ABSTRACT
I am about to engage in some speculation which, so far as I know, is all one can finally do with the problem I am about to discuss. Perhaps there are historians of the era who know relevant details of which I am unaware that could be brought to bear on the issue. I certainly do not claim any special expertise and think of myself only as an interested observer trying to make sense out of something that has struck a number of people as unusual. It might be said that I will attempt to persuade you of some things as we go along, but I have no illusions that I will be offering any proofs or in any other way settling the issue I address. As unanchored as my speculations might be, I am nevertheless hoping that there would still be value to the exercise itself. I am hoping, in other words, that some general questions of interest would arise from what follows even if the topic seems at first narrowly construed.
