on the life and contributions of President Abraham Lincoln.
  The center is to be operated by a non-Federal entity, which would 
have to submit to the Secretary a plan and design for the interpretive 
center within 18 months of enactment. The legislation specifies that 
Federal funds would have to be matched on the basis of at least double 
the amount of any grant made by the Secretary. The bill also specifies 
that no grant funds may be used for maintenance or operation of the 
interpretive center, and that the Secretary would have no involvement 
in the operation of the center except at the request of the non-Federal 
entity.
  We are all aware of the important role President Lincoln has had in 
American history. That role has been honored in five national park 
system units alone. H.R. 3084 would expand on that recognition by 
making funds available for a new interpretive center to be built by 
State and local entities in Springfield, Illinois.
  There appears to be significant interest in such an interpretive 
center, and we have no objection to the legislation.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SOUDER. Madam Speaker, I yield 6 minutes to the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Shimkus), who has been a tireless leader in this effort; 
along with the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood); our speaker in the 
chair today, the gentlewoman from Illinois (Mrs. Biggert); and the 
Speaker of the House, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hastert). And 
many of us from Kentucky are also happy to support the efforts of those 
from Illinois, but I thank this gentleman for his leadership.
  Mr. SHIMKUS. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague, the gentleman from 
Indiana (Mr. Souder), for yielding me this time, and I too am excited 
about this opportunity.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3084, legislation that 
would authorize the establishment of an interpretive center on the life 
and contributions of President Abraham Lincoln. This is a project I 
have been working on, with my colleagues from Illinois, for the last 2 
years. And I want to particularly also thank all my colleagues on the 
committee, along with my colleague who shares the City of Springfield, 
the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. LaHood); and the Speaker of the House, 
the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hastert), who have been very helpful 
in pushing this forward.
  As my colleagues know, the entire Illinois delegation is also as 
supportive of H.R. 3084. In the House, my legislation has all 19 
Members of the Illinois delegation as cosponsors. The companion 
legislation in the Senate has the solid support of both our Senators, 
Senator Dick Durbin and Senator Peter Fitzgerald. Back home in 
Springfield, this legislation has the full support of both the City of 
Springfield, in which this project will be located, and that of the 
governor of the State of Illinois, George Ryan.
  In fact, the State of Illinois has already appropriated $10 million 
and in the very near future will appropriate an additional $40 million 
for the project. In addition, the City of Springfield has committed $10 
million for this project through local tax incentives.
  With an eye towards fiscal integrity, we have placed a matching 
requirement in this legislation, which ensures that the Federal 
Government is only responsible for funding one-third of the entire 
project's cost. The remaining two-thirds is required to come from 
State, local, and private organizations.
  We have also clearly stated in the legislation that Federal funds may 
not be used to operate this facility. We view this project as a one-
time expenditure to the Federal Government, not a long-term funding 
initiative that needs continual funding year after year. Mr. Speaker, 
the bill authorizes $50 million for the project and makes these funds 
available for expenditure through 2006.
  Abraham Lincoln's name is familiar to people all over the world. More 
than 100 nations have honored him through the issuance of stamps, 
bringing his name to millions of people and keeping his memory and 
message alive.
  It is very common for many of us, especially in the State of Illinois 
and the surrounding States, to attend annual Lincoln Day dinners, 
whether they are dinners or lunches. In fact, I counted 15 that I had 
celebrating the birth of Abraham Lincoln from January through April. 
And many times, when we get a chance to reminisce on President Abraham 
Lincoln, we almost raise him up to a deity status, and we do that in an 
attempt not to forget history. It is very important to remember 
history.
  I did that in my last year's worth of speeches, talking about Abraham 
Lincoln and how he secured America's future by preserving the union and 
by freeing the slaves. But I want to focus on a column written by 
Clarence Page from the Chicago Tribune, and I will be submitting this 
for the Record.
  In his column Mr. Page mentions that there are still naysayers. 
Lerone Bennett, Jr., is one, in his book ``Forced Into Glory: Abraham 
Lincoln's White Dream.'' At the end of the column, however, Clarence 
Page writes, ``Like Thomas Jefferson and other heroic figures in 
American history, Lincoln set a higher standard for human brotherhood 
and sisterhood than even he was able to meet. Still, we can admire 
Lincoln, as I still do, inasmuch as

[[Page H4599]]

he set that high standard during his better moments and acted on it. 
Lincoln is important, not only to Americans, but around the world, as a 
symbol of how an ordinary man from very humble beginnings can rise to 
high office and lead his country through its worst crisis and all-out 
war against itself. If he was `forced into glory' against his will or 
not, he has worn the glory remarkably well.''
  Mr. Page's column really emphasizes why we need the Lincoln Library. 
We need it to remember the past. And we need to remember that Abraham 
Lincoln was not a God, but he was an average person called upon at a 
very historical time in our history. We need to focus on the fact that 
with all his foibles, he rose to the challenge.
  And not only in remembering Abraham Lincoln, but we need the Library 
to bring our documents together so that future scholars and, more 
importantly, the children, who are trying to get a grasp of this 
history, the Abraham Lincolns of the future, the Thomas Jeffersons of 
the future, the Douglas MacArthurs of the future, that they can see how 
America becomes great. America becomes great because the average men 
and women of this Nation, the average Joes on the battlefield who win 
the wars, those who wax philosophically and win the debates on the 
floor, who pass monumental legislation, that all these people come from 
the homes of the average citizens of this country. We need to continue 
to inspire our children so that they too can rise up and be the great 
leaders of this Nation.
  Madam Speaker, I applaud the chairman of the committee, the gentleman 
from Alaska (Mr. Young), for allowing this legislation to move forward. 
I think it is in the best interest of our Nation and our children.
  Madam Speaker, I submit the article referred to above hereafter:

                [From the Chicago Tribune, May 31, 2000]

        Was He or Wasn't He?--Deflating Lincoln to a Human Scale

       Washington.--Abraham Lincoln was the humbly born, self-
     educated ``Honest Abe,'' the Great Emancipator who freed the 
     slaves in America.
       Abraham Lincoln was a white supremacist, who said whatever 
     the crowd wanted to hear, freed hardly any slaves, used the 
     ``N-word'' frequently and, if he had his druthers, would have 
     sent all blacks back to Africa.
       Pick the history you prefer. Lerone Bennett Jr., prefers 
     the second interpretation of Lincoln and elaborates on it in 
     a 652-page assault, ``Forced Into Glory: Abraham Lincoln's 
     White Dream.''
       With the Confederate battle flag re-emerging these days as 
     a lightning rod of controversy across the South (Is it a 
     symbol of racism or a benign tribute to southern heritage?), 
     Bennett, author, editor and acclaimed historian at Ebony 
     magazine, could hardly have picked a better time to question 
     another enduring symbol of the Civil War, Lincoln.
       Bennett is not quite successful in his effort to convince 
     us that Lincoln was an unrepentant white supremacist or that 
     the Emancipation Proclamation was a ``ploy'' designed to 
     perpetuate slavery rather than extinguish it.
       But Bennett effectively instructs a broader audience in 
     what Lincoln scholars have known all along, that Lincoln did 
     not really free the slaves as commonly believed. He also was 
     a more complicated man than the catchy slogans like Honest 
     Abe and the Great Emancipator adequately describe.
       The Emancipation Proclamation, Bennett pints out, did not 
     free any slaves because it applied only to areas outside 
     Union control. As an Illinois legislator and congressman 
     before the Civil War, legislator and congressman before the 
     Civil War, Lincoln actually opposed abolitionists. He 
     supported the Fugitive Slave Act and supported Illinois' 
     laws barring blacks from voting, serving on juries, 
     holding office and intermarrying with whites.
       Lincoln refused to free and arm slaves. He delivered anti-
     slavery speeches in northern Illinois and pro-slavery 
     speeches in southern Illinois. Those who knew him well said 
     he enjoyed minstrel shows, used the N-word in private 
     conversations and sometimes in speeches.
       Bennett's been here before. His 1968 Ebony article ``Was 
     Abe Lincoln a white supremacist?'' sent ripples across the 
     academic and cultural world of that politically volatile era. 
     Much of this has been written about by other scholars. 
     Bennett is not an academic historian. Yet his article, like 
     his classic work ``Before the Mayflower,'' brought scholarly 
     research to a broad audience and changed the national 
     conversation about the early history of African-Americans, 
     even among scholars.
       As a descendant of African-American slaves, I appreciate 
     Bennett's critique, for the insights it offers--not just on 
     Lincoln but on those of us who admire and respect the impact 
     he had on my family and millions of others of all races.
       Since I don't know what was in Lincoln's heart, I have to 
     judge him by his actions. Whether he intended to free the 
     slaves or not, his actions served to have that effect over 
     time.
       He may not have been the Great Emancipator but he helped to 
     emancipate.
       Yes, as Bennett describes, Lincoln did allow the four slave 
     states that remained in the Union to dictate his policy 
     toward slavery. But, can anyone familiar with geography blame 
     Lincoln for wanting to avoid secession by Maryland and 
     Delaware? It would have left the District of Columbia 
     surrounded by hostile states, which would not have been a 
     happy situation.
       The Emancipation Proclamation did not free many slaves, but 
     it gave the Civil War a moral purpose that fended off 
     potential foreign allies to the South and set a new course 
     for American history.
       Lincoln may have supported ``colonization'' of black slaves 
     to Africa, but he was hardly alone, either among white or 
     black leaders of the time. Yet, the proclamation 
     repudiated colonization, in so many words and enabled the 
     first large-scale enlistment of black soldiers in the 
     Union army.
       Once he issued the proclamation. Lincoln no longer could 
     waffle on the slavery issue. His role as ``emancipator'' was 
     assured and he did nothing to discourage it.
       Lincoln held off radical Republicans who wanted him to 
     further, but he also fended off reactionaries who wanted him 
     to move backward, to modify his proclamation or abandon it 
     altogether.
       If Bennett overdoes his assault on Lincoln, it hardly 
     matches the overzealous ways in which ol' Abe has been almost 
     canonized over the years.
       Like Thomas Jefferson and other heroic figures of American 
     history, Lincoln set a higher standard for human brotherhood 
     and sisterhood than even he was able to meet.
       Still, we can admire Lincoln, as I still do, inasmuch as he 
     set that high standard during his better moments and acted on 
     it.
       Lincoln is important, not only to Americans but around the 
     world, as a symbol of how an ordinary man from very humble 
     beginnings can rise to high office and lead his country 
     through its worst crisis, an all-out war against itself.
       If he was ``forced into glory'' against his will or not, he 
     has worn the glory remarkably well.

  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SOUDER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I said earlier that I was very excited to see this bill move forward, 
but there were a number of questions that I had as we first brought 
this up in the Subcommittee on National Parks and Public Lands and the 
Committee on Resources, which I believe have been very adequately 
addressed.
  Any American who follows Abraham Lincoln realizes that he is a legend 
not only to Illinois but to many other States, and he has historic 
sites around the country. I do not think there is a young boy in 
America or a young girl in America who has not heard the story of 
Abraham Lincoln reading by the firelight and being told by our parents 
that we should be very appreciative of our life-styles, and how hard he 
worked, and worked all day, and then read by the light of his fire. 
Presumably he had very thick glasses, if they had been there at the 
time, because he was so committed to that. It inspired many young 
people, including myself. I have been a Lincoln fan most of my life, 
have 15 to 20 books of Lincoln that I have read; and I think many 
Americans have taken that inspiration.
  When we walk through our capitol building or around the Nation's 
capital, we see many Lincoln sites. The Gettysburg address is arguably, 
along with the Declaration of Independence, is the most known and most 
moving document. This book by Gary Wills is a tremendous book, talking 
about, for example, the fact that it is amazing that an address this 
important, referring to the Gettysburg address, and one that most of us 
know and is so concise, at the same time the Gettysburg address does 
not mention Gettysburg, it does not mention slavery, it does not 
mention the union, and it does not mention the South. Yet he managed to 
communicate his points in a moving way that still moves Americans 
today.
  He was a tremendous writer, in addition to being a person who could 
unify and keep our country together. This capitol building would be 
rent apart if we had not had a mild mannered man from the Midwest who 
listened to the people, and spent much of his life listening, to try to 
somehow keep a very divided North together, let alone manage his way 
through the Civil War.
  I say all that because this site could have been in Kentucky, a 
national

[[Page H4600]]

presidential library. That is where he was born. It could have been in 
Indiana. We have a national Lincoln boyhood site in southern Indiana. 
We in Indiana like to say that Indiana made Lincoln and Lincoln made 
Illinois. It also could be at Gettysburg, where he delivered this 
address and where we have just taken sites into Federal possession, in 
the Wills House, the cemetery where he gave the address. We have Ford 
Theater as a national site.
  But the fact is the first question is why Springfield. There are many 
more Lincoln sites in Springfield than anywhere else in the country, 
and I want to make sure the Record notes these. They have the Lincoln 
Home National Historic Site, where he and Mary Todd Lincoln lived. The 
Lincoln-Herndon Law Offices. They have the Lincoln tomb. The Lincoln 
Depot, where he left Springfield for Washington, D.C., which is still 
preserved. They have the Lincoln log cabin, where his father and 
stepmother lived. They have the Lincoln ledger, his financial records. 
The old State capitol where he served as a State legislator and 
delivered his famous house divided speech. They also have outside of 
Springfield and New Salem a recreation of a village of his time period.
  There is no question that Springfield has more historic sites related 
to Lincoln than anywhere else in the country. They also, through the 
Henry Horner Collection that was given to the Illinois State Historical 
Society, have 1,500 documents that were either handwritten by Lincoln 
or were signed by Lincoln, in addition to all sorts of broadsides, 
prints and photographs, including the earliest known photo of Lincoln, 
taken in 1846, and the only known photo lying in state.
  So, clearly, they have more documents, more photos, more actual 
buildings related to Lincoln than anywhere else in the country. They 
have Edward Everett's copy of his manuscript, handwritten out for him. 
They have the handwritten speech of the second inaugural address with 
the famous ``with malice toward none, with charity for all.''
  I think there is a compelling case that, a, we need a national 
Lincoln museum and library, and that Springfield should be the center. 
One amendment that we had in committee, and I think is important as we 
work with the National Park Service on things like the Lewis and Clark 
trip to the West where we have many historic sites and where we have 
other underground railroad sites; as we work together it is important 
that a national museum, while it will focus on his Illinois years, 
because that is where most of the documents are, that it will also 
interrelate with the other Lincoln sites around the country. So as we 
see this boom in heritage tourism, as many young Americans and adult 
Americans try to learn more about their history, that they can go to 
one site and at that site be referred to other sites around the country 
that also bring out that heritage.

                              {time}  1430

  I am excited about the efforts of the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. 
Shimkus). I hope this also will continue to be funded through the 
appropriations process, and I am glad that we can move this bill forth.
  Mr. LaHood. Mr. Speaker, and the members of the House of 
Representatives, I want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to 
submit my testimony on an issue that is very important to me, and to 
the 18th District of Illinois--authorization of the Abraham Lincoln 
Presidential Library.
  A panel of world-famous historians recently voted Abraham Lincoln as 
the greatest American President. This comes as no surprise to those of 
us from the Land of Lincoln. For decades, people from all over the 
world have come to Illinois to learn about our 16th President, and to 
be inspired by his life and words. Lincoln's story is the 
quintessential American success story. In Lincoln, we have a man born 
into the most humble of circumstances overcoming hardship and repeated 
failures, through his own hard work and dedication, to emerge as one of 
the three most written about individuals in human history.
  But even though Lincoln is considered by the world to be one of the 
nation's greatest leaders, there is no single location where the 
Lincoln story can be told. There are sites that interpret his pioneer 
days, has legal and political careers, his home life, and even his 
death. But there is not a facility dedicated to interpreting Abraham 
Lincoln's legacy and relevance to contemporary generations.
  Arthur Schlesinger, Jr., one of the nation's most respected 
historians, recently termed it a ``tragedy'' that Abraham Lincoln does 
not have a Presidential Library.
  The State of Illinois has the world's largest Lincoln collection--
some 46,000 items so rare and valuable that the collection exceeds the 
combined Lincoln holdings of the National Park Service, the National 
Archives, and the Smithsonian Institution. Some of our nation's most 
significant artifacts are a part of that collection: five copies of The 
Gettysburg Address, which sets the stage for our nation's history after 
Civil War; the only signed copy of The Emancipation Proclamation, which 
echoed Lincoln's strong feelings against human bondage; and the only 
copy of Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address, which, while advocating 
malice toward none and charity for all, predicted benevolent policies 
for post war recovery. The Illinois collection also includes such 
diverse artifacts as Tad Lincoln's toy cannon, Mary Lincoln's wedding 
skirt, and the nameplate from the front door of Lincoln's Springfield 
house--treasures that belong to all Americans.
  But, few of you have ever seen these items, and there is a reason for 
that. The State of Illinois has no adequate facilities to appropriately 
display and interpret these items. They are kept locked in a vault 
beneath the old State Capitol in downtown Springfield, to be brought 
out only for important research or the occasional exhibit at another 
location.
  Abraham Lincoln's example of sacrifice for his ideals should not be 
kept locked behind a vault door. Lincoln's message of freedom and 
democracy should not be kept in obscurity in the basement of a 
building. The life of America's greatest President should not be hidden 
away from all but a select few.
  The proposed Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library will be a beacon of 
freedom for the entire world. Anyone enjoying the benefits of 
democracy, and those who yearn to enjoy those benefits, will want to 
come to this new facility. The world looks to Abraham Lincoln as the 
highest example of freedom in a nation founded on that concept, and the 
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library will give the world a place to 
learn about, and be inspired by, that example.
  Abraham Lincoln's message is especially relevant today, as the 
world's changing political situation has people searching for a 
champion of freedom and equality. We have that champion. He is an 
American who kept the United States united and demonstrated to the 
world that democratic ideals were not a mere abstraction, but a living 
reality. He is a human being who brought dignity to all human beings.
  He is a martyr who died for his beliefs. He makes us proud to be 
Americans. Now, it's time to return the favor.
  Abraham Lincoln's legacy belongs to all generations. His appeal 
transcends age, race, gender, class and partisan boundaries. He is one 
of our greatest Presidents and deserves this long overdue facility in 
his honor. It will be located in Springfield, Illinois, but it will be 
open to the world. Let's keep Lincoln's torch of freedom burning for 
all people. Let's help fund the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library.
  Mr. SOUDER. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Biggert). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Souder) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3084, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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